Tammy and the Bachelor
Directed by Joseph Pevney
Written by Oscar Brodney from a novel by Cid Ricketts Sumner
1957/USA
Universal International Pictures
First viewing/Netflix rental
[box] Tambey ‘Tammy’ Tyree: Just think, Miss Renie, that same moon that’s shinin’ down on me this very moment, is shinin’ down on Pete’s tomatoes![/box]
“Cute” is a good one-word review for this romantic comedy.
Tammy Tyree (Debbie Reynolds) is a seventeen-year-old backwoods girl who associates mostly with her moonshiner Grandpa (Walter Brennan) and pet goat. One day, the two learn of a plane crash in the area and go out with hopes of salvaging some valuables. They find a survivor as well, Peter Brent (Leslie Nielsen) and nurse him back to health. He goes back to his family in ten days, but not before Tammy has fallen in love with him. He thinks of her as a child, however.
When Grandpa is put in jail for his illegal manufacturing, he sends Tammy to the Brents. There she discovers that Pete comes from a swanky Southern family that lives in an Ante-Bellum plantation mansion. Appearances are deceiving though, and the Brents are land poor. Pete has hopes of making the place pay by developing a superior type of tomato. Progress in this effort is slow.
All the Brents except Pete and eccentric Miss Rennie (Mildred Natwick), look down on Tammy and on Pete’s desire to be a farmer. They want him to marry Barbara and join her family’s advertising business. Three guesses as to how this all plays out. You will only need one of them.
This is a well-made trifle that goes down easily. Reynolds is charming as a hayseed. It has some of the sit-com feel that befits a movie that spawned several sequels and a TV series.
The title song was nominated for an Oscar for Best Music, Original song.
Trailer
