Main Cast: Cary Grant, Suzy Parker, Jayne Mansfield, Leif Erickson, Ray Walston
Release Year: 1957
Country: US
Run Time: 105 minutes
Plot
Luther Davis' racy wartime comedy Kiss Them for Me was expurgated a bit for the 1957 film version. Cary Grant, Ray Walston and Larry Blyden portray three navy war heroes who've been booked on a morale-building "vacation" in San Francisco. Eluding their ulcerated public relations officer (Werner Klemperer), the trio arranges a wild party with plenty of pretty girls. Cary Grant is paired with knockout Suzy Parker, an icy socialite who eventually thaws under his charms. Also on hand is Jayne Mansfield, playing a "good time girl" whose profession was a bit more explicit in the original play; the role was originated by Judy Holliday, who brought a wistfulness to the character that Ms. Mansfield couldn't quite manage. TV sitcom fans will get a kick out of the supporting cast of Kiss Them For Me: Ray Walston, later star of My Favorite Martian plays a libertine navy officer; Werner Klemperer, shorn of the accent he'd use as Colonel Klink in Hogan's Heroes, is hilarious as the flustered p.r. man; and Richard Deacon (Leave It to Beaver, The Dick Van Dyke Show) pops up unbilled as a dour businessman who can't understand the war-hero mystique. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Review
"Three sailors on leave" has been the basis of far too many movies to count, but Kiss Them for Me manages to take this well-worn situation and make it more than reasonably entertaining. While absolutely nothing more than a trifle -- despite some ill-conceived and equally ill-executed attempts to inject a "serious" message into the proceedings at times -- Kiss is smoothly directed by Stanley Donen, who keeps the film's pace going and skillfully diverts attention from the sometimes-sizeable gaps in the screenplay. He's aided enormously by Cary Grant (as would be any director in the same situation). Grant could easily have done this part with his eyes closed, relying solely on his considerable charm. But Grant doesn't simply coast; he treats the material with more respect than it deserves, thereby making it seem much fresher than it actually is. He gets solid support from the always lively Ray Walston, a very youthful Larry Blyden, and a tremendously amusing Werner Klemperer, as well as a large cast of familiar character actors of bit parts. Where Grant doesn't get such support is on the distaff side. Jayne Mansfield is always an acquired taste, so her fans will probably like her here and her detractors will probably find her ineffective. More damaging is Suzy Parker, whose beauty does not make up for her inadequate dramatic talents; even worse, she lacks the power to perform opposite Grant, whose star power simply overwhelms her. Fortunately, the film survives this miscasting to end up as a pleasant, often very amusing diversion. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide
Larry Blyden - Mississip; Nathaniel Frey - C.P.O. Ruddle; Werner Klemperer - Lieutenant Walter Wallace; Jack Mullaney - Ensign Lewis; Ben Wright - RAF Pilot; Michael Ross - Gunner; Harry Carey, Jr. - Roundtree; Frank Nelson - Nielson, hotel manager; Ann McCrea - Lucille; Hal Baylor - Big Marine; Harry Carter; Richard Deacon - Bill Hotchkiss; John Doucette - Shore Patrol Lieutenant; Kathleen Freeman - Nurse Wilinski; Jonathan Hale - Nightclub Manager; Deborah Kerr - Gwinneth Livingston; Kip King - Marine; Nancy Kulp - Telephone Operator; Peter Leeds - Reporter; Mike Mahoney - Marine; Ray Montgomery - Lt. j.g.; William Phipps - Lt. Hendricks; Maudie Prickett - Chief Nurse; Richard Shannon - War Correspondent; Robert St. Angelo - Hotel Porter; Rachel Stephens - Wave; James F. Stone - Bellhop; Michael Fox; Jack Mather - Man; Robert Sherman
Credit
Maurice Ransford - Art Director, Lyle Wheeler - Art Director, Charles LeMaire - Costume Designer, David Hall - First Assistant Director, Stanley Donen - Director, Robert L. Simpson - Editor, Lionel Newman - Composer (Music Score), Lionel Newman - Songwriter, Carroll Coates - Songwriter, Ben Nye, Sr. - Makeup, Milton Krasner - Cinematographer, Jerry Wald - Producer, Stuart A. Reiss - Set Designer, Walter Scott - Set Designer, L.B. Abbott - Special Effects, Charles Peck - Sound/Sound Designer, Julius J. Epstein - Screenwriter, Frederic Wakeman - Book Author, Luther Davis - Play Author
Three decorated Navy pilots finagle a four-day leave in San Francisco. They land a posh suite at a hotel where Commander Andy Crewson, a master of procurement, arranges to populate it with wine, women and song.
Blonde bombshell Alice Kratzner is one of these women, lured to the suite under the false pretense that Crewson has a stash of nylon stockings. Once there, she is naturally attracted to Crewson, but later turns her attention to Lieutenant McCann, a married man who also is in the process of running for a Congressional seat back home in Connecticut. If he is elected, McCann can leave the Navy immediately and return to civilian life.
Lieutenant Wallace tries to get the three pilots, including "Mississip," to make morale-raising speeches at the plants of shipyard magnate Eddie Turnbill, so that Turnbill will vouch for the men with the Navy and also to grease a popular job for himself upon leaving the service. Crewson and his cohorts, however, are physically and mentally exhausted from the war and simply want to enjoy a few days away from it.
Suffering from combat stress and confronted with a number of reminders of the horrors of war, Crewson tries to amuse himself by making a play for Turnbill's attractive fiancée, Gwinneth Livingston. She resists his advances at first, but ultimately throws her engagement ring in Turnbill's face. Crewson declares his love for her shortly before he and his mates board a plane leaving San Francisco to return to duty.
Commentary
Grant fought to make this movie, as he wanted to bring out into the open the ongoing problem of what is now labeled Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, but the studio wanted another "light-hearted war comedy".[citation needed]
The script points out the differences in attitude and perception between combat veterans and both civilians and those in the military who spend the war safely at home.
The film was the first starring performance for Suzy Parker, one of the world's foremost fashion models.
It proved to be the last starring role in a mainstream Hollywood film for Jayne Mansfield, who shared over-the-title billing with Grant, even though her role was considerably smaller than his.
The McGuire Sisters sang the film's theme, Kiss Them for Me.
