Complete credited cast: | |||
Cary Grant | ... | C. K. Dexter Haven | |
Katharine Hepburn | ... | Tracy Lord | |
James Stewart | ... | Macaulay Connor | |
Ruth Hussey | ... | Elizabeth Imbrie | |
John Howard | ... | George Kittredge | |
Roland Young | ... | Uncle Willie | |
John Halliday | ... | Seth Lord | |
Mary Nash | ... | Margaret Lord | |
Virginia Weidler | ... | Dinah Lord | |
Henry Daniell | ... | Sidney Kidd | |
Lionel Pape | ... | Edward | |
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Rex Evans | ... | Thomas |
Philadelphia socialites Tracy Lord and C.K. Dexter Haven married impulsively, with their marriage and subsequent divorce being equally passionate. They broke up when Dexter's drinking became excessive, it a mechanism to cope with Tracy's unforgiving manner to the imperfect, imperfections which Dexter admits he readily has. Two years after their break-up, Tracy is about to remarry, the ceremony to take place at the Lord mansion. Tracy's bridegroom is nouveau riche businessman and aspiring politician George Kittredge, who is otherwise a rather ordinary man and who idolizes Tracy. The day before the wedding, three unexpected guests show up at the Lord mansion: Macaulay Connor (Mike to his friends), Elizabeth Imbrie - the two who are friends of Tracy's absent brother, Junius- and Dexter himself. Dexter, an employee of the tabloid Spy magazine, made a deal with its publisher and editor Sidney Kidd to get a story on Tracy's wedding - the wedding of the year - in return for Kidd not ... Written by Huggo
Firstly, let me say, that I love Kate Hepburn. She's my favourite actress, and in my opinion, she can do no wrong. For this reason, I'd probably give a good rating to every movie she made.
But 'The Philadelphia Story' really does deserve wonderful praise. It's by far the most sophisticated, and in my opinion, the greatest comedy ever made, one of Kate's greatest roles. She's absolutely hilarious as Tracy Lord, bringing perfection to the role she created on the stage a year before the film, mocking, insulting and making fun out of Jimmy Stewart and Cary Grant.
Her drunken scene with Stewart is pure magic and her mockery of him ('dear professor') is wonderful.
Grant and Stewart are fabulous, Stewart as the rough and tumble reporter infatuated with Tracy and Grant as the neglected ex- husband.
Ruth Hussey and Virginia Weidler are fantastic in supporting roles, and really add to the hilarity of the whole picture.
A funny, bouyant ride through the 1940's- I completely recommend it!