This is one of the few Errol Flynn movies that made me laugh out loud. It is a truly charming movie, in every positive sense of the word "charming". It reminded me a lot of Miracle on 34th Street. Yes, it is that good.
There is an irony about Errol. Despite his wicked reputation as a ladies man, lecher, on-set drunk and all-together ne'er do well, he was a great actor with children. In al of his on-screen roles, his various roles in which he interacts with children are certainly among his best, and - surprisingly - his most comfortable. That's part of the enigma. He was a great actor with children. In Never Say Goodbye, the chemistry is fantastic. Why isn't the movie better known now? Probably because the main story revolved around divorce, which was still pretty "off topic" in the mid-1940s. Pretty touchy stuff.
Eleanor Parker. What can you say? One of Errol's best costars. And, well, she's great. The chemistry between the two in this movie is palpable - mainly because Errol and Eleanor were actually so good together in front of the camera. Irony - one of Eleanor Parker's first big roles was in They Died With Their Boots On, but all of her scenes were axed and ended up on the cutting room floor. Hmmmm.
Before I digress - Forrest Tucker as the US Marine. Great. And greta with Errol. I can only imagine that they got along very well during filming.
Long story short. An overlooked classic of the era. A truly nice, nice, nice movie. Great stuff.
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