The art in film history: Frank Capra’s grand slam at the Oscar’s
Picture a girl in a high-society position running away from the pressures of even higher expectations — a sort of rebellious act.
Along the way of figuring out her next step, she meets a boy whom she despises at first but falls in love with after getting to know him. Then, plot twist — you find out he was sent to protect her or has another hidden agenda the entire time. Sound familiar?
That’s because it’s been done. Over and over and over.
Despite this common plot being more of a nuisance rather than entertainment to me, I can appreciate and love the movie that started this successful trend. Director Frank Capra introduced this plot to the world in his 1934 “It Happened One Night” — the first film to win Best Picture, Best Actor and Best Actress in Oscar history.
Unlike previous films I’ve written on, this one, finally, has a sound element to it, and boy is it worth it.
Considered the first screwball comedy in history, the film is about a girl who escapes from her rich and powerful father by running away on the first bus she can catch to New York. There, her boyfriend, who her dad hates, is waiting for her.
Along the way she has no idea what she is doing and appears out of her element, causing a journalist who is looking to salvage his career with a story, to take notice. The rest of the film, as you can imagine, is the reluctant relationship of the two. Both have different goals but end up liking each other anyway.
Now, don’t get me wrong, I still really enjoyed this film. Although made in the 1930s, the humor is still relevant today with the goofy characters and the ignorance of the rich girl.
The main reason I love this film, however, is because of Clark Gable. Most people would recognize this name as the man who owned the screen in “Gone With the Wind” as Rhett Butler, but it was “It Happened One Night” that sent his career to the stars. Gable was one of the rare actors in Hollywood who generally worked hard for his career, became successful and remained humble throughout.
The film was made on an estimated $325,000 budget, a large amount for that time period.
Poor Capra had to beg Gable and up Claudette Colbert’s salary just to get the ball rolling on the production. In the film, the two stars had to get undressed in front of the camera, which was a big deal during that time. Although they never strip down to their birthday suits, it was uncommon to see a man’s undershirt and women’s under-dress onscreen.
There is also a sexual innuendo referring to the christian Bible’s the walls of Jericho, but I won’t give that away. You’ll have to watch it to find out.
This film has been marked down in history for its winnings at the Oscars. It was the first movie in history to take on three categories winning both Best Actor and Best Actress, which is a rare occurrence for films, even today.
It is also known as both Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin’s favorite film, according to William L. Shirer’s “Berlin Diary,” making it an international success.
So, yes, the plot line is recognizable to anyone who loves movies and has seen many in their life, also like me. But with the mix of the romantic comedy and the lead actor Clark Cable, this continues to be one of my favorite comedies of all time — definitely worth watching.
