His Girl Friday

A perfect movie. That's it. Absolutely perfect.

The whole movie is a masterpiece, but Rosalind Russell is my screwball GOAT. I adore her in this.

There's fewer better scripts than this. The delivery by Cary Grant - for my money the most charismatic actor of all time - and Rosalind Russell is just fantastic.

It'll take your brain a little moment to tune in as the delivery is so rapid. (Did they speed up the projection as it doesn't feel humanly possible to deliver at that rate for a sustained period...?)

I've never seen 'The Front Page' from which this is derived. I've not seen the clones that followed this either. But I'm willing to say that the only thing wrong with 'His Girl Friday' is the title.

The character of Hildy is (for 98% of the film) the smartest person in the room, and Walter is (for 98% of the time) the second smartest person in the room. Everyone else is a distant third.

The bouncing back and forth between the two of them is an hilarious and captivating escapade. That Cary Grant can disappear for a third of the movie and not be missed just shows the investment and aptitude of Rosalind as an actress.

The film 'The Holiday' beautifully mentions the portrayal of "gumption" in a female lead. The character of Hildy is the personification of it. Outside of Katharine Hepburn, I can think of few competitors. Just wonderful.

The 2% deductions... Well, there's a little back-peddling at the close of the film where Cary Grant has to "win". The complete control that Hildy has is revoked for a closing sequence and it's sad to see that - for all the brilliantly portrayed alpha female strengths - a man just had to come out smelling the roses...

They don't make them like this anymore and they bloody well should. What a fantastic film - I had a smile on my face for 90 minutes. I'd watch this 3 times rather than another Avengers smashathon.


9/10 (Have the balls to follow through and let the woman suceed!)

"His Girl Friday" is proof that not all classic films must be at a snail's pace. (I agree with others that the title makes no sense.) This was cracking good fun! Fabulous performances all around, and a terrific script.

I found the ending very satisfying, as it seemed to me that Rosalind Russell did a superb job of building evidence that journalism is what makes her heart beat.

It's quite ironic to me that some 21st century viewers found a man's encouragement of a woman's career to be a shame, and preferred she become a homemaker! This was a refreshing and interesting reversal for a 1939/40 film.

The opening title card said it all "you will see no resemblance to the men and women of the press of today." Ain't that fucking the truth! More so now than then. Reporters ain't shit now. I've seen this on my Top American Films of All-Time and Before 1976 lists on letterboxd for a while and now I saw it on Paramount+ so said why not? Hildy's pinstrip suit and hat are so awesome! Wonder what color it is?

The comedy is fast paced and rapid fire like you think of 1940s comedies of being. It's almost comforting like watching Dick van Dyke or something just relaxing and calming. But how is Hildy a girlboss while marring a insurance man? That's like if she married some Wall Street man or something it ain't any better than before. Anyway the movie pacing was amazing I wasn't bored at any point and it was funny throughout the run time. I can see why Quentin Tarantino put this in his top 11 list. Also the Mayor and the Sheriff are asshats. And all the actors did their thing in this wonderful picture.

This was Cary Grant at his best. It's fast paced from start to finish and Grant's character is witty, hilarious, manipulative and an unforgivable cheat but all in the best way possible. It's just fun to watch. The ending is a bit abrupt and the main character of the story they're writing mentions some important clues that are never mentioned or followed up on but in the end the movie was never really about the story anyway. It's all about the ups and downs of their relationship. I miss the humorous twists and class of these old movies and this movie delivers that in spades.

Smooth-talking press personalities from a bygone age, chasing each other's tails and trying to get in the last word amidst a riled-up crew of snappy, witty, improv-happy verbal maestros. The breakneck pace this film is able to maintain via dialogue alone is just staggering, head-spinning to the point that I nearly lost track of what was going on with the plot while my brain tried to catch up with the last three or four punchlines.

I wasn't prepared for that kind of an onslaught, and I wasn't alone: caught in the middle of all the chatter is Bruce, a mild-mannered everyman who just wants to be a nice guy, give his new fiancee time to say goodbye to her ex-husband and former coworkers, board a train and ride off into a bright, happy future of marital bliss. He's eaten alive, almost literally. The ex (Cary Grant at the height of his stardom) isn't quite ready to move on from that lost love, and though the fiancee (Rosalind Russell, in a show-stealing turn) is wise to his tricks, she and Bruce are mired by them nonetheless. In the midst of a scheduled execution, a midnight prison break, late edition deadlines and bombshell headlines, the brusque, self-assured lady at the heart of this two-room maelstrom must choose between her lust for a juicy lead and the promise of a fresh start.

A hilarious rush of con artistry and self-preservation that seems to have outlasted the very industry it lampoons. I don’t think they make people like this any more, much less movies.

You kind of know where this burlesque is going pretty soon, but _how_ it is going there and at what pace... The fast, funny, sometimes furious monologues hook into one another like a zipper.

Great movie, great script, great actors, great direction. The image of the press is still current. Delightful

A nice movie with a very frustrating ending!