User Reviews

Any picture which brings Irene Dunne and Robert Montgomery together, with direction by Gregory La Cava has something to recommend it. Right? There is some charm and humor here but it's as if the whole project can't make up its mind and the dramatic elements flirt with dare I say it – the unhappy ending. SPOILERS: It is nice to see lovely Miss Dunne (but as a spinster?) and the worldly Mr. Montgomery toss witty and pithy observations as if they didn't care only to marry on the day they meet? It is fun to have Eugene Palette mixing in as a blunt butler, speaking his mind now and then. And it is good to know that their happiness is assured in the end, if they'd just get out of their own proud ways. But this oddly "Unfinished Business," in which they are so desperately involved, is something to tax the believability of even the most open mind. For it makes the assumption that an innocent girl from the Ohio sticks could be so emotionally impressed by a Pullman-car romance with a sleek sportsman that her subsequent marriage with the same fellow's brother would be badly jeopardized thereby. Furthermore, it assumes that the brother would be such a dolt that a term of army service and a chance to clip his fraternal rival on the jaw would clear his mind of all doubts. In brief, like many another picture, it makes a romantic plot but not much sense. Under the circumstances, the actors do well. Miss Dunne, even though she must combine the naïveté of Cinderella with the devastating wit of a Dorothy Parker, is charming; Mr. Montgomery, as the slobbering playboy is nice. And Mr. Palette, Preston Foster, Walter Catlett and several others round out a good cast. Mr. La Cava has done a lot to disguise a foolish script with glib action, but the trick doesn't quite come off. The unfinished business here lies dead in someone's typewriter.

During the Pre-Code era before mid-1934, pretty much anything went in films...though OFTEN it was strongly implied instead of said outright. This is because there was no rating system and kids could easily be watching any film...so Hollywood often IMPLIED things like abortion, promiscuity and the like. Some films went much further than implying...but most implied. With the new Production Code, films were to be pure and things weren't even supposed to be implied. However, somehow "Unfinished Business" got made in the Production Code era and still implied quite a few things...but frankly, I am NOT sure exactly what it was implying and the film could be interpreted different ways. The more salacious way would seem to make the film make more sense.

The film begins in Ohio at a wedding. Nancy's younger sister is getting married and finally Nancy will be free to live her life. This is because Nancy ended up raising her sister and had no time for love. So now, she's eager to make up for lost time.

On the train taking Nancy to the big city, she meets a very suave rich guy, Steve Duncan (Preston Foster). He seduces her and she is naive enough to believe his promises...though to him she's simply another conquest.

Later, when she's working in the big city, she sees Steve...with his fiance! Obviously the louse had no honorable intentions and she is heartbroken. Steve's brother, Tommy (Robert Montgomery), sees Nancy is upset and takes her out for a night of drinking and merry-making.

The next day, Tommy awakens to discover he's married to Nancy! They try to make a go of it but ghosts of Steve interfere and the marriage is on the rocks. What's next? See the film.

Here are the two possible ways to interpret the film: One, Nancy made out with Steve but nothing more. Why she kept holding on to this memory and why she had so much trouble getting over him is a puzzler. She apparently is an idiot. Two, Nancy and Steve did the nasty. This makes it much easier to understand why she had trouble getting over him as well as the baby at the end of the film!!

Either way, the movie is pretty good...but the second explanation (clearly NOT a Production Code plot) really makes much more sense and if they'd been clearer about this (which they couldn't because of the tough new code), then it all would have made a lot of sense and would have been a better film. As it is, it's just confusing though terribly well acted.

"Unfinished Business" is billed as a comedy and romance. It is that, and more. The comedy is mostly of a biting nature, set in a plot that otherwise would be a serious drama. The plot sets up early around a theme that was prevalent in the movies, at least, of the first two- thirds of the 20th century. A small town guy or gal had to leave the "sticks" for the land of golden opportunity and/or the excitement of the big city. Most often it was the big apple, New York.

The story soon splits into smaller plots that overlap. The girl from the sticks meets and falls for a guy right away. He, of course, is just looking for some fun or a one-night stand. She meets another guy who happens to be the brother of her first love, although she doesn't know it at the time. He is a wealthy lush who doesn't like his brother and who, for some unknown reason, is running away from life by drowning his sorrows in a hedonistic lifestyle. But, he has a good heart, is affable and pleasant and takes the gal out one evening. They get plastered and wake up the next morning married. She then finds out he's the brother of the guy she fell for, but doesn't tell him. After some weeks of partying every night, he wants to stay home, and she still wants to live a night life that leaves her with no memories of the night before the next morning. In time, he falls in love with her.

The story continues from there, and one can guess many different endings. So, the one that comes is something of a surprise and good. It wraps up the complexity of this multi-plot story at least satisfactorily.

This is not the stuff around which comedies are built normally, and it's obvious why there weren't many such films made. But, with the biting humor, it is a sort of social commentary on the various escapist ideas of life – their fantasy and futility.

The cast all are very good. Irene Dunne plays Nancy, showing her great diversity in manners and mood for roles. Robert Young is very good as Tommy, her husband. And Eugene Palette is superb as Elmer, Tommy's butler and nursemaid. All the others of the cast are fine. Most of the comedy is provided by Elmer and Tommy.

The screenplay can't handle very well the complexity of the different subplots. It has gaping holes in places. And it has some sections of dialog that seem strange, not to belong or necessary. For instance, Tommy's experience as a baby with black cats. Nancy's romance in a one-night fling on a passenger train, and then her hurt and bitterness for many months afterward is a stretch. She's intelligent to begin with, and wary of just such encounters. We never know the cause of Tommy's wanting to escape from life by drowning himself in booze. The mood and attitude changes are sudden with Nancy and Tommy after many weeks of drinking themselves into stupors.

There are missing aspects of the wealthy, such as meeting family members before marriage. The film, for length, cuts out the night flight to South Carolina and Tommy and Nancy's getting married. It jumps from their split to Tommy suddenly in Army boot camp. He goes from a lush to stopping drinking, apparently overnight. Then there are a couple of strange exchanges between Nancy and Elmer. They aren't important for the plot and seem out of place as though they were inserted just to liven up the film with some comedy.

It's an interesting film, but not a comedy that provokes laughter. It's highest value may be in its look at the reality of a period of time in American culture. Many young people sought to pursue dreams of wealth, excitement, success and love with so little to go on, and while the vast majority of them never reached their dreams, those few who did often found lives that were far short of their fantasies.

Here are some humorous lines from the film. For more dialog samples, see the Quotes section in this IMDb Web page of the movie.

Frank, "You can't make an eagle out of a hen by changing the shape of the egg."

Tommy, "Where do you come from, anyway?" Nancy, "Messina, Ohio." Tommy, "Oh, Indian country."

Nancy, "You know, if you hadn't been with Mr. Duncan for such a long time, I'd fire you." Elmer, "I wouldn't mind. Give me a chance to catch up on some sleep." Nancy, "You're not my idea of a butler" Elmer, "You're not my idea."

Tommy, "You aren't complaining, Elmer?" Elmer, "Why should I complain? I've had two wonderful hours sleep every night for a week."

Nancy, "Well, it's all your fault. You said you were going to teach me how to live. I'm gonna learn if it kills me." Tommy, "Learning how to live is one thing. We didn't enter into a suicide pact."

Tommy, "Uh, Mrs. Duncan, I'd like to present Mrs. Duncan." Nancy, "How do you do!" Sheila, "I suppose we should all congratulate each other." Tommy, "I've already done it. You three can go ahead." Nancy, shaking hands with Sheila, "Congratulations!" Sheila, "Oh, congratulations!" Nancy, shaking hands with Steve, "Congratulations!" Steve, "Congratulations!" Nancy, "Maybe we can all celebrate our anniversaries together if our husbands remember." Sheila, "They can always be prompted."

Tommy, "I've been doing a lot of thinking this past year." Nancy, "Have you?" Tommy, "Yeah. The Army has a way of toughening up your muscles and softening up your pride." Nancy, "Well, you mustn't allow anything to soften your pride."

I don't mind a couple of clichés, and I can handle outdated plot elements, but this film just went too far. I wonder who greenlighted this, but at the same time, look at the stuff that's being greenlighted now. It's not unwatchable, but it's not so unintentionally funny that it works as some sort of unintended comedy. It just leaves you wanting something more.🙃

Irene Dunne is //a bit// too old (42) to be playing a spinster-ish character. As well, her character is written to be a complete idiot. Why does she fall in love with a guy (Preston Foster) she spent ONE EVENING with on the train, even when us viewers can tell full well that he's a caddish cadsicle father of all caddish cads.

Why does she become so preoccupied with finding this guy, and she does she carry such a strong torch for him after ONE EVENING? I understand the marrying his brother (Robert Montgomery) on a whim (come on, it's Robert Montgomery) , but couldn't she just have learned to love him without having the slimy other brother interfere? And why does she keep telling Robert Montgomery after she leaves him that she loves him in a different way? The revealing of the fact that Irene Dunne's character had had a baby (fathered by Montgomery, I would hope), did little to make my heart thump. 😒

Dunne and Montgomery give below average performances (to think that this same year, Montgomery would star in such flicks as Mr. And Mrs. Smith and Here Comes Mr. Jordan). Irene Dunne seems to be playing up her usual annoying set of "Kentucky gal" mannerisms that she seemed to so often enjoy using, and Preston Foster plays his usual jerk but can't seem to make it worthwhile.

Maybe it was just the print I watched, but the sets in this film seem a little dull and washed-out. Scripts made of clichés can work, but only if there are actors cast in the principal roles strong enough to make them work. Not Not the quality of this film lies in the actors- the characters are so badly written that they couldn't have done anything with them if they'd tried.

Even if you're a Dunne/Montgomery/Foster completist, I'd skip this one. It's got nothing worthwhile in it, and it's not even fun to watch for a laugh. Just don't bother. 😅