The moviegoers of the mid-20th century wouldn't expect to see Greer Garson and Walter Pidgeon in a comedy. And, when MGM matched the pair for "Julia Misbehaves" in 1948, the fans didn't buy it. Too many times before they had seen the couple in dramas as loving husband and wife. But the roles for this film were quite different. So, MGM took a loss at the box office with this film. Yet, it wasn't that Garson, or Pidgeon for that matter, couldn't do comedy. They just couldn't do it together to please the movie public. In 1951, Garson starred with Michael Wilding in a very clever, funny and somewhat sophisticated comedy, "The Law and the Lady." By the end of the 20th century, most moviegoers were no longer people who used to look forward to the next dramatic story with Garson and Pidgeon. So, without the acquired bias of those people at that time, movie buffs today can look at "Julia Misbehaves" afresh. In doing so, we can appreciate the film as it is. We can hear the humorous lines and see the funny antics that viewers of the past couldn't bring themselves to enjoy. While this is nowhere near being a great comedy-romance, it has enough humor to make it a very enjoyable movie. Others have discussed the plot, so I won't go there. Instead, I'll point out some of the funniest parts of the film that I enjoyed. The scenes of Julia (Garson) in an acrobatic troupe on stage are hilarious. I think that's one of the best movie sequences of comedy from a stage act within a movie – second only to the Marx Brothers in "A Night at the Opera." Garson is an absolute riot in this scene, and it's all hers. Toward the very end of the movie, Julie and William (Pidgeon) get drenched and covered in mud in a thunderstorm. They slip and fall, and one leg of Julia's sinks in a mud hole up to her knee. It's the funniest weather scene I can recall from any movie. The film has a banner cast of supporting actors as well. Peter Lawford is Ritchie Lorgan, Nigel Bruce is Col. Willowbrook, Reginald Owen is Benny Hawkins, Mary Boland is Ma Ghenoccio, and Lucile Watson is Mrs. Packett. This was only the eighth movie for young Elizabeth Taylor, as Susan. And Cesar Romero is a stand out, adding to the comedy. He is Fred Ghenoccio, the head of the famous Ghenoccio acrobatic family. Romero's character is supposed to have super muscles, and in one scene we see him pick up a chair that William is sitting in, and walk William and chair across the room and back. Fred is so muscle-bound that he's funny to look at. His sport coat is so stuffed with padding that he looks very top heavy. A couple reviewers considered this a poor job of costuming, but I wonder if the studio didn't intend it to be so obvious for the further comedy effect. The plot Is OK for this film, and holds the various sequences of antics and comedy together. Here are some of the very funny lines from the screenplay. Fred says to William as they both stand outside Julia's bedroom door, "She may be your wife, but she's my fiancé." William, "To say nothing of a stitch in time saves nine." Julia, "What's that got to do with it?" William, "Nothing. It just occurred to me." Fred, "You took me for a strange man?" Julia, "Not … not really." Fred, "Well you either took me or you didn't."

Greer Garson, soaking in her tub and locked in her room, pretends she's about to end it all. All this is a ruse in order to get her good friend Reginald Owen to pay her creditors, who are at her door. Ms. Garson's carefree, gay, and a delicious tease in this fun-filled romp that is sure to please even the crankiest of viewers. This shows Ms. Garson in a new light from her usual fare of melodrama, as she lets her hair down and has all the men around her on a string and using them to her advantage. It happens that she gets an invitation to her daughter's impending wedding. She had left her years ago, with her husband, of whom she never divorced (played by Walter Pidgeon,) because she is an stage actress and travels a lot. When she arrives, we see that most of them are not glad to see her, after all this time. But what happens next is a riot. Cesar Romero is great as part of an acrobatic act and as a suitor vying for Greer, giving the debonair Walter Pidgeon a run for his money. "What muscles am I using now?" If you've never seen this, you're in for a real treat, the cheery side of Miss Greer.

Greer Garson is again teamed up with Walter Pidgeon in the delightful comedy, "Julia Misbehaves," which also stars 16-year-old Elizabeth Taylor and a very adorable Peter Lawford. Taylor and Lawford are a subplot in this film, which mainly concerns Garson as Julia, an entertainer, showing up to attend the wedding of the daughter she hasn't seen since infancy. Because of the breakup of her marriage and her transient lifestyle, she left the child with her husband's family.This is a fun movie with some great scenes, the best of which is an acrobatic act featuring Julia. It is hilarious. Cesar Romero makes a game attempt at a Cockney accent, and is very good as Nicky, the head of the act who is interested in marrying Julia. Nigel Bruce is a man conned out of 6950 francs by Julia, and Lucile Watson is Julia's disapproving mother-in-law. Pidgeon plays Julia's husband, who hasn't seen her in years, but on encountering her again, realizes what he's been missing.Wedding plans don't go as expected once Julia is in the house. A very pretty Elizabeth Taylor gets her first screen kiss from Lawford, and they make a charming couple. But this isn't their film, it's Garson's, in a different type of role for her. She is up to the task. Over the years, perhaps due to some of the sentimental movies she made and being raked over the coals by Pauline Kael, Garson's reputation has suffered. However, she is terrific in "Julia Misbehaves," and this entertaining film is well worth seeing.

Both Greer Garson and Walter Pigeon, having made several dramas together, have done a remarkable switch to comedy. Both are charming and classy in their romp of delight. Along the way with the help of the likes of Caesar Romero, as the head of a family of acrobats, the zany Mary Boland, his alcoholic mother [loved her hanging from the smoke stack of a liner], Nigel Bruce, a woman chaser, attempting to pick up Greer in a lady's clothing shop, Elizabeth Taylor, all of 16 years old and gorgeous, Peter Lawford, also young and gorgeous and Lucille Watson, the wealthy grand dame of the family, Greer and Walter go through the antics of falling into mud puddles, sinking into the water in a beaten up old row boat, being forced to go through a high flying acrobatic act, being slapped on the rear by a trained seal and generally having a grand time of it. Hats off to a slick and silly script and a cast of performers who don't take it seriously at all.