Bob Hope and Eva Marie Saint Convey That Certain Feeling in a Paramount Gem

With the 100th birthday of the exquisite, talented and legendary leading lady Eva Marie Saint (born on July 4, 1024) at hand, the issue of which movie from her impressive filmography to review offered plenty of options, including her Oscar-winning debut in On the Waterfront, as one of Hitchcock’s most notable blondes in North by Northwest, her moving, remarkable work in 1957’s A Hatful of Rain, or singular performances in lesser-known entries such as All Fall Down or Loving. However, one little-known Saint title of merit deserving a much higher profile is Paramount’s 1956 comedy-drama, That Certain Feeling, which charmingly teams Bob Hope and Saint in a lively story involving the exploits of a ghost-writing cartoonist, and the complications that ensue when he achieves greater success than the comic strip’s actual writer, who is also engaged to his successor’s former wife. With outstanding production values, including VistaVision and Technicolor, nicely paced tandem direction by Norma Panama and Melvin Frank (both of whom, along with William Altman and I.A.L. Diamond, also co-wrote the entertaining screenplay, based on the play King of Hearts by Jean Kerr and Eleanor Brooke) and a perfectly selected cast that put over the funny, touching material with considerable brio, Feeling offers viewers a prime opportunity to discover a beguiling, enduring entertainment that rates comparison with more widely known and acclaimed films of the era.

The film marked Saint’s second foray into cinema, after honing her craft for years in live television prior to her 1954 breakthrough in Waterfront. As sophisticated New Yorker Duneath Henry, who serves as private secretary and fiancée to Larry Larkin (George Sanders), creator of a ‘Snips and Runty” comic panel, Saint comes on looking like a million bucks and lends an assured, cosmopolitan air to the role, working beautifully together with Hope (as her former husband, the down-on-his-luck artist Francis X. Dignan) specifically in their funniest scene, wherein a tipsy Duneath lets her hair down and starts dancing in uninhibited fashion with Dignan. Regarding her look in the film, Saint is gowned impeccably via an Edith Head wardrobe, and groomed in a manner that strongly suggests she and Grace Kelly could have easily played twin sisters during this period (one wonders if Alfred Hitchcock got a glimpse of Feeling before collaborating with Saint on North). Although Saint would go on to have a rich career spanning the next seven decades as one of filmdom’s most intelligence and skillful dramatic female stars, give or take a The Russians Are Coming the Russians are Coming, she seldom was granted a chance to test her comedic abilities, making her light-hearted scenes in Feeling all the more valuable when contemplating Saint’s exceptional body of work.

For Bob Hope, Feeling presented a fine opportunity to expand his talents outside the zany work he’d built his phenomenal successful movie career on, since his major film debut nearly twenty years before in The Big Broadcast of 1938, then through his teaming with Bing Crosby and Dorothy Lamour as they traversed down a series of profitable Roads, and individual hit comedies that would result in Hope’s placement as the #1 box-office draw of 1949 (according to the standard-bearer, Quigley Publications). Although Hope has ample space in Feeling to put over some sly lines using his patented sarcasm and zest, Dignan also has a lot of insecurities and regrets, and it’s admirable to see Hope bring honesty and substance to the serious aspects of the role. Unlike many top comedians who take on dramatic assignments, then lose sight of the actual dynamics of the part in an effort to go big and lay on the mawkishness to win acclaim for a change-of-pace role, Hope tackles the hefty part of Dignan with professionalism and even grace, perfectly balancing the comedic and dramatic facets of the part. He is wonderful with Saint as the exes explore their current relationship and ponder a future together, working with his costar to add creditability and poignancy to the often-breezy goings-on. Based on his stellar Feeling work, one wishes Hope was bestowed similar parts of the same ilk among standard fare, although 1960’s The Facts of Life offered Hope a final chance to shine in a comedy-drama opposite an ideal costar, in this case Lucille Ball.

As Larry Larkin, urbane George Sanders has a nice change-of-pace role, spiritedly and adeptly putting over the sometimes slapstick situations Larry is ensnared in, while still suggesting the casual wit and devil-may-care attitude that were signature elements in Sanders’ most famous roles. As Larkin’s housekeeper, Gussie, Pearl Bailey makes a major impact from the movie’s opening sequence, wherein she puts over the tile song (written in 1925 by no less than George and Ira Gershwin) with style and verve, and thereafter offers plenty of chief comedic moments. Lastly, tiny Jerry Mathers, after a 1952 screen debut via another top Hope venture, Son of Paleface and standing out the prior year in Hitchcock’s The Trouble with Harry, has perhaps his best role in Feeling before becoming a Baby Boomer icon the following year on television as “The Beav.” As the young orphan charge, Norman, whom Duneath and Dignan establish a firm bond with, Mathers is very winning without overplaying the part in the cutesy manner often found in child performances of the time, instead bringing off Norman’s sensitive, innocence nature with plausibility and skill. In addition, “Happy,” an enormous (and hugely amusing) dog and a brief appearance by Li’l Abner creator Al Capp also factor into the film’s genial tone.

That Certain Feeling gained some nice notices upon its July 1956 release but did not place on the list of box-office films put out yearly by Variety, nor gain mention by any awards body. Feeling rates a better fate, but at least one of its primary players aptly values the work as, on a personal note, I can vouch that Saint holds That Certain Feeling in high regard. She requested the film be shown at the Egyptian Theater during a 2018 film festival, which was mentioned by Saint during an interview prior to a screening of the movie, with the star also stating how much she loved working with Bob Hope, and telling the rapt audience she was looking forward to watching the film with the packed audience, as she had not been able to see the movie in years. Her husband, Jeffrey Hayden, had passed on in 2016, and Saint also reflected on their long marriage of 65 years and their fruitful careers. I had seen them both together at several film events, and it was touching to watch Hayden act protective towards his wife as a multitude of fans gathered around for autographs and pictures. The film went over like gangbusters with an attentive, fully appreciative audience, and it was wonderful to experience this showing with Ms. Saint in attendance. I wrote a brief letter to her afterwards, and received a nice card with a note wherein she wrote how much she enjoyed watching the movie with the “terrific” audience, and again gave props to Bob Hope’s talents. That Certain Feeling provides the comedian with a truly grand showcase, while the lovely Saint brings both class and whimsy to the proceedings, and a superior group of costars also add an abundance of vitality to the movie. As Saint referenced at the festival, the film is indeed hard to track down, with no official release on VHS, DVD or Blu-Ray. The film can be found via a YouTube search, while at least one classic movie buff awaits (possibly in vain) for a much better rendering of the movie on physical media, in hopes that That Certain Feeling, with ace work across the board, might gain the reputation is warrants as a key film in the cinematic repertories of all the talented artists involved, and 1950’s movies in general.

As a P.S., on YouTube last year I created a tribute to Ms. Saint and her films, which can be viewed here. Happy Birthday to you, Eva Marie Saint!