A Major Disappointment

This movie was so-so. It had it's moments, but wasn't the greatest.

It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

The acting in this movie is really good.

Warner Baxter plays Adam, and he has four sons: Richard Denning, Johnny Downs, Robert Shaw, and Charles Lind. He's in charge of a grand estate, but when his wife dies and his fortune is wiped out, he has to scramble to be able to afford his lifestyle again. Ingrid Bergman plays the governess who helps him pick up the pieces of his struggling family. When the boys grow up, some marry and some enlist in WWI-what will happen to the family dynamic?If you like movies about governesses sent in to take care of a brood of children, you'll probably like this one. It's got all the elements: struggles with the children, eventual acceptance and bonding, a little romance with the father, and family tensions when the children grow up. Ingrid is always very good when playing someone strong, so if you're a fan, you won't be disappointed in her performance in Adam Had Four Sons. Even though the title features Warner Baxter's name, it's Ingrid who's the star of the show. She may be only the governess, but she's the glue that keeps everyone together. And keep on the lookout for a young Susan Hayward in one of her first major roles. She's beautiful and cunning, and it's amazing that she wasn't forever typecast as a villain after a movie like this!

A rich family hires a governess to look after its four sons, and she stays with the family even after the sons are grown. The plot is simple but silly; it would have played better as a comedy. It's not clear why the sons need a governess after becoming young adults. This was Bergman's first American film, and she is fine as the French (not Swedish!) governess. Baxter as the father and Denning as one of the sons are also OK. Hayword, on the other hand, is a riot in an over-the-top performance as the wife of one of the sons who's not only a gold digger, but also a nymphomaniac. She greets her in-laws by kissing them on the mouth, as Ingrid looks on in horror.

I watched this one twice because being an Ingrid Bergman (and Fay Wray) fan, I was wondering why she would have ever agreed to do this turkey. The only reason I can think of is that it was early in her career and she had no choice. On the other hand she was the headliner so it would seem she must have had some pull.But I digress. The story is not a bad one albeit a tad hard to believe. You have a young woman arrive from France as governess for the family's four boys, the family's wealth evaporates, the governess returns home, WWI erupts and unfolds, ten years pass, and the governess is asked back. Give me a break! Why would they want her back, to care for the now practically grown sons? Why would she want to come back, didn't she have a life during those ten years other than pine for the patriarch she fell in love with? This premise is just way too weak to be taken seriously. Call me a grinch but it's hard to believe she had no offers during that time.It also turns out everyone involved is clearly clairvoyant. They understand things on first sight. When Emilie (Bergman) meets Hester (Hayward) she immediately divines that she is a viper. That's just one example, there's lots more. Without words or background people intimate facts not in evidence and the story moves on. I guess this has to do with character development and unfortunately there's little of that here.And then there's Warren Baxter, an actor with just one expression: a wooden one. The only reason I've ever watched a film with him was because of his co-stars. We have three here: Bergman of course, classy Fay Wray who is as beautiful as ever and always a joy to watch, and Susan Hayward in only her fifth credited part. The male parts are all forgettable, it's the women who rule this film. The tension between Bergman and Hayward is palpable although not entirely understandable. Still it adds a little spice to a yawning bore of a film so I guess that may be one reason to sit through the first half when nothing happens.

Apparently (so I have read) Susan Hayward's early career was stalled because more established actresses didn't like working with her - as she often stole the picture. And this movie is no exception, may be this is the one that started the rumour. "Susan Hayward gives it the works", "Hayward is excellent", "Susan Hayward is almost too emphatic for comfort" were some of the reviews praising her for her role as a faithless wife who almost destroys an entire family.Adam and Molly Stoddart (Warner Baxter and Fay Wray (looking beautiful)) hire a French governess (Ingrid Bergman) to take care of their sons. They all take to her instantly and she comes to care deeply for the family and also (as the movie progresses) to have feelings for the father. When Molly dies, Emilie goes back to France due to the family's dire financial situation but promises to return and does so, to help the four, now young men, through the stress of World War One. David (Johnny Downs) is the only brother not on hand to welcome Emilie back, but when he arrives he brings his new wife Hester (Susan Hayward) with him. Talk about throwing a cat among the pigeons!!! While charming all the men, she wastes no time in putting Emilie in her place - "I am Mistress of the House - I'm glad we understand each other". Emilie obviously can see through her as can Cousin Phillipa (Helen Westley)(but unfortunately she dies). With all the boys away at war Hester has time on her hands - until Jack (Richard Denning) gets leave!!! Jack is repulsed by Hester's amorous advances .. but not for long!!!This is Susan's movie all the way - without her it would be a pretty boring family saga with every player noble and self sacrificing - thank goodness for Susan!!! She has so many memorable moments - her first brawl - with Ingrid Bergman no less and when she fakes tears as a distraught Adam tries to comfort her, a scheming smile comes over her face. Wait, there's more!!! - when a disgruntled Jack tells her "I've never known a woman like you" she gets a vixenish look and says something like "Not in this family, but we're around" and of course her showdown with David when she laughs in his face and tells him she only married him for status and he'll never get rid of her etc, causing him to rush out into the rain and crash his plane!!!Susan almost didn't get the part. She had to beg for it but director Ratoff laughed at the idea -she had a firmly entrenched (in 1941) movie image as a sweet young thing. However his wife knew she could pull off the part and persuaded her husband to give Susan a chance. I'm very, very glad she did!!!Highly, Highly Recommended.