Jay Raskin I watched the original version of this movie, "Love is News" (Loretta Young, Tyrone Power) about a month ago, and I watched "Sun Valley Serenade" with John Payne and Sonja Henie about a week ago. As this movie takes a lot from both those movies, I was having intense feelings of deja vu, at least through the first half of this movie. While both those movies are a little funnier, this movie also has some unique charms. Both Gene Tierney and Tyrone Power seemed a little bit old and serious for this type of screwball romantic company. This is a little strange because Tierney was only 27 and Power only 34 when they made the movie. Both look 10 years older. Perhaps it was because they were much meaner to each other than we normally see in a movie of this genre. Tierney doesn't just want to get Power fired, but she seems bent on reducing him to utter poverty, starvation and impotence. Power looks like he's about to punch Tierney at a couple of points in the film, and seems almost to threaten her with rape at one point. This sharpness of conflict between the two romantic leads keeps the movie interesting, but it undercuts the romance. The characters are supposed to be on their honeymoon, but they act as if they've been married for twenty years and ready to tear each other apart. It is a some times heavy screwball comedy, not something you would expect. The movie seems to work against itself by being alternatively pleasant and challenging. We should perhaps appreciate it for being both.

MartinHafer This is an odd film--not because it is a remake but because both the original (LOVE IS NEWS) and the remake star Tyrone Power. It's rare to see a star do this, as the studios often remade films but hardly ever used the same actors. In addition, both films are bundled together on one DVD so you can compare them. After seeing both, I would definitely recommend you see LOVE IS NEWS, as it's superior in every way.The film is about newspaper man (Power) harassing a rich heiress (Gene Tierney) in order to make headlines. It really didn't seem to matter if his articles were true and when Gene finds out that Tyrone is NOT the man he claims to be but a reporter, she is furious. However, instead of blowing her top, she decides to give him a taste of her own medicine by announcing to all the newspapers that she and Power are married--as she knows that the papers will now make Power's life miserable as well. Oddly, in the original film, the heiress announces they are engaged--here she claims they are married--though this hardly improves the quality of the film (though it does provide a bit of sexual innuendo the original didn't have).The acting is decent enough, though I really think Loretta Young did a better job in the original--probably because she seemed to have a better gift for comedy. Also, while Tyrone tries, he just doesn't seem to have quite the charm he did in the original. Part of this is naturally because it's a remake and part of this is because the supporting characters weren't nearly as strong. In particular, the Justice of the Peace was a big weak point here, as instead of coming off as comical, he's a sadist and pretty much ignores the law--surefire comedy killers! My advice is see the original. Then, if you insist, see the remake. BUT, don't see the remake first--it just doesn't stack up well and might convince you not to bother with the first film and that would be a big mistake.

bkoganbing That Wonderful Urge turned out to be Tyrone Power's last film in the comedy vein. It's a pity that Darryl Zanuck couldn't waste a little money on an original story.If you think you've seen this film before with Power, you have. This is a remake of his film Love Is News that he did with Loretta Young back in 1936. Back then films about ditzy heiresses that the Depression era public could laugh it were in vogue. In 1948 this was very old fashioned.Still it's quite humorous as heiress Gene Tierney who is sick tired of all the bad publicity she gets, especially from Power who seems to be making a career of writing about her foibles, turns the tables on him. Tierney announces to one and all that she's engaged to be married to none other than reporter Power. Now he becomes paparazzi fodder and the tables get turned. Power's not without resources and he finds ways to make the pretend marriage both work and be annoying to Tierney. But I don't think I have to tell you where this will all end.As I said in the review of Love Is News, our fascination with heiresses from Barbara Hutton to Paris Hilton seems endless. But it all gets a bit hollow because if Tierney didn't want publicity, believe me she wouldn't get it. There are a lot of rich people out there whose lives never become tabloid stories.Still it's amusing and in the supporting cast judges Chill Wills and Gene Lockhart come out the best. In fact Lockhart seems to be continuing his role as a judge from that other 20th Century Fox classic, Miracle on 34th Street.That Wonderful Urge is a dated comedy that today's audiences will still get laughs from. We do love our ditzy heiresses.

rfkeser Using the same plot as MGM's LIBLED LADY and EASY TO WED [aggrieved heiress vs. undercover reporter], Fox tried to resuscitate the romantic screwball comedy. However, aside from a few stray witty lines, nothing seems to work: not the comic business that Tyrone Power adeptly performs, not the Katharine Hepburn accent essayed by Gene Tierney, and certainly not scenes like the jailhouse exchange of bedbugs [what were they thinking?] Power and Tierney supply ample star power, and all the cast members are perfectly competent, but the whole enterprise resists laughter. Perhaps it's the brief but awful organ music in the score.