Neil Doyle IT ALL CAME TRUE is a strange mixture of comedy, drama and old-fashioned musical turns featuring Ann Sheridan and Jeffrey Lynn as two show biz sweethearts who get mixed up with a criminal (Humphrey Bogart) wanted by the police who takes shelter in a boarding house run by Lynn's eccentric mother (Una O'Connor) and another lady.Somehow, the mix of elements are strung together in a way that provides a number of charming moments, mostly involving Sheridan (who has a way with a zinger) and Bogart, who gets some gentle humor out of his gangster role and creates a likable enough character with ease. Lynn is good at portraying the nimble fingered piano player but is stiff when asked to perform as Sheridan's musical partner.Una O'Connor gets a number of good laughs out of her irate landlady role and Zasu Pitts is amusing as a paranoid woman who has read too many detective stories.None of it is memorable but it passes the time pleasantly enough. A talented cast overcomes a rather clumsy script that wanders all over the place. At least, it's unpredictable and good for a few laughs.

Michael_Elliott It All Came True (1940) ** 1/2 (out of 4) Comedy from Warner has a piano player (Jeffrey Lynn) taking his gangster boss (Humphrey Bogart) back to his mother's boarding house and hiding him there after killing a witness. The gangster goes unrecognized until a friend (Ann Sheridan) of the piano player notices him. The three leads and the strong supporting cast make this film a lot better than it really has the right to be. The movie is a rather mixed bag with the first half really dragging before finally picking up during the final act. The film finally comes to life when the old women (Una O'Connor, Jessie Busley) are about to be kicked out of their boarding house so Bogart decides to turn it into a nightclub to earn some extra cash. Zasu Pitts really steals the film as one of the tenant who can't hold her liquor and is always in fear that the gangster is going to do harm to her. Sheridan comes off pretty good in the lead role and does more for her character than the screenplay does. Sheridan is quite energetic throughout and matches wits well against Bogart who provides some nice comic touches. O'Connor gets some of her typical laughs as does John Litel. This movie is certainly far from a classic due to the mixed screenplay but fans of the cast members should find enough her to make one viewer worth it.

classicsoncall File this one under films you probably never heard of, but once you've seen it, it occupies a nice warm place in your movie library to help remind you of a simpler time and place. The title comes from Mrs. Nora Taylor's (Jessie Busley) romantic dream of having her son return home as a rich man to marry his childhood girlfriend. The happy ever after ending takes some time getting there, but it's fun to see how things work out, especially since it's gangster Chips Maguire (Humphrey Bogart) who helps make it all come true.The movie gets it's energy from free spirited Sarah Jane Ryan (Ann Sheridan), displaying her usual sassiness and snappy banter - "Why I've been discovered so many times they call me Miss America". Like Tommy Taylor (Jeffrey Lynn), the breaks in life haven't come her way just yet, but there's always tomorrow. That break might become a reality when Maguire, on the run from the law at the Taylor/Ryan boarding house, gets a little bored and comes up with the idea of turning it into a 'Roaring 90's' style night club. Under cover as Graselli, the gangster ingratiates himself with the elderly ladies who operate the home, gradually coming out of his seclusion to become their angel in disguise (a tune by the way coming out of the film).The boarding house features it's own cast of memorable characters as well. There's The Great Baldini (Felix Bressart) doing magic assisted by Fanto the Wonder Dog, and Zasu Pitts, on the run from imaginary assailants who winds up smoking out Maguire after seeing his picture in a "Perfect Detective" magazine. You'll really sit up and take notice though when on opening night at the boarding house, a group of nine elderly ladies takes the stage and breaks into a spirited song and dance routine.Hey, remember that great old Warner Brothers cartoon that features Bugs Bunny and a whole bunch of musical numbers? - 'Rosie O'Grady', 'Pretty Baby', 'Oh You Beautiful Doll', 'Ain't We Got Fun', 'Just an Angel in Disguise' and 'When Irish Eyes are Smiling'. This has got to be the film that's being parodied. Even Bogey gets into the act with a few lines from 'Strolling Through the Park One Day'. Now I've got to get my hands on that cartoon again! Ultimately, Bogart's character is caught dead to rights, and does the honorable, if not realistic thing of giving himself up without any further ado. His earlier plan of fingering Tommy for a gambling murder goes by the wayside, under the spell cast by Sally/Sarah and the boarding house citizens. OK, so it's not an award winner, but there's enough entertainment here to brighten your day and provide an hour and a half of music and fun. Even if you have to force yourself through Salmon's poetry reading.

didi-5 Would this work? Well, of course it does. Ann Sheridan is charming, Bogart is same as ever, Jeffrey Lynn is slightly irritating in a cute kind of way, the character actors are impeccable and the film moves along at a good, relaxing pace. One of those late night weekend films to watch with a sherry and a box of chocs.