Les caprices de Suzanne

Joan Fontaine was so often cast in moody, introspective roles in somber dramas that her prowess in comedy was seldom explored. Here it certainly is--she gets the chance to play a woman who is entirely different in the eyes of three men who loved her in the past (George Brent, Don deFore and Dennis O'Keefe)--and are now telling their stories to the man about to marry her (Walter Abel). In flashback we see Susan as a plain-Jane who becomes an actressy type, an intellectual and a glamorous sophisticate. It's a pleasure to see Fontaine enjoying herself in a demanding comedy role for a change--with excellent support from her co-stars, particularly George Brent as an ex-husband. Rarely shown on TV, it's one you have to catch on one of the cable channels and well worth viewing.

Obviously, "The Affairs of Susan" has some dated depictions of gender relations. But aside from that, it's a funny movie, with Joan Fontaine playing a woman whose fiancé (Walter Abel) finds out about her previous relationships. All her previous lovers have a story about her wacky antics. The humor is more subtle than what we're used to, but when it bubbles up, there's plenty of laughs to be had! While not the greatest comedy ever, it's still one that you're bound to enjoy. I sure did. It received an Academy Award nomination for Best Story but lost to "The House on 92nd Street" (which was actually the more important movie that year).

Joan Fontaine, before 1945, only made a few comedies, and they were B pictures. In this movie, she changes her personality with every new man she meets. She met four men, and she changed her personality four times. Each time she is a different type of woman: shy, movie star, social, and intellectual. She is very funny in each of the roles as she tries to readjust to the new life, and try to find the right man. She finally ends up with her first husband, but goes through a lot to find out he is the right one. Very funny, I recommend it.

Walter Abel is getting married to Joan Fontaine, so he wants to learn more about her from her exes, in "The Affairs of Susan." She was married to George Brent and Don Defore, and engaged to Dennis O'Keefe. They all tell their story of meeting her and the personality of Susan they knew and loved. When I started the film, it felt a little forced. But the film's entertainment really starts with George Brent's flashback, as he was her first husband. Their chemistry is great and they make for a sweet couple, but of course their relationship sours and Susan loses her unpretentiousness, resulting in their divorce, thus leading to the others' tales. All the actors are well cast and their stories are so engrossing, but it's all about Susan, and Joan Fontaine gives a great and relatively restrained performance as Susan, who goes from guy to guy, learning who she is and what she wants out of life. I know this sounds serious, when in fact it was a delightful comedy-drama. In fact, Walter Abel was quite disturbed when he saw all of the gentlemen's pictures in her apartment. She had not told him, in the brief time they knew each other, before his proposal, about any of her past. But what happens when he learns more about his fiancée? When you add up all "The Affairs of Susan," what has any of them learned? It seems that Susan....

The Affairs Of Susan has Walter Abel ready to marry Joan Fontaine and at a big blowout three guys who've had history with this woman who is a famous stage actress show up to tell Abel about their experiences. The trio are an ex-husband who is a theatrical producer played by George Brent, a rich financial backer from the west who is Don DeFore and Dennis O'Keefe a rather pretentious and iconoclastic writer.

All of them see Fontaine in a different way because they all dealt with her at different stages of her in her growth as a human being. All three bring out different aspects of her personality. One thing is for sure all three are still carrying a statue of liberty size torch for her.

The film got Oscar recognition with a nomination for original screenplay. I think it kind of takes a bit from the Ginger Rogers classic Tom, Dick, And Harry. And if you think about it The Affairs Of Susan is a less serious version in many ways of The Bad And The Beautiful.

Fontaine and her men do well in the roles. But you really ought to notice Rita Johnson who is a rival actress to Fontaine. Funniest scene in the film is what Johnson does to try and spoil Fontaine's opening night.

I also love the opening title as that quartet of Susan's men sing If You Knew Susie. After 72 years the film still sparkles.