The Goose And The Gander (1935)

When a divorcee (Kay Francis) overhears her ex-husband's (Ralph Forbes) new wife (Genevieve Tobin) planning a romantic getaway with her new lover (George Brent), she concocts an elaborate plot to get her revenge on the woman for stealing her husband. Directed by Alfred E. Green (THE JOLSON STORY), everything is in place for a delightful screwball farce with mistaken identities, jewel thieves and all the participants trapped in a mountain lodge. The material is there but it never lives up to the possibilities for a couple of reasons. The script is decent but the direction is lackluster but most importantly, none of the cast are farceurs. Kay Francis and George Brent are hardly known for their comedic abilities and one can only dream of what might have been with Jean Arthur and Cary Grant in their roles and Howard Hawks in the director chair. Still, it is what it is and I enjoyed it well enough. With John Eldredge, Claire Dodd and Helen Lowell.