My Reputation (1946)

Am i the only one who thinks........Average?

A Masterpiece!

I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

It's 1942. Jessica Drummond (Barbara Stanwyck) is depressed after her husband died leaving her with two teen boys. Family friend Frank Everett is the executor of the estate and has a crush on her. She struggles with society expectations and a lecherous date. She is invited to a ski vacation at Lake Tahoe by Ginna Abbott. She gets lost in the woods and is rescued by Major Scott Landis. She falls for the soldier despite resistance from her family and the societal disapproval. Scott does not get along with Jessica's mother in-law. Her friends' gossips infect her young boys.Other than Barbara Stanwyck, there isn't much to this film. I don't really understand the social boundaries being crossed by her relationship. As a soldier, I'd expect Scott to be a respectable prospect. He's literally going off to war to defend home and country. It's another era and I guess widows were expected to mourn their late husbands until the end of time. Then it doesn't make sense that she goes on that earlier date. It may be helpful if the gossip is told on screen. Even if it doesn't make sense, it would at least make for heightened tension. The kids are more understandable and their questioning is heart-breaking. It's less helpful that the child actors are so stiff. Honestly, the premise is damning but I must remember the times. I guess love doesn't conquer all.

Barbara Stanwyck, sometimes underrated as an actress (four Oscar nominations and no wins) and always undervalued as a star, shows why she lasted so long - she could do anything. Usually cast as a mobster's tough tart or a hard-luck dame and everything in between, here she plays a first-class lady, a widowed mother of two, a fine upstanding citizen who lives in that Never-Never Land called the Upper Middle Class laughingly depicted by Hollywood as a place where women belong to country clubs, constantly appear dressed in mink and evening gowns, are constantly making grand entrances and exits and are forever worrying what the neighbors will think. Joan Crawford fit right into this nonsensical neighborhood once she joined Warner Bros. and may well have been offered this script but thankfully Stanwyck took the part and created from the ground up another unforgettable performance in a forgettable (but very popular in its day) film. The story is nothing special but oh! how Barbara dominates every scene she's in, and does it without really trying (or so it seems). While Davis and Crawford had a tendency to remind audiences that they were acting, Stanwyck just rolled up her sleeves and got the job done. Such truth in her work! Watching her is an electric experience, she connects with an audience like few stars had or have before or since. Splendid!

A Good Try but not Totally Successful Attempt at Antiquation Dealing with Generations Past with Their Social, Personal, and Now Outdated Traditions.Barbara Stanwyck Showing Her Range as an Actress is all Pent Up Emotion and Struggling to Juggle Personal Gratification among Her Widowed Status that is Accompanied by Two Children, a Domineering Mentally Disturbed Mother, and a Reputation as a Pillar of the La-Dee-Da Upper Middle Class Suburbs.There is an Attempt at Social Consciousness Raising from Warner Bros. and some Ground Shaking but not Fully Breaking from Established Taboos. It is a Gallant Effort with a Soft Focus and a Charming Underpinning Max Steiner Score. Nothing is Satisfyingly Settled, Except by Hollywood Happy Ending Standards.The Film belongs to Stanwyck and the Message is Pulled Back Somewhat for Easy Consumption. George Brent as the Love Interest is Hardly Noticeable but Not Bad. The Rest of the Supporting Cast is Memorable and Deliver Fine Professional Performances.Overall it is Slightly Disappointing with a Quick Wrap Up and the Ending is Weak when it should have Peaked with Power and Realistically Concluded a Strong Story that Collapsed Somewhat, Mostly due to the Lack of Chemistry in Stanwyck's Relationship with Brent.

Perhaps it's because of the presence of George Brent, but in some ways this reminds me of a Bette Davis vehicle. Perhaps not as strong as some of Davis' pics, but in the same vein. But as I watched the film, I realized that Davis would not have been quite right -- Barbara Stanwyck, however, was perfect.There really is some excellent acting here, even aside from Stanwyck. George Brent is a somewhat forgotten actor, but he turns in strong performances in the vast majority of the films he was in, and this movie is no exception. Lucile Watson is a noted character actress, and I always enjoy her performances, even when -- as here -- she's not playing in a totally sympathetic role. The two other performances of note here are Eve Arden as the friend...a bit subdued here...but very good. And, young Scotty Beckett as the younger son. Beckett may very well have been the most talented of the child actors of that era, but unfortunately died at 38 after living an adult life that was quite tragic.It's difficult to find anything not to like in this film. The story is not as suggestive as the title makes it sound. Stanwyck's husband has died and eventually she falls in love with George Brent...a little too soon for everyone else's taste...including her own sons. But, she becomes a bit liberated, and at the end of the film there is promise that her relationship with Brent will lead to marriage. Enjoy! This is a good one!