Waste of time

Too much of everything

As somebody who had not heard any of this before, it became a curious phenomenon to sit and watch a film and slowly have the realities begin to click into place.

what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

Topper (1937) *** (out of 4)Marion and George Kerby (Constance Bennett, Cary Grant) are a fun-loving couple who party all night long and don't quit until there's no more fun to be had. George is business partners with Cosmo Topper (Roland Young) who lives an incredibly boring life where he's pushed around by his nagging wife. The Kerby's are killed in an auto crash but their ghosts come back and they plan on showing Topper a good time.Throughout the 1930's there were all sorts of comedies based inside haunted houses. This film here was somewhat different because it was given an A-budget and a terrific cast. This MGM production was a huge hit when it was released and it kicked off a franchise that remains popular to this very day. There are certainly a lot of nice jokes in the film but there's no question that the film really benefits from its terrific cast, which includes Grant who shot to super-stardom thanks to this.The entire cast is really terrific but there's no question that Grant deserves a lot of the credit for the film being as funny as it is. Grant would become one of the greatest leading men in Hollywood history and that classic charm that everyone loves is on full display here and this is certainly the first time where he hit on all levels. The character is a really fun one and there's no doubt that Grant does everything he can with it. Bennett and him share some terrific chemistry together throughout. Young is also wonderful in the role of the meek man who finally gets a chance to live. Eugene Palette is hilarious in his role as a hotel detective and we also get Hedda Hopper, Billie Burke and Alan Mowbray.The film's weakest sequence is actually a long stretch when Grant is missing from the picture. There are some really funny moments scattered throughout the picture but my personal favorite was when the Topper character is drunk and we're given the effect that he's being carried around. The special effects are extremely good and it's amazing to see how much the "invisible" touch had improved since Universal's THE INVISIBLE MAN in 1933.

I really wanted to like this, and I expected to. I like Cary Grant. I like lots of comedies of the same period. What happened? Unfortunately, the George and Marion characters don't come off as likable. They seem painfully self-involved and completely unconcerned about anyone else except themselves. They drive to endanger (not funny), they drive drunk (not funny), they make it a game to inconvenience someone who appears to be a friend of theirs who owns a tavern and wants to go home when it's well past closing (who can blame him?), they hand a police officer an empty milk bottle when they're parked where they shouldn't be and tell him to dispose of it… sorry, but I don't like people who act like that. I don't find it charming. I thought one of the biggest pains in the butt in cinema history was the supposedly quirky Holly Golightly in "Breakfast at Tiffany's", and George and Marion give me just about the same vibe. Nothing about them appeals to me.Their "good deed" in getting Topper to let his hair down only succeeds in embarrassment and consternation for the poor guy, for the most part. It seems to end "well", I suppose, but it's awkward and uncomfortable to watch. Apparently it was a hit in its day, so I can't argue with that, but personally I didn't care for it at all.

A carefree couple (Cary Grant, Constance Bennett) are killed in a car crash. They come back as ghosts to help their bank manager friend, Cosmo Topper (Roland Young), break out of his stuffy little rut and find happiness. I first saw this years ago and I remember being disappointed that Cary Grant isn't really the star of it, Roland Young is. This is probably the role Young is best remembered for, although it's very similar to some of his other roles. Namely that of a meek little man who mumbles and has funny deadpan reactions to things. He's likable and easy to root for. For their parts, Grant and Bennett are a lot of fun. They sing "Old Man Moon" with Hoagy Carmichael in one delightful scene. The supporting cast includes Billie Burke, Alan Mowbray, and a very funny Eugene Palette. The film was a success and led to two sequels and a TV series. It's a light screwball comedy with enjoyable performances and a good script. People expecting it to be a vehicle for Cary Grant might be disappointed but hopefully they'll give it a shot anyway.

Inane farce with Roland Young, a stuffy banker, with his even more stuffier wife, Billie Burke, victimized by Cary Grant and Constance Bennett, Young's friends, a care-free, highly eccentric wealthy couple dying too soon in a car accident.The so called fun begins when they're dead and they begin to play havoc in the life of Young.This is a film dedicated to the belief that conventional living isn't necessarily the way to go. You can only go so far with such films. As in the case with this picture, at times it turns into silliness beyond belief.Roland Young was nominated that year as best supporting actor for his antics in this highly unconventional film.