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His Girl Friday
1940
In Howard Hawks's screwball masterpiece adapted from the stage play THE FRONT PAGE by Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur, star reporter Hildy Johnson (Rosalind Russell), once married to suave editor Walter Burns (Cary Grant), plans to leave the stressful newspaper world behind and marry a boring insurance agent. Walter won't .. Read more
| Starring | Cary Grant, Rosalind Russell, Ralph Bellamy, Gene Lockhart |
|---|---|
| Director | Howard Hawks |
| Genres | Comedy |
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His Girl Friday
In Howard Hawks's screwball masterpiece adapted from the stage play THE FRONT PAGE by Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur, star reporter Hildy Johnson (Rosalind Russell), once married to suave editor Walter Burns (Cary Grant), plans to leave the stressful newspaper world behind and marry a boring insurance agent. Walter won't reveal his feelings for Hildy but tries to keep her from leaving by convincing her to cover one last story, a politically motivated execution. When the convict manages to escape, chaos breaks loose, and Hildy finds herself working alongside Walter to break the story wide open.
HIS GIRL FRIDAY is a loose, freewheeling gem featuring some of the fastest dialogue ever filmed (peppered with inspired ad-libbing by Grant and Russell, each appearing at comedic high points in their careers). Hawks, who changed the original story of two newspapermen into a battle of the sexes, keeps the frenetic action careening forward and allows a few slim but luminous notes of genuine affection to slip into Hildy and Walter's storm of hilarious verbal barbs, creating a potent and heartfelt classic that stands as one of the most influential comedies ever made.
| Starring | Cary Grant, Rosalind Russell, Ralph Bellamy, Gene Lockhart, Porter Hall, Regis Toomey, Alma Kruger, Roscoe Karns, Edwin Maxwell, John Qualen, Billy Gilbert, Helen Mack, Cliff Edwards, Abner Biberman, Frank Jenks, Clarence Ko |
|---|---|
| Director | Howard Hawks |
| Studio | IMC VISION |
| Run time | DVD: 1 hr 32 mins Watch now: 1 hr 32 mins |
| Certificate | DVD: , Watch Online: |
| Genres | Comedy |
| Language | DVD: English Watch Online: English |
| Released | DVD: 07 Aug 2000 Watch now: 30 Apr 2009 Production year: 1940 |
| Watch now | Subscribe and watch this as part of an unlimited package. |
| Format | DVD |
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Critics' reviews (3)
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This brilliant reworking of the classic newspaper play The Front Page from director Howard Hawks is the fastest-talking comedy in the history of Hollywood and the perfect vehicle for Cary Grant — never better — and Rosalind Russell — never tougher. Limited for most of the time to two sets (the newspaper office and the pressroom at the jail), the film's great strength is the interplay between the two leads, who play former spouses having a tough time remaining apart. It also boasts one of the blackest comedy situations ever, as a small-time loser finds himself up against city corruption and imminent execution. Clever, witty and extremely satisfying, this marvellous film is still achingly funny today.
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Frantic, hilarious black farce with all participants at their best; possibly the fastest comedy ever filmed, and one of the funniest.
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Most helpful member's review
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21 out of 26 people found this review helpful
Page 3 posing as something better
Loud, erratic, noisy, excitable, and very politically correct for its day.
The storyline around a divorced newspaper couple, their fight to save a convicted murderer and expose government corruption on the way had potential, but it sadly was never realised in this film.
I would say a good 75% of the dialogue is shouted, barked out in a hysterical way at 14 to the dozen, WHY ?
The humour what there is of it, is lost as a result.
I found this a rather tedious film, and was left wondering just WHY she had divorced HIM in the first place! Only to take up with a less challenging man, did she feel intellectually threatened in her first marriage?
An interesting film from a sociological viewpoint, as it demonstrates, Americas role in pioneering social engineering via the media. -
Most recent members' review
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2 out of 2 people found this review helpful
Too fast and furious for me
His Girl Friday tells the story of an estranged newspaper editor Walter Burns (Cary Grant) and his former wife/journalist Hilda Johnson (Rosalind Russell) who find themselves thrown together over the story of a man on death row. At the same time, Burns is trying to win back his former wife before she remarries and resorts to every trick in the book (both legal and illegal) to win her back.
Although I enjoyed the film, I found the speed of the dialogue far too quick and it was as though the actors never seemed to take a breath between sentences. There is genuine black humour in the film, especially the way in which the man on death row is being used as a political pawn by the politicians and a means to selling papers for Burns. -
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His Girl Friday
In Howard Hawks's screwball masterpiece adapted from the stage play THE FRONT PAGE by Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur, star reporter Hildy Johnson (Rosalind Russell), once married to suave editor Walter Burns (Cary Grant), plans to leave the stressful newspaper world behind and marry a boring ...
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