STATE OF THE UNION (DVD) (DOL DIG 2.0/ENG SDH/FF/1.33:1) DVD

State of the Union
Frank Capra's only MGM film, State of the Union was adapted by Anthony Veiller and Myles Connolly from the Pulitzer Prize-winning play by Howard Lindsay and Russell Crouse. Spencer Tracy plays an aircraft tycoon who is coerced into seeking the Republican Presidential nomination by predatory newspaper mogul Angela Lansbury. Campaign manager Van Johnson suggests that, for appearance's sake, Tracy be reunited with his estranged wife Katharine Hepburn (replacing Claudette Colbert, who'd ankled the project after a pre-production donnybrook with director Capra). Realizing that Tracy and Lansbury are having an affair, Hepburn nonetheless agrees to grow through the devoted-wife charade because she believes that Tracy just might make a good President. Her faith is shattered when Tracy, corrupted by the Washington power brokers, publicly compromises his values in order to get votes. Only in the film's last moments does Tracy prove himself worthy of Hepburn's love and his own self-respect by admitting his dishonesty during a nationwide radio-TV broadcast. Much of the biting wit in the original Broadway production of State of the Union is sacrificed in favor of the director's patented "Capracorn," but the film is no less entertaining because of this. As usual, the supporting cast is impeccable, from featured players Adolphe Menjou (whose off-camera political arguments with Hepburn threatened to shut down production at times) and Margaret Hamilton, to bit actors like Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer and Tor (Plan 9 From Outer Space) Johnson. Because the television rights to State of the Union belonged to Capra's Liberty Films, the picture was released to TV by MCA rather than MGM's syndication division. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Cast Florence Auer as Grace Orval Draper Spencer Tracy as Grant Matthews Irving Bacon as Buck Swenson Katharine Hepburn as Mary Matthews Art Baker as Radio Announcer Van Johnson as Spike McManus Angela Lansbury as Kay Thorndyke Adolphe Menjou as Jim Conover Tom Fadden as Waiter Margaret Hamilton as Norah Lewis Stone as Sam Thorndyke Charles Lane as Blink Moran George Nokes as Grant Matthews, Jr. Tom Pedi as Barber Howard I. Smith as Sam Parrish Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer as Bellboy Maidel Turner as Lulubelle Alexander Raymond Walburn as Judge Alexander Pierre Watkin as Sen. Lauterback

Crew Urie McCleary - Art Director Cedric Gibbons - Art Director Anthony Veiller - Associate Producer Irene - Costume Designer Arthur S. Black, Jr. - First Assistant Director Frank Capra - Director William W. Hornbeck - Editor Victor Young - Composer (Music Score) Jack Dawn - Makeup George Folsey - Cinematographer Frank Capra - Producer Emile Kuri - Set Designer Arnold A. Gillespie - Special Effects Douglas Shearer - Sound/Sound Designer Myles Connolly - Screenwriter Anthony Veiller - Screenwriter Howard Lindsay - Play Author Russel Crouse - Play Author

State of the Union
Another one of director Frank Capra's delightful blends of romantic melodrama and socio-political morality play, State of the Union is one of the most loved of Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn's collaborations. Most similar to earlier Capra films, Meet John Doe (1941) and Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), State is less idealistic and sentimental than those two classics, thanks to a more complex portrait of its main character. In the lead role, the always-effortless Tracy gets a chance to play against his righteous typecasting: the parallel between his character's questionable political integrity and his faltering marriage is a fascinating one. Hepburn and Angela Lansbury are also very good as, respectively, his wife and his manipulative mistress. ~ Brendon Hanley, All Movie Guide
 

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General Specifications: Language Options: English Subtitle Options: English Sound Processing: DDM2.0: Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono (Recorded in mono, but split to give the illusion of a stereo mix on home theater systems). Additional Features: DVD Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1: Pre-1954 Standard MPAA Rating: NR DVD Discs Included: 1 DVD Sides: 1 DVD DVD Region Code: 1 Content Length: 123 min