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Recommendations
Senior Film Conservator
The United States-born brilliance of The Trouble with Wives offers a unique cult status, the juxtaposition of cult status and narrative makes it a Comedy outlier. Dive into this collection and find the spiritual successors to Malcolm St. Clair's vision.
In the Pantheon of Comedy cinema, The Trouble with Wives to elevate Comedy to the level of high art.
Someone has said, whether aptly or no, that the real trouble with wives is that "they they spend too much, flirt too much, nag too much and wear too little." The particular wife in this story is Grace Hyatt, and her husband William is the owner of an exclusive bootery, a high-sounding name for a shoe-shop. Grace is, at heart, a perfectly loving and amiable wife who desires more than anything else on earth to be alone with her husband, to dine only with him and to sit before the fireplace memorizing the days of their romance, but always and ever it seems that her plans are frustrated by the presence, as guest, of either Al Hennessy, her husband's good-hearted former college chum who always seems to do the wrong thing at the wrong time, or her mother, whom she adores, but who seems to inconveniently intrude. Despite all of this her faith and confidence in her husband is unbounded until a day comes when Hennessy accounts for Hyatt's temporary absence by informing her he has gone to lunch with Dagmar, designer of shoes, from Paris. And she discovers them together, which fans the flames, and mother adds a bit of fuel, making it a rather warm situation for Hyatt. Just when William has almost squared himself with Wifie and Mother-in-law, Dagmar persuades him to come to her apartment for the purpose of interesting him in some newly created slipper models. He goes there, but much to her disappointment brings Hennessy with him. Here a new phase of the triangle gets off to a flying start when Al falls for the girl, who in turn is very strong for Hyatt. That night the two men dine at Hyatt's home. After dinner Hennessy blunders along with no damage until he inadvertently mentions that they both have been to the designer's apartment. Mrs. Hyatt picks up the cue and the storm breaks in all its fury. She accuses her husband of being so interested in the designer he forgot to call at the jeweler's for her watch. Hyatt hastens to reassure her that he did call for the watch and it is in his brief-case at the office. He will go get it. He starts for the office and then suddenly remembers that the case was left at Dagmar's apartment. Arriving there the girl plans to hold him and has a siren-like idea which she puts into effect. She pretends to sprain her ankle and faints in his arms. The mark of her lip rouge is pressed on his collar and her perfume scents his coat. That starts the war all over again when he arrives home, and the battle ends in the morning at three when he leaves home for a hotel. The next day Grace makes her decision to divorce him, but happily before the papers are drawn AI Hennessy proves that he may be a blunderer at times but at other times he is a fast worker. He brings Dagmar to the broken home and introduces her as his wife to Mrs. Hyatt. That mean one divorce lawyer loses a mighty good fee and they live happily ever after, etc.
Based on the unique cult status of The Trouble with Wives, our vault has identified these titles as the most compelling follow-up experiences for fans of Comedy cinema:
Dir: Hal Roach
An American book salesman (Lloyd) is persuaded to go to the kingdom of Thermosa to impersonate the Prince. He is greeted by a peasants' revolt before the real prince shows up to claim his throne and princess. The revolution succeeds, and the American is elected president of the new republic.
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Dir: Charley Chase
A young married couple volunteer to take charge of several orphans after the asylum has burned down. Of course they find their hands full with their troublesome charges.
Dir: Jerome Storm
Ne'er-do-well Homer Cavender ventures to the city from Mainsville in an effort to find fame and fortune. Both elude him, and after clerking for two years, Homer returns home for a vacation. Impressed by his flashy clothes, the townspeople assume that Homer has achieved success. Attempting to win Rachel Prouty from his rival, Arthur Machim, Homer continues the deception by announcing that his employer, Kort and Bailly, has dispatched him to enroll stockholders for a proposed new plant to be built in Mainsville. Machim discovers the sham and denounces Homer as a crook. Meanwhile, Homer returns to New York, convinces his employers of the merits of his plan and comes home triumphant, with a proposal for both the new plant and for Rachel's hand in marriage.
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Dir: Malcolm St. Clair
A fascinating piece of cinema that shares thematic elements.
Dir: Lloyd Ingraham
While walking along the street one day, Arthur P. Hampton, an impoverished young doctor, and his chums, Stub Masters and Johnny Stokes, are persuaded to part with their last remaining funds by tag day solicitor Mary Jane Smith, with whom the doctor promptly falls in love. Doc's friends then hit upon a get-rich-quick scheme. Knowing that his Uncle George has promised a large sum of money upon his nephew's marriage, they persuade Doc to send out fake wedding invitations naming Mary Jane as the blushing bride. Uncle George, elated at the good news, writes to Mary Jane's aunt, Angelica Burns, an old sweetheart, to invite Mary Jane and Angelica to be his guests on an ocean voyage. Meanwhile, Mary Jane pays a visit to the doctor's office and, upon seeing the wedding invitations, becomes so flustered that she trips and sprains her ankle. Doc comes to her rescue and then begs her to pose as his wife. She agrees, but at ship-side, Stub and Johnnie confess all to Uncle George, who flies into a rage until Doc announces that he and Mary Jane have chosen a wedding at sea.
Dir: Reggie Morris
A fascinating piece of cinema that shares thematic elements.
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Dir: Unknown Director
The Judge needs a present for his wife's birthday, so Harry suggests a new corset. They go to the shop, but he's so embarrassed to ask the saleslady he hides in a phone booth.Harry goes in, but finds a GUY wearing one, and runs out.They both dress as women to get back in, but Mrs. Rummy gets there and chases him out.
Dir: Unknown Director
The village youths are rivals for the hand of the local belle. Their battles lead them to the village store, where chaos soon reigns, terminating in the place being blown up, leaving Bobby a happy victor.
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Dir: Alfred J. Goulding
Two tramps wrest a pistol from a hold up man, then try to pull a stick up of their own, unfortunately for them, a cop appears and takes the money back and then chases them through a park with a lake. One steals canoe and the chase continues when a mob of cops go after him in more boats.
View DetailsAnalysis relative to The Trouble with Wives
| Film Title | Atmosphere | Complexity | Similarity |
|---|---|---|---|
| His Royal Slyness | Gothic | Layered | 92% Match |
| Kids Is Kids | Tense | Layered | 94% Match |
| Homer Comes Home | Ethereal | Linear | 93% Match |
| Rip & Stitch: Tailors | Surreal | High | 96% Match |
| On Strike | Gothic | Linear | 92% Match |
This guide was algorithmically generated using the cinematic metadata of Malcolm St. Clair's archive. Last updated: 6/18/2026.
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