The Awful Truth
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| The Awful Truth | |
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| Directed by | Leo McCarey |
| Produced by | Leo McCarey |
| Written by | Arthur Richman (play) Viña Delmar Sidney Buchman (uncredited) |
| Starring | Irene Dunne Cary Grant |
| Music by | Ben Oakland |
| Cinematography | Joseph Walker |
| Editing by | Al Clark |
| Distributed by | Columbia |
| Release date(s) | October 21, 1937 |
| Running time | 90 min. |
| Language | English |
| IMDb profile | |
The Awful Truth is a 1937 romantic comedy (also screwball comedy) film. The plot concerns the machinations of a soon-to-be-divorced couple, played by Irene Dunne and Cary Grant, who go to great lengths to try to ruin each other's romantic escapades. It also stars Ralph Bellamy.
The film was written by Sidney Buchman (uncredited) and Viña Delmar, from the play by Arthur Richman. It was directed by Leo McCarey. This film marked the first appearance of the uniquely effective light comedy persona used by Cary Grant in almost all his subsequent films, catapulting Grant's career. Writer/director Peter Bogdanovich has noted that after this movie, when it came to light comedy, "there was Cary Grant and everyone else was an also-ran." McCarey is largely credited with concocting this persona, and the two men even shared an eerie physical resemblance.
Ironically, Grant fought hard to get out of the film during its shooting, since McCarey seemed to be improvising as he went along, and initially even wanted to switch roles with Ralph Bellamy.
The film is one of a series of what the philosopher Stanley Cavell calls "comedies of remarriage", where couples who have once been married, or are on the verge of divorce, etc., rediscover that they are in love with each other, and recommit to the idea of marriage. Another example starring Cary Grant is The Philadelphia Story filmed shortly after The Awful Truth. The original template for this kind of comedy is Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing. Many screwball comedies are based on the audience enjoyment of the humorous dynamic of people who are clearly too smart for their own desires.
The film has been selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry.
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[edit] Plot summary
Jerry Warriner (Grant) returns home from a trip to find his wife, Lucy (Dunne), out. When she returns in the company of her handsome music teacher, Armand Duvalle (Alexander D'Arcy), he finds out that she spent the night in the country with him, after her car supposedly broke down. Then, she discovers that Jerry hadn't gone to Florida as he had claimed. Mutual suspicions result in divorce.
Lucy moves into an apartment with Aunt Patsy (Cecil Cunningham) and becomes engaged to her neighbor, Dan Leeson (Ralph Bellamy) from Oklahoma. However, his mother (Esther Dale) does not approve of her. Eventually, Lucy realizes that she still loves Jerry and decides to break the engagement. However, before she can break the news to Dan, Armand shows up at her apartment to discuss Jerry interrupting Lucy's recital. When Jerry knocks on the door, Armand decides it would be prudent to hide in her bedroom. Jerry wants to reconcile, much to Lucy's delight, but then Dan and his mother make an appearance. Wanting to avoid complications, Jerry slips into Lucy's bedroom too. A fight erupts when he finds Armand already there. When Jerry chases him out of the apartment, right in front of the Leesons, Dan and his mother stalk out.
Afterwards, Jerry becomes seen around town with heiress Barbara Vance (Molly Lamont). To break up this relationship, Lucy crashes a party at the Vance mansion, pretending to be Jerry's sister. She acts like a trashy showgirl (recreating a risqué musical number she had seen performed by one of Jerry's dates) and lets on that their "father" had been a gardener at Princeton University, not a student athlete. Realizing that his chances with Barbara have been effectively sabotaged, Jerry drives Lucy away in her car.
The car breaks down. The couple get a lift to her aunt's cabin from a couple of motorcycle policemen. Once there, Jerry admits having made a fool of himself and they reconcile.
[edit] Awards
- Best Picture (nomination)
- Best Director - Leo McCarey
- Best Actress (nomination) - Irene Dunne
- Best Supporting Actor (nomination) - Ralph Bellamy
[edit] Cast
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Irene Dunne | Lucy Warriner |
| Cary Grant | Jerry Warriner |
| Ralph Bellamy | Dan Leeson |
| Alexander D'Arcy | Armand Duvalle |
| Cecil Cunningham | Aunt Patsy |
| Molly Lamont | Barbara Vance |
| Esther Dale | Mrs. Leeson |
| Joyce Compton | Dixie Belle Lee |
| Robert Allen | Frank Randall |
| Robert Warwick | Mr. Vance |
| Mary Forbes | Mrs. Vance |
[edit] External links
