The Philadelphia Story (1940)

Directed by

George Cukor

Genre

comedy of remarriage, romantic comedy film

Country

United States

Runtime

1h 48m

Rated

NR

Rating

7.6 of 10 from 999 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

A Philadelphia socialite is about to get married but her ex-husband shows up along with a nosy magazine journalist. Their unexpected arrivals throw her wedding plans into chaos.

wittyfast-pacedlightheartedcharmingsophisticatedwhimsicalromanticcomedic

What happens

The Philadelphia Story is a 1940 American romantic comedy film starring Cary Grant, Katharine Hepburn, James Stewart and Ruth Hussey. Directed by George Cukor, the film is based on the 1939 Broadway play of the same name by Philip Barry about a socialite whose wedding plans are complicated by the simultaneous arrival of her ex-husband and a tabloid magazine journalist. The socialite, played by Hepburn in both productions, was inspired by Helen Hope Montgomery Scott (1904–1995), a Philadelphia heiress who had married Barry's friend. Written for the screen by Donald Ogden Stewart and an uncredited Waldo Salt, it is considered among the best examples of a comedy of remarriage, in which a couple divorce, flirt with outsiders and then remarry. The genre was popular in the 1930s and 1940s at a time when divorce was considered scandalous and the depiction of extramarital affairs was blocked by the Production Code. The film was Hepburn's first success following several failures that caused her placement on a 1938 list of actors considered to be "box office poison" compiled by theater owner Harry Brandt. Hepburn starred in the play and acquired the film rights, with the help of Howard Hughes, to control it as a vehicle for her screen comeback. Nominated for six Academy Awards, including Outstanding Production (Best Picture), the film won two: Best Actor (Stewart) and Best Adapted Screenplay. MGM remade the film in 1956 as a musical retitled High Society, starring Bing Crosby, Grace Kelly and Frank Sinatra. The Philadelphia Story was produced by Joseph L. Mankiewicz and was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry in 1995. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

Trailer

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