Tu m'appartieni

After an accident on the slopes, wealthy playboy "Peter" (Henry Fonda) ends up in the care of physician "Helen" (Barbara Stanwyck) who basically tells him there is nothing wrong with him that a few hours in bed won't cure. Being a man of means, however, plenty of other doctors are hovering around him offering all kinds of treatment, but he's taken a bit of a shine to "Helen" so decides to stick with her. She just wants to get on with her patients, but he's no slouch when it comes to distracting her and so, yep - it's a whirlwind romance. She's ill-prepared for his stately home or it's fastidious butler (Melville Cooper), but she's far less prepared for her new husband's suspicions. She can barely look down a patient's throat without him suspecting she is up to something, and these problems only spiral as a friend they share in common accidentally makes matters worse. After one calamitous intervention, she loses her temper and demands that he find some sort of purpose, else their relationship will be doomed. Never having worked a day in his life, he hasn't really a clue so he decides to abscond from their home until he can present her with a shock. Well, a few actually - but will it save the day? This starts off quite strongly with both Stanwyck and Fonda working well together delivering a lively script and some borderline slapstick scenarios whilst the starchy Cooper remains stiff upper lipped amidst the chaos. It struggles into it's last quarter though as the pace drops off and the story rather runs out of steam. There never was an whole heap of jeopardy, no, but the banter between them was initially quite good fun and it entertained for a while showcasing both of their comedic skills and it's worth a gander for the first hour or so before sentiment bared it's teeth and it became just a little too twee. Still, it's a solid team effort that raises a smile.

BARBARA STANWYCK and HENRY FONDA give their all to this worthless little romantic comedy that gives the jealousy angle a workout, with millionaire Fonda becoming insanely jealous of his wife's contact with her male patients while he does virtually nothing for a living.

It's supposed to be hilarious but more often than not it hits a sour note. Fonda is not too likable as a magnificent dope and underplays his role with his usual combination of humility and straightforwardness. His role is so absurd you wish the writers had thought of a more realistic jealousy angle for most of the movie.

RUTH DONNELLY does nicely as a loyal friend, as does EDGAR BUCHANAN as the gardener who speaks words of wisdom. Too bad wisdom isn't more characteristic of the script.

Despite the floundering script, Stanwyck and Fonda make the whole thing look better than it actually is. They have good chemistry together and make the most of whatever humor there is.

A good word too for MELVILLE COOPER as the stuffy butler. But all of them are really wasting their time in this silly romantic comedy.

Barbara Stanwyck is an ambitious physician and surgeon. Henry Fonda is rich but idle. He crashes at her feet on the ski slope then woos her shamelessly while laid up in the lodge. For no particular reason, she allows herself to be talked into marrying him. From there, they move into his mansion, where she tries to continue her medical practice and he sits at home worrying about her male patients.

Yes, it is a silly plot. And it's not dated material so much as it just seems to lack any motivation for the lead characters to behave the way they do: Henry Fonda's character is an unimpressive whiner and Stanwyck's character is dumb enough to fall for him? I guess if anyone could make it work, seems like it might be Stanwyck and Fonda...but I have to say that the darn thing just isn't believable.

The generally disappointing script does include some snappy dialog as well as some good bits for supporting players. Stuffy butler Melville Cooper lords it over Fonda's household and offers slyly bemused commentary on his employer's habits and the upheaval in the household. Edgar Buchanan is good fun as the crusty old gardener who offers down-to-earth pearls of wisdom.

Overall, the cast makes it almost worth watching, and the production certainly looks good. There are some closeup shots of both Stanwyck and Fonda that are quite beautiful.

This is an oddity and truly shows its time and its era and not well. I am not surprised it is so rarely seen. Henry Fonda as the wimp of all time in a poorly contrived little vehicle to showcase Barbara I would think who plays a spunky bright young doctor and gets a lot of good lines. However, I gave it a 5 out of 10 for the supporting cast who are magnificent. Buchanan particularly as a crusty old gardener and also the guy who plays the butler is a hoot. I could have just watched the supporting players all night and Barbara of course. Normally I enjoy old Henry but here he shows more than his normal display of great Fonda teeth and is given the worst and most brainless lines. All these actors had to earn their stripes over the years in poorly scripted movies like these.

"You Belong to Me" is a 1941 comedy - I think - starring Henry Fonda and Barbara Stanwyck, with a screenplay by Dalton Trumbo and directed by Wesley Ruggles. The story concerns a female doctor (Stanwyck) who impulsively marries a millionaire. His jealousy toward her male patients is obsessive and causes embarrassment and trouble immediately.

If anyone but top stars had been in this, it would have gotten a 4 from me. Boy, is it bad. Fonda and Stanwyck are such an attractive, delightful couple. They're wasted here in an absurd story. The Stanwyck character would have dumped this guy in 24 hours in real life.

The story does point up the change in our society's values. The Fonda character has money and is considered by himself and his wife completely useless. She has a successful practice - guess what happens to her resolve to keep that going in 1941. The philosophy stated in the film is that the only reason to exist in the world is to be useful. Well, Mother Teresa felt that way. Does Paris Hilton? Stanwyck and Fonda dream of living in a small apartment with a Murphy bed and no money rather than the enormous mansion they live in now. Right, Donald Trump and Bill Gates wish for that daily.

Someone on this board said in their subject matter "this hasn't worn well." It really hasn't. Part of it is the world's fault; the rest of it is the script's. Skip it.