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IMDbPro

The Talk of the Town

  • 19421942
  • ApprovedApproved
  • 1h 58m
IMDb RATING
7.5/10
8.3K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
3,321
10,003
Cary Grant, Jean Arthur, and Ronald Colman in The Talk of the Town (1942)
ComedyDramaRomance
An escaped prisoner has to prove his innocence to a stuffy law professor with the help of a spirited school teacher.An escaped prisoner has to prove his innocence to a stuffy law professor with the help of a spirited school teacher.An escaped prisoner has to prove his innocence to a stuffy law professor with the help of a spirited school teacher.
IMDb RATING
7.5/10
8.3K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
3,321
10,003
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Director
      • George Stevens
    • Writers
      • Irwin Shaw(screen play)
      • Sidney Buchman(screen play)
      • Dale Van Every(adaptation)
    • Stars
      • Cary Grant
      • Jean Arthur
      • Ronald Colman
    Top credits
    • Director
      • George Stevens
    • Writers
      • Irwin Shaw(screen play)
      • Sidney Buchman(screen play)
      • Dale Van Every(adaptation)
    • Stars
      • Cary Grant
      • Jean Arthur
      • Ronald Colman
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 93User reviews
    • 33Critic reviews
  • See production, box office & company info
    • Nominated for 7 Oscars
      • 7 nominations total

    Photos41

    Cary Grant, Jean Arthur, and Ronald Colman in The Talk of the Town (1942)
    Cary Grant, Jean Arthur, and Ronald Colman in The Talk of the Town (1942)
    Cary Grant in The Talk of the Town (1942)
    Jean Arthur, Lloyd Bridges, and Edgar Buchanan in The Talk of the Town (1942)
    Cary Grant and Jean Arthur in The Talk of the Town (1942)
    Cary Grant, Jean Arthur, and Ronald Colman in The Talk of the Town (1942)
    The Talk of the Town (1942)
    Jean Arthur in The Talk of the Town (1942)
    Cary Grant, Jean Arthur, and Ronald Colman in The Talk of the Town (1942)
    Jean Arthur and Ronald Colman in The Talk of the Town (1942)
    Cary Grant, Jean Arthur, and Ronald Colman in The Talk of the Town (1942)
    Jean Arthur in The Talk of the Town (1942)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Cary Grant
    Cary Grant
    • Leopold Dilg
    Jean Arthur
    Jean Arthur
    • Nora Shelley
    Ronald Colman
    Ronald Colman
    • Professor Michael Lightcap
    Edgar Buchanan
    Edgar Buchanan
    • Sam Yates
    Glenda Farrell
    Glenda Farrell
    • Regina Bush
    Charles Dingle
    Charles Dingle
    • Andrew Holmes
    Emma Dunn
    Emma Dunn
    • Mrs. Shelley
    Rex Ingram
    Rex Ingram
    • Tilney
    Leonid Kinskey
    Leonid Kinskey
    • Jan Pulaski
    Tom Tyler
    Tom Tyler
    • Clyde Bracken
    Don Beddoe
    Don Beddoe
    • Police Chief
    Sam Ash
    Sam Ash
    • Supreme Court Spectator
    • (uncredited)
    Dorothy Babb
    Dorothy Babb
    • Schoolgirl Noticing Beard
    • (uncredited)
    Georgia Backus
    Georgia Backus
    • Townswoman
    • (uncredited)
    Holger Bendixen
    • Townsman
    • (uncredited)
    William 'Billy' Benedict
    William 'Billy' Benedict
    • Western Union Boy
    • (uncredited)
    Ferike Boros
    Ferike Boros
    • Mrs. Pulaski
    • (uncredited)
    Al Bridge
    Al Bridge
    • Desk Sergeant
    • (uncredited)
    • Director
      • George Stevens
    • Writers
      • Irwin Shaw(screen play)
      • Sidney Buchman(screen play)
      • Dale Van Every(adaptation)
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      This was the first time since the silent era that Ronald Colman was billed below another male lead.
    • Goofs
      Following a torrential nighttime rainstorm, the dirt driveway and surrounding earth around the house are perfectly dry early the next morning.
    • Quotes

      Michael Lightcap: This is your law and your finest possession - it makes you free men in a free country. Why have you come here to destroy it? If you know what's good for you, take those weapons home and burn them! And then think... think of this country and of the law that makes it what it is. Think of a world crying for this very law! And maybe you'll understand why you ought to guard it. Why the law has got to be the personal concern of every citizen. To uphold it for your neighbor as well as yourself. Violence against it is one mistake. Another mistake is for any man to look upon the law as just a set of principles. And just so much language printed on fine, heavy paper. Something he recites and then leans back and takes it for granted that justice is automatically being done. Both kinds of men are equally wrong! The law must be engraved in our hearts and practiced every minute to the letter and spirit. It can't even exist unless we're willing to go down into the dust and blood and fight a battle every day of our lives to preserve it. For our neighbor as well as ourself!

    • Alternate versions
      The AMC television showing of this film omits the actual moment, shown in the complete version, in which 'Ronald Colman' is actually informed of his Supreme Court appointment.
    • Connections
      Featured in The Lady with the Torch (1999)
    • Soundtracks
      Jive Bomber
      (uncredited)

      Music by Lyle 'Spud' Murphy

    User reviews93

    Review
    Top review
    8/10
    Intelligent mix of comedy, romance, and drama
    A strong cast with two leading men, comedic moments, and intelligent commentary on justice in America all make this a very good film. Cary Grant is a man in jail in a small town on trumped up arson charges, and Ronald Colman is an eminent legal mind who is just arriving there to work on a book. Grant escapes to the home of his old friend Jean Arthur, and Colman shows up the same night to begin renting it from her. Grant is hidden away in the attic for awhile, but soon strikes up a friendship with Colman while pretending to be Arthur's gardener, and the pair engage in some interesting debates on justice and the law. Colman represents the viewpoint of the dispassionate letter of the law, while Grant cautions that such thought is too idealistic for the way justice is often administered. As a mob has been whipped up into a frenzy against him by the local corrupt businessman whose factory burned down, he ought to know.

    Grant and Colman are given equal chance to charm us and shine, and they do. Arthur more than keeps up them, delivering her lines so naturally, and she's delightful. The film keeps us guessing as to who she may end up with, as both men are attractive in their own way. I loved seeing a little bit of darkness and danger in Grant here, as well as moments of charm, such as when he widens his eye and assures Arthur that they won't recognize him from the photograph on a Wanted poster, because they hadn't captured his spirit.

    The film gets a little heavy-handed in some of its messaging as the film plays out, but I was swayed by just how relevant it is in the times of today's populism. The danger of the mob being manipulated by someone who is corrupt (how can one not think of 'lock her up' while watching that today?), the danger of rushing to judgment instead of listening to the facts and the evidence, and the need to fight for principles were certainly appropriate in 1942, but they're also timeless. Rex Ingram is strong as Colman's servant, including a moment where he gets choked up watching Colman shave off his beard. It seemed a rather odd to me at the time, but since it means Colman is going to fight for justice in this particular case, going against the mob, it may be that Ingram relates this to countless mobs lynching African-Americans, with no one standing up for them.

    The film has a few moments where you have to suspend disbelief, but I enjoyed it for its intelligence, and added dimension to what otherwise would have been a standard comedy or romantic comedy. It's a film that will charm you one moment, and make you think the next, and that's not bad.

    Here's a quote from Colman's speech to the mob: "This is your law and your finest possession - it makes you free men in a free country. Why have you come here to destroy it? If you know what's good for you, take those weapons home and burn them! And then think... think of this country and of the law that makes it what it is. Think of a world crying for this very law! And maybe you'll understand why you ought to guard it. Why the law has got to be the personal concern of every citizen. To uphold it for your neighbor as well as yourself. Violence against it is one mistake. Another mistake is for any man to look upon the law as just a set of principles. And just so much language printed on fine, heavy paper. Something he recites and then leans back and takes it for granted that justice is automatically being done. Both kinds of men are equally wrong! The law must be engraved in our hearts and practiced every minute to the letter and spirit. It can't even exist unless we're willing to go down into the dust and blood and fight a battle every day of our lives to preserve it. For our neighbor as well as ourself!"

    Hallelujah.
    helpful•7
    1
    • gbill-74877
    • May 25, 2018

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • August 20, 1942 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • George Stevens' The Talk of the Town
    • Filming locations
      • Supreme Court Building - First & Capitol Streets NE, Washington, District of Columbia, USA
    • Production company
      • Columbia Pictures
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $1,000,000 (estimated)
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 58 minutes
    • Color
      • Black and White
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.37 : 1

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