No Room for the Groom (1952)

User Rating:

5.9/10   

Director:

Douglas Sirk

Writers:

Joseph Hoffman (writer)
Darwin L. Teilhet (novel)

Release Date:

17 July 1953 (Finland)

Genre:

Comedy

Plot:

Alvah, a young GI who happens to own a vineyard, elopes to Las Vegas with Lee, his housekeeper's daughter...

Plot Keywords:

Based On Novel

Cast

Tony Curtis	...	Alvah Morrell
Piper Laurie	...	Lee Kingshead
Don DeFore	...	Herman Strouple
Spring Byington	...	Mama Kingshead
Lillian Bronson	...	Aunt Elsa
Paul McVey	...	Dr. Trotter
Alden 'Stephen' Chase	...	Mr. Taylor
Lee Aaker	...	Donovan
Jack Kelly	...	Will Stubbins
Frank Sully	...	Cousin Luke
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
David Janssen	...	Soldier (scenes deleted)

Runtime:

82 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

Finland:S

Company:

Universal International Pictures (UI)

Trivia:

First on screen role of 'Fess Parker'.

A tryout for Tony Curtis blotted out from memory

Douglas Sirk's reputation lies solely on his expertise within the melodrama genre. But as a director under contract he was afforded the opportunity of directing a wide range of movie genres. His success with these (which included a western, a sword and sandal saga and light musical comedies) was notably unremarkable. They remain watchable, but mainly of interest not for their intrinsic qualities but rather as stepping stones toward Sirk's major contribution to the movies.

In his later years Sirk gave an in depth interview to Jon Halliday which was then turned into the book "Sirk on Sirk". In it he discusses in some detail his works from his pre-Hollywood days until the untimely end of his career at the end of the fifties. While he speaks much about his acknowledged successes, he has little to say about the weaker films. "No Room for the Groom" is given but one sentence in the entire book. Sirk says, "I think I had to do it as a tryout for Tony Curtis…… I don't remember anything about it at all".

Since he remembers much about movies made long before this, one can only surmise he has blotted this one out from his memory. It's a wise move, since this is simply the worst film Sirk ever put his name to.

"No Room for the Groom" is a screwball comedy, something Sirk was woefully unequipped for. But its doubtful that even a master of the genre could have pulled it off since the dialog is to put it bluntly, atrocious.

The situations which are intended to be humorous are downright irritating. A young Tony Curtis desperate to prove himself in the "tryout", acquits himself valiantly. But its truly a terrible mess of a movie.

Other than for Sirk completests, this is one to steer clear of.