It's the ubiquitous Bette Davis-George Brent matchup, but hey, if something works... In this case, they are two reporters, working for opposing newspapers. She's a sole female in a sea of males, and all of them think women writers are only useful as 'sob sisters', writing fluff pieces. Ellen Garfield is out to prove she's better than the best male out there, who just so happens to be Curt Devlin...her boyfriend. That they're in love with each other does not stop their competition--in fact, it probably increases their need to one-up each other.
It starts with a female prisoner execution. Curt warns her off the actual viewing, and she overhears other reporters talking about how bad the electric chair is. She digs in, determined to prove how tough she is, and of course she's not very tough at all. When she faints afterward, Curt takes pity on her and calls in a favor over at The Daily Star, Ellen's paper. He sends over the same copy he wrote for his paper (The Daily Express) with a note for the guy he knows there to switch it up a little. Unfortunately the note is overlooked and both papers go out with the exact article. Bosses are infuriated, Devlin's embarrassed, Ellen is upset that Curt felt he needed to cover for her. It's a mess.
Then a ritzy apartment building catches fire and while newspaper MEN are allowed behind police lines, newspaper WOMEN are not. So Ellen is blocked from getting closer, but it just so happens that she is positioned to see and hear a few huge clues as two men make their getaway in a taxi. She doesn't realize it at the time, however, and stands there fuming over not being taken seriously by any man.
Then she gets the scoop of one of the men from the apartment fire is under a pseudonym at the local hospital and he is dead from a knife wound to the gut. What follows is just a hilarious back and forth as both Ellen and Curt pledge their love of one another while going behind each other's back, blatantly stealing info from one another and even going so far as to set up an empty jury room with mock ballots so that one scoops the correct verdict and the other gets fired for the incorrect verdict. And so on it goes until Ellen eventually solves the mystery and agrees to marry poor Curt once he admits that she is the better reporter.
I really enjoyed this movie--the writers were superb in crafting witty repartee. I found myself laughing out loud several times during the movie. Curt's photographer, 'Toots' (Roscoe Karns) has some of the best lines. In one instance they are searching for a possible witness but are told she died seven months earlier. Curt says "Ah, the perfect alibi." which made me smile. Then Toots tops it with "We don't want to see her then" before beating a hasty retreat and I had to rewind because I was laughing so hard. I've seen about 70% of BD movies yet for some reason had not caught this one. I'm glad I did, as it is now one of my favorites of hers. Well worth a watch, if you can catch it.
It starts with a female prisoner execution. Curt warns her off the actual viewing, and she overhears other reporters talking about how bad the electric chair is. She digs in, determined to prove how tough she is, and of course she's not very tough at all. When she faints afterward, Curt takes pity on her and calls in a favor over at The Daily Star, Ellen's paper. He sends over the same copy he wrote for his paper (The Daily Express) with a note for the guy he knows there to switch it up a little. Unfortunately the note is overlooked and both papers go out with the exact article. Bosses are infuriated, Devlin's embarrassed, Ellen is upset that Curt felt he needed to cover for her. It's a mess.
Then a ritzy apartment building catches fire and while newspaper MEN are allowed behind police lines, newspaper WOMEN are not. So Ellen is blocked from getting closer, but it just so happens that she is positioned to see and hear a few huge clues as two men make their getaway in a taxi. She doesn't realize it at the time, however, and stands there fuming over not being taken seriously by any man.
Then she gets the scoop of one of the men from the apartment fire is under a pseudonym at the local hospital and he is dead from a knife wound to the gut. What follows is just a hilarious back and forth as both Ellen and Curt pledge their love of one another while going behind each other's back, blatantly stealing info from one another and even going so far as to set up an empty jury room with mock ballots so that one scoops the correct verdict and the other gets fired for the incorrect verdict. And so on it goes until Ellen eventually solves the mystery and agrees to marry poor Curt once he admits that she is the better reporter.
I really enjoyed this movie--the writers were superb in crafting witty repartee. I found myself laughing out loud several times during the movie. Curt's photographer, 'Toots' (Roscoe Karns) has some of the best lines. In one instance they are searching for a possible witness but are told she died seven months earlier. Curt says "Ah, the perfect alibi." which made me smile. Then Toots tops it with "We don't want to see her then" before beating a hasty retreat and I had to rewind because I was laughing so hard. I've seen about 70% of BD movies yet for some reason had not caught this one. I'm glad I did, as it is now one of my favorites of hers. Well worth a watch, if you can catch it.