It Happened One Night (1934)
A runaway heiress makes a deal with the rogue reporter trailing her but the mismatched pair end up stuck with each other when their bus leaves them behind.
- Frank Capra
- Charles C. Coleman
- Robert Riskin
- Samuel Hopkins Adams
Rating: 7.8/10 by 1237 users
Alternative Title:
Night Bus - US
Uma Noite Aconteceu - PT
어느날 밤에 생긴 일 - KR
Tapahtuipa eräänä yönä - FI
Lo que sucedió aquella noche - AR
어느 날 밤에 생긴 일 - KR
或る夜の出来事：1934 - JP
Sucedió una noche - ES
Bir Gecədə Oldu - AZ
一夜風流 - TW
어느날밤에생긴일 - KR
어느날 밤에 생긴일 - KR
New York - Miami - FR
Country:
United States of America
Language:
English
Runtime: 01 hour 45 minutes
Budget: $325,000
Revenue: $4,500,000
Plot Keyword: newspaper, miami, florida, marriage, reporter, black and white, screwball comedy, socialite, pre-code, based on short story, screwball, hitchhiking, road movie, rich girl, brat, trains
A classical comedy which would be setting some standards with great performance from Clark Gable.
Made nearly 90 years ago and still fun to watch. Sarcastic, witty, and entertaining. "Mind if I tried? ... You? Don't make me laugh."
Claudette Colbert is great as the independently-minded heiress "Ellie" who jumps from her father's yacht and finds herself, nigh-on penniless, on a bus to New York. Also angling for that last seat on the bus is the roguish "Warne" (Clark Gable) - a journalist with a nose for a good story. Determined to track her down, her father uses his media empire and soon her photo is all over the press. This doesn't go unnoticed by the shrewd "Warne", who soon reckons her story is worth a load of cash to his editor. What neither reckon on though, is that their initial hostility/indifference to each other gradually morphs into something - well, yes, you can guess that bit. Indeed, the story itself has a degree of predictability to it - but that doesn't matter here. This is a quickly paced, well written comedy drama that utilises the intimacy of the bus (or the motels) to provide an excellent vehicle for two actors who just exude a joyous chemistry - never a romantic, or sentimental one - as they try to stay one step ahead of the blokes sent by her father to return her to safety and to her affianced "King Wesley" (Jameson Thomas) who is the latest cause of the familial discord (her father loathes this opportunist fellow). Tables are turned and turned again as each try to outmanoeuvre the other - with Walter Connolly turning in quite an engaging performance as the dad who also knows there is more than one way to skin a cat. This might be my favourite Gable outing - he had a lovely smile and glint in his eye for comedy parts when he was enjoying himself and Colbert is also at the top of her game for a thoroughly enjoyable and spirited look at human nature and bloody-mindedness.
