judyolsz I love Barbara Stanwick so I thought I would check it out. So outdated. Too bad that things were ever this way. Do not bother to watch it unless you just want to be grateful for how most situations are better today.

csteidler Barbara Stanwyck is an ambitious physician and surgeon. Henry Fonda is rich but idle. He crashes at her feet on the ski slope then woos her shamelessly while laid up in the lodge. For no particular reason, she allows herself to be talked into marrying him. From there, they move into his mansion, where she tries to continue her medical practice and he sits at home worrying about her male patients. Yes, it is a silly plot. And it's not dated material so much as it just seems to lack any motivation for the lead characters to behave the way they do: Henry Fonda's character is an unimpressive whiner and Stanwyck's character is dumb enough to fall for him? I guess if anyone could make it work, seems like it might be Stanwyck and Fonda...but I have to say that the darn thing just isn't believable. The generally disappointing script does include some snappy dialog as well as some good bits for supporting players. Stuffy butler Melville Cooper lords it over Fonda's household and offers slyly bemused commentary on his employer's habits and the upheaval in the household. Edgar Buchanan is good fun as the crusty old gardener who offers down-to-earth pearls of wisdom. Overall, the cast makes it almost worth watching, and the production certainly looks good. There are some closeup shots of both Stanwyck and Fonda that are quite beautiful.

mark.waltz Feminists might get upset by this movie that insinuates that once a career woman gets hitched, she should give up her job to take care of her husband. That's the situation for doctor Barbara Stanwyck who marries an idle playboy (Henry Fonda) after taking care of him while he's recuperating from influenza. It's not as simple as that; Fonda isn't insisting that she close her practice and spend every waking moment with him, but jealously attacks all of her male patients he is sure are making advances towards her. 90 percent of the movie follows this plot until he finds something to do which causes another problem for them.In a year where Stanwyck was really busy, three out of four films have become classics. One of them had to be a disappointment, and this is it, albeit a minor one. She was a sexy gold-digger (opposite Fonda) in "The Lady Eve", a sequined wearing gangster's moll nightclub entertainer in "Ball of Fire", and a hard-as-nails reporter in "Meet John Doe". Those films all have outstanding screenplays, something this one lacks. The comedy moments are infrequent, although when Fonda tries to disguise himself by wearing tree branches, wife Stanwyck makes an order, "and get rid of those antlers!" Hot after "The Grapes of Wrath", Fonda's whiny, cry-baby character is one of his weaker performances, but it is not his fault; His character simply isn't believable. Stanwyck here is gorgeous and filled with perfect comic timing. It's not difficult to understand why every available bachelor in town would want her medical services.In the supporting cast are many familiar faces; Gravely voiced Edgar Buchannan as the gardener; lip-smacking Fritz Feld as the nosy innkeeper (whom Stanwyck refers to as Mr. Moto for his nosy inquiries); nasal voiced Maude Eburne as the cook; and Ruth Donnelly as Stanwyck's nurse/secretary who could deliver the best wisecracks in her sleep.SPOILER BELOW: What basically frustrated me besides Fonda was the attitude that a rich man can't go out and get a job because he might take the bread out of somebody else's mouth. Democratic ideals or communist? Certainly not the values of a free society. Ironically one of the actors in this scene is Larry Parks who was later accused of being a communist. Towards the end when Stanwyck decides to give up her practice and Fonda disappears after being fired from a job he's taken, the film switches gears into a political statement it never fully deals with. The ending the film does come up with seems rather rushed which lessens the impact of the message.

Brigid O Sullivan (wisewebwoman) This is an oddity and truly shows its time and its era and not well. I am not surprised it is so rarely seen. Henry Fonda as the wimp of all time in a poorly contrived little vehicle to showcase Barbara I would think who plays a spunky bright young doctor and gets a lot of good lines. However, I gave it a 5 out of 10 for the supporting cast who are magnificent. Buchanan particularly as a crusty old gardener and also the guy who plays the butler is a hoot. I could have just watched the supporting players all night and Barbara of course. Normally I enjoy old Henry but here he shows more than his normal display of great Fonda teeth and is given the worst and most brainless lines. All these actors had to earn their stripes over the years in poorly scripted movies like these.