Trip Top
Topper Takes a Trip (1938), dir Norman McLeod, w/ Roland Young (Cosmo Topper), Billie Burke (Clara Topper), Constance Bennett (Marion Kirby), Alan Mowbray (Wilkins)
This is the sequel to the hugely popular Topper (1937). This film, which starts soon after the first one ended, has Topper in a divorce trial, in which he tries to explain that he was haunted by the ghosts of the Kirbies, and that is the reason for his peculiar behavior. Of course, explaining about ghosts makes him seem only crazier, though the judge does not accept the grounds for divorce. As a result, Ms. Topper heads to Europe with a friend with the idea of getting a divorce there (how does that work, I wonder?) — can you get a divorce in Europe that would be recognized here? Of course, these days, there’d be no trouble getting one here. At any rate, this is all an excuse for Topper to get in more trouble, this time on the French Riviera, where Ms. Topper’s friend is trying to get a gigolo to take up with her to furnish grounds for divorce. On this trip goes Marion Kirby, played again by Constance Bennett. Cary Grant, who played George Kirby, did not reprise the role, so we have a strange premise — that somehow the Topper divorce case is an indication that Marion failed in her good deed, and so she has to make the matter right before she can ascend to heaven and rejoin George, who was apparently successful. Another thing that is strange about this film is that when Topper tells his story in court, we have a recap from the other film (one which carried an acknowledgement of Cary Grant’s willingness to let the footage be used in this film).
I have to say I find Roland Young a bit hard to take in this role — he makes Billie Burke seem subtle in her performance.
