Design for Living (1933)

Directed by

Ben Hecht, Ernst Lubitsch

Genre

romantic comedy

Country

United States

Runtime

1h 28m

Rated

NR

Rating

7.1 of 10 from 211 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

A woman is torn between two men who both love her. The three of them decide to try living together as friends.

lightheartedwittyplayfulromanticbreezyfast-pacedscrewball

What happens

Design for Living is a 1933 American pre-Code romantic comedy film directed by Ernst Lubitsch from a screenplay by Ben Hecht, based on the 1932 play of the same name by Noël Coward. Starring Fredric March, Gary Cooper, and Miriam Hopkins, the film is about a woman who cannot decide between two men who love her, and the trio agree to try living together in a platonic friendly relationship. Criticism was mixed, with some critics praising the film, but many were ambivalent about its great departure from Coward's play. Coward said, "I'm told that there are three of my original lines left in the film—such original ones as 'Pass the mustard'." The film was a box office success, ranking as one of the top ten highest-grossing films of 1933. All three of the lead actors—March, Cooper, and Hopkins—received attention from this film as they were all at the peak of their careers. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

Trailer

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