Review of The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (1947) by Edward C — 24 Dec 2013

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty(2013).

Starring:Danny Kaye,Virgina Mayo,Boris Karloff,Fay Bainter,Ann Rutherford,Thurston Hall,Florence Bates,Gordon Jones,Konstantin Shayne.

Directed By:Norman Z. McLeoid.

My Review.

This movie may not be inspiring or uplifting but it is hilarious. I am one who daydreams about crazy fantastical adventures with romance myself. But this movie didn't make think about that or made me question it. It simply played with the short story and told it in a comedic and at times psychological light. Apparently though the author of this short story of the same name didn't like the film version of it. But in it's release of the Technicolor musical comedy it proved to be a cash cow at the box office.

Danny Kaye was a comedian who plays Walter Mitty, a daydreamer who is a proofreader at a magazine firm and lives with his mother. His mother is trying to arrange a wedding with her friends daughter Gertrude(Ann Rutherford) who is also the daughter of his boss Bruce(Thurston Hall). His dream of being on an adventure becomes reality when he accidentally meets a mysterious woman(Virgina Mayo) who hands him a little black book. According to her, it contains the locations of the Dutch crown jewels hidden since World War II. Soon, Mitty finds himself in the middle of a confusing conspiracy, where he has difficulty differentiating between fact and fiction.

I never read the short story of Walter Mitty so i'm not clear as to how good of an adaption it is. But I like the way the movie plays with the idea of a daydreaming loony who has lived in his daydreams all his life. He can be someone who actually live some sort of adventurous conspiracy or he can just be going mad. He is knocked out with a drink and wakes up in his home with his mother and boss and is being told that everything he thought was real isn't. But it can be silly with some the daydreams he has throughout the film like the dress show were he is the announcer talking about the women's magnificent clothing or when he is singing in a squeaky voice at a bar after winning a war or help win it.

I like this film, I wonder if I'll read the short story in the future. The cast are all so wonderful in their roles. I especially liked Thurston Hall as Bruce cause when he get's mad at Mitty I laugh and think oh crud he might actually fire the poor guy. Danny Kaye is a great casting choice for the silly side of Mitty's daydreams. This movie is perfect in it's own merit for the funny, psychological film based on this old and classic short story. I give The Secret Life of Walter Mitty(1947) a five out of five.