H.M. Pulham, Esq. (1941)

Pretty Good

Good concept, poorly executed.

Awesome Movie

It is neither dumb nor smart enough to be fun, and spends way too much time with its boring human characters.

For me, this movie was like a box of chocolates, where some will be fabulous, some will be okay, and lots will be like tolerable filler, or worse. The good: Hedy lamarr. Never a fan of hers, she was my favorite element of the movie. Just interesting to watch, quirkily acted with a very unique personal style as she played a free-thinking, smart, independent, playful, cautious, fearful, fearless, ambitious, grounded character. I found her fascinating, which isn't surprising considering how smart she is alleged to have been in real life. It's the first time I've seen her on screen where her skill matched want I had read about her. The good: The elements of the plot line that challenged the formula, whether it's girl marries to access wealth, or that people live happily ever after. There were little bits of iconoclasm, like Hedy's character wanting a scotch without feeling the need to hide it. The bad: Sorry, Robert Young lovers. Look, I like Robert Young, too, as a person. He's a nice guy, warm , likable, but he was better for TV because he was so bland. He can't carry a movie, and certainly not one like that, that requires simultaneous layers of compromise, pain, frustration, ardor, denial, anger, honor. He's the principal reason the film is dull. When I read that Vidor wanted Jimmy Stewart or Gary Cooper it so made sense, and that Young was a compromise. Stewart would have brought the angst and layers to it that he brought to It's a Wnderful Life. The Gregory Peck of Valley of Decision had the power and range and internal drama to prople this movie. (he wasn't a star yet, or known). The good: Ruth Hussey. Underrated actress. She really shines in this movie, and I've never seen her so luminous, war, beautiful. She was usually cast more unidimensionally brittle. The so-so: Charles Coburn. Been there, done that. The so-so: Bonita Granville. Same part, different movie.

From John Marquand's celebrated book, with Robert Young playing a married Bostonian businessman who lives his precise existence by the clock, harking back on his struggling early days as a junior-executive with an advertising firm in love with a sweet, efficient co-worker. The flashbacks take some time adjusting to (Young parts his hair differently and loses the tidy mustache), and grumpy Charles Coburn comes up with nothing new as Young's blue blood father. However, Hedy Lamarr is attractive, smart and astute as the gal who catches Robert's eye, and it may be the best piece of acting Lamarr ever did; her sultry accent and bedroom eyes are neatly ignored, and Lamarr proves to be a natural playing a relatively ordinary working girl with a head for business and a heart for romance. She and Young develop a warm chemistry together but, despite the smiles, the picture is about regrets and missed opportunities. It looks like a formula today: successful man searches his past and ponders the paths he ultimately chose. Rather colorless and dull. ** from ****

Right from the beginning, one might mistake this film for a comedy. In fact, the artistic opening sequences make H. M. Pulham (Robert Young) out to be a rather eccentric man. But as the film goes on, we learn that his is a complex and likable man with a life relateable to anyone at anytime. He is notified of a Harvard class reunion and for the event, he must write a personal biography. Writing it turns out to be difficult, and we journey through memories in search of the ones to include.As a young boy, Pulham was brought up in a highly educated and somewhat rigid environment. His mother (Fay Holden), father (Charles Coburn), and sister (Bonita Granville) loved him and accepted his friends willingly, especially Bill King (Van Heflin). They even arranged for a girl to be nearby at all times (Ruth Hussey); he even eventually married her. However, the one aspect of his life that was not planned was his love affair with an advertiser named Marvin (Hedy Lamarr). Thinking about her brings back all of the passion they had for each other, and he begins to wonder why they never ended up together when they were in love.This movie is sentimental and entertaining. Each of the actors is excellent in his part, especially Lamarr who exercises a new part of her personality. In most of her films, she plays a seductive and somewhat distant woman. Here, she is warm and inviting, much more like an ideal wife and mother. One could easily imagine her sitting by the fire mending socks or cooking over a hot stove and all the while remaining radiantly beautiful.

This movie is very thought provoking about how life is or how it could have been. It helped me appreciate life, the good and the bad, most of everyday life is actually quite good especially when we don't dwell on the could haves. It was very nostalgic for me. I especially liked the spontaneity as thats something we like to do as a couple, but we don't see a lot of it these days. The idea of taking a chance was a little scary for me. The romance was soft and touching, very clean. It actually gave me some ideas on how to be more romantic. It was a kick seeing Van Heflin so young and skinny. The movie really was a fantasy, but so close to the truth that it just grabbed me. Being older, the film quality was worn, some of the pan scenes were distorted. That Robert Young smile is contagious, thats how I'll remember this movie in my mind's eye.