Alfred Hitchcock was a British filmmaker. He recently came to Hollywood, and would rightly earn the nickname, The Master of Suspense. Mr. & Mrs. Smith, proves he could step out of his comfort zone. This is a screwball comedy, with the queen of them, Carole Lombard. It also stars Robert Montgomery, who starred in many comedies, before this one.
The two actors played, Ann and David Montgomery. They are a happily married couple. That is, until David finds out, that they aren’t legally married. David decides to keep this a secret, until Ann finds out. This upsets her so much, that she kicks David out of their apartment. David, initially decides to enjoy his new found status. He hangs out with his single friend, Chuck, (Jack Carson). Chuck sets him up on a double date with a woman, who is not his type. He is in the club, and Mrs. Smith shows up, with his law partner, Jeff. He does his best to try to leave. He bloodies his nose, but that results in his date, trying to help him. This makes Ann Smith, jealous and angry. She and Jeff go to an amusement park. They get on a ride, which gets stuck, at the top. Hitchcock shows the ascent of the ride, through Ann and Jeff’s eyes. It is bad enough that the couple get stuck. Things are made worse, when it rains, and they get soaked. Things continue to go back and forth, with David following them to a cabin. He pretends to be frozen from the cold, getting Ann to nurse him to health. Although she discovers the truth, and becomes angry she realizes, that he loves her, and she loves him.
The talent of Carol Lombard shines through in this movie. Comedy is considered the hardest thing for actors to do. She does it effortlessly. Robert Montgomery plays his part very well. The scene where he has to bloody his nose is humorous. He also plays a man pining for his lost love convincingly. One of his best scenes is in the restaurant with Carole Lombard. They go back to the scene of their first date:an Italian restaurant. It has been turned into a pizzeria, and the romantic atmosphere is gone. Mrs. Smith, to the owner’s chagrin, requests an outdoor table. The couple get one, overlooking the street, with children staring at them. It is also replete with a cat. Mr. Smith hesitates eating the soup. He looks at the cat, and says it knows something. Carol Lombard lived her comic roles in real life. She was ever the prankster. She directed Hitchcock’s cameo appearance in this movie. The director was famous for them. She made him do several takes. She laughed at his comment, that actors were like cattle. She built a small cattle pen, with three heifers, that had the names of the three leads on them. It was this funny engaging person that first attracted Clark Gable to her.
Mr. & Mrs. Smith is a rare film for Hitchcock. It is not only a comedy, but he didn’t have any involvement with the script. It is well written by Norman Krasna. He would win an academy award, a few years later for Princess O’Rourke. It is a sign of a good writer, when the actors can make his material stand out.
This movie is one of the last of the screwball comedies. It doesn’t let the audience down. The style of Hitchcock is present. He manages to give his suspense even in a comedy. This is how directors flourish. It is a shame that it was the next to last film Lombard would make. Her comic talent and her wit left after a fatal plane crash. Mr. & Mrs. Smith is a worthy entry in the genre of comedy.