Film Excess - Free Ukraine - Stop Putin - End the war NOW!!: The Front Page (1974) - Wilder's hilarious Chicago newspaper comedy

5/03/2018

The Front Page (1974) - Wilder's hilarious Chicago newspaper comedy

♥♥♥♥♥♥

This funny poster for Billy Wilder's The Front Page highlights its nostalgic period setting and the comic delights of its two stars' interplay

Hildy Johnson is the star reporter on the Chicago Examiner in 1929, who wants to exit the business to go marry his girl in Philadelphia. But his fiery editor refuses to let him go, especially since the two suddenly have an escaped convict facing the death penalty on their hands!

The Front Page is an adaptation of the same-titled 1928 Broadway play by Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur by I.A.L. Diamond (Let's Make It Legal (1951)) and Austrian-Hungarian master co-writer-director Billy Wilder (Double Indemnity (1944)), whose 24th feature it was. It follows previous big-screen adaptations of the same play, The Front Page (1931) and My Girl Friday (1940).
The dialog in this thoroughly wonderful film is so sharp, witty and keen that every second of it is relished for this quality in itself, something Wilder's direction and respectful dealing with the play vouches for.
Walter Matthau (Mirage (1965)) and Jack Lemmon (Save the Tiger (1973)) suit each other as good as they ever did as a comedic dream duo here. The Front Page runs on a story that takes crazy turns, - which always remain credible within its universe, - filled with witty inventions and outrageous characters; among them is a Viennese doctor and Vincent Gardenia (The Manchu Eagle Murder Caper Mystery (1975)) who is hilarious as an incompetent sheriff. Not many may agree with me, but in my book, Wilder's The Front Page is a comedy masterpiece.

Related post:

Billy Wilder: Double Indemnity (1944) - Wilder's noir classic

Watch a trailer for the film here

Cost: 4 mil. $
Box office: Reportedly 15 mil. $
= Big hit (3.75 times its cost)
[The Front Page premiered 18 December (USA) and runs 105 minutes. Wilder was averse to remakes and stated to his biographer that he wasn't 'particularly proud' of The Front Page. The idea to make the film appealed to him because of his early days as a newspaperman. Shooting took place in California, including San Francisco and Los Angeles, from April - June 1974. Diamond and Wilder insisted on the dialog being spoken clearly and exactly as written, without overlapping, to Lemmon's detriment. Wilder's economical shooting and editing 'in-camera' meant that a rough cut was assembled just four days after shooting had ended. The film made 7.4 mil. $ (49.3 % of the total gross) in North America. It was reportedly Wilder's first profitable film since Irma la Douce (1963), (there are four films between the two), although he regretted doing it. It was nominated for 3 Golden Globes and won 2 David di Donatello awards (Italy's Oscar). Roger Ebert interviewed Wilder in 1974 about the film, which can be read here. Wilder returned with Fedora (1978). Lemmon returned in The Prisoner of Second Avenue (1975), and Matthau in The Sunshine Boys (1975). The Front Page is fresh at 73 % with a 5.8 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

What do you think of The Front Page?

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William Friedkin has died

Born in Chicago, Friedkin accrued TV credits prior to his advance to the big screen as the director of Good TImes (1967), The Birthday Party (1968), The Night They Raided Minsky's (1968) and The Boys in the Band (1970) before his major breakthrough, The French Connection (1971), for which he won his only Oscar. He followed it up with the even bigger smash, The Exorcist (1973), arguably the best horror film of all time, for which he was Oscar-nominated. Later credits include Sorcerer (1977), Cruising (1980), To Live and Die in L.A. (1985), Rampage (1987), Rules of Engagement (2000), Killer Joe (2011) and The Devil and Father Amorth (2017, documentary). Friedkin passed away at age 87. R.I.P.

Louise Fletcher has passed away

Born in Alabama to deaf parents, Fletcher got her first credits in late-1950s TV-series.She took a 10 year-long sabbatical to devote her time to motherhood after the release of A Gathering of Eagles, but then came back and soon saw her career's most important part, as Nurse Ratched in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975), for which she won her sole Oscar. Later credits include Exorcist II: The Heretic (1977), The Lucky Star (1980), Brainstorm (1983), Two Moon Junction (1988), Cruel Intentions (1999), A Perfect Man (2013) and many more. Fletcher passed away at age 88. R.I.P.

Jean-Luc Godard has passed away

Born in Paris, France, Godard lived much of his life in Switzerland. He wrote for French film criticism magazine Cahiers du Cinema and became foundational for the New French Wave that inspired new waves in scores of other countries across the world with his Breathless (1960). Later credits include A Woman Is A Woman (1961), Vivre Sa Vie (1962), Le Petit Soldat (1962), Contempt (1963), Alphaville (1965), Pierrot le Fou (1965), 2 or 3 Things I Know About Her (1967), Weekend (1967), Every Man for Himself (1980), King Lear (1987), Century of Cinema (1995, documentary), Goodbye to Language (2014) and many more. Godard died of assisted suicide at age 91. R.I.P.

Wolfgang Petersen has died

James Caan has died

Caan was born the son of Jewish immigrants from Germany in New York. He got his start on TV in the early 1960s. His credits include El Dorado (1966), The Rain People (1969), Brian's Song (1971, TV movie), The Godfather (1972), - for which he earned his only Oscar nomination, - Slither (1973), The Gambler (1974), Funny Lady (1975), Rollerball (1975), Silent Movie (1976), Hide in Plain Sight (1980), - the only film he also directed, - Thief (1981), Misery (1990), Honeymoon in Vegas (1992), Bottle Rocket (1996), Eraser (1996), Dogville (2003), Elf (2003), Las Vegas (2003-07), Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (2009) and many more. Caan passed away at age 82. R.I.P.

Jean-Louis Trintignant has died

Born in Vaucluse, France, Trintignant's theatrical debut as an actor was in If All the Guys in the World... (1955). Later credits include ...And God Created Woman (1956), The Seven Deadly Sins (1961), Inferno (1964), A Man and A Woman (1966), My Love, My Love (1967), A Man to Kill (1967), The Great Silence (1968), Z (1969), The Assassination (1972), Three Colors: Red (1994), Amour (2012), Happy End (2017) and many more. He also wrote and directed two films in the 1970s. Trintignant passed away at age 91. R.I.P.

Ray Liotta has died

Adopted from an orphenage at a young age, Liotta got hooked on acting in high school. He had various TV credits in the late 1970s and early 80s, with his film debut in The Lonely Lady (1983). Later credits include Something Wild (1986), Field of Dreams (1989), Goodfellas (1990), Cop Land (1997), Hannibal (2001), Blow (2001), Narc (2002), John Q (2002), Identity (2003), Observe and Report (2009), Youth in Revolt (2009), The Details (2011), Killing THem Softly (2012), The Place Beyond the Pines (2012), Shades of Blue (2016-18), The Simpsons (2018, TV-series), Marriage Story (2019), The Many Saints of Newark (2021), Black Bird (2022, TV-series) and many more. Liotta passed away at age 67 in his sleep while on production in the Dominican Republic. R.I.P.

Philip Baker Hall has died

Born in Ohio, Hall didn't start acting until he was 30. His long list of credits include Zabriskie Point (1970), Miami Vice (1987, TV-series), Midnight Run (1988), Ghostbusters II (1989), Cheers (1993, TV-series), Hard Eight (1996), The Rock (1996), Air Force One (1997), Boogie Nights (1997), Seinfeld (1991-98), Rush Hour (1998), The Insider (1999), Magnolia (1999), The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999), Bruce Almighty (2003), Dogville (2003), The Zodiac (2005), Zodiac (2007), Curb Your Enthusiasm (2004-09), Mr. Popper's Penguins (2011), Modern Family (2011-12) and many more. Hall passed away at age 90. R.I.P.

William Hurt has passed away

Born in Washington D.C., Hurt's first film role was the lead in Altered States (1980). Later credits include Body Heat (1981), The Big Chill (1983), Gorky Park (1983), Kiss of the Spider Woman (1985), for which he earned his only Oscar as Best Actor; Chilrdren of a Lesser God (1986), for which he was also Oscar-nominated; Broadcast News (1987), for which he was again Oscar-nominated; Smoke (1995), A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001), A History of Violence (2005), for which he was again Oscar-nominated; The Good Shepherd (2006), Into the Wild (2007), Robin Hood (2010) and many more. Hurt passed away at age 71. R.I.P.

Ivan Reitman has passed away

Born in Chechoslovakia, now Slovakia, Reitman's family fled the Soviet regime to Austria, then Toronto, when he was 4 years old. Reitman broke into movies as a director with Foxy Lady (1971). Later credits include Cannibal Girls (1973), Meatballs (1979), Stripes (1981), Ghostbusters (1984), Twins (1988), Ghostbusters II (1989), Kindergarten Cop (1990), Junior (1994), Father's Day (1997), Evolution (1998), No Strings Attached (2011), Draft Day (2014) and more. Reitman's son Jason Reitman is also a great filmmaker. Reitman passed away at age 75. R.I.P.

Film Excess - Free Ukraine - Stop Putin - End the war NOW!!

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5/03/2018

The Front Page (1974) - Wilder's hilarious Chicago newspaper comedy

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