It Happened One Night (1934)

Peter Warne: "What makes you so disgustingly cheerful this morning?"

By Frank Capra
With Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert

As a movie among the IMDB top 250, I have wanted to see It Happened One Night for a while. I never got around to do it and I couldn't say why, a few months ago, I decided to watch it. I didn't however until tonight.

Rich heiress Ellen Andrews is detained on a boat on the coast of Miami by her father. The father doesn't want her to leave the boat because she just married an air pilot that he doesn't like. After negotiations that don't go well between father and daughter, she simply escapes by jumping off the boat. Penniless for the first time, Ellen finds herself in a bizarre situation. Peter Warne, a young journalist, hops on the same bus as Ellen but their journey to New York will be full of obstacles.

The movie really shines in its clever and comical dialogues. The character of Peter Warne is really witty and sarcastic which never fails to contrast with Ellie who tries to act in control of everything while she never had to care about anything. Peter's motivations are unclear and at first it seems he is only driven by the profit he can make off of the situation but we realize that they are both in fact quite lonely characters. Despite their many disagreements it is interesting to notice the chemistry develop.

Through accidents and strange situations we see them get closer and we end up with a full on romantic comedy. The romantic element only grows with the movie and doesn't feel forced down our throat like it often is in movies of the genre. If one reads the IMDb trivia, it is funny to realize how pretty much everyone involved felt like the movie was worthless and that it wouldn't work but it went on to win all the Oscars it was nominated for.

I can't say what the secret ingredient appears to be, it didn't appear to me clearly while watching the movie and I personally didn't feel like watching the best movie I ever witnessed, however, I have to say it was one of the greatest romantic comedies I've seen. The actors clash is maybe what remains the most as we have the clever, sharp looking charmer Clark Gable facing the always seen from her good profile, young and lost Claudette Colbert. Somehow it works and the metaphorical wall of Jericho falls between them. In many aspects, their penniless journey reminded me of any Chaplin movie involving the bum and his struggle to hop from here to there while using as little money as possible. It's a great trick that seems used a lot in old comedies and works still, to this day.

I liked : Clever dialogues, particularly in the first half when they meet and are really wary of each other. Proto-romantic-comedy.

I disliked : The singing scenes were pretty bad. Had its down times, especially with the investigation for Ellie.

81/100
I can't say it has a particularly special ingredient but it works through and through, you will be entertained and probably laugh quite a few times.