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Dec 05, 2014Nursebob rated this title 3.5 out of 5 stars
Katherine Hepburn plays Patricia “Pat” Pemberton, an all-American athlete with a natural talent for golf and tennis. Spencer Tracy plays Mike Conovan, a decent enough sports promoter who’s not above trying to fix a game in order to appease his underworld stakeholders. When the two come together sparks turn to flame and a new contest slowly emerges with Pat having a definite advantage. There’s only one snag—Pat is still intimidated by her alpha male fiancé Collier to the point that whenever he shows up to watch her play his presence causes her to panic and lose the game. Will Pat and Mike still be able to make a love match with Collier and a couple of impatient mob bosses hovering in the wings? A likeable comedy buoyed by a lively script and the undeniable screen chemistry of Tracy and Hepburn which makes a lighthearted attempt to address the deeper social concern of gender inequality and women’s independence. The prolonged sports scenes are surprisingly gripping, especially a whimsical segment in which an agitated Pat imagines the tennis net getting progressively higher while her opponent’s racquet looms enormous and her own shrinks to the size of a paddle. A few “before they were famous” cameos from Chuck Connors and Charles Bronson round out a competent cast which also includes a number of actual pro athletes, both male and female. Good late night viewing.