Just This Once

The writers of this movie were undoubtedly familiar with the countless screwball rom-coms of the 1930's and were aiming for a similar movie.

They were probably thinking it was a surefire hit, with those glittering stars, Peter Lawford and janet Leigh. But, sadly those delightful screwball days seem to long be over.

The old-time movies brought it in fast and delightful; they told the story in a little more than an hour, and everyone (especially the audience) went home happy.

The premise of "Just This Once" has the right stuff--spendthrift handsome playboy, self-made, highly principled lawyer, who is also beautiful, scraping by on a tiny salary, plus her long-time (but unexciting) fiance who shares all her upright values.

We pretty know much know that, despite everything, the two stars Lawford and Leigh will wind up together. That's how screwball comedy works, right?

But what a long, plodding trip it is! It takes 90 minutes to wind things up and not too many laughs along the way.

Could rewrite have improved this movie--or, sadly, is the screwball comedy dead and buried? We hope not--but the magic just isn't here, despite the star power.

I was never really impressed with peter lawford, but here, he's a rich playboy Mark MacLene. he has a family trust fund, but unfortunately he spends it faster than he gets it! Janet Leigh is Lucy, the loud, pushy, ferocious advocate. Lewis Stone is the Judge, who suggests that Lucy act as trustee to MacLene, to help curtail his spending. hijinx ensue. it's a grand caper. Richard Anderson, better known as "Oscar Goldman" from Six Million Dollar Man, is in here as Tom. and Ida Moore is the landlady... we saw her in "Desk Set", in a tiny little role. Lots of talking here. this one takes a while to get going. in one scene, they are theoretically in hawaii.... but there is quite an echo when they talk. One of the first films directed by Don Weis. It's okay. with all that talking going on, it feels like this started out as a play. it's okay.

Mark MacLene owes a lot of money to the Internal Revenue Service, banks and others. The problem is that his trust makes $1 million a year, but he spends $150,000 every month. Sam, his board of directors, attorneys and using savings terms hire the thrifty Lucille Duncan to manage Mark's finances. When he received thousands of dollars in gifts and expenses last night, he immediately cancelled his billing account and returned as many gifts as possible. Then Mark gives out a bonus of $50 a week, which is even more disturbing. In order to get rid of Lucy, Mark moved in with her and made sure that Tom was a great help to his boyfriend. Tom now thinks he is going to marry Lucy and lift his strict control.

What a waste of early Janet Leigh and Peter Lawford. The film is not short on good looks, but its script is tedious. The premise has a lawyer desperately trying to reign in a spoiled trust-fund playboy's spending, and his attempts to justify himself just add to how unlikeable he is, which undermines the whole film. It was a romance I was never pulling for, but confess the moment they have on the ferry, their eyes meeting while they listen to another couple profess their undying love for one another, was a fine one. Don't come expecting a lot of comedy though. The final line was amusing but that was about it for its 91 minutes.

Leigh is gorgeous and captivating. She gets to wear some nice outfits and shows a wide range of emotion.

The only problem is the script, which is about worse than a sixth grade reading level and is about as believable as the tooth fairy. The humor attempts fall flat at every turn. Peter Lawford is ok but doesn't have much to work with. Lewis Stone is good as always playing the familiar fatherly character he could have played in his sleep.