Only Angels Have Wings (1939)

A cabaret singer (Jean Arthur) steps off her ship at a South American port and meets a couple American fly boys who deliver mail under dangerous conditions. After one of the pilots has an accident, she gets to know their boss (Cary Grant).

There are elements of Rom and there are elements of Com, but make no mistake. This is no Rom-Com. This is the most dramatic role I’ve seen Grant in up to and including North by Northwest (1959). The stakes are high and the outcome is not guaranteed.

Here is an early appearance of Rita Hayworth. The twenty one year old had already appeared in a ton of films. She wasn’t far from Hollywood immortality. Also Thomas Mitchell, who was having a spectacular year. His five films that year were nominated for thirty six Oscars, winning thirteen. One of them was for his performance in Stagecoach.

Only Angels Have Wings is a solid drama. It's refreshing to see Grant play a character not exactly the Cary Grant type. It's perhaps a bit clunky at times, but it's very effective. AMRU 3.5.

Penny Serenade (1941)

Julie (Irene Dunne) announces that she is leaving her husband Roger (Cary Grant) because they don’t need each other anymore. While looking through her record collection, she reminisces about their life together, the good times and the bad.

Dorothy Adams is a familiar face, memorable as Laura’s maid. Character actress Beulah Bondi also made a thirty year career playing old ladies, including It’s a Wonderful Life, which I rewatched this season. And if It’s a Wonderful Life is sappy done right, Penny Serenade is sappy done wrong. Starting in the second act the sentiment is poured on fairly thick, and it only got worse.

This was Grant’s first of two competitive Oscar nominations. He was up against Gary Cooper as Sergeant York, so he had no chance here. I never saw None But the Lonely Heart, so I don’t know what chance he had against Bing Crosby.

Penny Serenade is a tiresome watch. Grant is always entertaining, though I prefer when he doesn’t play an idiot. The story isn't very compelling, but it’s the sentimentality that ruins it for me. AMRU 2.5.

Mr. Lucky (1943)

Gambler Joe (Cary Grant) needs to raise cash to finance a gambling cruise, so he plots to scam a war relief charity into running a fundraising casino. Will love bloom?

If you like the smart aleck Grant ala His Girl Friday, well here he is. That’s not to say that the films are equal. Girl Friday is a far better film, all around. But his charming scoundrel is present. Laraine Day, fifteen years Cary’s junior, is the charity worker wise to his intentions.

Not too much to say about this one. Typical wartime Hollywood patriotism, as one would expect. Amusing and perfectly watchable film. AMRU 3.5. Wow, I’ve gotten behind on my postings. I still have three films in the chamber.

Houseboat (1958)

A terrible dad (Cary Grant) tries to reconnect with his three children after his estranged wife dies, so he takes them to his undersized Washington DC bachelor pad. There one of the boys meets with a young woman (Sophia Loren) who is rebelling against her dad. He needs a housekeeper and she a job, so she is hired. Implausible comic mischief has them living on a dilapidated houseboat.

This is a pretty standard rom-com so we know the dashing 54 year old will end up with the beautiful 24 year old, and we are never to feel weird about that. In reality she and the married Grant had been dating since they both appeared in The Pride and the Passion. He accepted this role trying to keep the relationship alive, but she had moved on to dating the married Carlo Ponti, who was merely twenty two years her senior. Grant tried and failed to back out of the film. Maybe this is why their chemistry isn’t what it could have been. Ponti divorced his wife and married Loren by proxy during the filming. Five years later they would divorce, take a four year break, then remarry.

Murray Hamilton, you know, the mayor in Jaws, has a smallish role as a low grade jerk. Somewhere in there is a young Barbara Steele in her first film role. I never saw her. Martha Hyer was charming as the red-herring love interest. She shows up from time to time (most recently in Born to Kill) but I never before took notice.

It’s a little known fact that dialog spoken by children in movies is actually written by adults. And by little known, I mean very obvious. But it wasn’t more obvious than by listening to Grant’s three children. It was conspicuous how non-childlike they spoke. You might be tempted to attribute their less than naturalistic performance to their age, but all three were already acting veterans. This was apparently a decision.

Grant wasn’t very likable and as mentioned there wasn’t great chemistry between the leads, but it isn’t without its charm. In the past I may have awarded Houseboat a passing grade, but I am growing tired of by-the-numbers Hollywood dribble. AMRU 2.5.

I Was a Male War Bride (1949)

Cary Grant is French Captain Henri Rochard with a Cary Grant accent. He goes on one last mission and for the purposes of the story needs an American WAC to come along. That woman is Lieutenant Catherine Gates (Ann Sheridan), with whom they’ve had a troubled personal history. Details there are scarce. After implausibly falling in love, they face difficulties getting him into the US.

The film begins with Grant being chauffeured across a bombed out German city with up-beat and patriotic music playing in the background. The language barrier is played for laughs. This scene may not have bothered me had I not recently watched films like Two Women and Bicycle Thieves. Here, the consequence of war is that America is strong, rich, and happy. I can no longer ignore the other consequences.

Part one has our heroes looking for a German black marketeer named Schindler to convince him to move to Paris for some reason. In actuality, it is about our two heroes bumbling around, getting into predicaments, and expressing hate and distrust for each other. Through the power of a haystack, they fall in love.

Director Howard Hawks cast the supporting characters as he saw fit so the 52 year old chose his nineteen year old girlfriend. I’m not sure how much better an inappropriate relationship is than a casting couch, but here we are. The production was beset with illness, with Sheridan coming down with pleurisy and Grant contracting hepatitis, appearing visibly thinner in the second half.

The title refers to the plot point that while there is a process for a male soldier to bring a war bride back to America, there is not for a female soldier bringing home a foreign husband. I’m curious how true this is. They designate him a war ‘bride’ and hilarity is expected to ensue. To be fair, there was one joke that made me laugh out loud. It involves a sign post written in German, but much of the rest wasn’t very inspired. They bicker, there are misunderstandings, things go wrong for him, stuff like that. It’s “funny because it happens to somebody else” type comedy but it doesn’t work because Cary Grant is our hero. Well, my hero.

Grant called I was a Male War Bride one of the best comedies he had done. While it’s not his worst, it is far from his best. He and Ann Sheridan had little chemistry and their predicaments were mostly unfunny. I feel I am being generous by giving it an AMRU 3.

Indiscreet (1958)

Actress Anna (Ingrid Bergman) is between relationships and just wants to take a break from life. Her sister and brother-in-law try to coax her into going to a lecture on economics (I know, right?) but she isn’t interested. Crazy. That is, until the head speaker arrives and it’s the dreamy Philip (dreamy Cary Grant). They have a flirtatious evening until he reveals that he is married! They continue to see each other anyhow. How Indiscreet!

There is a lot of subtext going on here. Ingrid was banished from Hollywood for her indecent affair with Roberto Rossellini, having his child while still married to her first husband! She hid in shame in Europe, shunned by the town she loved so not really the story. It’s just how it was always framed. It was more complicated than that. Here, watch this.

Anyhow, Bergman returned a wiser person who better knew herself. Grant, on his third marriage, older, wiser, and evolving as a leading man. Bergman in her early forties and Grant his early fifties, there is no hiding that this is a relationship between older adults. 

What follows is a very believable relationship between two adults. Not by far the most interesting film either actor has appeared in but among their best acting performances, and included some moving scenes. And real life friends, they have excellent screen chemistry. It is a shame they only did two pictures together. AMRU 3.5.

Once Upon a Honeymoon (1942)

It’s 1938 and an American with a past (Ginger Rogers) is engaged to an Austrian Barron, who may or may not be a Nazi (he may). Newsman Patrick (Cary Grant) is dying to get an interview to find out who she is and more about this Barron guy. Gosh, she sure is pretty.

Ostensibly this is just a Cary Grant/Ginger Rogers rom-com with war as a backdrop, but the stakes are raised as they try to avoid the Nazi’s and do … whatever it is they are trying to do. Unfortunately, the screenplay was, as Grant famously said, rubbish. Bad dialog, bad jokes, scenes that either undermine the tone or simply don’t work. It could have been so much closer to mediocre.

Interestingly this is one of the few war films of the time that make a direct reference to Jews. There is a Jewish maid whose life is in danger and our heroes even visit a concentration camp. They deserve credit for that even if the tonal balance was way off. It wanted to be a serious war film but with a love interest and star power, but it failed in the execution.

Our Jewish maid is played by Natasha Lytess who was Marilyn Monroe’s acting coach. They were close friends and outlived her by less than a year. Cancer is a bitch. A young Nazi is played by a slim John Banner, Sargent Shultz himself. I rewatched the scene to see if I could spot any Shultz in his face. I could not. What a difference twenty years makes. And sixty pounds.

Director Leo McCarey has a better than fair reputation, but I can’t help but lay the blame at his feet. The writer provides the script and the studio provides the resources, but the director has to make it all work. And it didn’t. He could have evened the tone and made sure the scenes had weight. I think he just went with what he was handed. AMRU 2.5.

Mr. Blandings Builds his Dream House (1948)

Jim Blandings (Cary Grant) grows tired of life in the big city so he decides, against the advice of his lawyer (Melvyn Douglas), to buy a farm in Connecticut. It’s an overpriced pile of junk, of course, so he and his wife (Myrna Loy) decide to sink even more money and build the house of their dreams.

Mr. Blandings touches on the post-war dream of owning a home. America moved in droves from urban areas into the suburbs, setting the stage for the 50’s sitcom. Here the humor is in how dysfunctional the Blandings' tiny New York apartment is for them and their two girls. See Jim try to get dressed and ready for work before noontime. See Jim try to find things in their tiny closet. Comedy gold. Still had room for a live-in maid. Oh, hi Louise Beavers.

Later, the humor is how dysfunctional they are in making rational decisions. In addition to being oversold on a 35 acre farm by the realtor (oh, hi Ian Wolfe), they are taken by every contractor they hire. This is compounded by their insistence of making ridiculous design choices pushing the final price skyward. Douglas’ Bill is the Casandra, his dire warnings being ignored at every turn. Fun, fun. Let’s add in a possible love triangle.

I did not find Mr. Blandings charming, nor did I find it funny. All of the problems stem from the stupidity of the main characters, and I didn’t want Grant and Loy to be dumb. Simply put, they were too old to be this naive. And Grant, what with his fancy Manhattan advertising position, had to be at least a little savvy. I mean, he earned enough for him to afford the spiraling costs, even if he had to do a little tizzy act each time the price went up. I love the actors, but the story falls flat. AMRU 2.5.

Monkey Business (1952)

Absent minded professor Barnaby (Cary Grant) is working on an elixir of youth. He thinks he solves the problem but in reality a chimp (or “monkey”) had escaped its cage, mixed up the concoction, and put it into the water cooler. Hilarity ensues.

I have to give him credit. The 48 year old Grant was more believable as the college aged wildling than as the stodgy old scientist. But screen wife Edwina (Ginger Rogers) was downright convincing (and charming) in both roles. Hugh Marlowe of All About Eve and Day the Earth Stood Still fame gets another paycheck. Marilyn Monroe played the Marilyn Monroe character.

Don’t confuse this with 1931 Marx Brothers vehicle. I liked this one slightly better probably because it's a more conventional screwball comedy but fans of the Bros will disagree. It was pointlessly zany and holds your interest, but don’t look for any classic bits. It is what it is and that’s fine. AMRU 3.5.

An Affair to Remember (1957)

While solo on a cruise, engaged playboy Nicky (Cary Grant) tries to make the acquaintance of Terry (Deborah Kerr), who is in a long term relationship herself. Despite her rejection and mutual bickering, they fall in love. So, they make a pact. If after returning to their existing paramours they still feel the same way about each other, in six months they will meet at the top of the Empire State Building and live happily ever after. Roll credits, only not really.

An important plot point that had escaped me for a bit was that our romantic leads had no financial means of their own, but were accustomed to the lifestyle afforded them by their respective loves. Guess I wasn't paying that close attention. So, not only did they have to say goodbye to their partners, they had to say goodbye to their way of life. This raises the stakes. They’ll need to get jobs! So, if they can, and they do, then they will. Maybe.

I had some issues with this film, at least initially. I wasn’t entirely buying our hero’s chemistry. Also I didn’t buy Grant as a struggling artist. Not the type. This passed, however, as the story progressed. Super-saturated Technicolor is a bit of a double-edged sword. Something about Kerr’s makeup looked strange, but the set pieces really popped. It was nice to see the elder statesmen of ladies men dogging a woman way past 30. Casualty of 2016 Marni Nixon did Kerr’s singing voice once more. She actually acted in another film I saw last year, but you’ll hear more about that soon.

In the end, I don’t have much to say about An Affair to Remember. Not bad. Parts didn’t click for me, but I liked it in the end. AMRU 3. No wait, I decided to widen my ratings a bit. 3.5.

“Aw, this is just a rip off of Sleepless in Seattle”
“Which was in itself a ripoff of An Affair to Remember”
“Which wasn’t that good of a movie to start with!”

The Bishop’s Wife (1947)

A young bishop (David Niven) is struggling to get his cathedral built and it’s affecting his marriage. He prays for guidance and in walks Dudley (Cary Grant) claiming to be an angel. But instead of focusing on the cathedral, he concentrates on what really matters.

The movie began production with Grant in the bishop role and Niven as the angel. When the director was replaced, the new director reversed the roles and recast the part of the Wife. Also, the Bishop’s daughter was the daughter in It’s a Wonderful Life. You know the one: “TeaCHER says, evRY time A belLL rings …” But I want to talk about Loretta Young.

Amazingly adorable in her early roles, here she is quite charming. The story of her illegitimate child with Clark Gable frequently comes up. He was married, and she hid the pregnancy from the media. She put the girl into an orphanage for a year, then “adopted” her. I thought this was heartless for quite a while but a few details had escaped me. One, both of their contracts likely would have been terminated had this gotten out, and Loretta would not recover as she traded on her good girl image. Also, she was only 22 when Judy Lewis was born. Gable was 34, the pig! I’ll remember to cut her a little slack from now on.

The Bishop’s Wife is a film likely saved by studio interference. First by changing directors and the role reversal, but also by bringing in Robert Sherwood and Billy Wilder to fix a few scenes after initial filming had wrapped. That couldn’t have hurt. The end result may have gone way over budget, and released two months too late for Christmas, but it is quality Holiday fare. It has humor and heart. Elsa Lanchester was, again, wonderful in a supporting role. Also look for the obvious stunt doubles in the ice skating scene. AMRU 3.5.

“For some time now, every time I pass the cemetery, I feel as though I'm apartment hunting.”

To Catch a Thief (1955)

Reformed cat burglar John Robie (Cary Grant) is under suspicion when jewels go missing in a manner identical to his old M.O. Rather than cooperate with the police and provide an alibi, like a crazy person, he goes on the lam and tries to expose the real burglar. He convinces an insurance agent (John Williams) to hand over private details of clients with insured valuable jewels, you know, for research. Sign me up for that insurance company.

The real mystery here is, is Robie the Robber, and if not, who is? It could be just about nobody. Back story: Robie was convicted, served in the French underground during the war, and became a hero. He doesn’t want new allegations to besmirch his name and risk his lucrative career of living in a luxurious villa on the French Riviera and doing nothing. His first victim … I mean, research participant is a his mom from North by Northwest and her hot hot hot hot way-too-young-for-him daughter (Grace Kelly). Guess which one he falls in love with.

John Williams (no relationship to John Williams) was an interesting man. Basically he played only formal British types, but he did it well. He didn’t appear in a huge number of films (27 not including TV, uncredited, and shorts) but they included Dial M for Murder (1954), Witness for the Prosecution (1957), Sabrina (1954), and this, just to name a few. A favorite of Hitchcock, he also did ten episodes of Alfred Hitchcock Presents.

Grant had decided to retire, annoyed by the growing popularity of method acting. He was lured back to play the elderly love interest to Kelly, who had a reputation of having a reputation. He would continue to play the dashing young man well into his 60's. Grace would film on a stretch of road she would die on twenty eight years later. So it goes.

A teensy bit sloppy by Hitchcock standards. There is a scene early on between Grant and a French man who was clearly not saying anything actually heard by audience. More than simply taking me out of the story, I found it klunky and confusing. Thankfully he didn’t prove to be a major character. Overall it was a good, if not up to its reputation. AMRU 3.5.

“A child? Shall we stand in shallower water and discuss that?”

Holiday (1938)

Johnny Case (Cary Grant) and Julia Seton meet, fall in love, and decide to marry while on vacation. Then the movie begins and they get to know each other. Turns out Julia is rich. Like Seton family rich, and she has ideas of poor Johnny Case following in old dad’s footsteps in business. But Johnny is a bit of a non-conformist and wants to play things his own way. Sorda like Julia’s non-conformist sister (Katharine Hepburn).

I wrote recently that I had grown tired of Rom-Coms, and wanted to avoid them for a while. But Holiday was already on the DVR so I knew it would be watched at some point. Lucky for me, George Cukor did Rom-Coms better than most and Holiday is a winner.

This was the beginning of the “Katharine Hepburn is Box Office Poison” era that started with Bringing Up Baby earlier in the year, and studio execs were concerned. The studio boss wanted to preemptively take out an ad in Variety asking “What is wrong with Katharine Hepburn?” but she warned that people might tell him. The movie didn’t fare well financially, likely because Johnny wanting to be a vagabond didn’t play well during the depression.

Holiday is a delightful film mostly because how likable the characters are. Not just Cary and Kate, but also Kate’s brother and Johnny’s friends, the Potters. Johnny’s plan didn’t make much sense to me but that didn’t matter. I liked him, and his friends. And in a Rom-Com, that’s all we can hope for.

“Johnny, when two people love each other as much as you do, anything that keeps them apart must be wrong.”

The Awful Truth (1937)

Jerry (Cary Grant) returns from a business trip in “Florida”, only he wasn’t really in Florida. With friends in attendance, he discovers that his wife Lucy (Irene Dunne) isn’t home. It seems her car broke down and she had to spend the night at her swarthy singing instructor’s house. All perfectly innocent, except neither are too sure. After an argument, they agree to get a divorce, because that’s what you do. During the required waiting period, Lucy starts a relationship with big lunk Daniel (Ralph Bellamy) but Jerry can’t seem to stop bumping into them.

Classic Hollywood screwball comedy. Nobody does anything untoward but it’s hinted at quite a bit. I can complain and say The Awful Truth was overly formulaic. The ending was forced and it bore more than a passing resemblance to My Favorite Wife, made three years later with Randolph Scott in the Ralph Bellamy role. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if they used many of the same sets. But I think I’m experiencing rom-com fatigue.

There were some amusing scenes and overall it did its job, and this was the era when directors won Oscars for such films. It’s no coincidence that the earlier rom-coms I saw are rated higher and I may need to back off of them for a while. Unfortunately, I have one more sitting on the DVR. I’ll find something refreshing to watch before I see it. AMRU 3.

“They forgot to touch second.”

Notorious (1946)

A federal agent (Cary Grant) enlists the help of the daughter (Ingrid Bergman) of a convicted German "worker". They fly to Rio de Janeiro for her to cozy up to daddy's former associate (Claude Rains) who had a thing for her. Spy and Nazi get quite cozy but this begins to interfere with her relationship with the federal agent.

This movie appears to be about Nazis, conspiracies, and weapons, but really it's about a troubled romance that this stuff gets in the way of. Hitchcock crafts a taught story around this MacGuffin. Grant is moody rather than quick witted, Bergman is Bergmanesque, and Rains is excellent as always. Not much mystery in the story, but the elements all work well.

Well made but I had issues with the on-screen chemistry. I had trouble with the spy-agent relationship. Claude Rains was awesome as usual, but maybe I just wanted Grant to play the same Cary Grant character he usually does. Still, a good, complex film. AMRU 3.5.

"Alexander Sebastian: I'm not afraid to die.
Devlin: You've got your chance, here and now"

My Favorite Wife (1940)

Nick (Cary Grant) petitions to declare his missing wife (Irene Dunne) dead just before marrying his new wife (Gail Patrick). When the newlyweds go off for a weekend honeymoon, dead Ellen returns. Nick, still in love with Ellen and not so much with Bianca, turns into a complete wuss and can't manage to tell his new wife the bad news. When it turns out that good old Ellen spent those seven years marooned with the hunky Burkett (Randolph Scott), it's she who got some splainin' to do.

Fairly standard RomCom, later remade as Move Over, Darling (1963) with Doris Day and James Garner. They started Something's Got to Give the year earlier with Marilyn Monroe, but that train went in for her final wreck. Hmmm... Haven't done a Doris Day film yet. Interesting.

Anyhow, Grant and Scott were close friends in real life, having lived together for a dozen years. I'm sure it was purely platonic. Old friend Robert Wise served as editor. It would be a few years more before he would get to sit in the director's chair.

Not much to say. Standard fare for the genre. Grant would mutter under his breath because that stuff is comedy gold. The ending was rather weak. The outcome was in sharp focus fairly early on. There was no point and dragging it out. If there was anything that stood out it was the innuendo. Did Nick pop the pepperoni with the new wife while the old wife waited? Did Ellen make the beast while island bound? Don't be silly. This is classic production code RomCom. AMRU 3.

Bringing Up Baby (1938)

David (Cary Grant) is an awkward anthropologist desperate for a million dollar grant from an old rich lady. His efforts to impress the lady's lawyer is sabotaged by the eccentric Susan (Katharine Hepburn). She takes a fancy to him and manipulates him to miss all appointments, including his own wedding. Oh, yea, and she has a pet leopard.

There are a couple things strange about this film, which may have played into its commercial failure. One is the complete lack of an identifiable protagonist. Everyone is nuts. I didn't think It Happened One Night fit the Screwball Comedy title. It was simply a well done RomCom. Bringing Up Baby, however, is about as screwball as they get. Nobody is sane.

Secondly, there is a traditional role reversal between Grant and Hepburn. It is her money and crazy, manipulative behavior that ensnares the screen candy Grant. She is the fast talking smart aleck. Taking into consideration Hepburn's pantsuit public image, you can read what you wish into that.

Grant's David was modeled after Harold Lloyd's "Glasses Character", and Christopher Reeve based his version of Clark Kent after Grant. Hawks hired vaudevillians to work with Hepburn's comic timing, a skill that would server her well.

Bringing Up Baby was a box office disaster. Director Howard Hawks was fired from his next gig, Hepburn was released and labeled "Box Office Poison", and Grant, well he always comes out on top. It was from rereleases and television that it earned its reputation. For me, it was amusing enough, but the over the top style was a bit of a turn off. Still, AMRU 3.5.

"Because I just went gay all of a sudden!"

North by Northwest (1959)

Aging playboy (Cary Grant) marketing executive is kidnapped when he is mistaken for a spy. When he refuses to cooperate, they waterboard him with scotch and try to orchestrate a car accident. He gets away and is arrested for drunk driving, but nobody believes his story (not even his mom, the bitch!) On the run from police and criminals alike, he meets up with a young hottie (Eva Marie Saint) who helps him even though logic would demand otherwise. With her help he heads in some ordinal direction that escapes me at the moment to look for his doppelganger spy.

This Hitchcock thriller was very thrilling in a very Hitchcockian sort of way. Cary Grant was at his Cary Grantiest. Old friends Leo G. Carroll (at no point over a barrel) and James Mason had important rolls. Is Mason an old friend? Perhaps not. This is the first thing I have seen him in. Who knew?

North by Northwest is a great piece of entertainment that was expertly crafted. The photography was wonderful. Thrilling to the end. Think it will stand up well to a second viewing. If not for the story, then for the cinematography. AMRU 4.

Eve Kendall: Patience is a virtue.
Roger Thornhill: So is breathing.

Charade (1963)

Pretty wife of luxury (Audrey Hepburn) announces she will divorce her husband, but he turns up dead before she can. His former business partners arrive demanding their share of his loot, putting her life in danger. Dashing Peter (Cary Grant) turns up to "help out". She doesn't know if she can trust him but does anyway.

Something about Charade reads like a Hitchcock film. Many people (myself included) have confused it for one. After a few minutes, however, it's clearly not. Charade has this 60's-Euro-Cheesy Music vibe to it that Hitch would never have done. Sorry, Henry. The music was kinda cheesy.

Not the most mysterious of mysteries. Not the most comedic of comedies. Not the most romantic of, well, whatever. It's no Hitchcock movie, but not bad overall. Audrey Hepburn was adorable and Cary Grant was Cary Grant, even when on the cusp of 60. AMRU 3.

Alexander Dyle: All right, get set for the story of my life.
Reggie Lampert: Fiction or non-fiction?

The Philadelphia Story (1940)

Society gal Tracy (Katharine Hepburn) is getting remarried. Serious writer Macaulay (James Stewart) and his lady-friend photographer (Ruth Hussey) is forced to cover the story (the PHILADEPHIA story, as it were) for Spy magazine. The man to get the reporters inside is Tracy's estranged ex-husband C.K. Dexter Haven (Cary Grant). They cooperate in exchange for keeping a story about her father's dancing girl affair quite.

Hepburn left Hollywood after a string of bombs, which combined with not playing the Hollywood game, left her with no option. She landed on Broadway and starred in the play this movie is based on. She convinced her (boy?)friend Howard Hughes to buy the rights to the play and sell it to Hollywood for her to star in. It was a huge success and Hepburn was nominated for an Oscar.

The more I watch Grant the more impressed I become. He did mainly lighter fare (and for the most part the same character - the fast talking charmer), but he did it surprisingly well. He was nominated only twice for an academy award and never won. This I understand as he shied away from roles the academy likes to recognize. Eventually he did receive an Honorary ("oops, we missed you") Oscar, While he would never do a movie like Philadelphia, he certainly would never do The Philadelphia Experiment either.

Clearly, Hepburn knew her character well and George Cukor knew how to use the talent. Quick witted, smart, well acted, and well made. Very strong performances all around. The Philadelphia Story is among the best in the Romantic Comedy genre. AMRU 4.

"C'malong, Dexter, I know a formula that's said to pop the pennies off the eyelids of dead Irishmen."