directed by: Frank Capra
written by: Robert Riskin
starring: Gary Cooper, Jean Arthur, George Bancroft
seen on 23rd March, 2021
Oh yes, the ancient human fantasy of punching a lawyer in the face without repercussions.
I don't really know what to think about Mr. Deeds, and I'm not sure if letting my impressions settle will help me or make me completely forget about the film. I immediately thought of comparing it with Mr. Smith Goes To Washington, which I found better articulated and better made overall.
Mr. Deeds is either too much (or too little) a comedy, in its current state it seems like the jokes are interrupting the flow of the story and/or message. Gary Cooper is obviously brilliant and I like him way more that Jimmy Stewart, but the rest around him... The tension between comedy, romance and militant naivete is stressing me out and I seem to have some kind of a personal feud with films that can't decide what they want to be. Stop hiding behind "a comedy" when you want to make a movie about something serious, film-makers. Mr. Deeds does not exactly fall into that category, but still. It made me think of that so here it shall be written.
