Press Release Criterion Press Release: Arsenic and Old Lace (1944) (Blu-ray) (1 Viewer)

[Josh Steinberg]

I suppose in many ways, it's similar to films adapted from books in that people familiar with the source material tend to find the film adaptations wanting.

Absolutely!

My theater professors in high school and college were always wary of choosing plays to stage and/or study that had been adapted as films previously because they worried that the film versions would poison the well. You could always tell who read the play for the assignment and who just watched the movie. We did stage Arsenic, but everyone was asked on their honor not to watch the film until after the performances.

 

[Kent K H]

It’s true that Grant didn’t like his performance here, but that’s okay. Artists are rarely the best judges of their own work. There are films Grant truly believed in that turned out terribly, too. I think of opinions like that as being historically interesting footnotes but not necessarily relevant to the question as to whether or not the work itself stands. That we’re still talking about the film nearly a century after it was made proves that there is something to it - there are plenty of movies from this era that haven’t endured in the way this one has.

Heck, John Cusack still hates Better Off Dead and I think it's his best performance. I'm a big fan of Grant slowly succumbing to what he thinks is his family curse by getting wilder and wilder, but never unbelievably so.

 

[KPmusmag]

I am super happy about this news, one of my favorites. I used to watch on the channel 5 movie in L.A. anytime it was on. I had been hoping and wondering when it would appear from Warner Archive and now Criterion - nice!

I had a theater class years ago in which we studied the play and it was really enlightening. I know it won't happen, but I think it would be a hoot if Carol Burnett and Julie Andrews, who did three TV specials together and are great chums, played the aunts in a PBS Masterpiece Theater type setting.

 

[Dick]

I'm a big fan of Grant slowly succumbing to what he thinks is his family curse by getting wilder and wilder, but never unbelievably so.

This is where we part company. It's all a matter of taste. First, I revere good slapstick and screwball comedies. I expect most performances within them will be pretty broad. I enjoyed Cary Grant in BRINGING UP BABY, and he was fairly manic in that one. Same for THE AWFUL TRUTH. But his constant wide-eyed hysteria and mugging take me right out of this movie. When he's not onscreen, the movie appeals to me far more. The sisters are hilarious. But because Grant has always rubbed me the wrong way here, ARSENIC remains rather low on my list of Capra films.

 

[cadavra]

SPOT ON --- but Grant does the same here as he did in Bringing Up Baby

Except that BABY was a bubbly, slapstick farce. His performance was aces for that particular picture. It did not work as well in what is supposed to be a black comedy about serial killers.

Speaking of actors imitating their predecessors, some years ago Roundabout Theatres mounted a revival of TWENTIETH CENTURY (the original play, not the musical) with Alec Baldwin and Anne Heche. I was keenly interested in how he would play it--the shadow of John Barrymore looms large over that role. To his enormous credit, he completely avoided it, adopting a sort of Texas oil millionaire accent and keeping it on a slow burn (while letting her do all the hambone) until the climax when they begin screaming at each other. Worked beautifully.

 

[LeoA]

Cary Grant was perfect for the part. One of his best films and one I'll never tire of.

 

[Jeffrey D]

Maybe if the viewer thinks about how overwhelmed Grant’s character is- all these things happening at one time- his just getting married, his finding out his sweet aunts are murdering strangers, and his criminal brother showing up unannounced- all at the same time- it’s easy to accept his character becoming unglued on the screen.

 

[Robert Crawford]

Maybe if the viewer thinks about how overwhelmed Grant’s character is- all these things happening at one time- his just getting married, his finding out his sweet aunts are murdering strangers, and his criminal brother showing up unannounced- all at the same time- it’s easy to accept his character becoming unglued on the screen.

Maybe, it’s better to have different interpretations of the movie and performances so that we can have this discussion. If everyone views the movie and acting performances the same way then there isn’t much to banter back and forth.

 

[Jeffrey D]

The gag I think is a low point in the film is the running meter on the cab.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

Thank you for supporting HTF when you preorder using the link below. If you are using an adblocker you will not see link. As an Amazon Associate HTF earns from qualifying purchases

 

[David Weicker]

I’ve updated my Capra collection covers (Arsenic And Old Lace is a work-in-progress - no back cover yet)

 

[marshman1138]

Interesting that a disc from Criterion's old LaserDisc days (#136) would get a new Spine number (#1153). They have always tried to use the old number when updating to the new formats.

 

[jayembee]

Interesting that a disc from Criterion's old LaserDisc days (#136) would get a new Spine number (#1153). They have always tried to use the old number when updating to the new formats.

They've used the same numbering system for DVD, BD, and UHD. Presumably because any given title might get a release in more then one of those formats. When DVD came along, some of the studios (MGM, Warner, Sony/Columbia, et alia) decided to issue DVDs themselves, so Criterion lost the rights to a number of their LD releases.

Presumably because of that, they've never re-used any spine numbers from the LDs. For example, Grand Illusion was #25 on LD, but #1 on DVD. Seven Samurai was #67 on LD, but #2 on DVD and BD. The closest match was The Lady Vanishes, which was #4 on LD, and #3 on DVD and BD.

 

[Moleman X]

There’s a Body in the Window Seat! is a detailed history of one of the most beloved American murder-mysteries and comedies, Arsenic and Old Lace. Actor, director, and playwright Charles Dennis investigates the mystery behind the play: how did a true-life crime in Connecticut turn into a comedy? And who are the real writers that deserve credit for its long-lasting success?

Dennis brings an insider’s view to Joseph Kesselring’s attempts to write Arsenic and Old Lace and how producers had to step in to save the play from his heavy hand. He also follows the actors, both on the stage and on the screen, as they handle the demands of the roles and behind-the-scenes relationships. Why didn’t Boris Karloff recreate his stage role, even though Jean Adair and John Alexander did? Why did Cary Grant hate his performance in Arsenic—was it because Frank Capra deceived him or because of costume designer Orry Kelly? And why did the movie never receive Academy Award consideration?

Okay, HERE'S the question I want answered: If they couldn't get Boris because he was locked into the play, but they couldn't release the film until after the play finished its run, why not just wait until the play ended to make the film? It would have delayed the release by what, two months? And we would have had Boris in the role for posterity.

 

[Robert Crawford]

Okay, HERE'S the question I want answered: If they couldn't get Boris because he was locked into the play, but they couldn't release the film until after the play finished its run, why not just wait until the play ended to make the film? It would have delayed the release by what, two months? And we would have had Boris in the role for posterity.

Capra served in WWII so that had to be a factor.

 

[cadavra]

Capra served in WWII so that had to be a factor.

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Plus a hit play normally ran for one year. For ARSENIC to run three-plus years was pretty unusual for the era. And of course, crafty Harry Cohn used that delay to make THE BOOGIE MAN WILL GET YOU and got it out a full two years before ARSENIC.

 

[RobertMG]

I think the fact that Grant is not being typical Grant is why the film is fun. That's not to say Grant would have been right to do a stage performance of the show, but for a *film* performance I think it worked.

Okay, HERE'S the question I want answered: If they couldn't get Boris because he was locked into the play, but they couldn't release the film until after the play finished its run, why not just wait until the play ended to make the film? It would have delayed the release by what, two months? And we would have had Boris in the role for posterity.

Karloff was loyal to the plays creators - but you wonder if they could have filmed his scenes first limiting his time in Hollywood

 

[Sega]

On my list to get.
One more must-have.

 

[titch]

This is where we part company. It's all a matter of taste. First, I revere good slapstick and screwball comedies. I expect most performances within them will be pretty broad. I enjoyed Cary Grant in BRINGING UP BABY, and he was fairly manic in that one. Same for THE AWFUL TRUTH. But his constant wide-eyed hysteria and mugging take me right out of this movie. When he's not onscreen, the movie appeals to me far more. The sisters are hilarious. But because Grant has always rubbed me the wrong way here, ARSENIC remains rather low on my list of Capra films.

Quite a polarising film - obviously, most of the members posting here find it hilarious. I find Grant truly annoying here.

 

[bugsy-pal]

I'm sure Boris Karloff would have been good in this movie, but I have always thought Raymond Massey was terrific in it. As was Peter Lorre. I'm looking forward to this disc.