De Folga para Amar

I'm a fan of Tony Curtis so obviously I am more inclined to like this movie than not. To be completely fair this movie is not his best effort and in fact it is probably one of the worst movies of this period of his acting career. That's not to say it's a bad movie because it is still a decent effort and a pretty good comedy with good performances and OK writing.

It is also worth watching this movie because it is one of the films he co-starred in with his real life wife Janet Leigh. In fact Jamie Lee Curtis was born around the time of this movie so that's an interesting piece of trivia for film buffs I guess.

All in all it's a pretty forgettable film and not one of the greats but if you can get your hands on a copy or catch it on TV it's definitely a decent way to get a few laughs and it's worth watching as a silly comedy that holds up pretty well after all these years.

In his memoirs Tony Curtis lists this as one of five films he would make with first wife Janet Leigh. As opposed to such dramatic fare as Houdini or a great comedy like Who Was That Lady, The Perfect Furlough is distinctly second rate. The film is also one of four Curtis did with Blake Edwards as director. Tony and Blake first teamed with a good dramatic film Mister Cory and then later in Operation Petticoat and The Great Race. All of those are better than The Perfect Furlough.

The great military minds of the Pentagon are concerned about the morale of those Air Force guys stationed in the Arctic. All 104 men are performing a top security job at the North Pole so we can't furlough them all to get what they obviously need.

So what's the answer as thought of by Colonel Les Tremayne. Get a willing movie star like Linda Cristal to go on a carefully chaperoned date in Paris with just one lucky airman chosen by lottery. The others will live vicariously through Curtis's good times. The operation to be supervised by Lieutenant Janet Leigh.

Curtis is the base conniver and he connives his way into winning the lottery and the dream time with Cristal. It's one of those operations like you used to see on The Dating Game. Only Curtis does play for keeps and Leigh wishes he would play with her, officer/enlisted man rules of non-fraternization not withstanding.

It's a dumb premise to start with. I mean Lee Marvin when his Dirty Dozen had completed training he took care of them in proper style before they went on their mission. But Marvin was an original thinker on these matters unlike those in the Pentagon in Cold War peacetime.

Note some good performances by Elaine Stritch as Cristal's studio chaperon and Keenan Wynn as her controlling producer. But over all The Perfect Furlough is far from perfect.

The Army has a problem. 104 men has been in an Arctic base for 7 months but they can't all go on furlough. Psychiatrist Lt. Vicki Loren (Janet Leigh) suggests giving one man their perfect furlough. Cpl. Paul Hodges (Tony Curtis) leads the men to demand a trip to Paris with movie star Sandra Roca. Paul schemes his way to winning the lottery. It turns out that he was forced to go to the Arctic due to his womanizing ways and Vicki is forced to be a chaperon.

The premise is too complicated but a screwball comedy can do that sometimes. At least, it allows Tony Curtis to have some fun in the Arctic. His charm is cinematic and the movie shows it off. This is an early Blake Edwards comedy and there are a lot of his touches. My only complaint is Sandra Roca's revelation. It cuts short the possibility of a love triangle. That has so much potential but most of it is left behind. I also don't think Janet Leigh is a great comedic actress. Her seriousness can be used for comedy but in this case, it is simply a case of frustrating misunderstanding. It's not as funny as it could have been.

Funny little early Blake Edwards. Curtis & Leigh are quite good, but watch for the supporting actors. The great Keenan Wynn, a non-"30 Rock" look at the wonderful Elaine Stitch and especially King Donovan, so funny as the befuddled military "handler" of Curtis' character. Love anything King Donovan was in.

Tony Curtis stars an Army corporal stationed at an Arctic outpost who gets a Parisian furlough with sexy Argentine movie actress Linda Cristal, who is secretly pregnant. Would-be bedroom romp never does get saucy. Director Blake Edwards bides his time with his usual padding and gimmicks: slapstick brawls and frantic chases. This was one of six movies Curtis made with then-wife Janet Leigh, wasted here as a prim lieutenant. Despite lots of Hollywood gloss, these are grueling comic antics indeed. Interesting supporting cast including Elaine Stritch and Keenan Wynn is a minor compensation. * from ****