The Erie Canal is the setting for this delightful slice-of-life drama that involves the romance between the cook on a barge (Janet Gaynor) and the farmer (Henry Fonda) she falls in love with. She's the target of the volatile Charles Bickford's unwanted affections and suffers a ton in order to realize it's Fonda she is meant to be with. Bickford is one of the most despicable bullies in film history, a character so vile you might find yourself hissing at him. In addition to Fonda (his film debut here), a ton of character performers also appeared in that year's "Way Down East" which takes melodrama to an entirely different level. Margaret Hamilton plays a much nicer character here than she did in "Way Down East", the type you'd later expect Marjorie Main to be playing, sort of a thinner Tugboat Annie. Andy Devine and Slim Summerville also would go on to appear in that film as well. Not as bratty as her recent "Bright Eyes" terror, Jane Withers is still pretty feisty.Under Victor Fleming's tough direction, this is memorable for its boat race towards the end of the film and certainly a manly man's film. Fonda's character (which he originated on stage) is the archetype for practically every role he'd play, the quiet everyman who must step up to the plate and show that underneath his seemingly docile nature is a force of nature ready to explode when the bully pushes him too far. It is a far cry from its musical remake which almost seems like an entirely different story.

Bucolic and slow-moving in the '30s Fox tradition, this comedy-drama from a mild Broadway hit preserves what was probably best about it--Henry Fonda, in his film debut--and adds some beautiful photography that may be back-lot but sure looks like the real Erie Canal in the 1850s, complete with morning haze, small-town unpaved streets, and modest canal skiffs. Not a lot happens as would-be farmer Fonda romances a proud Canal gal (Janet Gaynor, feistier and less goody-goody than usual), but it gets by on mood and a gallery of vivid supporting roles, ably handled by Charles Bickford, Slim Summerville, Andy Devine, Margaret Hamilton, and the appealingly un-cute child actress Jane Withers. Victor Fleming brought a lot of feeling to this, and Alfred Newman's scoring, for a change, isn't overemphatic. It's a lazy, outdoorsy movie that builds nicely to an unsurprising, satisfying conclusion.

This film is set along the Erie Canal in New York in the mid-19th century. Henry Fonda (in his first film) plays a gentle man who is spending time on the river but who is only doing this until he can buy a farm and settle down. Janet Gaynor plays a lady who was raised on the canal and cannot imagine living anywhere else. So, in a coincidence that only Hollywood could love, they naturally fall in love. However, a bully of a man (Charles Bickford) loves Gaynor and has vowed to whip any man who takes her. When Fonda seems unwilling to fight Bickford, the shallow Gaynor is upset--she wants a man who loves a good scrap. Eventually, it's inevitable and Fonda proves he's neither a wimp nor is he about to become another one of Bickford's victories. Then, and only then, Gaynor is willing to marry Fonda and move to the farm.If you think about it, this plot is an awful lot like a Popeye Cartoon--with Gaynor playing the Olive Oyl role and Bickford as Bluto! However, an even closer parallel is if you've ever seen "The Quiet Man". In fact, although the films occur in different countries and at different times, the main plot points are just about identical and must have inspired this John Ford classic. Unfortunately, while this seems true, THE FARMER TAKES A WIFE is far from a classic. It is very watchable and worth seeing (especially so that you can see Fonda in his first role), but the film just doesn't have the wonderful supporting characters and feel like "The Quiet Man". Good--especially for Fonda who carries the film almost single-handedly.

The 30 year old Henry Fonda made his screen debut in this film where he delivers a fairly mediocre performance. His voice is always the same and he's still as stiff and one dimensional as he went on to become as an old man on the screen, but there is activity in his face which redeems him as a screen actor.