Rating: 
Summary: Great Director and Stars at Their Very, Very Best
Review: Of all the great directors in cinema history, Howard Hawks was easily the most versatile. Think of a great director. Any director. Think of the kinds of films they directed? No matter who you consider, at best they worked in two or three genres. but Hawks turned to every conceivable genre with his cinematic mastery intact. Had he worked in the 1970s or 1980s, he would probably have produced a great martial arts film. Hawks made great war films, comedies, Westerns, gangster films, detective films, adventure films, musicals, and is even acknowledged to be the uncredited creative force behind THE THING FROM OUTER SPACE, the film that started the Sci-fi craze of the fifties. But in my mind, Hawks was first and foremost a director of screwball comedies. He more or less invented the genre with his 1934 TWENTIETH CENTURY, and went on to direct BRINGING UP BABY, BALL OF FIRE, and lesser efforts like I WAS A MALE WAR BRIDE and MONKEY BUSINESS. But as much as I like TWENTIETH CENTURY and BRINGING UP BABY, my favorite Hawks comedy is easily HIS GIRL FRIDAY. This movie gets so many things right that it is difficult to begin isolating just a few of its excellencies. You almost have to begin with the utterly breathtaking verbal interchanges between Cary Grant and Rosalind Russell. The script is heavily based on the great Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur play THE FRONT PAGE. In becoming a comedy, many of the impressive social themes of the play become muted. Fortunately, some of the racism of the play also is muted, though not eliminated (an unfortunate joke about a black woman giving birth is retained in the Hawks script and film). But whatever is lost in seriousness is gained by in sheer comedic force and exuberance. Which leads us back to Grant and Russell's verbal exchanges. They are intense, quick, fast-paced, and almost manic. This film may contain more words per minute than any other Hollywood has produced. The pace is so rapid that in many spots the characters are intentionally tripping over the others' lines. Frequently two and even three characters are talking at once. But over and over again, the viewer is just stunned by the virtuosity of Grant and Russell. It is difficult to imagine better comedic acting than this. The cast is almost impossible to overpraise. All the way down to the top 15 or 20 characters, the casting is perfect. Although Grant and Russell stand out, this is really an ensemble cast. Ralph Bellamy is solid in his thankless but essential role as Rosalind Russell's fiancé. The movie also features some great in jokes. I'll mention only three. When Grant sends someone to give some (counterfeit) money to Bellamy's character, Grant is asked what he looks like. He hesitates for only a fraction of a second before answering, "He looks just like that movie fellow, Ralph Bellamy." At another point, a frustrated Cary Grant threatens someone by saying, "I'll do to you what I did to Archie Leech." Archie Leech, was, of course, Cary Grant's real name. When Earl Williams, who is hiding in a roll top desk, attempts to get out, Grant says, "Get back in there, you old Mock Turtle." Near the beginning of his career, Grant had played the part of the Mock Turtle (in heavy make up but singing his own song--most people are not aware that Grant had a pleasant light tenor and was quite at ease in musical comedy). Just a great comedy. I would, however, like to caution people with the other reviewers to get only the Columbia version of the film. This movie was in public domain for some time, and during that time a large number of execrable versions were produced. Purchase this one, but purchase it with caution.
Rating: 
Summary: Great Movie, Bad Transfer
Review: Madacy obviously takes old worn-out video copies from rental and tries to pass them off as DVD copies of the movie. This is one of my all time favorites and I bought the DVD because I'd worn out the Tape. My tape has better quality. If you have a choice, buy the movie from any other DVD producer. This version of The Front Page has some of Grant and Russel's finest work and the overlapping dialog is something indeed! Do buy the movie, the studio has a version which I believe sells for less than $X. Spend the extra bucks and you won't be disappointed.
Rating: 
Summary: Rosalind Russell Rules
Review: Cary Grant is great in HIS GIRL FRIDAY--Cary Grant was great in everything he ever did--but it is Rosalind Russell who makes this film for me. She was an atypical film actress for her day, playing a middle ground between the typical starlet and the tough-gal Betty Davis type. Russell is tough, tart, and totally believeable as Grant's ex, an independent beauty who wants a man but can do without him too. Whadda woman! As for the script, it's one of the wordiest around, quick and clipped, witty and inescapeably sharp. If Charles Lederer wasn't recognized for this screenplay, there was fraud afoot.
Rating:
Summary: An Oldie but a Goodie
Review: This film by Howard Hawks is an earlier version of "the Front Page" (with Jack Lemmon). The difference is that Hilde is a woman, allowing Hawks to focus on sexual tension as well as the drama and comedy of a newsroom. Although over 6o years old, this film still makes you laugh. Very quick dialogue gives the viewer a laugh a minute (well nearly). The storyline is quite unbelieveable, but enjoyable all the same. It's also an interesting film if you want to see what was being produced during the depression.
Rating:
Summary: Horrible quality
Review: I bought this title because I'm a big Cary Grant fan but the quality of this DVD was horrendous. From the opening credits to the first scene it looked bootleg. If possible get the same title from Columbia Classics.
Rating:
Summary: Columbia Classics version is the one to get
Review: The Amazon practice of putting all reviews for all versions of a title under each version makes things confusing in the case of His Girl Friday. It is in the public domain so there have been several cheap and lousy copies-of-copies releases. The Columbia Classics version (released November 21, 2000) is the one to get...at last great picture and sound quality, by the original studio from the original film. The commentary by Todd McCarthy is good and the extras are fun, but the movie is the thing and 60 years later it's as fun as ever. What dazzling acting and dialogue. A classic.
Rating:
Summary: Thank you Columbia Tristar!
Review: Many thanks to Columbia TriStar for a beautifully restored version of this peerless comedy. In contrast to the sadly worn VHS versions, the picture is sharp, clean, and vibrant, looking as if it had been filmed last week rather than sixty years ago. The sound is terrific, and the audio commentary is intelligent and insightful. The performances - especially by Grant and Russell, at their peak - remain incomparable, and Howard Hawk's brilliant direction continues to astonish. This is truly one of Hollywood's greatest gifts, well-deserving of the first-class treatment given it on this DVD. Let's hope that more classics are re-released with the loving care lavished on HIS GIRL FRIDAY. How about THE AWFUL TRUTH?
Rating: 
Summary: Great Movie, Rotten Edition
Review: This is one of my top ten favorite movies. Unfortunately I originally ordered the d3k Classics Collection version. It was made from the worst copy in existance. My old worn out Crown Movie Classics edition would have been to master from. I saw the Colombia Classics realese at a friends house. Pay the extra seven bucks and get a DVD that is clean and clear and does the brilliant movie justice. Don't give the weasels, who get a dim scratchy version of a great movie, turn it into a sub-par DVD and market it to unsuspecitng dupes such as I, one more thin dime. It costs only pennies more to go first class.
Rating:
Summary: Outstanding DVD, if you get the right one!!!!
Review: His Girl Friday is a hilarious movie, but because it has now been in the public domain for a few years, any ol' person or company could make a videotape or copy of it. This brand new DVD is immaculate in the transfer - Make sure though you're getting the DVD that has the "Columbia Classics" across the top - any other version is more than likely an old transfer with little care taken in the DVD mastering... This new DVD is the best the movie will probably ever look and is still a great film with some of the best bantering/overlapping dialogue and hilarious acting by Cary Grant you'll ever find....
Rating:
Summary: One of the Best of All time!!
Review: Simply put. this movie sparkles. The dialogue is so fresh, quick and crisp that it really makes you wish they still made them like that. Russell and Grant are both fabulous in the leads, and even though this story has been remade several times (in fact, this version itself is a remake), niothing compares to this glorious B&W masterpiece. I don't care how old you are, rent or buy this title today. You'll laugh and enjoy this film for years to come. Enjoy, --Jason
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