The concept for this romantic comedy is kind of interesting: consumer-protection-expert Jane Wyman gets picked up by submariner Dennis Morgan on a secret mission and finds herself discredited by government misinformation. Wyman and Morgan are charming, ably supported by Allyn Joslyn, Robert Douglas and Eve Arden as comic foils. William Frawley has an amusing bit as the representative of the Liar's Club. Michael Curtiz' direction is efficient, the Max Steiner score is effective and excellent, the production is beautiful and beautifully photographed. Jane Wyman, in particular, is made to look especially glamorous and gorgeous; Eve Arden also looks exceptionally beautiful. These positive elements, however, are torpedoed by a tedious, unfunny script. Maybe the movie could have been better if the secret-mission concept had been more thoughtfully worked out or if the core of the picture had been slightly more "true" to better propel the farce; as it is, the various story elements feel arbitrary and disconnected. For instance, Jane Wyman plays a consumer protection expert, but her expertise has nothing whatsoever to do with the story; the story centers on her fight to regain her ruined reputation. The story is clearly intended to be farcical; why not have Wyman use clever inventions from her business (amusingly presented in the first scene) to fight Dennis Morgan instead of the boring, imagination-free ruses she employs? Morgan, meanwhile, comes off as a womanizing liar for much of the film; is he a hero, or just a jerk? It's difficult to decide. Comedy characters are often idiots, by design, but you need to feel sympathy for them as well; these characters were just off-putting. Between the script problems, and the poorly-motivated slapstick comedy, this movie falls flat. As a rule, I adore fluffy comedies, but this one made me squirm in my seat, thankful at my release once it had ground its way to a conclusion. If you're a fan of any of the principal players or makers, as I am, the film is worth seeing because it has some bright performances (particularly by Eve Arden), clever scoring, and attractive photography. If you're into fashions of the postwar era, this film has some wonderful clothes and hair. For most people, I would say, do yourself a favor and skip this misfire of a film. It's not good enough to be worth your time, nor is it bad enough to be fun. It's just beautiful and kind of annoying, a change-of-pace experiment for Michael Curtiz that doesn't really work. For Completists only.
