The More the Merrier

The scene with Jean Arthur and Joel McCrea on the steps of the apartment is more erotic than anything you will see in an "R" rated film today, or probably even an NC-17 film. The desire that they have for each other, and are barely suppressing, is overwhelming. And the lingerie she wears in the last scene is surprisingly suggestive for 1943. This whole film is an amazing piece of work. Much credit goes to legendary director George Stevens. Charles Coburn was always great, but who knew he had the comic chops he shows here? Jean Arthur's voice alone makes her one of sexiest actresses ever in films. She and Joel McCrea are both terribly underrated. This film deserves to be much better known than it is.

Easily the best film that I've ever seen from George Stevens (and I really like several of his other films). Jean Arthur stars as a woman renting out half of her apartment because of a housing shortage in Washington D.C. Charles Coburn, who is in Washington to help solve the crisis, weasles his way into the apartment even though Arthur didn't want a male roommate. The morning after, Joel McCrea arrives with yesterday's newspaper, not knowing that the vacancy exists no more. No matter, though. Coburn rents half of his half of the apartment to McCrea, unbeknownst to Arthur. God knows this premise could have made one hell of a sitcom, but it also makes a damn funny movie. There isn't an unfunny scene in the entire film, and several scenes vie for the title of Best Romantic Comedy of all times with Preston Sturges' contemporaneous films. The three performers are remarkable. They have great chemistry as a comic trio, and McCrea and Arthur throw sparks off the screen with their surprisingly erotic romance. I failed to mention that Arthur is engaged to an older man, adding to the dilemma. Richard Gaines is also excellent as that fiancé. I love the way his mouth moves. Grady Sutton has a very funny cameo near the end of the film as a waiter. Stevens' direction is exceptional. It's shocking how believably he pulls off the scene in which McCrea and Arthur wander around the apartment without bumping into each other. This is reminiscent of a famous scene from Buster Keaton's The Navigator, and it's even funnier. Or that intimate scene where McCrea gives a carrying case to Jean Arthur. Their acting is so subtly romantic in that scene. I love the way Stevens films it. 10/10.

One of the greatest romantic comedies ever. The main characters are funny and likable (Joel McCrea is one of the forgotten great romantic comedy leading men of the '30's and '40's), the dialogue is wonderful, and the sense of the period is exact. Two great scenes: 1) McCrea and Arthur on the steps of her apt., he groping her, she fending him off without turning him off--hilarious and sexy; 2) At a factory, a long, long line of women workers is clocking out of work, a male worker (apparently there weren't many) walks toward them, becoming more apprehensive and walking faster as he runs the gauntlet of the women's hoots and hollers (talk about turning the tables)--no revisionism needed here, a primary source for the depiction of the burgeoning of feminism during WWII.

Delightful comedy classic from Columbia Pictures and director George Stevens. During World War II there was a housing shortage in many big cities, particularly Washington D.C. This is the backdrop for the film's zany plot that has retired businessman Charles Coburn renting half of Jean Arthur's apartment, then turning around and renting half of his half to soldier Joel McCrea, and trying to play matchmaker for McCrea and Arthur.

Jean Arthur has rarely been more cute and more likable than she is here. Joel McCrea shows the same kind of charm and comic timing that he displayed in his Preston Sturges comedies. Charles Coburn is, of course, terrific ("Damn the torpedoes! Full steam ahead!"). He deservedly won the Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his performance (the only win out of six Oscar nominations the film received). It's a great movie with a witty script and a trio of stars that have wonderful chemistry together. Not the most well-known comedy from the period perhaps but I think it's one of the best.

I'm tickled pink every time I watch this film. Charles Coburn plays a meddling businessman who invades the apartment of a young woman during WWII's Washington D.C. housing crisis. The trio cast including Jean Arthur and Joel McCrea is stellar. This is a doting film that takes its time with details, yet is warmly effective. The chemistry between Arthur and McCrea is heart pounding (especially the side walk scene!) The magic shared between them permeates the screen. (There's something about McCrea that makes a girl want to fall into his lap.) Coburn's antics as the sly matchmaker are hilarious. "The More the Merrier" is cleverly written and humorously acted. For classic film lovers, this one's a gem.