Mother Didn't Tell Me

I admit off the bat that I know shamefully little about Director Claude Binyon, who nonetheless made noteworthy films like the madcap comedy TRUE CONFESSION (1937) and the musical, SING YOU SINNERS (1938).

Of course, with the experience and success accumulated from those and other productions, it is unforgivable that by 1950 Binyon lacked the capacity to forecast CGI, human cardboard cutout characters caused by the end of the job for life and the emergence of the job for the month, plus all the other consequences of the BRAVE NEW WORLD that not even Aldous Huxley predicted with exact precision.

At least Binyon had the good taste to cast two physically beautiful specimens - the immensely elegant Dorothy McGuire quickly charmed by, and soon hypnotic to, the tall and handsome medical doctor William Lundigan. Needless to say, in 1950 the scene where they first meet in the good doctor's office was perfectly modern in 1950, but by 2024 you would expect them to throw caution and clothes to the wind, and engage in safe but pulsating, throbbing, and knee-trembling intercourse immediately. Possibly the next step in 2024 would be McGuire forcing the GP to marry her for unprofessional conduct, and then divorcing him to get his hard-earned fortune.

Unfortunately, in 1950 the world had just come out of a world war and there was still much to be learned. Instead, what MOTHER DIDN'T TELL ME shows is that mankind would still have to go through a lot of learning before achieving the social perfection of 2024.

To be honest, I prefer the "dated" behavior of the characters in 1950. I prefer it to the never ending succession of genuine love lost in courtrooms, financial battles, and the stress that stalks almost the entire human population of today, apart from the fortunate few in power and with fabulous fortunes.

I liked MOTHER DIDN'T TELL ME in its 1950 capsule. Competent cinematography, generally interesting script. I loved the human beings in it, which reminded me of the gentleness of my mother, and my dad's concern with the family's well-being.

Call me dated, too. 7/10.

"Mother Don't Tell Me" is a good movie but it's also VERY frustrating because the two main characters are annoying...at best!

Jane (Dorothy McGuire) is a woman who is determined to marry a doctor. She apparently has some romantic notions about this, but oddly she's done no research whatsoever about what it will be like. And, not surprisingly, once she marries Dr. Wright (William Lundigan), she's unhappy at all the time he spends on the job. She also is very jealous of a woman she hasn't even met...a lady in training to be a doctor who Dr. Wright promised a job to once she graduates!

As for Dr. Wright, he, too, is stupid. He neglects his wife at times and foolishly makes decisions without her...such as buying a house without even consulting her!

Not surprisingly, over time, their marriage is in trouble...mostly because they are each selfish in their own way. Is there any prayer for their marriage to work?

This was a tough film. While enjoyable to watch, it really was tough because I found I really disliked both the Doctor and his wife...especially the wife. They both needed a lot of therapy...or to be hit upside the head with a dead chicken...something to get them to look beyond themselves.

I think, in hindsight, the film would have been a lot better had they made the characters more sympathetic. Still, the movie does make you think and it is entertaining...to a point. An okay movie overall...one that should be required watching for many couples planning on getting married!

How times have changed since this movie was made !

It's the story of a gold-digging female (McGuire) who sets her sights on a young doctor. After marriage, she finds that (surprise !) the life of a doctor's wife is not as perfect as she thought it would be !

There follows misunderstandings, petty arguments & many manipulations. Most of these incidents are unpleasant.

Only bright spot is the performance of Leif Erickson as a smarmy, womanizing psychiatrist. The scene is amusing where he tries to seduce not one but two married women ! This is probably his best role.

Is this a real portrait of marriage or just a dated piece of the past ?

This film is over seventy years old and looks to me as fresh as ever, and if we ( as I do ) consider film as an art form then let us look at other art films. Painting is an obvious comparison. Static but then so are stills from films, and freeze framing certain images from this film I could see it had stood the test of time. Has Vermeer dated ? Of course not. Neither has Dorothy McGuire, looking beautiful and quietly elegant, and yes sexy as she is being sexy in this film. Forget the top critics who supposedly know it all who put her down. In this film and opposite William Lundigan who plays her husband there is tremendous sensual chemistry. Opposite the right partner sexual sparks flew from her. In ' Mother Didn't Tell Me ' she marries a young doctor who never seems to have time to have sex with her, and it takes the advice from a woman friend played beautifully by the witty and equally fine June Havoc urges her to get her husband to give her children so as to get closer to him !!! In fact the dialogue sparkles with wit and most films lead up to sex in marriage ( in the 1940's, 50's ) but this one deals with it within marriage. This is a gem of a scenario, ably directed, and perhaps churned out by Warner Brothers but the cast alone makes it shine. The soundtrack even uses the same music it had for the Bette Davis churned out vehicle ' June Bride. ' That film, equally underrated worked except for a badly conceived ending, but this film works all the way. Acting can overcome routine films. The acting in this is spot on, flawless. It can be seen in a slightly inferior copy on YouTube, and it still glows.

I stumbled on this obscure little number and stayed with it, thanks to a sparkling McGuire and a sturdy Lundigan who seems just right for the sober-sided doctor. Poor Jane (McGuire), she's having a heck of a time adjusting to being a doctor's wife. She wants to succeed, but the phone's always ringing calling him away, even in the middle of their wedding itself. It's just one frequently amusing challenge after another; plus a mother-in-law who prefers that sonny marry another woman who's also a doctor and knows the score unlike the awkward Jane. But then it is the winsome McGuire with her magical smile and a flimsy nightgown, so we know things will work out in the end.

It's an entertaining 90-minutes, better than I expected, with an excellent supporting cast that lends both bite and wit to the proceedings. Then too, I expect married life for a doctor hasn't changed that much since 1950, so I guess there are some lessons for the medically minded. Anyway, it's a lively little programmer without approaching the memorable.