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Sorry, this movie sucks

This is a tender, generous movie that likes its characters and presents them as real people, full of flaws and strengths.

A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties. It's a feast for the eyes. But what really makes this dramedy work is the acting.

There is a lot of talent involved in this movie. They all perform as expected. the problem lies with the script, which was corny, dull and repetitive for the forties, and would have been also in the 30s, even in the 20s!! When released,it flopped, and no wonder.Ann Sheridan always said the reason was the lack of chemistry between her and Gary Cooper, but the real reason for me, a great fan of both of them is the script. It is monotonous and seems to go on forever.... The production values are all first rate: cast, sets and direction are first class A pity those responsible did not see what the result would be, in time. A pity for all concerned, including us, the audience .

"Some people in the world don't deserve your help," opines Ray Collins as a pastor giving Gary Cooper advice.And indeed, some films in the world don't deserve an audience. This has got to be the nadir of Cooper's career as a lovable comic hero. He's a do-gooder who literally takes the shirt off his back to help others, with little given back in return.Ann Sheridan is the wife who stands by her man through a whole series of contrived circumstances wherein Cooper uses poor judgment in helping the needy to the point where he and Sheridan can't even buy the house she wants so badly to move into. Thanks to the hapless script, a change of heart overcomes a banker who comes to their aid--in true Frank Capra style--for a tacked on happy ending.The film can best be described with one word--it's a "misfire." Sheridan at least gives it her all, but Cooper walks through the role as though he doesn't believe a minute of it. Nor, by the final reel, does this viewer. Ray Collins, Joan Lorring and Louise Beaver are underused in supporting roles.Not worth your time.Trivia note: It's hard to believe this film was selected to play at Radio City Music Hall for its New York opening on the strength of the fact that Leo McCarey's "Going My Way" and "Bells of St. Mary's" had both played successfully at the Hall. This was viewed as a critical disappointment and it's easy to see why.

It took three years for Leo McCarey to get back to the screen after directing Bing Crosby in that double barreled triumph of Going My Way and The Bells of St.Mary's. Sad to say, Good Sam didn't quite live up to the standards of those two films. Leo took no Oscar nominations home for this one.Gary Cooper is a fine upstanding citizen with wife Ann Sheridan and two small kids and a mooching live-in brother-in-law played by Dick Ross. He's an impulsive do gooder, an easy touch for a sob story and a handout. He drives poor Ann to distraction. A sermon by minister Ray Collins at the beginning of the film on the virtues of charity put Cooper's generosity into overdrive. It's a nice film, maybe a bit too unbelievable. I can't believe that Ann Sheridan hadn't taken Coop in tow by this point of her marriage. Two noted baseball immortals, Babe Ruth and Dizzy Dean, had in common the fact that they both married strong willed women who took charge of the finances lest their hubbys give it all away.Still I did like the message of the film which is delivered by Harry Hayden who has a small role as a banker. Coop's generosity not only with cash, but co-signing loans for various people has put him as a credit risk. When he needs the money he can't get a loan from the bank. But later on Hayden comes over to the house and tells Sheridan that he changed his mind and approved the loan for their new house. Character and decency should count for something. It was a very similar message to one that was delivered in a far better film, The Best Years of Our Lives when Fredric March as a veteran who returns to his job as a bank loan officer, approves a loan to a veteran on the strength of his character.Character and decency should count, but Coop's pants pockets still needed a lock put on them.

In this comedy-drama from Leo McCarey, Gary Cooper plays Sam, seemingly the one guy in the world who takes the Christian tenet of doing unto others as you would have them do unto you seriously. And for his efforts, he is constantly being taken advantage of to the point that his wife, the sassy Ann Sheridan, is ready to take the kids and leave him. Sly writing relieves some of the sappiness, and Cooper has such a solid male presence that he doesn't seem terminally wimpy despite the fact that others use him like a doormat. Finally, after Sam threatens to abandon his Good Samaritan philosophy, all his selfless deeds pay off, and his family comes together in a warm, homespun conclusion. To those who say this isn't worthy of Capra, well, I love Capra, but McCarey has a body of work that any director would be proud of.