Idiot's Delight Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.5

Idiot's Delight Blu-ray Movie Review

Backward, Christian soldiers.

Reviewed by Randy Miller III March 7, 2025

An international comedy-drama set against a wartime backdrop, Clarence Brown's Idiot's Delight might be best known as "that other 1939 movie starring Clark Gable". Based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning play by Robert E. Sherwood (who also wrote the screenplay), Idiot's Delight was one of many films from the WWII era that was changed in an attempt to suit certain European countries; in this case, the play's prominent Italian settings were switched to a more ambiguous Alpine location and Esperanto was even used for certain signs and dialogue exchanges. (The evidence is limited, but most of it indicates that Idiot's Delight was nonetheless banned in those same countries it tried to appease.)

So even if these changes didn't work, does the film work? Yes and no. Our story -- which incidentally fills the 20-year gap between "The Great War" and its forthcoming sequel -- largely follows Harry Van (Clark Gable), a recent WWI vet and struggling actor who has restored to performance scams including mind-reading tricks with Madame Zuleika (Laura Hope Crews) and literally selling snake oil. He's eventually approached by lovely Irene (Norma Shearer), an acrobat who's taken enough of an interest in Harry's act to propose a professional partnership... and of course a personal partnership too, but Harry and Irene eventually part ways after having an implied one-night stand.

Fast-forward a full decade later and Harry's now on a European with his all-girl song-and-dance team "Les Blondes", but they're stopped before reaching the border to Switzerland and stranded in a nearby hotel. Other guests include a German doctor (Charles Coburn) and an emotional anti-war activist (a young Burgess Meredith, in only his fifth credited role), but the real shocker is "Irina", a Russian-accented blonde traveling with arms merchant Achille Weber (Edward Arnold). Irina is clearly Irene in disguise (Shearer does a Greta Garbo impression in a bad wig), and Harry's both baffled and impressed by her new identity even though she's making every effort to keep hear real one safe.

Idiot's Delight certainly has some intrigue, much of it riding on the chemistry between its two leads as they have no choice but to hunker down in the hotel while the sounds of war close in around them... which isn't surprising since it's basically next to an airfield. The rest is filled in by its treatment of war itself; given the time in which it was made and released, Idiot's Delight arrived when the conflict was still in its infancy, and as such it's more of a mysterious threat than something that could be more clearly defined. While the film's tone is certainly scattershot and its more preachy moments -- of which there are many -- are naive in hindsight, I appreciate the way Idiot's Delight gradually narrows to something more of a diversely satirical character piece while never fully relinquishing its thematic focus on deceit and dual identity. It's an oddly interesting artifact from this narrow corner of film history, and not just for Clark Gable's surprisingly decent rendition of "Puttin' on the Ritz", his first and only full on-screen dance number.

Clark Gable was paired with Norma Shearer several times during the 1930s, beginning with the forgotten pre-Code classic drama A Free Soul in 1931, which was only ever released on DVD as part of Warner Archive's great 2016 set Forbidden Hollywood, Volume 2. Perhaps that will change in the future, but Idiot's Delight marked their final on-screen pairing and it's been lovingly restored on Blu-ray by the boutique label. This perhaps isn't the strongest blind buy in recent memory, but it'll certainly be worth a purchase for established fans and those interested in the cast.

Please note that Idiot's Delight was released theatrically with two different endings. The international ending closes the film on this Blu-ray, while the inferior domestic ending has been included as a restored bonus feature.

Idiot's Delight Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Warner Archive's exclusive 1080p transfer of Idiot's Delight is advertised as being "sourced from the best-available preservation elements", which typically indicates a mixture of sources that often include the original camera negative. Indeed, much of the film features fine detail and textural levels consistent with a nitrate negative, especially the visible film grain and silvery contrast levels, while a handful of shots and moments dip slightly in quality with visual giveaways such as softer detail levels, slightly chunkier grain, and trace amounts of white blooming. It's all handled extraordinarily well, of course, and the majority of viewers won't be distracted at all despite a small handful of visual seams. Much of this has to do with excellent disc encoding and especially Warner Archive's proprietary manual cleanup, which as usual removes virtually every perceivable speck of dirt and debris while leaving organic film grain intact. The main feature runs at a very supportive bit rate from start to finish on this dual-layered disc, allowing Idiot's Delight to sit in the upper tier of catalog Blu-ray restorations alongside the bulk of Warner Archive's output from this era.

Idiot's Delight Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

This DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio mix follows suit with a clean and faithful presentation of its original one-channel audio, which as usual is presented in a split 2.0 container for wider playback. Dialogue and sound effects are nicely dispersed in all sized locations, the musical numbers sound great, and so does the original score by Herbert Stothart, who also scored The Wizard of Oz that year and won an Oscar for it. No obvious age-related wear and tear could be detected aside from trace amounts of hiss, which were likely left intact so as not to risk damaging the dynamic range.

Optional English (SDH) subtitles are offered during the main feature only, not the extras listed below.

Idiot's Delight Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This one-disc release ships in a keepcase with poster-themed cover art and a few era-specific bonus features.

• The Good Egg (7:36) - The first of two classic cartoons included here, this early Chuck Jones-directed Merrie Melodies short from 1939 features a baby turtle who can't please the chicks. (It's not what you think.)

• It's An Ill Wind (7:29) - This similarly restored 1939 black-and-white Looney Tunes short was directed by Ben Hardaway and Cal Dalton. In it, Porky and Dizzy Duck (not Daffy) explore a possibly haunted boat house.

• Original Theatrical Trailer (3:58) - This lengthy promotional piece can also be seen here.

• Alternate Ending (3:23, with a short text introduction) - Though not listed in the press release, Warner Archive has thankfully included this newly restored domestic ending for Idiot's Delight as it originally appeared in American and Canadian theaters in 1939, as opposed to the international ending which closes the main feature on this Blu-ray. (See here for descriptions of both, with obvious heavy spoiler warnings.)

Idiot's Delight Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Clarence Brown's Idiot's Delight may stand in the shadow of Clark Gable's other 1939 film, but he and co-star Norma Shearer are two of several reasons why it's still worth watching. It's a strange hybrid of musical, comedy, and drama set against a wartime backdrop, but due to its unique time of production, remains an interesting artifact somewhat interestingly changed from its stage roots by original playwright and screenwriter Robert E. Sherwood. Its somewhat crooked path to the screen all but ensures a tonally bumpy ride, but there's some merit here and it's easier than ever to revisit thanks to Warner Archive's reliably great restoration efforts. Idiot's Delight is certainly Recommended to established fans, but newcomers may also want to give it a shot at the current sale price.