There isn't much new as far as the plot is concerned. A man and a woman are somehow mismatched but fall in love anyway. See "Romeo and Juliet." In this case, though, the romance between middle-aged Frederick March and succulent young Kim Novak is laid out in the script by Paddy Chayevsky. And at this time, Chayevsky, a robust, loud Victor Hugo of a man, exhibited an uncanny knack for getting capturing the exchanges of everyday life in middle-class families. He really knew his stuff.
The plot isn't without its weaknesses. When they first meet, March must sit there for hours, listening to Novak pour her heart out about her divorce. By the end, she's ecstatic with relief and March winds up with his foot caught in a man trap. Done quickly, as if by order.
Yet, for any weaknesses, there is more than enough substance added by the performances, especially Frederick March's. He's superb. Never a bravura player, he still gets all the notes right and adds little moments of his own. Watch him pop a bonbon into his mouth and wrinkle his nose repeatedly like a rabbit in "Inherit the Wind." Don't approach this expecting just another weeper. The couple and their friends are filled with uncertainty and doubt, true, but it's neatly displayed.
The plot isn't without its weaknesses. When they first meet, March must sit there for hours, listening to Novak pour her heart out about her divorce. By the end, she's ecstatic with relief and March winds up with his foot caught in a man trap. Done quickly, as if by order.
Yet, for any weaknesses, there is more than enough substance added by the performances, especially Frederick March's. He's superb. Never a bravura player, he still gets all the notes right and adds little moments of his own. Watch him pop a bonbon into his mouth and wrinkle his nose repeatedly like a rabbit in "Inherit the Wind." Don't approach this expecting just another weeper. The couple and their friends are filled with uncertainty and doubt, true, but it's neatly displayed.