Solemplex To me, this movie is perfection.

Doomtomylo a film so unique, intoxicating and bizarre that it not only demands another viewing, but is also forgivable as a satirical comedy where the jokes eventually take the back seat.

Catangro After playing with our expectations, this turns out to be a very different sort of film.

Usamah Harvey The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

esmondj I've always found this movie rather overrated.First, Addie Ross herself sounds like a vain and tiresome woman, and it is impossible to imagine her, as presented, getting involved with either Jeffrey Lynn or Paul Douglas. Nor is it possible to imagine any of them leaving their law practice/tenured position/retail chain and houses and running away with Addie. Why? when she's already right there in town? (Now running away with Linda Darnell ... maybe.) The actual letter itself is merely bad manners on an epic scale, and not at all what one would expect this self-confessed paragon to be up to.The first act, with Lynn and Jeanna Crain, is very over-written: again, it is impossible to believe in Jeanne Crain being so gauche after just finishing several years in the Navy, from whence one would expect her to come out pretty brisk, and certainly self-confident, and the silly business with the silly flower on the silly dress is high-school stuff. The second act is merely preposterous, starting with the very idea of Kirk Douglas being married to Ann Sothern, continuing with Sothern doing what she does for a living while Kirk does what he does for a living, and terminating with the ludicrous concept of entertaining the sponsor, which would be smoothly handled by the network management, not left as a risk in a college town home with a mad professor running amok. Again, this act is badly over-written, and the sponsor and her bad behaviour are beyond parody. And Kirk should already know better than to play his precious Brahms 78 (?) to the sponsor.The movie only really gets going in Act 3 with Paul Douglas and Linda Darnell going at it hammer and tongs. Darnell is priceless ('it's not a drive in') as the small-town bombshell, and all the family stuff is very well done.There are other good moments in the film, such as the terrible picnic, the terrible country club, and aspects of the small town setting, but overall it's a long wait for the fun to start. Until then, credulity is strained at every turn, and the talking never ceases.

sammysdad97 This movie is captivating. The late 1940s captured in real time. Black and white photography at its best. Dialog that crackles but yet is believable. An excellent cast and an absolutely great third act featuring the stunning Linda Darnell at the absolute peak of her luminous, sultry beauty going toe to toe with Paul Douglas, an everyman for any age. While Kirk Douglas and Ann Sothern have a few good exchanges this movie would be completely forgotten were it not for the 30 odd minutes spent with Lora Mae Finney and her family hard by the tracks and Porter Hollingsway's solitary man of wealth who is used to getting what he wants until Lora Mae takes his measure.1949 was a long time ago. Back then movies took their time setting a scene and introducing a set of characters. If you are impatient with this kind of film making and find yourself wanting to turn this off (for whatever reason) at any point before Linda Darnell and Paul Douglas take center stage then do yourself a favor and fast forward to around the 45 minute mark when Lora Mae's house begins to shake and watch the next half hour unspool as a world class "broad" and a street smart "gorilla" court each other for 15 very memorable rounds.I suspect you will then go back to the beginning and watch the entire film and enjoy it immensely for what it is -- a witty, "penetrating" look at American life just after the Second World War in a world that lacked "instant" communication and instead had to settle for the real thing.

wes-connors Joseph L. Mankiewicz' beautifully directed, and wittily written, tale of post-1940s America begins with "A Letter to Three Wives": "Dearest Debby, Lora Mae, and Rita ~ As you know, by now, you'll have to carry on without me from here. It isn't easy to leave a town like our town, to tear myself away from you three dear, dear friends who have meant so much to me. And so, I consider myself extremely lucky to be able to take with me a sort of memento, something to remind me always of the town that was my home. And, of my three very dearest friends, whom I want never to forget. And, I won't. You see - girls - I've run off with one of your husbands. ~ Addie" The three troubled wives are: World War II veteran "W.A.V.E" Jeanne Crain (as Deborah Bishop), beautiful gold-digging Linda Darnell (as Lora Mae Hollingsway), and radio career "gal" Ann Sothern (as Rita Phipps). Fetching narrator Celeste Holm (as Addie Ross) professes to have absconded with one of her three "dearest" friends' husbands: Is it charming schoolteacher Kirk Douglas (as George Phipps), rich and forceful Paul Douglas (as Porter Hollingsway), or young and worldly Jeffrey Lynn (as Bradford Bishop)? Under Mankiewicz' expert direction, the wedded six perform very well. The couples have, arguably, less "chemistry" than you might expect; however, this helps suspend disbelief regarding the film's plot.At times, the unrelated Douglas actors (Paul and Kirk) seem to be the "voice" of Mankiewicz; and, their parts are expertly performed. The women are all terrific. The three lead actresses receive fantastic support from Connie Gilchrist (as Ruby Finney), Florence Bates (as Mrs. Manleigh), and Thelma Ritter (as Sadie Dugan). Ms. Ritter, in an early role, was not credited; but, her role is substantial. And, it was nice to see Mae Marsh in a small role. Unfortunately, the film's eagerly anticipated ending is a little weak.******** A Letter to Three Wives (1/20/49) Joseph L. Mankiewicz ~ Jeanne Crain, Linda Darnell, Ann Sothern, Kirk Douglas

jc-osms A highly watchable and occasionally intriguing movie which rises above its "Woman's Own" magazine origins by a combination of imaginative construction, sharp dialogue and fine ensemble acting. The imaginative construction of course revolves around director Mankiewicz's use of amongst other things, a starting and concluding voice-over by the never-seen epicentre of the drama, "other woman" Addie, the interweaving of three separate stories of post-war upper middle-class suburban American married life and the disruption caused by the pervading influence of afore-said "everybody (make that every man) loves" Addie leading to a genuinely mysterious ending with the viewer (well this one anyway) left scratching their head over the denouement. I think the film might have benefited however with Addie's voice-overs continuing throughout the film although we are teased throughout with just-out-of-camera scenes throughout. Along the way we get some trademark pithy and racy dialogue, typical of this director, taking shots along the way at snobbery, sex and consumerism as well of course, marital mores. Although the attack on consumerism seems a little high-brow today, as school-teacher Kirk Douglas bemoans the fall in cultural values with the unstoppable growth in popularity of cheap, Philistine radio soap operas at the expense of an appreciation of the finer arts as embodied by his love for Brahms and Shakespeare, it still resonates today as we seem submerged in a never-ending TV diet of trashy soaps, daytime TV and reality shows. The acting is very good, particularly Linda Darnell as the sassy shop-girl on the make with her much older boss and I also enjoyed the humorous interjections of Thelma Ritter as a put-upon maid. The device of introducing the flashback sequences with onomatopeic background noises was used later to comic effect in the Danny Kaye vehicle "Secret Life of Walter Mitty". Whilst you never quite escape the feeling that this is a 1940's "chick-flick", with a story-line at its heart every bit as incredible as any of the empty radio dramas so vilified by Douglas (obviously speaking for Mankiewicz), I can accept it as superior soap, a precursor of the Douglas Sirk-style concoctions of the 50's. And yes, my eyebrows did rise upwards at the infamous double-entendre kitchen dialogue scene!