Wordiezett So much average

Humaira Grant It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.

Scarlet The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

Caryl It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties. It's a feast for the eyes. But what really makes this dramedy work is the acting.

bkoganbing Van Johnson and June Allyson team up with young Butch Jenkins in The Bride Goes Wild, really a rather inaccurate title. She doesn't go wild at all, in fact Allyson's a very proper young lady. But she does have a rather wild wedding through no doing of her own at the climax.She's an illustrator who is hired by a publishing company to do pictures for a series of children's books that are published under the name of Uncle Bumps. The character of Uncle Bumps as described seems to be a more civilized version of Gabby Hayes. But like Mark Twain is a creation of Samuel Langhorne Clemens, Uncle Bumps is the pseudonym for Van Johnson who's a rather wolfish sort and just eagerly contemplating how to get better acquainted with June.Allyson's a frustrated mom wannabe so Johnson borrows young Butch Jenkins from an orphanage, a kid with some behavioral issues. Today he'd be on all kinds of meds, but back in the day that wasn't available.As Johnson is running into a creative dry spell, young Jenkins proves to be something of a muse. And he does actually draw Johnson and Allyson closer together despite the fact they have some long term involvements, he with Arlene Dahl and she with Richard Derr.I think you see where this is going. I wish The Bride Goes Wild, misnamed title though it has was run more often. It's a nice family comedy and Jenkins has some real appeal as a child star. Allyson and Johnson were teamed many times by MGM and this film is a perfect example of their chemistry together.

moonspinner55 June Allyson doing her thing. This time, she's a down-home gal and ace illustrator who wins a contest for her artwork to be used in a new children's book penned by the beloved Uncle Bumps, a modern-day Hans Christian Andersen. Turns out Uncle Bumps is really a hard-drinking, free-wheeling bachelor who dislikes children--yet he is so taken with this uptight artist once he meets her, he attempts to woo her under an alias. Why? It doesn't matter, for this is a vehicle for Allyson and Van Johnson (movie favorites at the time), and the script treats their characters like human bumper-cars just to keep star-watchers on their toes. Johnson's ruse is soon exposed, forcing him to emulate an honorable guy--which includes 'borrowing' an orphan to pose as his son. June threatens to dislodge him from the ranks of celebrity by reporting him to her cousin, a banner of controversial books and plays (she actually seems to proud to know such a person). Throw in an obnoxious hometown beau waiting in the wings, a wedding overcome with ants, and Hume Cronyn as a publisher on the brink of a nervous breakdown, and you have all the ingredients for a laughless family fracas done with neither style nor merit. *1/2 from ****

jotix100 June Allyson and Van Johnson were paired by their studio in several pictures. Once MGM type-casted someone, or Hollywood, for that matter, an actor, or an actress, went to appear in other films performing, basically, the same role. Which seems to be the case with "The Bride Goes Wild", directed by Norman Taurog, a veteran film director who always made pleasant movies.The premise in this film is just an excuse for presenting all these players in a comedy typical of the times. After all, the times were hopeful and happy right after the WWII and a semblance of normalcy was the intention. This is a silly comedy that wouldn't have been made today.In the other comment submitted to this forum, the contributor links what appears to be a gay subtext to all one sees in the movie, and in many aspects, it makes sense. Hollywood was notorious for being a gigantic closet where gays were safely kept even though everyone seemed to realize what really was going on.June Allyson and Van Johnson are given the same roles to play. Butch Jenkins, a child actor, appears as Danny, the orphan that Greg Rawlings, the Van Johnson character, is passing as his own son. Arlene Dahl doesn't have much to do. Hume Cronyn, Una Merkel and Richard Derr play the supporting roles.Watch the film as a curiosity as long as you don't have any expectations.

petershelleyau This 1948 MGM comedy is enlivened by the sight gags utilised by director Norman Taurog, and the performance of June Allyson as Martha Terryton, a Vermont school teacher who is made an illustrator for `wild' New York children's book writer `Uncle Bumps' aka Greg Rawlings (Van Johnson). The screenplay by Albert Beich employs the standard contemptuous ploy of a man deceiving a `prudish' woman in order to romance her. Greg pretends to be the father of 8 year old delinquent orphan Danny (Butch Jenkins) to improve Martha's perception of him, after their initial meeting where she has been repelled by his advances. This set up is made to be exposed as the climax, with the middle section devoted to supplying reasons that will help Martha make the right choice. The romance is given another angle in that she has an `understanding' ie engagement with school manual training teacher Bruce Johnson (Richard Derr) so that he exists as the sane alternative to Greg. What gives the screenplay an unintentional subtext is our hindsight of Johnson's sexual preference, with the word `gay' used in its original innocent context. The subtext is particularly noticeable in the scenes between Greg and his publisher John McGrath (Hume Cronyn), from the actors performances (note how Cronyn squeals at the sight of a small snake) and one scene shot on a balcony. Johnson is bare-chested wearing a swimming costume, and Taurog frames the actors so that the line of the balcony ledge makes Johnson appear to be naked next to Cronyn. The subtext can also be read in Greg's fetishist attraction to Martha's long hair, and when Martha shows Greg her sketches of Bruce, where he asks `No nudes?'. Johnson's different behavior toward the Allyson as the prudish virgin and Arlene Dahl as Tilly, Greg's alleged `married' vampy girlfriend. Like the later Rock Hudson and even Cary Grant, Johnson's less stereotypically masculine persona plays off better with a less stereotypically female.Beich's narrative allows for physical comedy, including much leg kicking by Danny, water splashing, prat falls, Greg being injured by Bruce's use of Greg's typewriter, traps at a woodland camping site, a snoring fat man on a bus, ants at a wedding, Martha offering her forehead for Bruce to kiss because of the disparity in height between Allyson and Derr, and `wild' driving, featuring terrible rear projection. John's car needing to be towed after it has stalled during his search for Greg provides for a nice link when Greg borrows the car of the tow truck business, and John's car is attached with John still inside. There is also a witty sea-themed bar with a mermaid cigarette girl, a waiter dressed in a deep-sea diver's outfit, and a gag with a fake octopus. Beich also gets a laugh from the first meeting between Greg and Danny, where they observe each others freckles. Beich and Taurog also have fun playing with Allyson's persona. At first she makes Martha's pouting prudishness funny, her mouth somewhat reminiscent of Judy Garland in her good girl roles. What makes Greg's `No nudes?' line so funny is Martha's `Certainly not!' reaction. Allyson's sociopathic smiling is paralled with her hilarious faux-crying after Greg has got her drunk, and she also scores laughs from her parody of Dahl's vamp acting, including wearing duplicate clothes. As if to mock Greg, Martha gets her haircut for her make-over, though before that she wears a provocative Helen Rose sheer blouse under a white suit, which gives the impression of being low-cut. Taurog does wonders with an obviously small budget. The black and white photography may have been made to down play the freckles of Johnson and Jenkins, but it merely makes them look bruised. Jenkins is very likeable, but Johnson becomes tiresome, and Dahl acts like she studied baby vamp under Lana Turner.