Intense, gripping, stylish and poignant

A Brilliant Conflict

it is the rare 'crazy' movie that actually has something to say.

This movie feels like it was made purely to piss off people who want good shows

Held for release for several years by MGM, this mediocre comedy has nothing to recommend really other than Elizabeth Taylor as a New Haven dance teacher who, determined to keep scandal from exploding after being spotted kissing talent agent Larry Parks, falsely announces their engagement. This leads to continuous misunderstandings, yet really creates no interesting plot. Other than character actors like Kathleen Freeman, Josephine Hutchinson and Ann Doran, there's little else, as Taylor and Parks (then in the middle of being involved unfortunately in the Hollywood blacklist) share no chemistry, she being a teen when this was made, albeit a very womanly one.Such a plot couldn't be done with the sex reversed, so the plot is in really poor taste. The moppets who are part of Taylor's dance class try too hard to be cute, so the result is mainly cloying in supposedly farcial dance recital sequences. A surprise cameo by Gene Kelly as himself in one scene comes out of left field, more a publicity stunt for MGM rather than necessary. Having been on the shelf for several years already, MGM might have done better to have kept it there in the wake of Taylor's superstardom.

In "The Big Hangover," Liz is the boss' beautiful daughter; in "Conspirator," she's an immature young wife in love; in "The Girl Who Had Everything," she's the daughter of a wealthy criminal lawyer, but in "Love Is Better Than Ever," she is a young dance school teacher from New Haven who comes to the big city for a convention and falls for a smart talent agent… In these four films, Taylor is cast as the innocent who selects the wrong guy and the unlucky beauty in a classic mismatch…In both "Love Is Better Than Ever" and "The Girl Who Had Everything," she's a spirited young lady with a mind of her own… In the former, she defies her small-town upbringing as she romances a city swindler… In the latter, she challenges her father in order to run off with a bon vivant with underworld connections… In "Conspirator," the misfortune girl marries a Communist… In "The Big Hangover," she's engaged to a man with a drinking problem… And in "Elephant Walk," her husband is a wealthy and potent planter with a really bad temper… These five ladies are variations on the young innocent star who thinks she knows more than she does… In each movie, she has to be educated… The wildly careless spirit has to be limited and corrected… In "Love Is Better Than Ever," Liz is even more provincial, an innocent tempted but never corrupted by big city frivolous amusement, a teasing beauty who falls for a cheerful bachelor... Liz is once again the determined pursuer, setting her sights on a man who does not want to marry… Shameless and stubborn, she decides to announce her engagement, hoping that fiction may stimulate fact

The young Elizabeth Taylor looks gorgeous. But she wears an unbecoming hairstyle. I have read about Larry Parks but never before this seen him in anything. I am very sympathetic to the tribulations he endured as a result of HUAC. Nevertheless, in this movie, he turns in such a sour, uninterested performance, he sinks the movie.Not that there is much to sink. Taylor, yes. And Tom Tully, droll as her father. However, the ploy is negligible. And, as she plays a dancing teacher, we see dancing children. I love children but not here! The ostensibly cute dance scenes we have to watch wouldn't make it into a small town talent contest.Maybe MGM was trying to figure out what to do with Taylor, no longer the child of "National Velvet." Thankfully, we have her earlier movies and many, many later ones.

Larry Parks is a fast-talking, streetwise agent who falls for a Connecticut dance teacher against his will in "Love is Better Than Ever," directed by Stanley Donen. Parks and Taylor have a whirlwind romance in New York while she's there attending a dance teacher convention. She falls in love, only to learn at the end of their week together that he's only interested in a good time. Heartbroken, she returns to Connecticut, where her father helps her hatch a plot that will bring him running to New Haven and into her arms.This is a very slight comedy, but Taylor is exquisitely beautiful and in excellent shape. It's no wonder that cynical Larry Parks can't forget her, though he claims that he wants to. In one scene, they stand and talk in profile for several minutes, and all one can think about is how perfect Taylor's profile is. Larry Parks is another story - a very strange choice for a leading man. Had he not been blacklisted, it's likely he would have gone on to character roles fairly quickly. For a studio that boasted the likes of Clark Gable and Robert Taylor, it's curious that he was cast in leads. He is, however, a very good actor, though it's hard to see why Taylor would have been attracted to him. Sadly, he only made two films after this one.There are some nice dance sequences with the children, including some dancing fruits. "Love is Better Than Ever" has some nice moments and a dazzling 20-year-old Taylor, and that's about it.