The Good Fairy

source: The Good Fairy

Ferenc Molnar's The Good Fairy ran for 151 performances on Broadway in the 1932 season and a young Helen Hayes played the title role of Luisa Ginglebuscher. That name itself I'm sure produced a few chuckles from the audience. The Good Fairy is the kind of work where casting of the lead is all. If you don't have an actress skilled enough to bring off an almost impossible role of an orphan waif who may have stayed too long at an orphanage and brings her naivete out with her, just forget about doing the play or the film. In the case of this film Margaret Sullavan in her third film proved to be just right for the part. You get this wrong and you'll get hooted off the stage. Not that Sullavan didn't have help with William Wyler directing her who was legendary in his painstaking methods of doing dozens of takes so a player could get it exactly as he wanted. Molnar's play was adapted for the screen by Preston Sturges whose directorial career was about four years in the future. During the film Wyler became Sullavan's second husband. Wyler even got Herbert Marshall to bend a little. Usually Marshall was cast in serious dramatic roles, characters with the weight of the world on their shoulders like in Foreign Correspondent or The Little Foxes. Here Marshall lightens up and proves a good comedic foil. Frank Morgan plays an aging roue, millionaire owner of a meat import business and he's settling into character as the eternal bumbler. The Good Fairy is a star vehicle and it's got one great star in Margaret Sullavan to put it across.

'The Good Fairy' and 'Easy Living' (with Jean Arthur) are the two finest screenplays Preston Sturges wrote before he started directing his own work. Working from a Hungarian farce (a national flavor of playwriting that was the basis for many of Ernst Lubitsch's best movies), Sturges polished the plot and stuffed it with his inimitable comic dialogue. Directed with quiet confidence by William Wyler and cast with Margaret Sullavan (not the most sparkling comedienne, but perfectly capable) surrounded by top-notch actors, including Herbert Marshall (a superb and appallingly under-appreciated actor -- his effortless comic timing nails every line of this, "Trouble in Paradise", and "If You Could Only Cook") and Frank Morgan (best known as the Wizard of Oz, but also great in "The Shop Around the Corner"). All in all, a comic gem from the 1930s.

I am always amazed with the talent of Preston Sturgis. He is a true painter of WORDS, a tunesmith of dialog and staging. In this early William Wyler Universal film using Preston Sturgis screen play we have scene after scene of people acting and reacting off each other's follies which is a true documentation of this race we call Human. This film depicts the constant struggle to make sense of human interaction. The nice thing is there is no murders, explosions, mayhem or outright evil. All these things get in the way of DIALOG. I watch this film in awe, there is musical rhythm in the first third of the film combining dialog, action and music. You will really like all these people at the end of the film. Time Well Spent., No Noise

This is a delightful comedy written by Preston Sturgis.Not as complex as Sullivan's Travels but very satisfying and starring a different Sullavan(Margaret). The most fascinating aspect for me,though,had nothing to do with the charming story.The character of Konrad (Sullavan's benefactor)is played by Frank Morgan who was cast a few years later as the wizard in The Wizard of Oz.When he meets Luisa Ginglebusher ,he is overcome with emotion and tries to play child's games with her exclaiming that he is a wizard and can magically grant her any wish.This was a popular movie in 1935 and surely when The Wizard of Oz began casting they must have immediately thought of Frank Morgan.His character is much the same in both films; as the powerful but foolishly inept industrialist in The Good Fairy and the impostor, all powerful wizard in The Wizard of Oz.

Margaret Sullavan plays a lady who was just released into the world from an orphan asylum where she had spent her entire life. As a result, she's incredibly naive about the world. She soon meets nice-guy Reginald Owen decides to take it upon himself to follow her and protect her from evil men who might try to take advantage of her. Owen is a waiter at a fancy hotel and he tries to keep Sullavan from getting mixed up with a rich old lecher, played by Frank Morgan. But Sullavan doesn't realize that Morgan is a potential threat and doesn't understand Owen's insistence that she avoid Morgan. It's pretty funny watching Owen whisking in and out of the private dining room where Sullavan and Morgan are about to eat--and he uses every excuse in the world to interrupt. However, Morgan is not deterred and promises to do ANYTHING for Sullavan. Sullavan is so naive that she thinks Morgan is doing this just out of the goodness of his heart. Eventually, however, even naive (and dim) Sullavan seems to understand that Morgan is trying to seduce her and so she panics and tells him she is married. When he asks her to whom, she picks a name out of the phone book--a very poor but honest lawyer played by Herbert Marshall. Morgan STILL isn't deterred and offers to help Sullavan's 'husband'--sort of a "quid pro quo" arrangement where he helps Marshall in order to eventually win Sullavan's heart. Later that day, Morgan goes to Marshall's office and offers him a huge salary to become his lawyer in charge of his multinational meat packing company. Marshall ecstatically accepts and has no idea why this offer came his way. Soon afterwords, Sullavan tracks down Marshall and they do actually fall in love. This is a tremendously cute and romantic portion of the film. Sullavan plans on telling Marshall why this good fortune has come this way, but decides against it because Marshall thinks that it must be his reward for being a decent and honest lawyer! However, into this bliss returns Morgan who wants payback for his 'good deed' for Marshall. Sullavan is shocked to see that she is expected to reciprocate and a very, very, very determined Reginald Owen once again returns to save the day--kidnapping Sullavan! Morgan gives chase and they all end up at Marshall's office--at which point Morgan is furious at Marshall's wife for creating this mess. Marshall, who is unmarried, is baffled about this 'wife' and a big argument ensues. This portion of the film is hilarious--especially when Sullavan tries to get Marshall to say that they are married! Eventually, they all realize that the problem was all orchestrated by Sullavan. But, since she really is such a sweet person, it all works out for a very happy (if a bit contrived) ending. If the plot sounds a bit hard to believe, then you are correct. But, with romantic comedies like this, you are expected to suspend disbelief. Provided you can do this, then the movie is terrific with excellent romance, sparkling dialog and a witty yet adult tone to the film. While not exactly a 'screwball comedy' like BRINGING UP BABY or MY MAN GODFREY, it is very funny and definitely more romantic. A wonderful balance and a wonderful but forgotten picture.

The story of a naif who goes out into the world, skirts calamity (i.e. seduction, in the guise of Frank Morgan, no less), and finds true love (Herbert Marshall, who likewise should be better remembered--he'd a been a bigger star if he would have been five years younger when the talkies started in earnest). Of course, Sullavan the naif is the one who instructs the world weary cosmopolitans rather than vice-versi. The script, being by Preston Sturges, is funny and witty and artfully plotted. Sullavan was a great actress/star of the '30's early '40's who unfortunately is mostly forgotten now. She has a quality, a sly subtle acidity that makes her different from other screwball heroines. She also had the knack of bringing out the tenderness in her male leads (James Stewart was never more suave, articulate, and keenly perceptive than opposite the funny cruel little egomaniac Sullavan in The Shop Around the Corner, which is a masterpiece, and she brought out the early best in her former husband, Henry Fonda, in The Moon's Our Home, which is another forgotten little gem). It's not so much she's vicious a la Bette Davis or the divine Barbara Stanwyck: she's too minutely picky, petty really in getting what she wants, too self-centeredly rational in getting her way for that. But, anyway, The Good Fairy has a younger softer Sullavan. The supporting cast is superior, too.

I'm a fan of Preston Sturges, and I was brought to this movie by his screenplay credit, not knowing if that would be enough to make this a movie I was going to enjoy. GOOD NEWS! This movie is a real joy from start to finish. From the outset the humour was quite subtle, and the sophisticated dialogue sounded very modern. Clearly, although this Sturges script isn't served by Sturges direction, this is still a Preston Sturges movie. And the script is backed up by sympathetic direction from William Wyler and the performances of the lead players. In particular Margaret Sullavan is fresh and funny as the fish-out-of-water naive young girl leaving her orphanage to join the outside world, determined to do a good deed every day... to be a Good Fairy to somebody. Unfortunately the lies she feels she has to tell, and the resulting problems she's willing to face, lead her into digging a deeper and deeper hole for herself, and into dragging other characters into the hole with her. Those other characters are the Sturges eccentrics we know from his acclaimed movies of later years. The scenes with Frank Morgan and Reginald Owen shouting at each other with Sullavan between them are fabulous. Herbert Marshall is also good, but he or his character can not match the same level of lunacy. Now I've seen this, I just hope it won't be long before I can get to see "Easy Living", the next comedy that Preston Sturges was able to write and exert the same level of influence over.

Don't let the title or director give you the wrong idea; THE GOOD FAIRY is a snappy and sophisticated example of the kind of civilized lunacy for which screenwriter (and later director) Preston Sturges became so well-known. Yes, it's adapted from a Hungarian play, and yes, it's directed by William Wyler, but Sturges' creative influence is evident - even dominant - throughout. Though Wyler did make the occasional foray into lighter material ("Roman Holiday," "How To Steal a Million"), he's mostly associated with intelligent drama, and here one can almost sense idea man Sturges lurking just behind him, whispering, "Hey, Willie, how about this....?" There's so much about this picture that is prototypical of later Sturges classics such as "The Miracle of Morgan's Creek" and "Unfaithfully Yours." Indeed, THE GOOD FAIRY utilizes a plot device that was later modified for "The Palm Beach Story," wherein Claudette Colbert tries to get a millionaire to enrich her husband by pretending he's not her husband. Here, Margaret Sullavan tries to get a millionaire to enrich a complete stranger by pretending the stranger IS her husband. Only Sturges could make such near-insanity seem almost logical. There's not much point in synopsizing the plot; it's rather like a benign little tornado that sweeps the characters - and the viewer - up with it; there's nothing to do but surrender and see where it will touch down next, and what happens when it does. Let it suffice to say that, if you're any kind of Sturges fan, you'll find the ride delightful. It's no surprise that winsome Sullavan, blustery Reginald Owen and the eminently reliable Alan Hale handle the material so deftly, but even normally serious players such as Herbert Marshall and Beulah Bondi exhibit understated but devastating comedy chops. Special mention must be made of Eric Blore (whose tipsy descent of a brief flight of stairs is nothing short of a miniature comic ballet) and Frank Morgan, at his flustered best, giving a performance of such sustained energy and velocity that (as my viewing companion said) he must have had to lie down for a rest after every take. An odd little sidelight: quintessentially American players Sullavan and Morgan made exactly three pictures together, in two of which they played Hungarians (this one and "Shop Around The Corner"), with the story taking place in Budapest. (In the third - "The Mortal Storm" - they played Germans in a small Alpine town.) Just one of those curious bits of trivia. As noted in other comments, this gem of a film is apparently little known or remembered. Perhaps its release on DVD will accord it the attention and praise it so richly deserves. Do yourself a huge favor and get your hands on it right away. I saw it just a week ago and am already looking forward to watching it again.

I am shocked at how many reviews on this site give all the credit to Preston Sturges. Are they influenced by a bunch of French critics who have declared the great WILLIAM WYLER out of fashion? Few, if any, directors have made so many outstanding movies. His 'crime' seems to be crossing the genre line, and not putting himself in every frame! Here we find him in fine comic 1935 form. Wyler's aim was always to do justice to his subject. It can be no surprise, therefore, that he's influenced by the daft and hilarious Sturges script. Wyler translates this into an hilariously daft and totally charming movie. Always a great director of actors, he once again leads his cast to memorable performances. Sullavan, unusually delightful: Marshall, unexpectedly funny and miles from his other Wyler roles (The Letter, The Little Foxes): bumbling, hilarious Morgan: beautifully daft Owen, and a madcap drunk act by Blore. The WYLER touch and the STURGES craziness combine beautifully in this unfairly neglected comic gem.