The War Against Mrs. Hadley

1942
Approved
1h 26m

IMDb RATING

YOUR RATING

Van Johnson and Jean Rogers in The War Against Mrs. Hadley (1942)

A Washington official courts a society matron who is trying to ignore the effects of World War II.A Washington official courts a society matron who is trying to ignore the effects of World War II.A Washington official courts a society matron who is trying to ignore the effects of World War II.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

6.7/10

499

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Nominated for 1 Oscar
- 1 nomination total

Trivia
MGM arranged that the world premiere at the Lowe's Capitol Theatre in Washington, DC in September, 1942 would be a War Bond drive, with better seats going to those that bought more bonds. The effort raised $1,822,675 ($27.24M in 2017).

Goofs
When Stella goes to see Elliot at the Muntions Building, the view from his office window is of the Capitol Building and it is very close. This is not remotely possible. The Muntions Building was built on Constitution Avenue on the Mall between the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument--roughly where the Vietnam Memorial now stands. In addition, the similar Main Navy Building stood between the Muntions Building and the Capitol.

Quotes
Cecilia Talbot: [on being ordered to observe the blackout] Oh dear! It's just like the French Revolution!

Connections
Featured in Personalities (1942)

Soundtracks
Happy Birthday
(1893) (uncredited)
Written by Mildred J. Hill and Patty S. Hill
Sung a cappella by Carl 'Alfalfa' Switzer
Also sung a bit by Halliwell Hobbes

User reviews11

Review

Featured review

8/10

Perhaps a bit too extreme at first...but still well worth seeing.

"The War Against Mrs. Hadley" is a film about one lady's experience dealing with WWII. Mrs. Hadley is a wealthy widow who is used to being catered to and getting her own way. So, when the war arrives, she expects that life will continue as before and that 'other people' need to make sacrifices but not her. At first, it is easy to understand why many folks cater to her and her whims but as the film progresses, Mrs. Hadley's narcissism becomes intolerable...and you wonder when and how she'll get her comeuppance...or how she'll learn to get over herself!

The subject matter in this movie made for excellent propaganda....and helped the audience to feel a strong sense of community and need to be a part of the war effort. And, at the time, there were some folks who had no problem looking out only for themselves. On the other hand, at times Mrs. Hadley was occasionally too awful...too clueless and too one-dimensional that it was a bit hard to watch. Subtle, it was not...yet overall a wonderful movie about WWII and its impact on the folks at home.