Search - Kiss Them for Me on DVD

Donen delivers!

Mark Savary | Seattle, WA | 02/05/2004

(4 out of 5 stars)

""Kiss Them for Me" is a little known (or at least, lesser known), comedy gem from 1957. Stanley Donen works wonders with a reserved approach, allowing the stellar cast to do their thing, which brings alive the comdeic elements while not overshadowing the more serious moments.Cary Grant is always marvelous, and his performance here is no exception. His Commander Crewson is a fairly typical Grant role of a part-goldbrick, part-devil-may-care military officer, a standard Grant character. But then, we have some magical moments interspersed with the suave Grant comedy that gives him a chance to really go for the dramatic gusto.Three soldiers, who have made incredible and heroic contributions to the battles of World War II are being set up for a PR tour to promote the war effort. Crewson and his cohorts decide to have some fun in San Francisco instead, and finagle their way into a few days leave. Once there, it's a life of ease, except for the fact that they're not exactly on an approved leave, and the shore patrol is on the lookout for the rogue heroes. Each man wants to just get out of the line of fire, having seen enough of it, and are not interested in promoting anything but their own freedom, if just for a few days.Two great Grant dramatic moments will stay with you for sure; in the first, Grant tells off a pushy millionaire who wants the men to give a rah-rah speech to his factory workers. In the other, Crewson meets a fellow soldier he knew, a young man who got a bad break in battle.Ray Walston and Larry Blyden offer excellent support as Crewson's war hero comrades, and Werner Klemperer ("Hogan's Heroes") stands out as a military PR man shepherding the three semi-awol soldiers. Jayne Mansfield plays a typical "dumb blonde" as usual, and Richard Deacon ("The Dick van Dyke Show") appears in a small, but memorable supporting role as a shy paper magnate.It's too bad this one isn't better known. Perhaps this is beacuse the movie does not touch the lofty heights of comedy met in "Operation Petticoat" or "Father Goose". Instead, the film is a comedy-drama about WWII, and was possibly aimed at a more mature audience, both of which make the movie a bit more tense for the casual viewer. This is especially true in the last third or so, as the focus wanders a bit into more mature and serious areas, then tries to wander out again by the end.Regardless, the film is well worth viewing at least once, and is an excellent example of a late 50's "grown-up" film."

Fun, But Not Classic Cary Grant Comedy With A Good Jayne Man

Simon Davis | 09/08/2005

(3 out of 5 stars)

"By 1957 Cary Grant had his screen characterisations down pat and was able to move effortlessly through comic roles like this one in "Kiss Them For Me". Never could "Kiss then For Me", be called his best effort in a decade that saw most of his famous collaborations with director Alfred Hitchcock in "To Catch a Thief", and "North by North West", bring him renewed popularity at the Box Office, however he works very effectively with a very different type of director here in Stanley Donen. Grant would enjoy one of his greatest successes under Donen's direction in the early 1960's with the classic "Charade", with Audrey Hepburn and while this is a much lesser effort that great comic timing and style is very evident. At first glance having Jayne Mansfield as his leading lady might not be what you would expect in a Cary Grant movie having become used to the Irene Dunne's and Katherine Hepburn's as his leading ladies in his earlier triumphs however the two make an interesting team. I find this to be one of Mansfield's more pleasing performances where she gets to utilise her vastly underestimated comic abilities which of course are still wrapped up in the screen persona of the luscious blonde bombshell, a la Marilyn Monroe, which she sadly always found herself lumbered with. Cynical comedy is always hard to put over effectively on screen but Grant does his usual fine job as a navy war hero on a four day leave of duty at the end of World War II who along with his mates find themselves the targets of a cynical money making PR campaign promoting the war effort."