Frank Capra is kind of a hit or miss director for me. Often, the sentimentality in his films is too naive, or simply too thick for my tastes. In the case of Here Comes the Groom, the balance comes in just about right - for its kind of film.

The plot is a hackneyed comic get-the-girl-back saga, featuring Bing Crosby as the smooth-talking reporter who has long avoided any real commitment to co-star Jane Wyman.

It's in post-WWII France where Crosby, safely across the Ocean from Wyman, succumbs to the unbearable cuteness of two orphans, and decides to adopt. He brings them home expecting to marry Wyman, but finds her engaged to a wealthy society man. The setup coincidentally (well, not so much, huh?) forces Crosby to get married in order to keep the kids on the same day Wyman is due to tie the knot.

Crosby slyly finagles his way into the lives of Wyman and her fiancé, not unlike any number of other plots, but here it flows and makes more sense than many modern versions of the scenario. Crosby, Wyman, and indeed the whole cast, fill out their archetypal characters quite well.

I could have done without the singing, personally, but as something of a convention of the time for all-around performers like Bing Crosby, I can't complain much. There is a song early on by a character that then vanishes for the remainder of the picture which should is way too long for her minimal relevance to the story - not to say it's a bad song, or performed poorly, much the contrary - it's too good for its function in the film.

Nothing tremendous here, but on its own terms the movie works well. The climax of the film is a tad silly, but I find it easily forgivable, and fitting for the film.