La sposa sognata

I really enjoyed this movie. Yes, the premise is silly, and there are some dated notions, but the execution is very good. Cary Grant once again displays superb comedic talents. His timing, vocal inflections and facial expressions couldn't be better. He also displays his physical comedic skills in the very funny fight scene.

The supporting cast was also good.

Only in the 1950s could a movie like Dream Wife be made! Cary Grant is engaged to strong, career-woman Deborah Kerr, but he expresses his desire for a more meek, stereotypically feminine companion. He breaks off the engagement and decides to marry Betta St. John instead. However, since Betta is a real princess, the State Department assigns Deborah to act as official chaperone between the two until the wedding!

While the plot is pretty thin, the best part of this film is the banter between Cary and Deborah. They have fantastic comic timing together, and they reprised their pairing later in An Affair to Remember and The Grass is Greener. One of my all-time favorite lines comes from this film: the pair is arguing about all the things they hated about each other when they were a couple, complaints they're now allowed to voice since they're not on good behavior anymore. Cary says he always hated Deborah's perfume. "My perfume? But you always used to ask me to put it on!" Deborah exclaims. He replies, "You always wore it! What was I supposed to do, ask you to take it off?" If you're laughing, rent the hilarious The Grass is Greener. Dream Wife has a few funny lines, but it probably won't end up being your favorite old movie.

Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr are a wonderful couple. Throwing each other line after line with Grant's usual and very his -facial expressions. The dinner scene between the two in the beginning is a blast. The whole beginning is great, funny, very promising, but it's obvious where it's going plot-wise, and with the plot the movie flops. The funny scenes become scarce, predictable and I just waited for it to end. Walter Pidgeon must be one of the best supporting actors ever. Catch the first 30 minutes or so than stop watching, or just pass. Nice idea that went wrong.

PS How that "Dream wife" of his learns English so quickly is absolutely amazing! She does speak with a few mistakes, of course.

I saw this movie for the first time on TCM, interested because of the pairing of Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr. It's really boring, with a silly, unbelievable plot.

Worse than that, Grant looks and act in such a peculiar manner. He appears to be bone-thin, with his suits just hanging on him. And his expressions and body language border on the effeminate in some sequences. This is not the dashing, debonair, sophisticated Cary Grant we've all become accustomed to seeing in so many movies over the years.

Kerr has a brief drunk scene that is unusual for her screen persona. Aside from that, there's not much to her character that can save this dreary flick.

The one thing worth noting is the movie's benign portrayal of Islamic rulers. Was it really like that 50 years ago, or were we just too ignorant to know any better?

American businessman Cary Grant is engaged to diplomat Deborah Kerr but grows tired of her putting her career before their relationship. So he breaks things off and becomes engaged to a Middle-Eastern princess (Betta St. John) who has been taught from birth "how to make a man happy." But the customs of her people (and Kerr's interference) ensure that Grant won't find any happiness with her.

Inane romantic comedy that is neither romantic nor funny. A terrible movie on nearly every level. The characters are very unlikable no matter how hard I tried due to my fondness for the actors. The best thing I can say about this is that I liked the name of Cary's character, Clemson Reade. Cary Grant didn't make many stinkers but he did here. It's one of the worst films in his career. It was so bad Cary considered retiring from acting after this and didn't make another movie for two years. Worth seeing if you're a die-hard fan of the stars or on the slim chance you might find something interesting about the socio-political stuff.