Alan Tanner (George Brent) has fallen victim to a spell of writer’s block. He can’t seem to finish the third act of his new play.
The trouble is that Tanner doesn’t have much time to finish the play. It’s set to open in a week, and the public has already been assured that it’ll be sensational.
In order to try to remedy his problem, Alan holes up in a cottage in the cold, snowy countryside. But there are just as many distractions for him in this cottage of “isolation” as there are in the city: a lively new love interest named Pat Quinn (Patricia Ellis), and two ex-wives named Alice (Genevieve Tobin) and Daisy (Glenda Farrell), who have come to the cabin looking for Alan — Alice hoping to help Alan stay on task, and Daisy seeking her alimony.
Stranded in the boonies with these three ladies, Alan struggles to finish his play in time.
Ray Enright directs 1936’s Snowed Under, a quick little comedy running at just over an hour. The screenplay was written by F. Hugh Hebert and Brown Holmes with assistance from Edward Chodorov and Mary C. McCall.
First of all, what a cast! Patricia Ellis, Geneieve Tobin and Glenda Farrell sharing the screen, along with George Brent as the man who has romanced them all at one time or another? A stellar group.
As expected, all four of these stars give very good performances. Brent’s character comes off as charming rather than smarmy, despite his womanizing ways, and his three lady-friends are full of spunk. The cast is very charismatic, which does well to draw the viewer into the film.
The screenplay of this film is nothing spectacular, but it’s got a fair share of both wit and corny jokes keep the viewer entertained. It’s also got a nice pace — quick, but not frantic. Nothing out of the ordinary happens to Alan and his gaggle of female friends, but the cast does well with the material they’re given, making Snowed Under an enjoyable watch.
Snowed Under may not be a true “classic” of the comedy genre but it’s a perfectly good watch. Fans of any member of the cast, or those interested in light romantic comedy will enjoy this one. The score: 3/5
The Motion Pictures 