Mr. and Mrs. Smith (1941)

It's Daring! It's Delightful - And as Spicy as It's Speedy!

Directed by: Alfred Hitchcock
Written by: Norman Krasna
Starring: Carole Lombard as Ann Krausheimer Smith, Robert Montgomery as David Smith, and Gene Raymond as Jefferson Custer


I had no idea what to expect from this film - a horror director dabbling in a romantic comedy? And unfortunately - he should have just left well enough alone. David Smith is mostly happily married to his wife Ann - except for all the rules she likes to make and follow. After a morning including a spat, David finds out that - through a fluke of small town policy - he and Ann's marriage is not valid. Ann finds out soon afterwards and when David fails to tell her right away, she decides she's no longer married to him and begins to pursue an independent single woman's lifestyle. David is kicked out of the house and scorned by all his former household employees. Things get even worse as the two compete to be the most "happy" as a single person and culminate when David's business partner and childhood friend, Jefferson Custer, tries to woo Ann for himself.

This film is just so...awkward. Lombard's character is incredibly annoying and Montgomery makes David Smith out to be a bumbling idiot with an ego problem - something that doesn't really work. There are a few random scenes (such as the scene with the screwy pipes) which I believe are supposed to be funny but leave you going "what was the point of that?" Half the time you wonder why these two should even be trying to get back together. Overall, the acting is overdone, the comedic timing is off, and the plot just wanders until it suddenly decides to conclude abruptly for no apparent reason.

The one good point in this film is the music. I can't find any reference to who composed/arranged it but I thought it was one of the only entertaining faces of the film. It's quirky and the melody is employed in so many different ways it's surprising. Unfortunately, I can't really think of anything else to praise. The only way I would recommend this movie is if you have a goal to watch every single one of Alfred Hitchcock's films. "Smith" gets one bloody nose out of a possible five (1/5).