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Desk Set
A computer expert tries to prove his electronic brain can replace a television network's research staff.
Release : | 1957 |
Rating : | 7.2 |
Studio : | 20th Century Fox, |
Crew : | Art Direction, Art Direction, |
Cast : | Spencer Tracy Katharine Hepburn Gig Young Joan Blondell Dina Merrill |
Genre : | Comedy Romance |
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Rating: 5.5
Reviews
Good story, Not enough for a whole film
Excellent, Without a doubt!!
Beautiful, moving film.
There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.
I'm a young male that decided to watch this movie at random. This seems to be geared towards older ladies. Now I typically enjoy older movies, but this film just did not seem to age very well. It did have a few memorable scenes so I don't regret watching it, but I wouldn't recommend this movie however.
Richard Sumner (Spencer Tracy) is the inventor of a computer called EMERAC. Federal Broadcasting Network ordered one for the reference department which is led by Bunny Watson (Katharine Hepburn).I'm sure that an audience of its times would work much better. They would automatically root for Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn as a couple. That may account for the lack of setup for a romance. But that's not really a mortal wound for this movie. An eye flutter here, a knowing smile there, sometimes that's all the setup a movie requires. The mortal sin here is making Spencer Tracy a computer science expert, and that over the top idea of what a computer is or does. There is no role playing here. It's simply Spencer Tracy playing Spencer Tracy. None of the jokes worked that well. Katharine Hepburn does a good job as a librarian supercomputer. Overall a minor disappointment.
In this their second to last feature together and arguably their best Tracy and Hepburn light up the screen with their special spark which shines a little brighter here than in most of their other pairings. Perhaps the reason for that is here they play mature adults who respect each other first and then very slowly give in to their attraction with cute misunderstandings along the way. While that isn't so far removed from several of their other comedies by this point they were able to do it so deftly the whole thing takes on an extra sheen. Another big plus is the superior supporting cast of the picture. Gig Young does the slick, slightly caddish glad hander he did so well and a very young Dina Merrill is clever and chic as one of the other office girls. But the real standouts are Neva Patterson as the tightly wound, buttoned up computer Nazi supervisor Miss Warriner but better still is the divine and vastly underrated Joan Blondell, as Kate's best buddy Peg she is adorably entertaining. A little man hungry, but worldly wise she walks off with any scene she is in. The tipsy scene between she and the stars is a superb chance to see three great actors elevate a simple situation by infusing it with their seasoned skill.
First off, I would have given this movie a better review if it's pace was a bit better. It felt a bit disjointed in some ways, with a series of what felt like separate scenes (I believe someone mentioned it felt like a play, and it did). Some worked well, some did not work as well. But that's a bit objective.As an example of something I did not buy into...the romance between her and the computer engineer. I never quite bought into it. He shows some interest, but she only shows flashes of interest - but I just couldn't connect the dots.I loved seeing a woman playing a smart competent role. Kudos to them. It's enjoyable seeing strong female roles in movies - it's becoming more common now, but did not seem to be that common back then.As a software engineer, I totally appreciate the subject matter. And I am not sure the man-machine debate is done. While computers have been an amazing innovation, improving our lives in ways hard to imagine now doing without, at the same time they still introduce problems. For example, people living their lives out on the computer rather than in person with real people...some people have struggled with addiction to games even, such as World of Warcraft.But moving along, Hepburn makes this movie. She is fascinating to watch when she's quoting poetry, especially at the ending scene. For her acting alone, I should give it 6 stars.The supporting cast of her fellow researchers was quite good. Especially the heavier set one (sorry, forgot her name.) I can recommend this movie, for sure. It could maybe have been better though?