She Gets Her Man (1945) User Reviews (5)

"That's a good question. Does anyone have a stupid one?"

[boblipton · 6/10 · 1 March 2019]

When the city of Clayton begin to be slaughtered by the Blowpipe Killer, the police are unable to deal with the situation. Thoughts turn to the old sheriff, Maw Clayton, and her can-do attitude. She's dead, so they summon her daughter, who is Joan Davis. She combines her mother's can-do attitude with can't-do ability. With the unable assistance of Leon Erroll, it's up to her to capture the fiend.

Some of the set-piece comedy sequences come off as old and tired, but Miss Davis was always an unabashed clown, always ready with a goofy line reading or undignified pose or an aside to the audience. She's the entire comedic line, with Leon Erroll miraculously reduced to a stooge and, equally miraculously, a sympathetic one. Her timing and delivery are as good as Bob Hope's, and if this movie isn't better, it's because it looks like a cast-off Abbott & Costello script, refitted for Joan, and with competent but uninspired direction by Erle Kenton. Well, at least he got some bit roles for old comedy hands like Jimmy Aubrey and Charley Hall.

In short: Miss Davis is the entire show. And it's a good show solely because of her.

Murder she solved, not written or spoken...

[mark.waltz · 5/10 · 19 June 2017]

Betty Hutton sang of "Murder She Said", and Angela Lansbury became internationally famous for "Murder She Wrote". For funny lady Joan Davis, solving murders really only happens through chance, giving her laughs as she goes out of her way who is crudely blowing needles into the victim's heart. Yes, these grizzly crimes get goggles, pairing Davis up with rubber legged cop Leon Errol. Now free of the dual roles in the "Mexican Spitfire", he goes from his recently deceased hot tempered partner Lupe Velez to dizzy Joan, finding just as much trouble with her as he did in that long running RKO series.

This is an amusing programmer with pure silliness taking over any resemblance to reality. The situations get more and more bizarre, but lead the way to TV sitcom style pairings with Davis and Errol a multi gender variation of Lucy and Ethel, Eve and Kay, Laverne and Shirley, to mention a few. Davis almost blows up visitor William Gargan when he cones to ask her (as the daughter of a famous female detective) to help solve the case. Later, Davis and Errol interrupt a live performance to warn a possible victim, only managing to destroy the performance. Davis has further confusion with a sound effects machine. Laughs come fast and furious, as several bizarre characters become involved, creating more unintentional mayhem.

It's nice to see Donald McBride cast against type, playing a newspaper editor rather than a dumb, slow burning cop. There's a beautiful version of the 1940's standard "For All We Know" for collectors of memorable war themes. Davis and Errol play nicely off each other, but this was their only appearance together. Davis remained on at Universal for another comedy, the even better "She Wrote the Book". Twists in the story give Joan some great material to react to, and some great pranks to be unintentionally responsible for, like a speeding piano we are told she was helping to move. Davis's brand of comedy is sweet music to me, not a sour note to be found.

Gets better as it goes along; great surprise ending

[gridoon2024 · 7/10 · 26 September 2013]

"She Gets Her Man" goes from merely amusing to quite funny (the sequence where Joan Davis provokes an entire army of innocent bystanders to chase her so that they will fight off some baddies who are also chasing her is a minor classic). The gags are well planned and executed, but the mystery aspect is not ignored either, and after a couple of effective red herrings, we get an ending that's a total surprise. Although William Gargan is second billed, the film really belongs to Joan Davis (who seems to be equally adept at visual and verbal humor) and Leon Errol (very energetic despite his advanced age); they both play underdogs that you want to see triumph at the end....and they do. *** out of 4.

Watch that camera

[AAdaSC · 3/10 · 15 October 2016]

The blow pipe murderer strikes again at a nightclub and the town seek the help of Joan Davis (Pilky) to solve things. She gets a sidekick to help her in comedy policeman Leon Errol (Mulligan) who sums up the film near the end when he says "This is getting monotonous". Yep.

My favourite characters are the couple who keep turning up to the nightclub to watch the next real-life murder take place – it's their idea of a good night out. But, overall, the film tries hard with annoying characters, obvious humour and slapstick that gets tiresome pretty quickly. So, the film becomes boring and seems way longer than its short running time. There are a few good ideas towards the end – the scary balloon in the mirror and the trapdoor that keeps propping up a body – and Joan Davis is good enough to lead things. It's just not very funny for a comedy. And as for comedy policemen – why? If you enjoy tedious films, then this is one for you.

A Series That Never Got the Shot

[docdespicable · 8/10 · 19 December 2004]

There were so many, MANY detective movie series during the '30s and '40s, and of such varying quality. One wonders, then, why Joan Davis, Leon Errol (both very popular in their day) and company weren't pushed for a series of their own. Granted we have only SHE GETS HER MAN to judge from, but it remains a real winner. Davis and Errol play beautifully off each other, and the denouement is actually a bit of a surprise! Too often in these comedy-thrillers, the hero or heroine are too brassy to elicit much sympathy from the audience; even comedy relief can get in the way, if the role is not properly written or cast - for instance, Lee Tracy, in DOCTOR X (1932) is so annoying, you almost hope the bogeyman will get him. On the other hand, in THE MAD GHOUL (1943) for instance, when Rbert Armstrong, as the wisecracking reporter, gets his, it's not only a surprise, but a real bummer! In SHE GETS HER MAN, a perfect balance of humor and thrills is maintained, much in the spirit (no pun intended) of HOLD THAT GHOST, and leave you wanting to see more of them doing what they do best. Bravo - well done!