Movie Time: Move Over, Darling

It's Movie Time! 

Today's feature film is the story of a man who lost his wife at sea. Nowhere to be found and presumed dead, the man after several years has his beloved wife declared legally dead and then proceeds to get married to another woman.

Of course is this the time when the first wife turns up alive and all sorts of shenanigan ensue.

If this plot sounds familiar, this is the ground covered by My Favorite Wife  from 1940 which I posted about on Sunday, April 23, 2023.  This film starred Cary Grant as the husband and Irene Dunne as the long lost wife with Gail Patrick as the wannabe 2nd wife.  

In 1962, 20th Century Fox commissioned a remake of the film called Something's Got To Give with Dean Martin as the husband, Marilyn Monroe as the first wife and Cyd Charisse as the replacement wife.  Production fell apart owing to Monroe's persistent failure to show up on set (due to her drug dependencies and mental health struggles) and she was fired  and Dean Martin quit. Monroe would die shortly thereafter by suicide (or if you believe in conspiracy theories involving the Kennedy family, "mysterious circumstances").  

Fox made another go of it 1963 with Move Over Darling with Doris Day, James Garner, and Polly Bergen.   

Lawyer Nick Arden is at the courthouse looking to take care of two things at once. Efficient guy, our Nick, looking to save on gas money and postage.

1) Get the missus declared legally and most sincerely dead. It's been five years since wife Ellen fell out of a plane into the ocean and she hasn't turned up yet.

2) Get a new missus. He's got a new woman in his life name Bianca and he wants to expedite getting married to here because it's been five years, dude! 

The judge is a bit confused but eventually it gets sorted.

Ellen is dead.

Bianca is married.

Off to Monterey for Nick and Bianca and their legally sanctioned heteronormative sexual intercourse!!

Meanwhile, a judge may have ruled she's dead but Ellen would take issue with that decision.  

A U.S. Navy submarine has deposited Ellen back home after rescuing her from a deserted island. 

Since they were babies when she was lost at sea, Ellen's kids do not recognize her and Ellen is uncertain how break that news to them.

And there's the no small matter of her husband's new wife so Ellen is off to Monterey to stop the legally sanctioned heteronormative sexual intercourse!

Nick is overjoyed to be reunited with Ellen but there is the small matter of dear Bianca who is waiting in the honeymood suite horny as hell for her new hubby. 

Nick manages to avoid the legally sanctioned heteronormative sexual intercourse which ticks off a frustrated and angry Bianca.

But he is also slow in telling her the truth that his first wife is still alive which makes Ellen angry as well. 

Then there is also the matter of Ellen's survival on a deserted island.

She was not alone.  

There was a man named Stephen.  

Ellen assures Nick nothing happened and seeks to convince him by introducing a nebbish shoe clerk played by Don Knotts as Stephen.

Nick learns the truth that the real Stephen is a rugged outdoors type of guy played by a young Chuck Connors and now Nick is angry with Ellen. 

The whole mess winds up in court in front the of the same judge we met at the start of the movie and if he was confused before, wait until he has to sort out this mess.

• Nick has been charged with bigamy what with Ellen actually being alive when he married Bianca.
• Bianca is looking for an annulment.
• Ellen wants to have her death certificate made null and void.
• And speaking of null and void, Ellen would like a divorce from Nick please.

Well, this is a fine how do you do, ain't it?   

Spoiler: it all works out in the end.

Meta Reference Dept

Ellen mentions once seeing an old movie starring Cary Grant and Irene Dunne about a man who got remarried after thinking his first wife was dead which is My Favorite Wife, the movie that Move Over, Darling is remaking.   

While My Favorite Wife is considered a golden age classic, I think that Move Over, Darling has some improvements over the original. As much as I enjoy Cary Grant films, I found his role in My Favorite Wife a bit over the top as opposed to James Garner's more everyday man persona in the remake.   

Oddly enough, James Garner was originally up for the role of Nick in the doomed Something's Got To Give but he had to pass on the role due to a conflict with another movie he was making. By the time Fox was ready to try again with Move Over, Darling, Dean Martin had quit and Garner was done with his other movie and now available to play Nick.   

Doris Day as Ellen is a wonderful performance of both heart warming sincerity and broad comedy. I love the scenes where Ellen has to pretend to be a Swedish nurse.  

Like My Favorite Wife,  Move Over, Darling does hinge on some outdated morality. Such as nothing happening between Ellen and Stephen on their isolated tropical island. Ellen had no idea if Nick was alive and no real expectation of rescue.  It's hard to imagine them not finding comfort in each other arms even if Stephen looked like Don Knotts instead of Chuck Connors.  (OK, a sex scene with Don Knotts is now in your head and I do most sincerely apologize.) 

Move Over, Darling is a bright and amusing confection as we come to expect from a 1960's Doris Day movie. And if pushed to decide, I would give the remake a point over the original.