![]() However, Hawks's decision to play the drag scenes for macho laughs pays off, as Grant is much funnier enduring the discomfort of the WAC uniform than he could ever have been attempting the feminine mannerisms that he had originally spent hours practising. He returned to give a courageous performance, although his refusal to attempt a French accent somewhat undermines his characterisation. With only one week left in his enlistment, he is assigned to work with. Hawks suffered from an all-over rash, while Sheridan's pleurisy developed into pneumonia and Grant's hepatitis was complicated by jaundice (around 15 weeks were lost, as Grant recouperated and regained the 30lbs he had lost during his illness). I Was a Male War Bride stars Cary Grant as Captain Henri Rochard of the French army. However, the shoot was dogged by poor health. ![]() With Hollywood costs rising steeply, Fox opted to make the picture in Germany and Britain to release some of the monies frozen during the war. But it's surprising that the film is as enjoyable as it is, considering the crises that befell its production. Grant and Sheridan never really hit it off. He took less trouble over the casting of her roomate, however, by selecting his then-mistress, Marion Marshall. Grant was initially to be teamed with Ava Gardner, but Hawks insisted on pairing him with Ann Sheridan, whose strong personality and confidence with comedy had earned her the nickname `the Oomph Girl'. However, Grant himself wouldn't have agreed, insisting that this was `the best comedy I've ever done'.Ĭuriously, this far-fetched tale was based on fact, as Belgian nurse Henri Rochard had such a trying time attempting to leave Europe with his American bride that he related his experiences in the story `I Was an Alien Spouse of Female Military Personnel En Route to the United States Under Public Law 271 of the Congress'. Here's I Was a Male War Bride (1949), which you can expand to full screen.It was a case of diminishing returns where Howard Hawks, Cary Grant and comedy were concerned, with His Girl Friday, this tepid postwar farce and the laboured Monkey Business successively failing to match the screwball genius of Bringing Up Baby. In 1966, she began starring in a new TV Western-themed comedy series, Pistols 'n' Petticoats but became ill during the taping. I Was a Male War Bride is a romantic screwball comedy film made in 1949, directed by Howard Hawks and starring Cary Grant and Ann Sheridan. Sheridan became a major co-star in the 1940s and beyond but never achieved household-name status the way Hepburn and Davis did. For the rest, you'll have to watch the film. The problem is they have unpleasant history together. Tasked with taking him by motorcycle and sidecar is Sheridan (as Lieutenant Catherine Gates). Log in or sign up for Facebook to connect with friends, family and people you know. Grant plays Rochard, a French army captain in post-war Germany who needs to travel to Bad Nauheim. The two of them together were magic, nearly as fast as Grant (above) and Hepburn in Bringing Up Baby (1938).ĭirected by Howard Hawks (above), War Bride was based on an article that first appeared in the Baltimore Sun by Henri Rochard, the pen name of Roger Charlier, a Belgian resistance fighter who married an American nurse while still abroad after the war.įor the film, the story was reworked. ![]() However, one of my favorites remains I Was a Male War Bride (1949), co-starring Ann Sheridan. Clark Art Direction by Set Decoration by Thomas Little Walter M. (as Cyril Mockridge) Cinematography by Film Editing by James B. This technique gave her lines a realistic freshness, a naturalism that sounded almost improvised rather than memorized.įor me, many of Cary Grant's films today are weighed down by lumbering scripts or are worn out, largely because they've been viewed so often. Directed by Howard Hawks Writing Credits Cast (in credits order) verified as complete Produced by Sol C. She became known colloquially as the "Oomph Girl." She had mastered the art of seamless dialogue by knowing the last word of her co-star's line. promotion announced that Sheridan had been voted by a committee of 25 men as the actress with the most "oomph" in America. She started out in Hollywood in the late 1930s in films with James Cagney and Humphrey Bogart. Once on camera, they could turn scenes into saucy exchanges.Īnother actress who was terrific in this department and vastly underrated was Ann Sheridan (above). All knew their lines cold but also their co-star's. On the male side, Spencer Tracy, Cary Grant and Fred MacMurray were among the best at ping-pong repartee. ![]() He died on 16 September 2018 in Brussels, Belgium. He was a writer, known for I Was a Male War Bride (1949). ![]() Katharine Hepburn was a fast talker and fabulous with comedy scripts that called for rapid-fire banter. Henri Rochard was born on 10 November 1921 in Antwerp, Belgium. ![]()
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