Cary Grant: The Complete Filmography - Watching All Of His Movies (1 Viewer)

[Josh Steinberg]

The biggest adjustment for me in Gunga Din is that he isn't old, which is how I have seen him in nearly everything else.

I had never thought about that, but you're right. Even though Lost Horizon is about the same as as Gunga Din, he's playing a very old man in that one, so Gunga Din is easily the youngest I've ever seen him play.

 

[davidmatychuk]

BOY, did I enjoy that Blu-Ray of "The Pride and the Passion". It isn't perfect, but in my modest home theatre it provides a Cary Grant movie experience for that film at last. Much appreciated as usual, Olive Films.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

#62 - The Philadelphia Story (1940)
Viewed on September 4th, 2016
Viewing Format: DVD (Warner)

The Philadelphia Story is one of my all-time favorite movies, quite possibly the first thing I ever saw Cary Grant in, and remains as marvelous today as it was in 1940. The movie is primarily Katharine Hepburn's vehicle, and she's reunited here with both Grant and her favorite director, George Cukor. After Bringing Up Baby and several other movies flopped, with Hepburn being labeled box office poison, she headed to New York City to return to the stage. She asked her favorite playwright, Philip Barry, to write a script that played to her strengths, and The Philadelphia Story certainly does that. The play was a huge success, and Hollywood came knocking to purchase the film rights. Because Hepburn had ownership over the material, she was able to get the movie made on her terms, which included her handpicked choices of Grant as co-star, Cukor as director, and Donald Ogden Stewart as screenwriter. James Stewart won his Academy Award for his supporting role (though the award was strangely for lead role), and the rest of the supporting cast is uniformly excellent. There's not a performance out of place or a wrong note sounded.

I hesitate to say too much about the movie's plot, because it's as much about spending time with delightful characters as it is about story. The movie opens with a wordless scene showing Grant moving out of Hepburn's home. She marches after him, with his golf clubs, and rather than simply handing them over, snaps one of his clubs in half. As she turns around to go back into the house, he follows her, thinks about punching her, and settles for pushing her to the ground. (That might read bad, but trust me, it's screwball comedy gold.) The movie then flashes forward a couple years, where it's announced that Hepburn is to be remarried to a man thoroughly unsuitable for her. It's not that there's anything wrong with her designated suitor (played by John Howard) - he's newly wealthy and always treats her with kindness; but where he's uptight and reserved, Hepburn is loose and freewheeling. Hepburn's younger sister (a delightful Virginia Weidler) knows that Grant is the better match. Meanwhile, across town, a tabloid newspaper has partnered with Grant to crash the wedding for the society pages; Grant will sneak James Stewart and Ruth Hussey into the event, helping them pose as friends of a distant relative. There's a little intrigue, a little blackmail, but mostly, there's the realization that Grant and Hepburn are perfectly matched, as Grant tries to win her back (or tries without trying) just by being himself. Hepburn, meanwhile, gets a much needed lesson in humility and real life living.

I have the two disc special edition DVD set from Warner Brothers; it's now out of print but can usually found at a good price on eBay and Amazon third party sellers. The audio on the DVD was very clear, but the picture had lots of small dirt specks and tiny scratches. Subtitles were included. It was still very watchable, and I'd still consider it good, but compared to the latest Warner releases, it's a little lacking. I'd buy a restored version on Blu-ray in a heartbeat and hope that Warner will one day put it out, perhaps as part of their Warner Archive line of Blu-rays. The bonus features on disc one include a commentary with film historian Jeannine Basinger that frankly I've never been able to make it to the end of, as well as a series of trailers of other George Cukor movies. The bulk of the special features are on disc two, including a documentary on Katharine Hepburn, a documentary on George Cukor, a short and a cartoon from the time period of the movie, and two radio play adaptations of the movie starring the same cast. Though it doesn't include a making of featurette focused solely on the movie, between the commentary and the documentaries on Hepburn and Cukor, you can get a good sense of how the movie was made.

The Philadelphia Story is one of my all-time favorite movies, and features wonderful performances from the entire cast. Although Cary Grant is given top-billing, it's Hepburn who drives the action in the film. Grant here is everything that you expect to see when you think "Cary Grant" - he manages to be both perfect and flawed at the same time, charming and smooth with just a little bit of an edge to show that he's a real person. Grant's character is imperfect, but that's the point; Hepburn ditched him for perfection, but realizes that perfection isn't what she wants or needs, and Grant's version of perfectly imperfect has universal appeal. Hepburn gets an opportunity to show off the many sides of her screen persona; we see her as someone who is naturally inclined to the neat and orderly, but who comes to understand that the things she truly wants in life are neither neat nor orderly one hundred percent of the time. And Jimmy Stewart begins the movie in a place of innocence and high ideals, before ultimately maturing and learning how to reach for the things most important to him. It's really as close to a perfect movie as one can possibly get.

 

[bujaki]

Virginia Weidler gets my vote for best performance in this film. She always cracks me up.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

I'm down to just ten Cary Grant movies remaining:

-Walk, Don't Run
-An Affair To Remember
-Room For One More
-The Bishop's Wife
-Notorious
-None But The Lonely Heart
-Arsenic And Old Lace
-Penny Serenade
-When You're In Love
-This Is The Night

Of those, I've only seen Arsenic And Old Lace and Notorious, which are both fantastic. There's actually not a movie there that I'm not looking forward to seeing. I tried not to leave a little something from every era behind for the end, so that I wouldn't be watching just his very early movies, or just his later movies, or only comedies or only dramas. This worked out to be what looks like a nice blend of early and later movies, comedy and drama, prestigious and more casually entertaining, passion projects and studio pictures. Some of that was by design, some by accident, but it looks like it's worked out pretty well.

Of the titles I have remaining, what are your favorites on that list?

 

[Matt Hough]

Stewart's role is a supporting one though he won the Best Actor trophy. He gives a marvelous performance, but I've always considered it a consolation prize for finishing second in voting the previous year for Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. It's hard for me to wrap my head around the fact that his performance won out over Henry Fonda in The Grapes of Wrath and Charlie Chaplin in The Great Dictator. I also think Cary Grant gives the better performance in The Philadelphia Story.

Hepburn lost the Oscar to Ginger Rogers in Kitty Foyle, but she did pick up the New York Film Critics prize two years after being named box-office poison.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

Stewart's role is a supporting one though he won the Best Actor trophy.

I had always thought it was Best Supporting, but you are indeed correct - I've updated the original post to reflect that. I'm hard pressed to pick a favorite performance in the movie because everyone is so damn good in it. Grant is marvelous, but what he does looks so effortless that I'm wondering if the Academy didn't realize he was actually acting. Stewart's role has that big monologue when he's talking to the drunken Hepburn, which plays as more Oscar-y than anything Grant has in the picture. It's not fair, but that's the way it goes sometimes. Denzel Washington got Best Actor for Training Day, and Ethan Hawke was nominated for Best Supporting, but it should have been the other away around - Hawke has twice the screentime, and the movie is more about his character. Washington dominates when he's onscreen, but its for a relatively small amount of time. Anthony Hopkins for Silence Of The Lambs was an even more egregious example. Hopkins is brilliant in the movie, there's no question about that, but he's also in it for less than twenty minutes. It's not a leading role.

Grant's only Oscar is honorary, but I think he's as good in Philadelphia Story as he was anywhere else. I could probably watch his scenes in this movie on a loop forever without ever getting bored.

 

[FanCollector]

Of the titles I have remaining, what are your favorites on that list?

Most of them are very good movies, but Notorious and Arsenic are the ones that really stand out for me. I know those are the ones you've seen, so I don't mean to make you think the others aren't worthwhile. But those two are special. (I haven't seen Room for One More or When You're in Love, so maybe they are even better.)

 

[RMajidi]

Virginia Weidler gets my vote for best performance in this film. She always cracks me up.

Agreed! In particular:

"Lydia, oh! Lydia, say have you met Lydia..."

Other highlights (among many) for me, although it's been years since I've watched my DVD (holding out for a Blu before revisiting):

• The extraordinary opening sequence, involving a non-PC act of aggression, executed to comic perfection by Grant and Hepburn.
• "The course of true love..." "...gathers no moss."
• "What is thee wish?"

 

[Nelson Au]

Josh, of those titles as you know I saw Arsenic and Old Lace and loved it. Notorious and An Affair to Remember are the only others on your list I have seen. They are all great. Notorious is one of my favorites. The others I've not seen them yet. Good luck choosing, but I'd suggest An Affair to Remember you see with your fiancée.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

The extraordinary opening sequence, involving a non-PC act of aggression, executed to comic perfection by Grant and Hepburn

It's an amazing opening. I absolutely love it. It may not be PC, but The Philadelphia Story exists outside of a PC world anyway. I watched this with my fiance when she was "just" my girlfriend a couple years ago, and she thought the movie was ok, good, but no better, and was slightly put off by that opening sequence. I think it just might have been a matter of it being the wrong choice on the wrong night, because she watched it with me this time and loved it, and laughed at that opening. I think it also helps that she's much more familiar with Grant now - if you don't know Grant, it's probably a little offputting, like, who is this guy knocking around Katharine Hepburn? But if you know them both and their screen personas, and are more familiar with the screwball comedy genre, then it can play as its meant to. Cukor stages it simply and effectively, and Grant and Hepburn just nail it. It never fails to make me laugh.

 

[RMajidi]

It's an amazing opening. I absolutely love it. It may not be PC, but The Philadelphia Story exists outside of a PC world anyway. I watched this with my fiance when she was "just" my girlfriend a couple years ago, and she thought the movie was ok, good, but no better, and was slightly put off by that opening sequence. I think it just might have been a matter of it being the wrong choice on the wrong night, because she watched it with me this time and loved it, and laughed at that opening. I think it also helps that she's much more familiar with Grant now - if you don't know Grant, it's probably a little offputting, like, who is this guy knocking around Katharine Hepburn? But if you know them both and their screen personas, and are more familiar with the screwball comedy genre, then it can play as its meant to. Cukor stages it simply and effectively, and Grant and Hepburn just nail it. It never fails to make me laugh.

Speaking of our other halves, my beloved happens to be a librarian, but not quite in the mould as the quirky Quaker in TPS. I love her scene with Jimmy Stewart ("What is thee wish?"). According to this article, that scene was a first: https://reel-librarians.com/2015/12...lyze-the-librarian-in-the-philadelphia-story/

 

[Josh Steinberg]

Another fantastic scene, my better half and I exploded in laughter by the end of it. That's the brilliance of this movie - every moment is worthy of study and praise. It's gotta be in my all time Top 5.

 

[David Weicker]

but I'd suggest An Affair to Remember you see with your fiancée.

Along with The Dirty Dozen.


(If that doesn't make sense, also see Sleepless In Seattle)

 

[Allansfirebird]

I'm down to just ten Cary Grant movies remaining:

-Walk, Don't Run
-An Affair To Remember
-Room For One More
-The Bishop's Wife
-Notorious
-None But The Lonely Heart
-Arsenic And Old Lace
-Penny Serenade
-When You're In Love
-This Is The Night

Of those, I've only seen Arsenic And Old Lace and Notorious, which are both fantastic. There's actually not a movie there that I'm not looking forward to seeing. I tried not to leave a little something from every era behind for the end, so that I wouldn't be watching just his very early movies, or just his later movies, or only comedies or only dramas. This worked out to be what looks like a nice blend of early and later movies, comedy and drama, prestigious and more casually entertaining, passion projects and studio pictures. Some of that was by design, some by accident, but it looks like it's worked out pretty well.

Of the titles I have remaining, what are your favorites on that list?

I've always thought there was a charm about Walk, Don't Run, mainly due to it being Cary's swansong on screen. He went out on a high note in his career, as suave and funny as ever.

An Affair to Remember, while at the heights of melodrama that could make Douglas Sirk jealous, is so well-cast that it's hard to resist. Grant and Kerr together is a "match made in heaven, or some such place," to borrow a quote from Doctor Zhivago.

The Bishop's Wife has a fantastic cast, all round, and it's a light holiday story. Cinematic comfort food, perfect for an annual Christmas viewing.

Penny Serenade is one you should only watch if you're prepared to have your emotions gutted. George Stevens really hits the sad notes as you watch the relationship between Grant and Dunne hit the rocks.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

I've had the Penny Serenade disc since April or May, but haven't watched it yet for that reason. I'm betting it's a good movie but one that will leave me a mess.

 

[davidmatychuk]

Olive's "Penny Serenade" Blu-Ray is the only way to watch the movie on disc, as I've posted before.

Here's my comment on "The Bishop's Wife" on disc, from another thread (the Blu-Ray has a few lines missing, though the intact sequence is on the 1997 DVD from HBO Home Video):

The 1997 DVD has that missing segment. The two prominent reel change markings are in that segment on the DVD. The sequence is all part of the same shot, which begins with Julia and Matilda admiring the tree. When Matilda exits the frame, here's the scene as it is on the DVD:

(Dudley turns back to Julia facing him. She looks at him and smiles, then looks down and turns to face the tree.)
DUDLEY: Julia?
JULIA: (turning to face Dudley and smiling) Yes?
DUDLEY: I think my work here is almost finished. I'll have to be moving along.
(Julia's smile fades. FIRST REEL CHANGE MARKING. She looks down and takes a few steps over to a bureau.)
JULIA: Well, where will you be going, Dudley?
(Julia looks down and fusses with some papers on the bureau.)
DUDLEY: Wherever they send me.
JULIA: (not looking up) Who are they? (SECOND REEL CHANGE MARKING)

And then there's the cut to Dudley saying "My superior officers".
On the Blu-Ray, the cut to "My superior officers" comes right after Dudley says "I'll have to be moving along". It seems to me that someone made a ham-fisted attempt to get rid of the reel change markings by cutting them out entirely.

I was keeping the old DVD anyhow, for the Chace Surround Stereo audio track (it's no great shakes, but it does fill the room with music), some still-frame cast biographies (five writing credits for Leonardo Bercovici!), the French, Spanish, and Italian audio tracks for the movie (which are kind of wonderful), and the elegant purple-with-gold-trim snapper case, but it turns out to have been a prudent move for the sake of the intact movie itself. How about that?
By the way, the defective and the replacement Blu-Ray both have the same edit. Yes, I kept the defective Blu-Ray too. You just never know.[/QUOTE]

I'm curious about the print used for the later MGM DVD. If anyone has it, does it have the same edit that made it to the Blu-Ray?

 

[davidmatychuk]

Here's a link to the Cary Grant articles over at Greenbriar Picture Shows. They love old movies, as demonstrated by the consistent and valuable historical perspective the site provides, and the photos, posters, and other visual aids to their articles are always fantastic.

http://www.oldmovieexhibition.com/searchp.asp

 

[Mike Frezon]

I know you fellas have been discussing the various Cary Grant collections that exist on DVD and such throughout this thread.

Just this heads up that this particular collection is on sale now at Target stores for $10. I happened to see it last night. Sorry if it has been noted before:

 

[Josh Steinberg]

That's the set that started this whole thing!