Suddenly It's Spring

Paulette Goddard (Mary) returns home at the end of WW2 to find her husband Fred MacMurray (Peter) waiting for her to sign divorce papers. Goddard suggested the divorce but now she's not so keen and wants to hold on to Fred. He's not too keen, though, and has another woman - Arleen Whelan (Gloria). The film runs to its obvious conclusion with not many laughs despite being a comedy.

You can afford to fall asleep during this one - I did three times. It's just not funny and the story has no momentum. It is also not very interesting and very unrealistic. There is one standout scene when the two women trade insults at a nightclub/restaurant venue. That is pretty funny. Outside of that, I'm afraid it's a bit of a struggle to keep interested.

Fred MacMurray and Paulette Goddard made this 1947 film for Paramount which marked their fourth and final picture together. Having appeared together in earlier classics like STANDING ROOM ONLY, THE FOREST RANGERS and ON OUR MERRY WAY [although they didn't perform together in this all star cast].

Paulette comes home from serving as an army officer to find her lawyer husband [MacMurray] wants a divorce. She refuses, and prospective spouses [Macdonal Carey and Arleen Whelan] complicate the couple's situation. Unfortunately a bad script with a worn out subject, didn't help the stars make this a winner. Although both Goddard and MacMurray were at their top form. The supporting cast just didn't have the ability for comedy to keep up with the stars.

This is surprising as Mitchell Leisen [who directed Paulette in one of her outstanding films, KITTY] didn't make much happen in this. I guess it's a matter of the studio assigning a picture and the stars obligated to film it. There is one plus side to this film. The pin-up artist of the time, Vargas, did a stunning full portrait of Paulette. It was used for all the ads for the movie.

This is rarely seen [I have a VHS [a poor one] made for me from the film. The stars looking terrific, couldn't make this film rise above a B rating movie.

The most curious thing about Suddenly It's Spring that I found was the fact that Fred MacMurray stayed at home and it was his on screen wife Paulette Goddard who went off to war. In real life MacMurray was both a legitimate 4F and he was the sole support of his wife and two children. He was 33 when Pearl Harbor occurred. How his on screen character managed to stay out the film doesn't tell us.

But when Paulette Goddard joins the Women's Army Corps she becomes something of a celebrity as an informal marriage counselor to separated spouses because of the war. But while she's in the service Fred's met and fallen for Arleen Whelan and as soon as Paulette will sign the papers they can get a quiet divorce.

The MacMurray/Goddard marriage is down but hardly out. She's got a few tricks up her sleeve as she slowly makes Fred reconsider divorce. I guess I can't and shouldn't tell you how it works out.

Fred MacMurray already left Paramount when his friend and favorite director Mitchell Leisen called him back had the studio sign him for this additional film. It was worth it as the script by writer/producer Claude Binyon was written with him in mind.

Fred's best moments is when he steps out of character to become a cigar smoking lout on two occasions. Won't say what they were, but it becomes part of his plan.

Getting some of the best lines in the film is Macdonald Carey who plays client and friend of MacMurray. Carey's an old rebound man and if Goddard is cut loose he'll make sure he's around at the strategic moment.

Although MacMurray was a veteran comedy master becoming one during his years at Paramount this comeback film rates right up there with those he made as a contract player. He and Goddard worked very well together and Suddenly It's Spring is a delight.

I don't typically write reviews here, but this film is even more underseen than underrated, and deserves some attention. Paulette Goddard and Fred MacMurray come back from the war, having sworn to get a divorce four years prior. However, during the war Goddard worked as a marriage counselor to soldiers, and has since had a change of heart; not just to save her reputation/career but also her marriage. It plays not dissimilarly to The Awful Truth or The Philadelphia Story, in that MacMurray must chase down his wife; and yet it is dissimilar in that she's the one who loves him and he must chase her down to sign divorce papers. As it turns out, there's nothing so romantic as the thrill of the hunt - will MacMurray open his eyes and see what a wonderful wife he's giving up before it's too late? (Take a wild guess). Definitely would recommend this film to anyone into classic comedy.

Paulette Goddard and Fred MacMurray share some cute moments in this modest comedy-drama about a married couple just back from the War. Back in 1941 they had planned to divorce—but then Fred went to the Pacific to fight and Paulette became a WAC and zipped around Europe.

Now it's 1946 and they have to decide how—or whether—to put their lives back together.

Of course there are complications....Fred has taken up with the snooty Other Woman (Arleen Whelan), who wants him to get that divorce. And Fred's best friend (Macdonald Carey), seeing that Paulette may soon be free, sensibly takes an interest in pursuing her.

Unfortunately, Whelan's character just isn't very interesting, and Carey comes across as pushy at best. MacMurray and Goddard seem to be trying hard but there's just not much to their story—a lot of talking but not much snap or depth to the dialog, which leaves the plot feeling flat, too.

The two stars do look good; one could always do worse than spend an hour-and-a-half with Fred and Paulette. If the picture is unconvincing, at least it's also inoffensive.