Customer Reviews

The Philadelphia Story

5 star:		(62)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

What is there not to love about this movie - great actors with Hepburn, Grant and Stewart and stellar supporting actors that bring to life a well-written script. The banter between Hepburn and Grant is brilliant.

I love this movie. It's very easy to enjoy. This is one of Katharine Hepburn's best movies!!

Tracy Lords is getting married again. This time to a man who worked his way to the top instead of starting there. Dexter her first husband invites himself to the wedding and the wedding preparations. Also inviting their selves with a little blackmail to the wedding is a writer, and photographer, from a magazine of dubious reputation.

Throw in a philandering father and a friendly uncle. We watch as they go through the motions and emotions of courting and re-evaluating their lives.

This is basically a comedy and yes it has all the actors and writers to make this a piece of cinematic art. However you will find it is just fun to watch.

I love this movie! The story and the acting is priceless.

This is my absolute favorite performance by the great Katherine Hepburn. She is breathtaking and absolutely wonderful. Brilliant performances all across the board, an especially funny performance by James Stewart is just the icing on the cake. Cary Grant,one of my faves, also delivers a magnificent performance. Also worth mentioning is the very beautiful Ruth Hussey, whose potrayal of Liz is stunning. She was one of the most attractive actresses at the time, in my humble opinion. This movie is very funny and the sets and costumes are among the best Hollywood has ever offered. I highly recommend this as a must own.

So well written, so elegant! My favorite film.

Branded by Hollywood as "Box Office Poison" (usually the death blow to an actor's career), Katherine Hepburn put all of her eggs in this ONE basket, to prove she's still a force to be recconned with. Reprising her stage role, Kate secures the rights for the film version of "The Philadelphia Story". The trick worked. Katherine Hepburn was back as a big star on the Hollywood Sky.

Tracy Lord (Katherine Hepburn), a spoiled socialite scheduled to remarry when her first husband, C.K. Dexterhaven (Cary Grant) shows up as uninvited wedding guest. Add to the mix, Mike Connor (James Stewart) a reporter who is supposed to be covering the wedding for the tabloids but winds up falling for Tracy himself. The brief triangle has a predictable ending.

Less glamorous than the 1955 Technicolor Musical re-make "High Society" with Grace Kelly and Bing Crosby, this black & white Classic remains the superior production. Somewhat dated (definitely 1940s Movie Star Magazine material), this is still a groundbreaking romantic comedy. Ted Turner: Please keep your crayons away from this one!****

The Philadelphia Story is a romantic comedy with Katherine Hepburn, Cary Grant, and James Stewart. As far as I'm concerned, it would be darn near impossible for any movie with those three to be bad. They are just too good. Luckily, however, The Philadelphia Story is anything but bad. It's hysterical, laugh out loud, funny. The dialogue is sharp and the wit is quick.

Katherine Hepburn plays a divorcee about to get remarried. She's cool, hard, and very self-righteous. Her former husband, played by Cary Grant, comes to the wedding uninvited, in part to stop his former father-in-law from being embarassed in the press and in part to make a general nuisance of himself, setting his ex-wife's teeth on edge. Jimmy Stewart plays a serious novelist turned reporter assigned, against his will, to cover the wedding for the social pages. With Katherine Hepburn being above it all, Cary Grant being a lovable rogue, and Jimmy Stewart playing the intellectual, it turns into a hilarious debacle ala 'The Importance of Being Earnest'.

The supporting cast characters of in this movie are also exceptionally good. Each of them are good actors in their own right and they serve to bring a very, very high polish to this already good film that might otherwise be lacking.

For DVD collectors there isn't much on this DVD, as their often isn't with older movies. The original theatrical trailer is included, which is a nice boon to those who enjoy them.

George Cukor's "Philadelphia Story" is the story of Tracy Lord, a spoilt, rich socialite marrying George Kittredge, the manager of their estate. It has a cast of Cary Grant, James Stewart and Katherine Hepburn. It was the best movie made of the 1940 with a lot of the supporting cast including Seth Lord, Uncle Willie (his brother), her sister do an outstanding job. As romantic comadies, this ranks in the top of the list.

Jimmy Stewart got his Best Actor Oscar, a richly deserved one, as he plays the part of a sarcastic reporter. The way he treats Tracy Lord, a combination of superciliousness and adulation is wonderful. So is the role of Cary Grant as C.K.Dexter Haven, who officially comes there to get revenge on his ex-wife, but is there actually due to blackmail. The interaction between him and Tracy Lord is fantastic, either they like each other, or they are at each other's throats. Katherine Hepburn plays her role as the haughty, socialite wonderfully and the way she changes her acting when she is sober to when she is drunk is well brought out. After a lot of flops, she finally had a success with this movie. The role was almost made for her.

The dialogue is hilarious and intelligent. It also mocks at some of the obvious ideas about the class system. George Cukor manages his cast very well right upto the end. This is a movie for all generations. I was disappointed that Cary Grant was not nominated for an Oscar for his role in this, it was very well done. The end of the movie is beautiful.

Sometimes on cable you see sitcoms or movies from the 1980's and you think they are not funny and terribly outdated.
Not so with the Philadelphia story. It is a terrible funny romantic comedy with three superb actors: Catharine Hepburn, Cary Grant and James Stewart.
It's about marriage and liking other people. It is very obvious that is is a play and it is also acted out like a play. It is considered one of the best movies ever and I have to agree it was one of the best I have seen lately.