Love Crazy (1941)

I'll start by saying seeing William Powell in drag is probably worth the price of admission on its own. Early on, you also have his playful repartee with Myrna Loy, in this the 10th of the 14 movies they made together. In 'Love Crazy', the happily married couple is about to celebrate its 4th anniversary, but get interrupted first by her mother-in-law (Florence Bates), and then by his old flame (Gail Patrick). In a comedy of errors, Loy thinks Powell has cheated on her, seeks a divorce, and then Powell attempts to postpone the proceedings by feigning insanity. It's fun to see Powell in various screwball moments, including getting his head stuck between elevator doors, pretending he's a teapot, and doing things like shoving round blocks into his mouth. Powell had tremendous range and carries the movie; Loy isn't bad herself, but has less to work with. The movie degenerates a bit towards the end, but it was reasonably engaging and fun to watch.

I think many of us love the Thin Man series -- the sophisticated humor with the mysteries really worked well. But I actually prefer this film because the unparalleled chemistry between William Powell and Myrna Loy is still there, but the story line gives William Powell an opportunity to be silly -- and I mean really silly -- and even do a little slapstick...the type of role we rarely saw him in. Not to mention -- how many times have you seen him in drag? It's delightful.The story involves an anniversary night that goes all wrong, ending up with the wife (Loy) leaving the husband (Powell) over misunderstandings and some bad judgment on both parts. Powell and his lawyer come up with a solution -- act crazy to delay the divorce...but that works all too well, and Powell is committed. How he gets out, and what he goes through while in and after escaping, is where most of the belly laughs lie.Florence Bates plays the mother-in-law from...well, not quite hell...but close to it. She was always a hoot. Jack Carson falls into being the other man; an annoying role at first, but it grew on me.Highly recommended!

A terribly written film, obviously milking the Powell/ Loy magic long after it was gone. Don't waste your time. An unfunny movie. Not even clever.While the Thin Man and subsequent sequels were clever, by 41 it seems they should have killed this pairing. Bad scripting showed along with half hearted acting that they were only in it for the money. While the movie was not specifically a Thin Man film, the plot was pulling from it, and the insanity plea for the divorce was really lame, probably even by those standards. I found the movie boring and distasteful. Couldn't wait for it to end. You'll do yourself a favor passing on it.

Complications arise as a couple celebrates its fourth wedding anniversary in this screwball comedy. Powell and Loy are as wonderful as ever and get good support from Patrick as Powell's man-eating ex-girlfriend, Carson as the fellow Loy uses to get even with her cheating husband, and Bates as Loy's meddling mother. It gets off to a terrific start, including a hilarious scene where Powell gets his head stuck in the elevator doors. As the action shifts to an insane asylum in the middle part of the film, the comedy is somewhat forced and unfunny. However, the last part is quite amusing, with a rare chance to see Powell in drag.