← Back to Reviews
in
The Lady Eve (Preston Sturges, 1941)
Preston Sturges was a shining light in Hollywood movies as a writer-director from 1940 through 1944. He made good movies after 1944, and he wrote several good movies before 1940, but the period where Paramount Studios allowed him to direct his own scripts is a real watershed for screwball comedies in particular and film in general. It's difficult to actually categorize or put in some order the first seven films which Sturges made, but I can, at least, mention and recommend them all here and now (in chronological order). Sturges' first feature films as writer/director are The Great McGinty, Christmas in July, The Lady Eve, Sullivan's Travels, The Palm Beach Story, The Miracle of Morgan's Creek and Hail the Conquering Hero.
The Lady Eve does follow a certain Preston Sturges formula, although none of his films could ever be considered formulaic. Sturges is a master of blending what appears to be romantic drama with slapstick farce. The thing which really sets Sturges apart from many others working in screwball comedy is that all of his films are firmly rooted in reality, and if you pay attention, sometimes it seems that you should be crying just as much as you are laughing. Sturges has a wonderful way with words, but something which he deserves more credit for is his use of camerawork, sound, music, and editing. The superb thing about The Lady Eve is the incredible sexual chemistry between Barbara Stanwyck and Henry Fonda. She's playing a con artist, and he's a rich heir to an ale king who defines himself by saying things like "Snakes are my life!" Although the film is full of laugh-out-loud moments and allows the usually-serious Henry Fonda to be involved in as many slapstick scenes as an Abbott & Costello flick, what really carries this film is just how damn romantic it is.
I don't really want to get too far into the actual plot because it's really full of as many twists and turns as Fonda's snake Emma, which he brings with him from South America when he boards the passing ocean liner which also carries Stanwyck and her card sharp dad (Charles Coburn) in transit to New York City. Basically, the pair want to fleece the naive rich guy for all he's worth, but sex gets in the way. There are many discoveries, revelations, and changes of heart, so the further the film goes along, the zanier it gets. All of Sturges acting company are on board for this classic, but, as usual, kudos to William Demarest as Fonda's "bodyguard" who gets to say tons of funny lines, including the closer.
Preston Sturges was a shining light in Hollywood movies as a writer-director from 1940 through 1944. He made good movies after 1944, and he wrote several good movies before 1940, but the period where Paramount Studios allowed him to direct his own scripts is a real watershed for screwball comedies in particular and film in general. It's difficult to actually categorize or put in some order the first seven films which Sturges made, but I can, at least, mention and recommend them all here and now (in chronological order). Sturges' first feature films as writer/director are The Great McGinty, Christmas in July, The Lady Eve, Sullivan's Travels, The Palm Beach Story, The Miracle of Morgan's Creek and Hail the Conquering Hero.
The Lady Eve does follow a certain Preston Sturges formula, although none of his films could ever be considered formulaic. Sturges is a master of blending what appears to be romantic drama with slapstick farce. The thing which really sets Sturges apart from many others working in screwball comedy is that all of his films are firmly rooted in reality, and if you pay attention, sometimes it seems that you should be crying just as much as you are laughing. Sturges has a wonderful way with words, but something which he deserves more credit for is his use of camerawork, sound, music, and editing. The superb thing about The Lady Eve is the incredible sexual chemistry between Barbara Stanwyck and Henry Fonda. She's playing a con artist, and he's a rich heir to an ale king who defines himself by saying things like "Snakes are my life!" Although the film is full of laugh-out-loud moments and allows the usually-serious Henry Fonda to be involved in as many slapstick scenes as an Abbott & Costello flick, what really carries this film is just how damn romantic it is.
I don't really want to get too far into the actual plot because it's really full of as many twists and turns as Fonda's snake Emma, which he brings with him from South America when he boards the passing ocean liner which also carries Stanwyck and her card sharp dad (Charles Coburn) in transit to New York City. Basically, the pair want to fleece the naive rich guy for all he's worth, but sex gets in the way. There are many discoveries, revelations, and changes of heart, so the further the film goes along, the zanier it gets. All of Sturges acting company are on board for this classic, but, as usual, kudos to William Demarest as Fonda's "bodyguard" who gets to say tons of funny lines, including the closer.