Bésalas por mí

This film about three naval airmen on leave in San Francisco lacks a few things. Either it should have been more madcap to celebrate their enjoyment of leave. Or it should have dealt more with the demands and drama of warfare. As it is, "Kiss Them for Me" lands squarely in the middle of these two alternatives like a dud.

When Cary Grant meets Suzy Parker (whose voice was dubbed), there does seem to be chemistry--fueled by her striking looks and her cool demeanor. But she is no Bacall. As the film develops and more demands are placed on her performance, the cracks begin to show. Finally, it is revealed that she is little more than a mannequin.

The film is adapted from a play. I have a feeling that the play was more madcap. That tone just doesn't happen with the film. The ending of the film is not fulfilling or funny.

It was good to see Ray Walston in his first picture, but the film offers little else. Jayne Mansfield is over the top to the point of being silly, not sexy. Too bad.

Three Pacific war heroes Cary Grant, Larry Blyden, and Ray Walston, are flown to San Francisco for a furlough with the implicit understanding that they will do some public appearances for the war effort. Implicit to us the viewer, but our three naval fliers have something else in mind.

Despite being terribly miscast, Cary Grant does the best he can with the material given. This is the kind of role that Kirk Douglas should have had, he'd have played the role effortlessly. When the dapper Mr. Grant finally has had enough of blowhard industrialist Leif Erickson and hauls off and belts him, you just don't quite believe it.

I like very much what another reviewer wrote in saying we can see the beginning of the military industrial complex. Werner Klemperer as the Navy publicity ensign is trying first to curry favor with Erickson and later with the less obnoxious, but still annoying Richard Deacon. It's a world that Grant and Blyden don't feel a part of.

Though he's with them in spirit, Ray Walston's carving his own career out by running for Congress. Some did that in World War II and in previous USA wars, most prominently in the Civil War. Two American presidents, Rutherford B. Hayes and James A. Garfield won seats in Congress while both were on active duty. Garfield left the army, but Hayes stayed and didn't take his seat until Appomatox.

When this film was out Larry Blyden was appearing on Broadway in Flower Drum Song. No doubt that helped the film's popularity for Blyden got excellent reviews.

And of course the pulchritudinous presence of Jayne Mansfield also helped a great deal.

Even with a miscast Cary Grant, Kiss Them For Me is still enjoyable.

Kiss Them for Me (1957)

"Funny how everybody picks him out first." Ah, they are talking about Cary Grant, still charming and handsome and far outclassing this funny, slightly simple comedy about G.I.s on leave in San Francisco.

Not that this is exactly dumb--the screenplay is even by one of the Epstein brothers (of "Casablanca" fame), and it has a few real dingers of jokes. I was laughing in stitches--sometimes. It's silly stuff but the acting is decent. The photography is by Milton Krasner, who had a long career in the black and white years and then took to widescreen color with classic taste, just finishing "An Affair to Remember" (with Grant) the same year. The credits go on, from makeup (Ben Nye) to music (Lionel Newman) to of course the director, Stanley Donen, who had a whole string of brightly colored 1950s hits, little things like "Singin' in the Rain" and "Charade."

What I mean by all this is that there is no reason this movie isn't terrific, except maybe a weak as licorice story idea. Maybe, just maybe, this had resonance in 1957 with the millions of ex-soldiers still going to the movies, but I have a feeling even they were wanting something more, over a decade after it had all ended. It also doesn't help that one leading female star is Jayne Mansfield playing an embarrassing Marilyn wannabe. "It's natural," says Mansfield in one moment. "Except for the color."

The other leading woman is quite the opposite in nature, a stately, restrained woman played by Suzy Parker. Parker has a short resume, mostly known as a model (with Avedon as her partner in crime), and her acting reveals more knowledge of photography than movie-making. That is, she looks good. (She was actually an accomplished photographer for awhile, too.)

So, why watch this movie? For a glimpse of the times, perhaps (a kind of 1957 version of 1944, I think), including lots of great sets and some shots of San Francisco. But mostly it's Cary Grant's show, even if you aren't a fan. He's actually really good as an actor, not just as a handsome fellow. He plays his part with surprising bite, too.

So what rescues this movie from its fault lines? For one, there's a steady, subtle anti-war thread that must have been relatively new to this kind of movie. There's no disrespect to soldiers or the country, but there's disdain for wallpapering over the truths of war, the use of slogans, the aggrandizing. It's refreshing still, and coming from Grant it has special bite. For another, there is a steady peppering of witty lines from all kinds of characters (not just Grant, though he leads). I'm guessing this is where Epstein shows. And then there is the love story, which isn't so convincing, but it's still a nice addition to the bright color and busy scenes that dominate the movie. In fact, as much as Parker is a weak actress, she and Grant alone together make for some of the best parts of the film.

Grant says, "True love almost always fades, but money stays green forever." And it's his sarcasm, his not believing the slogan, that is the theme of the movie.

This movie comes off as a half-baked Jane Mansfield / Cary Grant vehicle, but there are some reasons not to immediately turn it off. The plot meanders and the chemistry between the characters is practically non-existent, particularly between Grant's Crewson and Suzy Parker's Gwinneth. It feels as if even the 'war buddies' had just met when shooting began (the movie, not the war). If you've ever wondered why Jane Mansfield was considered the poor-man's Monroe, this film says it all. She has not half of the charm, comedic instinct, or for that matter sexual magnetism of Marilyn.

Having said all that, I found myself actually chuckling out loud at some of Cary Grant's slick lines. Would that we were all as quick-witted and smooth. For younger viewers, it's fun to see Ray Walston (Mr. Hand from "Fast Times at Ridgemont High"...aloha!) in his very first big-screen role. And it is my understanding that Suzy Parker was universally panned for this performance; call me unsophisticated, but I didn't think she was that bad (although her voice was later dubbed out). What do you think?

Oh dear, oh dear...

For JM fans, this was the nail in the coffin as far as her A-list Hollywood career was concerned. After solid turns in Girl Can't Help It, Wayward Bus, The Burglar and Rock Hunter it seemed Jayne was well on the way to becoming one of Tinsel Town's hottest stars. However, an obsession with racy publicity and an appearance in this clunker relegated Mansfield to the sidelines, namely cheap Euro loan-outs until Fox could drop her contract at the earliest opportunity.

This movie really is a diabolical waste of everyone's time with the exception of Suzy Parker who is the only thing in this movie bad enough for the material. Many people blame poor Jayne and her grating performance for this film's poor returns at the box office and while she is a pain in this film, she can only do her best with the material. After all, Cary hardly sets the screen on fire does he? After a handful of very good dramatic and comedy turns Jayne takes 10 steps back in her pursuit as a serious actress by agreeing (simply for the sake of appearing with Grant) to portray this squealing, idiotic menace. Her character of Alice is a complete cartoon bimbo and although she looks good enough to eat in a boiler suit, her every appearance in the film jangles your nerves. We all know Jayne could do so much better than this dross and yet here she is parading around like a prize pudding. A real shame.

Steer clear of this so-called comedy. It's more depressing than funny.