Fair warning: I may be going on a little bit of a Cary Grant bender.  Not that this notion should alarm you.  Quite the contrary: it should fill you with anticipation for me talking about a series of well-made films.  Still, going into The Awful Truth (1937), my Catholic Faith gave me some pause.  The movie centers on a divorce.  Perhaps unsurprisingly, I will delve into this subject more later in the review.  Regardless of my religious profession, it is not a topic that should be dealt with lightly.  What had me clicking play is the fact that this is precisely what today’s selection does, treat the breakdown of a marriage with levity.  It works here because it is a comedy, and a good one, too.  Had it been treated with a different mode of storytelling, obviously I would have had an alternate reaction than one of delight.  I am willing to bet you never thought you would read a Catholic writing that about a failed Sacrament.

If there is one thing that Jerry Warriner (Cary Grant) does not want to face, it is The Awful Truth.  Early on, this refers to the fact that he had supposed to have been in Florida on business, but instead stayed in New York City having a good time on his own.  To keep up the charade, we first meet him in an athletic club attempting to get a fake tan to make it look like he has been sunbathing in the Sunshine State.  One of his friends suggests what you might be thinking, that he had carried on with other women for the past two weeks, but this does not seem to be the case.  From the gym, he heads home with a small party of people expecting to continue their jolliness with Lucy Warriner (Irene Dunne), his wife.  They are all surprised, including Jerry, to find her not present.  Not long thereafter, she comes home with Armand Duvalle (Alexander D’Arcy), and it is clear that they had been out all night long.  Her attempts to explain it away as him being her singing instructor and having trouble with her car only serve to make him more suspicious.  After their guests leave, sensing an argument, the tables are turned on Jerry when she examines the fruit basket he has brought home as further proof of his sojourn south.  One of the oranges is stamped with “California” instead of Florida.  This revelation leads to them demanding a divorce.  At the court proceedings (though no mention of a religious aspect to the case), their dog, Mr. Smith, becomes the last point of contention.  Each make a claim on the pup, with the judge ordering that the terrier be forced to make the choice.  Lucy produces one of Mr. Smith’s toys, and it picks her.  The best Jerry can do is get visitation rights as if Mr. Smith is their human child.  Lucy moves into an apartment with her Aunt Patsy (Cecil Cunningham), and spends the next few days moping around.  This is displeasing to Aunt Patsy, who wants to go out but not unescorted.  Finally determined to do so anyway, she makes it no farther than the elevator where she meets Daniel Leeson (Ralph Bellamy).  He is an Oklahoman oil tycoon who has come east with his mother.  Aunt Patsy guides him into her place and into a discussion with Lucy.  It is at this moment that Jerry arrives for his first visit with Mr. Smith.  His antics cause Daniel, Lucy, and Aunt Patsy to leave with Jerry’s chuckles following them out the door.  Daniel is beginning to fall in love with Lucy, a prospect that Aunt Patsy is not thrilled about despite introducing them.  He is of that rough Western character, whereas Lucy is more polished.  This is underscored one evening at a dinner club when, with Jerry there with his own date, Daniel and Lucy do a dance that is not at all her style.  For fun, Jerry has the band play an encore, forcing them to repeat the performance.  Still, there is a shared mirth between Jerry and Lucy that has him coming up with more excuses to spend time with her.  It becomes more obvious when he learns of her going to meet Armand once more.  Under the pretense of protecting Daniel’s feelings, Jerry barges into Armand’s studio, only to find Lucy giving a small concert.  Again, Lucy snickers seeing his antics.  Following the concert, Lucy decides she is going to end her relationship with Daniel.  Unfortunately, this is when Armand comes to check on her, though she asks for his help in explaining the true nature of their arrangement.  Armand nervously agrees, but feels it is too soon when Jerry rings.  Jerry has come to ask Lucy to go for a drive so they can talk things over, but is forced to hide when Daniel decides to call.  The place Jerry picks to hide happens to be the same place Armand is keeping out of sight.  As Lucy nervously tries to talk with Daniel, a fight breaks out in the other room, with Jerry chasing Armand out of the apartment.  So much for Christian civility, though this is the funniest scene in the movie.  Any hope of reconciliation seems gone, and Jerry and Lucy move on with their lives. Jerry in particular, at least according to the society columns in the newspaper, has become involved with wealthy heiress Barbara Vance (Molly Lamont).  On the day before Jerry and Lucy’s divorce is to become final, she meets up with him.  Their conversation becomes sour, and she quickly calls for a taxi, only to be connected to Barbara.  In Jerry’s confusion to think of something to explain another woman being in his home, he tells Barbara that Lucy is his sister.  Barbara attempts an invitation, but Jerry declines for Lucy.  Guess who later shows up anyway at the Vance estate, and after having a few too many?  As before, you can see the humor Jerry and Lucy share in the moment, and he ends up driving her out to her Aunt Patsy’s home in the country.  Along the way, they are stopped by motorcycle cops, and she contrives to have the car pushed down a hill.  Getting dropped off at the house by the police, Jerry is forced to stay the night.  It all works out in the end, though, as they appear to finally mend their differences before the film ends.

I often struggle with describing comedies in conveying how funny they are, but I think I might have been at least partially successful with The Awful Truth.  It is a movie about a divorce, which is no laughing matter.  It is also simultaneously modern and old fashioned in its approach to marriage.  Because it is played for laughs, there is no mention of religion.  This makes sense from a practical point of view because had their union been discussed in Christian terms, they probably would not have been so flippant about the matter.  I do not know the details of how other Christian sects conceive of the importance of marriage.  For us Catholics, though, it is a Sacrament, on par with taking religious vows.  One does not make a promise before God with a mind to eventually getting out of it.  For those of you reading this who are, unfortunately, separated from your spouse, I am guessing the same about not wanting to break promises can be said for you.  Even if you did not get married in a church before God, I am sure you took the union you made seriously at the time.  Today’s film, like many of the era, seems to have a more whimsical view of the institution.  This is why I call it modern, though that is an interesting statement given the sway the Church had on Hollywood at this time.  One of the stipulations was that divorce should not be portrayed in a positive manner.  I would say this is the case here, but one can make the argument that it makes fun of the gravity of the situation.  I would not say that is the best tact, either.  Do not get me wrong, I adored this movie.  I merely point this all out to suggest that, in real life, we enter into a potential romantic relationship more judiciously.  At the same time, the film can bring us back to the importance of being with the right person instead of hopping around from partner-to-partner because The Awful Truth is that Jerry and Lucy are in love with one another.  That is a blessing.

If you have some time, look up the life of The Awful Truth’s female lead, Irene Dunne.  I wonder what the devout Catholic thought about playing the role of a divorced woman who is so casual about the matter?  It is a little bit of subtext for what is an immensely satisfying film.