La prima è stata Eva

Would anyone not take a bet that a 20-year-old young woman would be mincemeat if she tried to take a film away from the skilled and hammy hands of Charles Laughton, especially when Laughton, to modern eyes, looks suspiciously like he's playing Tim Conway playing one of Conway's old, tottering geezers? It Started With Eve, an attractive romantic comedy, stars Deanna Durbin, Robert Cummings and Charles Laughton. It was a shame Laughton wasn't a few years younger. He and Durbin turn out to be quite a pair, both of them adept at delivering smart lines, doing subtle double-takes or moving from subversive good cheer to tear-jerker moments of sincerity. They dominate the film and they do it as equals. Robert Cummings was a skilled light-weight lead. Here. as in so many of his films, he just doesn't have the leading-man gravitas to appear as anything but an earnest puppy. When he shares a scene with either Laughton or Durbin, he makes a pleasant second banana.

It Started With Eve begins with Jonathan Reynolds (Laughton), a rich old tycoon, apparently on his death bed. When his son, Jonathan Junior (Cummings), comes rushing in from a trip to Mexico, old Jonathan asks to meet young Jonathan's new fiancé, who has come to New York with him, accompanied by her mother. Young Jonathan tries to contact his fiancé, can't reach her, and believing his father is now dying, happens upon Anne Terry (Durbin), a hat-check girl. He rushes Anne to the side of his father and introduces her as his fiancé. But the next day his father recovers. Now young Jonathan has his fiancé he can't let his father meet, and his father wants to keep seeing Anne, thinking she's the fiancé. The movie's an hour-and-a- half of mistaken identity and screw-ball encounters. Love finally wins out, but only after Laughton plays matchmaker and Durbin sings two or three songs. Along the way we have some clever lines ("The trouble with being sick is you have to associate with doctors!"), a good deal of skullduggery as Laughton contrives to smoke the cigars his doctor forbids him, and a fast pace set by director Henry Koster. Laughton, of course, overacts but gets away with it. He also has a comb-up hair style that, if he were a foot shorter, would let him pass for a munchkin. He does a lot of stooped-over shuffling, squinting from under his eye- brows, and little bits of business that we wind up hardly noticing when Durbin is around. She must have been quite a challenge for him. Durbin, at 20, is no longer the child star. She's well-nigh gorgeous, with a figure that could make staring illegal. She is natural and straight- forward, and completely self-assured. She's one of the few actresses who could get away with sniffing mightily or falling down next to a piano and make us smile just at her style. She was, in a word or two, sui generis. And for those who admire subversive scene-stealers, the movie has that master, Walter Catlett, playing Dr. Harvey. Catlett was in hundreds of films, usually playing blowhards or flustered shysters. He's a bit subdued here, but just the sound of his voice is enough to make me smile.

The movie is a bit of froth, expertly served. If it's a little dated, well, so am I.

This is a sweet movie. Far better than remakes that followed. Durbin and Laughton seemed to really enjoy their scenes together (The Conga is unforgettable). Her singing is beautiful-"Going Home" brings a lump to the throat. This is my all time favorite movie set of the interior of the mansion. They don't (can't afford to) build sets like that anymore. Great escape.

When you rent It Started with Eve-because after reading this review, you'll be unable to resist-you're going to consider turning it off after the first ten minutes as you reach for your hankie. Please don't turn it off! I know the beginning is very sad, but if you stay with it, it turns into an absolutely delightful romantic comedy.

Charles Laughton is Robert Cummings's ailing father, and as his doctor, Walter Catlett, has given him mere minutes to live, there's a very tearful deathbed scene. Charles begs Bob to describe his lovely fiancé and gives his dying wish to meet the young woman. Bob runs off to the hotel where she's staying, but she's left her room and he can't reach her. He's frantic and desperate, and in a mad dash to make his father happy in the seconds before he dies, he whisks a random woman, Deanna Durbin, home with him and pretends she's his intended.

Now, all that setup is the sad part of the movie. Charles reassures everyone he's had a full and happy life, but just as you're wiping up your tears, he wakes up from his sleep and declares, "I'm hungry!" Hooray! Now the fun can start. As you might guess, Bob and Deanna keep pretending they're engaged to keep Charles happy, even though Bob's real fiancé, Margaret Tallichet, is waiting impatiently in the wings.

Deanna, of course, get to show off her musical talents, playing the piano and singing some very impressive songs. Since she was primarily a singer, you might expect her to be a lousy actress, but she's pretty good. It doesn't hurt that she's working off such a wonderful pro like Charles Laughton in most of her scenes. Bob Cummings is also very good in the movie. He has great comic timing and is perfectly frazzled and inept when the part calls for it.

Charles Laughton, in one of his gentle, romantic, sweet roles, completely stole my heart. He's so adorable in It Started with Eve. I'm partial to him anyway, so you might think I'm a bit biased, but I watched this movie with my mom-who doesn't always think he's likable-and she was just as charmed as I was. Once he's no longer at death's door, Charles spends the rest of the movie up and about, sneaking cigars against his doctor's orders, requesting "a nice warm steak-y", throwing parties, and dancing the conga at a nightclub! He and Deanna have such a close chemistry in their scenes together, I kept thinking the film was a romance between them instead of between Deanna and Bob. If you can't imagine Charles Laughton being a romantic lead, rent It Started with Eve to change your mind.

I liked this movie very much and maybe that's because I am a baby boomer and prefer movies made in the 40's and 50's. Because I have always liked Deanna Durbin I bought this movie from Amazon.com and was very pleased with it. The scene when Deanna sang "Going Home" with Charles Laughton standing in the background was very moving. I thought they were a great team together and it really seemed like they had a great affection for each other. I was a bit annoyed with Robert Cumming's characterization, being a wimp and having no backbone to stand up to his father but then that's where the story lies. I thought Deanna's acting was very good and believable and her singing scenes (though unnecessary,except for "Going Home") did not detract from the story. This was quite an enjoyable light comedy and I would recommend it for anyone who likes movies of the 40's. The performances of Charles Laughton and Deanna Durbin definitely make this picture a treat.

It Started with Eve is my favorite Deanna Durbin movie. I owned this movie on video, also I have Nice Girl? and His Butler Sister. They do not compare with this film. Deanna plays a hat-check girl in a hotel who poses as Robert Cummings' future bride for his dying father. Charles Laughton plays Cummings' father in the film suddenly get better. Cummings does not know how to tell the father when the real bride arrives. Besides acting Deanna is singing during the movie. Nice to watch and relax on a rain or snowy day.