Classic comedy!

His Girl Friday is a hysterically funny screwball comedy masterpiece by one of cinema's greatest directors, Howard Hawks. This film is purely one of the funniest classic comedies I've ever seen. Although roughly 70 years old the film is still a wickedly enchanting oddball comedy, and its original impact has only marginally dissipated.

Based on a successful Broadway smash (that was filmed as a movie) by Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur, the film follows conniving newspaper editor Walter Burns (Grant) who works for the Morning Post. Former ace reporter Hildy Johnson (Russell) returns to the Morning Post to tell her ex-husband Walter that there's a new lover in her life, and to bid him farewell one last time. Hildy plans to give up her life as a newspaper reporter, instead settling into a world of domesticality with her new fiancé Bruce Baldwin (Bellamy). Walter is not willing to let Hildy leave the newspaper, thus determined to get her to stay and to get her heart back he hatches a cunning plan to lure her back to the Morning Post. He plans to involve her in the paper's crusade to free convicted murderer Earl Williams (Qualen) from death row. While in a moment of madness, Williams shot a coloured policeman resulting in his conviction. Walter knows that Hildy has the perfect feminine touch to place Williams in a sympathetic light and hence get him a reprieve from the noose.

The plot sounds dark and gloomy for a comedy; however the screenplay is so well written and the plot is so skilfully buried in witty lines of dialogue and outstandingly funny situations. The screenwriters did a great job in producing a sparklingly remarkable script. The plot is also convoluted beyond all comprehension. This is only a marginal flaw of course.

His Girl Friday contains a number of outstanding performances from an extremely determined group of actors. Cary Grant is an amazing delight in the title role. These are the roles that he was born to play: hysterical, eccentric and wonderful. I do enjoy a Cary Grant thriller from the works of Alfred Hitchcock like North by Northwest; however Grant is equally enjoyable in these masterfully produced, timeless old comedies. Like his performance in such classic films as Arsenic and Old Lace, Grant excels in creating an over-the-top character that is given quality lines of dialogue. Grant is coupled with actress Rosalind Russell. The two share some great moments. The chemistry between Grant and Russell is simply priceless. The rest of the cast is equally remarkable.

Howard Hawks made his mark on a plethora of genres. He nailed the genres of film noir (The Big Sleep), western (Red River), musical (Gentlemen Prefer Blondes), gangster (Scarface) and of course comedy with His Girl Friday. Hawks is a skilled director very capable of producing quality work no matter what the genre is. Each scene here is hysterically funny and compelling no matter how outrageous the situation is.

His Girl Friday is slightly dated but on the whole it's an unforgettable screen gem. With Howard Hawks in top form and a handsome Cary Grant in his prime the film is loads of fun. The humour is still as funny as it was when first released back in 1940.