Let's face it here. The characters here played by Eddie Bracken and Joel McCrea are not the brightest bulbs in the chandelier. In fact, their brains together might be barely more than a half wit. But they are very likable characters in spite of their inability to get a clear thought out of their mouths that doesn't need some sort of correcting. It takes outspoken waitress Ellen Drew to provide the intelligence in their home, created out of the blue when Drew, in spite of her initial annoyance at McCrea, accepts his proposal. Where exactly does Bracken fit into their home life? He's the best friend that just won't go away, and for some reason, McCrea and Drew don't mind having him around. That is, until romance lights a fire under their outboard motor, and he's outta there!
The film starts off with clam digging McCrea realizing that indeed he does need an outboard motor so he can get to the areas where clams are more prevalent. He head to Detroit, nearly creates a riot along with Bracken for creating his own line in a long line of job hunters, yet manages in spite of his dimwit brain to get the job. So who is dumb and who is dim? That is yet to be seen, as earthy McCrea seems to have an angel on his shoulder overlooking his every move. In a very funny scene that could be straight out of "Three's Company", McCrea and Bracken try to practice getting the outboard motor to do what they need it to do, making landlady Eily Malyon misinterpret it as the two of them killing an unseen woman. The way Drew and McCrea fight from the time they meet until their marriage, brief separation and ultimate realization that they are meant for life could lead to murder if their characters were any less down to earth and real in spite of their differing levels of smarts.
Good performances and amusing situations allows this slice of life comedy become a memorable sleeper, and perhaps William Wellman's least known film. Now considered one of the best directors of all time, Wellman was known for his rugged manly characters, and if rugged as far as outdoors-men go, McCrea needs someone to help him through the thinking process, and that necessity goes to Drew. She's one of those women that doesn't take guff from any man (a rarity on the screen outside Ida Lupino and Barbara Stanwyck), yet its obvious that she sees something in McCrea that makes her want to marry him. This film doesn't have a strong plot in the regular tense, but tells the saga of a real marriage where the characters love, fight, hate, make up, fight again, yet can't live without each other. A super supporting cast including Albert Dekker, Billy Gilbert and George Chandler add more earthiness to the film that show that even the simplest of minds can reach for the sun and end up with the stars.
The film starts off with clam digging McCrea realizing that indeed he does need an outboard motor so he can get to the areas where clams are more prevalent. He head to Detroit, nearly creates a riot along with Bracken for creating his own line in a long line of job hunters, yet manages in spite of his dimwit brain to get the job. So who is dumb and who is dim? That is yet to be seen, as earthy McCrea seems to have an angel on his shoulder overlooking his every move. In a very funny scene that could be straight out of "Three's Company", McCrea and Bracken try to practice getting the outboard motor to do what they need it to do, making landlady Eily Malyon misinterpret it as the two of them killing an unseen woman. The way Drew and McCrea fight from the time they meet until their marriage, brief separation and ultimate realization that they are meant for life could lead to murder if their characters were any less down to earth and real in spite of their differing levels of smarts.
Good performances and amusing situations allows this slice of life comedy become a memorable sleeper, and perhaps William Wellman's least known film. Now considered one of the best directors of all time, Wellman was known for his rugged manly characters, and if rugged as far as outdoors-men go, McCrea needs someone to help him through the thinking process, and that necessity goes to Drew. She's one of those women that doesn't take guff from any man (a rarity on the screen outside Ida Lupino and Barbara Stanwyck), yet its obvious that she sees something in McCrea that makes her want to marry him. This film doesn't have a strong plot in the regular tense, but tells the saga of a real marriage where the characters love, fight, hate, make up, fight again, yet can't live without each other. A super supporting cast including Albert Dekker, Billy Gilbert and George Chandler add more earthiness to the film that show that even the simplest of minds can reach for the sun and end up with the stars.