A business tycoon decides to wed a Middle Eastern princess whose customs dictate the pair must live apart for several months before marrying. Even more complications settle in when the tycoo... Read allA business tycoon decides to wed a Middle Eastern princess whose customs dictate the pair must live apart for several months before marrying. Even more complications settle in when the tycoon's ex-fiancée is assigned to chaperone the pair.A business tycoon decides to wed a Middle Eastern princess whose customs dictate the pair must live apart for several months before marrying. Even more complications settle in when the tycoon's ex-fiancée is assigned to chaperone the pair.
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- Nominated for 1 Oscar
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Inane romantic comedy that is neither romantic nor funny. A terrible movie on nearly every level. The characters are very unlikable no matter how hard I tried due to my fondness for the actors. The best thing I can say about this is that I liked the name of Cary's character, Clemson Reade. Cary Grant didn't make many stinkers but he did here. It's one of the worst films in his career. It was so bad Cary considered retiring from acting after this and didn't make another movie for two years. Worth seeing if you're a die-hard fan of the stars or on the slim chance you might find something interesting about the socio-political stuff.
PS How that "Dream wife" of his learns English so quickly is absolutely amazing! She does speak with a few mistakes, of course.
The plot is silly and implausible, but it's fun to watch Grant and Kerr in their first on screen performance.
Too bad too that Grant appears to be walking through his role in very uncharacteristic fashion. There's none of his usual bounce or spark. Apparently, he was on the brink of retiring and would not make another feature for two years. So there may well be an inside story to the MGM production. Kerr too seems too dour to be droll in a rather thankless role. At the same time, the results look like director Sheldon had no feel for the antic material, being more a popular writer than director. At least there's a winsome Betta St. John as the Arabian princess, an aptly commanding Walter Pidgeon as a government honcho, and a fearsome Buddy Baer as a towering enforcer. All in all, however, I expect this was not a movie Grant would like to be remembered by, nor one that his fans will revere him for.
(In passing—Iran's Prime Minister of the time, Mohammed Mossadegh, gets a quick mention in the dialog. No wonder, because he had just nationalized the country's oil production and would quickly be deposed by a notorious CIA plot. These events culminated about the time this movie was in production, ie. early 1953, and may well have inspired the premise.)
Worse than that, Grant looks and act in such a peculiar manner. He appears to be bone-thin, with his suits just hanging on him. And his expressions and body language border on the effeminate in some sequences. This is not the dashing, debonair, sophisticated Cary Grant we've all become accustomed to seeing in so many movies over the years.
Kerr has a brief drunk scene that is unusual for her screen persona. Aside from that, there's not much to her character that can save this dreary flick.
The one thing worth noting is the movie's benign portrayal of Islamic rulers. Was it really like that 50 years ago, or were we just too ignorant to know any better?
Did you know
- TriviaAfter making this film Cary Grant announced his retirement from acting in February 1953. However, 18 months later he agreed to return to acting in To Catch a Thief (1955).
- GoofsWhen Effie is served Arak by the Khan, she is informed that it is a wine made from rice. In fact, Arak is an licorice-flavored liquor made from distilled late-harvest grapes mixed with aniseed.
- Quotes
Clemson Reade: We haven't been able to make a definite plan since we met.
Effie: Well, we went to Vermont for two weeks.
Clemson Reade: Yes. Yes, that's right. To her grandfather's farm. For two wonderful relaxing weeks in glorious Vermont.
Walter McBride: Tim'll be there in September.
Clemson Reade: We spent *one* day there. She had to leave to take care of the crisis in the Sahara; some of the sand was missing.
Effie: Well, you stayed on.
Clemson Reade: With grandfather. It wasn't the same thing.
- ConnectionsFeatured in American Masters: Cary Grant: A Class Apart (2004)
- SoundtracksGhi Ti, Ghi Ti, Ghi Ti
By Charles Wolcott and Jamshid Sheibani
- How long is Dream Wife?Powered by Alexa
Details
Box office
- Budget
- $1,565,000 (estimated)
- Runtime1 hour 40 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1
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