Steve Gaylord (Laraine Day) has a stupid name. It's a man's name but she's a woman. Anyway, she gets a job as a secretary to best-selling author Owen (Kirk Douglas). However, Owen has no real need for a secretary and uses this position as an excuse to date lots of women with his annoying, hanger-on friend, Ronnie (Keenan Wynn). Secretaries are constantly coming and going. Indeed, Steve - who is a woman - also quits as Owen's secretary only to marry him and write her own best-selling book. Complications and misunderstandings follow before the film finally finishes.
The film is meant to be a comedy. Well, it's just not funny. The plot is ridiculous as we have Steve (who is a woman!) falling in love with Owen and marrying him at the same time as not liking him. She's about to marry Charles (Rudy Vallee) and then she's suddenly in love with Owen after so obviously wanting to see the back of him. It's a nonsense. The story is also very contrived as we have an ending with Steve mirroring the scenes that Owen played out with her at the start of the film. It's all so very obvious.
There is also a fault with the cast. While Laraine Day is mainly good in her role, despite being schizophrenic when it comes to the affairs of the heart - more to do with poor story construction, Kirk Douglas tends to overact. His reactions are over-the-top at times and not believable. His side-kick, Keenan Wynn is extremely annoying with his constant unfunny wisecracks. What exactly is his role? I suspect it is to be funny. He's not. Irene Ryan has a role as a housekeeper "Mary" and she, too, fails to come up to scratch by providing absolutely NO humour. The best character is "Felicia" played by Virginia Hewitt a Veronica Lake look-a-like who wants to break into movies and has the funniest scene in the film. She plays a complete moron very well. It's the ONLY humorous part of the film.
Don't bother with this film unless you want silly. Keenan Wynn wisecracks his way through the film, so of course, on a couple of occasions there is a good line. But it really is not good enough.
The film is meant to be a comedy. Well, it's just not funny. The plot is ridiculous as we have Steve (who is a woman!) falling in love with Owen and marrying him at the same time as not liking him. She's about to marry Charles (Rudy Vallee) and then she's suddenly in love with Owen after so obviously wanting to see the back of him. It's a nonsense. The story is also very contrived as we have an ending with Steve mirroring the scenes that Owen played out with her at the start of the film. It's all so very obvious.
There is also a fault with the cast. While Laraine Day is mainly good in her role, despite being schizophrenic when it comes to the affairs of the heart - more to do with poor story construction, Kirk Douglas tends to overact. His reactions are over-the-top at times and not believable. His side-kick, Keenan Wynn is extremely annoying with his constant unfunny wisecracks. What exactly is his role? I suspect it is to be funny. He's not. Irene Ryan has a role as a housekeeper "Mary" and she, too, fails to come up to scratch by providing absolutely NO humour. The best character is "Felicia" played by Virginia Hewitt a Veronica Lake look-a-like who wants to break into movies and has the funniest scene in the film. She plays a complete moron very well. It's the ONLY humorous part of the film.
Don't bother with this film unless you want silly. Keenan Wynn wisecracks his way through the film, so of course, on a couple of occasions there is a good line. But it really is not good enough.