Good , But It Is Overrated By Some

The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

It really made me laugh, but for some moments I was tearing up because I could relate so much.

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

I've fallen in love with Jean Arthur. She is funny, cute, romantic, and utterly charming in this film. Her hair and outfits are exquisite. The way she moves her body is so endearing, in everything from getting out of a car, to skipping around her apartment in madcap moments, to dancing. I love the little squeak in her voice and the fact that she was 43 when this film was made. Her reaction to being kissed on the neck on the steps outside, my god. What an incredibly steamy scene. Oh yeah, and Joel McCrea was great too. :) He plays his part with a perfect touch, drawing on the seriousness of wartime, goofing around with Charles Coburn, and unable to stop a growing attraction to Arthur, but at the same time, with a degree of understatement and reserve. He's a gentleman, but damn, those hands and his moves in that scene on the steps. Did I mention that scene? Another great one is when he gives her a fancy travel bag and then shows her all of its various features - they are both just so natural, and one feels their interest in each other simmering in their terrible nearness. He accidentally marks his nose sniffing a makeup container, and it was quite clever of director George Stevens to leave it on his face for as long as he did. I also loved when they both secretly hoped her fiancé (Richard Gaines) wouldn't call by 8 pm, so that they could go out together instead.Charles Coburn is quite a character in this film as well, impish and bold, while cleverly playing matchmaker between the two. The banter between Coburn and McCrea is as good as the banter each have with Arthur. Coburn's performance was worthy of the best supporting actor Oscar he won. Stevens has a great sense of flow, balances the comedic and romantic elements perfectly, and gives us lots of little eye candy on top of it. The wartime song at the end was a nice touch too. Highly recommended.

Great screwball comedy! The map and schedule bit near the beginning is one of the best bits of comedy business I've seen. Jean Arthur is lovely but a little bit of a wallflower too. Joel McCrea is tall, dark, and mysterious. Charles Coburn is so wacky with his repeated catchphrases, "eight girls to every fella," and "damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead." Gaines as Pendergast is as square as they come complete with awful hair piece. The movie seems a little rough around the edges as if it was under-rehearsed. Especially Jean Arthur, who seems to be stumbling with quite a few of her lines. But it works for this movie, as the action looks more live theatre and spur of the moment, and Jean Arthur's character appears more real. Some of the best situation comedy and verbal jabs in the screwball genre!

The World War 11 housing shortage in Washington, D.C. served as the basis for this rousing 1943 comedy.Both Charles Coburn and another guy soon share an apartment with the perky Jean Arthur, who is engaged to a diplomat.Arthur, a perfectionist, has a working schedule that just doesn't work out and Coburn was so hilarious in those scenes that he was rewarded with a best supporting actor Oscar for the year. Amazing to me that he was able to win in a year with Akim Tamiroff in "For Whom the Bell Tolls," and Claude Rains for "Casablanca," were both in the running.As the other guy, who Coburn rents out his apartment to, Joel McCrea gives a restrained, quiet performance as the guy who quickly falls for the Arthur character.The ending might be somewhat inane, but the fine direction by George Stevens, and the characters themselves, blend for a memorable film.

I only came across this movie recently as it was shown on TMC. What a treat! I had not seen any Jean Arthur pictures before - I have to say, she was one lovely lady. I won't repeat the plot details, but just comment that the sidewalk and kiss scene was fabulous. You know that Joe (McRae) and Connie (Arthur)are destined to kiss, but the buildup goes on and on.All the while, Connie is warding off the octopus treatment from Joe, without really wanting to, and pretending to be nonchalant and detached. And when the kisses come, they take her breath away. Certainly among the great screen kisses.One point I don't think anyone else commented on: When Connie first mentions her then-fiancé Charles J. Pendergast, she says offhandedly that he has no hair, is bald. But when we see Pendergast a little later on, and for the rest of the movie, he is wearing a blatantly ill-fitting and mis-tinted toupee. In the restaurant scene, Pendergast makes a point of ducking under some ventilation fans; no doubt to keep his hair on straight. No one says anything, but you know why he did it.