Review of I Was a Male War Bride (1949) by Catherine D — 23 Apr 2011

In post-war Germany, French Captain Henri Rochard (Cary Grant) and American Lieutenant Katherine Gates (Ann Sheridan) are thrown together for one last mission. By motorcycle and row boat, they work their way to their assigned destination, bickering all the way. On their overnight hotel stay, Henri pulls out his French charm with some massage oil and a back rub, but when a broken door handle leaves him trapped in her room overnight, he sleeps uncomfortably in the chair. He can't resist slipping into the bed in the light of dawn and naturally, by the time she awakes and finds him there, the maid has replaced the door handle, which works perfectly for her. While Henri tries to accomplish their mission on his own, he gets arrested in a black market hangout and Katherine completes the mission for him before springing him from jail. Their antagonism soon leads to some "French kissing" inside a haystack, followed by the decision to get married, which leads to a laughable pile of bureaucratic red tape. The necessary formalities require that they go through three separate wedding ceremonies, which they make it through intact, only to have their wedding night interrupted by army orders. Further red tape leads to Henri immigrating to the U.S. as Katherine's "war bride". The mishaps continue as he travels with hundreds of female war brides and ends up missing plenty of nights' sleep. To get on the boat to the U.S., Henri finally submits to the ultimate embarrassment, cross-dressing to become a true war bride until the ship has sailed and the two lovebirds are finally allowed some privacy together.

This film must be fairly unique for its time in being filmed partly on location in post-war Germany, adding to its interest just to see the remnants of cities. To be fair, it has one of the worst film titles ever - would never have succeeded these days. And it's tough to believe Cary Grant as a Frenchman (especially since Ann Sheridan speaks French much better than he does)...indeed, it's difficult to see Cary Grant as anyone but Cary Grant. The film's plot and dialogue are nothing special, and both the couple's ordeals and their chemistry strain credulity, but it has its moments.

Overall, a fast-talking war comedy about the distances we go for love, perhaps outdated in its sensibilities, but still with some punch to it.