My Life with Caroline

Abysmal Anna Lee and charmless Ronald Colman fail to summon enough vitality to get this sour screwball going from the outset in this laxly directed effort by Lewis Milestone. Lee is wide eyed gullible most of the way while Colman a smug understanding bore in this comedy romance that has neither.

Constantly on the road successful businessman Anthony Mason (Colman) has a wife with a wandering eye (Lee). Prone to falling in love while hubby is away a tolerant Mason employs an understanding that usually brings her back to earth and restores the marriage. This time it is a Latin lover but the nonchalant Mason seems far from threatened.

The limited Lee brings nothing but wide eyed confusion to the inane role of Caroline who seems to have the emotional maturity of a twelve year old. She seems committed to only her romantic delusions and completely out of touch with her fellow characters. Colman for his part looks distracted and uninvolved, his interplay with Lee patronizing more than intimate. The supporting cast offers none with a smarmy Reggie Gardner and a wheezing Charles Winninger unable to bring sly humor to surly character.

This almost unknown gem was based on a French farce--which shows, and I mean that as a compliment.

Caroline (Lee) is being courted by a wealthy Argentinian (Roland), who asks her father for her hand in marriage. But Caroline is already married to Anthony (Colman), who has just arrived by plane and launches immediately into an audience-directed reminiscence about the last time Caroline decided she was in love with someone else: a dilettante-ish sculptor (Gardiner). The film plays out the story of Anthony's strategy in uncoupling Caroline from her sculptor, and how that experience aids him with her Argentinian.

It is perfectly cast: Ronald Colman is at his most sophisticated and charming, Reginald Gardiner is at his most priggish, Gilbert Roland is at his most exotic, and Anna Lee is just deliciously whimsical. The film is wonderfully directed by Lewis Milestone (who also produced); the whole production feels like a labor of love. There are wonderful touches, such as Colman breaking frame and addressing the camera, and exceptional use of a sliding bar-cabinet door. It is a sin that it hasn't been released on DVD--this is the kind of film that can singlehandedly awaken interest in classic film.

Ronald Colman tells the audience about "My Life with Caroline" in this very light 1941 comedy that also stars Anna Lee and Reginald Gardner. The lovely Lee plays Caroline, the dizzy wife of Antony Mason (Colman). Apparently when Antony is away on business, Caroline becomes lonely, takes up with someone else, and plans to leave Antony, which she doesn't. The film starts with the very handsome Gilbert Roland planning to take Caroline as his bride and bring her back to Argentina. Caroline's father (Charles Winninger) reminds Roland that Caroline's husband might have something to say.

Turns out, Antony is already on the scene and, facing the camera, tells us about an early incident, this time involving Caroline and Reginald Gardner, and the subtle ways in which Antony managed to put a spanner in the works.

Very nice comedy with potential for more laughs in the hands of another director. Lewis Milestone directed, and this wasn't really his métier. It was great to see beautiful Anna Lee as a young woman - I knew her basically as Lila Quartermaine in General Hospital as an elderly woman. Colman is wonderful, and Gardner is appropriately pompous.

Good cast, but it needed a different kind of touch.

The wonderfully urbane Ronald Coleman is show-cased here as in few other of his films. He is literally in every scene and this comical movie remains fresh because of him, not in spite of him. He is handsome, witty and very clever here as he remains a step ahead of his wandering, lovely wife--played perfectly by Anna Lee. The movie is based on a french play and brings all the best qualities of that farce. Most of the supporting cast is well known, at least by face if not name...and are absolutely perfect for this very funny film. The fantastic Mr. Coleman is a combination of Sean Connery and Clark Gable as he stays a step ahead of the other characters. His multi-talents can be further appreciated in the classic "Lost Horizon" which every film buff must see.

I'm not an huge fan of farce - but Ronald Colman manages to pull it off quite successfully here - he must be in just about every scene! His wife "Caroline" (Anna Lee) falls for a wealthy gaucho "Paco" (Roland Lee) despite still having feelings for her husband. He, "Tony", on the other hand though outwardly indifferent to his wife not only still loves her, but has no intention of letting her head to the pampas - so he must thwart her cunning plan. This story is all over the shop - it makes little enough sense at the best of times; but there is oodles of chemistry between the two stars and, as usual, much of it's appeal comes down to Colman's marvellously underplayed facial expressions - and, for that matter, Lee's ability to play the ditzy, fickle wife with some aplomb too. There are some back stories to support/clutter up the scenarios, depending on your perspective and it's really not a very substantial film to watch, if I'm honest - but as a bit of escapism with some comedy and charisma, it's well worth 80 minutes of anyone's time.