The Facts of Life

I watched this movie primarily because it was nominated for Best Screenplay, and in that regard, I was not disappointed. There are several funny scenes and some pretty witty dialogue, but overall this movie rates about 6/10. It's a little too long and some of the plot points are pretty contrived, but Bob and Lucy have good chemistry, which makes up for the few weak points in this film.

I was surprised by this film and the quality of work by its two stars. We always think of Lucy as goofy or screwy and Hope either swinging a golf club or playing wingman for Bing Crosby. Billed as a romantic comedy, Hope and Ball aim for the funny bone. But there are some serious adult issues raised. This tasty confection, made in 1960, I think is a lot of fun (though it could have been better paced and the contrivances are a bit much) and it has two terrific old pros at work in roles that you just wouldn't expect them to be in. Lucy looked pretty good when she got all dolled up. And Hope is ageless as ever. I thought they had some chemistry between them. Also includes Ruth Hussey, Louie Nye and Dom DeFore (Ozzie and Harriet's neighbor).

I have seen a bunch of Bob Hope films, though few from the later part of his movie career. This is because all the Hope films from the 60s that I have seen (especially "Boy, Did I Get a Wrong Number") have been disappointments. Despite this, I decided to try "The Facts of Life"...and was very much surprised. The big surprise is that the film really wasn't a comedy!!

Larry (Hope) and Kitty (Lucille Ball) both hang in the same social circle but are hardly friends. She thinks he's a bit of a blowhard. Despite this, neither one realizes that they DO have something in common...inattentive spouses who take them for granted. This becomes obvious when these couples are headed to Mexico for a grand vacation. This is because Kitty and Larry's spouses both have something seemingly better to do and instruct their partners to go without them. In essence Larry and Kitty are pushed together and nature takes its course...and they slowly find themselves falling in love.

Well, this made for a lovely vacation for the two but they both realize that it just cannot be and plan on returning home to their old dull lives. The problem is that when they return home, their spouses continue to find lots of things which are more important than nurturing them. So, the pair decide to pick up where they left off...though complications naturally ensue.

If this doesn't sound like a comedy, well, it really isn't...at least the first half of the film. There are a few mildly funny bits here and there but it's obvious these folks weren't trying to make a comedy but more a romantic drama about marriage and straying spouses. However, when the pair finally get off together once again, the romance becomes far less romantic and the emphasis is on laughs AND reality...the reality that it was just a vacation infatuation after all and an affair ain't so easy after all.

In many ways, this film would be great for couples to watch...particularly folks who have been together for many years. It's a great object lesson about what NOT to do in your marriage as well as to encourage you to keep that love alive.

This surprising film was shown on TCM recently. Not having seen it, and not having other choice, we decided to take a look, and quite frankly, it was a surprise. The film, directed by Melvin Frank and co-written with his partner, Norman Panama, shows two stars that endeared themselves to the American public at their best.

The story is just a pretext and a vehicle for the stars. The plot kept reminding us of "A Guide for the Married Man", but that's all the comparison, because one has nothing to do with the other. In fact, this is a film made in 1960 when nothing too risky would be tackled for the screen, yet, it presents two straying adults who suddenly find an attraction where dislike existed before.

Bob Hope was the surprise in the movie. He doesn't have a chance for uttering his one liners, as the script doesn't allow it. It was one of the best films in which he appeared, in our humble opinion. Lucille Ball was an excellent comedienne, and she shows it on this film.

The interesting supporting cast makes the best with the material they were given to play. The excellent Ruth Hussey is seen as Bob Hope's wife. Don DeFore, plays Lucille's husband. Louis Nye is also seen in the film.

The film is light and will charm anyone wanting to spend some time in the company of some of America's best comic talent of the past.

It's an unmerry marital mix-up amongst the country club set when bored society wife Lucille Ball finds herself inexplicably drawn to Bob Hope, her neighbor and also already married. Melvin Frank comedy doesn't so much expose the funny desperation of the Marital Blahs as it does tweeze it relentlessly (Frank is not the gentle sort of writer-director--he goes for the gut, much like Neil Simon). Ball is thoroughly up to the challenge of a sharp, brittle suburban comedy, but Frank has given old pal Bob Hope the same type of groaning witticisms he supplied him with back in the 1940s (Lucy: "You're a painter??" Bob: "What do you want me to do? Cut off my ear?"). Playing to the camera, referencing Francis X. Bushman and riffing on his own stand-up routine, Hope is the wrong actor for a sophisticated comedy about infidelity. Too bad, because Lucy does very well, the black-and-white cinematography is expressive, and occasionally the writing rises above smarminess to actually reveal something substantial and amusing about marriages in a rut. ** from ****