Here Comes Mr. Jordan

DVD, Here Comes Mr. Jordan (1941) film

Wading through old films, just as with contemporary ones, you find many that are boring, unimaginative or over-the-top, but it's worth the wading to discover little pleasures like this film. I saw it one or two years back on TV and seeing it again on DVD I found it just as enjoyable as the first time. The black and white picture is clean and bright, a very good transfer to the digital medium. Though there are no extras on the disc I saw that doesn't really matter as the quality of the film is the main thing. The cover features colour photography which looks like it may have been colour from the time rather than colourized. This could confuse some into thinking it was a colour film, so it's a strange choice, as is what appears to be Mrs. Farnsworth leaning over Joe, when surely a picture of Bette would have been more suited.

If you've seen the black comedy 'Arsenic and Old Lace,' you'll have some idea of the flavour of 'Mr. Jordan,' though it's a lot less black and a little less funny than that film, a gentler, more whimsical story. Some terrible things do happen, but because of Joe Pendleton's easygoing attitude they don't come across as frightening, the most chilling being when he's shot in cold blood by his secretary when inhabiting the body of Farnsworth, and experiences the pain and loss of control of dying, staggering into the room, bewildered. But the scene changes to a jolly one before the 'curtain' goes down thanks to Mr. Jordan and his assistant, Messenger 7013. 7013 was in 'Arsenic and Old Lace' as the manager of Happydale Nursing Home, and James Gleason who played Max Corkle, Jo's boxing coach, was equally good in that film as the police inspector. He does a great line in frustration and confusion as he tries to work out things beyond his understanding in both films! For those that have seen the Basil Rathbone Holmes films, you will also recognise the butler, as he played a similar role in 'Sherlock Holmes Faces Death' two years later.

The joy of the film is in Joe's blase reactions to otherworldly things. When his plane crashes and he finds himself walking a barren white landscape, excellently realised, and as fine an idea today as then, all he cares about is getting a lift so he doesn't miss his big fight! Even when it's explained to him that he's dead, he's indignant and soon ferrets out the truth that it was all a mistake, his single-minded mission to get to the fight with Murdoch in time only matched by his dedication to helping the girl he stumbles across during his occupation of another body. All the time Claude Rains, who usually played villains, I believe (in such films as Errol Flynn's 'The Prince and The Pauper'), retains a friendly, but wise and knowing smile throughout, as if he always knows things will work out for the best. He does it in an ethereal way, without appearing smug or condescending in a restrained performance that is in contrast to the simple boxer, who is all for action. Joe's good heart and morals are plain to see at all times making him a loveable character.

Early on you wonder how they're going to handle him going into a new body. A new actor taking over with the same voice? No, a much simpler and more satisfying resolution is for Robert Montgomery to play the character all the way through, the explanation being that only we can see and hear him this way, everyone else will see the body he takes over. Also, how were they going to get around the fact that he's in the body of someone who is married to a murderess, when he's interested in Bette? At that time such things were far more seriously frowned on, but it's solved by his change to another body before the end, making a satisfying circle back to his boxing career and proving that his goodness and simple view on life comes through whoever he seems to be, for an affecting and believable ending.

I don't think I've ever seen Robert Montgomery in any other films, but he was great as Joe, although Gleason was the best actor for me. His shock and comical expressions as Corkle are a wonder to behold, and, in my favourite scene, where Joe, in Farnsworth's body, tries to convince his old manager that he really is Joe, is laugh out loud funny! The story is charming, joyful and features a range of characters, from boxers to board members, and the body-hopping idea is well thought out. The effects are used sparingly and shot very well (such as the plane stop to heaven, or Joe and Mr. Jordan walking through doors). The music isn't very noticeable and there isn't a strong theme, but the story is the key, and it's no surprise that it was based on a play ('Heaven Can Wait'), just as 'Arsenic and Old Lace' or '12 Angry Men' were, a theme that suggests why these films are still as enjoyable today: they didn't rely on standard plots, characters or special effects, but were made with the characters at the forefront. No wonder the film won two Oscars (for Best Original Story and Best Screenplay according to the DVD blurb), and I'm surprised it hasn't been remade as it seems ripe for it for I suspect the charm would be lost.

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