Lover Come Back
Premise - The heads of two advertising companies, with extraordinarily different methods and ethical standards, go head to head to land an advertising account for "Vip" - a product that does not exist.
Review - On any special occasion with my dad (ahem, Father's Day this time), I watch old movies with him that I would have otherwise refused to watch. This one happened to be from the year he was born, and has the same actors from one of his all-time favorites, Pillow Talk. Despite this film having a dumb love story title, (why is it called Lover Come Back? That makes no sense?? I felt the same way when I watched It Happened One Night. It's just a cheesy title that has nothing to do with the movie), this film is more of a situational comedy about the marketing industry, with some romance thrown in there.
I applaud the film for the incredibly clever plot. I am far less impressed with some of the characterizations. Jerry, an advertiser posing as a chemist who invented "Vip," is so sleazy it is difficult to find him redeemable, yet he is our romantic hero. Carol, on the other hand, at least struck me as somewhat progressive. She's an ethical, talented, smart, strong-headed woman who has trouble getting ahead in the advertising industry because, face it, she's a strong-headed woman. She's one of those characters that make me wonder why so many people complain that there were no strong women in old cinema. Yet, of course, somehow she ends up pregnant and marrying Jerry so...
As any movie about corporatism in the 1950s/60s would, the film's sexist undertones get under my skin. Nevertheless, I forgive the film because it was a story about acknowledging how ridiculously unfair and outrageous the sexism can get in favor of corporate men. I found this film reasonably insightful and enjoyable (59/100)
Quote - "The most convincing demonstration of the power of advertising ever conceived. You have sold a product that doesn't exist."
What to watch for - I think the real comedic star of this film was Tony Randall!
If you liked this movie, I'd recommend How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying!
Directed by Delbert Mann
Distributed by Universal Pictures
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