Steineded How sad is this?

Arianna Moses Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

Kien Navarro Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

Ginger Very good movie overall, highly recommended. Most of the negative reviews don't have any merit and are all pollitically based. Give this movie a chance at least, and it might give you a different perspective.

jacobs-greenwood This terrific little gem of a drama puts forth the idea that we all "settle" in life, for a life (or person) more "stable" or, at least, more comfortable (e.g. per our upbringing). Though we may passionately believe we want that something (or someone) else, for practical reasons (or other circumstances) we'll accept "less". We may even hold onto an old dream, which we've romanticized about to the point that all the negatives are gone and only the positives remain in our memories, such that we believe it can still be made to work ... only to find that the moment has passed, we've changed, and/or the "air is out of the balloon":Such was the relationship portrayed between the staid title character, played by Robert Young, and a businesswoman, whose character was intentionally given the male name of Marvin, but is played by the decidedly unmasculine Hedy Lamarr. Though Pulham was raised to marry a woman like Kay (Ruth Hussey), whom he eventually does, he spends his early years in the advertising business pursuing co-worker (and artist?) Marvin, who's a bit too "modern" for his conservative family's values.The story is told in flashback, with Pulham examining his life while writing his Harvard class biography. Coincidentally, he's just gotten a call from Marvin, who's also married and just wants to meet for drinks after all these years.Produced and directed by King Vidor (who co-wrote the screenplay, based on the John Marquand novel with his wife Elizabeth Hill), the cast is excellent and includes Charles Coburn as Young's father, Van Heflin as his longtime friend, classmate and business associate, Fay Holden as his mother, Bonita Granville as his sister, Douglas Wood as his boss, and Sara Haden as his secretary. Charles Halton plays a client of the ad agency, Leif Erickson a football playing friend of Pulham's, and Anne Revere (uncredited) his father's secretary. Frank Faylen, Byron Foulger, Ava Gardner (her second film), Connie Gilchrist, and Grant Withers also appear uncredited.

st-shot To the manor born Henry Pulham has his life mapped out for him by an overbearing father (Charles Coburn). Garnering experience in his early years he meets and falls in love with Marvin Ransome (Hedy Lamar) an ambitious and vivacious woman who exposes the staid Pulham to a wider world. Still, family responsiblities remain a priority and HM is prodded by dad to get his life in order which entails losing Marvin and marrying someone else. Assuming his fathers role in the business Pulham becomes the well respected man but with regrets. Years later he once again crosses paths with Marvin and is forced to confront feelings he stifled over the years.Pulham's staid style never builds much of a fever pitch in spite of the alluring Lamar. Young's Pulham spends most of the film in a dull funk being casually pushed around by his father and called on it by Marvin. He's just not that much fun or interesting to follow around, his station in life just doesn't allow it. Van Heflin and Ruth Hussey as his wife lend fine supporting performances while Coburn takes the acting honors as the forever lecturing old man.Silent film director King Vidor made the move to sound as smoothly as anyone but it was usually with downtrodden characters (The Crowd, Street Scene, Halaluah ,The Champ, our Daily Bread ) and situations that he could build on the desperate pitch of. In Pulham we have a poor little rich kid who never shows much backbone or confronts much high drama. Vidor is ultimately hamstrung by his title character's incertitude and timidity and the film slides to it's conclusion without much life.

Andy (film-critic) Throughout this project of watching nearly every movie ever made, or at least in every attempt possible, I am beginning to discover which films speak to me. There are those that entertain, those that mentally challenge, and those that transform your cinematic experience all together, but for me, the type of film that excites me these days are the delicate semi-biographical pre-1950s story. With a cautious blend of "Citizen Kane" and "Magnificent Ambersons" with that of the modern "Mad Men", the barely watched film, "H.M. Pulham, Esq." finally arrived at the doorstep. Unbeknownst that this film would be reminiscent of such films, I began with the unknown. Available only via Warner's print-on- demand DVD Vault, there was a level of uncertainty as to why this had never been released, or would the print be so destroyed the experience would be lost (see review of "The Lady and the Monster"). To my surprise, it wasn't – and this two hour epic ("epic" is correct; due to the emotion, landscape, and themes of this film) quickly filled the cannon that was once overpopulated by Orson Welles. With dry characters like Harry Pulham and Kay Motford countered with the exciting Marvin Myles and Bill King as well as the quintessential sledding scene (needed in every semi-biographical film), "H.M. Pulham, Esq." pulled ahead in the ranks as I settled down for an amazing feature. It was shocking, intelligent, slow, predictable, and a bit pioneering for the date – and I loved every minute of it."H.M. Pulham, Esq." tells the story of a man, Harry Pulham (played simply by Robert Young) as he randomly gets a call from a Harvard friend requesting that he write a bit of a biography for the upcoming reunion. Coincidentally, he gets a call the same day from an old flame, and Harry uses the entire day to give us the "It's a Wonderful Life" flashback scenario where we learn about his life, and current consequences. As we travel back and forth, we fall in love with a core of four characters, Harry (of course), Marvin Myles the sassy co-worker, Bill King the obnoxious lady-killer, and Kay everyone's safe bet. It is these four characters that take us from New York to the country, from love to hate, and from passion to comfort. As Harry continues to look back onto his life, he begins to question his decisions, and the world of possibilities available."H.M. Pulham, Esq." would not have worked had it not been for these four characters. It is a driven character drama, thus without our actors taking full opportunity, it would have transformed into this two-hour snooze-fest, but instead they embraced, and allowed us to get to know each one individually, as well as a whole. Robert Young's Harry is probably the easiest to swallow, because is portrays him as this unguided everyman, lured by the life of NYC, but focused on family and dedication. His friends pull him in every direction, but he is grounded must make the decision between love and comfort. Each one of our characters builds upon this story, and where it succeeds the most is that director King Vidor (you know, the one that gave us the Kansas scenes in "Wizard of Oz" as well as "War and Peace") isn't afraid to push the limits. Or, at least the limits allowed in 1941. Again, I cannot stress that this is a fictional biography story that melds well within the folds of society. Vidor has succeeded greatly in this little feature because he has taken the great elements of "Magnificent Ambersons" and "It's A Wonderful Life" and plopped them into this unknown feature. Yes, at times it is long - and you better believe that there are moments that date this film - but in the end, it will warm your heart, but also make you look within your own life."H.M. Pulham, Esq" feels like a universal film. It is one of those movies that goes great with snow outside and a warm glass of cider. It shows a side of cinema that we forget about when we think of classic cinema. During this project, I have watched two films that stood beyond the norm - that Hollywood seemed to snub - and fell in love with both of them. One was the film I have repeated throughout this review, "The Magnificent Ambersons", and the second is this little film. Again, it is a simple film that presses a message relevant in 1941 or 2009, the idea of choices and consequences.Overall, I may sound repetitive with this, but I loved with this film had to offer. Perhaps it was my mood for the evening, or the sense of nostalgia for this style of film, but this film took me back to a simple cinematic experience. There was booze, talk of sex, and infidelity all within the two hours, which surprised me greatly. The actors did their parts with great effort, and each point went to the next. There was a purpose behind each person's actions, and it was developed. Not just dropped to the floor. King Vidor did a fantastic job behind the camera giving us lush landscapes and power driven characters. If you don't mind spending some money for this film, I would suggest a viewing. It was impressive.Grade: **** out of *****

jaykay-10 Though dealing primarily with an upper-class character, this picture involves decisions and emotional conflicts that everyone can relate to. The bittersweet story reminds us that to a greater or lesser extent we all settle for something less than the life we dreamed of. On the surface, the characters here are happy: they say they are, and they mean it. But beneath that surface are disappointment and longing that they keenly feel when the past is recalled. Better not to think about it, and just go on with the life you have.Hedy Lamarr was a curious choice for this role. It doesn't really suit her, but she handles it better than one might expect.