Three Cornered Moon

It's not 'laugh you sides' off funny, instead it's got a sweet, warm cuddly sort of humour. You wouldn't describe it as 'screwball' or zany or even sophisticated...... some might not even call it a comedy (there aren't actually any laughs in this) but it's got a little bit of magic that somehow makes you smile. It does take a while to get going so stick with it, it gets much better as it goes on.

By 1933 when this was made, they'd figured out how to turn a stage play into a motion picture. This film doesn't try to deny that you're watching a play but, unlike those horrendous efforts in the early talkies years, it works beautifully here. Its scenes, its dialogue, its settings are so obviously what was being shown live on stage at this very time on Broadway but director Elliott Nugent, injects energy and life - not to mention excellent framing and lighting to make this a proper film.

It's about a silly rich family, frittering their money away on trivia who suddenly lose all their money. A silly rich family, frittering their money away on trivia would clearly not win the hearts of an audience in 1933 so what this does is then tries to endear them to us.... and it does. It's a very clever and amusing piece of writing.

It's also faultlessly acted. Although everyone except for Claudette Colbert and Richard Arlen are all nuts, you'll find them all strangely believable. Your heart tells you they're real people ....but your mind might disagree.

In many ways this could be called a 'coming of age' drama. We get to know and grow to like a group of people whom we initially find annoying. We enjoy and almost feel part of the experience of seeing them 'grow up' into responsible adults..... well apart from Richard Arlen who had to have been the dullest romantic lead of all time. It's good fun.