Review of She Done Him Wrong (Universal Cinema Classics)

One of the seeming paradoxes of film-making is that historical period pieces age much better than movies set in the present or the future. That certainly is true of this classic comedy. Co-written by its star as a play called "Diamond Lil" about a turn-of-the-century chanteuse with no shame and her own standards of personal morals, She Done Him Wrong seamlessly blends the backdrop of turn-of-the-century New York politics with fast wisecracking patter and plot-lines that blend seamlessly. To me, it packs twice the action and four times the wit of one of today's comedies into about half the screen time. This was Mae West's second movie, and it established her as an immediate star. She commands every man's attention by her very presence. Cary Grant flashes star quality in each of his scenes as the ideal foil to West. Filled with clever double entendres and disarmingly bawdy situations, She Done Him Wrong is every thing a period comedy should aspire to be, and more.