This is an odd film because it's almost like two or three films spliced together. The first is a story about a young lady (Andrea Leeds) who introduces herself to the man who didn't realize he was a father (Adolph Menjou)--a bit of a risqué premise for 1938. In the meantime, Leeds and George Murphy fall in love, though Murphy assumes that Leeds' interest in Menjou is romantic! Now all Leeds needed to do was tell Murphy who Menjou was to her. And, Menjou's very young new wife (Ann Sheridan) thinks that Menjou and Leeds are lovers!! It's pretty kinky if you really think about it and almost all the rest of the film could have been avoided had they simply told everyone why they started spending so much time together! But, Sheridan and Murphy both stomp off and much of the film is spent waiting for it all to be worked out successfully. The second film is Edger Bergen and Charlie McCarthy--who just seem to appear and disappear from the film periodically. They really aren't integrated into the film all that well and the viewing experience is a bit odd. Now this ISN'T to say bergen and McCarthy are not enjoyable...just very oddly cast. As for the possible third movie, how Menjou's and Leeds' relationship is worked out is really bizarre and comes completely out of left field. It certainly does NOT do what the audience expects and goes from a light sort of film to a very dark one rather quickly....while Bergen and McCarthy try to do comedy bits!!! And, in the very end, a romance just appears out of no where for Bergen and Eve Arden! Talk about bizarre!! Overall, it's a nice film for fans of the classic Hollywood era, but a bit too strange and dark for the average viewer.
Review of Letter of Introduction
