The Awful Truth

THE AWFUL TRUTH (U)

D: Leo McCarey

Columbia (Leo McCarey)

USA 🇺🇸 1937

90 mins

Comedy

W: Viña Delmar [based on the play by Arthur Richman]

DP: Joseph Walker

Ed: Al Clark

Mus: Morris Stoloff; Ben Oakland & Milton Drake

Irene Dunne (Lucy Warriner), Cary Grant (Jerry Warriner), Ralph Bellamy (Dan Leeson), Alexander D'Arcy (Armand Duvalle), Cecil Cunningham (Aunt Patsy), Esther Dale (Mrs. Leeson)

Classic screwball comedy from the late 30's starring Cary Grant and Irene Dunne in top form as a married couple who decide to divorce for trivial reasons, and over custody of a dog plot to sabotage each other's subsequent chances at finding love elsewhere.

Very much a product of its time, swinging between a comedy of manners and irreverent farce, but it's still enjoyable as a classic of its day. Leo McCarey won an Oscar for direction, but it missed out on wins elsewhere. Grant is excellent with his usual act, but Irene Dunne is the real standout, and probably should have won for her Academy Award nomination.

8/10