In the opening scenes of this turgid dud, Sheriff Will (Cooper) is burdened by marriage to the most mind-numbingly dumb wife. Grace Kelly portrays the Quaker airhead. The flimsy conflict immediately becomes about whether Gary Cooper or his wife's viewpoint will win out. If you think Kelly's underwritten storyline holds even a prayer of potential, well... only the Teleltubbies has less conflict than this movie. Gary Cooper, always a thuddingly dull actor, gives easily his most boring performance.
The story is a thinly veiled allegory of the McCarthy hearings which would be fine if it did something artful with it. Instead it showcases heroics with Will as Foreman's proxy. Most people would not be comfortable shouting "I'M SO VERY Modest and Heroic" like this. No matter how many times I've watched, I never care where its dull, obvious story takes me. Invariably, viewers who don't like having to search for a pesky hidden message declare this a masterpiece. Director Zinneman made his name with stuff this dry.
A classic to give classics a bad name.
The story is a thinly veiled allegory of the McCarthy hearings which would be fine if it did something artful with it. Instead it showcases heroics with Will as Foreman's proxy. Most people would not be comfortable shouting "I'M SO VERY Modest and Heroic" like this. No matter how many times I've watched, I never care where its dull, obvious story takes me. Invariably, viewers who don't like having to search for a pesky hidden message declare this a masterpiece. Director Zinneman made his name with stuff this dry.
A classic to give classics a bad name.