Vieni a vivere con me

Showgirl Johnny Jones (Hedy Lamarr) aka Johanna Janns has overstayed her visa and is getting deported. She's Austrian afraid of going back to the Nazi regime after her father was murdered by them. She's having an affair with married publisher Barton Kendrick. The Immigration officer hints at holding up her case for a week to give her an opportunity to stay if she marries an American. She meets struggling writer Bill Smith (James Stewart) who is literally on his last dime. Since Barton is married, another solution pops up.

Stewart and Lamarr have good chemistry. It would work well if they have a bit more time together in the middle. As often the case in older movies, it also needs to get to the meet-cute a bit sooner. The movie gets a second wind when Bill forces Johnny to go on that trip. If it happens sooner, Johnny could run away with Barton and Bill would chase after her. There would be enough time for a little bit more romantic drama. Nevertheless, this is a lovely rom-com for a well-matched pair.

Hedy Lamarr is a foreign born showgirl and kept mistress of publisher Ian Hunter. Immigration has gotten on her case and before Hunter can get his influence peddling machine in gear, Hedy's having some anxious moments.

But as Hollywood fate must have it she meets up with aspiring writer James Stewart and they agree to a marriage of convenience to keep her in the country. And to seal the bargain Lamarr actually agrees to pay Stewart a "salary" so that romance won't creep into things.

Well wouldn't you know it, Stewart writes about the arrangement in a prospective new novel that he takes to publisher Hunter. The rest of this film is rather obvious.

What I find curious about this film is that the plot I described could easily be the basis for some sophisticated screwball comedy or a tender romance, given the writers, director, and players. But the combination in Come Live With Me opted for the tender romance.

Stewart and Lamarr are just fine in their roles as is Hunter. MGM and director Clarence Brown gave them a nice supporting cast. Please note the performances of Verree Teasdale as Hunter's wife, Adeline DeWalt Reynolds as Stewart's grandmother and the whimsical Donald Meek, just being Donald Meek in a Donald Meek part.

The title Come Live With Me is the first line of a Christopher Marlowe sonnet, a romantic piece that fits the tone of the whole film. But it does end on a Shakespearean note.

I was a little bored with the first half hour of this film, but a well-written turn of events sends this movie in the right direction. It mixes a few classic themes (marry vs. deportation, country comes to town, wealth vs poverty, town goes to country, etc...) that could have made this movie completely formulaic. However, formula goes out the door with Jimmy Stewart's charm and Hedy Lamarr's stunning beauty.

Once both characters spend screen time together, consistently, the energy of this slightly screwball romantic comedy picks up quickly. The grandmother is all wisdom, wit, and heart. Her common sense needlework samplers are artfully placed and still hold true today. The grandmother's calm voice, the sound of crickets chirping, and the other country nuances slow down the pace to a level that seems so foreign to an actress like Hedy Lamarr. She seems so out of place, but that is what makes her so enjoyable to watch. She melts slowly from the WWII city girl ice queen fugitive until she's relaxed and calm as if she can go home again, but this time to a slice of Americana rather than Austria and with a moral upstanding young man if that's the choice she's willing to make.

This has just been made available for purchase on DVD. It's now on my "to buy" list and certainly worth a watch on TCM if you enjoy this genre and these wonderfully magnetic actors.

This is a wonderful Jimmy Stewart and Hedy Lamarr movie. Very romantic and sentimental. Jimmy Stewart's grandma in the movie is priceless. A must for your collection - not available to buy; however, sometimes comes on American Movie Classics. I have had a recording of it for years. It's one of my favorites.

This film started off rather poorly, as you learn that Hedy Lamarr is the mistress of Ian Hunter--a married man who has a "modern marriage". This plot element was difficult to reconcile with a romantic film--after all, what's romantic about this relationship? Plus, I found it hard to care about such selfish characters. Fortunately, I kept watching the film and it turned out to be a dandy old fashioned film.

Hedy was in the US illegally--having fled Nazi-controlled Austria. So even though she had overstayed her visa, it was really hard to blame her for wanting to stay. In an odd bit of casting, the immigration agent (Barton MacLane) liked Hedy and suggested that she could get married to an American and thereby stay in the country. But she couldn't marry Hunter, as he was already married. So, a bit later, when she meets down-and-out Jimmy Stewart, she suggests they get married in name only. Unfortunately, over time, Jimmy finds himself falling for Hedy--though they hardly know each other.

I could talk more about the plot, but don't want to ruin it. The bottom line is that the writing was excellent, the acting superb and the mood wonderful. This is exactly the sort of romance that MGM did best and it's well worth a look--just don't get turned off by Ian Hunter's character--it does get better.