"Made for Each Other" stars resident scatterbrain, Carole Lombard and congenial James Stewart as Jane and John Mason, a couple on a whirlwind romance to nowhere. John works for a curmudgeon judge, Joseph Doolittle (Charles Coburn), a professional alliance that is at odds with the effervescence of his newlywed life. A greater hurdle to overcome is Jane's live in mother, Harriet (Lucile Watson) who intrudes upon the couple's idyllic domestic paradise with all the tact and humility of the proverbial bull in a china shop. By the time New Year's Eve rolls around the edges of martial Shangra-la have become so frayed that both John and Jane contemplate the longevity of a future together. Their sudden realization that their marriage may be over, which takes place amidst the gaiety of romantic couples celebrating the New Year, reaches a level of heartbreaking poignancy that, alas, the rest of the story lacks. Financial stresses brought on by a change at work eventually culminated with a devastating illness that may claim the life of John and Jane's infant.
Director John Cromwell spins a cinematic tapestry of lives that are the embodiment of those proverbial ups and downs we all encounter in life at least during the first two acts of his story. Cromwell's sprite and accessible direction allows even the sensitive charm and poignancy of secondary characters their chance to shine. Unfortunately for all concerned, the last act of this story is maudlin melodrama and an insane layering of cliché that drives the story into a downward lack of restraint. Though the effervescent triumph of the human spirit is never far from Cromwell's vision for the film, it's ultimately that old fashioned sentiment that salvages the whole affair from becoming overly sweet or dire.
MGM's DVD is impressive. The B&W picture exhibits a very nicely balanced gray scale with smooth, solid blacks and very clean whites. Age related artifacts are present throughout but do not distract. Some minor edge enhancement crops up and there is more than a hint of pixelization in infrequent spots but overall the picture will surely not disappoint. The audio is mono but more than adequate for a film of this vintage. There are no extras.
Director John Cromwell spins a cinematic tapestry of lives that are the embodiment of those proverbial ups and downs we all encounter in life at least during the first two acts of his story. Cromwell's sprite and accessible direction allows even the sensitive charm and poignancy of secondary characters their chance to shine. Unfortunately for all concerned, the last act of this story is maudlin melodrama and an insane layering of cliché that drives the story into a downward lack of restraint. Though the effervescent triumph of the human spirit is never far from Cromwell's vision for the film, it's ultimately that old fashioned sentiment that salvages the whole affair from becoming overly sweet or dire.
MGM's DVD is impressive. The B&W picture exhibits a very nicely balanced gray scale with smooth, solid blacks and very clean whites. Age related artifacts are present throughout but do not distract. Some minor edge enhancement crops up and there is more than a hint of pixelization in infrequent spots but overall the picture will surely not disappoint. The audio is mono but more than adequate for a film of this vintage. There are no extras.