This one's all about the ladies. In this absolutely terrific 1937 gem, a Manhattan boardinghouse for aspiring actresses houses an amazing roster of golden-era performers--some of whom, like their characters, were just breaking in. It's hard to say who's in best form here: Katharine Hepburn in blueblood mode, Ginger Rogers streetwise, Andrea Leeds suffering, Lucille Ball and Ann Miller impossibly young, and Eve Arden being, well, splendidly Eve Ardenish. The sassy comedy and sober life lessons are wonderfully mixed by the underrated director Gregory La Cava (My Man Godfrey), who captures the brashness of '30s female chatter in a much pleasanter way than the more famous The Women. Hepburn's sublime attempts to wrestle with the line about calla lilies being in bloom will make you smile long after the movie's over. --Robert Horton
2.
Ginger Rogers and Ann Miller tap in time and rat-a-tat lines. Lucille Ball braves a date with an obnoxious lumber baron. Eve Arden can't recall Hamlet but one meets so many people in the big city. And Katharine Hepburn becomes Broadway's biggest star in a play wherein she notes "the calla lilies are in bloom again." Stars galore shine in this nominee for 4 Academy Awards including Best Picture, a fast, witty story of aspiring actresses living at a theatrical boarding house.
3.
The Footlights Club, the primary setting for much of STAGE DOOR, is a remarkable creation. The result of a collaboration between director Gregory La Cava, screenwriter Morrie Ryskind (brought in to replace Anthony Veiller), and an outstanding group of tough, smart-talking actresses played by Katharine Hepburn, Ginger Rogers, Lucille Ball, Ann Miller, Eve Arden, and Gail Patrick, the film's club is always full of noise, as the conversations overlap and wisecracks come spinning out of the melee.
Newcomer Terry Randall (Hepburn) is different from the other women. For one thing, she has money and doesn't need a job. And she has confidence, initially rejecting fading actress Catherine Luther's (Constance Collier) offer of help, saying, "I think coaching's a waste of time. After all, acting's only common sense." Because of her attitude, the rooming house's inhabitants give her a rough time, especially her roommate, Jean (Ginger Rogers). Eventually, Terry gets an opportunity to act--at the expense of Kaye Hamilton (Andrea Leeds). Only after Jean and the others see Terry's response to Kaye's tragedy is she grudgingly accepted into the group. STAGE DOOR is an extraordinarily rich movie, graced by wonderful performances by Rogers, Hepburn, and the entire remarkable ensemble cast.
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