This second pairing of Carole Lombard and Fred MacMurray packs a lot into 76 minutes. It's the least funny of their three comedies, but that's because the humor has to share time with crime and a murder mystery. "The Princess Comes Across" is a mixed genre of comedy, a con caper, murder mystery, and romance, with a good dose of music as well. It's a bit too much to pack into 76 minutes and expect a film to be outstanding or exceptional. Still, it's entertaining and fun to watch. Lombard assumes a Greta Garbo role with a Swedish-English accent, playing a fake Princess Olga. And, MacMurray, as King Mantell, uses some of his musical talent singing with a concertina and his band. Much of the humor comes from their sidekicks. Alison Skipworth plays Lady Gertrude, companion of the princess, and William Frawley is Mantell's cohort, Benton. But, there's crime aboard their ship in this film. And the stars share screen time with a band of international detectives. Those sleuths and other lesser roles are played very well by some of the leading supporting actors of the era. Sig Ruman, Porter Hall and Mischa Auer are especially good in their roles. This film just doesn't have as much snappy dialog, witty script and clever zingers that other films have. But the plot is good and the mystery adds a twist to the usual script of comedy-romance and music for such films of the 1930s. Both stars are exceptionally adept at truly great comedy, and they show some of the range of their acting talents here.Here are some favorite lines from the film. For more dialog, see the Quotes section under this IMDb Web page of the movie. Chief Purser (Edward Keane), "There are five important police officials aboard, sir." Captain, "Police?" Chief Purser, "They're sailing for an international convention of detectives in New York. Would you like to have them at your table, sir?" Captain, "I don't even want them on my ship. They're troublemakers. Jinxes. I'd rather be followed by a seagull flying upside down. I've seen it happen again and again. Trouble's their business. They love it so much, it follows them around."Lady Gertrude, "Now I know he's no good. My dear, I am an old woman. I have traveled at home and abroad. And never, never have I known any good to come out of a concertina."Princess Olga, "You enjoyed the cocktails, didn't you?" Lady Gertrude, "Oh, the first five or six. After that I was bored."Benton, "King. I just saw Darcy go into the royal suite." King Mantell, "Yeah? Are you sure it was Darcy?" Benton, "Sure. Rats like that don't come in pairs."Benton, "Take Terry McGovern. There was a fellow with a left hook. All he had to do was hit you in the chin and break every bone in your ankle."King Mantell, "If you're ever in any kind of trouble, you can count on me." Princess Olga, "Oh, why do you think I should be in any trouble?" King Mantell, "Oh, I dunno. This is a strange ship, and there are some very odd people aboard." Princess Olga, "Ja, and the oddest of them all is you."Lady Gertrude, "Thank heaven this day is over. Such a crowd, my dear. I don't mind people stepping on my feet, but I do object to their loitering there."Lady Gertrude "Oh, my stars and garters."Benton, "I'm saving this page for your obituary notice. I can see it now. 'King Mantell Gets Himself Bumped Off for a Dame.'"Princess Olga, "Well, if you really know who the murderer is, why don't you tell them now?" King Mantell, "I would if I knew. The point is I don't." Princess Olga, "Then why did you say you did?" King Mantell, "Because to catch a rat you have to have cheese." Princess Olga, "I don't get it." King Mantell, "I'm the cheese. When the rat comes to nibble, bang goes the trap." Princess Olga, "With the cheese in it." King Mantell, "Not if it's a smart piece of cheese."Benton, "I'll stick around, all right, but I ain't no Charlie Chan. When I'm picking that guy's sewing kit out of your back, don't say I didn't tell you, that's all."Benton, "I don't know why you want to trade your concertina for a harp."

It's difficult to smoothly blend a suspenseful murder mystery with a light romantic comedy, but ace director William K. Howard achieves the almost impossible and does exactly this in Paramount's expansively produced and beautifully photographed (Ted Tetzlaff) shipboard thriller/romance. The stars, Carole Lombard and Fred MacMurray, are both in fine form. They need to be, for they are up against a remarkable array of professional scene stealers including Douglass Dumbrille, Alison Skipworth, Charles Barbier, Porter Hall and Sig Ruman. You'd expect a richly produced, smoothly directed (by William K. Howard), atmospherically photographed (by Ted Tetzlaff), ingratiatingly acted and most entertainingly scripted movie fare like this to receive hurrahs from all the critics, But that was not the case. Frank Nugent of The New York Times even gave the movie a negative review. In my opinion, the movie is a most entertaining blend of romance, thrills, mystery and comedy. Alas, it was during the filming of The Princess Comes Across that Howard unwittingly set the stage for his later rebuff by the Hollywood hierarchy when he ordered the movie's production supervisor off the set for too much interference.

The delightful Carole Lombard was at her comic height in 1936, whether playing the dizzy heiress of "My Man Godfrey", the frazzled socialite of "Love Before Breakfast", or the phony Swedish princess in this, a delightful screwball comedy set on an ocean liner that literally is murder. She spoofs the legendary Garbo here, giving a delightful Swedish accent that is comical yet not ridiculing. The fun starts on her trip when she finds concertina player Fred MacMurray inside her state room, and from there comes blackmail, a few murders, romance and the comedy of several people pretending to be who they are not. Lombard and MacMurray are surrounded by a top-notch supporting cast including the imperious Allison Skipworth as Lombard's dowager like companion (reminding me of the late Marie Dressler), William Frawley as MacMurray's crotchety pal (hysterical in a scene wearing a beret which looks like a bad toupee), Mischa Auer, Lumsden Hare, Sig Ruman and Douglas Dumbrille as a group of European detectives conveniently aboard to get involved in the murder investigation, Bradley Page as a mystery man stalking the detectives, and Porter Hall as the blackmailer.This fun-filled voyage has a delightfully witty screenplay and everybody involved seems to be having a joyous time. After being rather obnoxious in their previous pairing ("Hands Across the Table"), MacMurray gets to downplay a bit here, and Lombard proves again as to why she was one of the most beloved actresses of the 1930's-she was simply divine, a rare actress under the age of 30 whom everybody could identify with. Her down to earth demeanor is visible through her high-falluting impersonation of the Swedish countess from Brooklyn and it becomes obvious as to why her tragic death in 1942 was mourned by the world.Two of the screen's great 1930's movie villains (Dumbrille and Page) seem to be playing against type here, but the cleverness of the screenplay is such that not everything is as it seems. It's great to see MacMurray and Frawley together 25 years before they were paired together on "My Three Sons", ironic considering that Frawley's "MTS" replacement William Demarest had appeared with him in "Hands Across the Table". Don't be drinking when Lombard, in Swedish dialect, reveals to the American press the name of her favorite movie star.

The main reason to see this fun, if slowly paced, comedy-mystery is to see a glowing Carole Lombard do an hilarious impersonation of Greta Garbo. She plays an American actress pretending to be a Swedish princess - and Carole has a ball sending up Garbo in the process. Also great to get a glimpse of pre-WW2 politics, with the detectives on board coming from all over the globe - including Germany, Russia and Japan. Great fun. What a shame we don't all travel by boat still!