The world of screwball comedy exploded in 1936 with such memorable entries as "Libeled Lady", "Theodora Goes Wild" and "My Man Godfrey", having been launched several years before with such classics as "Twentieth Century", "It Happened One Night" and "The Thin Man". Certain stars became synonymous with screwball comedy, and two of the most popular were William Powell and Carole Lombard. Once married, these two geniuses remained close friends, and so when the opportunity came for them to work together again in "My Man Godfrey", they jumped at the chance. Even if they had hated each other, looking at the script might have changed their mind in turning it down.
When snooty socialite Gail Patrick tries to get "forgotten man" William Powell to come back to a Park Avenue shindig with her to help her win first prize, he retaliates by pushing her in an ash pile. Witness Carole Lombard (Patrick's daffy sister) convinces Powell to help her win, and before you know it, Powell has been hired as the eccentric family's new butler. He has no idea of what he's gotten himself into, between mother Alice Brady's vision of "pixies" ("Don't step on the little things", she insists), father Eugene Palette's constant grumbling over increasing expenses and dwindling profits, Patrick's temper tantrums and Lombard's extreme attempts to win Powell's affection. Then, there's Brady's "protegee", Mischa Auer, a stupid man with little human value whose one talent is imitating a gorilla, the wise-cracking maid (Jean Dixon) and a visiting millionaire (Alan Mowbray) who knows certain truths about Powell which threatens to blow his real identity out of the Fifth Avenue mansion.
Excellent from start to finish, "My Man Godfrey" is sure to be on everybody's top five list of the best screwball comedies ever made and in the top 25 of the funniest films ever made. The New York social scene of the 1930's is shown as ridiculous and spoiled, with the scavenger hunt one of the funniest crowd scenes in films. Franklin Pangborn is outrageous as the frazzled host, perplexed one minute then delighted another with the odd objects these silly and basically worthless wealthy people bring in.
There's a lesson to be told here, that money doesn't buy happiness (or even rent it for that matter), that spoiled people won't always get what they want, and that lazy hangers-on will get the heave-ho when it's time to go. Everybody here has a chance to shine in a screenplay that is a gem from start to finish. Lombard is one of the few 1930's actresses who seems totally modern, as if she was Drew Barrymore transplanted back in time to stand out among the typical 30's Hollywood glamour. No matter how silly or serious the characters she played, she is someone that few people could find any reason to dislike. Powell went from villain to romantic leading man to comic gem, and in a few moments here, he truly can break your heart. Alice Brady plays a character truly blinded by her dimwiteddness, someone who truly thinks she's smart but is obviously fooling herself. Palette has a memorable explosion at his no-good family, while Patrick particularly stands out in a scene where she suddenly wakes up and sees the truth.
This is the type of film that makes you long for those good old days of Hollywood glamour where intelligent writing, strong direction, lavish production values and brilliant acting all come together in one neat package. There is a reason why some films stand the test of time more than others, and "My Man Godfrey" is a prime example of one of those films.
When snooty socialite Gail Patrick tries to get "forgotten man" William Powell to come back to a Park Avenue shindig with her to help her win first prize, he retaliates by pushing her in an ash pile. Witness Carole Lombard (Patrick's daffy sister) convinces Powell to help her win, and before you know it, Powell has been hired as the eccentric family's new butler. He has no idea of what he's gotten himself into, between mother Alice Brady's vision of "pixies" ("Don't step on the little things", she insists), father Eugene Palette's constant grumbling over increasing expenses and dwindling profits, Patrick's temper tantrums and Lombard's extreme attempts to win Powell's affection. Then, there's Brady's "protegee", Mischa Auer, a stupid man with little human value whose one talent is imitating a gorilla, the wise-cracking maid (Jean Dixon) and a visiting millionaire (Alan Mowbray) who knows certain truths about Powell which threatens to blow his real identity out of the Fifth Avenue mansion.
Excellent from start to finish, "My Man Godfrey" is sure to be on everybody's top five list of the best screwball comedies ever made and in the top 25 of the funniest films ever made. The New York social scene of the 1930's is shown as ridiculous and spoiled, with the scavenger hunt one of the funniest crowd scenes in films. Franklin Pangborn is outrageous as the frazzled host, perplexed one minute then delighted another with the odd objects these silly and basically worthless wealthy people bring in.
There's a lesson to be told here, that money doesn't buy happiness (or even rent it for that matter), that spoiled people won't always get what they want, and that lazy hangers-on will get the heave-ho when it's time to go. Everybody here has a chance to shine in a screenplay that is a gem from start to finish. Lombard is one of the few 1930's actresses who seems totally modern, as if she was Drew Barrymore transplanted back in time to stand out among the typical 30's Hollywood glamour. No matter how silly or serious the characters she played, she is someone that few people could find any reason to dislike. Powell went from villain to romantic leading man to comic gem, and in a few moments here, he truly can break your heart. Alice Brady plays a character truly blinded by her dimwiteddness, someone who truly thinks she's smart but is obviously fooling herself. Palette has a memorable explosion at his no-good family, while Patrick particularly stands out in a scene where she suddenly wakes up and sees the truth.
This is the type of film that makes you long for those good old days of Hollywood glamour where intelligent writing, strong direction, lavish production values and brilliant acting all come together in one neat package. There is a reason why some films stand the test of time more than others, and "My Man Godfrey" is a prime example of one of those films.