Topper (1937) *** (out of 4)Marion and George Kerby (Constance Bennett, Cary Grant) are a fun-loving couple who party all night long and don't quit until there's no more fun to be had. George is business partners with Cosmo Topper (Roland Young) who lives an incredibly boring life where he's pushed around by his nagging wife. The Kerby's are killed in an auto crash but their ghosts come back and they plan on showing Topper a good time.Throughout the 1930's there were all sorts of comedies based inside haunted houses. This film here was somewhat different because it was given an A-budget and a terrific cast. This MGM production was a huge hit when it was released and it kicked off a franchise that remains popular to this very day. There are certainly a lot of nice jokes in the film but there's no question that the film really benefits from its terrific cast, which includes Grant who shot to super-stardom thanks to this.The entire cast is really terrific but there's no question that Grant deserves a lot of the credit for the film being as funny as it is. Grant would become one of the greatest leading men in Hollywood history and that classic charm that everyone loves is on full display here and this is certainly the first time where he hit on all levels. The character is a really fun one and there's no doubt that Grant does everything he can with it. Bennett and him share some terrific chemistry together throughout. Young is also wonderful in the role of the meek man who finally gets a chance to live. Eugene Palette is hilarious in his role as a hotel detective and we also get Hedda Hopper, Billie Burke and Alan Mowbray.The film's weakest sequence is actually a long stretch when Grant is missing from the picture. There are some really funny moments scattered throughout the picture but my personal favorite was when the Topper character is drunk and we're given the effect that he's being carried around. The special effects are extremely good and it's amazing to see how much the "invisible" touch had improved since Universal's THE INVISIBLE MAN in 1933.

Although the title role is played by Roland Young, the rest of the cast is made up of other quite famous stars and supporting actors and actresses of the period.Among the others is Cary Grant (no less) as George Kerby and Constance Bennett as his wife Marion, Arthur Lake,only a little pre-Dagwood Bumstead, Billie Burke (post-Ziegfeld but slightly pre-Wizard of Oz), the gravel-voiced Eugene Palette (("No son of mine", he even says something like it in the film.) Alan Mowbray (Hollywood's idea of a butler), Hedda Hopper as a society lady, an uncredited Hoagy Carmichael at the beginning of the film at the piano of course, and lots of others.The ghostly special effects are quite wonderful for the period and the Thorne Smith-based plot keeps things moving along nicely.Who could ask for anything more?

A carefree couple (Cary Grant, Constance Bennett) are killed in a car crash. They come back as ghosts to help their bank manager friend, Cosmo Topper (Roland Young), break out of his stuffy little rut and find happiness. I first saw this years ago and I remember being disappointed that Cary Grant isn't really the star of it, Roland Young is. This is probably the role Young is best remembered for, although it's very similar to some of his other roles. Namely that of a meek little man who mumbles and has funny deadpan reactions to things. He's likable and easy to root for. For their parts, Grant and Bennett are a lot of fun. They sing "Old Man Moon" with Hoagy Carmichael in one delightful scene. The supporting cast includes Billie Burke, Alan Mowbray, and a very funny Eugene Palette. The film was a success and led to two sequels and a TV series. It's a light screwball comedy with enjoyable performances and a good script. People expecting it to be a vehicle for Cary Grant might be disappointed but hopefully they'll give it a shot anyway.

Roland Young's portrayal of stuffy banker Cosmo Topper was so well received that it spawned two sequel films and a television series during the Fifties. It's a great example of that genre that was done best in the Thirties, the screwball comedy.Cary Grant and Constance Bennett are George and Marion Kerby, a pair of rich dizzy socialites for who life is a non-stop party. Every now and then we have to tend to business, such as Cary showing up for Board of Directors meeting of the bank where Roland Young is president.One find day while driving at a high speed Cary totals his car and he and Constance wind up ectoplasm. Stuck between this world and the next Connie concludes that a good deed must be done if they're to gain entrance through the pearly gates. Who to bestow this good deed on, but Roland Young.Though this is now classified as a Cary Grant film, Cary has a lot less to do here than either Bennett or Young. He has his moments, but it's really their show. Though physical consummation is impossible, Bennett and Young run off to a resort hotel for a wild fling. That sets the stage for a lot of physical type comedy which Bennett does well and Young is properly maintaining dignity at all costs.Billie Burke plays Young's wife who doesn't quite know what to make of her husband's rebellion against their well ordered life. Butler Alan Mowbray is equally nonplussed. However the best performances here among the supporting cast are Eugene Palette as the house detective and Arthur Lake as a bellboy at that resort.Topper is one of those films that probably could do with a remake. I can see Julia Roberts in Connie Bennett's part and possibly Tom Hanks in the Cary Grant role.But they'd have to go some to beat this one.