Let's Make It Legal

1951 "Who Cares If It's Legal As Long As It's Tempting! Virile! Tantalizing! Smooth! Wow!"
6.1| 1h17m| NR| en| More Info
Released: 31 October 1951 Released
Producted By: 20th Century Fox
Country: United States of America
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
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Synopsis

A woman divorces her husband of 20 years because he gambles too much.

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20th Century Fox

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Reviews

Lovesusti The Worst Film Ever
SunnyHello Nice effects though.
FuzzyTagz If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.
Invaderbank The film creates a perfect balance between action and depth of basic needs, in the midst of an infertile atmosphere.
Antonius Block It's the 50's: everyone is dressed up at work and at home, pitchers of dry martinis are the order of the day, and liberal use of DDT is the best bet for killing aphids on roses. You can't help but smile at some of this stuff. There's nothing terribly amazing about the script in this romantic comedy, which has a couple (Claudette Colbert and Macdonald Carey) divorcing after 20 years of marriage, and a jet-setter and old flame (Zachary Scott) swooping in on her. What's fun is the cast - Colbert is a delight and looks fantastic at age 48, her son-in-law is played by a slender 21-year-old Robert Wagner, and a blonde fortune hunter who appears in a few scenes is played by 25-year-old Marilyn Monroe, right before she became mega-famous. It's light entertainment with a cutesy ending.
blanche-2 Claudette Colbert, Macdonald Carey, Zachary Scott, Robert Wagner, Barbara Bates, and Marilyn Monroe star in "Let's Make it Legal," a 1951 20th Century Fox comedy. It's a fast little black and white film about a divorcing couple, the Hugh Halsworths (Colbert and Carey), their daughter Barbara (Bates) and her new husband Jerry (Wagner).The premise is that the Halsworths are divorcing because Hugh is a compulsive gambler and Miriam, his wife, has had about all she can stand. So they've separated and the divorce is final at midnight. But Hugh is always hanging around, spraying his roses or entering the house on some other excuse.Their daughter is having marital adjustment problems: She loves her mother waiting on her hand and foot and taking care of the new baby, but her husband wants them to have their own place. Barbara hopes her parents will get back together, which Jerry attributes to her selfish motives. In the midst of all this, an old boyfriend of Barbara's (Scott) enters the picture and proposes.This film is of interest due to an early appearance of Marilyn Monroe as a sexy young woman most anxious to meet the very wealthy Victor (Scott). It's also of interest to me because Colbert and Carey play young grandparents - not young people playing characters supposed to be older, but actual young grandparents. You don't see much of that in classic era films. Hugh tells Scott he married Miriam right out of school. (In actuality, Carey was about 38 at this time and Colbert was 48)."Let's Make it Legal" is also of interest as a look at how the studios worked. This isn't a big movie, so it's used as a training ground for two contract players, Wagner and Bates, neither of whom are very good. The studio probably appeased agent Johnny Hyde, who was ambitious for his client Monroe by giving her a small role. They used the film as a vehicle for Colbert, who in Hollywood, though still beautiful, is past her sell by date and relegated to less expensive films, as well as the washed up Scott. They pair her with a B leading man, Carey, whose big success was in television.This isn't a great movie. It's light, it's amusing, it's somewhat dated. Seeing Colbert is always a pleasure and Carey was an amiable actor, Scott an attractive one. Sadly both Bates, who later committed suicide, and Scott suffered from depression. Scott at this point in his career concentrated on stage and television work.Pleasant comedy.
edwagreen 1:17 didn't do justice to this movie. The scenes with Zachary Scott of Mildred Pierce fame with Claudette Colbert were ridiculous. You expected Colbert to look the way she did in 1951, but Scott looked like he could be his son, especially with that tan.The plot was funny with a couple about to have their divorce become final and the sudden reappearance of the boyfriend (Scott) after a 20 year absence.MacDonald Carey and Colbert had excellent chemistry as the couple whose marriage has gone awry. Ditto for Robert Wagner, their son-in-law and the end of All About Eve's Barbara Bates. Wagner shows that he can be a little uptight and downright nasty in some scenes.Too little use was made of Marilyn Monroe. Now, if she had been made Carey's really young girlfriend with some romantic scenes, the laughs would have increased.
MtDewdependant This is probably one of Marilyn's least watched films. She didn't have much screen time but I thought it was a pretty cute movie. Claudette Colbert is almost unbelievable as a grandmother because she is still so beautiful. The ending is great. Too cute. 4 stars out of 5.