The Groom Wore Spurs

The Groom Wore Spurs is an Incredibly muddled film. Ginger Rogers stars as attorney Abigail Furnival, whose been assigned to a famous cowboy film actor Ben Castle(Jack Carson). Whose found himself in debt to a mob boss. Over the course of the case she begins to fall in love with him. The film has some structural problems, it goes from starting out as a mob film, then quickly changes Into a romantic comedy, then delves into slapstick, and finally back Into a mob film. These changes aren't seamless and feel jarring when the film switches between tones.

Both the screenplay and direction are uninspired and feels like the film was made on the whim of an Idea. Thankfully the shining part of the film is the acting and chemistry between Rogers and Carson. They are both charming and extremely likable and they play off each other with great sincerity. Their chemistry kept me engaged enough to see how the film played out.

Overall the film is fairly average, it's bringing nothing original to the table. the camera-work and cinematography are both passable. There's no real standout moment in the film which felt like the result of It's messy screenplay and structure. However it's a film worth watching once just for the two engaging performances between Rogers and Carson.

Jack Carson is a singing cowboy star who can't sing, can't ride, and is afraid of guns. He can lose $60,000 to gambler Stanley Ridges. So his studio hires lawyer Ginger Rogers to negotiate with Ridges. But on spending the evening with him in Las Vegas, they get married. Ridges, who was a friend of her father, forgives the debt as a wedding present. That, it turns out, was Carson's plan all along. Miss Rogers decides, at the advice of roommate Joan Davis, to make a man of Carson.

It's one of those movies which are occasionally amusing without being actually funny. Miss Davis certainly tries, but the script goes from post-war, Code-compliant grouchiness to over-the-top frantic with no build-up. Everyone tries hard under director Richard Whorf (who makes an uncredited appearance as a motion picture director). Also appearing are John Litel, Victor Sen Yung, George Meader, Franklyn Farnum, and Ross Hunter.

I am writing this only because there are no IMDb user comments at January 2008.

*

I got this and A Shriek In The Night 1933 because they are Ginger Rogers, no other reason.

Shriek has several detailed comments from people who know that era and they tend to rate it as okay entertainment as well as a useful example of the final days of one particular low budget production company. Also, a glimpse of Ginger before her RKO roles with Fred.

The only problem, for me, with Shriek is the sound quality. It gets in the way.

*

Groom as a bit more mature, and also with okay sound and vision. Still only 4x3 black and white, but it is still a carrier for Ginger.

This IMDb page does have a need for some reasonably well informed user comments.

Whoever or whatever is responsible, the flick's a flop. Maybe it's the hefty staff of 4 writers, each apparently in his own room with no inter-com; or maybe it's unsteady director Whorf soon to flee into TV; or maybe the trail's traceable to both camps. But whatever the case, the promising parody of a kids' cowboy hero who can't ride a horse, shoot a gun, or throw a punch, goes down the drain amidst a mish-mash of contrasting styles and themes. And pity poor Ginger Rogers looking lost in a role that defies description anywhere on planet Earth. Too bad Astaire's not in the wings. Nonetheless, the movie's potential is there with comedic actor Carson in the lead, along with stand-out Joan Davis adding her feisty bits. Unfortunately, their occasional bursts of nutty humor are lost among the off-putting mix of blackmail, jealousy, and murder. Too bad, since the flick's a real lost opportunity for its cowboy time, and even for today's space age.

(In passing - watch for soon-to-be, big-time producer Ross Hunter in minor role of Austin Tisdale. Check out his list of box-office biggies from late 50's through 1960's. So I guess the movie wasn't a complete failure.)

Ben Castle is a Hollywood sensation as a singing cowboy, with his horse Pancho. But Ben can't sing, draw a gun or ride a horse. Heck - he even needs a step-ladder to get on Pancho! Ben seems to have bad luck gambling too, as he owes a $60,000 debt to Las Vegas gambler Harry Kallen. Hoping to find a way to settle the debt, he hires a lawyer - 'A.J.' Furnival, played by Ginger Rogers.

Ben and A.J. fly to Vegas to try to settle the matter. In just a few hours, Ben and A.J. get married. As a wedding present, Harry says the debt is forgiven. After that, we're treated with the ups and down of life married to a big-time celebrity. Things take a drastic change when an unexpected event changes everything.

A little comic relief is provided by Ben's house-boy, Ignacio, played by Victor Sen Yung. What we get from Ignacio is your stereotypical Chinese man for the time. By today's standards, some people might find this - and one scene in particular - very offensive. But back in the early 50's, it was considered funny.

The Groom Wore Spurs is a decent light, breezy sort of romantic comedy that Hollywood used to crank out all the time. What makes it special - for me at least - is the joy of being able to watch Ginger Rogers!Fans of her will really enjoy this movie and they made sure to have a scene where we get to look at Ginger's legs in high heels. Now isn't that reason enough to watch the movie? For me it is!