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The Philadelphia Story

1940

George Cukor

Cary Grant, Katharine Hepburn, James Stewart, Ruth Hussey ...

8.0

27,532

Comedy. Romance Tracy Lord (Katharine Hepburn) is a wealthy Main Line Philadelphia socialite who had divorced C.K. Dexter Haven (Cary Grant) and is about to marry nouveau riche George Kittredge (John Howard). Wedding preparations are complicated when she is blackmailed by publisher Sidney Kidd (Henry Daniell) into granting an exclusive story to tabloid reporter Macaulay "Mike" Connor (James Stewart) and photographer Elizabeth "Liz" Imbrie (Ruth ... [+]

	Author	Review
United States	Bosley Crowther The New York Times	"[It] has just about everything that a blue-chip comedy should have —a witty, romantic script (...) the flavor of high-society elegance (...) and a splendid cast"	POS
United States	Jeremiah Kipp Slant	"I don’t think 'The Philadelphia Story' would have worked nearly so perfectly without Grant (...) Far deeper and richer than its whimsical surface style might lead you to believe (…) Rating: ★★★★ (out of 4)"	POS
United States	Herb Golden Variety	"A picture every suburban mamma and poppa must see (...) It’s Katharine Hepburn’s picture"	POS
United States	Peter Bogdanovich IndieWire	"There is the overriding quality of Hepburn being cut down to size (...) It’s the one and only time Jimmy Stewart appeared with Hepburn and their chemistry is intriguing"	NEU
United Kingdom	Peter Bradshaw The Guardian	"Utterly beguiling, funny and romantic (...) Part of the fascination in watching this movie again is savouring those three extraordinary voices, highly imitable but entirely unique (…) Rating: ★★★★★ (out of 5)"	POS
United Kingdom	Jake Hamilton Empire	"Excellent casting, a great storyline and a shrp script mean that this remains a classic of the genre and one of Katherine Hepburn's best roles (…) Rating: ★★★★ (out of 5)"	POS
United Kingdom	Marc Lee Telegraph	"[It] transmogrifies into one of the smartest, sassiest - and sexiest - movies ever (...) It riffs wittily on family, class, privilege, etiquette, the press, and love and marriage"	POS
United Kingdom	David Wood BBC	"[Cukor's] assured direction is informed by a natural understanding of timing to create a comic cocktail (...) Grant, Stewart, and Hepburn deliver impeccable performances (…) Rating: ★★★★ (out of 5)"	POS
Ireland	Donald Clarke Irish Times	"'The Philadelphia Story' stands as monument to one woman’s determination to overcome national mood swings and the inflexibility of powerful men (…) Rating: ★★★★★ (out of 5)"	POS

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