PHILADELPHIA STORY (DVD/2 DISC/SPECIAL EDITION/ENG-FR-SP SUB) DVD

The Philadelphia Story
We open on Philadelphia socialite C.K. Dexter Haven (Cary Grant) as he's being tossed out of his palatial home by his wife, Tracy Lord (Katharine Hepburn). Adding insult to injury, Tracy breaks one of C.K.'s precious golf clubs. He gallantly responds by knocking her down on her million-dollar keester. A couple of years after the breakup, Tracy is about to marry George Kittridge (John Howard), a wealthy stuffed shirt whose principal recommendation is that he's not a Philadelphia "mainliner," as C.K. was. Still holding a torch for Tracy, C.K. is galvanized into action when he learns that Sidney Kidd (Henry Daniell), the publisher of Spy Magazine, plans to publish an exposé concerning Tracy's philandering father (John Halliday). To keep Kidd from spilling the beans, C.K. agrees to smuggle Spy reporter Macauley Connor (James Stewart) and photographer Elizabeth Imbrie (Ruth Hussey) into the exclusive Lord-Kittridge wedding ceremony. How could C.K. have foreseen that Connor would fall in love with Tracy, thereby nearly lousing up the nuptials? As it turns out, of course, it is C.K. himself who pulls the "louse-up," reclaiming Tracy as his bride. A consistently bright, bubbly, witty delight, The Philadelphia Story could just as well have been titled "The Revenge of Katharine Hepburn." Having been written off as "box-office poison" in 1938, Hepburn returned to Broadway in a vehicle tailor-made for her talents by playwright Philip Barry. That property, of course, was The Philadelphia Story; and when MGM bought the rights to this sure-fire box-office success, it had to take Hepburn along with the package -- and also her veto as to who her producer, director, and co-stars would be. Her strategy paid off: after the film's release, Hepburn was back on top of the Hollywood heap. While she didn't win the Oscar that many thought she richly deserved, the little gold statuette was bestowed upon her co-star Stewart, perhaps as compensation for his non-win for 1939's Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. Donald Ogden Stewart (no relation to Jimmy) also copped an Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay. The Philadelphia Story was remade in 1956 with a Cole Porter musical score as High Society. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Cast Cary Grant as C.K. Dexter Haven Katharine Hepburn as Tracy Lord James Stewart as Macauley Connor Ruth Hussey as Liz Imbrie John Howard as George Kittredge Roland Young as Uncle Willie John Halliday as Seth Lord Mary Nash as Margaret Lord Virginia Weidler as Dinah Lord Henry Daniell as Sidney Kidd Lionel Pape as Edward Rex Evans as Thomas

Crew Wade B. Rubottom - Art Director Cedric Gibbons - Art Director Adrian - Costume Designer George Cukor - Director Frank Sullivan - Editor Franz Waxman - Composer (Music Score) Jack Dawn - Makeup Joseph Ruttenberg - Cinematographer Joseph L. Mankiewicz - Producer Edwin B. Willis - Set Designer Douglas Shearer - Sound/Sound Designer Waldo Salt - Screenwriter Donald Ogden Stewart - Screenwriter Philip Barry - Play Author

The Philadelphia Story
Playwright Philip Barry reportedly based the central character of The Philadelphia Story on Katharine Hepburn's brittle public persona, so it should be little surprise that she plays the part so well. The film is a quick-witted translation of the play, essentially a parlor drama with witty, Oscar Wilde-like banter and glib repartee from nearly every actor. There are moments of rare beauty in the dialogue, even if director George Cukor rarely uses them to give the film more visual flair or energy. The story both spoofs and plays sly homage to Clifford Odets' earnest socialist dramas, in which kind-hearted socialites learn to love and admire the working poor -- except that, in The Philadelphia Story, Hepburn turns her back on the working-class hero and returns to her own kind, the aristocratic, debonair, completely irresistible Cary Grant (who does a wonderful job of being...Cary Grant). The aristocrats are well-skewered by the delightful screenplay, and James Stewart is excellent as the cynical but smitten reporter, in a performance that won him his only Academy Award. Donald Ogden Stewart's faithful adaptation of the Barry play was also recognized by the Academy. High Society, the 1956 musical version of this story, was moderately successful, but not in the same classic league. ~ Dan Jardine, All Movie Guide
 

Donald Ogden Stewart: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie, Best Screenplay (nominated) George Cukor: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie, Best Director (nominated) James Stewart: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie, Best Actor (winner) Katharine Hepburn: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie, Best Actress (nominated) Katharine Hepburn: New York Film Critics Circle, Best Actress (winner) Ruth Hussey: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie, Best Supporting Actress (nominated)

Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie, Best Picture (nominated) American Film Institute, 100 Greatest American Movies (winner) Library of Congress, U.S. National Film Registry (winner)

General Specifications: Language Options: Subtitle Options: Sound Processing: Additional Features: MPAA Rating: DVD Discs Included: 2 DVD Sides: DVD DVD Region Code: Content Length: min