Andy Hardy Milionário

This is a decent but weak episode in the MGM series, possibly the weakest. The plot concerns the Judge being informed that he has inherited two million dollars and the entire family heading out to Detroit. Mickey Rooney spends almost all of his time mugging and the life lessons and warmth that give life to the series seem to be that if you inherit a major fortune, you shouldn't buy a tuxedo. Lewis Stone, as usual, gives a fine performance, although he is a lot more dithery than usual.

The movie is given the usual MGM gloss and people who like to spot talent on the rise or after the fall may note that Aileen Pringle plays a saleswoman who sells a dress. In the 1920s, she was one of MGM's leading players until Garbo came along and took all the good roles from her.

Judge Hardy (Lewis Stone) inherits a fortune so the family moves...to Detroit? Times really have changed. Once in Detroit, the Hardys have difficulty adjusting to their potential newfound wealth. Andy starts to think of himself as a millionaire playboy and acts accordingly. Marian spends like there's no tomorrow. Even Aunt Millie (Sara Haden) gets in on the action, trying to be something she's not to snag a man.

Lewis Stone's good in this one as the Judge's honesty and integrity is tested and, surprisingly, the old stone wall almost cracks. Mickey is fun as usual. His reaction to being invited to the chorus girl's apartment is priceless. The one father/son talk we get is late in the film but it's pretty funny. Fay Holden is as endearing as ever. Cecilia Parker didn't annoy me once in the whole picture. A first! Sara Haden has probably her best movie in the series playing Aunt Millie going through a spinster crisis. Ann Rutherford shines in her far too few scenes as Polly Benedict. Halliwell Hobbes is fun as a butler. Seems like he was always playing butlers. Virginia Grey is fine as the gold-digging chorus girl who helps lead Andy astray. Marsha Hunt and Donald Briggs have bit parts as a bickering married couple who are saved from divorce (for now) by Judge Hardy. The part where he tells the wife "what a generous husband gives is a lot more than you're entitled to" is sure to ruffle feathers today.

This is one of the lesser Hardy films but still enjoyable. They don't do as much with the "coming into money" idea as I think they could have. It was nice to see Haden get some extra material but since the decision she arrives at in the end doesn't carry over into future movies, it almost seems pointless. No Hardy movie is unwatchable. This one just feels lacking. Also the ending just sneaks up on you and we're not given any great closure on the inheritance plot.

Just watched this, the sixth in the Judge Hardy's Family series. Seems the family may have inherited some money so they go to Detroit to claim their share. Of course, Andy has delusions of grandeur which he enacts quickly when a supposed relative takes him out on the town and he sees chorus girls for the first time! I'll stop there and just say that I liked most of the film especially when some of the focus is on spinster Aunt Milly and her dressing up and going out with someone she likes very much. Mickey Rooney, as always, is his usual exuberant self. Oh, and what he tells Polly at the end! So on that note, I highly recommend The Hardys Ride High.

Judge Hardy discovers that he may have inherited two million dollars, and in order to claim it he and the family must travel to Detroit. From there, fairly predictable situations arise as everyone basks in extravagances and some people try to take advantage, but this is a decent enough installment that features girl-crazy Andy trying to grow up fast while out on the town. Of course, there is a lesson to be learned as well from Lewis Stone's fatherly figure, and it's a matter of whether or not lying and cheating is any way to come into millions of dollars.

**1/2 out of ****

In the sixth Andy Hardy movie, Mickey Rooney is a real pain in the neck. He completely acts his age, so you'd better get ready for a bunch of sixteen-year-old antics. The patriarch of the family, Lewis Stone, finds out that he's potentially the heir to a two-million-dollar fortune, and when the entire family goes to Detroit to explore the family tree, everyone gets into trouble.

Calling all Sara Haden fans: Aunt Millie finally gets a romance! She has an impassioned speech at the start of the movie, lamenting her role as the spinster aunt in the family and society, and she meets a respectable, considerate, handsome man on the airplane. Later on, she gives herself a makeover and appears at dinner with her hair done up and in a beautiful gown. Fay Holden bursts into tears, and Mickey says, "Don't cry! Aunt Millie will make herself ugly again if you want her to!" It's insulting, but classically blunt in Andy Hardy fashion. Mickey doesn't limit his insults to his aunt, and says to his father, "You're old; you couldn't change even if you wanted to," as Lewis Stone struggles to keep his hurt feelings to himself. Poor Judge Hardy; he has to take so much from his son. In every movie, he has to juggle everyone else's problems as well as his own, and he has at least one "man-to-man" talk with Mickey. Usually these famous talks are about girls or financial problems, and this movie proves to be no exception. He has an unending amount of patience; I've seen almost every one of the Andy Hardy movies, and he has yet to lose his temper.

Mickey and Cecilia Parker both get into trouble wanting to fit in with the upper crust. They buy things they can't afford and make friends with the wrong crowd. "Summon the butler!" Mama Hardy declares. Right on cue, Halliwell Hobbes introduces himself as the butler. How fitting, since he made a career of playing dozens of butlers in old movies! Fay Holden is the only one who doesn't let the money go to her head. She doesn't buy fancy clothes and still concerns herself with the daily cooking for her family. She and Lewis have a couple of cute scenes together, reminding the young folks in the audience that their parents were once young and in love, too.

All in all, this movie isn't that great. Mickey's ridiculous antics and manipulative, bratty personality are tough to take. I did like Sara Haden's part, and Lewis Stone's model father role is at his best. He's known as Honest Judge Hardy for a reason. Keep in mind, Sara Haden's best known for her role as the spinster aunt in these movies, so don't get your hopes up. If you do like her, though, this is the movie that gives her the biggest part, and I'm sure she appreciated getting such a big chunk of the story.