L'homme au complet gris

Ten years after Gregory Peck and Jennifer Jones lit up the screen with their torrid love-hate relationship in "Duel in the Sun," they were reunited in this engrossing business-domestic drama.

The two were surrounded by a great cast, headed by Fredric March and Lee J. Cobb, to offer a sincere portrait of a junior Madison Avenue exec who must choose between being a "big CEO" or a "second-tier nine-to-fiver".

Director/screenwriter Nunnaly Johnson guided the actors in uniformly well-modulated performances, all deeply felt and cleanly expressed. Keenan Wynn offered a surprisingly subtle and touching performance as well, in a film produced by Darryl F. Zanuck, with a Bernard Herrmann score.

What a treat it is to watch these fine thespians breathe life into most intriguing characters from Sloan Wilson's thoughtful novel.

It is hard to not want to see a film with this good a cast. Gregory Peck, Jennifer Jones, Fredric March and Lee J Cobb are reasons enough to see any film individually, seeing them together in the same film makes one further exciting. The story also sounded very interesting as did the themes. The mostly positive reviews promised a lot too, despite seeing some slightly worrying criticisms at the same time. So 'The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit' was seen in high anticipation.

'The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit' on the most part works very well, even if it did slightly disappoint. There are so many obvious good things, namely the performances, the emotional power and the approach to the themes addressed. Do have to agree however with the flaws that have been cited, mostly because of the overlength and pace. Can see why 'The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit' may not work for everybody, but do find the appeal quite a lot more understandable.

Will start with the good, as there is a lot more of that than bad. The set design is attractive enough without swamping the drama, even if there is a lack of authenticity in some of the past scenes. Bernard Hermann has always been one of my favourite film composers, his score for 'Vertigo' is one of my favourite scores of all time, and it is here haunting and adds to the emotional power (without being overwrought) even if it is not quite a character of its own in the same way some of his other scores. There is good sympathetic direction here, even if it is a bit sluggish in the legal subplot.

Script is intelligently written and thoughtful, as well as written with a lot of sincerity. The story is generally compelling, it was brave for 'The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit' to address such heavy topical themes in the day and deal with it so directly and honestly without being heavy-handed. So much so it does get emotional and at times painful to watch (not in a bad way), furthermore the subject and themes have such relevance and truth today so relating to what was being handled was easy. The war scenes are powerful and they and the aftermath do really well at showing how much damage the war did to so many without trivialising.

The characters also felt like real human beings, especially Peck's and March's. The performances are all round fabulous. Peck did sincere better than a lot of actors at the time and he shows that here in a performance that is towards his best and plays to his strengths. The other standout is March, as the most realistic and most complex character that he gives some poignant humanity too. Cobb breathes so much life to his character while also being reserved. Jones has a problematic character, the only one that was difficult to get behind, but gives it everything emotionally. Ann Harding and Marisa Pavan are touching in their roles.

On the other hand, 'The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit' does go on for much too long and one does feel the length with some sluggish pacing. What would have improved things were that if the war scenes were tightened up in the pace as they do run on for longer than needed and if the legal subplot, which was not very interesting and added next to nothing, was cut as others have said.

Although the sets are nice, the camera work sometimes does feel rather static and could really have afforded to have been opened up more to make it more cinematic. The ending felt anti-climactic.

Summing up on the whole, a lot of great but a few drawbacks making for a solid if flawed film. 7/10

I had trouble finding this film in the local video store but finally saw it on television. It's well worth watching. It's a wonderful commentary on the American suburban corporate culture emerging in the years following the second World War. Peck plays the stereotypical businessman living in Connecticut and taking the New Haven Railroad into New York City each day. He is faced with a number of seemingly mundane dilemmas, such as settling a deceased relative's estate, how to deal with a dissatisfied wife more ambitious than he, whether to switch jobs for better pay, and whether he should tell his new boss what he *needs* rather than *wants* to hear. Hanging over him are the ever-present memories of his wartime combat experience, which intrude on him occasionally – especially during those otherwise empty hours spent commuting on the train.

I disagree with the reviewer who found the film boring apart from the war scenes. One of the reasons why this film works so well is that it regularly jolts the viewer, nearly lulled into complacency by the apparent ordinariness of suburban life, with those sudden flashbacks of the horrors of war. The juxtaposition of these quite different scenes was quite deliberate and speaks volumes in itself. How is it possible for someone who has spent four years both killing and avoiding death to settle into a normal life of family and work? Obviously it's not easy.

Furthermore, death continues to haunt the family in various, almost light-hearted ways, particularly by way of the children who were born after the carnage had ended and for whom death is no more real than the gunfights in those television westerns to which they are so conspicuously addicted. A scene near the beginning has one of the girls suffering from chicken pox, a fairly minor malady, as everyone knows. But she tells her father she has "small pox" and her sister keeps teasing her with the morbid suggestion that she is going to die. The father tells her to stop, but she keeps it up. He knows what death is all about; his children do not.

The term "workaholic" had not yet been coined in 1956, but the contrast between the man who chooses a fuller, less driven life – including time for family – and the man married to his career could not have been more starkly portrayed. The viewers find themselves applauding the choice Peck eventually makes and pitying March for not having done so himself.

I am a great fan of the score's composer, Bernard Herrmann, whose music is uniquely capable of evoking a range of strong emotions in the listener. The music here is typically Herrmann, although it is not as central a "character" in this film as are his scores in, say, "Vertigo" and "Psycho." It is impossible to imagine the latter two films without the music, while this film seems less obviously dependent on its score.

Although I quite liked this film, it is overly long and could have been better edited. The several subplots needed to be better integrated into the whole. What, for example, was the purpose of the challenge to Peck's inheritance, other than to show the persistent salvific role Cobb played in his life? This subplot could easily have been cut and the film would have suffered nothing in terms of its overall impact. In fact, it might have been better for being more tightly constructed.

I was really surprised on this film as it was not at all what I expected. The title suggested to me something about life in corporate America, but that was just a background to what was really going on.

The movie was really about men.

I certainly would not excuse the taking of the opportunity to have an illicit affair during wartime, but I can understand the longing for warmth and affection when you are so far away from home and feel that you life is about to end.

I was really taken with the character's (Gregory Peck) cautious approach to life. I can empathize with him as he puts security and safety for his family about the wife's (Jennifer Jones) wanting someone to make a difference. He was never really comfortable stepping out into a world where he did not know the rules.

I can certainly empathize with him in the decision to be a 9-5 man instead of someone who builds. You don't always know the effect that can have on a family when forced to make that decision.

Peck played an honorable man, who tried to do the right thing for his boss and his family. It was a fascinating movie, and I believe that every man cans see some of himself in Peck's character.

A lot of big stars from the era: Fredric March, Lee J. Cobb, and Keenan Wynn made the movie well worth watching.

It's amazing this film came out of the 50's. It's even more true today, than it was then, now things are so rigidly stratified in our society that people can't even relate to considering being a Workaholic anything other than 'worthwhile' and 'normal'. Rat Race lifestyle, is all America is about now. Misery, stress, alienation, isolation; great material wealth but a dysfunctional society that has made little robots and zombies out of each of us. Remember how vibrant you felt as a child, how full of wonder? Remember being excited about the chance to play with other kids? Now we dread every minute of our lifestyle, yet still smile and say "things are going okay" when asked. What liars we have become. A culture of liars and cruel, vicious people, with plastic smiles frozen on our faces and our deep heartache and longing hidden away. This film shows that America has been on the wrong path for a long time and it's only gotten worse. Great film!! Peck is adequate, but considering the times he lived in, a pretty good performance. It's the writing and the messages of this film that stand out!!