A rare re-view review from me! I absolutely loved this when I saw it with my family, but after maybe 20 years, not much had stayed with me. Now I would see how funny I found it without company -- and mildly colorized. (I'm adding the black and white tag just in case you see the other version.)
Aristocrat Irene Bullock (Carole Lombard) goes to a New York City dump to find a "forgotten man" for a scavenger hunt. Godfrey (William Powell) accepts her invitation but doesn't enjoy the ritzy crowd. To make it up to him, Irene capriciously hires him as the family butler. He cleans up nicely and tries to do a good job, but it soon becomes clear why the Bullocks had an opening.
The first problem is that matriarch Angelica (Alice Brady) and Irene's older sister, Cordelia (Gail Patrick), habitually get nasty with a morning hangover. Cordelia also gets off on the wrong foot with Godfrey and schemes to get him in trouble. But what really tests his patience is Irene acting more affectionate than is customary toward a servant.
It occurs to me that this comedy wouldn't work so well with a gender reversal: A rich man aggressively courting a maid woudn't amuse me. Mind you, Irene doesn't go full Pepé Le Pew; when rejected, she falls histrionically sullen. Even at the ostensibly happy ending, tho, Godfrey has his misgivings.
I almost decided that the writing was sexist, since grumpy patriarch Alexander (Eugene Pallette) is the only Bullock to exercise any responsibility or financial savvy. Then I realized that Angelica's protégé, Carlo (Mischa Auer), is the most clownish character of all, and maid Molly (Jean Dixon) is about as sensible as Godfrey. My mom and sister weren't offended, so why should I?
It's nice to have a reminder, however facetious, that the economic situation in the U.S. used to be much worse than today. None of the unhoused people I know of settle for literal dumps, nor would modern socialites so openly treat them like objects to show off. Godfrey hides that he was actually a one-percenter himself, choosing to join the relatively optimistic "forgotten" to overcome suicidal depression.
Enough of the serious side; what about laughs? Well, as usual, I didn't laugh out loud on my own, but I could still see why I did before. The rapid-fire dialogue is well chosen, and so are some audiovisual antics. I won't say any of the actors were irreplaceable, but they certainly delivered. Too bad none of the Academy nominations yielded a win.
I have opted not to change my high marks for MMG. It remains in my top five comedies of all time.
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