Maisie Goes to Reno

For once, Maisie Ravier isn't losing a job on vaudeville, in a carnival or night club. "Maisie Goes to Reno" is the 8th of 10 films of the Maisie series by MGM. But now, our heroine has been working too hard at the war-time factory. So, the company doctor orders her to take a two-week vacation. Well, she runs into an old pal, Tommy Cutter, who happens to have a band and is heading for a gig at a hotel in Reno. He talks her into making her two-week vacation a return to singing with his band.

But, after being scammed by an old lady in the train depot and losing her money for a ticket, she gets her ticket from a G. I. He was on his way to try to stop his recent bride from divorcing him, but his leave has just been cancelled and he has to report back to base right away. In exchange for the ticket, Maisie agrees to take his letter and deliver it personally to the girl.

Well, Maisie winds up in another situation of skullduggery, but she is able to crack the case in the end so that the two lovebirds aren't divorced. In the meantime, of course, she has problems of her own over work and singing. How interesting this always is so that the audience never sees Ann Sothern sing or dance. Maisie falls for another guy, but has to put Flip off for moving too fast. Things get a little wacky in this one before it's over.

Here are some good lines from this film.

Flip Hennahan, "Take it easy! Take it Easy! What for? Do I have to buy you flowers and take you to the movies a whole year before I convince you?" Maisie Ravier, "Well, a girl does like to have flowers and a little romance before she's married. Heaven knows, few of them get it after."

Parsons, "You are an employee of this hotel. I'll see you in my office." Maisie, "Yes, sir. Shall I being the whip along or do you keep one handy?"

George, the blackjack dealer, "Aw, come now. Too much is plenty."

Maisie Ravier, "Flip, are you intimating again, that I'm a little nutsy?" Flip Hennahan, "Oh, no, honey, of course not. You've just been working too hard."

Maisie Ravier (Ann Sothern) is cracking after working 16 straight months at the airplane factory. She is ordered to take a 2 week vacation with pay. Tommy Cutter offers her a singing job with him in Reno. At the bus station, she encounters Sergeant Bill Fullerton who wants her to deliver a letter to his wife Gloria. In Reno, she falls for blackjack dealer "Flip" Hennahan (John Hodiak) who drives her to Gloria. Unbeknownst to her, Gloria is being manipulated to divorce Bill.

I'm a little back and forth with Flip. He's not really necessary for a good movie. It could be a more fun caper without him. I'm not sure about the reason for the scheme either. I have my guesses. I like screwball caper part of the movie. I like bellboy Jerry. I still like Maisie and that's the main thing.

This eighth installment of the Maisie franchise is pretty strange and the plot very contrived. Yet, it still manages to entertain. It begins with Maisie being ordered to take a vacation from the defense plant, as she's exhausted and hasn't had a vacation in almost a year and a half. When she meets an old friend who is a band leader, he invites her to sing with his band in Reno. This way, her vacation will be paid for and all she'll need to do is get there. At the bus station, however, she meets a soldier (Tom Drake) who tells her a sob story in order to get her to give him her bus ticket. It seems his wife is now in Reno trying to get a divorce and he wants to stop her, as it's all just a bit misunderstanding. She gives him the ticket but then all leaves are canceled--and he's ordered back to camp. Maisie agrees to see the wife and deliver a letter to her.

When Maisie arrives at where the wife is staying, he gives her the letter and learns that the husband is a creep. Maisie is satisfied and decides to stay out of the situation. BUT, she then learns accidentally that the lady she spoke with is NOT the soldier's wife! What gives? Who is impersonating the wife and why? Perhaps it's because the real wife (Ava Gardner) is very rich and someone is trying to steal her fortune. The problem is no one believes Maisie and she has a devil of a time convincing any one! As I said, the plot is strange and contrived. But, it manages to be pretty entertaining as well--especially at the end. Not among the better Maisie films but all are awfully good, so it's worth your time.

This middling entry in MGM's answer to Warner's Torchy Blaine series has Maisie going to Reno, getting involved in a mystery surrounding a divorcing couple.

It is a rather dull entry, the result of an uninvolving script and bland characterizations. Harry Beaumont, one of MGM's longtime B directors, does his best with the visual story telling, but even Anne Southern, aided and abetted by some up-and-coming players like Ava Gardner and John Hodiak can't do much with the story but talk fast.

MGM, once Thalberg was dead, never quite knew what to do with unglamorous characters and a smattering of 40s jive talk dates the story and gives an infantile air to the entire operation. For completest of the talent involved, but if you miss this, you won't suffer.

Plot-- Maisie takes a vacation to Reno from her demanding wartime job. At the train station she gets caught up with a likable soldier being sent abroad. There she agrees to take a letter to his wife in Reno pleading with her to stop divorce proceedings. Trouble is things are not what they seem at the wife's Reno household.

Lesser entry in the Maisie series. The series draw, of course, is Sothern's spunky turn as the sassy blonde. Problem here is that the supporting roles are all sober-sides (except for Byron Foulger's last-minute goofy doctor), who too often squelch Maisie's comedic spark. Thus the amusement doesn't spread. Then too, the slender plot gets dragged out over 90-minutes minus needed comedic mood. Then too, the storyline meanders rather than builds.

On the other hand, the opening scenes are a good taste of wartime America, with crowded trains, ration cards, and Maisie the Riveter. I wish that had carried over to the body of the movie. Also, I thought we'd get more swing-time band numbers given Maisie's employment with a band.

Anyway, the tall, striking Hodiak is made for film noir not comedy, while the equally striking Gardner is largely wasted in a lesser role, still early in her career. At the same time, 1944 was a big year for all-American boy Tom Drake, what with his key role in the classic Meet Me In St. Louis (1944). Too bad his career never flowered. And what about that Mickey Rooney look- alike as the bellhop. I kept having to tell myself it's really not Rooney.

All in all, the series and actress Sothern are better than this particular installment.