To equal the star line-up of Jean Harlow, William Powell, Myrna Loy & Spencer Tracy in today’s market, you’d need (say) Drew Barrymore, George Clooney, Julia Roberts & Russell Crowe. $75 mill right there. Scary, huh? This well liked IT HAPPENED ONE NIGHT wannabee (headstrong heiress, newspaper scam, even Walter Connolly repeating as Dad) lays on the fast, furious, & funny tropes with a trowel (director Jack Conway fumbling the lighter touch of a "Woody" Van Dyke), but becomes first-rate when Loy & Powell let down their guard and charm the hell out of each other . . . and us. Tracy & Harlow have a lot less screen time, but watch for the scene where Harlow realizes Powell is a pretty good egg. They were engaged at the time and, just this once, you can see Harlow totally drop her guard onscreen. She’s adorable.
1 comment:
As noted, this is a lot of fun - It Happened One Night - light, but with that cast you can't easily go wrong. Each of the four leads is perfect for his/her role, and nobody was better than Walter Connolly at playing an over-protective rich dad with a heart of gold. Originally put out on DVD in 2005 from a worn print, the recent Blu-ray (not seen here, alas) gets high marks from online reviewers. Both editions share the original 1936 theatrical trailer as an extra, and it is a gem, with unique footage of the arms-locked stars careening around the MGM lot. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CgAF2tBoAZQ
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