Skylark (1941)

The greatest movie ever made..!

Sadly Over-hyped

I like Black Panther, but I didn't like this movie.

Boring

Or, if you prefer, Comedy Lite, because 'Skylark" is only semi-funny. I can only guess Director Mark Sandrich didn't have a good feel for comedy as several scenes which could have been funny seemed forced and heavy-handed. A Leo McCarey or Mitchell Leisen could have gotten more mileage out of them, but, as is, "Skylark" is unsatisfying and leaves you feeling unfulfilled, like Lite beer or diet soda.Other reviews recount the plot, but just let me say that the main reason to watch this one is to watch several old pros give their all and try to make a mediocre picture better just by their presence. It belongs mainly to Claudette Colbert, who tries mightily and comes off the best of the principals. She is ably supported by Ray Milland and Brian Aherne, who also do their best. Walter Abel does not come off so well and is better in straight drama parts. And the old pop standard 'Skylark" is apparently not from this picture. I put my star rating in the heading as the website no longer includes them.

Familiar theme yet played to the hilt by Claudette Colbert and Ray Milland in this totally enjoyable film.Realizing that her husband's success in business is primary to him, Colbert runs off with an attorney played by an irascible Brian Aherne and he successfully is able to get her to divorce the Milland character.The rest of the film is devoted to Milland trying to woo her back. The scenes in the subway and at the musical theater are both quite funny.Binnie Barnes is terrific as the wife of Milland's boss; acting high society although her background is probably humble at best. She also has designs on Aherne.The scenes where Milland has lied to his wife about quitting his job are funny; that's until Barnes shows up and in front of Colbert, she fires him which proves he had lied to Colbert.

Claudette Colbert has long been, for me, the actress that could do no wrong. I never saw her in a film that I didn't like. Until tonight.It's not that the acting here is bad. It's fine. It's the plot that smells to high heaven. We have Colbert's character -- the wife -- who is so disgusted with her husband's selfish focus on his career that she urges him to quit, even though that will leave them with no income to support their relatively wealthy life style. We have Ray Milland's character -- the husband -- who will tell any lie and commit any decent to get his wife back. And then, he stalks her even after the divorce. Ironically, the one fairly nice character in the film is Brian Aherne -- the other man. And in the end, Colbert goes back to her lying, deceitful husband.This movie could have been saved by simply rewriting about 5 scenes and turning it into a drama, rather than a misguided comedy.As mentioned, the acting here is fine. Claudette Colbert is fine as the wife, although I would hardly see this as one of her finer films. It's hard to root for her because her character is such a sap.Ray Milland is fine as the lying, deceitful husband. But no way you can root for him. I rather liked Brian Aherne here, and usually he is not one of my favorites. Walter Abel is along as the best friend, and plays that role well...as he always did.Sorry Claudette, I give this film a big thumbs down. How sad that you allowed yourself to be put in a film that is so demeaning toward women.

Although I saw this film in a copy of rather poor quality, I enjoyed it very much. The script was clever, very efficiently tackling a problem commonly faced by married couples: the husband is so devoted to his career that he neglects his wife without even understanding it and a third person is soon there to take advantage of the situation. We follow with interest the reactions of the heroes. At first, we completely justify the wife, but later on we take sides with the husband, and wish that true love wins. Both Ray Milland and Claudette Colbert deliver lessons in acting, they are simply magnificent. Brian Aherne and Walter Abel are also very good. In short, a very entertaining film, that leaves you with a sense of good feeling when it ends. I sincerely hope that it is soon available in an official DVD, it certainly deserves it much more than so many mediocre films that are currently in circulation.