United Artists
Not part of a collection.
The Front Page
A Picture That Has Cracked This Shock-Proof Town Wide Open!
Hildy Johnson is an investigative reporter looking for a bigger paycheck. When an accused murderer escapes from custody, Hildy sees an opportunity for the story of a lifetime. But when he finds the criminal, he learns that the man may not be guilty. With the help of his editor, Hildy attempts to hide the convict, uncover the conspiracy and write the scoop of his career.
- Original title
- The Front Page
- Language
- EN
- Country
- US
- Budget
- —
- Revenue
- —
CinemaSerf
Feb 10, 2024 · via TMDB
Newspaper man "Hildy" (Pat O'Brien) is heading to New York with his fiancée "Peggy" (Mary Brian) to take a better paid job in the advertising world. His editor "Burns" (Adolphe Menjou) has one last story for him to cover and has to play quite a clever game to ensure that his best reporter takes on the story. It's all about convicted killer "Earle Williams" (George E. Stone) who manages to escape from death row. "Hildy" spends his honeymoon fund to tap up an insider and to track down the man - only to conclude that maybe he didn't actually commit the crime for which he is to hang, after all. He now concocts a clever plan to hide the man - in a bureau, whilst he and his editor try to get to the bottom of the real crime. With the sheriff getting ever closer and with his fellow press hounds on the trail too, what now ensues is a quickly paced and fast-talking look at press journalism. Most of them are hacks, making up what they don't know, safe in the knowledge that the only scrutiny will come should the circulation drop. There are a few pithy one-liners too - not least from a recent visitor to the grotty prison who wonders how the prisoners stay alive long enough to be hung! What does work here is the cynicism. The writing takes a swipe at just about everyone from the press to the police; the courts and the system. Corruption and back-handers are rife up and down the greasy pole and the humour here is a little more sophisticated than in your face. I did find, however, that there is way too much dialogue and the investigative elements border on the farce a little too much for my liking, but it's still a cleverly constructed story of cats, mice and balls of wool that shows off the talents of the often under-rated Menjou well.
User reviews courtesy of TMDB.
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Adolphe Menjou
Walter Burns
Pat O'Brien
Hildy Johnson
Mary Brian
Peggy Grant
Edward Everett Horton
Bensinger
Walter Catlett
Murphy
George E. Stone
Earl Williams
Mae Clarke
Molly
Slim Summerville
Pincus
Matt Moore
Kruger
Frank McHugh
McCue
Clarence Wilson
Sheriff Hartman
Phil Tead
Wilson
Eugene Strong
Endicott
Spencer Charters
Woodenshoes
Maurice Black
Diamond Louie
Effie Ellsler
Mrs. Grant
Dorothea Wolbert
Jenny
James Gordon
The Mayor
Richard Alexander
Jacobi (uncredited)
James Donlan
Reporter (uncredited)
Dot Farley
Madame (uncredited)
Francis Ford
Carl - Detective (uncredited)
Sol Gorss
Policeman (uncredited)
Max Hoffman Jr.
Searcher at Speakeasy Door (uncredited)
George Magrill
Policeman (uncredited)
Herman J. Mankiewicz
Undetermined Secondary Role (uncredited)
Lewis Milestone
Undetermined Secondary Role (uncredited)
Gustav von Seyffertitz
Professor Max J. Egelhoffer (uncredited)
Tony Gaudio
Additional Photography
Charles Lederer
Additional Dialogue
Howard Hughes
Presenter
Nate Watt
Assistant Director
Lewis Milestone
Director
Howard Hughes
Producer
Lewis Milestone
Producer
Ben Hecht
Writer
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Mar 19, 1931
New York City, New York
Apr 4, 1931
