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IMDb > Good Sam (1948)

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Overview

User Rating:
5.8/10   169 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Up 28% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Writers:
Leo McCarey (story) and
John D. Klorer (story) ...
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Contact:
View company contact information for Good Sam on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
1 September 1948 (USA) more
Genre:
Tagline:
He'll take the whole world . . . and you to his heart !
Plot:
Sam Clayton has a good heart and likes to help out people in need. In fact, he likes to help them out so much that he often finds himself broke and unable to help his own family buy the things they need--like a house. | add synopsis
User Reviews:
Good Grief more (7 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Gary Cooper ... Samuel R. 'Sam' Clayton

Ann Sheridan ... Lucille 'Lu' Clayton
Ray Collins ... Rev. Daniels
Edmund Lowe ... H.C. Borden
Joan Lorring ... Shirley Mae
Clinton Sundberg ... Mr. Nelson
Minerva Urecal ... Mrs. Nelson
Louise Beavers ... Chloe, Lu's Maid
Dick Ross ... Claude, Lu's Brother
Lora Lee Michel ... Lulu Clayton
Bobby Dolan Jr. ... Butch Clayton
Matt Moore ... Mr. Butler
Netta Packer ... Mrs. Butler
Ruth Roman ... Ruth 'Ruthie'
Carol Stevens ... Mrs. Adams
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Additional Details

Runtime:
114 min
Country:
Language:
Aspect Ratio:
1.37 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Mono (RCA Sound System)
Certification:

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
Director Leo McCarey shot two different endings and let remarks by preview audiences determine which one to use. more
Soundtrack:
Eight to Five more

FAQ

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2 out of 4 people found the following review useful.
Good Grief, 24 October 1999
2/10
Author: Varlaam from Toronto, Canada

Leslie Halliwell didn't like this film either. He called it Capraesque, and it seems quite obvious that that is the effect the filmmakers were going for.

Frank Capra certainly had a special touch. It wasn't always infallible, mind you, but he could do wonders with some pretty soppy material. Maybe it's good to have an example of what happens when you go Capraesque without Capra.

Gary Cooper is a Good Samaritan so generous that he consistently gets himself into dire straits. The idea isn't bad, but the execution... Cooper's character goes way past selflessness and on into suckerdom. (Suckerhood?) He's so virtuous, he's neither believable nor sympathetic. I've seen this film twice in the past couple of decades, and both times the impulse to reach out and throttle him was difficult to suppress. He's infuriating to watch. An actual person like this would be a menace to his family and friends. He simply begs to be walked all over.

Ann Sheridan is Coop's wife. What a waste. The following year, 1949, she was paid back in spades for her generosity in suffering through this one by co-starring in the uproarious "I Was a Male War Bride" with Cary Grant.

Capra fans will recognize Todd Karns immediately. He played Harry Bailey, Jimmy Stewart's younger brother, in "It's a Wonderful Life" (1946). It's because of films like that one that you can find a word like "Capraesque" in the dictionary.

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DVD version? hunterjlc
Not a classic, but still an enjoyable film... BooBooKitty516
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