Nothing But The Truth Review

[Exequiel Mondragon]

Irecently took my daughter, (Bibliophile here on CBR), to a local book store to spend some gift money she had received. She chose this book after one of the staff recommended it, and I said it sounded interesting. You should soon see a review from her about this book but you get mine first. Then you can read the book and decide who is right. ?

Perhaps it was my background in law or because criminal justice was the area I was always interested in but never practiced. Or perhaps it was because this book, while fictionalized, is based on a true story. Either way, I found the book to be one of those that I stayed up well past my bedtime for just one more chapter.

This is the story of a 14 year old girl who is determined to get her father out of prison for a crime he insists he did not commit. It is as a result of her moxie and grit, working with a novice lawyer and a burned out reporter, that she finally gets to the truth, and takes down politicians and police officers.

This book is written by the real-life reporter who investigated the 1988 murder of a 12 year old girl in Boston that sparked the story. The police, desperate to show authority as a result of the drug fueled violence gripping Boston, quickly arrested a young drug dealer who was convicted on faulty evidence. In 2003 the Boston Globe, after investigating the case, published the truth about police coercion of witnesses and prosecutorial wrongdoing.

Bob Hope, playing Steve Bennett, a new partner in an investment firm, is inveigled into making a $10,000 wager that he can tell the truth, and nothing but the truth, for the next 24 hours. The rest of the movie, given this rather belabored but still promising beginning, is unfortunately about as predictable as (in general) the rest of movies come.

As if this were not enough, a showgirl trying to raise money for her Broadway-bound play is also involved. And of course Bob and Paulette Goddard fall in love, even though she already has a strapping young boy friend, one of the idle rich, and one of the guys who made the bet with Bob.

Arguing with myself on the merits of an old film I saw (and taped) on TV this many years ago is probably futile, but I have a feeling that if I watched again, I might enjoy it a lot more than I did this first time around. Comedy and humor are funny things (and you can quote me on that).

The premise of this film sounds not unlike LIAR, LIAR, where cynical lawyer Jim Carrey falls victim to a curse which prevents him lying for 24 hours. There are only supposed to be 7 plots, and there are obviously even fewer in Hollywood.

I have a multi-region player. The question is to how good the print is. There is an absolutely awful DVD available in the UK of CAT AND THE CANARY, which looks as though someone simply pointed a camera at a television set playing the movie. If the picture and sound quality in THANKS FOR THE MEMORIES is good, then it looks as if this box set could be winging its way towards me in the near future.

Bob Hope and Paulette Goddard star in NOTHING BUT THE TRUTH (1941), just released on Blu-ray by Kino Lorber.

NOTHING BUT THE TRUTH is the third film teaming Hope and Goddard. I've previously reviewed Kino Lorber's releases of their movies THE CAT AND THE CANARY (1939) and THE GHOST BREAKERS (1940).

NOTHING BUT THE TRUTH is perhaps the least of the three films, but it still has its moments, and as a Goddard fan I really enjoy seeing her teamed with Hope. She's enormously likeable, simultaneously radiating both intelligence and daffiness; she's the more grounded of the team but at the same time she's silly enough that her attraction to him is believable.

Hope plays Steve Bennett, who's just taken a job at the brokerage firm owned by T.T. Ralston (Edward Arnold).

T.T.'s niece Gwen (Goddard) shows up at the office with $10,000 and tells Steve she needs to double it quickly.

From here it's a bit of a complicated story, but Steve ends up making a bet with T.T., T.T.'s son-in-law Dick (Glenn Anders), and Gwen's would-be suitor Van (Leif Erickson) that he can tell the truth for 24 hours. If he lives up to the bet, the $10,000 will be doubled; if not, he loses it.

Needless to say, it's pretty silly, but hey, it's a Bob Hope movie! The story picks up steam once the cast moves to a yacht, and there are some amusing moments, particularly with Hope and Goddard, who have excellent chemistry. Hope's character is a little more low-key and straightforward than some of his roles, which I appreciated, and as mentioned above I think Goddard is terrific. I wish they had made even more movies together.

Hope and Goddard were reteamed here with their GHOST BUSTERS costar Willie Best, who has some key moments straightening out the crazy goings-on. Some moments with Best may make modern viewers uncomfortable, for reasons which will be obvious, but he was a very talented and funny man whose work I appreciate. Like Goddard, Best was well teamed playing opposite Hope.

The cast also includes Rose Hobart, Grant Mitchell, Helen Vinson, Mary Forbes, Clarence Kolb, and Leon Belasco. Look for Rod Cameron in a bit role as a sailor.

The movie was based on a play by James Montgomery, based on a novel by Frederic S. Isham. Don Hartman and Ken Englund wrote the screenplay of this 90-minute film. The movie was directed by Elliott Nugent and filmed in black and white by Charles Lang.

Kino Lorber's lovely print is from a brand-new 2K master. It has excellent sound.

Kino Lorber's Blu-ray includes a commentary track by Simon Abrams; the trailer; trailers for two additional Hope-Goddard films; and a Kino Lorber promo.

NOTHING BUT THE TRUTH is one of a trio of Hope films released by Kino Lorber this month. The others are CAUGHT IN THE DRAFT (1941), reviewed here, and MY FAVORITE BLONDE (1942), which will be reviewed at a future date.

Thanks to Kino Lorber for providing a review copy of this Blu-ray.

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Vienna, I'm one of the few who isn't a particularly big fan of THE WOMEN -- but Paulette is great in it! She makes every film better.

Caftan Woman, I love that memory you have of when and how you saw the film. Things like that do stick out in the mind over time. I agree, I might not have loved this film but found it worth seeing, chiefly for Paulette.

Best wishes,

Laura

Laura, count me in on not liking THE WOMEN very much, but loving Paulette. I think she is very underrated and I wonder if it's because so many of her movies were comedies? Although often stated as being much harder than drama to play, comedy performers rarely get their due, as if making people laugh were some kind of vulgar, effortless task that has nothing to do with ART. It's a shame that attitude prevails because performers like Hope and Goddard are as unique and engaging and accomplished as anything done by Olivier and Dame Edith Evans!

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