This comedy of manners with a theatrical background offers a good First Act, but bogs down in the Second Act, and then drops right down completely and absolutely in the Third. Mind you, the proceedings are not helped by the blatant over-acting of Genevieve Tobin!Keighley's direction is lively enough in the First Act, but is as dull as the script in Acts Two and Three! All the talking, talking, back and forth, seems to go on forever!The movie's production values don't impress either!At least the title is dead on! No time for comedy, for sure!

If you are a James Stewart fan, this is a film to avoid. It starts with his stupid character Playwright Gaylord 'Gay' Esterbrook, who is a combination of Peter Morgan Jr (His character in "Vivacious Lady" who marries entertainer Francey (Ginger Rogers) on his first trip to New York), Jefferson Smith from "Mr. Smith Goes To Washington", and David Graham (The killer in "After The Thin Man). If you have seen these films, you know that they are very naive characters who are not what anyone expects (Particularly at the end). Here he marries actress Linda Paige (Rosaland Russell), also on his first trip to New York. However, he becomes a nasty, drunken, cynical character who cheats on Linda with 'Mandy' Swift (Genevieve Tobin), and becomes the exact opposite of his Jefferson Smith character. In fact, becomes a hater to the degree of Graham (Who really despises Selma Landis( Elissa Landi) to the extent of framing her for murder, while being a spineless weasel). The only reason this film does not get zero stars is Russell (Although I certainly preferred Rogers (And the supporting cast) in "Vivacious Lady"). I even wonder if they used the word "Gay" in the homosexual context back in 1940, because you think of gay, cynical and drunk (Sometimes together) and playwright in the same context. NOT terms you use to describe Jimmy Stewart. In other words, Stewart fans... Avoid.

Rosalind Russell and James Stewart are husband and wife in "No Time for Comedy," a 1940 film also starring Charles Ruggles, Genevieve Tobin, Louise Beavers and Allyn Joslyn. It's based on the Broadway hit that starred Katharine Cornell and Laurence Olivier in one of his early lead roles in the U.S. This was the play, according to legend, that David O. Selznick arranged for Olivier to star in so he would be separated from Vivien Leigh while she was doing "Gone with the Wind." Russell is the glamorous stage star Linda Paige who is starring in a drawing room comedy by one Gaylord Esterbrook (Stewart). He's actually from the sticks, and the play is not without its problems. When the production loses its backer, Paige steps in and saves the show. Bumpkin Esterbrook becomes a lauded playwright and marries Paige. He writes comedies with starring roles for her. One day he meets Mandy Swift, a socialite who likes to, shall we say, take young men under her wing and mold them. She convinces Gaylord that he needs to write some serious drama. Since he's already doing some serious drinking, it stands to reason one should follow the other.Not having seen the original play, it's hard to say whether the film matches up to the original. At the time of the film, Spain was involved in a civil war, and all of Europe threatened by the Nazis; war was imminent. The play is about a playwright who is agonized by his success in the genre of sophisticated comedies when the world is such a serious place. It's also about several years into a marriage when the bloom has fallen off the rose.The film "No Time for Comedy" is an uneasy mix of drama and comedy. Stewart, who normally plays a likable character, plays a country boy spoiled by success. He turns to drink and another woman, making him much less likable. Yet the audience is set up from the beginning to think he's going to be a nice guy. Russell, of course, plays the stage actress (which she was) beautifully. As Gaylord's suffering wife, she is dignified and sophisticated and you can see her broken heart beneath the veneer. Louise Beavers is fabulous as the maid who is not only an equal in the household but acts on stage as well.Part of the problem with "No Time for Comedy" is that nowadays, we know the importance of comedy in times of tragedy. In fact, it's always time for comedy, never more than when there's a dark pall over the world. Despite good performances, the movie seems dated today, as I suspect would the play.

"No Time for Comedy" starts out as cute "country bumpkin moves to the big city" story. The plot moves to its fun, middle section with clever lines and happy days. then the inevitable, serious life situations. some good laughs in the middle, mostly at the expense of Clementine, the maid, played by Louise Beavers. Ros Russell does a great job as the starlet Linda Paige, who marries the author (Jimmy Stewart) of the play she saves. Charlie Ruggles does a fine job as the understanding husband of "the other woman". Also a very patient, understanding take on when one's spouse starts to look at others, especially for this period of time in film-making. Whenever Genevieve Tobin spoke, she sounded just like Billie Burke. Tobin ALSO married her director Keighley, and seems to have left the biz after this film. Note it did not win, or even get nominated for any awards, in spite of the big names in it. not sure if that's because its too many different things, or maybe the subject matter couldn't be rewarded in those times. It must have done OK in the theater, since it was re-released again later with a new title.