Dolby Digital Mono (English)

All too often, films with an ensemble cast are a dream for the studio’s marketing department, but end up being a nightmare for the moviegoer. They are the very definition of the phrase, “too many Chiefs and not enough Indians”. There are exceptions to this rule (such as Steven Soderberg’s re-make of Ocean’s 11), but more often than not, such films fall flat, as everybody leads in their own direction, and nobody follows.

Thankfully, this is one of those rare exceptions. Each member of the cast of T...e Great Escape understands their role in telling the story, and they fill it perfectly. No one actor is the star here (though it is clear that Steve McQueen is certainly the man); everyone sacrificed their personal glory for the good of the film.

Love Nest is one of those films that has a great plot, but is unable to follow through on the script. The idea behind this film is simple; a man returns home from the war to find that his wife has purchased an apartment building, and they are now landlords. Every one of their tenants is crazy in their own way, and mad-cap adventures ensue.

After the first act, the story really settles in on one tenant in particular… a sneaky old Casanova who makes his money by pretending to fall in love with rich old...women. Unfortunately, his mannerisms and dialog are completely transparent, so while the characters in the film are fooled, his true nature is blatantly obvious to even the casual viewer. A much more interesting storyline deals with Marilyn Monroe’s role as an old Army buddy of the landlord. His wife is obviously quite jealous of this sexy young woman, and her suspicions about how well her husband knew her during the war are comedic fodder that could have carried this film much farther than it went otherwise.