Disappointment for a huge fan!

The film was still a fun one that will make you laugh and have you leaving the theater feeling like you just stole something valuable and got away with it.

an ambitious but ultimately ineffective debut endeavor.

This movie tries so hard to be funny, yet it falls flat every time. Just another example of recycled ideas repackaged with women in an attempt to appeal to a certain audience.

Classic fantasy adapted from Stephen Vincent Benet's Faustian short story about a struggling farmer in 1840 New Hampshire who sells his soul to the Devil in exchange for wealth and prosperity. Years go by and the farmer grows richer and greedier, profiting off the misfortune of his neighbors and mistreating his loving wife. Eventually the Devil comes to collect and the farmer, in desperate need of help, turns to famed orator and "champion of the people" Daniel Webster to save his soul.A wonderful film, directed with style by William Dieterle and beautifully photographed by Joseph August. Bernard Herrmann's score deservedly won an Oscar. The script is terrific, with some great dialogue for Walter Huston and Edward Arnold. Both men shine in their respective roles. Huston is clearly having a fun time playing the ultimate villain, Mr. Scratch (aka Satan), and Arnold is dynamite as Daniel Webster. His trial monologue is one of the great film speeches of all time. For his part, James Craig does well but obviously he's outshined by his veteran co-stars. Jane Darwell is good as the saintly mother, a part she played better than just about anybody. Two of my Silver Screen crushes from Old Hollywood also appear in this, Anne Shirley and Simone Simon. Both are lovely and turn in solid performances of their own.It's a great movie that mixes light and dark very well. It all flows together nicely without jarring you by going from a funny scene to a serious one. It's a light Gothic fantasy with an almost film noir look about it that makes it stand out. The visual beauty of it is a major plus but the story is also well told, rising above a simple morality tale thanks to some characters with dimensions and exceptional performances from the leads. If you're a fan of classic Hollywood, you have to see it at least once.

Daniel Webster, played by Edward Arnold, is the real hero of this film. The historical Webster was a good politician and an even greater orator. He was famous throughout the USA for his powerful speeches delivered in a booming voice. Edward Arnold's Daniel Webster was a perfect foil for the devil in a court of law. The evil one is played by a grinning and cigar smoking Walter Huston. The action takes place in New Hampshire during the 1840's and revolves around a Yankee farmer who sells his soul for worldly possessions. This movie has a lush look to it, and its' entire cast is outstanding, including James Craig as the Yankee farmer Jabez Stone. This movie is a delicious slice of peach pie and Americana.

In 1840, a New Hampshire man is easy prey for slithery Walter Huston (as Satan calling himself "Mr. Scratch"). The devilish Mr. Huston makes a Faustian bargain with vulnerable farmer James Craig (as Jabez Stone) - his soul goes to Hell in exchange for seven years of good luck. When the time comes, venerable lawyer Edward Arnold (as Daniel Webster) is called upon to stare down Satan and make things right in the God-fearing town of Cross Corners... Like the Criterion Collection says, "Directed with stylish flair by William Dieterle, 'The Devil and Daniel Webster' brings the classic short story by Stephen Vincent Benet to life with inspired visuals, and unforgettable 'Oscar'-winning score by Bernard Herrmann, and a truly diabolical performance from Walter Huston as the Devil." ********* The Devil and Daniel Webster (10/17/41) William Dieterle ~ James Craig, Walter Huston, Edward Arnold, Anne Shirley

New Hampshire husband and farmer in 1840, deeply in debt and stressed to the breaking point, absentmindedly calls out to the Devil in his humble frustration; he's quickly visited by elfin-like codger Mr. Scratch, to whom he sells his soul in exchange for seven years of good luck. Walter Huston's Oscar-nominated performance as the exaggeratedly good-natured Beelzebub is the centerpiece of this wry fantasy-drama (one with spry moments and tongue occasionally in cheek). Adapted from Stephen Vincent Benet's story "The Devil and Daniel Webster" (the film's reissue title), our hero naturally becomes selfish and greedy with his money, spoiling his young son instead of teaching him, and consorting with a devilish mistress in front of his wife. These latter scenes can practically be checked off a list, what with the farmer building an ostentatious mansion on the hill, alienating his friends and neighbors and mocking the church bells! Luckily, things pick up with a final supernatural trial in with Mr. Scratch plays prosecutor and battles hard-drinking, but lovingly honest, salt-of-the-earth defense lawyer Daniel Webster (Edward Arnold, in a sensational turn). Supporting cast including Jane Darwell, Simone Simon, George Cleveland, and H.B. Warner is first-rate as well...the only character who doesn't come off is the farmer, played by James Craig. Craig, handsome and fitfully animated, is well-enough an actor to handle this role, but all the best lines have been given to the other performers, leaving Craig's Jabez Stone a sketch, a writer's afterthought, without any dimensions or pathos. Bernard Herrmann won the Oscar for his superlative music score, which is matched by sumptuous cinematography and art direction. **1/2 from ****