FILMOGRAPHY: MOVIE LISTINGS

Rollacoster comedy with a dark subject at its heart, a film of 2 halves.

What a great movie! For me this is one of Veronica Lake's best performances... Why? Because she switches on her most sultry abilities early in the movie, letting you know from the start that she's "the girl" in this picture; a fact that is not left in doubt by the producer who credits her simply as "the girl". Her hair (peek-a-boo banged), face and voice in the diner sequence are absolute magic. Her "Yes Sir, No Sir" piece could drive you wild.

The presentation of the movie and the social stereotypes are subtlety masked by the slapstick humour at the start but they belie quite a scathing indictment of people attitudes towards poverty and what is to be a lower class citizen. This movie is as much about the shallowness of movie making as it is a social commentary on how people view poverty and exploit it without ever understanding it.

Seriousness aside the movie is foremost a fast paced comedy exploiting the dawn of the media driven age. The speeded up car chase sequence is fun as is the poolside scenes. The last half hour does turn serious and the message of what is funny and what is not is quite heavily impressed on the viewer.

One of Veronica Lake's finest performances and one she considered to be her best.

There's no doubt that this is a classic that will continue to stand the test of time. Preston Sturges was a genius and his outstanding reputation as a director is well deserved. He conceived the story, wrote the script and directed it. Veronica wanted this role badly and she gave an awesome performance - one that she wrote in her autobiography as being her best. She was even pregnant at the time of the movie's production with her first child.

Whenever I watch this film I get this warm, nostalgic feeling that only Hollywood films from this era give me. This film has a message to deliver. It's not just entertainment. That being said, it still has a kind of slapstick quality about it that even Veronica found to be endearing - me too.

Joel McCrea is outstanding as a Hollywood director with a social conscience who wants to make a credible film about poverty. He decides to see what it's really like to be poor by living among the destitute. Along the way he meets Lake's character simply known as "the girl". She's tried her luck at Hollywood and failed. The two travel together and learn some important lessons along the way. The most important lesson being how important laughter is to us all, rich or poor. I wish films like this were still being made.

Rollacoster comedy with a dark subject at its heart, a film of 2 halves.

Lake's absolutely knocks her role out of the park going toe-to-toe with actors far out of her league for her age and experience.

The pacey, clipped dialogue keeps things moving and there's no room for stilted delivery from anyone. It's a crafted tale full of quips and nods that resonates today.

The diner scene with Lake and McCrea is divine playwright comedy with snipping quips flying in all directions. Both actors use the coffee cups as props that somehow lift their already sparking performances and watching Lake sip her drink and incorporate a slurp into her delivery is magical.

"Buy me some ham and eggs before I bite you"
~The Girl

It's a fine movie and we'll regarded today, more so than on release. If you want to become a Lake fan, here's a decent place to start.