☆ ☆ ☆ ½
Here
Comes Mr. Jordan (1941) – A. Hall
Agreeable fantasy (later remade with
Warren Beatty) that sees boxer Robert Montgomery (father of Elizabeth)
mistakenly claimed for Heaven by Edward Everett Horton before his time. So, Mr. Jordan (Claude Rains) promises to
find him a replacement body and eventually deposits him inside a millionaire who
has just been murdered by his wife and secretary. Montgomery resists at first but when he sees
the injustices fostered by the millionaire and falls in love with the daughter
of one of his victims, he decides to stay in the body (despite wishing to fight
for the world championship anyway). Not
exactly a laugh riot but genial and with some good performances (particularly
by James Gleason as Montgomery’s manager in the ring). Rains has not much to do but he is always a
pleasure to watch. Montgomery’s loutish
New York mugging was a bit difficult for me to take but probably engaged the
audiences of the time. Also the idea
that our fates are predestined didn’t quite jell with the notion that
Montgomery has some control over the road he is on, but ah well. Above average.
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