GamerTab That was an excellent one.

SpuffyWeb Sadly Over-hyped

Actuakers One of my all time favorites.

Salubfoto It's an amazing and heartbreaking story.

gab-14712 Prior to the release of The Philadelphia Story, Katherine Hepburn had a string of failures (including the classic 1938 screwball comedy Bringing Up Baby) that labeled Hepburn as box office poison. In order to get rid of the career-ruining label, she decided to get to work on her own film. In 1939, she was starring in a very popular Broadway show from Philip Barry. She convinced MGM to buy the rights with her having control on everyone who was brought into the cast and crew. She chose George Cukor to direct this film whom she worked with before and David Odgen Stewart who was a friend of Barry's and had experience turning plays into movies. For the cast, she chose Cary Grant and James Stewart as her main co-stars. She worked with Grant previously three times (including the aforementioned Bringing Up Baby). Taking control of the production was a very smart business move for Hepburn. In addition to this romantic farce being the fifth highest box office hit of 1941, the quality of the film is very good. George Cukor directed the heck out of the film by getting top-notch performances from his entire cast, had perfectly-timed scenes with perfectly-timed jokes, and so on. Stewart's screenplay is a masterpiece (for its time) thanks to the sharp, witty dialogue. The fantastic acting is also on display. I complained about Hepburn's performance in her 1938 film, Bringing Up Baby. It was clear that she was new to comedy and she wasn't really that funny. Boy, do several years make a difference! She was fantastic here as she delivered her witty dialogue with ease and she made me chortle many times. Cary Grant does Cary Grant things here so it is no surprise he turns out another fantastic performance. James Stewart reportedly was hesitant during filming about doing several scenes, but he really comes up big here. He received his only Academy Award with his portrayal in this movie. Two Philadelphia socialites, Dexter (Cary Grant) and Tracy (Katherine Hepburn) were lifelong acquaintances who ended up marrying each other. But that marriage did not last long due to Tracy's icy cold mannerisms towards Dexter which may have turned him into an alcoholic. Two years after the stormy end to the marriage, Tracy is getting married to a politician, George Kittredge (John Howard) who seemingly has an ordinary and rather boring personality. Meanwhile, Dexter was living in South America working for a tabloid named Spy. On the day of the wedding, Dexter shows up unexpected with two reporters from the magazine, Mike Connor (James Stewart) and his girlfriend, Elizabeth Imbrie (Ruth Hassey). Tracy quickly sees the ruse and Dexter tries to convince her that it is best for the family if this happens as their publisher is planning on running a damaging story about Tracy's father. From there, a bunch of well-timed comedy happens!As much as I enjoyed and I laughed while watching The Philadelphia Story, I could not help thinking about how much times changed. The film came out in December 1940, and obviously morals were different back then. Way different. One of the messages I have noticed is that despite the shortcomings of men and the trouble they put people through, it is up to the women to delicately handle the events. I got the sense that the film believes that it is okay for women to be pushovers. It easily stood out considering in today's world, women are very strong and equal to men in every single way as it should be. I know times were different, but I was rubbed the wrong way just a little bit. On that note, I really enjoyed The Philadelphia Story. The movie is very funny and wacky, the performances are top-notch especially those from Katherine Hepburn and James Stewart. This is the movie that threw Hepburn's label as box office poison in the trash. I definitely give this film a recommendation, especially if you are in the mood for some wacky hijinks. My Grade: B+

iamccarthykelley The Philadelphia Story is a brilliant rom com. It's smart, funny, emotional, romantic and so much more. Much of this comes from its brilliant screenplay (its Oscar win was well deserved) and the actors who make it come to life. The story is a creative twist on classic tropes (for example, rather than a love triangle it has an odd love polygon, featuring three potential suitors competing for Katharine Hepburn's Tracy Lord and a sub-triangle surrounding James Stewart's Macaulay Connors), the dialogue is clever and witty, and the humor works extremely well. It is a wild, fast-paced joyride of a film, but it manages to never get the audience lost along the way, even through multiple faked identities and misunderstandings among the characters. Much of the credit for the success of The Philadelphia Story goes to the actors. Its central figures are played Katharine Hepburn, James Stewart, and Cary Grant, all undeniable titans of filmmaking. The manic pacing of the film presents a challenge to these actors, as they need to be over the top to meet the demands of the script, but going too far makes the film hokey and unbelieveable. Luckily, the film delivers on the promise of its billing, with each of the three leads delivering a stellar performance. The film is also stocked with scene stealing supporting players such as Ruth Hussey, Roland Young, and Virginia Weidler, each one adding to the merits of an already excellent film. The Philadelphia Story fits into a number of subgenres. While it is most associated the remarriage subgenre, in which a divorced couple rediscovers love, much to the chagrin of their current romantic partners (ex. His Girl Friday), but it also fits into the wedding subgenre in which one of the romantic leads is about to get married to another person and the other lead has to break up the wedding (ex. The Wedding Singer, Made of Honor), and the journalism subgenre, in which one of the romantic leads is tasked with writing a story about the other and in doing so falls in love (ex. It Happened One Night, 27 Dresses). Ultimately, this subgenre transcendence reflects one of the more fascinating traits of The Philadelphia Story: it is a combination of a number of classic romcom themes. It explores the relationship between social class and romance, definitions of manhood and masculinity, the validity of marriage, and female sexual agency, to name a few. Dealing with so many issues often could dilute each of them; however, the confused and manic nature of the film makes this compounded exploration of issues successful. The hectic pace implies that all of these anxieties coming up at once is in itself an anxiety unto itself. To the extent that The Philadelphia Story doesn't get the attention it deserves, it can only be attributed to the fact that it is often overshadowed by its central player's other output. Each of the three leads was incredibly successful both before and after The Philadelphia Story, collectively appearing in films such on the level of Bringing up Baby, His Girl Friday, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, It's a Wonderful Life, Vertigo, North by Northwest, and Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, to only name films from the top of my head. However, The Philadelphia Story is a phenomenal achievement and not one to be missed.

Ivan Lalic Cary Grant, James Stewart and Katherine Hepburn together on the big screen was something you couldn't see quite often even in the era of classic Hollywood. Pretty thin script, average movie and some flat lined acting from the famous threesome was even more exotic movie happening. Yet, the creators of "Philadelphia story" managed to do just that, filming a forgettable flick with megastar casting and that's just a shame. "Philadelphia story" is one of the most overrated oldies in the history of Hollywood.

joshuafagan-64214 When I finished watching this flick, the first question on my mind was, "Why didn't I see this sooner?" This is one of the all-time great romance films. It's smart, funny, profound, deep, free-spirited, and electrifying. I had high expectations going into this film, saying that it stars three of the era's greatest stars: Jimmy Stewart, Katherine Hepburn, and Cary Grant. It is safe to say that it surpassed them in every regard possible.Many people groan when they see black-and-white films. They associate them with long, unenjoyable slogs comparable to history assignments. This film is as far away from that as the moon is from Earth. I can safely say I will be watching this film many times in the future, not just because it is a brilliant film, but it is a film I enjoy watching. The writing some of the cleverest I've seen, and the chemistry all these old-school greats share is enjoyable at worst.There are some films that seek to make the viewer feel like they're not watching a movie, that there's no distance between them and the events on-screen. This film is different. This film has no desire to deceive the viewer. It is proud to be a film, and not in the postmodernist, nod-and-wink way. It embraces what it is. It wants to entertain its viewers for two hours and leave them with pep in their step. And that's exactly what it does.The story centers around a divorced, wealthy Philadelphian woman, Tracy Lord, played by Hepburn, who is set to marry again. As this is a big event, a gossip newspaper wants the inside skinny, so its leader sends a reporter and a photographer, Mike and Liz- played by Stewart and Ruth Hussey, respectively, and who have a fair bit of unresolved sexual tension- to get into the manor. But they cannot do this on their own, as the family does not want anyone but immediate family on the grounds during the wedding. Thankfully, they have someone to help them out: Lord's first husband, played by Cary Grant.Though the film takes place over a relatively small amount of physical area, it is grand and epic and fulfilling in every regard. There are a lot films that make me wish they were longer and more ambitious. This film is those dreams being fulfilled. There are so many layers, nuances, and complexities, but nothing feels forced of unnecessary. It doesn't play down to the audience, but it doesn't leave them hanging either. It is a perfect balance in every regard.But a perfect balance means naught if it not accompanied by a number of moments that capture the audience's attention, that the audience is sure to remember after they move on with their lives. Thankfully, this movie has plenty of those as well. One immediately springs to mind.It is when Tracy introduces herself to Mike and Liz. She found out they were there from her ex-husband, who informed her that if she gets rid of them and doesn't allow them to report on her wedding, he will give them an even juicer story: that of her suspiciously Tywin Lannister-looking father being caught with a young dancer. Reluctantly, she backs off and allows them into her house. But she does not show them who she really is, at least not at first. She is cold, calculating, and fiercely independent, but she acts like a naïve old-fashioned lady. In a lesser movie, this bit could have come off as contrived and lame. But in this movie, thanks both to great writing and a great actress, it comes off as equal parts enjoyably awkward and deeply disturbing.The part immediately before this, where Tracy's younger sister acts like some precocious princess, is pretty great too.And this moment, along with many others, are meaningful because unlike other romance films, this one keeps the audience guessing. It is not clear what is going to happen, so the audience has to grip tight to every moment. It's masterful.And a large part of that has to do with what I can only describe as a 'love square'.'Love triangle' has become a word of death among many intellectual and pseudo-intellectual circles. This is not without reason. Most love triangles are in fact, awful. They are worthless, meaningless, and cancerous. They invade good stories (looking at you, Hunger Games) and drag bad ones down even further. They are cheap cash grabs that serve no narrative purpose whatsoever. But they do not have to be. A good love triangle- or love square- can add intrigue and depth, and that's exactly what this one does. It does not drag the film down, but rather make it even better. All the good parts of these types of situation are here, and all the bad parts are mercifully absent. That's equal parts commendable and outstanding.And it makes me hate bad love triangles even more.All in all, this film is one of the greatest of all time. If I ever re-do my top 100 films of all time, this one is going to be there. The music, the editing, and the directing are first-class. The acting and the writing are unbelievably good. Anyone who has grown tired of terrible romance films should check this one out.