Holiday (1938)

NOT AS GOOD AS I HAVE BEEN TOLD!

I'm sure in it's time this was a very good movie, but for me it took forever to get to the inevitable. The film is saved by good performances by Grant and Hepburn, but it's not enough to save this slow moving predictable romance movie. It's easy to love the idea that the young Grant has, of earning enough money to let him take some time off to see what he wants to do with his life as I have always tried to live my life in the same manner. Maybe I've seen so many films that this one just doesn't stand out?

I viewed this movie which was included in a box set with four other Grant pictures, I can only hope I enjoy the other more than this one, but the DVD transfer is very good and there are some interesting extras, so if your a fan look for the Cary Grant Box set. September 15, 2008

Not just a holiday, but a way of life

For a film that just turned 70 years old, "Holiday" is remarkably timely. The question of what to do with your life, whether there's more to it than just making money & accruing power & status, resonates all the more in contemporary times. Everywhere the emphasis is on getting more, More, MORE!

And for what?

That's what Johnny Case (a young Cary Grant at his most charming & energetic) is wondering as the story begins. Not averse to hard work & making enough to live on, he's thinking beyond that, wanting to use his money as the means to an end, rather than as an end in itself. And he assumes that his brand-new fiancée Julia (Doris Nolan), with whom he's head over heels in love, feels the same way ... until he meets her family, which just happens to be one of the richest in America. He soon discovers that something more mainstream is expected of someone with his financial acumen.

But Julia's siblings Linda (a scintillating Katherine Hepburn) & Ned (an equally good Lew Ayres) agree with Johnny's notion of a "holiday," making enough to live on for a couple of years while he sorts out his life, discovers what it is he really wants. As do his eccentric friends Nick & Susan Potter, played to a delicious turn by Edward Everett Horton & Jean Dixon. Still, he loves Julia, and wants to work out some sort of reasonable compromise ... even as he begins falling for Linda, and vice-versa.

It's the all too relevant dilemma of living in a society that glorifies, even deifies wealth. What is Johnny to do? How much of his personal dream should he, can he put aside for the sake of his intended wife & her family? What are his obligations to use his talents? What does he owe himself? In many ways, he's a close cousin to Tyrone Power's Larry Darrell in "The Razor's Edge."

These questions wouldn't be out of place in any American household today, especially for someone fresh out of college, just beginning a career. Is the goal of life a McMansion, a Hummer, a wall-sized plasma TV? Or is there more to life than that, something more meaningful & satisfying, even though scorned by the majority?

And note the attitudes of Julia's cousins at the big party, snobbish & arrogant & verging on fascist. To them, society belongs to a handful of the very wealthy, superior to the mere masses, who exist solely to serve their masters. Which might remind more than a few viewers of the people currently running & devouring America right now.

It's a film rich with food for thought -- but never at the expense of entertainment, which makes it even better. The acting is uniformly wonderful, and the banter is witty as only dialogue from the classic era of film can be. Yet after the credits have rolled, and the smile still lingers on your face, you'll find yourself thinking about the film's deeper message. Most highly recommended! August 19, 2008

holiday

this is one of my favorite hepburn/grant movie...they are comic time sets up the rest of their on screen chemistry April 13, 2008

Wonderful Movie

This is a surprising movie...the emotions you feel in this is surprising...after watching this for the first time several years ago I knew I had to have this --- so will anyone who sees this movie..a must have! April 6, 2008

My favorite movie of all time.

It's a love story, a comedy, a drama all wrapped into one. Cary Grant and Katherine Hepburn had a terrific chemistry. I will not go into the plot since I see other reviews have already, but buy this movie! You will not be disappointed. Truly a classic to watch over and over. April 6, 2008

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