Plot: What’s it about?
Pat Pemberton (Katharine Hepburn) is a marvel in the world of ladies’ sports and she even think she can become a serious star, but her meddling and overbearing fiance always seems to block her path to success. She can win at several sports such as golf and tennis, but with him looking over her shoulder all the time, it won’t be easy in the least. In one case, she had a golf championship at fingers’ reach, but he cost her the title just by being there and making her feel uncomfortable about the entire thing. She wants to do her best in all she does, but he thinks she should drop the sports and be happy as his little wife. This angers her of course, because she feels that would be giving up on herself and that’s something she has no intentions of doing. Soon she meets Mike Conovan (Spencer Tracy), a sports promoter and the two become partners, with a growing attraction between the two. But Mike needs to clean up his act before she finds out he’s had some shady dealings, or else he might lose out in the end.
In the realm of sports based romantic comedies, some folks think Bull Durham, Tin Cup, or maybe even Jerry Maguire. But a lesser known film by the name of Pat and Mike also offers up high entertainment value and since Warner has just issued the film on our beloved format, I chose to give this one a look. This one is rather light of course, so don’t expect much heart string tugging, unless it’s of the “awwww…” variety. Still, not all romantic films need intense conflict and sometimes you might just want one that’s easy on the emotions, right? Pat and Mike works very well in all respects with a great case (led by Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn) and an Oscar nominated screenplay to boot. The dialogue is well written, but I do think the writing spends a little too much time in certain scenes, when the film should be moving along instead. I know Tracy and Hepburn are fantastic talents and display excellent chemistry here, but the ages (40+) of them tends to make the film seems a little odd at times. But still, Pat and Mike is a good choice if you need some light hearted romance and comedy, though I think a rental will suffice in most cases.
As I mentioned above, this film revolves around the characters of Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn, both gifted performers in all respects. I do think they are a little long in the tooth for their roles here, but I imagine they perform better than whomever would have taken their places. So yes, their ages do make it a little tough at times, but they’re so good you just have to forget about it and watch. The two work together very well as always, showing off their amazing chemistry and proving they could still more than handle the leads. Tracy (Adam’s Rib, The Old Man And The Sea) seems at home within his role, which allows him to blend his toughness with a golden heart. He does show some flaws here and this isn’t his best work, but he does a more than adequate turn. This movie belongs to Hepburn (Summertime, Love Affair) though, who despite her age manages to be convincing as a world class athlete. She struts her stuff well here and also gives a fine performance, which is which we could always expect from her. The cast also includes Aldo Ray (Human Experiments, The Lucifer Complex), Charles Bronson (Chino, Death Wish), William Ching (Buck Privates Come Home), and a slew of sports stars from the era.
Video: How does it look?
Pat and Mike is presented in a full frame transfer, which preserves the film’s original aspect ratio. I am very pleased with how clean the image looks, but some compression flaws keep this one from getting too high of a score. I noticed frequent (though minor) moire patterns and edge enhancement, which forces me to knock this one down a couple notches. The source print looks pristine though, with minimal debris and grain evident. This is a top notch black & white image, with well balanced black levels and no detail problems I could see.
Audio: How does it sound?
The original mono track is used and supplies an adequate presentation. This is based on dialogue for the most part, so don’t expect much in terms of other elements. This is a crisp track, with few traces of harshness or distortion, which is impressive for a film of this age. The sound effects are distinct and vocals are clean also, this isn’t a memorable option, but it does the film justice. This disc also includes English & French subtitles.
Supplements: What are the extras?
This disc includes talent files, production notes, and theatrical & teaser trailers.
