La quadriglia dell'illusione

Someone posted that this film was 'a silly screwball comedy'. Of course it is: if a comedy isn't silly, it's not screwball. This one may not be a classic, but all the elements are there: pompous rich people, scheming reporters and a love triangle, er...square. It also has the comic supporting actors to make sure it all works. The rich weren't very popular in the depression so they were easy targets. The public's obsession with celebrities was already in full force and another easy target. And love mix-ups have been the basis for comedy since that original screwball - Willie Shakespeare.

Errol Flynn and Olivia De Havilland may not be Cary Grant and Carole Lombard but they do perfectly well and Ros Russell is a screwball icon. Patrick Knowles does a fine job and Flynn's foil. Walter Connolly, as the grumpy oligarch repeats his performance from "It Happened One Night". Melville Cooper, (the fourth member of the cast from 'The Adventures of Robin Hood': he was the comically villainous Sheriff of Nottingham) is his butler. Franklin Pangborn shows up as Knowles' manservant. Hugh Herbert is a justice of the peace and Margaret Hamilton is Connolly's housekeeper.

This one is way in the background of Flynn's career and not the kind of movie he's famous for but it's a solid piece of entertainment anyway. The great stars of the Golden Age made many such films and it's fun to look back and discover them and get a complete picture of their careers.

What a fun cast ! Bob Lansford (Errol Flynn) and reporter Jean Christy (Rosalind Russell) are scheming writers, about to lose their jobs. They decide to write stories about rich man Mr. Dillingwill (Walter Connelly -- played the father of the bride in It Happened One Night) that will affect his standing, as well as theirs. Errol Flynn, about 30 at this time, is known mostly as swashbuckling pirate and Robin Hood, and has a most interesting family history in real life; check it out on the Bio page of IMDb. And of course, they do manage to take Flynn's shirt off in Four's a Crowd. Olivia DeHavilland (Gone With the Wind) plays Lorri, the daughter of Dillingwell. Also look for Margaret Hamilton (wicked witch from Wizard of Oz) as Amy, the housekeeper with long pigtails no less, and Frank Pangborn plays the butler. He always had perfect timing as the prim & proper butler, the hotel clerk, or the bank examiner in Bank Dick. The sale of the newspaper was a common theme in the 30s and 40s, (think Citizen Kane) but here it's a fun caper as everyone tries to decide which side they are on. Check out the giant train set Mr. Connelly and his butler play with. This story kind of goes around the mulberry bush, but it's fun to be along for the ride. As others have noted, this WOULD be a good DVD, but doesn't seem to have been released yet. Directed by Michael Curtiz.

Because I found watching 'Four's a Crowd' great entertainment (there were quite a number of scenes where I was laughing out loud) I was wondering why the film never reached the status of a classic screwball comedy - something if not as brilliant as 'My Man Godfrey' (1936) then at least like 'You Can't Take it With You' (1938) or 'Hands Across the Table' (1935). After all, 'Four's a Crowd' has some big stars, with Errrol Flynn demonstrating considerable talent as a comic actor and Olivia de Havilland and Rosalind Russell playing along with verve. Also, there are stalwarts such as Franklin Pangborn and Walter Connolly who normally as good as guarantee success. I have come up with one potential explanation for why the film is more or less forgotten today (30 user reviews as of late April 2022 is not a lot): The greatest screwball comedies all start out from fairly simple situations that lead to logical consequences, and they all focus on relatively few main characters. By contrast, the plot of 'Four's a Crowd' is overly convoluted. There is simply too much going on, with all those intrigues and attempts at double crossing. Also, it is almost an ensemble cast film, with Flynn, Havilland and Russell having practically equal screen time and Patric Knowles not much less. For all that, this is by no means a bad film. If you can spare one and a half hours, there are much worse ways to spend them than watching 'Four's a Crowd'.

Screwball comedy was popular in the late '30s and Warner Bros. made several contributions to this genre. Despite the stellar cast--Errol Flynn, Olivia de Havilland, Patric Knowles and Rosalind Russell--this one isn't considered one of the best but it's amusingly played by the four leads.

Errol Flynn is a surprise in a good comic performance--a highlight of which is the scenes where he is pursued by hound dogs snapping at his heels every time de Havilland's father (Walter Connolly) tries driving him off his property. Flynn and Rosalind Russell play a pair of scheming reporters who, along with newspaper boss Patric Knowles, exploit Connolly as "the meanest man in America". Love complications abound when the four snarling couples get into cabs for the finale, with a surprising switcheroo happening before a justice of the peace about to perform the marriage ceremony.

Olivia de Havilland looks gorgeous as the giddy daughter of millionaire Connolly and shows a decided flair for comedy. Likewise, Flynn, Russell and even Patric Knowles (less wooden than usual) appear to be having a great time in their roles.

Amusing frothy comedy with too many complicated schemes going on for almost all of its running time--but worth a peek if you enjoy watching these stars.

Rosalind Russell, ace reporter, is peeved that her newspaper is being shut down by cub publisher Patric Knowles, inexperienced son of the original publisher. Knowles has recently fired crack editor Errol Flynn, who has in turn set himself up as a publicity agent for rich curmudgeons who need good press. Olivia de Havilland, lovely and playful granddaughter of one such grumpy millionaire, is romantically attached to the handsome Knowles—at least for the moment.

The plot of this rapid fire comedy follows our four stars round and round: Russell wants Knowles to save the paper, wants Flynn back on the job. Flynn and Knowles have an old rivalry and delight in scoring off of each other. De Havilland seems happy letting everybody love her for her grandfather's eight million dollars. How will it all shake out?

Walter Connolly pretty much steals the show as the grandfather, a wealthy eccentric whose great passion is the model railroad that dominates his back yard. Melville Cooper is also excellent as Connolly's butler and stationmaster; the two of them in their engineer caps, running the train controls from their crow's nest, are just hilarious.

Out of a great cast, Russell and Connolly are most familiar in this kind of a screwball comedy and probably come across best. Flynn and de Havilland, though, are fun to watch, too—Flynn shows a flair for comic antics like stealing sticks of butter from a dark kitchen, and Olivia looks like she's having a ball as her fun-loving character laughs and whoops it up in a way that the Maid Marian (or Melanie Wilkes!) never would have dreamed of.

Overall, the movie is never dull but never quite takes off—is it the complicated plot that prevents this picture from really hitting full speed? In any case, it's certainly entertaining, thanks to the great cast and solid Warner Bros. production.