TALK OF THE TOWN (DVD/P&S 1.33/DSS/ENG-FR-KO-SUB) DVD

The Talk of the Town
George Stevens' Talk of the Town is a quick-witted comedy driven by wonderful performances by Cary Grant, Ronald Colman and Jean Arthur. Michael Lightcap (Colman) is a stuffy law professor in line to a Supreme Court appointment, who is spending the summer at the house of schoolteacher Nora Shelley (Arthur). But Lightcap is not the only guest at the house. Shelley has also let Leopold Dilg (Grant)--a man who had recently escaped from prison, where he was serving a sentence for false accusations of immolating a local factory--stay at the house, telling Lightcap that he is a gardener. In addition to striking up a friendship, Lightcap and Dilg also compete for the affections of Shelley. Eventually, the professor learns of Dilg's true identity, finding out that Leopold was framed by a crooked government, led by the foreman of the factory, who supposedly died in the fire. When Dilg is captured by the police, Lightcap comes to his defense, bringing the still-alive foreman out of hiding and, in the process, clearing Leopold of all the charges. Talk of the Town received Academy Award nominations for Best Picture, Best Screenplay, Best Original Story, Best Score, Best Editing, and Best Interior Decoration, yet it lost in all of the categories. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Movie Guide

Cast Cary Grant as Leopold Dilg Jean Arthur as Nora Shelley Ronald Colman as Michael Lightcap Edgar Buchanan as Sam Yates Glenda Farrell as Regina Bush Charles Dingle as Andrew Holmes Rex Ingram as Tilney Emma Dunn as Mrs. Shelley Leonid Kinskey as Jan Pulaski Tom Tyler as Clyde Bracken Don Beddoe as Chief of Police George Watts as Judge Grunstadt Clyde Fillmore as Sen. James Boyd Frank M. Thomas as District Attorney

Crew Lionel Banks - Art Director Rudolph Sternad - Art Director Fred Guiol - Associate Producer Irene - Costume Designer Norman Deming - First Assistant Director George Stevens - Director Otto Meyer - Editor Morris W. Stoloff - Composer (Music Score) Frederick Hollander - Composer (Music Score) Morris W. Stoloff - Musical Direction/Supervision Ted Tetzlaff - Cinematographer George Stevens - Producer Irwin Shaw - Screenwriter Sidney Harmon - Screenwriter Dale Van Every - Screenwriter Sidney Buchman - Screenwriter

The Talk of the Town
Part debate about the American legal system, part sophisticated romantic comedy, George Stevens's The Talk of the Town (1942) portrays a legally loaded love triangle between a wrongly accused fugitive, a local New England schoolteacher and a cloistered law professor. With Cary Grant as the accused Leopold, Jean Arthur as the teacher Nora and Ronald Colman as the jurist Lightcap, Stevens and screenwriters Irwin Shaw and Sidney Buchman seamlessly interweave introspective discussions about the law with clever repartee as Leopold and Nora scheme to convince Lightcap to abandon his disinterested stance and help Leopold's cause against the corrupt town machine. Spiked with bits of visual and physical comedy such as a bloodhound chase and some judiciously placed fried eggs, The Talk of the Town manages to be both serious about its patriotic message, and hilarious in its telling. Stevens's opening montage, complete with a threateningly dour Grant, is a model of economical story-telling, as is the exchange of parting glances between the three before Nora makes her romantic move. A substantial hit, The Talk of the Town was nominated for seven Oscars including Best Picture and Screenplay. ~ Lucia Bozzola, All Movie Guide
 

C. Fay Babcock: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie, Best Black and White Art Direction (nominated) Frederick Hollander: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie, Best Score - Drama or Comedy (nominated) Irwin Shaw: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie, Best Screenplay (nominated) Lionel Banks: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie, Best Black and White Art Direction (nominated) Morris W. Stoloff: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie, Best Score - Drama or Comedy (nominated) Otto Meyer: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie, Best Editing (nominated) Rudolph Sternad: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie, Best Black and White Art Direction (nominated) Sidney Buchman: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie, Best Screenplay (nominated) Sidney Harmon: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie, Best Original Story (nominated) Ted Tetzlaff: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie, Best Black and White Cinematography (nominated)

Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie, Best Picture (nominated)

General Specifications: Language Options: English Subtitle Options: English, French, Japanese, KO Sound Processing: Additional Features: cc Digitally mastered audio and video Remastered in high definition Full-screen presentation English soundtrack English, French, Japanese, and Korean subtitles Bonus trailers Interactive menus Scene selections MPAA Rating: NR DVD Discs Included: 1 DVD Sides: 1 DVD DVD Region Code: 1 Content Length: 118 min   DVD Chapters: Side #1 -- 1. Start 2. Leopold Dilg Escapes 3. Nora Shelley & the Fugitive 4. An Evening With Michael Lightcap 5. Early Morning Parade 6. A Cook & A Stenographer 7. Joseph the Gardener 8. Supreme Court Appointment 9. His Picture in the Paper 10. At the Ballpark 11. Chess & Argument 12. Right Scent, Wrong Man 13. Borscht With An Egg in It 14. At the Factory Ruins 15. Inviting Nora to Washington 16. His Identity Revealed 17. In Sam's Office 18. The Beard Comes Off 19. Regina in Mourning 20. Dancing With Miss Bush 21. Back in the Attic 22. Roadblock 23. Clyde Bracken, Alive & Well 24. Dilg Captured 25. Lightcap's Resolution 26. Justice Prevails 27. In Chambers 28. Nora Gets Her Man