Phffft (1954) :
Brief Review -
Nothing great, but another good comedy for Judy Holliday & Jack Lemmon in the same year, and surely an entertaining divorce comedy. The idea of a husband and wife trying to get a divorce and bumping into each other sounds so funny. I remember Cary Grant and Irene Dunne's popular flick, "The Awful Truth" (1937), and a couple of more 30s comedies that had the same theme of divorce. Some may not agree, but I believe this idea of divorce works better in the rom-com genre, even though it's contrary to the subject. Negatives attract, they say. Phffft has Judy Holliday and Jack Lemmon stamps all over. They had worked together in "It Should Happen to You" in the same year, where Judy's peculiar and eccentric funny character stole the show, despite poor writing in the second half. With Phffft, I can't say that the writing was poor, but it was too typical. It's so plain and ingenious that you don't expect much from the story and rather start focusing on characters and comedy. It's not a bad sign, but from a critic's point of view, I had to mention it here. Phffft is about a husband and wife who get divorced but keep pumping into each other while trying to date a new person in their lives. During the process, they realise that they love each other and cannot leave without each other. However, there is no melodrama to explore the same. It's a pure fun film, and the characters are very light and graceful. That's an unconventional way to make things convincing, I believe. Judy had a blast again, and Jack is fine too. Together, they are better. Watch out for that dance sequence when they collide with each other. It's hilarious. Jack Carson is superb, while glamorous Kim Novak surprises with her bold, sexy, and comic appearance. I don't know if Mark Robson has done something really wrong, but the film slipped a bit somewhere. Nonetheless, a good divorce comedy for sure, and a very good one for Judy-Jack lovers.
RATING - 6/10*
By - #samthebestest.
Nothing great, but another good comedy for Judy Holliday & Jack Lemmon in the same year, and surely an entertaining divorce comedy. The idea of a husband and wife trying to get a divorce and bumping into each other sounds so funny. I remember Cary Grant and Irene Dunne's popular flick, "The Awful Truth" (1937), and a couple of more 30s comedies that had the same theme of divorce. Some may not agree, but I believe this idea of divorce works better in the rom-com genre, even though it's contrary to the subject. Negatives attract, they say. Phffft has Judy Holliday and Jack Lemmon stamps all over. They had worked together in "It Should Happen to You" in the same year, where Judy's peculiar and eccentric funny character stole the show, despite poor writing in the second half. With Phffft, I can't say that the writing was poor, but it was too typical. It's so plain and ingenious that you don't expect much from the story and rather start focusing on characters and comedy. It's not a bad sign, but from a critic's point of view, I had to mention it here. Phffft is about a husband and wife who get divorced but keep pumping into each other while trying to date a new person in their lives. During the process, they realise that they love each other and cannot leave without each other. However, there is no melodrama to explore the same. It's a pure fun film, and the characters are very light and graceful. That's an unconventional way to make things convincing, I believe. Judy had a blast again, and Jack is fine too. Together, they are better. Watch out for that dance sequence when they collide with each other. It's hilarious. Jack Carson is superb, while glamorous Kim Novak surprises with her bold, sexy, and comic appearance. I don't know if Mark Robson has done something really wrong, but the film slipped a bit somewhere. Nonetheless, a good divorce comedy for sure, and a very good one for Judy-Jack lovers.
RATING - 6/10*
By - #samthebestest.