That Man's Here Again

In this Warner B movie, Tom Brown is a night-shift elevator operator in a ritzy apartment building, full of obnoxious people and a kindly but ostentatiously rich Hugh Herbert -- he keeps talking about the Ming vase he bought for $10,000 in Hong Kong and the other vase he bought for $6 in New Jersey. They look identical, so there's one certain scene. He rescues waifish Mary Maguire and gets her a job as a maid in the building. There's young love a-budding.

Unfortunately, the young leads endure their hardships in such a humble and kindly manner that it's not a terribly interesting movie. All this is underscored by a score by an uncredited Howard Jackson that is overly intrusive. It's a harmless, unmemorable, high-speed (58 minutes) from a period when there wasn't much of interest going on in this division of the studio.

It could be a drama, till the end when Hugh Herbert becomes comical. Then it's hard to figure what was the writer's intention.

Whatever the case, this is a truly "lost and forgotten" film, obviously meant to focus on Herbert's talent. However, it's the romantic leads, Tom Brown and Mary McGuire, that peaked my interest.

Brown, though quite youthful here, was a fully seasoned professional, having been an actor for years. His character rendition always rings true which he projects with total conviction. Now there's a natural talent that can't be "learned." Likewise his romantic interest, McGuire, is most photogenic and appealing, playing her part with dramatic security--another genuine talent.

Herbert plays his comedy down till the end when his trademark zaniness emerges. True, this is a "B-film," and an enjoyable one.

If you are looking for a logical film, please do NOT watch "That Man's Here Again". And, although it's billed as a comedy, it's also one to skip if you are looking for a laugh-filled picture. Now I am not saying it's a terrible film...but it does have its problems and it's almost like two separate movies tossed together.

Most of the story is about a young man and woman, Jimmy (Tom Brown) and Nancy (Mary McGuire). Jimmy finds Nancy out in the rain...wet, hungry, homeless and without a job. He helps her to get on her feet and it's obvious he's smitten for her. As for her, she is carrying a secret that is very strange for a post-code film...she has a baby. But because she has no money, job or home, the child is living at a home for foundlings. Her intention is to bring him home...but this becomes a problem after Jimmy makes an off-handed comment about how he hates kids! What's next? Well, soon Nancy disappears...and one of the people living in the building where Jimmy and Nancy works comes to the rescue...and from here on it's like a completely different movie. The final portion consists of Thomas Jesse (Hugh Herbert) working hard to help the young couple...even if it means twisting the law...a lot!

If you watch this one, I suggest at the end you just turn off your brain and enjoy. It never makes ANY sense...but it is fun.

For a film that's barely over an hour, "That Man's Here Again" takes a while to get off the ground, not entirely sure it's a comedy until the titular man, old Vaudevillian Hugh Herbert (known for his Daffy Duck-esque "Woo-hoo"s), gets involved to tie up the loose ends. Until then, the main reason I watched was for the extremely cute Australian actress Mary Maquire.

The plot is basically this: young Jimmy Whalen (all-American boy Tom Brown, who later turned up on "Gunsmoke") works as an elevator operator in the Park Avenue apartment house where Thomas Jesse (Herbert) comes in late & drunk every night. One cold & rainy night, Nancy Lee (Maquire) sneaks in, cold & wet, looking for shelter. She's been living on the streets, & Whalen finagles a job for her as a maid. The two fall in love, but Nancy's secret is that she a baby in state care. When Jimmy expresses his dislike of kids, & after Nancy breaks Thomas Jesse's valuable Ming vase, she disappears, & Jesse & Whalen have to conspire to not only get her back, but find a way for the young couple to live happily ever after (tm).

As I've said, this doesn't become comedic till the end, & there are really only a couple of good laughs in the film (one in a police station). The sitcom-y way it's all wrapped up might be forgiven if certain issues of the film found a decent resolution - the main one being, where's Nancy's baby's father?

All that being said, they really don't make them like this anymore, & Hugh Herbert is amusing to watch once the scene becomes his. This is strictly late-night, can't sleep fare, but, really, isn't that what all those classic movie channels are for anyway?

Another reviewer referred to this as late night TV watching, and that's exactly the circumstances under which I saw this. Maybe at 1:00 my critical faculties are dimmed, but I quite enjoyed this little movie. I believe the "That Man" in the title refers as much to Hugh Herbert himself as the character he played. Though largely forgotten now, he was enormously popular in his day, and Daffy Duck is said to be based on him and his trademark "Woo hoo." He's a supporting player in most of his movie appearances, several in Warner Brothers musicals of the 1930s, but this film is really built around him. So if he's someone whose shtick you can only take in small doses, this is not the movie for you. But if you find him funny, this will be a field day.

I found Tom Brown and Mary Maguire appealing as the romantic leads. She's very pretty and has a soft, vulnerable presence that is quite different from any other actress I can think of. She was only 18 when she made this movie and had waif like quality. Her scene with her baby can't help tug at your heart strings, even though the kid seems to want to be anywhere but there. Give her credit for soldiering on with her lines while the kid squirms up a storm. (Not sure why they didn't do another take. Budget?) In the few movies I've seen her in she always makes an impression. She apparently did not have a happy life, and in a sad irony, her own baby died if SIDS.

The movie's plot machinations are somewhat silly and predictable, but in a movie that doesn't take itself seriously, I didn't really care. The point is that young love triumphs in the end, thanks to guardian angel Hugh Herbert. And a wackier guardian angel you will never find. (What if he'd played Clarence in "It's A Wonderful Life?" Now that would've been a different!)