OK, that was a minor complaint, but an excellent come-on.
I did not realize until after I saw this film how many movies similar to this that Frank Capra directed: You Can't Take It With You, Mr Deeds Goes to Town, Meet John Doe, Mr Smith Goes to Washington, It's a Wonderful Life... pure formula. Some are better than others. It's difficult not to get sentimental over It's a Wonderful Life, for me, largely because of the romance between Stewart and Donna Reed. The quirkiness of the characters in You Can't Take it With You are much more endearing than the others. The common thread of the Everyman taking on the Powers That Be is a draw for just about anyone.
Nevertheless, I think this particular movie does not deserve it's lofty ranking compared to Capra's other works. It Happened One Night is a far superior story, eschewing all the hypersentimentalization of many Depression-era films. Mr Deeds goes out of it's way to romanticize "small-town virtues" and quirkiness to ridiculous extremes. This, and the squeaky-clean script (which people forget was enforced by self-appointed moral police) is why many people look to films like this as a standard of entertainment. However, many parts of the film are utterly flawed. The courtroom scene is a ridiculous mess, with witnesses and spectators jumping up to make frenzied speeches that would never have been permitted in a real court. The protagonist (Cooper) who spends most the film outwitting opponents, breaks down and punches his opponent at a trial to establish his own mental competence -- and gets away with it! Pure fantasy. I'm sure it played well with people who felt trodden upon by big business in the Great Depression (and I would have been sympathetic), but this doesn't excuse the ludicrous story.
Lionel Standler has the best role as Deeds' 'handler' Cornelius Cobb, displaying a nice combination of empathy and protectiveness, and comes off as the only sympathetic (if hard-boiled) character in the film. Jean Arthur does well as the reporter who traps Deeds and ultimately regrets the sleazy act, but the role falls apart in hysterics during the competency hearing. Cooper somehow comes off as both a sharpie and an over-trusting naif, which is quite a stretch. It's hard to tell whether his performance is authentic or wooden.
Unfortunately, this is one of those films that had fine sentiments, but cemented the myth of what the "real America" was supposed to be.
I did not realize until after I saw this film how many movies similar to this that Frank Capra directed: You Can't Take It With You, Mr Deeds Goes to Town, Meet John Doe, Mr Smith Goes to Washington, It's a Wonderful Life... pure formula. Some are better than others. It's difficult not to get sentimental over It's a Wonderful Life, for me, largely because of the romance between Stewart and Donna Reed. The quirkiness of the characters in You Can't Take it With You are much more endearing than the others. The common thread of the Everyman taking on the Powers That Be is a draw for just about anyone.
Nevertheless, I think this particular movie does not deserve it's lofty ranking compared to Capra's other works. It Happened One Night is a far superior story, eschewing all the hypersentimentalization of many Depression-era films. Mr Deeds goes out of it's way to romanticize "small-town virtues" and quirkiness to ridiculous extremes. This, and the squeaky-clean script (which people forget was enforced by self-appointed moral police) is why many people look to films like this as a standard of entertainment. However, many parts of the film are utterly flawed. The courtroom scene is a ridiculous mess, with witnesses and spectators jumping up to make frenzied speeches that would never have been permitted in a real court. The protagonist (Cooper) who spends most the film outwitting opponents, breaks down and punches his opponent at a trial to establish his own mental competence -- and gets away with it! Pure fantasy. I'm sure it played well with people who felt trodden upon by big business in the Great Depression (and I would have been sympathetic), but this doesn't excuse the ludicrous story.
Lionel Standler has the best role as Deeds' 'handler' Cornelius Cobb, displaying a nice combination of empathy and protectiveness, and comes off as the only sympathetic (if hard-boiled) character in the film. Jean Arthur does well as the reporter who traps Deeds and ultimately regrets the sleazy act, but the role falls apart in hysterics during the competency hearing. Cooper somehow comes off as both a sharpie and an over-trusting naif, which is quite a stretch. It's hard to tell whether his performance is authentic or wooden.
Unfortunately, this is one of those films that had fine sentiments, but cemented the myth of what the "real America" was supposed to be.