The Awful Truth
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Movie Reviews of The Awful Truth
Movie Review: Is there a movie with more laughs than this one? In two words: im-possible !!!
Summary: 5 Stars
The Awful Truth is an outstanding comedy with Cary Grant and Irene Dunne. When they say that this picture made Cary Grant a superstar, they mean it--he really shows his talent in this movie! The plot moves along at a very good pace; I wasn't ever bored and I laughed quite a bit at the one-liners and the gags. The cinematography is good and the choreography is very professional. The casting was well done and the acting is very convincing. I found my copy of this print to be quite satisfactory; I feel badly that some other people were disappointed with the quality of the print.
When the action starts, we quickly meet Lucy and Jerry Warriner (Irene Dunne and Cary Grant) who, despite being married and in love with each other, are also incredibly suspicious of each other when they each slip away without being able to provide a reason that satisfies the other. Before you know it, they wind up in divorce court. They even fight over custody of their dog, Mr. Smith! It turns out that Lucy gets custody of the dog; but Jerry gets visitation rights.
If that's not enough for you (and it all happens in the first sixteen minutes), things really heat up when each of them try to find happiness with a new partner. Lucy's Aunt Patsy (Cecil Cunningham) introduces her to a rich but not too cultured country farmer Dan Leeson (Ralph Bellamy); and it isn't long before Jerry takes up with fabulously wealthy--and snooty--Barbara Vance (Molly Lamont). Lucy also continues her singing lessons with Armand Duvalle (Alexander D'Arcy); Jerry is very jealous and suspicious of Armand's intentions as well.
It seems that Lucy and Jerry are willing to go to extremes to destroy each other's chances for love with their new partners. Both of them show up at the most ridiculous times in order to make their new partners suspicious and disdainful of them. Jerry has his laughs watching Lucy dance with Dan to an old country song at a swanky nightclub in New York City; and he comes to Lucy's apartment when Armand is hiding there, too. Lucy, for her part, dresses up as Jerry's sister (although he has no sister) and then Lucy crashes a posh soirée at Barbara Vance's home, doing and saying everything she can to disgrace Jerry. She dances a dance that she knows snooty rich people will frown upon; and leads the Vance family to believe that Jerry's father was a gardener at Princeton and not a student. This horrifies the Vances!
Of course, the plot can go anywhere from here. Will they fight even more over Mr. Smith? Will Lucy and Jerry find romance with their new partners--or maybe other people after all? Just how bad does it get when Lucy impersonates a sister Jerry doesn't even have? Watch and find out!
The DVD doesn't come with too much in the way of extras; but the film is so screamingly funny I can almost completely overlook this.
Overall, The Awful Truth is one of the best screwball comedies to ever come out of Hollywood. I highly recommend this film.
Movie Review: Fun with Jerry and Lucy
Summary: 5 Stars
This is the first of three great movies Cary Grant did with Irene Dunne. Cary had the opportunity to work with some of the most beautiful and talented women of Hollywood. He once said that he had most fun doing films with Irene Dunne. If you want know why he said that; then you may want to watch this movie, because this is precisely what you get, lots of fun watching the easy-going couple go at each other in a humorous sort of way. This is a different kind of "fun with Dick and Jane."
Leo McCarey won the Academy award in the best director category, and Irene got a nod from the Academy in best actress category during the nominating process, which goes show the power of this great classic. McCarey went on to make other classics such as: Once upon a Honeymoon (starring Cary Grant and Ginger Rogers), Bell's of St Mary's (Starring; Bing Crosby and Ingrid Bergman), and An Affair to Remember (Starring; Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr). The story is simply put; man meets woman, man loses woman, and finally man finds the woman again. Jerry Warriner (Cary Grant) and Lucy Warriner (Irene Dunne) are married couple and they split, they start going out with others, soon to be ex husband and wife sabotage each other's love affairs, and finally they reconcile. The fun is in the way they play game at each other and cause numerous fun-filled situations; some outright embarrassing for the other spouse; after all the fight between couples doesn't have to be a courtroom drama or a shouting match full of hostilities
The actual fun starts when they both become suspicious of the other having an affair. Then they agree to separate, and the courtroom drama is really about the custody of their little dog called Mr. Smith. Lucy wins the custody but Jerry gets the visitation rights, and they will have 60 days for the finalization of the divorce. This gives plenty of time to do a great deal of damage to each others romantic encounters with other people. There are many funny and sometimes embarrassing moments involving Jerry and Lucy: When Jerry is angry with Lucy's voice teacher Armand Duvalle (Alexander D'Arcy), because of his alleged affair with Lucy. The second one is the nightclub scene when Lucy' new beau, oil-magnate Dan Leeson (Ralph Bellamy) dance (jitterbug) funny with Lucy, and Jerry faces embarrassment when he tries to romance the nightclub dancer named Dixie Belle Lee (Joyce Compton). The scene I enjoyed most is when Jerry romances snooty socialite Barbara Vance (Molly Lamont), Lucy following his romance in the social columns, shows up at the home of Vance's parents as Jerry's drunken kid sister, and then tries to disengage his engagement in front of shocked Vance and her parents. After all the gimmicks and comedy, they find that they are made for each other, finally reconcile and get back together. This is a wonderful comedy and all fans of Cary Grant and Irene Dunne must see, and it is highly recommended.
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Movie Review: The truth is, this film is far from awful...
Summary: 5 Stars
If you want to just sit back, relax and soak in some highly entertaining comedy then look no further than `The Awful Truth'. This is one of those films that makes up for lack of complexity with superb performances and precise wit, making this one of the most gratifying comedies of all time, let alone the 30's. In fact, I'd be tempted to say that this is the greatest comedy of all time; but then again there is no way anyone can ever make such a bold statement without it being laced with pure opinion.
So, in my personal opinion, this is the greatest comedy of all time.
As I mentioned, this film is far from complex. In fact, the story itself is one we've seen many, many times. Husband and wife are in discord, both of them complaining and accusing the other of things they are both guilty of to a certain extent. Instead of talking things through they erupt in argument and decide that divorce is the only answer. In the days proceeding, before the divorce is final, both parties meet potential significant others only to realize that they are only truly happy with one another. Instead of casting aside differences and looking to reconcile, they allow their pride to convince them the only suitable option is to try and destroy their mate's prospective relationships.
Hilarity, and I mean H-I-L-A-R-I-T-Y, ensues.
Many talk and talk about Cary Grant's charm and charisma, and I too have mentioned this when reviewing `An Affair to Remember' and even `North by Northwest' (not a typical `charming' film but an undoubtedly `charming' performance), but I must say that Grant, while serviceable here, is totally overshadowed by the brilliance that is Irene Dunne. There is something so classic about Dunne's performance. She captures the grace of a true star while still managing to make her performance almost slapstick in a way. There isn't a wary step taken; everything is in the right place at the right time, yet it never comes across as mechanical or forced. It is a natural and breezy performance that is laced with a strength that can only be seen in an actress of Dunne's stature. Sure, Cary Grant is his charming self, but Dunne is the films star performer.
The supporting cast is also delightful. Ralph Bellamy is the typical `good guy', serving as Dunne's over zealous suitor, and Molly Lamont is capable in her few scenes as Grant's wealthy girlfriend. The real supporting giants are Alexander D'Arcy (hysterical) as well as Cecil Cunningham (priceless) and Esther Dale, who plays Bellamy's cautious mother. There is not a sore spot amongst the bunch.
With a delicious script that makes the most of each and every scene, as well as spot on performances and an articulately played hand by the director, `The Awful Truth' is awfully good. Even if it isn't you `favorite' comedy, it is sure to be one of them. I cannot see how anyone couldn't just absolutely love this movie.
Movie Review: The Awful Truth Makes a Good Movie
Summary: 5 Stars
Jerry and Lucy Warriner (Cary Grant & Irene Dunne) play a high society married couple in this screwball comedy. Despite being very happy, they both begin to think that the other has been unfaithful which leads to Jerry storming out of their home. She files for a divorce and is granted custody of their dog, Mr. Smith (who was what brought them together to begin with). After she leaves the courtroom Jerry is granted twice weekly visitation with the dog. Despite having to wait ninety days for the divorce to become final they begin romantic relationships with someone else, even though they still love each other.
All the charcters in this movie are wonderful. Ralph Bellamy is Daniel Leeson, the millionaire oil man/rancher from Oklahoma who lives in the apartment across the hall that Lucy has rented from her Aunt Polly. Naturally, he falls in love with the beautiful, sophisticated Lucy and they are quickly engaged. His possessive, catty mother (Esther Dale) has no intention of letting him marry a woman like Lucy. She appears to be shocked and heart-broken when she tells Daniel that people are saying Jerry let Lucy divorce him so her reputation would not be ruined. Of course, she doesn't believe them and if she wasn't a lady she would have really let them have it. Instead, it is left up to Grant to defend Lucy's honor to her and her son.
Not to be outdone Jerry is soon engaged to socialite heiress, Barbara Vance (Molly Lamont). {Ironically, Cary would soon meet socialite heiress Barbara Hutton in 1938; they married on July 8, 1942). On the day of their divorce Lucy answers the phone in Jerry's apartment, when he gets to the phone he lies to the suspicious Barbara and tells her that she is sister Lola (he has no sister). Barbara wants him to bring her with him when he comes to the house that evening to meet her and the family but says she can't because she's flying back to Paris that afternoon. Of course Lucy shows up and everyone is shocked by Jerry's tawdry, heavy-drinking sister Lola. She dances a dance that she knows snooty rich people will frown upon; and leads the Vance family to believe that Jerry's father was a gardener at Princeton, not a student. The disgraced Jerry leaves with Lucy in her car, since she's in condition to drive. (Why would someone that was supposedly leaving for Paris have their own car?)
In a movie filled with great scenes and characters the best belongs to Joyce Compton as the first woman we see Jerry date. She portrays the "air-head" southern-accented, chanteuse, Dixie Lee Bell, who surprises and shocks Jerry, Lucy, and Daniel (Jerry has not seen her show) when she performs by singing an unconventional burlesque type song during their first date. This is by far the most hilarious scene in a movie filled with them
Movie Review: One of the quintessential screwball comedies
Summary: 5 Stars
There are a few great films that never go out of style and seem impervious to time, and this is one of them. Unlike some pre-WW II comedies that are still a delight but nonetheless feel like they come from another era, THE AWFUL TRUTH seems almost as if it could have been made a decade ago. Part of the reason for this was the enormous amount of improvisation that Leo McCarey managed to get out of his performers. Many of the best moments in this film were made up on the spot. As a result, the film retains a wonderful feel of spontaneity and naturalness that few films from the period can match. Apart from the great direction by McCarey, much of the credit has to go to Cary Grant and Irene Dunne. Unbelievably, this was Cary Grant's first great performance as a comedic leading man. In fact, although Grant was a familiar face from his appearance in Mae West's SHE DONE HIM WRONG (a film he personally detested), he was not really an A-list performer. Early in 1937 he had starred with Constance Bennett in TOPPER as a mischievous but fun loving ghost. It was the first great indication that he possessed first rate abilities as a comic, and led to his casting in THE AWFUL TRUTH. After this, however, he managed to go on to star in an extraordinary string of comedies, arguably the greatest group of comedic roles by any one actor in the history of film. I have never been a big Irene Dunne fan. I always feel uncomfortable with her oversized teeth and enormous smile. But she absolutely shines in this film. If she and Cary don't generate the kind of chemistry he would with Katherine Hepburn, they still manage to set up some absolutely marvelous comic scenes.
My favorite scenes in the film are those that include Ralph Bellamy, one of the great also-rans in the history of film. In both this film and three years later in MY GIRL FRIDAY, Cary Grant makes him the butt of a string of truly funny jokes. The best in this one comes when Cary with his girlfriend meet his ex-wife Irene in a nightclub with her new fiancé Ralph, playing an Oklahoma oil millionaire. As the two explain to Grant how they plan on moving to Oklahoma City. Cary sticks a knife in by expressing amazement that a woman who is addicted to life in New York City expects to find contentment in Oklahoma, and then twists it by evilly consoling her with the suggestion that on weekends they can take a trip to Tulsa.
The dog who plays the Jack Russell Terrier "Mr. Smith," was probably in more great movies than any dog in film history. He not only played Asta in the first three Thin Man movies but also played a year after this film in the hysterically funny BRINGING UP BABY (as "George," the dog who steals the bone and buries it somewhere), and in one of the Topper films.