Without Love
Without Love
NR | 22 March 1945 (USA)
Without Love Trailers

In World War II Washington DC, scientist Pat Jamieson's assistant, Jamie Rowan, enters a loveless marriage with him. Struggles bring them closer together.

Reviews
Brightlyme i know i wasted 90 mins of my life.
Gurlyndrobb While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.
Neive Bellamy Excellent and certainly provocative... If nothing else, the film is a real conversation starter.
Bessie Smyth Great story, amazing characters, superb action, enthralling cinematography. Yes, this is something I am glad I spent money on.
HotToastyRag One of my favorite film proposals is from Without Love. Based on Philip Barry's play, Katharine Hepburn, who starred in the show on Broadway, recruited her off-screen sweetheart Spencer Tracy to act in the film adaptation. They play intellectual patriots—he's a government scientist and she's his assistant—who get along quite nicely as friends but aren't interested in romance. Because of logistics during wartime, Kate gets the bright idea that it would be easier if they married so he can continue his important experiments, and she gives a hilarious nervous monologue proposing a marriage "without love".The Hays Code didn't allow double beds in a bedroom, or for an unmarried couple to lay down next to one another—one person's feet had to be always on the ground. Without Love was pretty daring for its time, since it stretched the boundaries and filmed some pretty risqué bedroom scenes using the excuse that Spencer Tracy's character was a chronic sleepwalker. To modern audiences, those scenes might seem a little silly, but try and imagine how it felt seeing them in 1945!While this isn't my favorite Tracy-Hepburn pairing—that award goes to Adam's Rib and Guess Who's Coming to Dinner—it's definitely worth watching. They're awfully cute together in this one, and the romance doesn't include constant bickering like some of their other films. It's nice to see them actually get along, plus Felix Bressart, Kennan Wynn, Gloria Grahame, and Lucille Ball round out the supporting cast nicely.
scw1217 I liked this film despite not really caring for Katharine Hepburn as an actress. I do, however, like Spencer Tracy. Having not seen (or even aware of) the Broadway play, I have nothing to compare it to. I think that made the film better for me. The plot line moved along well, predictably perhaps. For supporting cast, I was really surprised to see Lucille Ball. She was much better to me playing a more serious character without the slapstick comedy. The ending was pleasing, good to see things all work out between them. My favorite part of the film I would say was the repartee between Hepburn and Tracy's characters, nothing is said directly to each other and yet each knows what the other meant. Fun film, which I enjoyed.
barrymn1 This is an excellent vehicle for Tracy-Hepburn, not their best but darn close to it. Cleverly made comedy.The whole cast is just fine, but I think this is Lucille Ball's all-time best feature film performance. She didn't have much opportunity for high-brow sophisticated parts, and as Kitty, the real estate agent and love interest for Keynan Wynn, Ball is just wonderful. What a shame she didn't get parts like this very often.Direction and set design is typical of MGM's best of the 1940's.Nifty film.....now if Warner Home Video would get around to releasing it on DVD, I'd be a happy camper.
Ripshin I'll refrain from a lengthy post, unlike many others in here. This film is entertaining, but also bizarre. Hepburn and Tracy are always a pleasure, but the whole scenario seems a bit out of whack. Wynn and Ball are excellent in their supporting roles, although Wynn's character seems to disappear towards the end, and there is zero chemistry between the two. Frankly, if this film/play were staged today, Ball's character would be a man, and Wynn's would be gay. Yes, Dizzy the dog did steal many of the scenes. I'm surprised some of the double entendres made it past the Hayes Code, although I'm certain Barry's original play is much more risque.Turner Classic Movies plays this film during "theme" periods, and today I watched it immediately after "Woman of the Year." The latter film has a final scene which is quite annoying, and demeaning to Hepburn's character. Ironically, considering Hepburn's real-life independence, her pairings with Tracy always seem to require that she be "dressed down."