vert001 If you have a deep interest in how they picked juries in Los Angeles County around the year 1950, this is the movie for you. It begins with a couple of pre-credit shots (a rarity for Hollywood at the time) of the process and goes on its tiresome way for almost a third of the film. We are also introduced to our not very interesting jurors, who will spend most of their time talking about the case when they've been instructed not to and fighting with one another over nothing very much. Oh, and our two stars, Ginger Rogers and Dennis Morgan, fall in love for no particular reason. The murder case seems a distant afterthought for all involved.Eventually there is a lame parallel drawn between the proto-adulterous relationship of Rogers and Morgan with the adulterous (or was that, too, still in the potential stage?) affair between the accused and his other woman, the wife being the victim. Doubling down, a more direct parallel is established between the final holdout juror and the accused murderer. If I hadn't been on a Ginger Rogers kick I'd never have made it that far. This may not be her worst film, but I do believe that it is the most tedious. The most interesting thing about it is probably the location footage of Los Angeles that occasionally graces the proceedings. 3/10.

Jimmy L. The half-hearted romance plot between Ginger Rogers and Dennis Morgan takes away from an otherwise interesting ensemble piece about different people living together and the American jury system.PERFECT STRANGERS is about a jury for a murder trial. In order to protect the integrity of the jury, the judge arranges for the twelve jurors to be held up in a hotel, cut-off from all outside contact, for the duration of the trial.The film, based on a play co-written by Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur, provides an interesting look at the life cycle of a jury, from the initial summons to the juror selection process to the trial and final deliberations. Like 12 ANGRY MEN (1957) it shows how jurors see things in different ways and how personal prejudice gets in the way of fair and balanced decision making. The movie also gives a humorous peek into the press room, where newspaper reporters scrape around for the scoop of the day (territory previously explored in THE FRONT PAGE and HIS GIRL_FRIDAY, also based on a Hecht/MacArthur play).The movie doesn't delve very deeply into the courtroom proceedings or the facts of the murder case. The focus is instead on the jurors, twelve perfect strangers sharing a common experience over several weeks. The ensemble cast includes multiple Oscar-nominee Thelma Ritter and Alan Reed (the voice of Fred Flintstone), as well as Ginger Rogers, Dennis Morgan, and others.My favorite thing about the movie is seeing twelve perfect strangers from all walks of life forced to live together in a hotel suite. It's like going to camp. There are two women to a room, but the men have to double up (four to a room). They pass the time by playing cards, arguing about the trial, and (in Ginger's case) falling in love. They eat dinner together, they write messages for their loved ones at home, and they are chaperoned at all times by the bailiff.I liked the idea of a sequestered jury ensemble, but the film puts too much emphasis on the romance arc between the Rogers and Morgan characters (a divorcée and a married man, respectively). And the romance is the weakest part. (Sure, they're both good-looking and trapped on a jury together, but can their "love" really work out?) The film has its moments, but falls short of its potential. It's still a classic "jury movie" and is worth checking out for Thelma Ritter fans and Ginger Rogers completists.

edwagreen Interesting film, but I must say that you really begin to wonder about the jury system when you have jurors serving who really don't understand the legal procedures and use feminine and male instincts to decide the fate of a person accused of murder.10 years after Dennis Morgan teamed with Ginger Rogers in her Oscar winning performance in "Kitty Foyle," the two were again in this film. Wisecracking Thelma Ritter is interesting as the common lady on the jury, but her ignorance becomes a little too annoying.The case takes a back seat to the relationship that develops between a divorced Rogers and a married Morgan.The film has an appropriate ending after the jury reaches a verdict. The film is interesting in the sense that the Rogers-Morgan love affair is used in a way to parallel the man accused of murder.

Neil Doyle Ginger Rogers didn't have too much luck in her choice of material by the time the late '40s rolled around--except for a reunion with Fred Astaire in 'The Barkleys of Broadway' most of her dramatic films were a disappointment--but 'Perfect Strangers' has a well-written script from a play by Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur. The two stars play jurors who find themselves on a jury panel for a murder trial. Sequestered, they fall in love despite the fact that Dennis Morgan is married, unhappily. The suspense comes from wondering what will happen to their relationship when the trial ends.Ginger had wanted to work with Dennis Morgan since their last teaming in 'Kitty Foyle'. Under Bretaigne Windust's sensitive direction, the two stars give interesting performances. Among the supporting roles, Thelma Ritter delivers her usual competent work. Well worth viewing, but not yet released to video. You'll have to catch it on one of the cable stations.