Never Say Die [Blu-ray]

Director: Elliott Nugent Elliott Nugent

Overview

Bob Hope and an all-star cast have great fun in this frothy romantic comedy about a wealthy tycoon who learns that he only has one month left to live. Not realizing that the tests were wrong, he decides to make hay while the sun still shines. He dumps his fiancee and then heads for the lovely Bad Gaswasser Spa in Switzerland. There he meets a young heiress who is being forced to marry a prince rather than the bus driver she loves. Taking pity on her and having nothing to lose, he marries her and plans to leave her his fortune so she will be free to marry anyone she wants. During their honeymoon, on which the bus driver accompanies them, the groom learns that he will live. Unfortunately for the bus driver, true romance has bloomed between the newlyweds. Of course they don't find this out until a little later.

Product Details

Release Date:	03/21/2023
UPC:	0738329262143
Original Release:	1939
Rating:	NR
Source:	Kl Studio Classics
Language:	English
Time:	1:22:00
Sales rank:	29,086

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Bob Hope	John Kidley
Martha Raye	Mickey Hawkins
Andy Devine	Henry Munch
Gale Sondergaard	Juno Marko
Alan Mowbray	Prince Smirnov
Sig Rumann	Poppa Ingleborg
Ernest Cossart	Jeepers
Paul Harvey	Jasper Hawkins
Frances Arms	Momma Ingleborg
Ivan Simpson	Kretsky
Monty Woolley	Dr. Schmidt
Foy Van Dolsen	Kretsky's Bodyguard
Christian Rub	The Mayor
Donald Haines	Julius
Gustav von Seyffertitz	Chemist
Gino Corrado	Waiter (uncredited)
Albert Dekker	Kidley's Second (uncredited)
Frank Reicher	Man in Charge of Duel (uncredited)
Victor Kilian	Man Who Loads Pistols (uncredited)
Hobart Cavanaugh	Druggist (uncredited)

Technical Credits

Farciot Edouart	Special Effects
Paul Jones	Producer
Elliott Nugent	Director
Walter Oberst	Sound/Sound Designer

Editorial Reviews

On the surface, Never Say Die would seem to have two ingredients going for it that should ensure its success: a young Bob Hope as a lead and Preston Sturges as a writer. In his prime, and before he became an institution, Hope could genuinely create an avalanche of laughs, often is surprising ways. And Sturges, of course, is one of the cinema' finest writers, with an eye and an ear for incisive, distinctive humor that is second to none. Yet the combination of the two doesn't produce fireworks, perhaps because Sturges' work has been supplemented by two other writers, or perhaps because his special sensibility doesn't really jibe with Hope's personality. Whatever the reason, and despite a perfectly workable premise, Die is at best a so-so comedy, agreeable enough and not without laughs, but surprisingly tame and ordinary. Hope's timing is as good as ever, and his natural chemistry with Martha Raye shines through, but his work lacks the spark that one expects of it in this period. For that matter, even Raye comes across as a bit subdued. The supporting cast tries to make up for this, with wheezy Andy Devine and determined Gale Sondergaard being supplemented by amusing minor turns from the likes of Monty Woolley. The result is certainly not bad by any means, but clearly disappointing given the talent involved.

All Movie Guide - Craig Butler