Sandra Dee and Bobby Darin’s teaming in Come September was a
hit with audiences, and garnered great publicity when they fell in love and
married, so it’s no surprise Universal were keen to re-team them in their own
vehicle. Ross Hunter produced and Henry Levin directed and they’ve given Dee
the glamour treatment – flashier clothes, a more glamorous background (French
mother, rich American father, Boston upbringing) – but she’s still basically a
good girl who won’t screw without a ring.
Dee’s a good rom com heroine, pretty and bright, with that
girl next door factor; she’s a good actor too (even if her anorexia is apparent
at times, especially in the arms). Darin isn’t as conventionally handsome as
most Hollywood stars, but he’s okay and plays well with Dee. The story lets
them down, though.
Come September had a very easy to understand, clear set up.
This one takes ages to get going, and when it starts, it's just stupid. Dee has
men throwing themselves at her all the time, her parents want her to get married;
she meets photographer Darin and traps him into marriage, basically. She gets
jealous when he photographs sexy Stefanie Powers, so she borrows a book from
her mother to treat Darin like a dog.
Now that’s a decent enough topic for a fun article in a
magazine or subplot in an episode of a weekly TV series but not a whole
feature. They pad it out by having Dee pretend she’s having an affair to keep
Darin on his toes; he tries to trip her up by having the guy actually turn up –
his dad (Cesare Romero). It’s a really, really lame idea for a comedy. They
shouldn’t have made this film. Surely there were better ideas out there.
Dee battles gamely and is the best thing about the movie
apart from it's cute Mad Men era decor – it’s not her fault the film is crap.
John Lund plays her dad and Michele Presle her mother. Why not have Bobby Darin
sing?
No comments:
Post a Comment