Government Girl (1943)

Looking at other user reviews on the IMDb I realize people seem fairly divided-- they either consider GOVERNMENT GIRL a lot of fun and rate it highly, or else they find it pretty awful and rate it low. I think the film has merit but is very problematic on many levels. I'm giving it a score of 7, which is above the current average. My primary issue with it is how the story goes in several directions. It was like Dudley Nichols couldn't decide whether it should be a screwball comedy or if it should be a patriotic endorsement of bombers. I'm uncomfortable with the main message of GOVERNMENT GIRL, but it obviously had an impact in its day because it was a big hit for RKO.As for how GOVERNMENT GIRL relates to the subject of women during wartime, it's very uneven. Anne Shirley's character is rather juvenile (sort of like Anne of Green Gables getting married to a much older man then leaving Matthew and Aunt Marilla behind for Washington). Olivia's character has her moments of strength and intelligence, but she overplays it in a highly exaggerated farcical manner which seems to undercut the role and any values it might represent. I don't think women viewers would have found Olivia or Anne to be playing types they would like to emulate. The most interesting woman in the picture is Agnes Moorehead's society matron, but she doesn't have a lot of screen time.

Have watched Government Girl and enjoyed the interaction between the two stars. Although Sonny Tufts career was short lived, he is fun to watch. As an actor who was 6'4" he at times seems to fill the room he is in. His costar shines. Having seen her in To Each His Own,it is fun to see her in a lot of funny situations. The scenes in the bedroom and the lobby of the hotel really show her comedic talent. The part about the different initials of the different departments is really funny. Even funnier to that many of the departments really did exist during the war. A lot of bright and fluffy movies were made to lighten the days during the war and this was one of them.

De Havilland found herself obligated to do GOVERNMENT GIRL when David O. Selznick borrowed her from Warner Bros. (he lent them Ingrid Bergman) and then sold her services to RKO for one picture. She didn't like the script and it looks as though she got her revenge by overacting the title role, which would have been okay if the material itself was funny. But this lame wartime comedy about overcrowded Washington never quite gets off the ground.Sonny Tufts does what he can with a thankless role as a bungling, naive politician who has to learn the ropes from his pretty secretary. Agnes Moorehead gets in a couple of good quips as a snobbish Washington matron and Jess Barker is likable enough in a secondary romantic lead.James Dunne and Ann Shirley tend to overplay their roles as a couple of lovestruck newlyweds eager to find lodgings. Despite its obvious flaws, the film was a moderate success for RKO at the box-office and wartime audiences seemed to go for it. De Havilland fans aren't likely to rate this among her best comedies.

This film describes the dollar-a-year workers who virtually volunteered their time and expertise to the war effort during World War Two. Ed Browne (played by Sonny Tufts) comes in conflict with the established manners and customs in Washington, D.C. Browne's method of operation is founded in the private sector of industry which clashes with the public functions of the government. Historically, many manufacturers had little choice but to take part in the the conversion to war production. Meager profits early in the war of cost plus four percent was little incentive for enthusiasm from all of industry. Even when the profit scheme went to cost plus eight percent, most industries could do much better in peacetime consumer goods. Many yielded to the threat of government sanctions and complied. This movie, however, points to the positive aspects of individuals working for the war effort, even at the cost of personal sacrifice. The most realistic character is "Smokey" (played by Olivia de Havilland. She is dynamic and forceful, but burning government records to support her boss (with whom she is in love) seems somewhat exaggerated. All in all, it is a fairly amusing film, with the bottom line echoed in a United States Senate hearing: "Thank you, government girl."