Now and Forever ** (1934, Gary Cooper, Carole Lombard, Shirley Temple, Guy Standing) – Classic Movie Review 6762

Director Henry Hathaway’s 1934 Paramount comedy stars Gary Cooper as Jerry Day, a confidence trickster and swindling thief who prefers the footloose and fancy free life.

But after his second marriage to Toni (Carole Lombard) and welcoming in to their home Penny (Shirley Temple), his re-discovered daughter who was being brought up by the family his deceased wife, Jerry is going straight until he is lured back to crime by jewel thief Felix Evans ([Sir] Guy Standing).

So Jerry relieves Mrs Crane (Charlotte Granville) of her jewels and hides them in Penny’s teddy bear. When Penny finds the jewels, Jerry’s wife Toni says that she is guilty of the theft.

Vincent Lawrence and Sylvia Thalberg’s plodding, unengaging screenplay is kept going on screen by the sheer hard work of the top professionals. But, surprisingly, there is no real pizzazz on show here, and the adults seem thoroughly subdued by Temple’s star power.

Apart from the weak screenplay based on the story Honor Bright by Jack Kirkland, Melville Baker, the main problems are that Cooper is not at his best in an off-putting role as a weasily bad boy and Lombard cannot hit her usual exuberant, vivacious stride in another uncomfortable character that is also so sketchily written.

Temple sings The World Owes Me a Living (music by Leigh Harline and lyrics by Larry Morey).

Shirley Temple, Gary Cooper and Carole Lombard in Now and Forever (1934).

Also in the cast are Gilbert Emery, Henry Kolker, Harry Stubbs, Akim Tamiroff, Tetsu Komai, Jameson Thomas, Egon Brecher, André Cheron, Agostino Borgato, Richard Loo, Buster Phelps, Rolfe Sedan, Sam Harris and Grace Hayle.

Now and Forever is directed by Henry Hathaway, runs 85 minutes, is released by Paramount, is written by Vincent Lawrence and Sylvia Thalberg screenplay based on the story Honor Bright by Jack Kirkland, Melville Baker, is shot in black and white by Harry Fischbeck, is produced by Louis D Lighton, and is designed by Hans Dreier and Robert Usher.

© Derek Winnert 2018 Classic Movie Review 6762

Check out more reviews on http://derekwinnert.com

Carole Lombard stars in Now and Forever (1934).