Imagine for a minute that a world-class chef comes and knocks on your door, volunteering to make you a nice meal, whatever you want. Do you ask him to make you a peanut butter sandwich? Of course not. Anyone can make a sandwich – it would be demeaning to his talents to ask him for something that anyone could make.
This is exactly the case with “The Clock,” starring Judy Garland and Robert Walker. Anyone could have been in this movie. Judy’s talents were not showcased at all – it was demeaning to her.
She stars as Alice Mayberry, a young woman who’s on her way home from the country to her apartment in New York when she literally stumbles over a young soldier in the train station. The heel of her shoe comes off, and he helps her find a cobbler. They end up spending the day together, and he asks her out for dinner that night. They meet under a large clock in a hotel lobby, and not only have dinner, but end up being out all night, helping a milkman make his rounds after having been slugged by a drunkard. This night of madness and mayhem convinces them that they should get married, and they spend the next day trying to get their blood work done so they can get a license. They do, they get married, and then his leave is over and he goes back to the war.
That’s really all there is to the story. There were several side plots that served no purpose as far as I could tell. I didn’t care for Robert Walker in this role – he was supposed to be an innocent country boy in awe of the big city, but he came across as a bumbling idiot. I never thought I would put a Judy Garland movie in the “Don’t Waste Your Time” category, but I’m afraid that’s what I have to do. With no plot, an unconvincing romance, and a silly ending, I have no choice.
There is one interesting sidenote, however — this film was directed by Vincente Minnelli, who had just recently married Garland.
This film was not rated.
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