Customer Reviews

Tender Trap [VHS]

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

- Julie Gillis to Charlie Reader (responding to his offer of dinner): "Well, I've only known you a few minutes, but you seem fairly nice. You're even attractive in a...offbeat, beat-up sort of way."
- Charlie: "Thanks a lot."
- Julie: "But I can't have dinner with every nice, attractive man I meet. It's not part of my plan."
- Charlie: "How's that plan again?"
- Julie: "My marriage plan."

Frank Sinatra plays New York theater agent and swingin' bachelor Charlie Y. Reader, whose tryst with a hottie is interrupted by his sarcastic, longtime pal Joe from Indianapolis, who pays him a visit and then becomes a house guest (he'd just left his wife, Ethel, you see?). When Joe marvels at the series of beautiful dames Frank sees ("Where do all these tomatoes come from?"), Frank tells him, "Sure, it's fun. But let's face it...I would be happy to trade this rat race for your set-up in two seconds." Turns out Frank is weary of the fast lane and longs for domesticated bliss - if only he could find the right girl. One candidate seems to be Sylvia Crewes (Celeste Holm), a sexy, sophisticated fiddle-player.

But, then, in comes 21-year-old aspiring actress Julie Gillis (Debbie Reynolds), with whom Charlie is instantly attracted. But Julie is uptight, rigid and exacting, with definite, long-conceived plans for marriage. And, no, she doesn't at all buy what Charlie's selling. That is, until, he sings a song. Then, of course, she's butter.

So Charlie and Julie start keeping company, with Sylvia then being perenially stood up and Joe going out with her as Charlie's stand-in. Anyway, for Charlie and Julie, the usual events unfold, a bit of wooing followed by a big spat, leading up to a traumatized Charlie somehow proposing marriage to both Julie and Sylvia on the same night.

Oh, yes. Meanwhile, the still-married Joe has fallen hard for Sylvia. How ever do these wacky things happen?

Put me down as someone who finds THE TENDER TRAP a charming and enjoyable movie. It's a breezy, lightweight, metropolitan sex comedy, for all that it's material that would probably be PG rated today (this is very tame stuff compared to more contemporary films). I've always liked how this film started, with Ol' Blue Eyes as a tiny figure on the horizon, casually strolling towards the camera and singing the title song as only he can ("You see a pair of laughing eyes..."). MGM released THE TENDER TRAP in 1955, and it turned out to be one of the first films to revamp Frank's screen image from a perenially shy crooner who loved his love from afar to a hip ladies' man who doesn't waste time getting close to his dames.

The cast is very nice. We all know Frank Sinatra and what he brings to the table; he's so relaxed and cool that he makes me want to be a womanizing heel (and armed with Charlie Reader's favorite come-on line - "You are the softest girl" - how can I lose?). Frank gets a good sidekick in David Wayne, who's very good as the level-headed Joe McCall (even if Joe's going thru a mid-life crisis). Wayne drops his share of one-liners and even makes a serious bid for one of Frank's girls.

Pretty Debbie Reynolds was personally riding high around this time, about to marry warbler Eddie Fisher. As Julie, she really makes that prim and proper act work, while showing glimpses of a softer, more vulnerable side. But I couldn't help but root for Celeste Holm's character, who is pragmatic yet wistful, mature yet ever so sexy. Her Sylvia may be a suave and cosmopolitan career woman, but, deep down, she wants the same things that Julie wants, which is a family of her own. Her bittersweet speech to David Wayne (about the lean prospects of a woman of 33) may just have been the best acting moment in this movie. For those who may have pulled for Sylvia and Charlie to get together, no worries. They kind of do, even if it's in another film (High Society). But even in this movie, Celeste ends up doing pretty well, successfully pulling off her own "tender trap."

For those expecting a bunch of songs, well, don't. THE TENDER TRAP is very much a comedy, and not a musical. But if you like the title song, then the good news is that it's reprised five times, with Frank doing the opening honors and then performing it again halfway thru (in the second version, his talent for phrasing really shines thru). Debbie does a breezy version and then, later, sings it with more feeling. And the four stars sing a brief rendition at the end. It's a good song, so no surprise that "The Tender Trap" would become a standard and a fixture in Frank's song repertoire.

I say, three and a half stars for THE TENDER TRAP. The sexual mores may be dated, and the jargon not so hip anymore, but the movie's still very much worth checking out. As a fan of Frank, I definitely feel that his presence elevates the picture, although the contributions of the other actors shouldn't be discounted.

You know, on second thought, I think I'll pass on that one pick-up line. I think only someone like Frank can pull off something as cheesy as "You're the softest girl."

*The Tender Trap* has got to be one of the most scathing indictments of Fifties life ever put to screen. The screenwriters practically beat us over the head with their disgust of the reigning conformities. It's right in the title, after all: "Trap".

I'm afraid that, today, this movie will be misunderstood. People will see it as another dumb Sinatra Swinging-Guy movie with a hep little tune thrown in. You gotta read between the lines with this one: consider the Debbie Reynolds character. She says things like "A woman just isn't FULFILLED until she's married and has children, dontcha think?" Her character has a promising career as a stage singer, but will throw it away toot-sweet just as soon as she can find herself a husband. In fact, her single-minded, frenzied ambition for landing a hubby should send up the red flags for you. The screenwriters, in their own frenzy of sarcasm, have created a terrifying figure in the chillingly perky frame of Miss Reynolds. Jeepers, she even goes to some sort of Homemakers Convention, sizing up the appliances and furniture, husband-hunting in the weirdest way I've ever seen in a movie -- she has several men sit in a easy chair, trying to discern WHICH man best "fits in" with the furniture she's fond of. Uh, the message is pretty loud and clear!

Sinatra's buddy from Indianapolis, the not-coincidentally named Joe (the typical American Shmo, 50's style), loves his wife of eleven years so much that he decides to shack up with Sinatra's Charlie for TWO WEEKS, to do . . . what? Figure it out. This Joe guy, played by David Wayne, is the probably the key to the whole picture, and is certainly contrasted with marriage-and-babies-crazy Debbie Reynolds. We see the results of a good Fifties marriage: Joe hides out, drinking and smoking like a maniac in his swinger-friend's sleazy apartment, whining about his wife's love of wall-to-wall carpeting and the cost of the kids' braces. He begins dating one of the swinger's girlfriends, Sylvia (brilliantly played by Celeste Holm). This Family Man proposes to Sylvia near the end of the picture (she talks him out of it). The hypocrite will return home to his wife in Indianapolis, who will never know how close her husband came to abandoning her. Getting the idea? Sylvia's another key character: in a startling monologue directed at Joe, she talks about how a woman is washed up by the age of 33. There are no available men left (thanks to the emasculating Reynolds types who circle guys like a pride of sharks), and those who are available are nutcases working on their fifth divorce, 19-year-olds looking for Mamas, etc. It's yet another depressing, scathing, indictment of what was going on culturally.

Another great scene is when Sinatra and Reynolds are alone at her parents' apartment. They turn on TV, and watch a bathing couple make out. Panting, Ms. Reynolds switches off the set and opens what she hopes will be a dull art book, which turns out to contain sexy Raphaelite prints. She slams the book closed, only to see a married couple make out from the apartment across the way. Aroused, Sinatra puts the make on her, and she tells him that the other couple have the "right" to do that, because of their state of grace as a married couple. Predictably, the scene ends in a big fight, which is the only way these horribly repressed people can release all their pent-up hormones.

Invaluable as a study of 1950's attitudes toward sex and marriage, *The Tender Trap* will surprise you. It was the Good Old Days . . . and certain moviemakers were none too happy about it. Fascinating.

I didn't grow up with Frank Sinatra, so the title song was just a nice Sinatra tune I'd heard a few times before I saw this film. Watching Debbie Reynolds and Sinatra perform it was sublime. (the 'finale' performance is dreadful, however)

As for the film itself, all you really need to know is that Sinatra is the New York bachelor, still playing the field into his thirties. Reynolds is dead-set on getting married: she has a deadline picked out, among other things. Sinatra goes after Reynolds.

While at first I found Reynolds' character to be over the top, the scene in which she's scouting out her future home decorations sold me. She's eccentric, but once she finds her man she nestles right in. Sinatra is right at home in the role, of course.

As to the plot, it does drag, but I think the only thing this film is guilty of is treating the issues it brings up with respect. Naturally, it all comes to the climactic conflict, and I applaud The Tender Trap for not sweeping it out of the viewer's mind as cleanly as another light-hearted film might. The characters are in a mess, and the innocent (or foolish) stand to get hurt. The film takes the time to resolve each of their situations admirably. It's not the swiftest wrap-up, but I think it pays off for the patient.

And then you can rewind it and watch Sinatra and Reynolds perform (Love Is) The Tender Trap all over again.

THE TENDER TRAP is a movie about a New York bachelor (Frank Sinatra) who has a bevy of girls flowing through his New York apartment to the amazement of his old friend (David Wayne). Wayne is a married man from Indiana who is visiting without his family and staying with Sinatra. A seemingly naive but determined young actress (Debbie Reynolds) from Scarsdale eventually puts an end to Sinatra's fun by springing her own tender trap. Before this happens she gets a lot of competition from a slightly older woman (Celeste Holm). At one point Sinatra is engaged to both women.

The film may be quite dated but it is still entertaining. The supporting cast includes Carolyn Jones and Lola Albright.

Charles Walters also directed EASTER PARADE and HIGH SOCIETY. THE TENDER TRAP received an Oscar nomination in 1955 for Best Song ("Love is the Tender Trap").

Set in the world of 1950s show business, THE TENDER TRAP tells the love story of Charlie Reader (Frank Sinatra), a 40-something bachelor theater agent and Julie Gillis (Debbie Reynolds), a 21 year-old ingenue who, six months after graduation, is cast in her first play.

To the naked eye, the main characters have nothing in common. Charlie is a playboy with all the toys and playthings that come with life in 1950s Manhattan. His bachelor pad is well appointed for casual romance. With an expansive view of the Brooklyn Bridge, a cozy sofa and a well-stocked bar, his apartment attracts what seems like a never-ending parade of gorgeous young starlets - much to the amusement of his married, hometown friend, Joe McCall (David Wayne), who is visiting during a rough time in his own marriage.

Julie, on the other hand, is determined to end her single life - precisely on the same calendar day her mother married at 22. Completely uninterested in scrawny, aimless Charlie and signing the acting contract that will keep her working beyond March 12th when she plans to marry, Julie is not a "sure thing" to say the least.

What happens next is perhaps formulaic in the grand tradition of old Hollywood films. Still TENDER TRAP is a terrific movie that I recommend highly to women looking for mindless entertainment. Plus, in a supporting role, Celeste Holm does a great job playing the quintessential 33 year old Manhattan woman, who seems as real today, in the aftermath of "Sex & the City," as she was 50 years ago.

- Regina McMenamin

The opening sequence, where Frank walks toward the camera and sings the title song, is more than worth the price of admission. Well acted, and amusing throughout. Enjoy

The movie made women look a little cheap back in those years. The movie would be a little more suited for today time, where most people have sex and live together more now then at the time.

I thoroughly enjoyed this sugary piece of 1950s nostalgia. While it's certainly not one of Sinatra's strongest pictures from the period (I'd give that nod to the likes of Some Came Running, etc.), it's a nice showcase of Sinatra in his prime during his absolutely fantastic Capitol period. The boyish charm of the 1940s had mellowed, and Sinatra was looser, more comfortable in his own skin, and positively oozing a rakish charm. Oh he could be nice and respectable, but there was more of an edge to the man during this phase of his career that can be seen even in a lightweight vehicle such as this. The moment when Sinatra's character, Charlie, realizes that without Julie his swingin' single life amounts to absolutely nothing actually comes off rather poignantly. Debbie Reynolds plays Julie with aplomb - at this stage in Reynolds' career I don't think anyone could play an ingenue with such fierce tenacity better. The supporting actors are real gems. David Wayne plays Charlie's married best friend Joe, who after eleven years of marriage envies Charlie's carefree life - at first (in fact his character reminds me just a bit of the Tom Ewell character in The Seven Year Itch). The fabulous Celeste Holm plays (one of) Charlie's long-suffering girlfriends, Sylvia. Holm effortlessly dances between comic relief and bittersweet world-weariness - but her character gets a sweet payoff in the end! The movie's biggest drawback is it's "stagey" feel. Based on a play, the film feels like you're basically watching a stage version, with the main set being Charlie's sprawling, fabulously retro apartment. One is definitely an observer and not as fully "immersed" in the world of the film as you could be if it was filmed differently. However, I think some of the timelessness of the relationship humor outweighs the staging of the film. Also, the title song gets about beaten to death, but thankfully it's endured as a classic and risen about the unnecessary multiple versions here. As far as the DVD goes, the picture quality is crisp & clear and the colors are vibrant, and unlike most of the other DVDs in the Frank Sinatra Collection, this one includes a "Frank in the Fifties" featurette - it's about fifteen minutes or so in length, but it's a nice overview of this phase of Sinatra's career. It's a fun little film and an interesting document of its time.

When it first started it swung you in with this amazing sing. Reynolds and Sinatra were great together.

Charlie (Frank Sinatra) is a successful Broadway agent and swinging bachelor with his pick of lovely ladies. His old buddy (David Wayne) comes for a visit, having temporarily tired of married life, and has fun with one of Charlie's girls played by Celeste Holm. A young singer (Debbie Reynolds) catches Charlie's eye, but she's prim and proper and set on marriage.

Sinatra was a huge star and icon of all things hip and sexy in 1955. He's wonderful in the movie; unfortunately, the script isn't. Originally a play, the characters still politely take turns giving overly-witty speeches and it looks and sounds like a staged play (the stars even take a curtain call at the end). Holm and Wayne, as the second-tier stars and comic relief, reliably play their usual smart aleck characters but the act grows old fast. Reynolds, nearly half Sinatra's age, has the allure of a Brownie Scout; there's absolutely no chemistry between the two and their romance never rings true.

Fans of Sinatra will enjoy his cool and sensuous performance, but the story needed more music than the oft-sung title song and a more realistic script. It's dated and silly but still harmless 50's fun. 2.5 stars.