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Information
- Year
- 1942
- Runtime
- 88 min.
- Director
- Preston Sturges
- Genres
- Romance, Comedy
- Rating *
- 7.7
- Votes *
- 7,938
- Checks
- 3,078
- Favs
- 235
- Dislikes
- 29
- Favs/checks
- 7.6% (1:13)
- Favs/dislikes
- 8:1
Top comments
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Siskoid
Usually romcoms END with a madcap rush to the wedding chapel. The Palm Beach Story STARTS there then jumps ahead a few years to the make-or-break portion of the marriage. The superlative Claudette Colbert decides she has to leave her husband (Joel McCrea), whose ego is easily bruised, because she's a drain on his finances and the reason they can't make ends meet. She sets off on a journey, he'll try to follow, and hopefully they'll fall back in love by the end. Part of the absurdity is that every millionaire she meets wants to give her money (and there are a lot of them), like it's her superpower, and the first act is a bit haphazard in terms of plot before we get to the heart of it. The two leads are really the only two normal people in the piece. They're surrounded by comedy characters, some of which you'll find funny, others not (I think the movie is entirely too convinced Toto the Lothario from a vague country is hilarious, but he's not), and the quick 40s comedy patter is off the charts. Harmless fun, and that ridiculous ending had me slapping my knee until it bruised, with a loud "sure, why not!". 5 years 5 months ago -
mpouk
The sardonic wit of Preston Sturges is omnipresent in this superb screwball comedy. It vividly recreates a madcap world where sanity is the exception and where the central couple strives to reach a balance by redefining their relationship. Sturges cleverly de-constructs the genre conventions and undermines viewer's expectations, while at the same time creates brilliantly timed sequences like the one at the end where the moving ballad sung by one suitor leads to the unlikely reconciliation. 11 years 3 months ago
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In 14 official lists
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This movie ranks #75 in BBC's The 100 Greatest Comedies of All Time
BBC's The 100 Greatest C…
75 -
This movie ranks #75 in iCheckMovies's 1940s Top 100
iCheckMovies's 1940s Top…
75 -
This movie ranks #77 in AFI's 100 Years...100 Laughs
AFI's 100 Years...100 La…
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This movie ranks #153 in BFI's 360 Classic Feature Films Project
BFI's 360 Classic Featur…
153 -
This movie ranks #155 in 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die
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This movie ranks #216 in Jonathan Rosenbaum's Essential Cinema
Jonathan Rosenbaum's Ess…
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This movie ranks #268 in David Thomson's Have You Seen?
David Thomson's Have You…
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This movie ranks #299 in Empire's The 500 Greatest Movies of All Time
Empire's The 500 Greates…
299 -
This movie ranks #470 in TSPDT's 1,000 Greatest Films
TSPDT's 1,000 Greatest F…
470 -
This movie ranks #601 in Halliwell's Top 1000: The Ultimate Movie Countdown
Halliwell's Top 1000: Th…
601 -
This movie ranks #646 in The New York Times's Book of Movies
The New York Times's Boo…
646 -
This movie ranks #651 in Time Out's 1000 Films to Change Your Life
Time Out's 1000 Films to…
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This movie ranks #900 in The Criterion Collection
The Criterion Collection
900 -
This movie ranks #994 in Sight & Sound's The Greatest Films of All Time
Sight & Sound's The Grea…
994