Themes: Actor's Life, Mischievous Children, Cons and Scams
Main Cast: Burgess Meredith, Paulette Goddard, Fred MacMurray, Hugh Herbert, James Stewart, Dorothy Lamour
Release Year: 1948
Country: US
Run Time: 107 minutes
Plot
Also known as A Miracle Can Happen, On Our Merry Way is a multipart comedy linked by inquiring reporter Burgess Meredith. It is Meredith's job to interview several people, asking them what effect children have had on their lives. First he checks with two itinerant musicians (James Stewart and Henry Fonda), who earn extra under-the-counter money by fixing a music contest so the mayor's son will win. Next he meets Hollywood extras Dorothy Lamour and Victor Moore, who are hired to work with a precocious child star. Finally, the old "Ransom of Red Chief" twist is given to the tale of hoboes Fred MacMurray and William Demarest, who find themselves at the mercy of a preteen prankster, whose wealthy uncle (Hugh Herbert) won't take the kid back unless the hoboes pay him. Meredith returns to the newspaper office with a black eye, which earns him the sympathy and affection of coworker Paulette Goddard. Though the direction is credited to Leslie Fenton, portions of On Our Merry Way were actually directed (sans credit) by George Stevens and King Vidor. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Review
On Our Merry Way is a middling anthology film, a genre in which the completed film rarely works out overall but often contains some worthy highlights. In Merry, the joys come more from the actors than from the material, which is surprisingly dull. However, watching James Stewart and Henry Fonda engaging in a rare team effort -- a slapsticky comedic one at that -- is a treat, especially since their story is slightly better written than the others. Fred MacMurray and William Demarest have to slog through an uninspired "Ramsom of Red Chief" rip-off, but they display great chemistry, and watching them working together a decade before My Three Sons is a lot of fun. Dorothy Lamour's segment is also slow going, but it does feature a production number that's very amusing and that allows Lamour a chance to shine. Burgess Meredith and Paulette Goddard are stuck with a nonsensical framing story, but their screen personas help to smooth over the many rough patches. Although credited to Leslie Fenton, numerous hands are rumored to have been involved in the direction, including George Stevens, King Vidor, and John Huston. This too-many-cooks approach shows through in the unevenness of the film, which lacks unity and consistency. Catch On Our Merry Way for its cast, and it will be easier to ignore its lesser parts. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide
Duncan Cramer - Art Director, Ernst Fegte - Art Director, Greta - Costume Designer, Leslie Fenton - Director, King Vidor - Director, George Stevens - Director, James Smith - Editor, Heinz Roemheld - Composer (Music Score), David Chudnow - Musical Direction/Supervision, Charles Henderson - Musical Direction/Supervision, Skitch Henderson - Musical Direction/Supervision, Skitch Henderson - Songwriter, Donald Kahn - Songwriter, Frank Loesser - Songwriter, Otis Malcolm - Makeup, Gordon Avil - Cinematographer, Joseph Biroc - Cinematographer, Edward J. Cronjager - Cinematographer, Ernest Laszlo - Cinematographer, John F. Seitz - Cinematographer, Benedict E. Bogeaus - Producer, Burgess Meredith - Producer, Robert Priestley - Set Designer, Eugene Redd - Set Designer, William Lynch - Sound/Sound Designer, James Stewart - Screen Story, Lou Breslow - Screenwriter, Laurence Stallings - Screenwriter, John O'Hara - Short Story Author, Henry Fonde - Short Story Author
