La capannina

Not everyone who sees "The Little Hut" will understand the humor displayed. It is a more worldly comedy from another time--fifty years ago. What made us laugh then or 100 years ago or even now, is different, because we are products of the time period and location in which we live.

Ava Gardner portrays Lady Susan Ashlow, a play on a previous character from "The Sun Also Rises", Lady Brett Ashley (also released 1957). Stuart Grainger, who co-starred with her in "Bhowani Junction" the previous year and David Niven, who co-stared with her later in "55 Days At Peking" also star. It's tongue-in-cheek repartee are over the heads of most of the "X" generation that only can read enough to access information on the internet. If you've never read a book, don't bother seeing this movie--you won't get it. But if you remember: Kennedy, cocktail hour, the bomb, etc. you will understand and enjoy this movie.

Discovered this great comedy from 1957 on TCM and enjoyed the great acting and pretty looks of Ava Gardner, (Lady Susan Ashlow) who was married to Sir Philip Ashlow, (Stewart Granger) and a great supporting actor David Niven, (Henry Brittingham-Brett). Lady Susan Ashlow is neglected by her husband, Sir Philip Ashlow and Susan seeks the constant companionship of Henry Brett who is a bachelor. Susan tries to make her husband jealous by always going out with Henry and eventually Susan convinces her husband to take a cruise on their yacht as a sort of honeymoon. However, Philip decides to invite Henry on the cruise and things happen on the cruise that causes everyone to become shipwrecked on an island and things begin to get rather crazy. Eventually Henry asks Philip if he can share Susan in bed every once in awhile and the story gets really funny and out of control. Good entertaining 1957 film, enjoy.

"The Little Hut" comes from a period in time when the almighty Production Code had began to loosen up. So a rather provocative menage-a-trois comedy (with two of the participants married to each other) was actually permissible. Despite the desert island setting, the film betrays its stage origins. But the hot (and frequently wet) Ava Gardner is the perfect woman to be shipwrecked on an island with, and Stewart Granger & David Niven, while maintaining their gentlemanly exterior, prove adept at slapstick comedy. **1/2 out of 4.

Two men and a woman are stranded on a desert island.

If they are English, there is no problem: They haven't been introduced.

If they are Spanish, there is no problem: One of the men will kill the other.

If they are Italian, there is no problem: The woman will kill one of the men.

If they are American, there is no problem: They will be too busy talking about business.

If they are French, there is no problem.

Alas for this story, the two men are English, and the woman is American, and they already knew one another well -- perhaps too well.

The story, from a French play more risqué, or even downright explicit, is reasonably plausible, by Hollywood standards, rather well acted, but so badly edited it is a crime.

There are way too many scenes that do not match: For example, from one angle, a character has his arms crossed, then the next shot shows him with his arms at his side.

"The Little Hut" is full of such bad continuity or bad editing or bad directing ... or combination thereof.

Still Ava Gardner, an enchanting and under-rated actress, in her various abbreviated costumes almost makes this worthwhile all by herself. Almost.

i saw this film"way back when" in '57 and my date & i were helpless laughing at it. i know it was panned even back then, both as a b'way show and later as a flick. stewart granger plays a totally naive tennis nut with a beautiful wife, ava gardner. he is totally oblivious to his pal, david niven's overt courting of gardner. one scene has niven & gardner playing a game and, at the game's end, they engage in a passionate kiss. the naive granger passes it off as "good, clean fun". he just can't see pal niven for what he's up to. another scene has the three at a table on the island they were stranded on, with granger again in total oblivion to gardner & niven playing tangle toes and trading double entendres at each other. granger finally wakes up and tries to win wife's attentions back. this picture is really worth seeing, in my book.