(1938)
2.5
Craig Butler
A Yank at Oxford is an enjoyable, middling little comedy that will please undemanding audiences in the mood for something light. It's often thought of as the film that changed Robert Taylor's career, as it showed that he was more than just a "soft" romantic figure for the likes of Greta Garbo to emote over. Yank revealed that Taylor could play a "man's man," and opened new doors for him. As cinema history, therefore, it has some special interest, but taken on its own terms as a film, it's entertaining but little more. Certainly, the cast is not to blame. Taylor plays the brash American well and demonstrates the required virility well, and certainly displays his physique in an impressive manner. Edmund Gwenn is a sheer delight as a dean at the college, Maureen O'Sullivan is appealing as Taylor's love interest and a young Vivien Leigh plays her supporting part for all it's worth. Jack Conway's direction is brisk and to the point, if not overly original. The problem lies with the screenplay, which -- despite (or perhaps because of) the contributions of some dozen credited and uncredited writers, including the unidentified F. Scott Fitzgerald -- is far too familiar and skin-deep.
cast-crew for A Yank at Oxford on AllMovie
A Yank at Oxford (1938)
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