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I wanted to like it more than I actually did... But much of the humor totally escaped me and I walked out only mildly impressed.

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

One of the film's great tricks is that, for a time, you think it will go down a rabbit hole of unrealistic glorification.

Thinking that her husband William Powell is cheating on her thanks to the interference of her Wagnerian mother (Florence Bates). Suspicious over a situation involving his old flame (Gail Patrick), Loy uses that to file for divorce. Trying to avoid interference in a reconciliation with Loy by the deliciously meddlesome Bates, Powell pretends to be insane to prevent the divorce from going through and then disguises himself as his own sister, adding plenty of comical mishaps, most of them involving the continuously cheery Bates who wants anything but a happy ending for her daughter and son- in-law.Reminding me of a less obnoxious version of Ethel Merman in "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World", Bates could be the poster dowager for passive/aggressive monster-in-law. It's also nice to see Patrick in a light-hearted role, even if she is still playing the femme fatale. In drag, Powell looks like a modern day "Whistler's Mother", like one of the many little old ladies who got some gravity in their girdle in the "Our Gang" shorts. Jack Carson is added into the mix as the fourth party in this marital mix-up, and Toto is so cute once again as Patrick's pooch who takes a liking to Powell's puss when it's trapped in the middle of an elevator door.There's plenty of farce to keep this moving, most memorably Powell's plight in the elevator, a throw rug that knocks both Powell and Bates on their tuchus, Powell's public display of insanity (which ends up with a delicious revenge against Bates) and the wisecracks from Powell's drag alter towards the harridan mother. While the majority of Powell and Loy's co-starring vehicles focused on the verbal funny, this focuses on the visual and makes it a delight for those who need a little farce to go with their wise-cracks. This would be the last co-starring appearance of Powell and Loy outside of the "Thin Man" films and a cameo by Loy in "The Senator Was Indiscreet".

I, along with about a billion other people, absolutely adore the screen duo of William Powell and Myrna Loy. But "Love Crazy" is evidence that, though the chemistry the two had together is off the charts crazy, simply sticking them up on the same screen isn't enough to guarantee a sure thing. They needed good material and good directing, both areas in which "Love Crazy" is lacking. Howard Hawks would have directed this film as a tight screwball comedy and it would have scored. Jack Conway provides flabby direction, full of dead air, and the film sort of rambles along past the point where its joke has worn thin. Loy and especially Powell do what they can -- he at one point even dresses up in drag -- but while this movie isn't a misfire, it doesn't showcase the qualities that made Powell and Loy such an unstoppable force of nature.Grade: B-

"Love Crazy" is a screwball comedy which almost got in under the wire to actually qualify for that title, but missed by a year or two. Nevertheless, we can call it one for the sake of argument, because it contains most of that genre's qualities. Mainly, it is very funny in a frenetic, absurd sense.The frenetic part comes in the beginning as Steve (Wm. Powell) decides to surprise his wife (Myrna Loy) on their anniversary. They engage in that banter that made them a famous team in "The Thin Man" series. Lots of funny lines and visual fun, until her Mom (Florence Bates) shows up unexpectedly. Then occurs one of those mistaken-circumstance deals found in the Astaire-Rogers films and upon which the basis of the plot is formed, as he is caught in a lie.Gradually, the humor becomes absurd, as he decides to be a crazy person to save his marriage. After a bit, it becomes tiresome and more illogical and contrived, but you just go with it because you get the feeling everything will turn out alright. And you would be right. Who knew William Powell could do slapstick and some lowbrow comedy? Well, he does and he is very funny. The picture maintains a pretty high level of humor throughout, although it strains and tries too hard towards the end. It gets a big boost from Jack Carson in a support role, and look for a young Elisha Cook, Jr. as an elevator operator.I often found screwball comedies tiresome, but this one is different, and I rated it that way. For some reason it's not as well-known or seen as much as other, more famous movies of this type. It is very worth your time, whether you're a fan of screwball or not.

Employing sets, costumes and several players from THE THIN MAN series, LOVE CRAZY is a comic trifle that allows William Powell to get crazy and mug for the camera as a man about to lose his wife (Myrna Loy) through a misunderstanding involving an old flame (Gail Patrick). The movie is funny for the first half, then drags in the second as Powell goes on the run from the cops after pretending to be nuts. One of the problems with LOVE CRAZY is that stretches of the film involve Powell without Loy, and they just don't work. Without Loy, Powell just looks like a jackass. Jack Carson plays a clueless neighbor smitten with Loy, and does his best with this small role. Watch LOVE CRAZY for its historical value. It's no THIN MAN, however.