Bringing Up Baby
Director: Howard Hawks
Average Customer Review:
VHS Tape (18 March, 1997)
list price: $19.98
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Editorial Review

"The love impulse in man," says a psychiatrist in Bringing Up Baby, "frequently reveals itself in terms of conflict." That's for sure. For a primer on the rules and regulations of the classic screwball comedy, which throws love and conflict into close proximity, look no further. A straight-laced paleontologist (Cary Grant) loses a dinosaur bone to a dog belonging to free-spirited heiress Katharine Hepburn. In trying to retrieve said bone, Grant is drawn into the vortex surrounding the delicious Hepburn, which becomes a flirtatious pas de deux that will transform both of them. Director Howard Hawks plays the complications as a breathless escalation of their "love impulse," yet the movie is nonetheless romantic for all its speed. (Hawks's His Girl Friday, also with Grant, goes even faster.) Grant and Hepburn are a match made in movie heaven, in sync with each other throughout. Not a great box-office success when first released, Bringing Up Baby has since taken its place as a high-water mark of the screwball form, and it was used as a model for Peter Bogdanovich's What's Up, Doc? --Robert Horton ... Read more

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Reviews (104)

Howard Hawks' Homage to Vaudeville
When this film was released in 1938, the great majority of filmgoers were young enough to have experienced the era of vaudevile, whose death knell had been sounded by the coming of "talkies" after 1927. For this reason the film was not so much of a hit as it is today. Considered old fashioned and a bit passe, these type of screwball comedies that borrowed heavily on vaudeville routines, no longer commanded broad appeal and the genre in general was soon confined to such lesser lights as Abbot and Costello.
Flash forward 65 years and BRINGING UP BABY is now acclaimed as a minor masterpiece. That it harkens back to vaudeville is no longer a handicap. More entrancing is that it features two legends of the Silver Screen in their early prime. Cary Grant, who cut his teeth on the vaudeville circuit, is amazing in both his comic timing and his ability to carry off visual gags. To see the Grant who went on to become the very symbol of urbane sophistication stumbling around the set dressed in a night gown is priceless.
Screwball comedy is a matter of personal taste. Some people prefer comedy that arises out of a certain situation, rather than comedy generated for it's own sake, such as is evident in BRINGING UP BABY.One weakness of the genre is that as one visual gag follows another in rapid fire succession, the viewer becomes somewhat jaded, just as a gourmet would feel after consuming too many chocolate bonbons in a single sitting. After an hour or so, my attention was beginning to wander because my brain was not able to connect to a discernable plot line. Although it was great fun to see Grant and Hepburn go through their paces, one's intellect was not engaged and in the end the film just seemed a bit longer than it really is.
It's quite an honour for such a film to be featured in a two disc package. I am a big fan of Cary Grant and very much enjoyed the retrospection on his career. When they made Cary Grant they certainly did throw away the mould.

The screwier the better
This is perhaps the screwiest of the '30s screwball comedies, 100 minutes of sheer nonsense - and fun. Cary Grant is a paleontologist who needs one more bone to complete a dinosaur skeleton; he runs into Katherine Hepburn, an heiress, who owns a dog named George and a leopard named Baby. George steals the bone, Baby gets loose, and everyone ends up in a rural Connecticut jail, among other things. In the end the bone is recovered, but the skeleton collapses; of course Grant and Hepburn are left with each other. Almost nothing in the movie is connected with reality, and although it's not the funniest movie ever made, it's among the zaniest. Definitely worth a watch.

The film's a fabulous treat-a must-see for comedy fans
Actually, it's a must-see for any fans, anyone who loves movies.This print is drop-dead gorgeous, all the better to be whisked along through the story by Katharine Hepburn's lovely and authentically madcap "Susan Vance", courtesy of the unobtrusive and elegant direction by Howard Hawks, abetted by one of funniest performances ever by Cary Grant as well as a host of the cream of Hollywood character actors.
Not forgetting "Asta"(not his real name), that fox terrier from the "Thin Man" films, as "George"; he really *does* play a crucial part in this ridiculous story about a dinosaur's missing intercostal clavicle, a tame leopard from Brazil(the "Baby" of the title), and how a Connecticut society girl(one suspects this performance is a lot more like the "real" Hepburn was than most of her others were)entertains herself while falling in love.Really, it's an impossible film to describe-which brings me to my one caveat, which is only a factor if you turn on the second audio commentary by the world-class name-dropping windbag Peter Bogdonovich.Far, far from illuminating, we get such fascinating tidbits from ex-director Peter as the information that "several women I've met were actually NAMED 'Susan' after Hepburn's character in this film", and a monotonous recitation of exactly what's going on on the screen at the moment it's happening(my friend said it sounds more like a descrptive video for the blind than a critical or meaningful analysis)---as in ""he's getting frustrated now!""That was a hard fall she took there" and "HERE's the first closeup of Hepburn in the film"--AFTER several lingering closeups were plainly visible earlier in the film...lots of chuckling, repeating lines after Cary Grant has just said them(this last the most obnoxious tic he's got); etc.etc.

But that's of little importance-just too bad that they didn't get someone to narrate who doesn't think the fact that THEY love this movie is anywhere near as important as the movie itself is.The fact remains that this is one of the funniest, most entertaining pieces of fluff done in Hollywood, ever.A genuine must-have for the film library. ... Read more

Asin: 6304383177
Subjects:  1. Feature Film-comedy   

The Philadelphia Story
Director: George Cukor
Average Customer Review:
VHS Tape (03 April, 2001)
list price: $14.95
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Editorial Review

Recreating the role she originated in Philip Barry's wickedly witty Broadway play, Katharine Hepburn stars as the spoiled and snobby socialite Tracy Lord in this sparkling 1940 screen adaptation of The Philadelphia Story, one of the great romantic comedies from the golden age of MGM studios. Applying her impossibly high ideals to everyone but herself, Tracy is about to marry a stuffy executive when her congenial ex-husband (Cary Grant), arrives to protect his former father-in-law from a potentially scandalous tabloid exposé. In an Oscar-winning role, James Stewart is the scandal reporter who falls for Tracy as her wedding day arrives, throwing her into a dizzying state of premarital jitters. Who will join Tracy at the altar? Snappy dialogue flows like sparkling wine under the sophisticated direction of George Cukor in this film that turned the tide of Hepburn's career from "box-office poison" to glamorous Hollywood star. --Jeff Shannon ... Read more

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Reviews (104)

Mighty "yar"
"You're slipping, Red.I used to be afraid of that look - the withering glance of the goddess."

The movie begins with one of the most classic scenes in film history.The audience does not know who the characters are in the first scene, and no dialogue is used.We see Cary Grant angrily slam the front door of a mansion and stalk towards a car parked out front. A moment later, Katharine Hepburn, dressed in a nightgown, follows him out, carrying a bag of golf clubs. After removing one club, she contemptuously throws the bag filled with the rest at him, haughtily breaks the one club over her knee, throws the halves at him, and stomps back towards the open doorway.Grant follows her, taps her on the shoulder...and when she wheels around, he pulls his fist back as if to punch her, but instead mashes her face in the palm of his hand, shoving her backward through the open doorway, where we next see her rubbing her neck as she sits up. The scene ends.

Cut to "Two Years Later" as the title informs the audience; the day before Philadelphian blue-blood Tracy Lord's (Katharine Hepburn) second wedding. The audience also realize that the mashee in the opening scene and the masher were formally husband and wife: Tracy Lord (Katharine Hepburn) and C.K. Dexter Haven (Cary Grant).Soon Dexter has makes a surprise visit to the Lord household on the eve of the wedding.Tracy is about to marry George Kittredge (John Howard), her stuffy and rather chauvinistic well-to-do fiance.What Tracy doesn't know at first is that Dexter, perhaps seeking revenge on Tracy, has arranged for Mike Connor (James Stewart), a writer for a tabloid-like magazine named "Spy", and Liz Imbrie (Ruth Hussey), a "Spy" photographer, to do a story on the wedding under the guise of being friends of a friend of the family.Once Tracy is informed by Dexter that she must either allow the story to be written or her father's ongoing illicit affair with a dancer will be the big story instead she consents, but Connor and Imbrie do not know that she knows who their real identities and purpose...and she plots to "really give them something to write about...we'll set them on their ears!"

The first scene where Tracy meets Mike Connor and Liz Imbrie, and practically interviews them sets the tone for the rest of the film.

To reveal more of the story would spoil it for anyone who hasn't seen the film.But in the next twenty-four hours Tracy and the others find their lives turned upside-down in an alternately hilarious and touching series of events.

Katharine Hepburn made the extremely wise move on the advise of Howard Hughes, whom she was dating at the time, of buying the film rights to Philip Barry's play - she had been a hit onstage in the role, which was written for her.Recently having been labeled "box-office poison", even being offered a role in a film tentatively entitled "Mother Carey's Chickens", it was the only way to guarantee her the role in any filming of the play.She had spent a year on Broadway in the film version, and interrupted the tour of the play to film it for MGM.For the film, she had wanted Clark Gable and Spencer Tracy for the roles of Haven and Connor.She got Grant and Stewart - hardly shabby!And better choices anyway, IMHO.Donald Ogdent Stewart took over for the screenplay adaptation, as Barry had apparently requested too much money.The dialogue is some of the best of any film of its time, and Hepburn, at her most radiant, is beautifully costumed by designer Adrian.She is at times "lit from within", as Stewart's character Mike tells her, and at other times "made of bronze" (as her father, played by John Halliday) asserts.Dinah, Tracy's young sister, is portrayed to hilarious effect by child actress Virginia Weidler, who makes her appearance to the reporter duo in ballet toe shoes, spewing French and finishing her introduction to them by manically playing and singing a lusty dance-hall song on the piano.Pinch-prone Uncle Willie (Roland Young) adds great spice and fun with his smaller part.

Side note:In the scene where Mike arrives drunk at Dexter's house late one evening, Stewart purposely hiccups to try to crack Grant's straight-faced resolve - and it works.

"The Philadelphia Story" won six Academy Award nominations: Best Picture, Best Actor (Stewart), Best Actress (Hepburn), Best Supporting Actress (Hussey), Best Screenplay (Donald Ogden Stewart), and Best Director (George Cukor).James Stewart and Donald Ogden Stewart won their nominations (Stewart's sole Oscar win), and although Katharine Hepburn did not win for this role (she lost to Ginger Rogers for her performance in "Kitty Foyle"), she received the New York Film Critics' Award.The film revived her professional reputation, was a huge success, is of course considered to be one of the all-time classics of romantic comedy, and my personal favorite of Hepburn's films of this genre.

Classic Led by Sharp Repartee and Three Scintillating Leads
It has taken me a while to warm to this 1940 classic probably because the characters are not as immediately likeable as others of the period, for example, Howard Hawks' "Bringing Up Baby". In what has to be her career-defining role, Katharine Hepburn was born to play imperious Main Line socialite Tracy Lord. As Hepburn herself says, the part fits her like a glove as her angular beauty is matched by the razor sharpness of her haughty, self-absorbed character. On the eve of her second marriage, Tracy is surrounded by three men who all want her at some point in the story. With whom she ends up is no surprise, but the journey there contains all the biting wit and human insight that one could hope for in what is essentially a drawing room comedy.

As the pretentiously named C.K. Dexter Haven, Tracy's ex-husband, Cary Grant surprisingly plays the most grounded character in the story, a romantic in cynic's clothing, watching others get caught in the fear of commitment and a gauzy haze of indecision. His only moment of typical Grant physical humor is right at the outset when in the classic opening scene, he reacts to Tracy's golf club-breaking defiance with a well-judged facial push. Together, along with the uproarious "Bringing Up Baby" and the sublime "Holiday", Hepburn and Grant made a dynamic, temperamentally compatible screen couple in their youth, a combustible tug-of-war between equals versus the more subservient role she played later with Spencer Tracy. Ironically, the triangle (or more accurately, quadrangle) element of this movie allows just enough interplay between the two in what was to be sadly their final film collaboration. As the third point, a young and refreshingly cynical James Stewart portrays Macauley "Mike" Connor, a reporter covering Tracy's nuptials for the gossipy "Spy" magazine.Connor turns out to be a talented, published short story author, which Tracy finds immediately attractive. Intriguingly, it is Mike, not Dexter, who gets the most romantic scene in the movie as he bathes Tracy in the moonglow of romantic foreplay before a midnight swim.

What is so refreshing about this triangle is that it never reduces itself to some heroic duel to win the damsel. In fact, both men have understandable reservations about Tracy's high-and-mighty stance and her inability to tolerate others' weaknesses. Dexter turns out to be an alcoholic whom Tracy enabled during their marriage, and this makes for some of the most incisive dialogue in the movie. Mike is really an anti-establishment type who is appalled by what he is doing, and he also has an unspoken relationship with Liz Imbrie, his smart-mouthed photographer sidekick who of course, pines for him. In one of the more painful scenes, Tracy's father, whose apparent indiscretion provides the blackmail-driven plot which allows "Spy" to cover Tracy's wedding, tells off his daughter by calling her a "prig" and a "perennial spinster" asserting she is as cold as a bronze statue. Of course, the one man who wants to worship her is her fiancé, George Kittredge, who is socially insecure among the old rich and reveals his true intolerance when he believes that Tracy is guilty of the same type of indiscretion that ironically Tracy accused her father. As you can imagine, it all ties up beautifully, and all these complications come through with a great deal of humanity thanks to the wonderful, sometimes surprisingly edgy dialogue in Philip Barry's original play and Donald Ogden Stewart's screen adaptation. It is fair to say that the rest of the cast is fine but overshadowed by the three superb and fully embodied leads. Ruth Hussey does what she can in showing her character's vulnerability between the wisecracks as Liz, and Virginia Wiedler has a few hammy scenes as Tracy's precocious sister Dinah. A major portion of the credit for this first-class production needs to go to estimable filmmaker George Cukor, who is completely in his element here guiding his players to their peak.A true classic.

The extras in the new two-disc DVD package are excellent. The first disc has informative albeit rather enthusiastic commentary by film historian and critic Jeannine Basinger, as well as ten trailers for various Cukor classics. I am happy to report the video and audio transfer of the film itself is clean. The second disc contains "Katharine Hepburn: All About Me--A Self Portrait", a wonderful, nearly two-hour, first-person documentary made in 1992. At 85, she is a ball of energy and still quite lucid as she reflects back on her career in somewhat scripted remembrances.But her true feelings come out when she speaks lovingly about Spencer Tracy or what her responses are on myths about her. Her true personality - abrupt, ribald, and hilarious - comes across in the at-home scenes with her devoted entourage. It's a great retrospective of a full life. The second documentary is the Cukor contribution to "The Men Who Made the Movies" series produced by Richard Schickel, an overview of the master director's career though it oddly stops at 1954's "A Star Is Born". Both documentaries are chock full of memorable film clips.

Just like going to the movies in the forties, one can see a short with the acerbically amusing Robert Benchley and a cartoon on the second disc. There are also two radio broadcast versions with the three leads. The one-hour 1942 version is burdened by bad, crackling sound and an intrusive Cecil B. DeMille commenting on the plot throughout. The half-hour 1947 broadcast is the more intriguing of the two, as the actors' voices have coarsened somewhat over seven years. Hepburn, in particular, seems rather disengaged until the romantic interlude with Stewart when he humorously stutters a line in typical Stewart fashion.

Vintage Chick Flick
The liner notes for "The Philadelphia Story" describes it as a sophisticated romantic comedy.Automatically my hackles go up and say "Oh, No! Chick Flick!"To the film's credit, it is uniformly well acted.Though Jimmy Stewart received the Oscar for his work here I thought the best performance here was delivered by Ruth Hussey as Elizabeth Embree, Stewart's no-nonsense photographer.The script is intelligently written.That said, the film at 1 hour, 52 minutes drags.There's not enough substance here to warrant that length.Translated from a stage play and it shows.The film suffers from staginess and director George Cukor didn't seem able to open the film up from it's origins.Not a complete waste of time but not the classic that it's been billed as. ... Read more

Asin: 0790743221
Subjects:  1. Feature Film-comedy   

Holiday
Director: George Cukor
Average Customer Review:
VHS Tape (06 October, 1993)
list price: $19.95
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Editorial Review

This absolutely charming, wholly engaging romantic comedy is the hidden gem of the four collaborations of Katharine Hepburn and Cary Grant. Most everyone's seen The Philadelphia Story, but few know of this unorthodox, hilarious comedy of life among the rich and privileged, though both were Broadway hits by playwright Philip Barry. Grant plays the happy-go-lucky Johnny Case, a self-made man with a dream in his heart of making just enough money to retire on and then traveling around the world. Johnny proposes to the lovely Julia (Doris Nolan) in Lake Placid, but it isn't until he comes to pay her a visit in New York that he discovers she's the daughter of a wealthy industrialist. Although his nonconformity ruffles the feathers of Julia's stuffy father, he's soon won over the whole family--most notably, Julia's rebellious sister Linda (Hepburn), who in becoming Johnny's greatest advocate finds herself irresistibly drawn to him. There's more going on here than a spiffy, surface romance, with Johnny's free-spirit determination going up against rock-hard establishment values, and director George Cukor plays up the social politics of the story just as well as the wonderful, exquisite romance. Hepburn and Grant, as always, are perfectly paired, and given able support by Lew Ayres as the black sheep of Hepburn's family, and Edward Everett Horton and Jean Dixon as Grant's longtime pals. Filmed previously in 1930; Hepburn understudied the role of Linda on Broadway and used a scene from the play in her first screen test. --Mark Englehart ... Read more

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Reviews (41)

Classy Fare Shows How Hepburn Believes in Grant's Peanuts
Despite Katharine Hepburn's much-discussed twenty-five year partnership with Spencer Tracy, onscreen and off, I still contend that her most compatible partner in movies was Cary Grant. Temperamentally, physically and comically, they were a perfect match in three classics when they were in their youthful prime - the lunatic 1938 screwball farce, "Bringing Up Baby"; the strange-bedfellow 1940 wedding comedy, "The Philadelphia Story"; and in between, this smart, forward-thinking 1938 drawing room satire. Mostly overlooked and shamefully not even on DVD yet, "Holiday" is another witty observation of the old-money rich by playwright Philip Barry, the creator of "The Philadelphia Story", again adapted to the screen by Donald Ogden Stewart, this time with Sidney Buchman.

The focal point is Johnny Case, an eccentric young man with a sharp business acumen that gains him a small fortune and attracts the attention of socialite Julia Seton. They fall in love and decide to marry before the story starts, and the plot is driven by the ongoing conflict between his obligation to Julia to conform and his need to take an extended holiday before going back to work. It must have been a daring concept during the Depression to think that people would choose not to work if they could, but it's one that resonates even more now. As Johnny, Grant is so charming and humorous that it seems inconceivable that his devil-may-care personality would face opposition, but it does first from Julia's obstreperous father and from Julia herself. Enter Linda, Julia's quick-witted, unconventional older sister, who is drawn to Johnny and slowly realizes he may very well be her soulmate. But Linda fights her urges because she loves her sister too much to jeopardize the relationship. At the same time, Johnny is a romantic and an idealist who recognizes similarities in Linda that he can't resist. Hepburn is perfectly cast as Linda with an arsenal of clever lines and her high-cheekboned beauty. She and Grant parry and thrust so fervently that it seems a foregone conclusion that their characters will find happiness together. But the journey there is not as predictable.

Credit needs to be given to Doris Nolan with the unenviable task of playing Julia, who gradually sours on Johnny's ideas to the point of emotionally blackmailing him to take her father's offer of a banking job. Until the hard edge of her character reveals itself at the end, Julia is actually hard to hate because one senses her disappointment as the plot evolves. Similarly, Henry Kolker initially plays the father with a predictable bluster, but he also becomes rather sympathetic in his desire to look out for his daughters, even if he looks like he has given up on Linda's foibles many times in the past.The other characters are serviceable if little else - the girls' weak-willed alcoholic brother Ned portrayed almost too authentically by Lew Ayres; and the common-folk Potters played with obligatory quirkiness by Jean Dixon and 1930's comedy staple, Edward Everett Horton. Meanwhile, Binnie Barnes and Henry Daniell have hilariously acerbic roles as the intolerably blue-nosed cousins. All of this is masterfully directed by George Cukor, who manages to convey deep-seeded emotions under the guise of casual scenes like an acrobatic trick, a puppet show or even an innocent peck at New Year's. By the way, the title of my review refers to Linda's exit line to her family: "Whatever he does is all right with me. If he wants to dream for a while, he can dream for a while, and if he wants to come back and sell peanuts, oh, how I'll believe in those peanuts!" I love that line. This one is most definitely worth seeking out.

Awaiting DVD
Saw this great movie again on TCM this week. Now that Bringing Up Baby is finally out on DVD, this one moves to the top of my pining list.

Gary Grant and Hepburn At Their Best
I saw this movie on TV many years ago and never forgot it.It is one of the funniest movies I've every seen and I would rate it up there with my top five favoriate movies.Cary Grant does some of his acrobatics in this movie, and I just loved it.
I sincerely hope it is produced on DVD very soon. ... Read more

Asin: 630290899X
Subjects:  1. Feature Film-comedy   

The African Queen
Director: John Huston
Average Customer Review:
VHS Tape (01 August, 1999)
list price: $14.98
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The 1951 John Huston classic, set in Africa during World War I, garnered Humphrey Bogart an Oscar for his role as a hard-drinking riverboat captain in Africa, who provides passage for a Christian missionary spinster (Katharine Hepburn). Taking an instant, mutual dislike to one another, the two endure rough waters, the presence of German soldiers, and their own bickering to finally fall into one another's arms. This is classic Huston material--part adventure, part quest--but this time with a pair of characters who'd all but given up on happiness. Bogart (a longtime collaborator with Huston on such classics as The Maltese Falcon and Key Largo) and Hepburn have never been better, and support from frequent Huston crony Robert Morley (Beat the Devil, also featuring Bogart) adds some extra dimension and color. --Tom Keogh ... Read more

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Reviews (49)

Why isn't it on DVD??
It amazes me to no end that some of the cheeesiest movies ever made are released on DVD months or even weeks after they appear in theaters. But a classic like "AFRICAN QUEEN" can sit in company archives and if released on disc would surely mean a nice piece of change in many pockets.
I wouldn't mind if it showed up on cable and I was able to record it with my DVD Recorder,but it hasn't even been broadcast in months.
How can this happen?

Beautiful River+Beautiful Africa+Bogie=WOW
I adore this movie, but my God, that our Kate could deliver "I never dreamed any mere physical experience could be so stimulating!" without breaking up must have instantly qualified her for an Oscar!

Surely I'm not the only viewer who thinks that, were he alive & well today, Bogie could "take me to the river" any old time ;)

A Classic
When is the Owner of this Classic going to release this movie in DVD? Humphrey Bogart & Katharine Hepburn in a duel of personalities that come together in a great finally. A must have for the Movie Collector. ... Read more

Asin: 630150528X
Subjects:  1. Feature Film-action/Adventure   

Adam's Rib
Director: George Cukor
Average Customer Review:
VHS Tape (26 July, 1988)
list price: $14.94
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Editorial Review

There are two great husband-wife teams (one on-screen, the other off) involved in this classic 1949 comedy. Not only do Katharine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy throw comedic sparks as a married team of lawyers on opposing sides of a high-profile case, but their exquisite verbal jousting was scripted by the outstanding team of Garson Kanin and Ruth Gordon. Leading all of this stellar talent was director George Cukor at the prime of his career. The result is one of Hollywood's greatest comedy classics, still packing a punch with its sophisticated gender politics. Arguably the best of the Tracy-Hepburn vehicles, Adam's Rib shows the stars at their finest in roles that not only made their off-screen love so entertainingly obvious, but also defined their timeless screen personas--she the intelligent, savvy, rebellious woman ahead of her time, he the easygoing but obstinate modern man who can't help but love her. Screen teams don't get any better than this. --Jeff Shannon ... Read more

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Reviews (37)

cracking dialogue
I agree with the reviewer on the "Sweet Smell of Success" cracking dialogue, but this one is quite good. "Desk Set" is another one. Now that I think of it, Hepburn's "The Philadelphia Story" and "Bringing Up Baby" also have wonderful dialogue. Of course, Howard Hawks was good at this, too, with "The Big Sleep", "To Have and Have Not", "His Girl Friday", "Ball of Fire", and "Monkey Business" all offering fantastic, and fast-paced banter. Add to this Robert Mitchum's "Out of the Past", "Casablanca", "The Maltese Falcon", "Citizen Kane", and a couple Lubitsch-"To Be or Not To Be" and "Cluny Brown", and you have some good speaking.

Gotta love Kate
Yeah, there's something about us old stick-in-the-mud conservatives.We like the spitfire progressives like Kate Hepburn and co-writer Ruth Gordon, and they like us.There's something to be said for opposites attracting, and that's how Tracy & Hepburn were.It never was more evident than in "Adam's Rib."

Some may say that the themes of male/female equality here are dated.I don't believe so.The same script could be done today with modern trappings and very little would need to be changed.The only real difference is that in 1949 it was a new thought; nowadays some progress has been made but we are still struggling to find equal footing that makes us all feel like things are appropriate.Maybe these issues will never be completely settled; maybe the discussion is the point, not the settling of it.

In any event, aside from the social impact of the issues that take place in this seriocomic picture, the most memorable thing of all is the obvious fondness with which Tracy & Hepburn regard one another.The best acting doesn't feel like acting and, in spite of Tracy's offscreen religious situation that prevented him from divorcing his wife and marrying Kate, and in spite of the dicey morality thereof, it's a pleasure to see them together with a witty script and George Cukor's sure direction.Must see.

"Hurray for that little difference."
Spencer Tracy and Katherine Hepburn as Adam an Audrey Bonner, husband and wife lawyers on opposite sides in attempted murder case. But the person on trial is a woman who has tried to knock off her two-timing husband, and Kate argues for equality of the sexes. She wins the case, but then has to win Tracy back. They go at it tooth and nail, and pull off a wonderful comedy. Davis Wayne plays a songwriter/neighbor who near the beginning of the movie, during a party at which home movies are shown, almost steals the picture: these are the funiest 5 minutes of the whole movie, and they're all Wayne's. Worth a watch. ... Read more

Asin: 6301964128
Subjects:  1. Feature Film-comedy   

Woman of the Year
Director: George Stevens
Average Customer Review:
VHS Tape (18 March, 2003)
list price: $9.94
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The first film starring the legendary screen team of Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn, this savvy dramatic comedy from 1942 plays off the unlikely match of polar opposites--the brash sports reporter Sam Craig (Tracy) and the brilliant political commentator Tess Harding (Hepburn) from the New York Chronicle--whose marriage grabs front-page headlines. Balancing her flashy career with marital bliss turns out to be a complicated challenge for the worldly Tess, whose down-to-earth husband struggles to support her ambition while keeping their marriage from falling apart. Though some of its sexual politics are sure to seem outdated, this sparkling comedy is still relevant to today's demanding professional lifestyles, and the Hepburn-Tracy chemistry is a wonder to behold in some of their all-time favorite scenes.Woman of the Year was gracefully directed by George Stevens, from a screenplay by Ring Lardner Jr. and Michael Kanin. --Jeff Shannon ... Read more

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Reviews (19)

Wow!
Right off I have to say that this is at once the funniest, most romantic, most intelligent & most realistic depiction of a romantic relationship I have ever seen.(For perspective, I'm a 60 year-old multi-lingual film buff).

Whatever kind of film George Stevens tried, he did it to perfection. Witness Gunga Din, Swingtime & A Place in the Sun to mention just a few. It was like watching something by Hawks, Lubitch & Sturges all rolled into one.

Hepburn never appeared softer, more vulnerable, less mannered than in Woman of the Year. I fall in love with her all over again every time I watch it, which is surprisingly often, especially in the scene where she pontificates about Oswald Spengler while half-plastered under the table.

Then there's Tracy, the most honest actor who ever lived. But not just that: there was his ability to delve seemingly without effort into an infinite bag of gestures & expressions & tones & just plain old-fashioned but highly manifest wisdom& come up with the most richly nuanced guy ever depicted on-screen. Tracy was a giant, a genius, the Rembrandt of film.

A delightful, dazzlingly perfect grown-up movie.

A Film For All Time!
I will admit right from the start that, although I've been a big fan of the Tracy/Hepburn team for a long time, I only recently saw "Woman Of The Year". Perhaps, due to hearing so much about the sparks that flew during this now near-mythic first teaming for so long, I was afraid the actual movie couldn't live up to the hype. How wrong I was.

"Woman Of The Year" is a fantastic movie! The attraction between Hepburn and Tracy is very evident. So much so that, at several points, you feel that they are are honestly and sincerely saying the words to each other, not just characters reciting lines.

Neither Hepburn nor Tracy was considered conventionally attractive in their time, but here, both are at their most witty, charming, and yes, sexy! Hepburn is even downright girlish when flirting with Tracy, who exudes a quiet but very strong masculine presence. Even though he is considered one of the greatest dramatic actors, Tracy shows quite an instinct for comedy. Just as with his dramatic roles, he is so natural and effortless, he hardly seems to be acting at all!

The heat generated in the scene where the two are alone in Hepburn's apartment could rival just about anything Hollywood calls "sexy" today.

Watching this movie is like simply observing conversations between two people, thanks to George Stevens' superb direction. Notice how throughout much of movie, there isn't even backgroung music! The strength of the dialogue between Hepburn and Tracy carries everything, which is to take nothing away from the supporting players, who are equally strong.

Hepburn is brillant in the final scenes, trying to act as if she knows her way around a kitchen, all the while, the breakfast she's making is falling apart, while Tracy just sits and watches her cluelessness. The look on his face is priceless!

The movie looks gorgeous on DVD! The only extra material is the trailer, but when the movie is this good, you don't need extras!

The love is physcis , the marriage : chemistry !
This acid and clever stement comes from Alejandro Dumas and in this case fits so well .
Funny , clever and exhilarating film . This movie deals around the marriage of a nonchalant sport writer and her talented and charming international reporter . And the sitautions are not so far from the modern times . Fundamental work in George Stevens filmography .
Hepburn , shinning as always and Tracy outstanding too .
A "must" see ! ... Read more

Asin: B000056BRK
Subjects:  1. Feature Film-comedy   

A Bill of Divorcement
Director: George Cukor
Average Customer Review:
VHS Tape (10 October, 2000)
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Reviews (4)

John Barrymore's self-laceration
Christmas Eve - Day of reconciliation and hope: For Margaret (Billie Burke), a decade-long nightmare has come to an end: She finally got her divorce and is free to marry her perseverent lover Ray. Her daughter Sidney (Katharine Hepburn) is glad for her mother: She too is engaged. Her only sorrow is her aunt Hester, this killjoy: she always reminds them that her brother Hilary ((John Barrymore) is still master of the house. Hilary, Sidney's father who lives shell-shocked in an asylum. Meg's husband. Her ex-husband...

Next morning the news fall like a bombshell: Hilary feels sane again and has been released from the asylum. Sidney remembers another aunt who was ill for many years: Is her father "just" shell-shocked, or is it latent insanity, brought on by shell-shock?

Hilary enters his house in high spirits. He fingers the funiture, the christmas-tree-decoration. Sidney watches him secretly. He mistakes her for her mother, she sets him right: "My wife's not my wife - she's my daughter! What's your name, daugher?". She tries to break the news gently to him, but it would be easier if he were not so timid, so insecure, so grateful for her kindness. He believes that his wife will be glad to see him. It never crossed his mind that she could have divorced him behind his back. He smartens himself up in front of a mirror...

Meg is, in fact, speechless. He assures her of his sanity and describes his tremendous anxiety over and over again: "I was never like the rest of them. I was sane. That place was hell. I was a dead man". She never came to see him :"I wanted you. I wanted! I wanted!". He does not understand that he is not welcome in his own house.

Meg pities Hilary. She still wants to marry Ray, but she does not want to be cruel. Hilary understands: "He's in love with you", but cannot admit it to himself. His suspicion shatters his nerves: "Why do you look at me sideways? Why do you flinch when I talk loudly?" When she finally tells him the truth, he cries: "You're trying to drive me mad again!".

The family lawyer comes to Meg's aid. Hilary laments her ingratitude: "I fought for her, for you, for my country. What did I get? No medals, no glory, but years in hell!". The lawyer tells him to his face that his children ought never have been born -and this in Sidney's presence. She calls him to account: "Why do you mean I should never have been born?" and she understands: "It's in his blood. It's also in mine".

Hilary is desperate, he's resigned to go back to the asylum - but he can't: He falls on his knees and beseeches his wife: "I've been so alone so long. I won't trouble you, I won't get in your way. You can't deny me things you give your servants, your dog!" - and she gives in. But when he realizes that all she feels for him is pity he comes to a decision: In a fit of madness he threatens to kill her and her lover. Sidney throws herself between them: "Father's my job - not yours". She feels the greatness of his self-sacrifice: He faked the fit to make Meg's way out easy...

Stagy, talky, melodramatic - so what? This was Katharine Hepburn's first film. She was energetic, upright - a raw diamond. In a way I like her frank performance more than some of her more polished ones, because her true, uninhibited personality is at work. John Barrymore's performance is one of the most courageous on screen: His own father died in an asylum after years of mental derangement, he witnessed his decline closely and lived in constant fear to end like him. What gallantry, fortitude and sheer guts it must have taken him to stand up and play this part: an exercise in self-laceration. Barrymore's portrayal seems even more heart-rending, when one considers his own tragedy: just two years later he suffered under Korsakov's syndrome (loss of short-term memory due to alcoholism) and was unable to memorize his lines from then on. His films became worse and worse, he wasted away...

Katharine Hepburn's Hollywood Debut - A Gem
The truest actor she has to play against is Barrymore - and she triumphs against his drunkardness and sexual advences. She even brings out of him a touching performance! But despite a very strong supporting cast, thisis Kate'film: from stepping down an impossibly long aristochratic star to laying casually and free in front of a fire.
Hollywood might have trouble dealing with the East Coast Queen of Cool - but when they truly understood it was in her civilized nature, there just was no stopping her - 4 Award Winning Academy Awards in a Leading Role (and stilling count)!)

Not worth the (money)
This was Katharine Hepburn's first starring role; she looked divine. Unfortunately, the film was terrible. I wanted to smack all the characters for being so ridiculous. None of them were sympathetic or compelling.The only thing that makes this film worthwhile is to gaze upon the fabulous styles of the era and see a very young Hepburn. ... Read more

Asin: B00004Y6A7
Sales Rank: 14403
Subjects:  1. Feature Film-drama   

Suddenly, Last Summer
Director: Joseph L. Mankiewicz
Average Customer Review:
VHS Tape (17 February, 1993)
list price: $19.95
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Editorial Review

This black-and-white film adaptation of Tennessee Williams's Southern gothic play is perhaps more famous for the rumored off-screen shenanigans of its stars than for its over-the-top repressed sexuality (only Williams could pull off that paradox, and pull it off he does). Supposedly, stars Katharine Hepburn and Elizabeth Taylor battled for screen time; Hepburn warred very publicly with director Joseph Mankiewicz; and a postaccident Montgomery Clift relied heavily on painkillers and support from friend Taylor during the grueling shoot. Even this, however, cannot top the events of the film itself, revolving around the unseen playboy Sebastian and his mysterious death, which has something to do with young boys, a decadent European vacation, and Taylor in a provocative wet, white bathing suit. To give away the plot would spoil the fun, but suffice it to say that what Taylor saw was so horrible it drove her nuts, and Sebastian's mother (Hepburn) wants her to have a lobotomy in order to keep it from coming out; Clift is brought in to do the procedure. It's all a hoot and a holler, but as played by the two leading ladies (both of whom nabbed Oscar nominations), it's also compelling, chilling, and utterly gothic. Taylor gives a fierce performance, as the climaxing monologue that reveals Sebastian's "secret" rests entirely on her shoulders, and Hepburn plays brilliantly against type as Sebastian's manipulating, overbearing mother. Only Clift, saddled with a dreary character in charge of plot exposition, fails to deliver. Adapted by Gore Vidal. --Mark Englehart ... Read more

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Reviews (40)

Kept Dozing Off
Montgomery Clift plays a young doctor who does lobotomies in the 1930's. He works at a state hospital which has no money.Everyone calls him Dr. Sugar, but in the cast credit, his name is long, unpronounceable, and not even close to "sugar".Anyway, another the doctor in charge tells him that the very wealthy Violet Venable wants to see him.In hopes of getting a large donation, he visits her to see what she wants.

This takes place in the South somewhere, not sure if they ever say where, but needless to say, Katharine Hepburn hasn't got, (nor did she try to have)a Southern accent. She speaks in her usual, impossible to understand, uppercrust Yankee accent. She takes Dr. Sugar out on her patio, with lots of fake jungle plants and a skeleton angel statue, and tells him a long, very long story about traveling with her precious son Sebastian to see the Galapagos Islands.The story seems to take forever, actually it takes her about ten minutes to spit out the whole thing: about baby sea turtles hatching and huge flesh-eating birds attacking them.She couldn't watch, but son Sebastian did, and later told her that he saw God.

While telling her stories, Violet uses the word "suddenly" about SIX times. Well, the gist of the matter is, Sebastian died last summer, and his cousin Cathy saw it happen, went "crazy" and is now locked up with some nuns taking care of her.Violet tells Dr. Sugar that Cathy is telling horrible, obscene stories about her precious Sebastian and how he actually died (Violet said he had a heart attack), and she wants to put a stop to this slander by giving Cathy a lobotomy.

So Dr. Sugar goes to visit Cathy (Elizabeth Taylor, who forgets she's supposed to have a Southern accent, remembers and overdoes it, then completely forgets again).He asks her the first thing she can remember, which she says is "last spring". Although she does remember her uncle dying when Sebastian was trying to be a monk, and his mother was trying to get him to come home.When her husband died, Violet wouldn't come home for the funeral. And since Sebastian died in the summer, that had to have happened prior to the spring that she says is her first memory. In any case, in the spring, she was at a party with Sebastian, wanted to leave, couldn't locate her coat, and a strange man offered her a ride home.Very delicately without coming out and saying it, she makes Dr. Sugar think she was raped by this man. Was she? Who knows.

When Cathy starts to talk about her summer trip to Cabeza de Lobo with Sebastian, she suddenly starts sceaming, "I can't remember! I can't remember! I can't remember!" Then how come old Vi heard that Cathy was telling everybody she did remember every the disgusting detail?.Why does Vi need to shut her up if she can't remember?Cathy has no idea that a lobotomy is on order for her thanks to Aunt Vi. So why would Cathy not tell this doctor what she's been telling eveyrone else who will listen?

Even Cathy's own mother, (Mercedes McCambridge, who uses her southern accent studiously throughout), wants her to have the lobotomy, because if she does, Vi will give her and Cathy's brother $100,000. Nice family.

In the end Dr. Sugar brings Cathy (who keeps kissing him) to Vi's fake jungle patio, to tell the whole, nonsensical story of what happened to the wonderful Sebastian. This takes quite some time, with lots of the same words repeated over and over(reminscent of the baby sea turtle story), and is the part where I kept dozing off.I gather that a bunch of kids cut Sebastian up with their tin musical instruments, but for what reason or if really happened, wasn't clear. You would think there would be some kind of police report, and the undertaker would know, etc. But the state doctor (in attendance for this major event) announces "The girl's story could very well be true." Sure, he was all ready to give her a lobotomy thirty minutes earlier.

Shocking, I suppose, if you like to be shocked by vague, unexplained stories, but I'm not buying it.The script was ridiculous, the acting was very unconvincing.

That Tennesee Williams...
I just LOVE the words and poetry of Mr Williams. This is no exception and the talents of Taylor, Clift and Hepburn make this a Hollywood-3-star-treat:-)

It`s rather sad however that it is obvious that Monty`s mental health was declining(after the car-crash during the filming of Raintree County with Taylor some years before) - it is quite apparent who REALLY was the sick person here.

Marilyn Monroe sadly observed that during the filming of The Misfits, that Montgomery Clift was the only person in the business who was more shaky than she was...

Taylor and Hepburn are letter-perfect, but their performances cannot be regarded as a success because of their overplaying; Their strain show in handling embaressing lines "necassary" because of the censorship at the time it was shot.

This is a haunting film nevertheless,do see it and forgive the last 5-10 minutes of dialogue.

A White Hot Summer for Sebastian and Cathy
Suddenly Last Summer is one of my all-time favorite films --- a truly Gothic Tennessee Williams drama, reflecting Williams' genius at exposing the dark side of a venerable Southern family.Filmed exquisitely and effectively in black and white, it involves a doctor (Montgomery Clift) who is hired by a wealthy matriarch Mrs. Venable (Katherine Hepburn) to perform a lobotomy on her institutionalized niece Cathy (Elizabeth Taylor).Clift is unconvinced (as well he should be) that Cathy needs this lobotomy and wants to get to the bottom of what happened "suddenly last summer" to have put her in a state of shock and temporary memory loss.Mrs. Venable would like to see the lobotomy performed so that the memory is permanently erased.

Ooh, this is a delicious one.From the sultry hothouse, dripping with metaphor, where Katherine Hepburn makes her dramatic appearance in a cage to the last frame where in split screen, Taylor recalls what happened "last summer," "Suddenly Last Summer" is a luscious, over-the-top shocker and acting tour-de-force for three powerful leads.Clift obviously was suffering on painkillers, and yes, it does show, as he hangs back and allows Hepburn and Taylor to do the major emoting, but his chemistry with good friend Taylor is so palpable and strong that it really doesn't hurt the film at all.He still registers well as the concerned doctor.Taylor is, as another reviewer aptly put it, surreally beautiful (wow), and her exquisite face is seen in close up in the split screen montage at the end in which she delivers her soliloquy and also appears in that provocative white bathing suit which appears in so many ads for the film.Again there is an unspoken subtext of homosexuality, this time in the form of a character, Sebastian Venable, whose face is actually never seen, and some ambiguity as to what nefarious deeds Mrs. Venable and her poor niece were actually engaged in, but it's all fabulous fun.

Love to hear the actors beautifully manage Williams' wonderful, literate dialogue.Boy, do I miss writers who knew how to use language -- even if the script was undoubtedly watered and camouflaged a bit so that the true nature of the evil remainsenigmatic.Highly recommended. ... Read more

Asin: 6302655897
Subjects:  1. Feature Film-drama   

Without Love
Director: Harold S. Bucquet
Average Customer Review:
VHS Tape (19 September, 2000)
list price: $14.95
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Reviews (8)

Platonic Love
Spencer Tracy and his dog look for suitable premises. He does research work on behalf of the Air Force who entrusts him with the development of a new oxygen-mask. Katharine Hepburn's house meets his requirements and the young widow is impressed by his charm. They have one thing in common: Both of them repress their carnal appetite. HE is disappointed ("She was vivacious, amusing aand dull") while HER marriage brought her a fullfilment she thinks is impossible to relive. Tracy plays the piano (Schubert) and listens to her biography ("I was born in 1917" is not entirely truthful but Hepburn looks beautiful with her pigtails). When he treats her with contempt - her world-weariness is in his eyes nothing but self-complacency - she would have turned him out, but his lab is already equipped, military supplies arrive - and not even Katharine Hepburn can say "no" to the Ministry of War. Infected by his patriotism she offers her services as assistant and guinea-pig and proposes to him. Not love will be their basis but "honesty, courage and humor". He would have turned her down but his ex is on his track and revenge is sweet...So Tracy assures Hepburn of his honorable intentions and gives her a peck on the cheek and she gives him a peck on the cheek - and so they seal their deal.

Their business connection is fertile...fecund...fruitful: she spends her time in a pressurized cabin and when he reduces the pressure she turns a somersault. Their conjugal connection does not take place: they implore a friend to stay during their wedding night and when Tracy goes astray - in Hepburn's bed - she is willing to buy his justification: somnambulism! Spring arrives, two lovebirds (Lucille Ball & Keenan Wynn) bill and coo and Hepburn decides to bring competition (a latin lover) into play...

...and you can guess the rest. The last half hour could have been less plodding, but there is an imaginative scene when Hepburn mimics Tracy's ex - long cigarette-holder, feathers-boa, affected french accent - because she thinks he finds this type of woman sexy. The funniest moment: Tracy transports his dog - in a suitcase with an oxygen-mask! The title "Without Love" is misleading: Tracy & Hepburn flirt without intermission...

LIGHTLY AMUSING.
The wartime housing shortage is the the excuse which brings the legendary duo together in this one: Tracy is a homespun scientist working on a helmet for high-altitude flying, and Hepburn is a widowwith a big empty house in Washington D.C....One of the more mediocre films in the Tracy-Hepburn series; it has a rather metallic flavour. Hepburn comes off as being something between an old maid and a tomboy; she's at her most annoyingly cultured and affected here - but she keeps exclaiming "by gum'(!) The direction by Harold S. Bucquet is pedistrian and the dialogue tries to be sophisticated, but it doesn't match the plot maneuvers (such as the one requiring Tracy to be a sleepwalker: in the movies it's almost as tacky as amnesia).Philip Barry fashioned the play for Hepburn when she just barely sqeaked by with it on Broadway in 1942.Donald Ogden Stewart re-wrote much of the material for the screen and the result was a box-office success in 1945.In the second leads, Lucille Ball and Keenan Wynn are, in actuality, much more likable.

By Gum!
Not Hepburn and Tracy's best, but still a funny, pleasant comedy. Hepburn is Jamie Rowan, a widow living in the past, whose basement scientist Pat Jamieson (Tracy) wants to use to construct a government-commissioned oxygen mask for World War II pilots. The two decide to marry platonically and help each other as partners. But it's only a matter of time before love begins to complicate the marriage...

Though the plot is a little creaky and predictable, Hepburn and Tracy shine, as always. Keenan Wynn and Lucille Ball, however, are the standouts as the second leads. Both hilarious and touching, they add comic zest to the film and make you come away from it thinking it's better than it actually is. ... Read more

Asin: B00004TX2J
Sales Rank: 20937
Subjects:  1. Feature Film-comedy   

Desk Set
Director: Walter Lang
Average Customer Review:
VHS Tape (20 May, 2003)
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Editorial Review

One of the later Spencer Tracy-Katharine Hepburn matchups, this time pitting efficiency expert--sorry, that's "methods engineer"--Richard Sumner (Tracy) against TV-network research whiz Bunny Watson (Hepburn) over adding a new-fangled computer--again, sorry, that's "electronic brain"--to her department, thereby threatening her and her colleagues' livelihoods. Gig Young appears as Bunny's beau, an ambitious network executive who strings her along and becomes apoplectic at the idea that she doesn't need him. But as always, it's Hepburn and Tracy's bickering-flirting that makes this such a winning enterprise--a lunch date that turns into an interrogation and their sly repartee during a Christmas party are a couple of the movie's hilarious highlights. Interestingly, what starts out as something of a technophobic exercise--Hepburn fears for her job, and a computer goes haywire--takes an abrupt turn (perhaps the IBM product placement had something to do with that). Briskly scripted by Henry and Phoebe Ephron (Nora and Delia's parents) from a play by William Marchant. --David Kronke ... Read more

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Reviews (36)

The Office
Of the nine films Spencer Tracy and Katherine Hepburn made together I have, as of now, seen four; "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner", "Pat and Mike", and "Woman of the Year". So far this is my favorite.

Now I wouldn't go as far as some and call this one of the great comedies of all time, but I would say this is an enjoyable funny that has at least two very, very funny scenes, which I will get to in a moment.

The movie was directed by Walter Lang ("Can-Can", "The Jackpot", and "Moon Over Miami") and was written by Phoebe and Henry Ephron (parents to Nora).

Tracy stars as Richard Sumner a sort of efficiency expert who is sent to over look Bunny Watson's (Katherine Hepburn) research department. What kind of company she works for exactly I'm not sure. And soon Bunny and her co-workers Joan Blondell (Peg), Dina Merrill (Sylvia) and Sue Randall (Ruthie) become anxious trying to figure out what exactly Sumner is doing there and will it cost anyone their job.

There is also a side story going on about Bunny and a man she has been seeing for seven years Mike (Gig Young) who has yet to ask the big question, but Bunny remains devoted to him anyway.

I would have preferred if the movie had focused more on the relationship in the office between Tracy and Hepburn, but that's okay.

Now for those two funny scenes. The highlight of this film includes an "evaluation" scene between Racy and Hepburn having lunch. Their timing and chemistry is amazing. The scene reminds me of the gin rummy scene in "Born Yesterday". The other highlight includes an "apartment" scene with Tracy getting caught in the rain staying over at Hepburn's place. Soon complications set in, and I will not reveal them here. But these two scenes are probably the best in the film.

I also like the film's message. Technology by itself is not perfect. I'm totally against all these advancement in the field, which is funny considering I'm using a computer right now. But I liked the film's cynical look at technology.

Bottom-line Enjoyable Tracy/Hepburn comedy that has two very funny scenes which demonstrates how great these two people were and what amazing chemistry they had. Check it out.

It doesn't get much better
The Great Kate and Spence. Fantastc 50's architecture and clothes and- watch out - SMART DIALOGUE! Nora Ephron's parents wrote and produced this gem and you see where she got her chops. Fast, funny and all pros at the top of their game. Watch for the scene on the roof top of the building when Tracy and Hepburn have their first lunch. it is freezing but these two are so hot and fast and smart that you can't takeyour eyes off of the screen.

Short on extras, but a few goodies, like a newsreel about the fashions the film inspired and a commentary by Dina Merril and John Lee (?) who I assume is a historian as I certainly don't know him. But, the film is the thing and it is wonderful.

"Is something burning?"
This is an extremely well done screen adaptation of a unique play. You expect nothing less from the team of Spencer Tracy and Katherine Hepburn.However they do not distract from the performances of the other actors who are well-known in their own right. Harry Ellerbe, who plays Smithers, played the main role of Richard Sumner in the play.
Bunny and her staff and the research department are all preparing for Christmas season. But who should appear on a seen but the mysterious Richard Sumner, with a tape measure, 24 questions, and mysterious past in electronic brains. The conversation between Richard Sumner and Bunny are worth with film its self; yet it only gets better from there.

... Read more

Asin: 6301586034
Subjects:  1. Feature Film-comedy   

On Golden Pond
Director: Mark Rydell
Average Customer Review:
VHS Tape (16 December, 2003)
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Editorial Review

Writer Ernest Thompson, who came up with the original stage play of On Golden Pond and adapted it for film, is lucky to have two giants of the screen give dignity and breadth to his sometimes trite dialogue. Henry Fonda, in his last role, plays a prickly English professor at the disagreeable age of 80. Visiting his summer house by a Maine lake with his wife (Katharine Hepburn), the old man forges an unlikely bond with a lonely boy, comes to terms with his daughter (Jane Fonda), and suffers disorienting effects of mild dementia. Even playing a tired old man, Fonda is an absolute lion of a movie star, and Hepburn brings her special spirit to the part of his worried bride. The onscreen relationship between Henry and Jane Fonda naturally makes one think about their much-discussed difficulties offscreen, but that's a side benefit in a movie that is really just a celebration of simple human decency. Directed by Mark Rydell (Harry and Walter Go to New York). The DVD release has widescreen presentation, director's commentary, documentary footage on the making of the film, theatrical trailer, notes and information about the production, and optional Spanish subtitles. --Tom Keogh ... Read more

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Reviews (48)

So beautiful and moving, it's golden
If you love Kate, you'll love this film.It is, by far, her sweetest role.You get to watch, in amazement, how beautifully and gracefully she ages.Then you get Henry Fonda, a classic star in his own right.He pulls off a stellar performance of an aging man.Henry and Kate's relationship is remarkable; it is so sweet.This film offers great insight into aging and the fears that go along with it.Jane Fonda adds a brilliant performance as the daughter who is distant from her father.She is a great actress and has many great films, but this is by far her best role.You add the amazing direction of Mark Rydell and classic cinematography of Billy Williams and you get the most beautiful film made.The film is truely stunning.

"He's just trying to find his way... same as you."
Much of this film revolves about the coming of age of the two main male characters: 13-year-old Billy (Doug McKeon), who is facing the teenage years and approaching adulthood with a bit of trepidation and the anger that only a teenager can manage; and 80-year-old Norman (Henry Fonda), who is facing approaching death with a bit of trepidation and the anger that only a New England curmudgeon can manage.

These two seeming opposites form an unlikely friendship with one another, as Billy is left, not by choice, with his (step-)grandparents for the summer. The forming of the relationship between the two is really beautifully and realistically handled and quite entertaining to watch.Consider this exchange just after Billy's parents have gone off, leaving him:

Billy (brash and teenager-like): This is all [BS]!
Norman (looking up from his book): You like that word, don't you?
Billy (defiantly): Yeah!
Norman: (nodding) Good word. (Goes back to reading)

This really takes the wind out of Billy's sails.You can see the wheels turning in his head.He had been all set to put on his angry teenager hat and rebel against the old fuddy-duddy attitude, and instead, it turns out that his grandparents may be old, but they are NOT as stiff as he thought.Hmm!Guess some re-thinking is in order.

By the way, speaking of language.Back when the film was first out in the 1980s, my family (mom and grandparents) recommended it to one of my great-aunts (and corresponding uncle), who we thought would really enjoy it.To our surprise, they were quite shocked.All they could talk about was the "Language!"My goodness.I do not find any of the (pretty mild) language at all gratuitous.[BS] is pretty much the naughtiest word IN this film; and if you have ever been around any teenagers from California in the last 30 years, you know that they certainly do say things like that (and worse) in real life.(I guess if you are going to find that sort of thing hopelessly distracting to your enjoyment of the movie, you should stick to films rated G.)

A few days later, Billy finds himself standing between his grandparents in the front seat of their powerboat."So, how fast does this old tub go, anyway?"Norman spins the throttle, and the acceleration pastes Billy into the back seat in a crumpled heap.This is way cool, even if you ARE a teenager from California!Before long, Billy and Norman are inseparable buddies.(I should add that Norman also gets the occasional comeuppance from Billy in return, but you will have to see the film to experience those.)

But there other equally rich characters and relationships; Ethel, Norman's wife (Katherine Hepburn), whose sweet exterior overlays a heart of solid oak, and who loves Norman deeply in spite of himself.And their daughter, Chelsea (Jane Fonda) who is largely estranged from them, and is shocked to see young Billy forming the bond of friendship with Norman that she never had as his own daughter.There is great emotional range in all of these combinations.(Dabney Coleman as Chelsea's new husband and Billy's father is really just a throwaway comic-relief character, but good as far as that goes.)By the way, you could easily argue that Jane Fonda turns in the weakest performance of the film.This is not to say that she did a bad job, because I for one don't think that is true at all; what it shows is just how high a level of artistry this entire film maintains.

And oh, is this a beautiful film.The nature photography alone is breathtaking.And Dave Grusin's musical score is nothing short of magical.(The main title music accompanying Norman and Ethel's drive through the heavenly New England countryside is so simple, and so elegant, but its quiet beauty is also haunted by a touch of sadness. This music sets the tone for the entire film, and indeed, the main title theme returns often in different guises throughout.)I hate to repeat the tired phrase "You will laugh, you will cry" but it is true.This film has joy, and sadness, and laughter, and pain, and beauty, just as much as life itself does.If the word "bittersweet" were not already in the language, someone would have had to invent it for this film.

If you allow this film to touch you at all, (and, true, some people, like my older, now-departed relatives mentioned before, just do not understand it or allow it to reach them) it will become a lasting part of you; at least, I found this to be true for myself.And that is really the highest praise you could give any work of art in any medium.

The beauty and agony of Aging
Hepburn and Fonda are excellent! I have watched this movie time and time again and still find myself brought to tears. The journey of parent and child is painfully raw in stubborness and forgiveness. The difference in generations is another bridge to be crossed. With time and mutual respect it does get crossed which makes for a nice ending.

Also the painful awareness of aging and illness brings one to face their own mortality. In short, life is short, make everyday full of whats important.

Like Gone With The Wind, a CLASSIC! ... Read more

Asin: 630273973X
Subjects:  1. Feature Film-drama   

Rooster Cogburn
Director: Stuart Millar
Average Customer Review:
VHS Tape (06 May, 1992)
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Reviews (18)

Rooster Cogburn
This movie is a timeless classic.I never tire of watching it.
The wit and humor with adventure keeps your interest.I think John Wayne's preformance in this movie and
True Grit are his best by far.I would recommend these movies for any age.

Comparisons to True Grit
RC has more humor than TG (plus).TG had better production values than RC (plus).TG had more memorable villains than RC (plus).The murdered father angle worked a little better for Kim Darby in TG than Kate Hepburn in RC (Hepburn and Lormer, as her dad, look around the same age) (plus) BTW to the poster who claimed TG was Bob Duvall's first movie---wrong. He was previously in To Kill A Mockingbird in 1962.

John Wayne and Katharine Hepburn stand toe to toe
Sometimes a multitude of wrongs can come out right.Hollywood has a penchant for making sequels to successful films, so when John Wayne finally won an Oscar for his performance in "True Grit."Wayne played Rooster Cogburn, a fearless, one-eyed U.S. marshal who never knew a dry day in his life.Fortunately Hollywood waited six years before making this 1975 sequel. However, at that point they not only hired a novice screenwriter, actress Martha Hyer ("First Men in the Moon"), they let her rip off "The African Queen" and turn it into a western.Fortunately, they hired Katharine Hepburn to play opposite the Duke.

That is what "Rooster Cogburn" comes down to, the chance for John Wayne and Katharine Hepburn to do scenes together; it also explains why the film is also known as "Rooster Cogburn and the Lady."Hepburn plays Rose Sayer, no, wait, I mean Eula Goodnight, who is the daughter of a minister (Jon Lormer) instead of the brother of a missionary.The gospel is still being brought to the natives, except this time we are set in the Cascades of Oregon rather than the jungles of Africa.The bad guys are now a gang of thieves led by Breed (Anthony Zerbe) and Hawk (Richard Jordan), instead of Nazis, and this time they gun down the minister.So when Rooster comes along to track them down and bring them to his brand of justice, Eula insists on going along.

The plot is predictable in terms of the outcome and familiar when Kate and the Duke end up on the water.But there is fun to be had in these two standing toe to toe, but not jaw to jaw, and going at it."To whom do you think you are speaking," she intones frostily."You is to whom I think I am speaking, sister," he shoots back.She allows that he is bigger than she is, but only physically.He observes in this situation that should be enough and they continue to have great fun with the dialogue.Wayne has great fun hamming it up and Hepburn enjoys having an actor big enough to stand up to her assault.

The stories from the set were that the two great stars had great fun making this movie.Their politics were at opposite ends of the spectrum so they just avoid the topics and enjoyed being in each other's company. Wayne was playing a character he had done before in a movie, but then Hepburn's character is instantly recognizable as well, even if the name is different.The names do not matter.They can call them "Rooster Cogburn and the Lady," but it is the Duke and Kate, and their fans will not be disappointed by their time together. ... Read more

Asin: 6300181588
Sales Rank: 4242
Subjects:  1. Western   

Guess Who's Coming to Dinner
Director: Stanley Kramer
Average Customer Review:
VHS Tape (02 February, 1999)
list price: $19.95
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Editorial Review

Spencer Tracy's last performance was in this well-meaning, handsome film by Stanley Kramer about a pair of white parents (Tracy and Katharine Hepburn) trying to make sense of their daughter's impending marriage to an African American doctor (Sidney Poitier). The film has been knocked over the years for padding conflict and stoking easy liberalism by making Poitier's character in every socioeconomic sense a good catch: But what if Kramer had made this stranger a factory worker? Would the audience still find it as easy to accept a mixed-race relationship? But there's no denying the drawing power of this movie, which gets most of its integrity from the stirring performances of Tracy and Hepburn. When the former (who had been so ill that the production could not get completion insurance) gives a speech toward the end about race, love, and much else, it's impossible not to be affected by the last great moment in a great actor's life and career. --Tom Keogh ... Read more

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Reviews (74)

Liberal Angst over Interractial Relationship in the 1960s
Guess Who's Coming to Dinner takes place during the course of one day as two families struggle to overcome their concerns about the interracial marriage of their children.This film is a treat for the eyes with lovely sets and beautiful people. It also has a nice 1960's feel that is reinforced by sophisticated wardrobing and an "easy listening" soundtrack--featuring The Glory of Love as the signature tune. The film relies very heavily on the use of dialog and reflects the elegance of a time when people were entertained by stimulating conversation.The San Francisco backdrop also is the perfect setting for a movie that challenged racial convention.

But there are a few serious flaws. This is an introductory role for Katharine Houghton (Hepburn's niece) who plays Sidney Portier's fiance--Johanna Drayton. Her inexperience is apparent, particularly in comparison to heavyweights Portier, Tracy and Hepburn and as a result, she is unconvincing in the part. Moreover, her character is not well-written or well-developed which makes it difficult to understand why Sidney Portier's character--John Prentice-would fall in love with a woman who appears to have so little to offer intellectually --given his significant professional achievements as a doctor.One also must ask why it was necessary for his character to be cast as a doctor in order to be seen as an acceptable partner for a young white woman who had not really accomplished anything accept being born into a privileged family. The answer is simple. Making Prentice a doctor-and not just any doctor-but a world renowned expert in tropical medicine, made the interracial relationship more acceptable to white audiences during the 1960s.

The other cast members are outstanding and the on-screen chemistry phenomenal.Katharine Hepburn (Christina Drayton) and Spencer Tracy (Newspaper Publisher Matt Drayton) deliver brilliant performances as Johanna's parents. John Prentice's modest working class parents are played with great dignity by Beah Richards and Roy E. Glen.Mrs. Prentice and Mrs. Drayton favor the marriage and both characters provide passionate, articulate arguments as to why their husbands should agree. But their husbands voice serious objections and the families spend the evening in intense discussions over the issue, accurately reflecting the racial fears that existed 40 years ago. Prentice's father reminds him that in many states interracial marriage is illegal and that he is "getting out of line." There are also a number of very memorable and funny lines. In the scene in which Matt Drayton wonders why "the colored kids dance better than the white kids", Portier's response is classic--"you dance the Watusi, but we are the Watusi!"(For readers under 40, the Watusi was a popular dance in the 1960s and also an African tribe). Cecil Kelloway, who plays friend of the family, Monsignor Ryan, deftly brings a sense of humor and moral guidance that is effective because it is not "preachy".He challenges Matt Drayton's liberal credentials and suggests that Drayton's misgivings about his daughter marrying a black man reveal his hypocrisy.Isabel Sanford ("Weezy from The Jeffersons TV program) plays the feisty maid of the Draytons.

It's been said that in the final scene Tracy--who was very ill at the time and who died shortly after the movie was completed--delivered one of the longest soliloquies in American film history, in only one take. Katherine Helpurn was clearly so moved by the scene that it's hard to believe that she is just acting as her eyes brim with tears.

Although the some of the sentiments are dated, this film is highly entertaining, and provides a rare opportunity to experience outstanding performances from six gifted actors who bring compassion and depth to Stanley Kramer's film. Its' angst relative to interracial marriage also reminds us of how far we have not come.

Dated, idealistic, but Tracy's climactic speech priceless
I finally saw this a year or so ago.While I was too young in the 60's to understand or experience the injustices this film addresses, I still was able to get into the mindset and feeling of the times.Today's young viewer might have to first approach a viewing with an understanding of how very unsettling the concept of mixed marriages were (and still are, to some extent) at the time.Consider that, until around 1968, racially mixed marriages were still illegal in some states! Blows the mind, doesn't it?

Anyway, Spencer Tracy's climactic speech at the end makes this film worth a viewing, and a worthy addition to any classics collection.I recall not being very impressed with the bride-to-be character----too idealistic, simplistic, naive, and without any depth to her personality.Why on earth would Poitier be interested in her, unless she was the proverbial, lilly-white, status-enhancing trophy for the class-conscious black man?Still, a great movie, that is totally supported by the excellent acting that such dialogue-intensive movies require (kind of like "Rope" by Alfred Hitchcock, which is 100% dialogue).

Old, but still so relevent
Last night I started the original "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner" from 1967 and this morning I finished watching it.Its an interesting movie, unfolding the racial prejudices of the time like an onion, and manages to be both insightful and flawed.It expertly reveals the characters racial prejudices, both through their words and through their little non-verbal cues.But the film does set John up as the perfect Negro man for their lilly white daughter, a world reknowned doctor.They explore the racial prejudice against him, but say nothing of how they treat their black maid who is supposedly family but ordered around and spoken down to.But these inconsistancies don't ruin the film, and you have to take into account how revolutionary it was for its time. It has the magnificent Sidney Poiter, who gives this electrifying little monolouge close to the end to his close-minded father:

John Prentice: You don't even know what I am, Dad, you don't know who I am. You don't know how I feel, what I think. And if I tried to explain it the rest of your life you will never understand. You are 30 years older than I am. You and your whole lousy generation believes the way it was for you is the way it's got to be. And not until your whole generation has lain down and died will the dead weight be off our backs!

The look on his face when he gets to the part about his whole generation lying down to die is just amazing.Its angry and sad and confrontational and heartfelt all at the same time.Katherin Hepburn and Spencer Tracy are also excellent.And while the film is dated (very dated some may say) I think that is still applicable today.Just read this next bit of dialouge and think of the many challenges facing gay people today, whose marriage is not legal in 49 of our states today:

Matt Drayton: But you do know, I'm sure you know, what you're up against. There'll be 100 million people right here in this country who will be shocked and offended and appalled and the two of you will just have to ride that out, maybe every day for the rest of your lives. You could try to ignore those people, or you could feel sorry for them and for their prejudice and their bigotry and their blind hatred and stupid fears, but where necessary you'll just have to cling tight to each other and say "screw all those people"! ... Read more

Asin: 0767825616
Subjects:  1. Feature Film-drama   

Morning Glory
Director: Lowell Sherman
Average Customer Review:
VHS Tape (03 February, 1998)
list price: $14.95
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Reviews (4)

VeRy GoOd
I thought it was good. Katherine Hepburn did a wonderful job in this movie & i enjoyed it alot.

Off to a Great Start!
Katherine Hepburn's first Oscar winning role is the perfect introduction to her personality and talent.An aristocratic, beautiful girl from New England takes the entertainment world by storm with her unique charm and iron resolve.Sound familiar?The "I don't wear cheap furs" scene had me choking with laughter, along with what I call the "drunken best of Shakespeare" scene where she launches into a chamgagne-fueled random explosion of highlights from "Romeo and Juliet" and "Hamlet" at a party for top theatre execs.

Hepburn's First Oscar - Solid First Act and then...Melodrama
Katharine Hepburn won her first Academy Award for her portrayal of EveLovelace (nee Ada Love), a star struck girl who comes to the big city to bea star.The party scene in which a drunk Lovelace does Hamlet's soliloquyand the balcony scene from Romeo & Juliet is usually cited as means ofan explanation for why she won.But the quintessential Hepburn scene iswhen she arrives at the office of the successful Broadway producer andcharms an old English character actor.Her is the quick, clipped speechthat would become so caricatured down the road and it is far and away thebest scene it the film.

The last half of the film resorts to the oldchestnut of our young heroine having to go on opening night, where shebecomes a star.The problem is there is no proof of the pudding here.Wehear people talking about how wonderful Eve is on stage, but we see none ofher performance.The film gives us indications of her talent but totallyignores her moment of triumph in favor of people talking about it instead. It is useful to remember that Hepburn also made "Little Women" the sameyear as "Morning Glory" and that certainly her body of work that year wastaken into consideration (her Jo March won the prize at Cannes that year Ibelieve-the closest contemporary parallel would probably be Diane Keatonwho did "Annie Hall" and "Looking for Mr. Goodbar" the same year, which youmust agree is certainly an indication of range).

The first half would get4 stars the last half 2 stars, and that's how we get to 3.Simplemathematics.

Once you watch this film you should then screen Hepburn in"Stage Door," the climax of which certainly provides what is missing from"Morning Glory."Within 15 minutes of that particular film you see Hepburnplay a bad actress and a very good actress.The transformation is stunningand certainly integral to that film in a way it would not be to this one. Given that when she made "Stage Door" Hepburn was considered Box OfficePoison, it is interesting to look at this pair of films as a set."MorningGlory" jump started Hepburn's career, and "Stage Door" heralded herrevival.So I highly recommend you watch the two films as a doublefeature. ... Read more

Asin: 6303360033
Sales Rank: 24986
Subjects:  1. Feature Film-drama   

Little Women
Director: George Cukor
Average Customer Review:
VHS Tape (13 November, 2001)
list price: $14.95
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Editorial Review

Louisa May Alcott's beloved story is one of the most-read novels ever written. It has also proved popular film and telefilm fodder (at least six versions plus a TV series). In addition, Little Women is one of those rare literary projects that can truly be done well on screen. This, the 1933 version, chronicles the lives and loves of sisters Jo, Meg, Amy, and Beth (played, respectively, by Katharine Hepburn, Frances Dee, Joan Bennett, and Jean Parker). It's a superior rendering to the amiable, perky 1949 version with June Allyson, Janet Leigh, Elizabeth Taylor, Margaret O'Brien, and Peter Lawford, and comparable to the beautiful, feminist Gillian Armstrong 1994 take. Douglass Montgomery's Laurie isn't nearly as dreamy as Christian Bale's (1994), but the lack of chemistry between him and Hepburn's Jo is perfect for the story, in which Jo loves him like a brother. Jo's real love she offers up to perhaps the finest Professor Bhaer (Paul Lukas). Character actress Edna May Oliver is at her indignant best as Aunt March. Director George Cukor's vision is elegant, warm, and as true to the original source material as 117 minutes allows. This Little Women was a huge box-office hit, and broke all the records to that time. --N.F. Mendoza ... Read more

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Reviews (17)

Kate wins the day again
There are some stars from the classic era of Hollywood who were able to almost single-handedly take a mediocre project and turn it into a tour de force.Katharine Hepburn was one such luminous personality, and as if by sheer force of will she took this popular story and infused it with her incredible energy, making it a joy to watch even 70+ years later.Also it's a pleasure to watch a simple story of a family living in the Civil War era without being confronted with controversies, politics, racism, etc.; just a story about a family that loves each other and is trying to get their four daughters from adolescence into adulthood with minimal trauma.

Nonetheless, of course, there is trauma.It's handled with as much melodrama as one would expect from a film of this era.Remember, talking pictures had only been in existence for about five years, so the art form was still transitioning from the age of emoting to the age of verbal communication.It shows in some places here, so this first film version of "Little Women" doesn't completely hold up all these decades later.Regardless, once one gets past the first 15 to 20 minutes of exposition the story picks up and flows quite nicely, especially when Ms. Hepburn is front and center, which is often.

There's nothing quite like her scene portraying playwright/actress Jo portraying an evil mustachioed villain and then quickly changing costume to portray a handsome romantic leading man.Obviously this isn't a film top-heavy with the melodrama, there are quite a few good laughs and just general feel-good moments.Very sweet story.

Recommended for all ages; after all, this is a classic for the ages.

Great
I think it is indeed the best version of little women. The movie is mostly loyal to the book. Hepburn makes the best Jo possible, and the excellent cast adds a magnificent Laurie. I enjoyed it tremendously, since the director and writer indeed understood that these are the characters on which the plot is standing, and if you get them, you got everything.
I do have one problem with the movie, and that the sisters are acted all by adults. I haven't a bad word for the casting of Hepburn for Jo, but to get a 20+ years old girl to act an 11 years old one, is odd. I do understand it is the spirit of the time, however, they got kids for other parts, wh not for the main ones as well.
nevertheless, it's an amazing version of the book. I laughed, I cried and I enjoyed every minute. If you want to buy a Little Women movie version, and you'd be able to convince your kids that inspite the fact that it's old, it's worth watching, you'll get yourself a great movie for the entire family, worth watching over and over again.

A Very Good Film Adaptation of a Classic Book!
I love books and I love movies that are adapted from books so last week I watched the 1933 black and white version of Little Women for the first time and it is a very good movie though they left out some very good parts from the book but I still enjoyed watching this and I think Katharine Hepburn was a wonderful Jo but the rest of the cast was good too, especially Joan Bennett as Amy and Spring Byington as Marmee and I also liked Paul Lukas as Professor Bhaer and think he was alot like the character was described in the book and being a fan of black and white movies I very highly recommend this movie and this DVD and I think any fan of Louisa May Alcott's wonderful book should enjoy this delightful movie! Update: April 17, 2005, I have read complaints that the actors in this movie are too old to be playing young Meg, Jo, Beth, Amy and Laurie but it's such a good movie and if you get past the age thing you will see that the acting is very good and you forget about the ages of the actors. I have also justrecently watched the 1949 movie and I have seen written the same age complaints made about some of the actors from the 1949 and 1994 versions too and to me the ages of the actors is a minor thing and it's not as though they were too extremely old to play the characters. ... Read more

Asin: B00005NTOD
Subjects:  1. Feature Film-drama