GManfred 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.

blanche-2 A top cast -- Claudette Colbert, Ray Milland, and Brian Aherne star in "Skylark," a 1941 film directed by Mark Sandrich, and based on the play.Milland and Colbert are Tony and Lydia Kenyon, celebrating their fifth wedding anniversary, and they're having a party. Tony is in advertising, so all of his clients' products have to be on display. He's preoccupied with one client in particular, Frederick Vantine (Grant Mitchell), from whom he's trying to get another million dollars in advertising.At the party, and right after an altercation with her husband, Linda meets a charming attorney, Jim Blake (Aherne) who becomes very smitten with her. She takes a drive with him to a diner. When she arrives home, the party is over and Tony is furious. The attorney was a guest of the Vantines, and Mrs. Vantine (Binnie Barnes) is angry that she went off with him. He demands that she call and apologize. Lydia does, and then she leaves him and spends more time with Jim -- against the wishes of Mrs. Vantine.Funny marital comedy about a woman who doesn't want to be a second thought to her husband, and a husband who adores her but is afraid of not being good at his job. He's also jealous of Jim.Some wonderful scenes and performances: the cast is top-notch, and Colbert's scene on Jim's boat is hilarious, and her encounters with Barnes are delicious. Aherne is likable, debonair, and charming, and Milland shows vulnerability as Tony."Skylark" could have better directed, which would have brought the film up a couple of notches. If Leo McCarey or Ernst Lubitsch had directed it, it might have been up there with "It Happened One Night." Nevertheless, it is delightful, with the three stars at the top of their respective games.

skimari 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.

Alex da Silva Lydia (Claudette Colbert) leaves her husband Tony (Ray Milland) who she has been married to for 5 years because he puts his career first. Jim (Brian Aherne) moves in on her and she rather sluttishly encourages his flirtations. Lydia and Tony divorce and Lydia starts to hang out with Jim....If the above summary sounds interesting to you, and you expect nothing else to happen, then you'll like the film. Personally, I lost count of the number of times that I slipped off into a daydream. What a waste of a good cast. Colbert and Milland are fine to watch, though - Milland gives the best dramatic moment as he concedes defeat to Aherne and walks away from the new lovers. Whilst Milland starts as a dislikable character, the audience turns in his favour as the film develops. He is extremely tolerant of the nasty Aherne character - the number of times he tolerates his presence verges on the saintly. Colbert is a silly bitch in this film.Overall, despite an effort to engage myself in the proceedings, there was only about half an hour's worth of story in this effort, and so I couldn't. It's boring. Women will probably like it.