Movie fans are well aware of the story of THE FRONT PAGE.
The movie has been remade more than once as HIS GIRL FRIDAY with Cary Grant and
Rosalind Russell, THE FRONT PAGE with Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau and SWITCHING
CHANNELS with Burt Reynolds and Kathleen Turner. But it all started as a stage
play and this is the first time it was brought to film.
The movie tells the story of ace reporter Hildy Johnson (Pat
O’Brien) who is about to give up his job as a reporter to marry the girl of his
dreams Peggy Grant (Mary Brian), move to New York and take up a career in
advertising. But Hildy is the best at what he does and with the execution of
accused murderer Earl Williams Hildy’s boss Walter Burns (Adolph Menjou) will
do anything he can to prevent his leaving. Anything!
The movie is presented much like a stage play with almost
all of the action taking place in the press room near the execution area where
Williams is to be hung. It may seem a bit claustrophobic and the smoke filled
room will certainly not appeal to the PC crowd but that was the way things were
then. Also like the play the film is filled with quick back and forth banter
between the characters, so fast in some scenes that I was disappointed that a
subtitle function wasn’t offered with this release. It would have made some
dialogue that I couldn’t catch much easier to understand.
While the film only runs 101 minutes it feels much longer. I
don’t know if that’s a good thing or a bad thing. Yes, it did entertain for the
most part but at the same time it felt like it could have been tightened up in
various spots. But there was more story here than in numerous films being made
today so maybe it was just my own problem. I’ve said before that being a part of
the MTV generation has spoiled me for movies made in the past, wanting things
to get to the point quicker than was done then. If you know that going in the
movie becomes much more entertaining.
While the dialogue can overwhelm at times it also shows how
incredible the acting is. Had this been on stage it would have been amazing to
consider that someone could remember all of their lines. As fast as they are
delivered to memorize them must have been a chore. Even on film with long takes
being used it is amazing. The wit delivered in many of the lines shows that the
writing supersedes much of what is coming out today on both television and in
movies.
On the down side the acting also seems caught up in the
stage presence of this film. Actors tend to bellow their lines and offer looks
that seem destined for the upper balconies. One would think that by 1931 when
this film was made actors would know they had to adapt from a huge to a small
presence when being filmed. Thank goodness both O’Brien and Menjou seemed to
learn this fact in their later films.
So why would anyone want to see this movie? What makes it
special? Perhaps that lies in the fact that it is the most complete version of
this film to ever be offered to date. The film has been chosen as one of the
films to be included in the Library of Congress collection. If you’re not aware
of how this works or of the Library of Congress’ collection then you can’t
really be a film fan. Seek it out, be aware of how it works and what it does.
You’ll appreciate film even more if you do so. One of the extras on this
release talks about just that and is worth watching as well. A quick note on
this topic: there are many movies that have disappeared from existence because
of the deterioration of the film stock they were put on. The preservation of
films done through this group has been amazing but needs to continue not just
with old but newer films as well.
Kino Lorber has done a fantastic job with this movie. It
brings it all together using various sources included original 35mm prints that
have been saved. The quality of the end product is the best version of this
movie you will ever find. It also offers a radio version of the play to be
listened to as well.
If you love old movies, if you love comedies, then by all
means make sure you add this to your collection. And get involved in the
preservation of classic films. Kino Lorber has been a long supporter of classic
films and thank goodness for that. Make a point of showing these films to young
people, especially those who think that black and white films aren’t worth
watching. They’re wrong. They’re just as good today as they were when they
played theatrically years ago. Not only that, they’re part of our history and
that’s something that no one should turn their back on.
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