Pat and Mike is poorly written and has an extremely weak premise. Not even Katharine Hepburn's charm could make this yawn fest a winner.Pat's amazing at everything but when her fiance is around she feels like an egg about to break. Pat immediately can't make a simple putt or hit the ball over the net or walk without stumbling over. Needed something more. So many of the characters are so cartoonish, it's dreadful. The boxer was awfully painful to endure. I wish Spencer Tracy would of stopped riding Hepburn's coat tails and actually added something, or have gotten the hell out of her films. I was really disappointed with this film, had high expectations.

Kate Hepburn was the consummate professional, and never hit a false note, in this film or any other. It was fun to see her show her athleticism in spite of her petite build. And the chemistry with her and Spencer Tracy was undeniable. I actually liked some of her later films much better, like "African Queen" and "The Lion in Winter". This film had a lot of familiar faces including Jim Backus, Chuck Connors, and Charles Bronson. Listed in the uncredited cast was Roger Moore as "Photagrapher". I looked for him but never saw him. Some famous athletes of the day were also featured, such as Babe Zahariah and Don Budge. Aldo Ray as the dim-witted boxer rather overplayed his part, but I suppose that this was the style for movies in those days. Overall, not Hepburn/Tracy's best, but pretty decent anyway.

This was Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn's last MGM movie made together, and equally as good as their two finest ("Woman of the Year" and "Adam's Rib"). The film focuses on Hepburn, a world-class athlete who has a problem in golf and tennis matches any time her fiancée (William Ching) is around. Spencer Tracy plays a New York sports agent who notices her talent and takes her on as a client. He finds she is just as determined as he is, and they make an incredible pair as she gets ready for a world class tennis event. But when Ching shows up, all of a sudden, the net is too high, her racket too small, and one ball coming at her looks like a dozen. That's when Tracy steps in to try and keep her fiancée away from her, as well as deal with the mobsters who put up the money for her in the first place.There is no doubt that Tracy and Hepburn together had as much chemistry as any super couple on the movie screen in the golden days of Hollywood. Add on the writing team of Ruth Gordon and Garson Kanin (looking for another hit for them after "Adam's Rib"), and you have the tools towards one of the smartest comedies of the 1950's. Aldo Ray is hysterical as a dumb boxing client of Tracy's, and is surrounded by a perfect supporting cast. Phyllis Povah, the baby machine of 1939's "The Women", plays the chatty lady who annoys Hepburn during a golf game, while Charles Buchinski seems a bit familiar as one of the mobsters whom Hepburn beats up (by picking him up by the pant legs). Oh, wait a minute....It's future action superstar Charles Bronson, long before stardom, but extremely amusing in a rare comedy role. Fortunately, while this was their last MGM film together, they had two more to go-"Desk Set" over at Fox (a delightfully funny spoof about the future of corporate research) and Columbia's controversial "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner".

Out of MGM, Pat and Mike is directed by George Cukor and written by Ruth Gordon & Garson Kanin (Oscar nominated). It stars Spencer Tracy, Katharine Hepburn & Aldo Ray. David Raksin scores the music and William H. Daniels photographs it on location around Los Angeles. Most of the golfing scenes were filmed at the Riviera Country Club, with other work shot at Occidental College. The film is notable for featuring many sports star cameos, some who show up include: Babe Zaharias, Betty Hicks, Helen Dettweiler, Don Budge, Gussie Moran, Beverly Hanson and Alice Marble. In the support cast are Charles Bronson, Frank Richards, Jim Backus, and Chuck Connors.Hugely efficient romantic comedy that sees Hepburn as sprightly PE teacher, Pat Pemberton, who is courted for stardom by shifty promoter Mike Conovan (Tracy). The trouble is is that as talented as Pat is, she goes to pieces when watched by her beau, Davie Hucko (Ray). Pretty soon Pat starts responding to Mike's methods of coaching, and could there even be love in the air too? OK, so it doesn't hold any surprises in how it pans out, but the fun is in getting there. The script is tight as a padlock and Cukor gets great performances out of his two leads. Notably Hepburn, who gets to show her undoubted athletic ability. Added bonus is Raksin's score, which is breezy with jazzy tones and sits nicely in context to the material playing out.Not as sharp as Adam's Rib, but clever and funny in equal measure. 7/10