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IMDbPro

Arsenic and Old Lace

  • 19431943
  • Not RatedNot Rated
  • 1h 58m
IMDb RATING
7.9/10
70K
YOUR RATING
Cary Grant and Priscilla Lane in Arsenic and Old Lace (1943)
Watch ’Trailer’
Play trailer2:50
2 Videos
93 Photos
  • Comedy
  • Crime
  • Thriller
A Brooklyn writer of books on the futility of marriage risks his reputation when he decides to tie the knot. Things get even more complicated when he learns on his wedding day that his belov... Read allA Brooklyn writer of books on the futility of marriage risks his reputation when he decides to tie the knot. Things get even more complicated when he learns on his wedding day that his beloved maiden aunts are habitual murderers.A Brooklyn writer of books on the futility of marriage risks his reputation when he decides to tie the knot. Things get even more complicated when he learns on his wedding day that his beloved maiden aunts are habitual murderers.
IMDb RATING
7.9/10
70K
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Frank Capra
  • Writers
    • Julius J. Epstein(screen play)
    • Philip G. Epstein(screen play)
    • Joseph Kesselring(play)
  • Stars
    • Cary Grant
    • Priscilla Lane
    • Raymond Massey
Top credits
  • Director
    • Frank Capra
  • Writers
    • Julius J. Epstein(screen play)
    • Philip G. Epstein(screen play)
    • Joseph Kesselring(play)
  • Stars
    • Cary Grant
    • Priscilla Lane
    • Raymond Massey
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 302User reviews
    • 55Critic reviews
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 1 nomination

    Videos2

    Trailer
    Trailer 2:50
    Trailer
    Official Trailer
    Trailer 2:50
    Official Trailer

    Photos93

    Edward Everett Horton, Jean Adair, and Josephine Hull in Arsenic and Old Lace (1943)
    Peter Lorre, John Alexander, and Raymond Massey in Arsenic and Old Lace (1943)
    Cary Grant and Priscilla Lane in Arsenic and Old Lace (1943)
    Cary Grant, Jean Adair, and Josephine Hull in Arsenic and Old Lace (1943)
    Cary Grant and Priscilla Lane in Arsenic and Old Lace (1943)
    Cary Grant, Peter Lorre, and Raymond Massey in Arsenic and Old Lace (1943)
    Cary Grant, Jean Adair, and Josephine Hull in Arsenic and Old Lace (1943)
    Cary Grant, Jean Adair, and Josephine Hull in Arsenic and Old Lace (1943)
    Jean Adair, John Alexander, and Josephine Hull in Arsenic and Old Lace (1943)
    Cary Grant, Jean Adair, Josephine Hull, and Priscilla Lane in Arsenic and Old Lace (1943)
    Cary Grant and Priscilla Lane in Arsenic and Old Lace (1943)
    Cary Grant, Jean Adair, and Josephine Hull in Arsenic and Old Lace (1943)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Cary Grant
    Cary Grant
    • Mortimer Brewster
    Priscilla Lane
    Priscilla Lane
    • Elaine Harper
    Raymond Massey
    Raymond Massey
    • Jonathan Brewster
    Jack Carson
    Jack Carson
    • O'Hara
    Edward Everett Horton
    Edward Everett Horton
    • Mr. Witherspoon
    Peter Lorre
    Peter Lorre
    • Dr. Einstein
    James Gleason
    James Gleason
    • Police Lt. Rooney
    Josephine Hull
    Josephine Hull
    • Abby Brewster
    Jean Adair
    Jean Adair
    • Martha Brewster
    John Alexander
    John Alexander
    • 'Teddy Roosevelt' Brewster
    Grant Mitchell
    Grant Mitchell
    • Reverend Harper
    Edward McNamara
    • Brophy
    Garry Owen
    Garry Owen
    • Taxi Cab Driver
    John Ridgely
    John Ridgely
    • Saunders
    Vaughan Glaser
    • Judge Cullman
    Chester Clute
    Chester Clute
    • Dr. Gilchrist
    Charles Lane
    Charles Lane
    • Reporter
    Edward McWade
    Edward McWade
    • Gibbs
    • Director
      • Frank Capra
    • Writers
      • Julius J. Epstein(screen play)
      • Philip G. Epstein(screen play)
      • Joseph Kesselring(play)
    • All cast & crew
    • See more cast details at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Cary Grant's (birth name), Archie Leach appears on a tombstone in the cemetery near the Brewster's house. In Grant's earlier picture, His Girl Friday (1940), his character, Walter, responded to a threat by saying 'listen, the last man that said that to me was Archie Leach, just a week before he cut his throat'. As a gag, the 'departed' Mr. Leach was apparently interred in the Brooklyn cemetery by the Brewster's home.
    • Goofs
      The movie opens with the Brooklyn Dodgers winning a baseball game on Halloween, weeks after the end of baseball season. This is a gag to suggest that the only time the Brooklyn Dodgers could win is on Halloween, similar to saying when pigs fly.
    • Quotes

      Mortimer Brewster: Look I probably should have told you this before but you see... well... insanity runs in my family... It practically gallops.

    • Crazy credits
      This is a Hallowe'en tale of Brooklyn, where anything can happen -- and it usually does. At 3 P.M. on this particular day, this was happening. [Scene of Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Yankees baseball game, irate fans and brouhaha between teams on the field, then...] While at the same time across the river in the UNITED STATES PROPER there was romance in the air. [Scene of cruise ship on the river with NY City skyline in the background, then...] And now, back to one of Brooklyn's most charming residential districts -- [Scene of old gabled Brewster house next to a cemetery, then...] -- From here on you're on your own.
    • Alternate versions
      Also available in a computer colorized version.
    • Connections
      Featured in The 42nd Annual Academy Awards (1970)
    • Soundtracks
      There Is a Happy Land
      (uncredited)

      Music by Leonard P. Breedlove

      Arranged by Max Steiner

      [quoted in score]

    User reviews302

    Review
    Top review
    9/10
    "I'm the Son of a Sea Cook!"
    In Frank Capra's autobiography he explains that the reason he wanted to do Arsenic and Old Lace was that he was planning to go into the service, in preparation for the war he was sure coming. He wanted a surefire moneymaking hit that could be done on the cheap.

    Arsenic and Old Lace was running on Broadway at the time and authors Howard Lindsay and Russell Crouse had sold the film rights to Warner Brothers. Capra negotiated a deal with Jack Warner for a percentage and told him how he would do the film on the cheap, but not cut production values. Years of experience at Columbia had taught him how. The property was perfect since 90% of it is on one set, the Brewster living room.

    So the shooting was for four weeks and a big percentage of the budget was spent on getting a name star for guaranteed box office, that of course being Cary Grant. Of course this being 1941 the shooting was interrupted briefly by the actual attack on Pearl Harbor. But the film wrapped up quickly and was not released to the public until 1944 after the show on Broadway closed. It was however shown to troops overseas as were several other Hollywood films before they reached the domestic market.

    Of course with a Capra selected cast the film was a great triumph. Only Jean Adair and Josephine Hull as the Brewster sisters and John Alexander as "Theodore Roosevelt" Brewster repeated their Broadway roles. Capra had insisted on that.

    I don't think Cary Grant was ever more frantic in his film career than in Arsenic and Old Lace. He's one bundle of perpetual motion as Mortimer Brewster theater critic and member of a family where insanity doesn't just run, it gallops. He's got two daffy old spinster aunts who poison lonely old men to cure their loneliness, a brother who thinks he's Teddy Roosevelt, and another brother who is a homicidal maniac. Quite a family tree. Grant's performance is so good, you can see the fevered workings of his mind in his facial expressions as he frantically tries to get his whole family committed before the aunt's deeds are discovered.

    Of the supporting cast I think that Raymond Massey as the homicidal brother, Peter Lorre as his sidekick, and Jack Carson as the dense police officer truly stand out. They and the others play parts that seem tailor made for them.

    Over fifty years later, Arsenic and Old Lace will still fracture the funny bone in you.

    And I wouldn't bet we've still not seen the last Roosevelt in the White House.
    helpful•58
    8
    • bkoganbing
    • Nov 21, 2005

    FAQ10

    • Is 'Arsenic and Old Lace' based on a book?
    • Where does the title come from?
    • How closely does the movie follow the play?

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • September 21, 1944 (Uruguay)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Languages
      • English
      • German
    • Also known as
      • Frank Capra's 'Arsenic and Old Lace'
    • Filming locations
      • Stage 19, Warner Brothers Burbank Studios - 4000 Warner Boulevard, Burbank, California, USA
    • Production company
      • Warner Bros.
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $1,164,000 (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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