THE JUDGE STEPS OUT (1948)

In a custody hearing being touted in the press as "Railroad Tycoon vs. Showgirl," a rich man is seeking custody of his daughter-in-law's baby, as the father died in the war and the mother is struggling to make a living. Boston judge Thomas Bailey (Alexander Knox) awards the child to the tycoon because he can provide a better upbringing, ignoring the tearful pleas of the mother. Back at home, Tom is dealing with his neglectful wife Evelyn (she's forgotten it’s his birthday) who is spending too much money on their daughter's upcoming wedding into the wealthy Struthers family; he's tired of having to keep up with others, but she accuses him of being a financial failure, particularly when Tom is inclined to turn down a good job offer from Mr. Struthers. On a train trip to Washington to look into the job offer, Tom gets off the train at night in a small town because of unexplained pains. The small-town doctor he sees tells him he is suffering from "inflammation of the family," diagnosing the judge as needing a change from the demands of his current lifestyle. Tom stays in town for a couple of days, goes fishing with the doctor, and composes a telegram home to say he's been delayed. But Tom forgets to send it, and soon he discovers via a newspaper's front page that he's been reported missing. Back in Boston, Tom enters his house, but, unseen by his family, he sees that Evelyn seems to be unconcerned with his absence, so he steps back out, takes a train to California, and starts a new life as a door-to-door book salesman. At a small town diner, he meets cute with Peggy (Ann Sothern), the diner owner and guardian to Nan, a young orphan. Not knowing his background, she hires him as a short-order cook and soon the two have settled into something that looks like domestic happiness. But months later, when Peggy's application to adopt Nan is turned down—for reasons very much like Tom's reasons for turning down the showgirl in court—the judge-in-hiding decides to head back to Boston to try and get legal help for Peggy, and also to revisit his judgment in the showgirl's case.

This is a hard one to pin down. It's light in tone but not quite a comedy. Though it might read as a May-December romance, the two leads, Knox and Sothern (pictured), are almost the same age, with Knox looking just a bit older. Though Knox gives a restrained performance (reminiscent of Ronald Colman) and Sothern is closer to her usual carefree persona, they have great chemistry together. For a Production Code-era movie, it's made surprisingly clear that Knox and Sothern are in fact living together as extramarital partners, which is rather refreshing. I spent most of my summary talking about the narrative's set-up but the bulk of the action actually covers Knox and Sothern's relationship. Given this, and without spoiling things too much, the ending is not satisfying, or wasn't for me. There are some good supporting players, including Florence Bates, George Tobias, H.B. Warner, and especially Ian Wolfe as the judge's loyal assistant. [TCM]