The town's still talking...

Last Wednesday, CineVerse shone the light on "Talk of the Town" starring Cary Grant, Jean Arthur and Ronald Coleman. For even more illuminating angles on this classic Hollywood flick, read on:

TALK OF THE TOWN IS OFTEN PLACED IN THE SCREWBALL COMEDY SUBGENRE. HOW IS IT DIFFERENT FROM MANY OTHER SCREWBALL COMEDIES, HOWEVER?

·       It can be very serious at times, such as the opening scenes depicting Dilg’s arrest, imprisonment and escape; tonally, it shifts between being a dark drama to a lighthearted romantic comedy to a social issues type of film

·       This melding of the heavy and the light, the serious and the comedic, is endemic of social themed pictures and “message movies” that were gaining prominence at this time, including:

o   The Grapes of Wrath, How Green Was My Valley, Mrs. Miniver, The Lost Weekend, and Gentlemen’s Agreement

·       It plays as more of a classic comedic romantic triangle film than a traditional screwball comedy that showcases a battle of the sexes or a comeuppance of the rich

·       Yet, interestingly, the romantic angle of the film is underplayed; do you really feel any chemistry between Jean Arthur and Coleman or Grant? Are the romantic triangle elements really given ample screen time to gel?

WHAT IS THE SOCIAL ISSUE THIS MOVIE TACKLES?

·       The conflict between doing what’s right within the boundaries of the law and doing what’s morally right and just, as exemplified in Lightcap’s dilemma of whether or not and how to protect Dilg

·       What does Lightcap represent, and who are his antagonists?

o   He symbolizes the noble in their fight against the corrupt and unjust

o   These antagonists are embodied in people like the foreman, the small-town big shot, and the manicurist—fairly small fry figures compared to evil incarnate villains in other social themed movies and message pictures

THE TALK OF THE TOWN BEARS SOME SIMILARITIES TO THE POPULIST FILMS OF FRANK CAPRA. WHAT ARE THE LIKENESSES AND DIFFERENCES THAT YOU CAN SEE?

o   Capra fomented public dissent in his movies by pitting an everyman underdog against powerful forces of corruption and greed

o   Capra also championed “the little man” and his ability to come to the rescue of the embattled hero in the form of an altruistic mob populated by goodhearted but not-too-intelligent people who portray adorable character qualities

o   Like other Capra movies, this film contains a smart, resourceful female lead who has to come to the aid of a more dependent male character—just as characters played by Jean Arthur and Barbara Stanwyck did in Capra features.

SOME HAVE THEORIZED THAT THERE IS A GAY SUBTEXT TO THE TALK OF THE TOWN, AS DEMONSTRATED BY THE DIALOGUE AND BEHAVIORS OF SOME OF THE MALE CHARACTERS. CAN YOU CITE ANY EXAMPLES?

o   Lightcap is shown as an asexual single male who is trying to appear more youthful and masculine by wearing a beard; the word “beard” carried gay connotations by the 1960s, meaning a gay man’s female companion or cover.

o   Lightcap has a strangely tight relationship with Tilney, his hired man, who weeps openly when Lightcap shaves off his beard to attract a woman

o   Consider the double entendres and suggestive dialogue, such as when Dilg tries to get Lightcap to stop the car; Lightcap declines, saying, “I’ll have to be firm,” to which Dilg says “I’ll just have to pull your brake.”

o   Consider Grant’s body language: the sideways glances and curious facial expressions.

OTHER FILMS BY GEORGE STEVENS

·       Swing Time

·       Gunga Din

·       Woman of the Year

·       A Place in the Sun

·       Shane

·       Giant

·       The Diary of Anne Frank

·       The Greatest Story Ever Told