Melodie nesbitt--donna reed accused of stealing car--odd how family handled it asks andy to take melodie out company suing mrs hardy'

"The Courtship of Andy Hardy" is generally a good addition to the franchise. Sadly, though, one of the storylines just makes no sense...hence the score is only 6.

When the story begins, Judge Hardy is presiding over a case involving two horrible parents whose divorce proceedings have drug on for years...all to the detriment of their daughter, Melodie (Donna Reed). Melodie parrots her mother's hatred for the father and she's a lonely, sad young lady. Later in the story, Judge Hardy asks Andy for a favor....to ask Melodie out to the upcoming dance. It turns out that she's never dated anyone and Andy is willing...even though she is shunned by her peers.

There are other parts to the story--such as Marian dating a loser and Mrs. Hardy being harassed by a dishonest company. But the one that stood out for me involved Andy being accused of stealing a car...this and the resolution to it made no sense at all nor did Judge Hardy's reaction to it. Bizarre to say the least...though the rest of the film is the usual nice, wholesome sort of fair fans of the series have come to expect.

Copyright 10 February 1942 by Loew's Inc. Presented by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. New York opening at the Capitol: 9 April 1942. U.S. release: March 1942. Australian release: 3 December 1943. 9 reels. 8,549 feet. 95 minutes.

SYNOPSIS: The title is a misnomer. Andy doesn't court Donna Reed. He dates the poor girl a couple of times simply to please his dear old dad.

NOTES: The governors of The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences granted a Special Award to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studio "for its achievement in representing the American Way of Life in the production of the Andy Hardy series of films". (Given at the 1942 Awards Ceremony on 4 March 1943). Number 12 in the 16-picture series.

COMMENT: Probably the worst entry in the entire series, this one has only the latent attractiveness of both Cecilia Parker and Donna Reed to recommend it. The writer has invested it with a multiplicity of plots - all of them phony soap opera, concerning such trivia as the length of Marian's hem-line (the film's attitude is archly ultra-conservative - a hem-line three inches above the ankle is definitely OUT) and will Mrs Hardy be able to balance her bank book? Oh yes, the plot has its serious side too: Will young Melody Nesbit be able to overcome the social stigma of her parents being divorced?

All this rubbish is carried forward (with surprisingly jerky continuity) in excruciatingly long dialogue scenes which allow Lewis Stone to preach his cornball, reach-me-down philosophy at length. George B. Seitz's direction is not only as dull as usual, but less than competent.

Production values are distinctly minor, the film ending abruptly to save the expense of a finale featuring the football dance.

Another wonderful entry in the immensely enjoyable Andy Hardy series, even if this one's plot strains credulity at times. Judge Hardy (Lewis Stone) handles a case where divorced parents are so busy hating each other they're turning their daughter Melodie (Donna Reed) into a bitter and lonely young woman. So the Judge asks his son Andy (Mickey Rooney) to date Melodie, whom Andy refers to as a droop and a sad apple. The Judge hopes outgoing and fun Andy can bring some happiness to Melodie. Meanwhile, daughter Marian (Cecilia Parker) has returned home from the big city, seemingly more mature and sophisticated with some newfangled ideas that don't sit well with her conservative parents.

The idea that high school boys wouldn't fall over themselves to date Donna Reed, one of the most beautiful women to ever grace the silver screen, is a bit of a joke but these types of plots were and still are common in Hollywood. Some of the ideals and morals in these Hardy films may be mocked by cynical modern viewers but there's something to be said for them, I think. They're good old-fashioned wholesome stories with a nice mix of drama and comedy. The cast of regulars is great. Frieda Inescort plays Reed's mother. In an amusing bit of trivia, Todd Karns plays a boy interested in Donna Reed's character. In Reed's most famous movie, It's a Wonderful Life, Karns played her brother-in-law Harry Bailey.