Spotlight

Spotlight Date: 8-July-07
Spoiler Rating: Medium

The Man Who Came to Dinner (1942)

"The Man Who Came to Dinner" is a zesty comedy about what happens when urbane, jet-setting artistes invade a classic Midwestern town. While on national tour, celebrity author Sheridan Whiteside (Monty Woolley) deigns to dine with a leading family in Mesalia, Ohio, but is forced to stay after injuring himself on the ice. For a full month he hijacks the house, banishing his hosts to their rooms and welcoming all manner of collect calls, strange guests, and exotic pets from distant admirers. He is far more clever and conceited than any of the natives and constantly lets them know it.

Watching this movie lends credence to the theory of the dumbing-down of America, for it's hard to imagine such a comedy being financed today. The lead characters are unabashedly smart and make jokes using well-chosen words instead of racial, gender, or sexual clichés and body effluvia. The picture's many parts and brisk dialogue obviously derive from a stage play, in contrast with Hollywood's current preference for adapting comic books, theme park rides, and video games. This isn't to say, however, that "The Man Who Came to Dinner" eschews stereotypes or lacks feeling. Like all comedy it relies on characters who are somewhat overripe (a hair too naive, a shade too brassy), and like all good comedy it offers human emotion along with levity. The heart of the story involves Whiteside's friendship with his secretary Maggie, who is depicted by Bette Davis with a surprising amount of tenderness.

After ten years of managing Whiteside's life and matching his wit, Maggie falls in love with the local newspaper reporter (Richard Travis), who happens to be an aspiring playwright. When she confides her matrimonial dreams to her employer, he tries to sabotage the match by summoning a grasping starlet (Ann Sheridan) and throwing her in the reporter's way. This causes a painful rift between Whiteside and Maggie and sets up two notable cameos. Reginald Gardiner dazzles as a scribbler who aids in Maggie's counter maneuvers (he's marvelously funny), and Jimmy Durante adds noise as Whiteside's vaudevillian buddy. Soon all the protagonist's schemes are going awry (he also meddles with his hosts' affairs) until love, Lizzy Borden, and an Egyptian sarcophagus save the day. By the time the old hedonist vacates the premises he has almost become likable. As for his lengthy dinner, that's enjoyable throughout.

Copyright © 2007 The Jujube (M. I. Kim). All rights reserved.