Producer: Frank Capra
Director: Frank Capra
Writer: Robert Riskin based on Opera Hat by Clarence Budington Kelland
Cast: Gary Cooper, Jean Arthur, George Bancroft, Lionel Stander, Douglass Dumbrille, Raymond Walburn, H.B. Warner, Ruth Donnelly, Walter Catlett, John Wray, Margaret Seddon, Margaret McWade, Gustav von Seyffertitz, Emma Dunn, Charles Lane, Jameson Thomas, Mayo Methot, Gladden James, Paul Hurst, Warren Hymer
Plot: During the depression Martin Semple the uncle of Longfellow Deeds (Gary Cooper) dies in a car crash and leaves his 20 million dollar fortune to him. Longfellow Deeds a tuba playing greeting card poet lives in the quaint town of Mandrake Falls Vermont. Semple’s crooked attorney John Cedar, (Douglas Dumbrille) seeing a way to hide his own misdeeds drags Deeds back to New York City where he hired ex newspaper man Cornelius Cobb (Lionel Stander) to watch over him and make sure that he doesn’t talk to the press. However, Deeds not the bumpkin everyone thinks he is slips his keepers and goes out on the town. There he meets Louise “Babe” Bennett (Jean Arthur) a reporter who is trying to get a story on Deeds and plays to his sympathy by pretending to faint in front of him. Deeds a romantic, sees her as a “damsel in distress” and tries to help. Babe calls herself Mary Dawson and tells him she’s been walking all day trying to find work. With this she works upon his good nature all the while writing articles about Deeds calling him the Cinderella Man.
Deeds falls for Mary and wants to marry her. At the same time he is fending off not only the lawyer Cedar but the rest of the high society leaches that had been living off his uncle’s largesse. Cobb brings evidence to Deeds that “Mary” is actually the reporter Babe Bennett. Deeds is disgusted and decides to return to Mandrake Falls. It is at this time a farmer, (John Wray) having lost his means of providing for his family points a gun at Deeds and vilifying him for not helping his fellow man and the desperate poor needing relief. After the man has come to his senses Deeds sees a way to get rid of his troublesome wealth and help the poor. In desperation the lawyer Cedar has Deeds arrested for insanity.
Commentary:
This is one of Capra’s best movies and the one that made Gary Cooper into the every man hero that he became famous for in the movies. Jean Arthur, who also starred in Mr. Smith goes to Washington is perfect as the cynical female reporter who has seen everything to see when it comes to men until she meets Longfellow Deeds. Suddenly she realizes that there are men that aren’t always looking out for themselves, and have such thing as scruples and honor which destroys her cynical world view.
Gary Cooper plays Longfellow Deeds. Deeds is an unsophisticated man and that is his charm as is his practicality. He knows that the money has to be used for something useful and not to be frittered away on tawdry things and Cooper exemplifies this perfectly.
Capra once again demonstrates his love for the “regular guy” in this film and how we too can be better by being like someone who is practical, honorable, and decent. He shows exactly what is meant when the Bible says that the love of money is the root of all evils. {1 Tim. 6:10}
Mr. Deeds goes to town gets five stars.