Love Is Better Than Ever

This lightweight rom-com is probably only noteworthy for being one of several vehicles that MGM used in the early '50's to transition their former child/teen star, Elizabeth Taylor, into more adult roles. Here she plays a young Connecticut woman, still living with her parents, who falls for a free-wheeling NYC bachelor and decides to reel him to be her husband despite his repeated attempts to avoid her snares.

On the surface, this may have worked as very lighthearted romantic comedy similar to the 1948 film, "Every Girl Should Be Married" which featured a young woman (Betsy Drake) using all sorts of feminine wiles to ensnare a bachelor pediatrician (Cary Grant) into marriage. While "Every Girl Should Be Married" is certainly no great film, it was entertaining mainly because it had Cary Grant who could be believable as the object of a young woman's romantic obsession.

Unfortunately, "Love is Better Than Ever" doesn't have Cary Grant. Instead, it has Larry Parks. Who? Good question. From the opening moments of the film, one's jaw drops when a homely, middle-aged man walks onto the screen as the film's main character and the soon to be supposed romantic ideal for Elizabeth Taylor's character. Mr. Parks looks like somebody's dad or the nebbish next door. He does NOT look like the lead of a romantic comedy. His introduction as the film's lead almost instantly kills the film.

Mr. Parks was nearly 20 yrs older than Miss Taylor. Plus, in the looks department, Mr. Parks isn't in the same continent, let alone the same league as 19 yr old Liz. Yet, the audience was supposed to believe that her character would pursue him?!?! Movies often demand a suspension of disbelief, but this film demands way too much.

Yes, it was unfair that Mr. Parks' career was derailed by his testimony before HUAC just as it was really gaining momentum. (He got top billing over Miss Taylor for this film.) However, he was woefully miscast for this part, and that mistake pretty much killed this film from its very inception.

In sum: a tepid rom-com with a laughable male lead and an extremely pretty Liz Taylor who is often costumed in very skimpy dancing clothes. (As stated, her studio wanted to show her off as an adult actress.)

In "The Big Hangover," Liz is the boss' beautiful daughter; in "Conspirator," she's an immature young wife in love; in "The Girl Who Had Everything," she's the daughter of a wealthy criminal lawyer, but in "Love Is Better Than Ever," she is a young dance school teacher from New Haven who comes to the big city for a convention and falls for a smart talent agent…

In these four films, Taylor is cast as the innocent who selects the wrong guy and the unlucky beauty in a classic mismatch…

In both "Love Is Better Than Ever" and "The Girl Who Had Everything," she's a spirited young lady with a mind of her own… In the former, she defies her small-town upbringing as she romances a city swindler… In the latter, she challenges her father in order to run off with a bon vivant with underworld connections… In "Conspirator," the misfortune girl marries a Communist… In "The Big Hangover," she's engaged to a man with a drinking problem… And in "Elephant Walk," her husband is a wealthy and potent planter with a really bad temper…

These five ladies are variations on the young innocent star who thinks she knows more than she does… In each movie, she has to be educated… The wildly careless spirit has to be limited and corrected…

In "Love Is Better Than Ever," Liz is even more provincial, an innocent tempted but never corrupted by big city frivolous amusement, a teasing beauty who falls for a cheerful bachelor... Liz is once again the determined pursuer, setting her sights on a man who does not want to marry… Shameless and stubborn, she decides to announce her engagement, hoping that fiction may stimulate fact

there is really very little to recommend. The young Taylor is beautiful, but Larry Parks in the lead it totally unbelievable. Perhaps the fact he looks like a clone of Regis Philbin doesn't help. How could Taylor's character fall for this guy?? And, what is Gene Kelly doing in this flick? It is just a cameo, but I don't see the point.

Supporting performances are fine, and there is a limited amount of location filming.

I'm not sure why Taylor agreed to this MGM B movie - perhaps due to contract obligations. Probably my least favorite Taylor film from the 50s/60s.

Larry Parks is a fast-talking, streetwise agent who falls for a Connecticut dance teacher against his will in "Love is Better Than Ever," directed by Stanley Donen. Parks and Taylor have a whirlwind romance in New York while she's there attending a dance teacher convention. She falls in love, only to learn at the end of their week together that he's only interested in a good time. Heartbroken, she returns to Connecticut, where her father helps her hatch a plot that will bring him running to New Haven and into her arms.

This is a very slight comedy, but Taylor is exquisitely beautiful and in excellent shape. It's no wonder that cynical Larry Parks can't forget her, though he claims that he wants to. In one scene, they stand and talk in profile for several minutes, and all one can think about is how perfect Taylor's profile is. Larry Parks is another story - a very strange choice for a leading man. Had he not been blacklisted, it's likely he would have gone on to character roles fairly quickly. For a studio that boasted the likes of Clark Gable and Robert Taylor, it's curious that he was cast in leads. He is, however, a very good actor, though it's hard to see why Taylor would have been attracted to him. Sadly, he only made two films after this one.

There are some nice dance sequences with the children, including some dancing fruits. "Love is Better Than Ever" has some nice moments and a dazzling 20-year-old Taylor, and that's about it.

I went into this with the full expectation of turning it off once I got the gist of it, and got a good look at Elizabeth Taylor just at the point her career and her beauty were reaching their heights. Surprisingly, I watched it all the way through and enjoyed several mildly humorous moments--no great belly laughs, but solidly amusing moments nonetheless.

The plot is paper thin, and it's a compliment that director Stanley Donen was able to get a full length feature out of what could easily been a short pilot for a sitcom. Also escalating the material are Old Pro character actors at the top of their game, such as Kathleen Freeman as a loyal seamstress and Ann Doran as the meddling mother of Elizabeth Taylor's dance rival, played by a very young (and blond) Elinor Donihue. It is no wonder these ladies enjoyed very lengthy careers in literally hundreds of films.

But the real heart of the film is Taylor's lovable, understanding father played by Tom Tully, as the type of Dad we wish we all had, but few actually did.

The only part of this film that hasn't aged well is the lead character, played by Larry Parks. This film was made at a time when male characters got away with far more sexist behavior than any man would get away with today. In fact, if a man in New York--no matter how well dressed or handsome--behaved in such ways toward a woman he just met today...well, she'd probably summon the nearest police officer! If you're willing to overlook that major flaw, you might enjoy this romantic comedy, especially the madcap children's dance recital at the end. The kids are terrible throughout the film, which makes it all the more funny.