Bringing Up Baby (1938)

User Rating:

8.1/10   

Director:

Howard Hawks

Writers:

Dudley Nichols (screenplay) &
Hagar Wilde (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

18 February 1938 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Romance

Plot:

David Huxley is waiting to get a bone he needs for his museum collection. Through a series of strange circumstances...

Plot Keywords:

Bone | Leopard | Museum | Mistaken Identity | Fiancée

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Katharine Hepburn	...	Susan Vance
Cary Grant	...	Dr. David Huxley
Charles Ruggles	...	Maj. Horace Applegate (as Charlie Ruggles)
Walter Catlett	...	Constable Slocum
Barry Fitzgerald	...	Aloysius Gogarty
May Robson	...	Aunt Elizabeth Random
Fritz Feld	...	Dr. Fritz Lehman
Leona Roberts	...	Hannah Gogarty
George Irving	...	Alexander Peabody
Tala Birell	...	Mrs. Lehman
Virginia Walker	...	Alice Swallow
John Kelly	...	Elmer

Runtime:

102 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Victor System)

Certification:

UK:U | Canada:PG (Ontario) | Canada:G (video rating) | Finland:S | Germany:12 | Sweden:Btl | USA:Approved (PCA #3752) | Argentina:Atp | Portugal:M/6 (DVD rating)

Company:

RKO Radio Pictures

Trivia:

This film employed a great deal of split screen and optical tricks, such as rear screen projection, so that having the big cat in close proximity to the actors (especially Cary Grant who was more worried about acting with the cat than Katharine Hepburn) could be kept to a minimum. (Hepburn is sometimes shown petting and handling Baby. The leopard's trainer praised Hepburn, stating that Kate was fearless and could become an animal trainer if she so desired.) Most of the split screens had a lot of movement in them, which meant the dividing line had to be moved around as well. Even the scenes of Susan dragging the mean Leopard on a leash are split screened. You can see that the rope does not line up. A puppet Leopard was also used in some shots. It's most clearly seen in the shot after Susan gets the Leopard dragged into the jail. The reaction shot immediately afterwards, shows David and Mrs. Random with "Baby" the Leopard on the table. The Leopard is a puppet.

Goofs:

Continuity: When David and Susan first meet on the golf course, Grant is holding his club in one shot and then not in the next. The caddy behind also goes from holding a club and not in the same shots.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Prof. LaTouche: Morning, Miss Alice. My watch is...
Alice Swallow: Shh. Dr. Huxley is thinking.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Aviator (2004)

Soundtrack:

I Can't Give You Anything but Love

Great comedy

I really enjoyed this classic screwball comedy. Grant was brilliant as the exasperated zoologist and Hepburn also shines as his troublemaking foil. The supporting cast is also uniformly excellent. The entire cast is of course blessed to be working with first rate material. Baby starts slowly and gradually builds momentum before becoming a comic frenzy. It's hard to believe today that this Howard Hawks masterpiece was a bomb in 1938, causing RKO to drop Hawks and Hepburn. I don't usually gravitate towards films of this sort but I'm glad I gave this gem a chance. I was thoroughly entertained. 9/10.