The Good: the film has very fine performances by the principals, particularly Bing Crosby and Jane Wyman. Why Ms. Wyman was not used more as a musical comedy lead is a mystery to me. She is cute, sassy, spirited and talented. When you see her in this movie and her other film with Crosby, "Just for You," it is quite obvious that Ms. Wyman had a career in musicals that was a missed opportunity.
The Bad: "Here Comes the Groom" is so derivative of several other similar plots (i.e. "It Happened One Night," "The Front Page," "The Philadelphia Story," etc.) that it is a wonder why nobody took its screenwriters to task for plagiarism------although Robert Riskin was involved in both "Here Comes the Groom" and "It Happened One Night".
The Ugly: Frank Capra was clearly running on empty when he made this film. It is poorly paced, badly edited, filled with extraneous scenes and loaded with his not so subtle brand of social commentary (the rich must always lose in the end, a charming heel is preferable to a more substantial but bland alternative, a smart and independent career woman will inevitably succumb to the machinations of the charming heel, etc.).
Still-----if for no other reason------viewers ought to see this film for the delightful work done by Jane Wyman------and wonder about what her body of screen work might have been if she had been given more similar roles.
The Bad: "Here Comes the Groom" is so derivative of several other similar plots (i.e. "It Happened One Night," "The Front Page," "The Philadelphia Story," etc.) that it is a wonder why nobody took its screenwriters to task for plagiarism------although Robert Riskin was involved in both "Here Comes the Groom" and "It Happened One Night".
The Ugly: Frank Capra was clearly running on empty when he made this film. It is poorly paced, badly edited, filled with extraneous scenes and loaded with his not so subtle brand of social commentary (the rich must always lose in the end, a charming heel is preferable to a more substantial but bland alternative, a smart and independent career woman will inevitably succumb to the machinations of the charming heel, etc.).
Still-----if for no other reason------viewers ought to see this film for the delightful work done by Jane Wyman------and wonder about what her body of screen work might have been if she had been given more similar roles.