Alice Adams (1935)

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1. 

   Siskoid

   I mentioned this when I reviewed Sabrina, but the whole "social climbing romance" genre holds very few rewards for me. Alice Adams features a young Katharine Hepburn saying "Maaahvelous" and "Daahhling" a lot, a girl from the middle class trying to get in with the snobbish in-crowd, and I find I have a lot of trouble investing in such a story. Hepburn is such a snob herself for wanting that life, and so filled with self-loathing, that it's hard to fathom why Fred MacMurray's character would fall for her. He clearly rejects the elitism of the people in his class strata. Saddled with a Capra-esque glue patent subplot that's meant to support a fairy tale ending, the movie has nowhere to go once Alice realizes what we've known for at least an hour. Are we to understand the middle class could make it if only it would get out of its own way? Because that's the message of both the A and B plots. Oh, Alice can be very touching when she's feeling humiliated, but even with a strong performance, it's hard to sit there and WANT her to succeed. 5 years ago
2. 

   Camille Deadpan

   I don't like Alice (=Hepburn's performance as Alice). She is too much for me. But that speech to Mr. Lamb at the end was amazing. 10 years 7 months ago

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