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| Doris Day, Steve Forrest, Jack Lemmon |
IT HAPPENED TO JANE (1959). Director: Richard Quine.
Jane Osgood (Doris Day of
Julie) is a widow with two children in the town of Cape Anne, Maine. Jane has just started to run a lobster business and is horrified to learn that the railroad left the lobsters sitting in the station to die. With the help of a longtime friend, a lawyer named George (Jack Lemmon), she sues the railroad, which is run by an old grouch named Harry Foster Malone (Ernie Kovacs.) Jane eventually takes her story to the media as Malone tries various legal maneuverings to bring her to her knees. But Jane is determined to get those damn lobsters to market and put Malone in his place.
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| Ernie Kovacs |
It Happened to Jane was a box office failure for Day, probably because the critics and word of mouth made it clear that the picture never fulfills its promise. This is a shame, because Day herself gives a committed and outstanding performance, and Lemmon is no slouch as her foil. Steve Forrest [
Mommie Dearest] is miscast as a New York reporter who falls in love with and proposes to Jane after only four days -- one simply can't see this slick, sexy fellow succumbing to Jane's country charms so quickly and frenetically -- but the biggest casting problem is Ernie Kovacs. True, Kovacs' dialogue isn't especially funny, but neither is his performance. He demolishes the whimsical tone of the film almost every time he appears.
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| Day, Lemmon, and Mary Wickes |
This is too bad, since
Jane has a good premise and begins very well, but it just doesn't sustain the fun. A scene when George tells off the town because they don't seem supportive of Jane is off-base because it ignores the townspeople's very real concerns and they hardly have time to react in any case. Jane's kids are cute; Mary Wickes, as usual, hasn't enough to do; and "A Real Good Scout" is a charming number Day sings to the boy scouts. Attempts to create levity with a pet lobster named Sam fall flat because crustaceans, alas, have little personality (but they go great with butter!). Jack Lemmon did several films, including
My Sister Eileen, with director Richard Quine.
Verdict: Day's fans will enjoy this -- everyone else beware! **1/2.
2 comments:
In Day's autobiography, she blames the very bland film title for Jane's failure at the box office. It's a nice enough picture, on a par with Please Don't Eat the Daisies, mild and entertaining family fare. Great assembly of character actors, and Lemmon and Day have good chemistry. I would see this again.
-Chris
It's worth another look for Doris, who really does give an excellent and winning performance. When Day was on target, she was on target!
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