Bringing up Baby
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Bringing Up Baby was created in 1938 and is considered by many to define the screwball comedy genre. It was directed by the extremely versatile Howard Hawks and was written by Dudley Nichols and Hagar Wilde. This fast-paced film involves the unlikely relationship between its stars, Cary Grant and Katherine Hepburn. Its fame stems from many causes, one being perhaps the best chemistry ever caught on screen between a leading man and woman. According to Jonathan R. Perry of the Tyler Morning Telegraph it’s “The gold standard of screwball comedy.”
At the time of its release, Bringing Up Baby failed miserably at the box office and, like many of Howard Hawk’s films, was not nominated for a single Academy Award. Other films directed by Hawks with the same fate were Scarface (1934), His Girl Friday (1940), and The Big Sleep (1946). Nowadays, though, most of Howard Hawke’s films are regarded as masterpieces and will always be remembered in cinematic history.
Susan Vance, portrayed by Katherine Hepburn, is an aggressive, impulsive and accident-prone high-society woman while Dr. David Huxley is a close-minded, nerdy paleontologist from the Stuyvesant Museum of Natural History. Hepburn’s affluent character is a perfect contrast to Grant’s constricted scientist. Both Hepburn and Grant are spectacular together, giving off a sexual tension, played out by physical humor, in almost every scene.
Bringing Up Baby is famous for its use of innuendo to bypass the early Hollywood censors, like many films of its time. For instance, it has been implied that David Huxley may be the first homosexual character to appear in the cinema. The writers, however, are careful to remain subtle and only hint at any situations that might not live up to Hollywood’s standards.
The film opens in the Natural History museum and shows a large room filled with the skeleton of a Brontosaurus. It is immediately made apparent the immense dedication both Dr. Huxley and his fiancĐąe have toward his work. The conversation that ensues is Alice, his fiancĐąe, explaining that the skeleton is to be their child and that nothing should get in the way of his work, not even a honeymoon.
The next scene, where the two main characters are introduced, takes place on a golf course. David Huxley is meeting Mr. Peabody to play golf and discuss a $1 million donation. The comedy soon begins when David must retrieve his hooked shot. He finds an eccentric Susan about to hit his golf ball. The first shot of Hepburn is a wonderful beauty shot that captures her as she turns to look at Grant. The lighting is perfect as her free flowing hair is lightly blown from her face. The conversation and wit exchanged is fast-paced and racy, emphasized by the stars genius comedic timing.
As the story unfolds, Susan uses her pet leopard