Lively, entertaining reviews of, and essays on, old and newer films and everything relating to them, written by professional author William Schoell.

Thursday, May 25, 2023

THAT OTHER WOMAN

Virginia Gilmore and James Ellison
THAT OTHER WOMAN (1942). Director: Ray McCarey. 

Emily Borden (Virginia Gilmore of The Brotherhood of the Bell) is secretary to handsome Henry Summers (James Ellison of The Ghost Goes Wild), who seems to spend more of his time chasing women than getting work done. Knowing how she feels about her boss, Emily's grandmother (Alma Kruger of Saboteur) suggests she create an air of mystery about herself by sending Henry some mysterious letters. This all leads to busy but not terribly funny complications wherein Henry thinks this lady's gangster boyfriend wants to kill him even as Emily's sort-of fiance, Ralph (Dan Duryea) goes after him as well. Henry masquerades as the caretaker of his cabin in the woods even as he finally begins noticing Emily. But what will happen when he learns she is the architect of all of his problems? 

Henry Roquemore, Gilmore, Urecal, Ellison
That Other Woman
 is yet another mediocre James Ellison comedy. Ellison is always reasonably adept in these vehicles but the greatest comedian in the world can't triumph over an insufficient screenplay. As for the ladies, neither Gilmore nor Kruger are especially adapt at comedy. The movie does have one moment of fun, and that is when Emily and Henry check into a hotel that seems to cater strictly to the elderly and encounter the termagant manager Mrs. MacReady, with Minerva Urecal looking throughout as if she wants to kill anyone who dares to even look at her! Typical of these kind of movies, Duryea's character is treated horribly.
Gilmore did a few movies but had more credits on TV. She was married to Yul Brynner for 16 years. 

Verdict: Much running around to little effect. **. 

2 comments:

angelman66 said...

Duryea was a quite a good actor and very good looking. He's great as the feather-brained son in The Little Foxes...
-Chris

William said...

That was probably his most famous role. Never thought of him as good-looking, though. "The Eye of the Beholder" and all that!