Bringing Up Baby [Special Edition]

FINALLY, this is comming to dvd. This movie is one of my childhood favs. It is also one of the best comedies ever. Its so well casted and is just one of those movies that you can nestle up with a girl and some popcorn and just have an enjoyable night. Seeing that this is finally making it to dvd made my day.

All they need to do now is put out Were No Angels with Bogart out on dvd and I will be perfectly content in my collection.

I wonder if they released this because of Martin Scorsese's "The Aviator".

I doubt it. It's on the AFI list of greatest-films of all-time, and since Hughe's role is only producer, I doubt it's based on that rationale. If it were going to capitalize, it would be released closer to the movie's Theatrical release. Since this isn't out until March 1st, I would guess it's not related.

Although "Bringing Up Baby" is an RKO picture, Howard Hughes didn't buy a controlling interest in the company until 1948. "Bringing Up Baby" was made in 1938 and is a Howard Hawks production. Hawks co-produced and directed it.

John

AT LAST, A MUST HAVE DVD. Its been a long past few months to not buy a dvd, the releases just sucked UNTILL NOW. I can't say enough good things about this film. I encourage everyone to see it. Bringing up Baby is a true gem of one of the best times in Hollywood. Rent it and appreciate it for how it can simply entertain you and pull you away from bills or whatever else is pressing on your mind.
John, Great review!

Everybody,

Sorry I haven???t posted in a while, I am swamped in papers for my classes. I love posting on this site and getting into good discussions with friendly people. I'll try to post more whenever I can.

Dave

At the risk of sounding like HAL, welcome back, Dave.

John

Great review John. I am thinking of picking this one today. Will be reviewing The Philadelphia Story too?
--Ranjan

"Will be reviewing The Philadelphia Story too? "
--Ranjan

Yes, and I'll post it tomorrow. Also, "To Be or Not to Be," another great old classic comedy.

John

Seems like another great boxset from Warner.. Thanks John. What is your rating on the PS so far?
--RJ

"Thanks John. What is your rating on the PS so far?"
--RJ

I've always liked "The Philadelphia Story" quite a lot, although I've also thought it a bit stagey for a movie and not as outright funny as "Bringing Up Baby." I would give it an 8/10; it's a classic serious comedy, but not one of my all-time favorites as "Baby" is.

I probably also need to point out that in my system of rating movies, an 8/10 is a very high rating, indeed. I say this because several readers over the years have complained because I "only" gave their favorite film an "8" and not a 10/10. Well, the way I figure it, if I gave every film I liked a 10/10, there wouldn't be much need for a ten-point rating system at all; we could just take the easy route and do a thumbs up or down, a rotten or fresh tomato. But I don't see the world in terms of simply good or bad. I see a lot of shades in between, and I try to place things according to my own outlook on them.

John

Thats makes perfect sense John. I have always agreed with your rating system - u are neither strict nor linient. Nevertheless there are more clunkers than good flicks now. I would rate this movie a 9/10 just because of the script and the way it defines role for all the 3 leads. It just keeps everyone entertained. Just coming back to the boxset - do you recommend investing in this boxset? Are all the movies good except -PS and BUB?

--Ranjan.

The only two-disc sets in this WB batch are "Baby" and "Philadelphia," definitely worth the investments. The others, like "To Be or Not to Be" and "Dinner at Eight," are single discs, but who can resist them?

John

This movie is a great one but after watching it I got a severe headache. The whole movie was necessary loud.

Ranjan, I agree the audio could have been better

I don't doubt its classic status but I really had tough time watching this one. Warner should have seriously done something with the audio although I don't know much remastered audio would have helped.
--Ranjan.

I certainly didn't find anything annoying about the 1938 mono sound. It's severely limited in frequency and dynamic range compared to today's recordings, but I found its midrange perfectly acceptable.

Ranjan, what was it about the sound that gave you a headache? To me, the sound was no different than on any well-mastered and noise-reduced old mono movie.

John

The constant chatter gave me a headache. The same goes for "His Girl Friday", even though that's one of the characteristics of screwball comedies.

Eddie said it well - I think it was the constant chatter, and everyone was annoying beyond the point. Everyone had to be loud.. on top if it flat mono sound. There was not even a single moment where characters were calm. My wife left the movie after 30 mins.
--Ranjan.
PS: It happened one night was not at all annoying.

Oh, OK, now I understand. Yes, it is a characteristic of screwball comedy to have constant banter and often overlapping dialogue, and that could annoy modern listeners. I thought you were saying the audio was too bright or shrill or hissy or something and giving you a headache.

I got a headache recently watching 2004's "Taxi." All loud noise and loud music. I'll take "Bringing Up Baby" any day.

John

The funny thing about these movies is that they're very amusing while I watch them, but after they end, I'm left with a "huh?" feeling. The only one that didn't make me feel "huh?" was "The Awful Truth", which features a delightful performance by Irene Dunne.

Thought it was very funny for being such an old film. 8)