Judge Hardy and Son (1939)
** (out of 4)
Eighth film in the series has Judge Hardy (Lewis Stone) trying to help a foreign couple who are about to lose their home. Back at the Hardy household Andy (Mickey Rooney) is having trouble with both money and girls but life's real lessons are brought up when his mother (Fay Holden) comes down with pneumonia and might die. This is a very somber entry in MGM's Andy Hardy series and I'm sure many might enjoy the darkness but overall I thought the film was one of the least entertaining as it just felt rushed and the story really didn't hit me as it should have. We'll start with the story involving the foreign couple. They pretty much just show up at the start of the film and this here allows Andy to do some detective work for his father but there's no laughs or drama to be had with this subplot. The stuff dealing with Mrs. Hardy's death was a mixed bag. On one hand it led to some overly dramatic speeches that were just really, really silly. I don't mean to make light of death but I think people even in 1939 knew the outcome and the preaching here was a tad bit too much for me. I know this series has a lot of people against it because it made life seem all too simple but I've never put any of the films down for that. The religious aspect to the film was just a tad bit too forceful in my opinion but there's no question that their heart was in the right place. It also allows Rooney to do some dramatic acting and he does a wonderful job with it especially in one scene where he finally breaks down at the thought of losing his mother. Stone also gets some very good moments with his son Andy as the two talk about death and what might end up happening. Fans of Universal's monster movies will be happy to see Henry Hull in a brief part as the doctor and Maria Ouspenskaya plays the foreign lady. Ann Rutherford is as charming as ever as Polly and we get a nice performance by Martha O'Driscoll as one of Andy's lady friends. This entry goes without much of the comedy of the earlier films and there's no question the moral lessons are on high alert but in the end none of it really worked for me. This certainly isn't a horrible film but at the same time the series has so many better efforts.
** (out of 4)
Eighth film in the series has Judge Hardy (Lewis Stone) trying to help a foreign couple who are about to lose their home. Back at the Hardy household Andy (Mickey Rooney) is having trouble with both money and girls but life's real lessons are brought up when his mother (Fay Holden) comes down with pneumonia and might die. This is a very somber entry in MGM's Andy Hardy series and I'm sure many might enjoy the darkness but overall I thought the film was one of the least entertaining as it just felt rushed and the story really didn't hit me as it should have. We'll start with the story involving the foreign couple. They pretty much just show up at the start of the film and this here allows Andy to do some detective work for his father but there's no laughs or drama to be had with this subplot. The stuff dealing with Mrs. Hardy's death was a mixed bag. On one hand it led to some overly dramatic speeches that were just really, really silly. I don't mean to make light of death but I think people even in 1939 knew the outcome and the preaching here was a tad bit too much for me. I know this series has a lot of people against it because it made life seem all too simple but I've never put any of the films down for that. The religious aspect to the film was just a tad bit too forceful in my opinion but there's no question that their heart was in the right place. It also allows Rooney to do some dramatic acting and he does a wonderful job with it especially in one scene where he finally breaks down at the thought of losing his mother. Stone also gets some very good moments with his son Andy as the two talk about death and what might end up happening. Fans of Universal's monster movies will be happy to see Henry Hull in a brief part as the doctor and Maria Ouspenskaya plays the foreign lady. Ann Rutherford is as charming as ever as Polly and we get a nice performance by Martha O'Driscoll as one of Andy's lady friends. This entry goes without much of the comedy of the earlier films and there's no question the moral lessons are on high alert but in the end none of it really worked for me. This certainly isn't a horrible film but at the same time the series has so many better efforts.