I have heard a lot about this movie from various critics and in books, and after seeing it I'm not too impressed. To me it just seemed like a routine studio romantic comedy from the 30s or 40s. It didn't have a unique storyline or great ending. Even the "famous scene" was just Fonda lying on the floor looking stupid while Stanwyck tricks him into loving her. In fact I can barely remember the context of her speech let alone any funny/memorable lines from it (and i just watched the movie). Now I realize that modern taste in comedy is a lot different from what was considered funny back then; but movies like "Bringing up Baby" most of the Marx Bros. films and Abbott and Costello are all funnier to me then this. Fonda is especially bland and unfunny (oh wait, he's always bland and unfunny) in his role as the overly stupid wealthy bachelor. He trips over stuff but has no funny lines and is vanilla as per usual. Stanwyck is much better, and keeps things lively on her end. Also to the films credit the pace is quick and things move along. The movie wasn't horrible or anything like that, but I don't see why this particular movie became as famous as it did in front of any of the hundreds and hundreds of other studio releases from the same time period. If your video store still caries old vhs tapes why don't you try out this experiment...Rent The Lady Eve, and then rent like 3 other old comedies from the late 30s and early 40s. Then ask yourself, does this movie standout from the others; and if so why? If you answer "yes", come back here and explain it to me, I'd love to know why.
Zoopansick
Zoopansick