Come September
1961 US
Dir:Robert Mulligan
Stars:Rock Hudson, Gina Lollobrigida,
Sandra Dee, Bobby Darin
Left:Rock Hudson, Right:Gina Lollobrigida
Although this movie doesn't seem to be so highly evaluated in any movie reviews that I've so far read, I think
it is quite a fun and exhilarating movie. Of cource, it's true that this type of light comedy movie can never be
a masterpiece, but I presume that it is also true that the movies that one frequently watches doesn't necessarily
correspond to the ones that are usually referred to as masterpieces. For example, how often do you watch such long
long movies as "Gone with the Wind"(1939) and "Lawrence of Arabia"(1962)? I guess that, just
because of the running time, ordinary movie funs won't watch them more than once a year no matter how higly they
are evaluated by professional movie reviewers. It seems that there are several factors for a movie being loved
by movie funs as to be watched several times repeatedly and constantly, though these factors alone can't necessarily
endorse the movies applied to be masterpieces. For example, it should have adequate running time; i.e, not too
long, nor too short, and the story should be fun and invigorating, etc. I think "Come September" definitely
has these qualities, and as a proof I can say I'm watching this movie quite frequently. This movie is a situational
comedy whose story begins when an American Rock Hudson who owns a vila in Italy comes Italy unexpectedly to everyone
including a majordomo who turns his vila into an hotel. Especially, it's quite fun to watch the interactions among
such colorful characters as an exuberant Italian girl played by La Lollo, a playboy played by Rock Hudson who nevertheless
can't condone boys and girls playing together in an European resort hotel, the aforementioned majordomo played
by Walter Slezak whose primary intention is to get money by changing his master's (i.e,Rock Hudson's) vila to an
hotel during his master's absence and all those healthy all-American boys and girls played by Bobby Darin and Sandra
Dee etc. who are under suspicious eyes of Rock Hudson. Among them, Rock Hudson's somewhat contradictory character
is quite amusing. Sometimes he behaves like a playboy, but as soon as he sees Bobby Darin and Sandra Dee become
intimate, he cannot help but intervene them, and on top of which he even deliver some moral maxims to nubile girls
who are dancing with him in a disco club (it's really funny). The character played by Walter Slezak with his obese
figure is the funniest highlight in this funny movie and La Lollo looks joyful under the sun of her own mother
country. All in all, all these characters succeed in constituting quite funny situational comedy here. In addition,
the music composed by Hans J. Salter matches the ambience of this exhilarating movie quite well. The bootom line
is that "Come September" is definitely such a one that you cannot help but want to see it again if you
don't watch it quite a while.
