MovieChat Forums > I Love You Again (1940) Discussion > A Wonderful Film

A Wonderful Film

posted 9 years ago by Eric266
17 replies | jump to latest

I've only recently discovered the William Powell/Myrna Loy team. I started watching the Thin Man films on New Years Eve and I've been hooked. This is the first non-Thin Man film I've watched of theirs, but I have several more recorded to watch.

William Powell begins the movie as Larry, a cheap, teetotaler, with a bored wife, played by the lovely Loy, who is about to divorce him. While on a cruise, he gets a bump on the head and suddenly remembers he's actually George, a con man, who nine years earlier got hit on the head and took on the persona of Larry. While pretending to still be Larry he plots a con to swindle the people of his hometown. Along the way he begins to fall in love with his wife, Kay, and has to try to woo her all over again.

This movie is just a joy to behold. Powell and Loy are at the zenith of their team ups. The repartee between them is classic and you can tell there is a genuine affection between them. Frank McHugh as "Doc" Ryan does a good job as the man Larry/George was saving when he hit his head. There is a delightful scene of Doc and George in bed after having run from the police and climbed in a second story window. They are in their clothes, under the covers and everyone is trying to talk to them (police, Kay, Kay's mother, etc). Its a delightfully funny bit of slapstick.

The wrap up is well done and I was really disappointed when the movie ended. I wanted to see more of how George's and Kay's marriage turned out. How could they have not made a sequel? LOL.

My memory foam pillow says it can't remember my face. I can tell its lying.

[–] mecormany 8 years ago

I've been watching their films for 50 years, since I was a teenager. They never grow old. The greatest comedy/romantic screen duo of the Golden Era (or any other era that I can think of, and that includes Tracy-Hepburn, whom I also love). This and Libeled Lady are probably the best 2 outside of the Thin Man films which are all excellent. As many times as I've seen their movies, I'm always up for another sitting when they come on.
Great stuff.

[–] jhpen22 8 years ago

A comic/romantic masterpiece; as an example of its genre, it's a 10. Powell steals the show with masterful timing and physical bits. Time after time I could see his lines as they were printed on the script and admired his imagination in delivering them. That script is a work of art, too.

[–] RobbieCalifornia 8 years ago

I agree with all these comments. What an amazing pair Loy and Powell were! Great looking, super-talented, witty, great physical comedy.

There isn't a pair in films today that comes close to the chemistry they had. The film had a great script and supporting cast, and it's a joy to watch. I could watch it over and over and never tire of it.

Claudette Colbert, Barbara Stanwyck and Margaret Sullavan were lovely and great comediennes as well, but Myrna Loy was tops!

[–] CarolT2 8 years ago

I had it on TCM but wasn't paying 100% attention. I'm watching on demand & it's a great movie. There is another Powell /Loy movie I really enjoyed - Love Crazy.

[–] jhpen22 8 years ago

Yes, Love Crazy. Libeled Lady, too. Powell was so talented that it's hard to choose, so let's just enjoy them all. And btw, thank heaven for TCM!

[–] CarolT2 8 years ago

I really love TCM on demand. I like to get up & pause movies & cannot stand5 minutes of television & 5 minutes of commercials of all regular network shows. I try to record and fast forward through them.

The Thin Man films are on demand. I was hoping Love Crazy would be on demand. That's very funny, especially when Powell pretends to be his sister.

I love TCM too. Some films they have on over too often. I'm Carole Lombard fan & they don't even dedicate a day to her since I've started being a regular in May or June ofb2015

[–] jhpen22 8 years ago

I use the DVR that way, too, and for the same reason. I have a DVD burner; don't know if it's legal, but I record movies from DVR to it--for my own use, of course. Thanks for mentioning TCM on Demand; if I ever knew of it, I'd forgotten. You know, of course, that Powell and Lombard were married. I think they were divorced by the time of Libeled Lady, and they got along fine.

[–] CarolT2 8 years ago

I know Lombard & Powell were married for less than two years. They remained great friends until her untimely death.
I never appreciated Powell until the past few months. I had not seen any of the comedies he'd starred in, except for My Man Godfrey. Powell was offered the role, but wouldn't take it unless Carole was Irene. That's one of my favorites.
On Demand may not be offered by your cable company.
TCM has a Watch TCM app but it only allows me to sign in on my iPhone, I have Comcast & once I select cable provider, I have nothing but TCM logo. If you have an iPad, it's worth trying. I don't want to watch movies on my iPhone.

[–] jhpen22 8 years ago

I'm a recent Powell convert, too. I'd seen all the Thin Man films, Life with Father The Great Ziegfeld, Love Crazy, and My Man Godfrey. But it wasn't until I saw I Love You Again and Libeled Lady, recently, that I realized what a gifted physical comic he was. The cooing love bird and his scenes as a deer in this film showed me a dimension of his art that I hadn't seen. And he's a scream. Then, I became aware of his spot-on timing his takes, double takes, and general conversion with others. As well as a suave man of the world, he was a comic genius in the tradition of Chaplin and Keaton.

[–] CarolT2 8 years ago

I haven't watched any of The Thin Man films. Of all the movies on demand, of course my favorite, Love Crazy isn't on Comcast on demand, but it is on the TCM app. I can't watch on iPhone.
I read three Lombard biographies & know Carole was fun loving & an excellent party planner, also practical joker. I had the impression that Powell didn't approve & was very surprised to find him such a great comic actor.
Perhaps the authors focused on Carole & thier marriage & divorce & didn't devote much time on Bill's personality.

Thin Man movies are on TCM/Comcast on Demand. I'm going to watch one later.

[–] jhpen22 8 years ago

I'm able to watch TCM on Demand on my laptop. You might enjoy a screen larger than you tablet or phone.

[–] CarolT2 8 years ago

Thank you. I don't understand why I can sign in on iPhone, but not iPad. TCM has never responded or updated app since December 2015. Now I record in case they don't make it to Comcast on demand. I prefer watching on my television.

[–] Phillip Marlowe 8 years ago

Hmm. I was able to sign in and watch the TCM app on my laptop using Comcast as my provider (actually, probably Xfinity to be specific). I switched to FIOS last week and had no trouble signing in with Verizon as my new provider, although, unfortunately, FIOS does not have a TCM HD channel (SD only) while Comcast did. That would be more annoying if not for the fact that TCM's HD quality (except for the host introductions) seems pretty spotty (I suspect that they really do not have access to HD copies of many of their films and in many cases remastered HD versions just don't exist). And movies on the TCM app are not presented in HD regardless of provider, though a help topic on the site claims that HD is coming. Eventually.

[–] CarolT2 8 years ago

I'm signed in & can watch now. I had issue with my iPad & Apple had me reset & told me I wouldn't łose a thing. It worked,but I had to sign in again to all. TCM app works.

[–] judygmartin 8 years ago

jhpen22, I am not being facetious, but serious. Can you give me your approximate age? I'm doing a little study on random movies, age of posters, and their comments. Thank you.

[–] Drmccormack (743) 7 years ago

You did a lovely review of this movie. I watched it last week on TCM, completely off the cuff. What a happy accident! I loved this movie. There was such a funny moment that "Larry" has with his mother in law (who he didn't know was his mother in law). I won't spoil it. Hilarious! I need to check out who wrote this movie. There are so many funny lines.

[–] [deleted] 2 years ago

I thought it was just okay. I didn't find it all that funny or entertaining. It's a 6/10 from me.