Tonight's Movie: Never Say Goodbye (1946)
NEVER SAY GOODBYE is a diverting romantic comedy starring two of filmdom's most attractive actors, Errol Flynn and Eleanor Parker. Flynn and Parker play Phil and Ellen, a divorced couple whose charming young daughter Flip (Patti Brady) hopes her parents will remarry.The visit of Flip's Marine Corps penpal (Forrest Tucker), who is attracted to Ellen, complicates matters a bit. The outcome is predictable, but the fun is in getting there. It's the kind of amusing "family comedy" which is made all too rarely these days.
Parker was at perhaps the height of her beauty in the mid-'40s, when she played appealing roles in excellent films such as THE VERY THOUGHT OF YOU (1944), PRIDE OF THE MARINES (1945), and THE VOICE OF THE TURTLE (1947). Parker was equally adept at comedy and drama, and becoming more familiar with her work has been a great pleasure over the past couple of years.
Flynn was not yet visibly on a downward spiral when this film was made, and he's absolutely charming as a devoted father. Viewing this film makes one wish he'd done more comedies. Near the end of the film, Flynn performs a funny Bogart imitation -- which, incidentally, was obviously dubbed by Bogart himself.The supporting cast includes Donald Woods, S.Z. Sakall, Tom D'Andrea, Lucile Watson, Peggy Knudsen, and Hattie McDaniel.
Charles Coleman seems to be turning up frequently as the butler in movies I've viewed this year, and in this film he plays Withers, Parker's butler. Coleman has also played the butler in BACHELOR APARTMENT (1931), THE GOOSE AND THE GANDER (1935), THE RAGE OF PARIS (1938), WALKING ON AIR (1936), and TWO GUYS FROM MILWAUKEE (1946). Coleman appeared in over 230 movies in a career that spanned the early silent era to 1951, the year of his passing. I found him particularly funny in WALKING ON AIR; even in very small parts his performances as "the perfect butler" add a nice touch to each of his films.
NEVER SAY GOODBYE was directed by James V. Kern. It was shot in black and white and runs 94 minutes.NEVER SAY GOODBYE is available on VHS. It has not had a DVD release.
It can also be seen on TCM.
You can watch the trailer here.
Update: This film is now available from the Warner Archive.
posted by Laura @ 6:32 PM
7 Comments:
I saw a movie back in 1960 which
was set in WWII Germany. German soldiers were looking around a Nunnery for Jewish children but they were hidden- does anybody have any idea which one it might have been? There was a graveyard too.
Welcome!
That movie doesn't ring a bell for me. Perhaps someone else will read this in the future and recognize your description.
Best wishes,
Laura
Conspiracy of Hearts with Lilli Palmer and Sylvia Syms is the WWII film about nuns and hidden German children. Among other things.
Thanks!!
Laura,
First, apologies for the fact that I'm again commenting on a movie I just saw while your review is from several years ago. Of course, if you didn't write so well I would have nothing to say. Secondly, we definitely agree on Eleanor Parker--I thought her work came in CAGED, but she had the bad luck of going up against a powerful quartet of Oscar nominees (winner Judy Holliday, Bette Davis, Anne Baxter and Gloria Swanson). Thirdly, you may have been too kind with Flynn. Great in swashbucklers, he was not very good in comedies and I thought he embarrassed himself (the Bogard dubbing saved him some more awkwardness). Fourthly, and the main reason I'm writing, is about poor Patti Brady. She was well over her head in a role that was too demanding for the movie (light hearted as it was). Speaking of bad luck, Brady ihas to be compared to such outstanding child stars of the day as Margaret O'Brien, Natalie Wood and Shirley Temple.
Barrylane, thank you for filling in that movie title!
Best wishes,
Laura
Cinefan,
I appreciate your kind words regarding my writing. I'm always happy to receive comments on a film no matter how long ago it was reviewed -- especially as thanks to things like internet searches and IMDb review links, my reviews are accessed years after they were written. So it's always great to receive fresh input! (Sometimes I don't reply as quickly as I'd like, due to the press of work or other writing commitments, but I do also always try to respond!)
I appreciate your feedback on NEVER SAY GOODBYE. It's hard to believe it's already been a dozen or so years since I saw it. My memories have dimmed a bit regarding the film and performances, so it will be interesting to see where I land when I get a chance to revisit it.
Best wishes,
Laura
Post a Comment
<< Home