Vacances

Katharine Hepburn and Cary Grant on paper, I suppose, look like an odd pairing, but they were absolutely marvelous together, and "Holiday," directed by George Cukor, is no exception. Hepburn plays the unhappy, bored, but bright Linda in a dysfunctional, upper crust New York family. Her brother, Ned (Lew Ayres) is a miserable drunk, and her father controls the family with an iron hand and the ethic that money is their god. Their mother, who was like Linda, is deeply missed by her. Linda adores her younger sister, Julia, but has idealized her and doesn't see that she has the same upper class values as their father. When Julia brings home her fiancée, Johnny Case (Grant), it is immediately obvious to the audience (and later to the characters) that Johnny fell for the wrong girl.

"Holiday" is a film filled with heart, poignancy, and some warm humor provided by Johnny's friends, played by Edward Everett Horton and Jean Dixon, who come up against the society crowd at a party. Hepburn gives a beautiful performance as a young woman who wants to break free, and Ayres is heartbreaking as a man who can't. Grant, of course, is in the kind of role he did best in his early career, a young man from the wrong side of the tracks who is an independent spirit. He does some great gymnastics in the film, and he and Hepburn have a wonderful moment where she stands on his shoulders, and they fall into head rolls. Really marvelous stuff. The only problem I have is that the character of Julia, the younger sister, is so uptight and shallow, it's amazing that Johnny fell for her at all. Since they met while she was vacationing in Lake Placid, the audience must assume that out of the family home, she was more fun and playful, but when she comes up against her father, she falls right in with him.

Hepburn and Grant worked together in "Bringing Up Baby," "The Philadelphia Story," and this film - actually, three films in a row - plus "Sylvia Scarlett." One wishes they had appeared together even more. They had great chemistry.

Wit, insight, deft characterization, family misery, and social commentary all play a part in Holiday. The acting and script are superb -- all the characters are sympathetically drawn and interact in the foreground, while wealth and its "privileges" form the background.

Is love a social obligation? Or does it spring from sheer affinity? Should the acquisition of wealth be the summum bonum of experience -- or happen accidently, as the result of hard and honest work? These are the questions that will tease you, as you enjoy the gleaming intelligence of Katherine Hepburn and the polished insouciance of Cary Grant. Both are in top form!!!

What stands out in my recollection of this film is the theme of play. The stars are playful; they get acquainted among the toys in a playroom. The plot revolves around a holiday -- a chance for adults to play. There are plays on words. The Play is the Thing. Holiday is ultimately about the importance of play, in all its connotations: flexibility, acting out, silly behavior, continuous learning, freedom to be.

It is okay for adults to play sometimes, or do adults need "permission" to play?

This is such a sweet, funny, heartfelt movie. The first time I saw it, I immediately wanted to see it again. Like so many of Katharine Hepburn's movies, it's about the kind of love you don't often see in movies. Hers is a pure, sweet, and intelligent love, one which we see develop and with which, by the end of the movie, we wholeheartedly agree. Cary Grant is just delightful in his acrobatics and his naivete, and Hepburn has all of her idealism and wisdom, and proves once again that the two aren't mutually exclusive. If you love witty and intelligent romantic comedy, then this is for you. Not as wonderful as The Philadelphia Story, but great nonetheless.

Johnny Case (Cary Grant) is on cloud nine as he tells his friends the Potters that he's marrying Julia Seton (Doris Nolan). Only he doesn't know that she's the daughter in a wealthy family. She wants him incorporated into her money-making family. Her older black sheep sister Linda (Katharine Hepburn) loves his carefree attitude. Her loving mother passed away and her father is a hard man. Her brother Ned was a musician but her father puts him to work in a life that he hates.

Cary Grant and Katharine Hepburn have superior charisma and terrific chemistry together. That's all the film needs and all that any viewer needs to know. The characters are fast-talking fun with some slapstick thrown in. They learn to follow their dreams and their hearts rather than follow their family obligations. Grant is always a great every man and it's important that he's not a slacker. He is the new self-made man not encumbered by money while Hepburn is the liberated woman.

Today, the world around us may be changing by leaps and bounds, but as this film so aptly illustrates, this is nothing new; the world has always been, and always will be, in a constant state of flux, from one generation to the next. In `Holiday,' a delightful romantic comedy directed by George Cukor, a young man of thirty has some decisions to make about his life and love that are going to determine the course of his life. After a whirlwind, ten day romance with Julia Seton (Doris Nolan), a girl he's just met, Johnny Case (Cary Grant) asks her to marry him; and she accepts. But the story really begins when he shows up at her house to meet her widowed father, Edward (Henry Kolker), to ask for Julia's hand in marriage.

This is not an early version of `Meet the Parents,' however; Johnny's a regular guy with a good job at an investment firm, and he's in love. All is going well; he's about to meet the family of the woman he loves, and he's made a decision about his life. And when he arrives at Julia's house, he makes some startling discoveries: First, she's filthy rich-- her house is so big he calls it a museum-- and she has a beautiful, spirited sister named Linda (Katharine Hepburn). But soon he'll be married to Julia, and if all goes right with a deal he's been working on for the firm, he'll also be able to follow through on his decision. If the deal at work goes through, it'll put some change in his pockets, which is all he wants; but not because it'll put him on the fast track to getting ahead with the company. He wants to make enough to get married and quit his job, so he can take a `holiday' while he's still young enough to enjoy it-- even if it only turns out to be three months or so-- and have some time to discover just where he fits into a world that's rapidly changing. Now all he has to do is explain it all to Julia. And to her father. And all while trying to deny the fact that he's attracted to Linda.

Cukor takes a lighthearted approach to this story, which keeps it upbeat and entertaining, and he laces it with warmth and humor that'll give you some laughs and put a smile on your face. But beyond all that, Cukor shows some real insight into human nature and the ways of the world. And it makes this film timeless. Consider Johnny's comments about how the world is changing, and wanting to find out for himself where he fits in; or the comment by one of Julia's cousins, Seton Cram (Henry Daniell)-- who is already wealthy, apparently, beyond all comprehension-- that there would be a lot of money to be made if only `The right government was in place.' To make this film today, you'd only have to change the dates on the calendar, shoot in color, substitute Norton for Grant, Danes for Hepburn and bring in Nora Ephron to direct.

But what really makes this one special are the performances of Grant and Hepburn. Grant is as charming as ever, but just a bit looser and slightly less debonair than he is in most of his later roles. And it becomes him; he endows Johnny with youthful exuberance, good looks and personality, as well as a carefree yet responsible attitude that makes him someone you can't help but like. And Hepburn fairly sparkles as Linda, a role she was born to play; this young woman filled with a zest for life and an indomitable spirit. She imbues Linda with that same, trademark Hepburn feistiness you'll find in so many of her characters in films like `The Philadelphia Story,' `Adam's Rib' and `The African Queen.' All of whom she plays with a variation that makes each of them unique. And it's that personal spark of life that she's able to transfer to her characters that makes Hepburn so special. Whether she's locking horns with Tracy, pouring Bogart's gin into the river or falling in live with Grant, nobody does it quite like Kate. And Cukor had an affinity for Hepburn that enabled him to bring out the best in her, always. Arguably, her best work was with Cukor.

The memorable supporting cast includes Lew Ayres (Ned), Edward Everett Horton (Nick), Binnie Barnes (Laura), Jean Dixon (Susan) and Mitchell Harris (Jennings). A thoroughly enjoyable film, `Holiday' makes a subtle statement about embracing the time you have and grabbing for the brass ring while you're still able; that in the end, life is what you make of it. But Cukor never lets it get too serious, and never lets you forget that the main thing here is to have some fun, beginning with this movie. And by the time it's over, the world seems just a little bit brighter somehow. And that's the magic of the movies. I rate this one 8/10.