Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert are the stars of Frank Capra's legendary romantic comedy, 'It Happened One Night'. Decades later, the film still feels fresh, has lost none of its charm and is a pleasure to watch.
After the opening credits (accompanied by some appealing theme music), we are introduced to Claudette Colbert's character of Ellie Andrews. She has locked herself in her room on a boat which belongs to her over-bearing father. He is threatening to annul her very recent marriage to 'King' Westley because he disapproves of him. After an argument develops, she jumps ship and swims for the shore, with the intent of going straight to New York to meet up with her new husband. While taking a bus trip to reach her destination, she encounters Peter Warne (played by Clark Gable), a newspaper reporter who eventually recognises her after seeing a front page story of her as a runaway. After he threatens to turn her in unless she stays with him in order to give him headline news, she reluctantly makes the cross country trip with him. Things don't always go to plan, which allow some humorous scenes, and there is an attraction that develops between the two. The question then, is who will she end up with by the time the film ends?
This is a film which deserves its status. Not only is it a wonderful, feel-good movie, it is great in all aspects of cinema, and has hardly dated a bit. The films energy and performances from all the cast keep the film from feeling stale, even after more than 70 years. The script is cleverly written with some truly laugh-out-loud moments. What makes this film even more remarkable, is the fact that few people involved in it, with the exception of Frank Capra, had much faith in it. Even the stars of the film, particularly Claudette Colbert, were unenthusiastic to say the least. Thankfully though, the film turned out incredibly well.
'It Happened One Night' also has a place in cinematic history for being the first film to win all 5 Oscars in the main categories, an achievement that was not equalled until 1975's 'One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest'. Some viewers today remark at how unlikely it would be for a romantic comedy these days to receive such an honour. That being said, it's not a film that is going to be forgotten any time soon, and it certainly should be seen.
After the opening credits (accompanied by some appealing theme music), we are introduced to Claudette Colbert's character of Ellie Andrews. She has locked herself in her room on a boat which belongs to her over-bearing father. He is threatening to annul her very recent marriage to 'King' Westley because he disapproves of him. After an argument develops, she jumps ship and swims for the shore, with the intent of going straight to New York to meet up with her new husband. While taking a bus trip to reach her destination, she encounters Peter Warne (played by Clark Gable), a newspaper reporter who eventually recognises her after seeing a front page story of her as a runaway. After he threatens to turn her in unless she stays with him in order to give him headline news, she reluctantly makes the cross country trip with him. Things don't always go to plan, which allow some humorous scenes, and there is an attraction that develops between the two. The question then, is who will she end up with by the time the film ends?
This is a film which deserves its status. Not only is it a wonderful, feel-good movie, it is great in all aspects of cinema, and has hardly dated a bit. The films energy and performances from all the cast keep the film from feeling stale, even after more than 70 years. The script is cleverly written with some truly laugh-out-loud moments. What makes this film even more remarkable, is the fact that few people involved in it, with the exception of Frank Capra, had much faith in it. Even the stars of the film, particularly Claudette Colbert, were unenthusiastic to say the least. Thankfully though, the film turned out incredibly well.
'It Happened One Night' also has a place in cinematic history for being the first film to win all 5 Oscars in the main categories, an achievement that was not equalled until 1975's 'One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest'. Some viewers today remark at how unlikely it would be for a romantic comedy these days to receive such an honour. That being said, it's not a film that is going to be forgotten any time soon, and it certainly should be seen.