Walk Don't Run

I'm sure that Cary Grant was dangled the prospect of a nice all expenses paid for location shooting in Tokyo for his final film, Walk Don't Run. It's the reason he did the film I'm sure.

It's not a bad film to go out on, not near as good as say The Shootist was for John Wayne, but no Cuban Rebel Girl like Errol Flynn had. It's a remake of an earlier Columbia Pictures hit, The More the Merrier that starred Joel McCrea, Jean Arthur, and Charles Coburn. Coburn got a best supporting Actor Oscar for his performance and Grant has his part.

The original film dealt with a tremendous housing shortage in Washington, DC during the World War II, a crisis of four year duration as opposed to a few weeks in Tokyo where because of the Olympics of 1964 there are no hotel rooms to be had.

On a whim, visiting industrialist Cary Grant answers an ad for a room mate posted at the British Embassy by Samantha Eggar. She gets the full court Cary Grant charm and after a bit of reluctance, allows him to stay. Then Grant lends half of his half to American Olympic athlete Jim Hutton.

Eggar has a fiancé, but foxy Cary works his wiles on both Samantha and Jim. The results are obvious.

Walk Don't Run has a few funny moments, Cary Grant style, especially when Grant strips down to his underwear to talk to Hutton during Hutton's event which is the long distance walk. He also has to pry Eggar's fiancé away to get Eggar and Hutton together. John Standing is Eggar's fiancé and he puts in a droll performance as a dull predictable British civil servant.

Cary managed to mine a few more laughs out of his last screen role, but you decide if the trip was worth it.

I have always loved this movie. It was a typical light, romantic comedy that Cary Grant was renown for and it was a perfect vehicle for him to transition to the older man supporting role. It used all his talents for keeping it light, witty and intelligent without it being slapstick. I was sad to realize it was Grant's last movie as he could have had another ten or twenty years playing such roles. It was our loss.

I also like others in the cast despite others criticisms. Eggar and Hutton had just the right amount of chemistry. Setting it during the Tokyo Olympics made it contemporary for the times. And unlike many other 60's movies this one does not date itself all that much.

I saw this again on TV the other night, and the sad fact is that it's a very dated, formula-driven 1960s comedy that would deservedly be forgotten except for three things:

1) If you're interested in the Olympics, it offers one of the few looks at Tokyo during the 1964 games. I'm not sure if any other films use the Tokyo games as a setting. Also, it offers a glimpse at 1960s Tokyo, which apparently no longer exists.

2) He was old and graying and his material was awful, but in many ways, this film displays the magic of the great Cary Grant. He rose above lame material one more time, and without him, this would have been unwatchable.

3) I will never forget the closing line from the original TV ads for this film: "Run, don't walk to see 'Walk, Don't Run.' " They don't make them like that anymore.

Cary Grant-the perfect Leading Man-filmed his last movie at Columbia. The film was a remake of George Stevens classic film The More The Merrier with the incomparable Jean Arthur and Joel McCrea. Cary Grant controlled everything about his movies and cast Jim Hutton-who made all those comedies at MGM with his co star Paula Prentiss, and lovely Samantha Eggar. Cary Grant himself plays the older man played by Charles Coburn in the original film.

This film is set at the Tokyo Olympics of 1964 and the setting is terrific and Harry Stardling Jr was a great cinematographer. Directed by Charles Walters who was an MGM staff producer who did work sometimes uncredited in movies such as Cimmarron, Annie Get Your Gun, or credited such a Joan Crawford's Torch Song. No matter as Cary Grant like all mega stars such as Lucy, Sinatra ran their pictures totally.

Hutton is an interesting star. Discovered by Universal while in the US Army in Germany, he was given a 7 year contract by MGM and cast in George Peppard's The Subterreans. Hutton hit a home run co starring with gorgeous Paula Prentiss in Where The Boys Are and the duo made 3 more movies Bachelor in Paradise, The Honeymoon Machine with Prentiss and Steve McQueen, and The Horizontal Lieutenant with Prentiss. He went on a year long suspension to get out of his contract but had to film Looking For Love with Connie Francis before MGM would release Hutton. Hutton moved on to work with Lana Turner, John Wayne, Roz Russell, Bob Hope, Burt Lancaster, and Charlton Heston and his big break was this movie with Cary Grant deferring the leading man role to Hutton.

Samantha Eggar had the impossible task of starring in the female role created by the peerless Jean Arthur in the original.

Walk Don't Run made money most of which went to Cary Grant and while he was inundated with movie offers the very very rich Cary Grant retired

This movie was successful due to Cary Grant but in no way was the hit that The More The Merrier

I am a huge Cary Grant fan and in this, his final film, he is charming as usual. Jim Hutton and Samantha Eggar are very good as the victims of his matchmaking. Its predictable but who cares? Its a feel good movie and I give it ***** big stars out of 5.