SimonJack "Desk Set" is one of several movies that Spencer Tracy and Katherine Hepburn made. Half a dozen of nine films were comedies or part comedy. Most of their pairings are of the type in "Desk Set." The two stars are antagonists, though not hostile, in whatever setting the film has. The comedy is mostly of the general feel-good humorous type.Theirs generally is not the rollicking laughter comedy of the type that Cary Grant and Irene Dunne evoked. They have occasional witty or funny lines, but not on the scale of William Powell and Myrna Loy. And, their antics are sparse and tame compared to others. The one film in which they seem to give more of all the above is "Adam's Rib" of 1949. Still, audiences of their day enjoyed their often laid-back and sophisticated comedy. That's what we have in "Desk Set." Audiences of the 21st century may get a laugh out of the size of the huge mechanical brain (aka, computer) in this film. With information and communication at present-day fingertips in hand-held devices, it may seem strange for younger generations to realize that the first computers were such behemoths. Or, to know that it took four decades for the technology to evolve to that of modern times. IBM made the first commercial computer, UNIVAC. The U.S. Census Bureau got the first one on June 14, 1951. In this film, Tracy plays Richard Sumner, who is sizing up the research department of a broadcast network. Hepburn's Bunny Watson is the head of the group. She has a crew of three other women and all are whizzes at finding the answers to the myriad questions people in and outside the network have. But they fear that Sumner's presence bodes ill for the future of their jobs. This reflects a legitimate widespread concern in employment fields all across the country in the mid-20th century. The bulk of the comedy comes from Watson's crew, especially peg Costello, played by Joan Blondell. The film has romance, but it's not between Tracy and Hepburn. It's a seven-year courtship of Hepburn and Gig Young. He plays Mike Cutler, her boss. That may be the comedy of the romance - that it amounts to little more than occasional dates. This piece of the plot doesn't seem believable. There's no passion or chemistry between Bunny and Mike. Nor do their lines reflect any kind of real closeness, let alone love. This is far from a great comedy, or even a very funny film. It is humorous in places and otherwise interesting and enjoyable. Modern audiences may find it too slow or tame. It is a good look at a couple of the biggest stars of the early to mid-decades of the 20th century. Here are some favorite lines from the film. For more humorous dialog, see the Quotes section under this IMDb Web page on the movie. Ruthie Saylor "Maybe we're getting that air conditioning, finally." Sylvia Blair, "Hmmm, that figures. This is November."Peg Costello, "You only smoke when there's a crisis. Who is he?"Bunny Watson, "Well, kids, whataya say we give the company a little of our time?" Bunny Watson, "On the Shores of Gitche Gumee." Ruthie Saylor, "James Whitcomb Riley." Bunny Watson, "Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, bless him."Bunny Watson, "Mike, for the 500th time, there's a glass wall behind you." Mike Cutler, "Bunny, who do you think you're kidding? Everybody knows you haven't got a brain in your head. The only way you keep your job is by being nice to me."Mike Cutler, "Bye girls. Always a pleasure to see your freshly scrubbed, smiling faces. Remember our motto: Be on time, do your work, be down in the bar at 5:30."Ruthie Saylor, "What is the company policy here for Christmas?" Sylvia Blair, "Anything goes, as long as you don't lock the door."Richard Sumner, answering the phone, "Hello! Uh, Santa Clause's reindeer? Uh, uh, why yes, I can. Uh, uh, let me see now. There's Dopey, uh, Sneezy, Grouchy, Happy, Sleepy, uh, Rudolph and Blitzen. You're welcome."Richard Sumner, "This office of yours is bigger than the whole research department." Mr. Azae, "Well, it's supposed to be. If the office of the president isn't big enough to impress the sponsors, then there's nothing for the girls down in Research to research."

SnoopyStyle Richard Sumner (Spencer Tracy) is the inventor of a computer called EMERAC. Federal Broadcasting Network ordered one for the reference department which is led by Bunny Watson (Katharine Hepburn).I'm sure that an audience of its times would work much better. They would automatically root for Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn as a couple. That may account for the lack of setup for a romance. But that's not really a mortal wound for this movie. An eye flutter here, a knowing smile there, sometimes that's all the setup a movie requires. The mortal sin here is making Spencer Tracy a computer science expert, and that over the top idea of what a computer is or does. There is no role playing here. It's simply Spencer Tracy playing Spencer Tracy. None of the jokes worked that well. Katharine Hepburn does a good job as a librarian supercomputer. Overall a minor disappointment.

Bob Pr. My ladyfriend wanted very much to see this showing at the Lawrence (KS) public library. On reading the IMDb reviews, although it was not of much interest to me, since it was to her, we went. (She didn't want to hear anything said in the reviews since they might be "spoilers" to her; I think Hepburn & Tracy were the big draw for her.)I thought the narrative was formulaic and predictable but it did provide the opportunity for Hepburn & Tracy to do "their thing." My ladyfriend loved it; I found it a bit interesting.I very much commend the User Review made by "secondtake," posted 28July2010.I agree with everything that reviewer said but rate this film just a smidge higher than that reviewer did.(Please, adjust your search of these User Reviews to "Chronological" and then scan them for that review on that date. Feel free, of course, to read any others.)

michaeljhuman First off, I would have given this movie a better review if it's pace was a bit better. It felt a bit disjointed in some ways, with a series of what felt like separate scenes (I believe someone mentioned it felt like a play, and it did). Some worked well, some did not work as well. But that's a bit objective.As an example of something I did not buy into...the romance between her and the computer engineer. I never quite bought into it. He shows some interest, but she only shows flashes of interest - but I just couldn't connect the dots.I loved seeing a woman playing a smart competent role. Kudos to them. It's enjoyable seeing strong female roles in movies - it's becoming more common now, but did not seem to be that common back then.As a software engineer, I totally appreciate the subject matter. And I am not sure the man-machine debate is done. While computers have been an amazing innovation, improving our lives in ways hard to imagine now doing without, at the same time they still introduce problems. For example, people living their lives out on the computer rather than in person with real people...some people have struggled with addiction to games even, such as World of Warcraft.But moving along, Hepburn makes this movie. She is fascinating to watch when she's quoting poetry, especially at the ending scene. For her acting alone, I should give it 6 stars.The supporting cast of her fellow researchers was quite good. Especially the heavier set one (sorry, forgot her name.) I can recommend this movie, for sure. It could maybe have been better though?