Bringing Up Baby [Import]

When this film was released in 1938, the great majority of filmgoers were young enough to have experienced the era of vaudevile, whose death knell had been sounded by the coming of "talkies" after 1927. For this reason the film was not so much of a hit as it is today. Considered old fashioned and a bit passe, these type of screwball comedies that borrowed heavily on vaudeville routines, no longer commanded broad appeal and the genre in general was soon confined to such lesser lights as Abbot and Costello.
Flash forward 65 years and BRINGING UP BABY is now acclaimed as a minor masterpiece. That it harkens back to vaudeville is no longer a handicap. More entrancing is that it features two legends of the Silver Screen in their early prime. Cary Grant, who cut his teeth on the vaudeville circuit, is amazing in both his comic timing and his ability to carry off visual gags. To see the Grant who went on to become the very symbol of urbane sophistication stumbling around the set dressed in a night gown is priceless.
Screwball comedy is a matter of personal taste. Some people prefer comedy that arises out of a certain situation, rather than comedy generated for it's own sake, such as is evident in BRINGING UP BABY. One weakness of the genre is that as one visual gag follows another in rapid fire succession, the viewer becomes somewhat jaded, just as a gourmet would feel after consuming too many chocolate bonbons in a single sitting. After an hour or so, my attention was beginning to wander because my brain was not able to connect to a discernable plot line. Although it was great fun to see Grant and Hepburn go through their paces, one's intellect was not engaged and in the end the film just seemed a bit longer than it really is.
It's quite an honour for such a film to be featured in a two disc package. I am a big fan of Cary Grant and very much enjoyed the retrospection on his career. When they made Cary Grant they certainly did throw away the mould.

'Strong Woman' actress Katherine Hepburn may not be associated with the type of role she plays in this film. She plays the ditsy blonde so well it's surprising she wasn't cast in more of these parts, but perhaps it's testament to her acting ability that she managed to be so versatile. Cary Grant is on form as a staid scientist engaged to marry his rather boring research assistant. Katherine Hepburn turns up, all hell breaks loose, and of course Grant ends up falling for Katherine and being ditched by his fiancée. The 'Baby' of the title is a baby leopard and all the animal scenes are handled skilfully and seamlessly by director Howard Hawks. This is a textbook example of how to make charming 1930s comedies and good fun to boot!

I personally love classic movies because it seems that in the days before special effects and naked bodies, movies actually made use of structure, dialogue, and character development. So I rented this after several recommendations from my film-loving peers.

Now I'm going to contradict myself here. If you haven't seen this movie, then I suggest you do. It is so well regarded that you should see what all the fuss is about.

For me, however, it was such a disappointment that I turned it off before I got half way through. Each situation seemed like more of the same, which I suppose is great when you're enjoying it. But I found the humor forced and stale. Thus, the over-done performances (standard for screwball) grated on my nerves. See the movie, hopefully enjoy it, but be advised that it's not for everyone.