His Girl Friday (Hawks, 1940): BFI Southbank, NFT2, 6.10pm
This classic Howard Hawks movie, which also screens on May 19th and 23rd, is part of the Big Screen Classics season at BFI Southbank. Details here.
Chicago Reader review:
Most of what Robert Altman has done with overlapping dialogue was done
first by Howard Hawks in this 1940 comedy, without the benefit of Dolby
stereo. (The film, in fact, often circulates in extremely poor
public-domain prints that smother the glories of Hawks's sound track.)
It isn't a matter of speed but of placement—the dialogue almost seems to
have levels in space. Hawks's great insight—taking the Hecht-MacArthur Front Page
and making the Hildy Johnson character a woman—has been justly
celebrated; it deepens the comedy in remarkable ways. Cary Grant's
performance is truly virtuoso—stunning technique applied to the most
challenging material. With Rosalind Russell and Ralph Bellamy, a genius
in his way too.
Dave Kehr
Here (and above) is the trailer.
No comments:
Post a Comment