Runtime: 87 minutes
Directed by: Elliott Nugent
Starring: Bob Hope, Dorothy Lamour, Peter Lorre, Lon Chaney, Jr., John Hoyt
From: Paramount
I’m uncertain what this says about my sense of humor, but between this and The Paleface, old Bob Hope movies are apparently for me. Both made me laugh or chuckle quite often with their quips, one-liners, wordplay and dopey lead who you nevertheless root for because they are so likable. As this is in the public domain, the movie is easy to find; the copy I watched was on YouTube.
The important detail to note: My Favorite Brunette is a film noir spoof so the movie could be of interest to those that are genre fans. Hope’s character is a baby photographer-a detail I love-who wishes to be a private eye-and he’s lucky that his office is right next door to an actual detective. Via a misunderstanding, the titular brunette (Dorothy Lamour) thinks he’s the private eye so he’s wrapped up in the typical noir convoluted tale involving a secret map, a kidnapped relative, Peter Lorre acting no different than if he was in a serious film noir, attempted gaslighting, a MacGuffin that has serious worldwide implications, and to demonstrate that this really is a noir spoof, most of the story is told in flashback… you see, Hope is on Death Row about to be executed as he was framed.
The movie’s portrayal of mental illness was cliché for the time but to me wasn’t offensive, although I wasn’t expecting both talk of schizophrenia and a sanitarium. That noted, this was a rather entertaining spoof of a genre I dig which has many of its hallmarks that are playfully poked fun at. There’s also Lon Chaney, Jr. as a stereotypical lunkhead and a pair of cameos I dare not spoil but you’ll probably recognize both when they appear. Oddly, this has more than one element which Hitchcock would seemingly “borrow” for Vertigo and North by Northwest; true story. Given the chemistry of Hope and Lamour, one day I’ll track down one of the Road to movies that they did w/ Bing Crosby as I’ve heard good things w/ those.
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