AllMovie

Her Favorite Patient is a moderately amusing little piece of fluff, but the kind of film the improbabilities of which will leave many modern viewers rolling their eyes. For example, I'm willing to grant that the character played by Ruth Hussey could indeed be a brilliant physician, but no doctor can be an expert in an as many areas as Hussey. And, more importantly, any doctor who actually was so brilliant would easily see through the scheme hatched by Charlie Ruggles and John Carroll to keep her in her home town rather than let her go on to fame and fortune in Chicago. Even with these improbabilities, Patient has sufficient appeal to make it worth a viewing, thanks especially to Hussey's well-turned performance. Her timing is quite good, and she knows how to handle the silly elements that are thrown her way; what she can't do is provide the kind of special star charisma that the part really calls for. She's technically excellent -- just lacking that extra "oomph." Carroll is a bit of a bore, but Ruggles is a delight as always and Ann Rutherford adds considerably to the affair.