csteidler Sonny Tufts, high energy but unorthodox management type, has just arrived in Washington to step up airplane production. Olivia de Havilland, the "government girl" assigned to assist him, quickly realizes that the biggest part of her job is showing Tufts just how D.C. works. The plot isn't much but it's the kind of material that ought to make a great comedy—part satire, part romance, lots of patriotism and snappy dialog....Unfortunately, this picture mixes in bits of all of those elements but never quite manages to put any of them over the top. Olivia de Havilland is fine as the title character and it's fun to watch her play broad comedy. There's a great shot of her sitting behind her desk, shoes off, feet up, smoking a cigarette and reading a book. She looks good and it's fun seeing her in modern dress. (Sure, she made plenty of "modern" movies but many of her most famous roles were period pieces. Here she dresses like neither Melanie Wilkes nor Maid Marian, and she looks comfortable.) However, it just seems like there isn't enough for her actually to do: one of the recurring gags in the film is de Havilland racing across the office then racing back to her desk, having forgotten to put on her shoes. That's kind of funny but no matter how cutely performed it's just not hilarious. Ann Shirley is rather lively as de Havilland's friend. Shirley and soldier James Dunn are just married, but they can't seem to find a place to live, or even get a little privacy before Dunn's leave is over. They exchange some corny dialog (Shirley: Oh, wouldn't it be awful if ya got killed before our honeymoon? Dunn: For me it'd be just as bad after!) and are generally cute if silly. Overall, this is of those well-meaning pictures that's pleasant enough but just a bit dull.

kijii For those who could never imagine Olivia de Havilland in a totally madcap comedy but would like to, I would highly recommend this movie to you!! The story is set in Washington, D.C. in the middle of WW II, when all the hotels in town are full of important people doing business, mostly to help support the war effort. In this way, this movie is highly similar to The More the Merrier (1943) which was made in the same time period with a similar theme. However, this movie is more about getting things done quickly rather than taking shortcuts through the housing shortage. Here, de Havilland serves as sort of an activity coordinator, trying to guide people to the right place and keep the herd of visitors moving with the least possible disruption. However, she is not ready for the likes of Ed Brown (Sonny Tufts) who is knowledgeable about manufacturing the huge number of aircraft needed quickly for the war. Ed will do anything to make airplanes and put them into service quickly. To do this, he takes shortcuts to get through the red tape of Washington, and Elizabeth Allard (Olivia de Havilland) can do nothing but go along with him on his wild ride through the bureaucracy, always about five steps in front of any roadblock that may get in his way. De Havilland often plays the clown to Tufts character, but is soon brought on board his madhouse tactics when she sees hundreds of new warplanes being launched and deployed, thanks to him.

bkoganbing In the Citadel Film Series book on The Films of Olivia DeHavilland, her winding up in Government Girl was a great illustration of how the contract players were treated at the studios. Just like baseball players in those days before the reserved clause was abolished.As we all know Olivia had worked with David O. Selznick before and she was excited when Jack Warner who just could not see her as anything but arm candy for Errol Flynn and other of his heroic leading men optioned her off to Selznick again. Maybe she would get a part as good as Melanie Hamilton.But Selznick called off whatever film he was going to do with her and took his option and sent DeHavilland packing to RKO where she was put in this minor league comedy Government Girl. She did the film, hating every minute of it and resolved once and for all to challenge the studio system and its control of its players. Just like Curt Flood later challenging the reserved clause in baseball.Although she overacts outrageously in a part that someone like Jean Arthur might have been better in, DeHavilland does well in this comedy about wartime Washington, DC. My aunt was such a Government Girl during those World War II and she met her husband who was a 4-F in those years because of a history of tuberculosis. I'd like to think they had such hijinks during those years.America was truly mobilized then and people like Sonny Tufts who were business executives were called in and gladly served on the home-front, organizing the nation's industrial and agricultural might. He appropriates her hotel room using his big-shot status on a night when Olivia was helping friend and Anne Shirley try to get in some quality honeymooning with her bridegroom James Dunn. And then of course Olivia who knows the Washington power scene inside and out finds out she's going to be Tufts's secretary. But I don't think I need tell you more.Oddly enough DeHavilland is romanced by Tufts, Jess Barker who later married Susan Hayward and Paul Stewart. Barker is a slimy young man on the make working for a Senate Investigating Committee having to do with keeping the graft at a minimum in the war effort. Senator Harry Davenport employs him for reasons not altogether clear. In real life I doubt Senator Harry Truman employed anyone like Barker. Through his own naiveté Tufts winds up in a jackpot before the Davenport Committee. And it takes a Government Girl like Olivia DeHavilland to bail him out.For her legion of fans this was not Olivia's finest hour and a half on screen.

MartinHafer Uggghhh! This film simply irritated me, as the wonderful and Oscar-winning Olivia de Havilland was forced to appear in this movie that was simply beneath her talents. And, considering that she battled the big-wigs at Warner Brothers for better roles, this loan-out to RKO is ample evidence that she was right to sue to be released from her contract! Quite simply, this is a poorly written film where Miss de Havilland was paired with a lumbering 'actor' who had all the charisma and charm of a log!The film is set in DC during the Second World War. De Havilland is secretary to a guy who comes off as an idiot. Perhaps it was the writing or perhaps this was the best Sonny Tufts could do, but he seemed to be ill-at-ease in his role as a manufacturing expert brought to the Capital to increase production. However, the plot really involves Tufts and de Havilland eventually falling in love--interspersed with some 'kooky' adventures--and kooky really seemed to poorly suit the sophisticated de Havilland. Of particular note was the ultra-kooky motorcycle scene--which came off as something you might expect from an Abbott & Costello or Three Stooges film! Poorly rear-projected and zany, I cringed during this entire unnecessary sequence. And, as far as cringing goes, this early scene was just one of many that just irritated me (another awful one was the crying scene where I just wanted de Havilland to shut up!). The film was just poorly written and dumb. This is clearly among the actress' worst films and, sadly, probably among the best performances by Tufts! Simply awful and clearly a B-movie in every way--despite an A-level star in the title role. I think I'm gonna throw up! To think the star from "The Heiress", "To Each His Own" and "The Snake Pit" was put into this drivel!!