The Mating Game

If you are the sort of person looking for a realistic film or one with a strong and believable plot, then this film is NOT for you. Nope--you'll hate it. However, for those who like sweet, slightly screwball comedies, then you'll have a nice time watching this slight film.

Tony Randall works for the IRS and he investigates a very nice farmer who never realized he needed to file an income tax return. However hard he tries to convince them of the seriousness of his visit, everyone in the family is thrilled to have company. They dote on him and treat him like one of the family,...and have plans on getting him hitched to their daughter, Debbie Reynolds. That's really about all the plot there is. But the film gets high marks for a fun script and decent acting. A really nice little curio from the late 1950s.

The Larkins own a farm in a Maryland area which has become home to the ultra-rich. Mariette Larkin (Debbie Reynolds) is their oldest offspring. Their rich neighbor Wendell Burnshaw wants them out and decides to call up the IRS. Tax collector Lorenzo Charlton (Tony Randall) discovers that Pop Larkin has never filed a tax return and sets out to collect all the back taxes. Anybody who has more than $600 annual income has to file but Lorenzo has trouble showing that Pop has any income at all since he barters for everything. Mariette falls for Lorenzo and the Larkins scheme to keep him at the farm.

Debbie Reynolds is at her energetic self. There is fun with the premise. Tony Randall could do more to promote the romantic chemistry. He's playing a stick in the mud and it lasts too long. There are a couple of moments when he needs to give in to her a lot easier. He needs to show his lust for her in a bigger way. She's doing most of the work. He needs to match her in some way. There is also the It's a Wonderful Life ending which is cut short. I'd prefer the It's a Wonderful Life ending except the church folks should pay the bill directly. Even the kids could throw in their flower money. It's a more meaningful solution. Overall, Debbie Reynolds works hard to not let the wacky fun fade by her will power and the barn fight is oddly slapstick hilarious. It's lovely and light fun.

Lorenzo Charlton (Tony Randall) is an IRS agent from the city (Baltimore) who does things by the book. He is sent to audit a farmer known as Pop Larkin (Paul Douglas), who has never filed a tax return. Charlton, who is dubbed "Charlie" by the affable Larkin clan, should be impervious to the good-natured disposition of his target, but the Larkins have a secret weapon---their wholesome daughter, Mariette (Debbie Reynolds).

Randall's Charlie is cut from the same cloth as Felix Unger, but he's less neurotic. His life is governed by rules and laws and orderliness. But he is no match for the charms of Mariette, or the Larkin family as a whole, who live a life of gentle harmony with nature and their neighbors. Their only rule is the Golden Rule. And they have little use for money or taxes, since they use barter in most transactions. This is a challenge for Charlie, who tries to monetize their bartering history.

"The Mating Game" belongs to the same romantic comedy genre as the Doris Day/Rock Hudson films, which also featured Tony Randall. This is pure entertainment. The odd coupling of Randall and Reynolds works well, which should be no surprise. This film is fashioned from fluff and slapstick, and they are two of the best comedic actors of their time and are very adept at physical humor.

This take on the book series The Darling Buds of May is fun and funny, centering on a farm family where the father gets everything they need through barter, and he's good at it!

His nose-in-the-air neighbor doesn't much like him or his family, and tries to get him in trouble through the IRS.

That's where Tony Randall comes in, as the auditor assigned to figure out what back taxes the family owes, since they've never once filed income taxes. Debbie Reynolds is the oldest child, an irrepressible tomboy.

The family immediately shows Randal the hospitality they would any other visitor, and when that hospitality extends to too much alcohol, the plot really thickens. :-)

It's a great movie, and while not a faithful adaptation of the novel, in my mind it's a MUCH more enjoyable tale than the more accurate British TV series which was produced a few decades later.

Holy cow! Could there be a cuter woman than Debbie Reynolds is in this movie? I think not.

It's a fresh movie whose unlikely plot calls forth Tony Randall, an IRS auditor, to investigate possible unreported income by the Larkins, our stars. Problem is, the Larkins deal in trading only, no cash.

So the hokey antics revolve around the goofy, yet budding relationship between Reynolds & Felix Unger (if you will.)

Farm owners, Mom & Dad, portrayed by Paul Douglass & Una Merkel are great as the happy go lucky folks who must endure the intrusion & threats levied by Tony & the IRS.

But it is Reynolds that shines here. Kind of an Annie Oakley daughter, she's truly delightful.

Finally, the climax is pretty cool, that's for sure (as it pertains to the ultimate findings of the audit.)

A fun, inconsequential fare I recommend for a viewing.

Bob R.