Two Heads on a Pillow

After Jack Smith (Neil Hamilton) and his wife (Miriam Jordan) divorce, she completes her legal education, and they oppose each other in a courtroom in a case involving damages over an annulment forced by a meddling mother-in-law. The case itself reflects the root cause of their own divorce (a meddling mother-in-law). Whether love wins over the "battle axe" dowagers in either case is the basis for the plot of this little comedy.

In some ways this film is a precursor to "Adam's Rib," but Hamilton and Jordan, of course, can't rival Tracey and Hepburn. Even so, there are some notable features making a viewing worthwhile. First, Jordan does a pretty good job of portraying a competent, self-assured and successful layer at a time when women attorneys were rare. Second, she also makes a worthwhile and (relevant to our own times), albeit brief, statement about the credentials as a true American of the son of the immigrant businessman Henry Populopulini (played fabulously by Henry Armetta, who stole every scene he was in). Third, the film offers a case study about attitudes toward marriage, in-laws, and class consciousness in 1934.

Although stagy, with a somewhat abrupt and unsatisfying ending, we can be grateful to the Library of Congress for restoring this film.

"Two Heads on a Pillow" is a cheap B-movie. Today, many folks think any low budget film is a B, but the term actually referred to the lesser film shown during a double feature. The A-picture was the larger budgeted and more prestigious film....and always made by an honest to goodness studio. As for the Bs, many were made by so-called "Poverty Row" studios...a term used to refer to outfits that rented out studio space from the big production companies. And, to secrue space, most Bs were made at night when the major studios were finished shooting for the day.

So were Bs bad? Not necessarily. There were some great B films. But the problem was that with low budgets, lesser named actors and filming at night didn't allow much time for re-writes. So, if a script had plot problems, it was often shot anyway...logical or not! This, sadly, is the problem with "Two Heads"...it really needed a re-write and some editing of the script would have made it a lovely movie. Instead, it's got a lot to love....and a lot to hate.

When the story begins, newly married John and Evelyn Smith are having a huge fight...so bad that soon they divorce. Seven years pass and now Evelyn is in John's life again. This is because they are now both lawyers and her client is sueing his! Where does all this go? See the film is you'd like.

The story has a lot of good in it. But too often, the writer seemed to think that folks go from cooing and being in love to practically murdering each other--like this is normal. And, again and again, the Smiths look like they are making up...only to have them screaming at each other over nothing. It really was NOT very good and ruined all the fine moments in the picture. In many ways, it's a lot like the lovely Hepburn/Tracy film "Adam's Rib"....but without the fine writing.

After seeing Two Heads On A Pillow I'm certainly glad we have Tracy&Hepburn to give us a much better film on the subject. This is hogs liver next to the filet mignon of Adam's Rib.

Neil Hamilton and Miriam Jordan play a bickering couple who get divorced. One fine day lawyer Hamilton gets a big surprise. The ex-wife has gone back to school, passed the bar and she too is now a member of his profession. I think you can see where this is going.

Spence&Kate were sooooooooooooo much better.