Customer Reviews

As Young as You Feel

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

As Young as You Feel is best known as one of Marilyn Monroe's most impressive early performances, but it is a great, entertaining, richly humorous, and thought-provoking movie in its own right. The entire cast is superb, boasting particularly impressive performances from the always acerbically funny Thelma Ritter, supporting actor extraordinaire David Wayne, the lovely Jean Peters, and the impeccably immaculate Monty Woolley. Woolley plays John Hodges, a man who loses his job working a hand press at a printing company when he turns sixty-five, as it is the policy of Consolidated Motors to force all of the workers at its subsidiaries to retire at that age. When he inquires about the parent company, no one seems to know anything about it, not even the president's name. Thus is born a brilliant scheme whereby Hodges dies his white hair and whiskers, assumes the identity of none other than CM president Harold P. Cleveland, and easily convinces the executives of Acme Printing to ignore the mandatory retirement clause in its operations. Things go a little farther than he planned, though, and he soon finds himself giving a speech at the Chamber of Commerce, dining at the country club, and causing a stir among both the public at large and the business world. His speech about the nobility of the worker, the wholly unquantifiable contribution of the aging yet skilled artisan who takes pride in his work, and his emphasis of the individual over the bureaucracy is published and spreads like wildfire, restoring a sense of pride and commitment in the public, sending the stock of Consolidated Motors through the roof, and rallying the entire national economy. This is where things get complicated, as the real president of Consolidated Motors finds out about the great speech "he" made, the truth of the matter begins to slowly work itself out, and a number of related personal issues between many of the prominent characters come to a head.

Marilyn Monroe is absolutely wonderful in her small yet significant role as the secretary to the president of Acme Publishing, demonstrating the beauty, talent (both dramatic and comedic), and charm that would soon make her a superstar. Even though her screen time ranked far below that of several of her talented co-stars and her name appears sixth in the credits, Marilyn was actually featured most prominently in the publicity associated with the movie's release in 1951, which is a remarkable testament to her star potential at that time in Hollywood. Perhaps this role as much as any of her early movie appearances brought her to the attention of the public, the critics (who hailed her performance here), and the powers that be in Hollywood. No Marilyn Monroe fan should forego the privilege of watching her brilliant performance in this heart-warming comedy, and no fan of good movies in general should pass up the opportunity of enjoying a film that gives real meaning to the phrase, "They don't make them like this anymore."

Thelma Ritter, Monty Woolley and Constance Bennett star in AS YOUNG AS YOU FEEL, a breezy comedy satire about an ageing worker in a printing firm who simply refuses to retire!

This has been issued (along with several other features) as supplements to the 'Marilyn Monroe Diamond Collection' box sets. AS YOU AS YOU FEEL is one of her earliest features, though her role is really only slightly bigger than a cameo. It's pretty clear that Fox was unsure how to fully market Monroe and was leary as to her potential.

Twentieth Century-Fox placed Marilyn in supporting roles at the beginning of her contract. These were mostly B-comedies, where she more often than not played a secretary or the sexy girl neighbour. Perhaps her best 'bit role' came when she played Miss Caswell in ALL ABOUT EVE. Monroe really got her first big acting role as Nell in the eerie noir drama DON'T BOTHER TO KNOCK (and that same year she played opposite Barbara Stanwyck in CLASH BY NIGHT).

AS YOU AS YOU FEEL is a must-own for Marilyn completists, though the show rightly belongs to Ritter, Woolley and Co.

This was Harmon Jones' first job as a director, after working as an ace editor for 20th Century Fox for some time (THE HOUSE ON 92ND STREET, BOOMERANG, ANNA AND THE KING OF SIAM were all edited by Jones). It's a good one, though not so much for Marilyn Monroe's brief appearance. She's good, but she's not "Marilyn" in this one, and in only one brief moment, when she sticks out her tongue pertly at her exasperating boss, will viewers recognize the comic Marilyn of the years to come. That said, she is already very beautiful, but this is a movie filled with beautiful women paired with homely or goofball guys.

The best reason to watch AS YOUNG AS YOU FEEL is for the charming performance by veteran Constance Bennett. "Connie" plays Lucille McKinley, a discontented society wife whose husband (Albert Dekker, a creep) is only interested in money and social position (and in Marilyn, his secretary), leaving poor Connie to fritter around looking for love in all the wrong places. She is wonderful playing the part, her long years as a star allowing her to steal the show whenever she appears on screen. She has a wide range of facial expressions, pouts and moues, and you can read her thoughts through her eyes--a marvelous gift for an actress. Her interplay with her son, the teenage Russ Tamblyn, is priceless. He can see right through her to her inner insecurity, and he plays on it for all it's worth. The scenes where she responds to Monty Woolley's invitation to "rhumba" with him are beautifully played and should have garnered Constance Bennett an Oscar nomination.

Jean Peters, meanwhile, plays the daughter of Allyn Joslyn and Thelma Ritter. They're all sitting around the breakfast table acting very Brooklyn and ethnic (it's the same menage author Paddy Chayefsky used later, to better effect, in his screenplay for A CATERED AFFAIR), in rumpled bathrobes, and meanwhile Jean Peters is eating breakfast in a sleeveless skintight evening gown cut down to there. She's very alluring, you can see why David Wayne is so mad about her. On the other hand, Thelma Ritter plays Della as though the spirit of camp had pitched its last tent on her aging brow. I usually love her, but she is completely overboard in this one, playing a housewife who regrets the day when she used to be "on the stage" as some kind of nightclub singer. The soundtrack plays "Temptation" whenever she appears or reaches for her scrapbook of her show business past. It would be funny if it wasn't so sad.

The central gimmick is so implausible it's not even worth mentioning, but you get the picture, somehow everyone in America mistakes Monty Woolley for someone he's not, and he becomes famous for it. Watching this today, it's clear that Harmon Jones had the talent to be a new kind of Billy Wilder, but subsequent studio interference saw him switch his attention from social comedies like this one, to B Westerns, and then out of features entirely and into TV. It's a shame, isn't it, but his inspired direction of the sublime Constance Bennett will live as long as anything by, say, Ernst Lubitsch, it's that delightful.

"As Young As You Feel" is the quaint little comedy about a flutist (Monty Woolley) who is forced to retire at 65 but refuses to slip quietly into his golden years. Instead he dyes his hair and impersonates the president of his former employer, bent on changing the policies of the company for the better and in the process, flirting with the president's hot, young secretary. Yep, you guessed it - Marilyn Monroe. This is Monroe before she became Monroe and its a refreshing twist on her usual sultry "dumb blonde" image that we're all so used to. She provides a genuine scent of sophistication to this otherwise trite little piece of fluff and nonsense.
TRANSFER: Something of a disappointment. Contrast levels are considerably lower than they ought to be. The result is a dull looking transfer in which fine details melt away and blacks blend into one another. Also, there is a considerable amount of grit and film grain present, as well as age related artifacts, for a picture that is not smooth. The audio has been remixed for stereo with predictably limited results.
EXTRAS: This isn't the sort of film you'd expect extras from and you won't be disappointed.
BOTTOM LINE: "As Young As You Feel" was one of the stones that paved the way for Monroe's super-stardom. But it's not one I'd recommend if you're only a casual admirer of Marilyn's charms.

The central theme of this movie (enforced retirement or, more widely, the perennial injustice of age-ism) is one we need, more than ever, to consider.

Today one is often "thrown on the scrap heap" long before one's 65th birthday. Many an experienced and/or highly intelligent worker then finds himself competing with high school dropouts, drug addicts, the psychosomatically and chronically sick, shirkers, and illegals for the most bovine and least-rewarding occupations.

A seasoned worker (a printing press operator) is forcibly retired at the height of his powers and while still in robust health. His cunning plan to get his old job back soon has him at his beloved press once more, while publicising the nation's need to retain and benefit from the most experienced and proven workers in the labour pool. The rest of the movie creatively and humorously sorts out the threatening legal problems and other consequences arising from the methods the film's hero has employed in reaching his goal.

With all the dubious causes and crusades that Hollywood collectively chooses to embark upon here, unusually, is a cause that all compassionate, fair-minded individuals can appreciate and support.

The humor is light and warm-hearted, the film's conclusion satisfactory. A refreshing and wholesome change of diet from the more typical fare of the film industry. A film well worth having and keeping.

As Young As You Feel" is a modest budget early 50's B&W comedy. While the creative people were experimenting with 'film noir' and 'neo-realism', the studios were cranking out stuff like this for a traditional audience. This adaptation of a story by Paddy Chayefsky was made during the McCarthy years, so the social satire aspect could only be subtly subversive. The themes (balancing work and play, doing work that gives you personal satisfaction, and maintaining your integrity) give the film a worthwhile message and are not delivered in an overbearing manner.

Monty Woolley (as John Hodges) carries the film as a printer who is pushed into retirement at age 65 and decides to impersonate the president of the holding company that owns the printing plant where he worked. This sets up a sort of 'Being There' effect, where his views on national affairs become an inspiration to the whole country. David Wayne (who would eventually play the Mad Hatter on "Batman") plays his prospective son-in-law and their scenes are all gems, partly because they have a real chemistry and partly because they got the best dialogue. The best scene is the opening, a very well staged scene of the company orchestra playing the "Nutcracker": the camera opens on a promotional poster, pans left and takes us into the concert hall as a little girl scurries her seat. The camera moves around in the crowd where we meet most of the main characters. Hodges is playing one of the piccolos and he soon launches into an impromptu solo, much to the annoyance of the guest conductor and an accurate preview of what his role will be throughout the film.

This film is fairly entertaining but is most valuable as a cultural artifact. Because it was not a high budget production the cast is almost entirely older stars at the very end of their careers (like Wooley and Constance Bennett) and young actors at the beginning (Wayne, Jean Peters, and Marilyn Monroe-in a small part). So there is a kind of torch passing at work. It is also hints at Monroe's special screen presence which somehow allowed her beat the Hollywood starlet system. She and Peters were the same age (both were born in 1926) and had both started too late in the movie business. By this film they had already lost all the youthful luster of their early 20's (check out how much better Peters looked two years earlier in 'It Happens Every Spring' and Monroe before she became a blonde), yet Monroe was somehow able to transcend this and become a big star.

Arthur Miller said of Monroe: "She was rarely taken seriously as anything but a sex symbol. To have survived, she would have had to be either more cynical or even further from reality than she was. Instead, she was a poet on a street corner trying to recite to a crowd pulling at her clothes."

Then again, what do I know? I'm only a child.

I watched this film thinking it was going to be a sweet Marilyn Monroe film. To my great surprise, it was about a 65 year old man (Monty Woolley) who lost his job because the big corporation who bought his business (among dozens of other businesses) decides all employees must retire at age 65. Having lost his dignity, he tries to find out who is the President (in today's terms, CEO) of this big corporation, Consolidated Motors is (i.e., General Motors). No one in his company even knows the president's name, so far removed he is from this business! So the man with the lost dignity has an idea to pose as the President making a tour of the plant, In the end, he makes a speech that begins to turn the tide in the way the company handles its employees. And it goes all the way to the top! A fairy story, perhaps. But for our times, a wonderful analogy for how one "little guy" at the bottom refuses to take what the corporation is doling out and stands up for his dignity.

A must see in the age of "Occupy Wall Street."

What a fun film! This is one for the entire family- The premise of course no longer applies, with people being forced to retire at age 65, but the comedy transends time! All the actors are great, and naturally Monty Woolley is the funniest of all- They just don't make films like this anymore and that is the shame of it. This genre of the 50's can never be duplicated, don't pass this one by-

Fast service on an early Mm film. Not a great script, but enjoyable performances by cast.

a very boring "comedy." no jokes, not funny, slow, tedious, incomprehensible plot, yet when comprehensible, an idiotic plot. the only bright spot is of course, MM. in it you will hear her real, natural voice, which i found interesting. yet you can hear her real voice in other early works other than this mundane movie.