Hawks’s perennial theme of sexual role reversal was never more literal, and the bleak, cynical side of his humor rarely more blatant, than in this farce of bureaucratic frustration. Amid the rubble of postwar Germany, French army captain Cary Grant and American lieutenant Ann Sheridan argue their way into a romance based on what Sheridan diagnoses as “sex antagonism.” What ensues is all antagonism and no sex: thanks to the U.S. government, their wedding night is delayed indefinitely. After a cumulative series of humiliations, the alarming sight of Grant in a skirt and a horsetail wig consummates the comedy. Juliet Clark
Written by Charles Lederer, Leonard Spigelgass, Hagar Wilde, from a story by Henri Rochard. Photographed by Norbert Brodine, Osmond H. Borrodaile. With Cary Grant, Ann Sheridan, William Neff, Eugene Gericke. (105 mins, B&W, 35mm, From BFI/NFTVA, permission 20th Century Fox)
(In conjunction with) Howard Hawks: The Measure of Man
“What one loves most about Hawks, finally, is the aliveness of so many of his people.”—Robin Wood
This series, which began in January and continues through mid-April, celebrates the work of one of the most-loved directors of classical Hollywood cinema, Howard Hawks (1896–1977). Our second installment of films includes many of his best works from the forties, fifties, and sixties, such as To Have and Have Not and The Big Sleep, both starring Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall, and three masterful Westerns: Red River, often cited as one of the finest Westerns from the forties; Rio Bravo, a favorite of many leading critics and filmmakers; and the late-period El Dorado. We also present several restored and studio vault prints of Hawks’s most liberating comedies, including Ball of Fire, with an ensemble cast led by Barbara Stanwyck and Gary Cooper; I Was a Male War Bride, featuring Cary Grant and Ann Sheridan; Monkey Business with Cary Grant and Ginger Rogers; plus the gaudy and glorious classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, starring Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell.
Hawks’s oeuvre has had and continues to have a broad influence on the history of cinema, in large part because of the remarkable unity of his style. We are grateful to the many studios and archives that have generously loaned 35mm prints for this major retrospective.
Susan Oxtoby, Senior Film Curator
Howard Hawks: The Measure of Man is timed to coincide with a UC Berkeley undergraduate course on Hawks taught by Marilyn Fabe of the Department of Film and Media. We wish to thank the following individuals and institutions for their assistance with this major retrospective: Regina Schlagnitweit, Austrian Film Museum; Rob Stone, Library of Congress; Anne Morra and Mary Keene, The Museum of Modern Art; Daniel Bish, George Eastman House; Todd Wiener and Steven Hill, UCLA Film and Television Archive; May Haduong, Academy Film Archive; Fleur Buckley, BFI/NFTVA; George Watson, BFI Distribution; Kristen MacDonald, Film Reference Library, TIFF Bell Lightbox; Grover Crisp, Sony Pictures; Paul Ginsburg, Universal; Caitlin Robertson, 20th Century Fox; Kent Youngblood, MGM; and Marilee Womack, Warner Bros. Archival and restored prints presented with support from the Packard Humanities Institute.
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Youth (17 & under
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