We're Not Married!

Sure, I love to write about The Wonderful World of TCM, but every now and then Fox Movie Channel shows an oldie and goodie as well. 1952's "We're Not Married" is an effective light comedy with a great cast, a fun premise, and a sharp script by Nunnally Johnson. FMC tends to be a bit liberal with the reruns, shall we say, so I recommend you check it out next time it's on.

The film consists of a series of vignettes spotlighting married couples who find out they're not married. You see, the bumbling judge (a perfect Victor Moore) who conducted their ceremonies a few year s ago did so before his appointment was official. So as the judge and his wife go down memory lane while preparing refunds for the couples they charged for the service, we see where each pair is and what happens when they (or one of them) gets the letter from the state telling them their marital status is not what they've assumed.

Opening and closing the film are the top-billed team of Fred and Ginger. That's right, it's the classic team of Ginger Rogers and Fred...Allen. You know the old saying--she gave him sex appeal, and he gave her sass. Though they're fun as ostensibly lovey-dovey radio co-hosts who bicker and sulk off air, I can't help but wish Allen were paired instead with Eve Arden, who is barely utilized in her vignette with Paul Douglas. I'd rather have seen her trade quips with Allen.

Check out these other names in the cast: Eddie Bracken, Louis Calhern, Jane Darwell, Zsa Zsa Gabor...oh, and some young dame named Marilyn Monroe might interest a few of the fellas out there.

It's no surprise that the movie, while poking fun at the institution of marriage and poking gentle fun at social mores that make (made?) it scandalous to, for example, birth a child out of wedlock, ultimately supports and approves the notion of matrimony. Indeed, this is one of those old-school films that would have to be drastically reworked were it made today, but not just because the prevailing morality is so different.

In today's society, what would be the first thing everyone would do if they found out two years after the fact their marriages had never been official? That's right: Sue, sue, sue. The husbands and wives of "We're Not Married" find ways to fix their sudden circumstances or even take advantage of them. In 2009, they'd fire off telegrams to their attorney as fast as they could get to the local wireless operator. Or whatever form of communication the kids use these days.

The judge, the judge's wife, the governor, the state itself, the company that manufactured the book the judge read from--all would be targets of some hotshot lawyer. Happiness would be defined by the size of the settlements and the size of the separate mansions that would result for the not-groom and not-bride.

"We're Not Married" is a nice piece of entertainment. The individual segments are too brief to become anything substantial, but the movie ain't going for substantial.