Pacionsbo Absolutely Fantastic

CrawlerChunky In truth, there is barely enough story here to make a film.

BeSummers Funny, strange, confrontational and subversive, this is one of the most interesting experiences you'll have at the cinema this year.

Candida It is neither dumb nor smart enough to be fun, and spends way too much time with its boring human characters.

Michael O'Keefe This RKO Radio Picture directed by George Stevens isn't mentioned a lot, but is a nice little romantic comedy evocative of the mid '30s. The Throssel sisters Phoebe(Katherine Hepburn)and Susan(Fay Bainter)are both smitten with the dashing Dr. Valentine Brown(Franchot Tone). The sisters are crushed when he enlists in the British Army and claims he is leaving no sweetheart behind. Two nosy neighbor spinsters on Quality Street(Cora Witherspoon and Estelle Winwood)keep reminding Phoebe and Susan that Dr. Brown will return someday from the war, but who will he possibly propose to. After ten years, the still stunning Brown comes marching home and proudly appears at the Throssel house. When it is Miss Phoebe that Brown invites to the Homecoming Ball, he hardly recognizes her. Feeling humiliated Phoebe changes her hair style and buys a new gown and passes herself off as her niece. What effect will this have on the returning soldier, let alone the nosy neighbors? Also in the cast: Helena Grant, Eric Blore and Joan Fontaine.

MartinHafer While at the time this was an important film for the career of Katherine Hepburn, today it seems incredibly stilted and dull. This is because it is a very stuffy costume picture--just the sort of film that emphasizes costumes and stilted language (oh joy) over action and characters. Plus the main idea of the story just seems ludicrous and silly. The film begins with Katherine in love with Franchot Tone but he doesn't realize it. He soon goes off to fight in the Napoleonic Wars for 10 years and when he returns, he sees a radiant woman who he thinks can't be Hepburn because she seems so young. Now here's the silly part. Instead of telling him that she's just well-preserved, she pretends to be her own niece. Sure,...an IDENTICAL niece--in movies, this sort of thing happens all the time (and if you believe this, I'll sell you some oceanfront property in Kansas). So we have a ludicrous idea and an incredibly stilted period piece--just the sort of film that will bore most anyone who tries to watch it. My advice is try seeing some of Kate's other films--almost all of them (except for SPITFIRE) are better. I just can't see why some of the reviewers liked this film so much--it was so very, very dull.By the way, despite all this criticism for the writing, Hepburn DID do a great job and she looked positively beautiful. I really admired how she cried real tears in one scene. Also, while I thought the plot was silly, somehow the silent version with Marion Davies worked much, much better and I do recommend you see that one instead.

Steve Quality Street is a contrived romance, with a small cast, on a set that looks like a play stage, with few visual impacts and in B&W. So, why did we enjoy it so much? The cast, down to the overplayed smaller parts, all does a great job. The ensemble cast brings spirit to even the small parts, the dialogue is clever, and the asides and glances make it fun. We particularly enjoyed the set and period behaviors as great insights on life in the early 19th century. Hollywood did a great job in establishing this period essence through effective use of hints and props. If you like Hepburn, you will enjoy this moral story, with feminine strength in an unforgiving society. Worth a relook!

dm032 Delightful comedy of errors. Pheobe (Hepburn) is in love with the dashing Dr. Brown, but alas her love is unrequited. They meet again 10 years later on his return from the Napoleonic Wars. She has wilted under the strain of teaching little children and is self-conscious about her age. On a whim she decides to dress in her former radiant style, and ends up being mistaken by Dr. Brown for Pheobe's niece. They start to court, and from there it's all silly and predictable, but... sparkling dialogue, great acting and wonderful supporting parts (especially the nosy old spinsters at the windows)