Domestic and professional tensions mount when a husband and wife work as opposing lawyers in a case involving a woman who shot her husband.
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Title: Adam's Rib (1949)
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Cast
| Complete credited cast: | |||
| Spencer Tracy | ... | ||
| Katharine Hepburn | ... | ||
| Judy Holliday | ... | ||
| Tom Ewell | ... | ||
| David Wayne | ... | ||
| Jean Hagen | ... | ||
| Hope Emerson | ... | ||
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Eve March | ... |
Grace
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Clarence Kolb | ... |
Judge Reiser
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Emerson Treacy | ... |
Jules Frikke
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Polly Moran | ... |
Mrs. McGrath
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| Will Wright | ... |
Judge Marcasson
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Elizabeth Flournoy | ... |
Dr. Margaret Brodeigh
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Plot Summary
|
Plot Synopsis
Storyline
When a woman attempts to kill her uncaring husband, prosecutor Adam Bonner gets the case. Unfortunately for him his wife Amanda (who happens to be a lawyer too) decides to defend the woman in court. Amanda uses everything she can to win the case and Adam gets mad about it. As a result, their perfect marriage is disturbed by everyday quarrels... Written by Chris Makrozahopoulos <makzax@hotmail.com>
Taglines:
It Will Tickle Your Funny Bone ! See more »Parents Guide:
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Details
Country:
USALanguage:
EnglishRelease Date:
18 November 1949 (USA) See more »Also Known As:
Man and Wife See more »Company Credits
Show detailed
company contact information
on
IMDbPro »
Technical Specs
Runtime:
Sound Mix:
Mono (Western Electric Sound System)Color:
Black and WhiteAspect Ratio:
1.37 : 1
Edit
'Adam's Rib' is arguably the greatest Tracy-Hepburn film, and is certainly the most popular of their teamings. Brightly written (by the husband and wife team of Ruth Gordon and Garson Kanin), it takes the premise of a wife (the sparkling Judy Holliday, in her film debut) on trial for shooting her unfaithful husband (Tom Ewell, establishing himself in the kind of role he'd reprise in The Seven-Year Itch), and turns it into a forum of the sexual values and standards of the 1940s, and a showcase for the fabulous Tracy and Hepburn, who were were never better than as the battling D.A. and defense attorney. In the courtroom and out, the love they share, and tweaking of each other's egos is a sheer joy to watch. That the story is also a knowing commentary about women's inequality under the law makes the film even more topical today, and doesn't reduce the film's enjoyment value at all. It is a VERY funny film, and can be enjoyed at MANY levels!
In addition to Holliday and Ewell, the supporting cast includes the terrific David Wayne as a smarmy songwriter-neighbor who covets Hepburn, and 'writes' the ditty 'Goodbye, Amanda' for her (actually composed by Cole Porter, Hepburn's character's name in the film was changed to Amanda, to fit the song!)
Among the many wonderful scenes of the film are the 'home movie', which accurately reflected much of Tracy and Hepburn's own relationship; the infamous massage scene ("I know a slap...!"); the circus 'Strong Woman', demonstrating that women can be as physically powerful as men by lifting the panicking Tracy over her head easily (in the middle of the courtroom!); the infamous licorice-gun confrontation as Tracy confronts Hepburn with Wayne; and Tracy's crying-on-demand revelation.
'Adam's Rib' is a film which never seems to age, but just gets better and better!