Arsenic And Old Lace
by Frank Capra
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Product details
Actor: Cary Grant, Jack Carson, James Gleason, Peter Lorre, Raymond MasseyDirector: Frank Capra
Edition: VHS Tape
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language)
Format: Black & White, Full Screen, HiFi Sound, NTSC
Running Time: 118 unknown-units
Published: 1984
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Publisher: CBS Fox Video
Studio: CBS Fox Video
VHS Movie Reviews of Arsenic And Old Lace
Movie Review: "What we've been doing is a mercy."
Summary: 5 Stars
Cary Grant is at his comic best in this off-the-wall Frank Capra film in which Grant plays Mortimer Brewster, a drama critic with a bizarre family. His brother Teddy (John Alexander) thinks he is Teddy Roosevelt and spends his time digging "locks for the Panama Canal" in the basement of the family home. His brother Jonathan (wonderfully played by Raymond Massey) has returned home with a dozen murders to his credit, looking like Frankenstein, thanks to the sinister plastic surgeon who accompanies him (Peter Lorre). His batty, elderly aunts (Jean Adair and Josephine Hull) put Teddy's "locks" to good use for their own "merciful" activities.
The frantic action, ironies, and the dramatic surprises all center around two bodies, hidden at various times in the window seat of the living room, and the reactions to them by the various people within the household. The local police, friends of Aunts Abby and Martha, stop by to chat, have coffee, and protect these "sweet" old ladies, often at the worst possible moments, while Mortimer tries to decide what to do about his strange family and the bodies in the house. Complicating the action is the fact that Mortimer has just that day married Elaine (Priscilla Lane), who lives next door. She keeps showing up at the house at the wrong moment, having no idea why Mortimer keeps kicking her out.
Sight gags, mistaken identity, contretemps, high-speed action, and split second timing make this one of the most outrageous, and hilarious black comedies ever filmed. The cast is perfect, and the acting is over-the-top, with a great deal of yelling, mugging, wide-eyed looks of surprise, feigned innocence, and even satire of the film industry as people repeatedly tell Jonathan he looks like Boris Karloff. Perfectly timed entrances and exits keep the action moving at a frantic pace, and the conclusion is delightful. Released in 1944, when World War II had taken a terrible toll on the country emotionally, the film must have provided a much-needed comic lift at a time when it was especially needed. Mary Whipple
Summary of Arsenic And Old Lace
The original CBS / Fox 1st edition uncut video release. (From the box): Sweet old Aunt Abby and Aunt Martha have an unusual recipie for entertaining their gentleman callers: it includes a generous helping of arsenic. As their nephew (Cary Grant) discovers, that's only one of their odd features of their cozy Brooklyn home. Macabre and hilarious, ARSENIC & OLD LACE is director Frank Capra's brilliant film adaptation of the hit Broadway play. It's hard to imagine a better-chosen cast. Josephine Hull and Jean Adair are unforgettably charming as the eccentric old murderesses. Co-stars Raymond Massey, Peter Lorree, John Alexander and James Gleason are almost as mad - and every bit as madcap - in their roles playing the other residents of this fascinating household. Cary Grant shines in one of his finest comic performances ever. (118 minutes)Frank Capra Video
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