By: Victoria Standeven

Irene Dunne and Cary Grant both give one of the finest performances of their careers as a married couple who decide to divorce then discover they are really meant for each other. We see two brilliant stars of the Golden Age of Hollywood, who both excelled at not only their films but were also giants in the screwball comedy genre. They produced excellent chemistry and worked together very well. The Awful Truth is a fantastic and funny film, and it is one of the best screwball comedies I have ever seen.

 

This is the first of three films starring Irene Dunne and Cary Grant(IMDb.COM). The other two were My Favorite Wife(1940) and Penny Serenade(1941) (IMDb.COM). My Favorite Wife is also a screwball comedy while Penny Serenade is a romantic melodrama and is also one of only two films where Cary Grant was nominated for an Oscar the other being None But the Lonely Heart(1944) (IMDb.COM). Cary Grant really shows off his brilliant comedic timing in this film, and Irene Dunne does too.

I would give this film an A because it’s funny, charming, and sophisticated.

This film was released in 1937 during the Depression, and specifically in those days if you went to the movies it was to escape reality. So while watching this I imagined that I was living during the Depression and that I was at the theater trying to take my mind off things. The film was nominated for six Oscars and won one for Leo McCarey as best director( IMDb.COM). Even though this film is in black and white and is 91 minutes long you should still watch it. Well, what are you waiting for? GO watch it!

 

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0028597/?ref_=ttpl_pl_tt