The Philadelphia Story

A man (Cary Grant) sneaks a pair of tabloid reporters (James Stewart and Ruth Hussey) into his stuffy ex-wife’s (Katharine Hepburn) upcoming society wedding.

The Philadelphia Story is a wonderful mix of comedy and drama, acted out by a first-rate cast.

Cary Grant shines from the outset (love that face-shove he gives Katharine Hepburn!) and his charisma provides the mortar that holds the film together.

Katharine Hepburn does an amazing job of transforming from fairly dislikable at the outset, to downright charming at the end, all the while coming across as very convincing. Finally, James Stewart’s aw-shucks demeanor keeps him from overplaying the meatiest role of all, even if he comes close at times.

The script by Donald Stewart, from the play by Philip Barry, is both touching and funny, albeit a bit talky at times, causing its stage roots to show through. This, like so many stage adaptations, is the film’s biggest flaw.

Still, with a cast like this, and a good script to back them, director George Cukor doesn’t have to do much except stay out of the way, which he does.