RyothChatty ridiculous rating

BroadcastChic Excellent, a Must See

Tobias Burrows It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.

Yazmin Close shines in drama with strong language, adult themes.

Al Westerfield The dichotomy in reviewer assessments of Lovers Courageous has, I fear, more to do with the reviewers' life experiences than the film. Those that waited for that special someone, knew almost immediately that he or she was the one, spent their whole life thinking of no one but that person and that total commitment was reciprocated, arguing only over "gift of the magi" details, surmounting family difficulties through togetherness and basically living a wonderful life, know this film is true and expresses itself beautifully. If this is corny, well, life can sometimes be corny if you're very, very lucky.Montgomery and Evans are perfectly matched and show true love seldom achieved in film. Young's portrayal is subtle and effective until the final resolution. For once Kerr isn't his usual bumbling good heart mumbling inanities under his breath; he's a perfect nasty. With few exceptions the rest of the cast performs well. The dialog is exceptionally crisp. I had wished that the depths of despair weren't quite so deep; it descended into unfortunate melodrama, making the end too pat. All the same, it brought back memories of finding true love. For that I'll always be thankful.

Neil Doyle ROBERT MONTGOMERY is a wastrel who goes from job to job, finally landing in South Africa where he falls in love with an Admiral's daughter (MADGE EVANS). They meet casually in the shop where he works and for him it's love at first sight. In no time at all they become starry-eyed lovers forced to separate when her wealthy family decides he's the wrong material for a suitor, a struggling playwright who's never had a success.But they do get together again when she ditches her fiancé (REGINALD OWEN) and returns to Montgomery, offering to marry him. For awhile, it's rough going with no money for food or rent and Evans' father forces Montgomery to give her up and let his daughter return home.Of course, it all leads toward a happy ending when Montgomery's play based on his real life affair with a wealthy woman becomes a tremendous hit. The dialog is not always as sophisticated as one would like. Evans' last line is: "Let's stay home and have a baby." MADGE EVANS was one of the most attractive blondes of the '30s and gives a sincere performance. Montgomery is first rate as her troubled husband.Summing up: The material has been done before, over and over again, and more successfully than here where it gets the cornball treatment.

David (Handlinghandel) It's very stagy. Clearly, it was a play. Though opened up, with flashbacks and scenes on lakes, it is like a play -- and a very stodgy one, at that. Indeed, it's like what we imagine the Robert Montgomery character's play would be, based on the few lines we hear.Montgomery is supposed to be English. His American accent is explained by his going to Canada and then South Africa -- if one views that as an explanation. Madge Evans was a charming performer but one wouldn't know that from her performance here. Beryl Mercer comes through well, as Montgomery's mother. And Roland Young, in a minor role, is good. Was he ever not good? The problem with this is that it's hard to believe the trajectory of Montgomery's life as it's portrayed. It's hard to believe he suddenly became a fine playwright. And it's quite difficult indeed to care about the romance between him and Evans. When many people think of early sound movies, they think of grandiose fluff like this. And that's a shame, since there are so many gems to be mined.

boblipton This screen adaptation of a play by Frederick Lonsdale about a young man who has spent his life wandering about the globe, collecting experience so he can become a playwright -- Robert Montgomery -- and the young aristocrat who marries him and is disinherited for her taking up with a wastrel - Madge Evans -- creaks pretty badly as it goes through its predictable plot twists. Director Robert Z. Leonard and the unnamed screenwriters make some effort at opening up the script, but still wind up having the leads conduct most of their earnest dialogue in two-shots. Also, frankly, Robert Montgomery is miscast. He never quite managed to do accents convincingly and he seems overwhelmed, although he carries out his self-effacing courtship of Miss Evans most charmingly.Nor do most of the other actors manage to be more than straw men. The two exceptions are -- unsurprisingly -- Beryl Mercer, who made a specialty in kindly, clueless mothers -- her best known role was Lew Ayres' mother in ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT -- and the always delightful Roland Young, who gets to play someone with brains and heart, who comes up with most of the plot twists here.All in all, not a movie to search out unless you are a fanatic for any of the personnel involved.