Man on Fire

A subject which is still topical today in 2022. Time has passed,but how many parents are still fighting for the custody of their child(ren)?

Bing Crosby shines in his part of a father whose wife eloped with a government man and after two years wants half of the custody ;from the very start ,the young boy hates his stepfather ,Mister Seward ,he calls "sewer" ;the best moment is the scene with the judge (at the time, there were few women judges ,;today they would not even notice it ) ; the actress,Anne Seymour, although she only has a fleeting part , displays a strong sense of psychology and humanity ,even though her verdict may seem unexpected; queen Solomon indeed :the ending bear this out.

In spite of Inger Stevens ' unquestionable talent (debut) ,her character is cardboard ; you can predict what she will do as soon as she appears; that she can blow the party single-handedly is hardly credible ;she's not a woman ,she's a good fairy with a magic wand. On the other hand ,the part of the mother (Mary Fickett) is too underwritten : she suffers too, because her boy is part of her body -and one learns a sad secret towards the end ;she and her new husband (EG Marshall ) are not the villains. The stepfather ,as the film progresses,finally wins the audience over , when he talks about the famous biblical story of the two women claiming a baby.

A hot topic ,still today.....