• McCarey’s depression-era drama is two-thirds Tokyo Story’s premise (McCarey’s film inspired Ozu apparently) and one-third (the final 30 minutes) a truly one of a kind and tender love story
  • the premise of the generational gap –adult siblings burdened by their parents, trying to pawn them off on each other, rudeness, or at least lack of respect for elders
  • McCarey was under great pressure from the studio to change the ending and thankfully he didn’t cave
  • Starts with the “honor thy father and thy mother” passage
  •  McCarey also said “they gave it to me for the wrong picture” when he won best director in 1937 for The Awful Truth (for his fondness and preference for this film).
  • Victor Moore and Beulah Bondi are superb in the lead—Moore is the sidekick goofball buddy of Astaire in Swing Time and Bondi is the mother of Jimmy Stewart in It’s A Wonderful Life– due to great makeup work and acting she actually looks older here even if its 9 years prior
  • Thomas Mitchell—brilliant just like he always is—the lead son, and Maurice Moscovitch in a small role is a standout as a charming shopkeeper with Russian accent—Porter Hall is in one scene for 30 second and you don’t like him- haha- that’s great casting
  • Bank taking the house—the wheels are in motion in the story and up to the devastating scene at the train at the end- tough to watch
  • Filled with these scenes. A poignant devastating scene where Bondi’s character tells Mitchell’s she’d actually prefer to go to a home (she’s lying) and let him off the hook-
  • The final third—at the bar, “two old fashions for two old fashioned people”
  • Strong acting and writing carry the film. It features pragmatic direction from McCarey. It doesn’t resemble Ozu’s artistic talents or style at all.
  • Recommend / Highly Recommend border