Maybe It's Love (1930): cast, story & where to watch

Released in 1930, Maybe It's Love is a comedy and romance film directed by William A. Wellman, running about 72 minutes. “The Football Season is on with Joe E. Brown as a Perfect Panic as he Battles the All American Team.” — that tagline sets the tone.

What it’s about. A very young Joan Bennett tops the cast as Nan Sheffield, the daughter of a college president. The nominal leading man is Tommy Nelson, the black-sheep son of a wealthy alumnus. Though Nelson is an ace football player, President Sheffield refuses to enroll the boy because of his bad reputation, whereupon Tommy's father withdraws his financial backing and bars his son from ever setting foot on Sheffield's campus. Falling in love with Nan, Tommy signs up with the college under an assumed name, giving up his wastrel ways to lead the football team to victory. Joe E. Brown steals the show as Speed Hanson, a goofy gridiron star who emits a loud and long yell whenever scoring a touchdown (this was, in fact, the first film in which Brown's famous "Yeeeeowww" was heard -- but certainly not the last).

Who’s in it. Maybe It's Love stars Joan Bennett as Nan, Joe E. Brown as Yates, James Hall as Tommy and Laura Lee as Betty, among others.

How it landed. With an audience score of 3.3/10, Maybe It's Love has proved divisive with audiences.

Where to watch. In US you can rent or buy it from Amazon Video. See the full, country-by-country breakdown on our where to watch Maybe It's Love page.

If you liked it. Fans of Maybe It's Love tend to enjoy Forrest Gump, Parasite, Life Is Beautiful and Fight Club.