Quartile rating: 7.5/10 · 1 rating
Unfounded suspicions lead a married couple to begin divorce proceedings, whereupon they start undermining each other's attempts to find new romance.
The Awful Truth is one of the defining screwball comedies of the 1930s, elevated enormously by the crackling chemistry between Cary Grant and Irene Dunne. Grant in particular is masterful in physical comedy and timing, marking a career-defining performance that helped establish his comic persona. The plot is a familiar comedy-of-remarriage structure — not particularly original but executed with great wit and pace under Leo McCarey's direction. Cinematography is functional and stagey by modern standards, typical of the era. The ending is charming and satisfying if somewhat telegraphed. Its novelty lies more in the perfection of its execution and the irresistible leads than in a truly distinctive formal conception, keeping it in solid but not exceptional territory for that category.