Kitty Foyle

Ginger Rogers gives a good performance as "Kitty Foyle", making it worth seeing even though the film is otherwise a mostly average production. The story is worthwhile, but much of it is rather ordinary material, and it is somewhat slow. The rest of the cast is good enough, but most of the time does not come close to Rogers's level. There is nothing wrong with any of it, but not much of it really stands out.

Kitty, the main character, must make a number of choices during the course of the story, and is forced to weigh her options and her priorities. Rogers is believable and generally effective in portraying Kitty's thoughts and personality. The others in her life are mostly likable, yet most of the time they do not come to life in the way that Kitty does. Fortunately, Ginger is able to carry the load.

Many of us would have loved to see more Astaire-Rogers musicals, but you can see why Ginger wanted a chance to perform more dramatic roles, to show what she could do. This movie as a whole is generally pleasant and always watchable, but nothing special, and a number of her musicals were certainly better films. Nevertheless, it did give her a chance to do something different, and she did it well.

Enjoyed this film starring Ginger Rogers, (Katherine "Kitty" Foyle) playing the role of a young girl who works for a magazine in Philadelphia and was hired by a man during the great depression. This man was Wyn Strafford, (Dennis Morgan) who is very good looking and started to fall in love with her. Kitty loses her job and finds other work selling cosmetics and perfumes and this couple do not see each other for over a year until Kitty meets up with Wyn Strafford who comes from a very wealthy family and they get married. Things quickly change in their lives and because Kitty was a girl who came from a rather poor Irish family this created a problem for the stiff shirts of Philadelphia. There are many flashbacks in this story and there is a great deal to this film which will hold your interest right to the very end. Excellent film and a wonderful old film to enjoy with old songs from the past.

"Kitty Foyle" is a lush, expertly done example of the "women's films" that were popular in the 1940's and are so rare today. The rather simplistic plot focuses on Kitty's choice of sharing her life with either a married scion of a mainline family or an impoverished doctor, both of whom love her. Pure soap opera, but lovingly done, especially those luminous closeups. The device of having Kitty talk to her own conscience is rather hokey, but does provide for an interesting touch. The spark in the production is the admirably natural but spirited performance of Ginger Rogers in the title role. She perfectly fits the role of a working girl surviving on her wits and gumption, and really shines when telling off her rich, patronizing in-laws. See it for her, and for a somewhat dated but still intriguing view of the travails of independent women during the first half of the 20th century.

And not just because my name is kit. The chemistry between Ginger Rogers and Dennis Morgan is unlike any other screen romance I've ever seen. Total smolder city. Rogers mixes idealism and cynicism has stunningly as it can be done. Morgan nicely tightropes between strength and fecklessness. The supporting cast, in entirety, is magnificent. Just a tremendous movie. In fact, I just got inspiration -- following the recording of this review -- I will change my IMDB handle to kittyfoyle.

A vastly underrated actress outside the realm of song & dance, Ginger Rogers finally scored w/a best actress Oscar for her performance here. Rogers plays a working class perfume hawker torn between the blue blooded beau from back home in Philly & a struggling doctor she meets in New York. A good role in a flawed film, I chuck this one to the director since the script is on point from Dalton Trumbo (Spartacus/The Brave One) but the strength of Rogers turn is let down on an over reliance on flashbacks.