It's no definitive masterpiece but it's damn close.

A waste of 90 minutes of my life

Not sure how, but this is easily one of the best movies all summer. Multiple levels of funny, never takes itself seriously, super colorful, and creative.

Blistering performances.

Golden-Age Hollywood screwball fabricator Preston Sturges' last feature film worthy of his caliber, UNFAITHFULLY YOURS stars Rex Harrison as a renowned conductor Sir Alfred de Carter, on the eve of his concert, he is deviled by the paranoia that his much younger wife Daphne (Darnell) might have an extramarital affair with his personal secretary Anthony Windborn (Kreuger) thanks to his philistine brother-in-law August Henshler (Vallée)'s presumptuous misconstruction.The apprehension and exasperation of being cuckolded hangs like a rock over Alfred's mind and Sturges only knows all too well, that for a man of Alfred's Brobdingnagian ego, the last thing to do is to lay bare his suspicion point blank in front of Daphne, from blunt rebuke to mounting curiosity, until firmly convinced by the circumstantial evidence, it all comes down to an increasingly fractious Alfred envisages three possible outcomes when wielding his baton in front of a full symphony orchestra and a full-house audience. Every scenario is pertinently induced by a different classical piece from romantic-era he conducts and introduced by a cracking zooming-in shot right into Alfred's eyeball, the overture of Rossini's baroque SEMIRAMIDE triggers a murderous plan A which a framed Anthony to take the rap, yet what Wagner's operatic TANNHÄUSER suggests is a plan B with lenience and munificence, whereas plan C of a Russian roulette derring-do is influenced by Tchaikovsky's symphonic poem FRANCESCA DA RIMINI, a special treat for musos and cinephiles alike. Sardonically, reality is, more often than not, not exactly what we have imagined, so during his execution of one of the plans after the concert (interestingly, the choice of the plan betrays Sturges' arch amalgamation of comedy and morbidness), a knockabout transpires in a slightly labored fashion which plays up to Alfred's clumsiness, and he is merely stuck in the preparatory step with the "so-simple-it-operates-itself" home recording unit when Daphne returns, thus an air-clearing finale is all we need to put everything back to the status quo. A motormouthed Rex Harrison simulates a great impression as a conductor and relishes Sturges' long-winded screenplay which jollily throws barbs to the folly of machismo, meanwhile, Linda Darnell is hobbled as a virtuous beauty with a little more to act (albeit it is all in one's figment), yet, quintessentially it is Sturges' trademark witticism and sleight-of-hand that marks this oldie a treasure to be appreciated by posterity and here is the takeaway quip to round off my review - "If there is one reassuring thing about airplane, they always come down."

Sir Alfred De Carter (Rex Harrison) is an aging British conductor who becomes extremely suspicious of his beautiful younger wife (Linda Darnell) and his handsome (but boring) assistant (Kurt Kreuger) after his wife's brother-in-law (Rudy Vallee) brings him a detective's report. Harrison at first refuses to even look at the report, but as his ego gets the better of him, he goes to the original detective (an unrecognizable Edgar Kennedy) and is visited by their hotel's house detective (Al Bridge) who confirms seeing Darnell going into Kreuger's suite in the middle of the night. Harrison does what any brilliant music conductor does-he plots revenge, and that means murder and framing his rival for the crime. Harrison (known for his own extreme ego in real life) seems to enjoy spoofing the whole idea as Alfred just gets crazier and crazier, first setting his dressing room on fire in an effort to destroy the detective's report, then furiously conducting his orchestra for rehearsal as if he were riding the winning horse at the Kentucky Derby. By the time his concert begins, he has decided to emulate Sweeney Todd, as we learn in the first of three fantasy sequences where he plots the perfect crime. But dreaming of revenge and actually carrying it out are two different things, and in one of the funniest sequences Preston Sturges ever directed, Harrison goes deeper and deeper into madness as he destroys his entire hotel suite while trying to carry out his scheme. This is slapstick at its most intelligent.This is a film where you are not supposed to like the leading character. That makes his over-the-top actions all the more funny, and Harrison relishes every moment. Darnell, of course, is truly beautiful, the most ravishing clothes horse of the 1940's, but has nothing to do but look lovely and confused as Harrison's menace increases. Lionel Stander has some amusing lines as Harrison's pal, while Vallee, Barbara Lawrence (as Darnell's sister), Kennedy, and Bridge offer fine support. Sturges, responsible for some of the best screenplays and for directing some of the finest comedies in Hollywood's history, adds another gem to his resume. The music too is wonderful, furiously as part of the plot as Harrison's insanity is. This was remade somewhat successfully by Dudley Moore in 1984, one of the more obscure classics to be re-done. It has grown in cult status over the years, but was totally overlooked for awards during its release year. The film remains a showcase for its stunning leading man who in spite of 40's classics such as "Blithe Spirit" and "The Ghost & Mrs. Muir" wouldn't become legendary until he uttered those immortal stage and screen words, "Eliza, where the devil are my slippers?" years later.

Writer director Preston Sturges made a habit out of kicking the legs out from under some of our most cherished virtues, and he turned his attention to the sanctity of marriage in this late career classic: a dark and malicious (but no less hilarious) comedy easily several decades ahead of its time. The vow 'til death do us part' takes on an entirely new meaning when a world-renowned symphony conductor (Rex Harrison) begins to question the fidelity of his beautiful young wife, and while in concert is inspired to fantasies of revenge, noble sacrifice, and suicidal self-pity by the music of (respectively) Rossini, Wagner, and Tchaikovsky.This is Preston Sturges at his iconoclastic best, sharpening his trademark wit to a keenness matched only by the startling, contrasting darkness of his humor. Notice how the catharsis of Rex Harrison's murderous daydreams lends an emotional brilliance to his interpretation of each musical score, and note too the malicious glee he takes in slashing his wife's pretty neck with a straight razor, and later watching his bête noir consigned to the electric chair.Harrison's dapper English urbanity was perfectly suited to Sturges' unique, demented brand of verbal hysteria; one need only imagine Dudley Moore in the same role in the inevitable 1984 remake to appreciate the sophistication of the original. Sturges was not unaccustomed to getting away with murder in his comedies, but it's hard to believe a film of such daring poor taste could ever have been made under the moral straightjacket of mid-1940s Hollywood. Like all of the director's best efforts it hasn't aged a day since, and if anything is even funnier (and more chilling) when seen today.

Symphony conductor Rex Harrison discovers his wife Linda Darnell has been unfaithful to him, or so it seems, according to a detective's investigation and report, requested by brother-in-law Rudy Vallee, who misunderstood Rex's parting words (while he was on tour) "of looking after my wife" and of whom Rex does not like, at all.While this movie is good, (and I don't say this very often if ever, but...), it has earned a somewhat overrated reputation over the years. It is funny in parts and it has class in spades, but its ending lays kind of flat given all the build-up to it. Its main attribute is Rex's hammy performance. He's the whole show, with all his emphatic and vociferous syllables, including Rudy Vallee jokes that Rudy is a bore. (It's ironic that Rudy's singing career in the 20s and 30s made him such a ladies' man celebrity and sensation, but in movies he's typecast as a stuffed shirt.) Overall, you may like this, and you will definitely laugh throughout the film, but there's no last laugh that leaves you smiling out the door.