1940 Directed by George Cukor
Philadelphia heiress Tracy Lord throws out her playboy husband C.K. Dexter Haven shortly after their marriage. Two years later, Tracy is about to marry respectable George Kittredge whilst Dexter has been working for "Spy" magazine. Dexter arrives at the Lord mansion the day before the wedding with journalist Mike Connor and photographer Liz Imbrie, determined to spoil things.
Katharine Hepburn Cary Grant James Stewart Ruth Hussey Virginia Weidler Mary Nash John Halliday Roland Young John Howard Henry Daniell Rex Evans Lionel Pape King Baggot Hillary Brooke Veda Buckland Lita Chevret Russ Clark David Clyde Robert De Bruce Dorothy Fay Claude King Eric Mayne Florine McKinney Lee Phelps Hilda Plowright Helene Reynolds Mildred Shay Joseph Sweeney
Here's an offer you can't resist: a romantic comedy starring Katherine Hepburn as a strong-willed heiress named Tracy Lords who must choose between three men: her prim and proper fiancé, George Kittridge, her ex-husband, C.K. Dexter Haven (Cary Grant), and a wry, sarcastic journalist, Mike Conner (James Stewart). Of course George is almost immediately out of the question, and Hepburn must choose between Grant and Stewart. She isn't gonna get a bad deal either way, that's for sure.
But at the outset, none of the men really love her for who she is. Dexter left her because he thought her frigid and unforgiving of faults; George loves her precisely because she's cold and far-off, like a statue, or a goddess;…
While not as frantic as Bringing Up Baby, Howard Hawks pairing of Grant and Hepburn, The Philadelphia story certainly has a giddy–up pace, and is even more voluminous in the infectious charm department.
There is a confluence of stars at the top of their game, an incredible script adaptation, and a sharp as nails director who understood the material that formed a perfect storm of romantic comedy. I’ve read every scene was a single take, and the shooting schedule was a scant six weeks.
Of course, Katherine Hepburn knew the role inside out, as she had played it on Broadway, and her Tracy Lords is the backbone of the picture. Flawed, yet strong .. confident, yet vulnerable, she choreographs the…
I watched this today for the second time with my mother, and found myself going huh? far too many times for my liking, because I remembered absolutely loving The Philadelphia Story the first time around. I still do have some qualms with the idea that Tracy is to blame for taking a stand against her ex-husband's alcoholism and her father's extramarital affair, but perhaps that's exactly the point... forgiveness as an essential virtue of the true woman and all that sort of stuff? But I feel like such a conclusion doesn't really do a film so witty and brilliant proper justice.
The three leads (and Ruth Hussey) are stunning in every way. I could watch them spar back and forth…
Wow! This was positively the best film I have ever watched in my entire life! Every single second of it, especially every second between 00:00 and 28:12, was just spectacular! I was in a trance from beginning to the very end. which I stayed for! I have to say, the first 28 minutes and 12 seconds really put me in a trance with its excitement, magic and revolutionary dialogue, so don`t bother asking me about anything that happened after that! I couldn`t tell you because I was so blown away by how much I enjoyed the first 28 minutes and 12 seconds. I implore you to watch this film. Every single second, from the start, to the checkpoint at 28 minutes and 12 seconds, to the very end, is just incredible. I cannot envision anybody wishing to stop this film prematurely - because I sure adored watching the entire thing!
This is a very entertaining film with Katherine Hepburn showing people that you can't get rid of her even when you label her box office poison. I thought the movie as a whole was solid, but I felt that Cary Grant and especially James Stewart could have delivered better performances, that or maybe Katherine Hepburn just outshined them both.
First Katharine Hepburn movie I've watched and I must admit, the script and her performance are captivating.
Cary Grant, Katherine Hepburn, and James Stewart all together in... a bad movie. What a waste.
As a comedy, The Philadelphia Story is... well, it's pretty good. Drunk Jimmy Stewart is a highlight, but otherwise I only chuckled so much. As a balancing act of characters and themes, on the other hand, it's wildly impressive, and while I only laughed so much at its humor, I had a big grin on my face for most of its runtime just admiring the sheer craft of it. There are very few films that I feel it's apt (and not just pretentious) to describe as Shakespearean, but there are even fewer cinematic comedies that feel like they approach the Bard's level of clockwork precision. This is one of them.
This is one of the most wonderful romantic comedies ever made.
A good description of this film would be that it’s like Mamma Mia! if Mamma Mia! was actually good.
The prettiest sight in this fine pretty world is the privileged class enjoying its privileges.
A fast-talking romantic comedy about rich people with transatlatic accents? That’s literally my brand.
Hmm. First in my classics rewatch project and no improvement. The cast is a delight, but love triangle and spontaneous wedding narratives don't do it for me.
James Stewart is one of our greatest screen actors.. but an Oscar for this work where he spends most of the film irritated? Hmm.
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