Tous les maris mentent

The title card says "Don't Trust your Husband", but this one is listed on Turner Classics as "An Innocent Affair". Fred MacMurray and Madeleine Carroll are husband and wife, and it's the usual misunderstandings and antics as Vincent (MacMurray) entertains a client, who also happens to be his ex-girlfriend. Wife Paula is sure that Vincent is having an affair, so she tries to make him jealous with schemes of her own. Send in Buddy Rogers. The music helps add to the comedic theme here...similar to cartoon music. Music director Hans Salter was nominated for SIX Oscars! This might not have been as good as it is without MacMurray carrying the weight. He had been in the biz for YEARS by this time. Directed by Lloyd Bacon, who had worked for the greats, does a fine job directing. Pretty Good. Nothing earth-shattering, but entertaining.

Vincent Doane (Fred MacMurray) is hiding something from his wife. Although completely innocent, he's been taking an ex-fiancee out to dinner in order to land a big account for his advertising agency. He is faithful and loves his wife but foolishly he doesn't trust her to believe him. When she thinks he's fooling around or lying, she decides to hire an actor to pretend to woo her in order to make Vincent jealous. The problem is that the man who is now making eyes at her is NOT the actor she played but a rich millionaire! How's this all going to work out? See the film and find out for yourself.

The story is familiar in that later the pair keep digging deeper and deeper holes until they're headed for divorce. This aspect of the film isn't fun...though the parts leading up to it are. Overall, worth seeing and enjoyable...though a tad overlong.

Frankly, I was surprised to learn that the two stars of this obscure but engaging comedy – Fred MacMurray and Madeleine Carroll – had starred in four previous films together (all of which are, for that matter, even less well-known than this one and, curiously enough, directed by the same – here it comes again – little known director!). In fact, this was not only Carroll's fifth and final teaming with MacMurray but also her penultimate film; that said, the two stars display a nice chemistry throughout.

The plot itself recalls to a certain degree the classic THE AWFUL TRUTH (1937), where a married couple starts divorce proceedings (and new affairs) but then decide they're best suited for each other at the end. MacMurray is an advertising executive (a lot of comedies from this era were set in this milieu) and Carroll his somewhat neglected wife – he says that his constant delays at work involve business meetings, but she suspects the presence of another woman (being the type of comedy it is, she turns out to be right…and, to make matters worse, the girl – played by Louise Albritton – concerned is none other than an ex-flame of MacMurray's!). In order to make her husband jealous, she hires an actor through an agency to flirt with her at a restaurant – but a waiter's mistake lands her in the arms of a Southern tobacco tycoon (Charles "Buddy" Rogers)!

Anyway, the comic situations that ensue (typically, these usually involve misunderstanding and embarrassment) make for a pleasant and unassuming hour and a half; highlights include Rogers explaining to MacMurray how he applied logic to arrive at the name "Kim Zezyzle" for his brand of cigarettes, and Alan Mowbray – posing as Albritton's husband during a dinner engagement for MacMurray's benefit – constantly interrupting the sensitive conversation (even after Carroll has joined the table) to boorishly ask, "When do we eat?"

This weak B-comedy is burdened with a talky script and overwrought acting. Fred MacMurray and Madeleine Carroll scream and snap at each other. Charles "Buddy" Rogers has a subsidiary role and does what he can with it. During one scene MacMurray pretends to be fast asleep, even when his wife screams "YIPPEEE!" in his ear. She then drops her large hat on his head. He keeps snoring loudly. Hilarious. Fred spends until 6 AM with his ex-fiancée who is now a prospective client for his advertising agency. All innocent fun, of course. These are the kind of contrivances I cannot endure in screwball comedies. 2 AM is believable; but to be out all night and lie to his wife stretches credulity. This is one of those scripts that would all fall apart if one person tells the other person the truth.

Louise Allbritton and Rita Johnson do what they can with thankless parts. This would-be screwball comedy is lacking in laughs.

In addition, the score is hokey, especially when there is no dialogue.

Vincent (Fred MacMurray) and Paula (Madeleine Carroll) are celebrating 5 years of marriage. Unfortunately, Vincent never seems to be around as he has to spend all his time with a client in order to gain a contract. Paula suspects that he is seeing another woman and so hires an escort to make her husband jealous. Things don't go to plan and the film follows a series of misunderstandings before everyone is re-united for a game of happy families.

The story starts well and there are genuine funny moments, eg, Vincent watching the cost of the bill as Claude (Charles Rogers) just keeps piling on the orders of champagne and expensive food. The films ticks by and is generally OK.

The cast do well. Fred MacMurray is funny as he registers deliberate disinterest in his wife's behaviour, Charles Rogers plays a slightly simple millionaire, and Alan Mowbray is funny as a hired escort who only has his eyes set on eating a meal. The story gets to where we expect it to but it slows down in pace after an amusing start.