This film is my family's go-to movie for Halloween viewing (although last year we watched The Village against my better judgement). Most years though, we watch Arsenic And Old Lace. The 1944 film is directed by Frank Capra, and has Cary Grant in the starring role of Mortimer Brewster. And it's a delight. Surprisingly, the movie starts out on Halloween day with Mortimer getting married, and he's not exactly thrilled. In fact, as he and his bride-to-be stand in line waiting for their licence, he is attempting to keep his face hidden because he's afraid of being recognized. It turns out that he's the famous author of a series of books which deride marriage as "an old fashioned superstition" and recommend consigning the institution to the dustbin of history. Then, to his dismay, he fell in love with Elaine Harper, literally the girl next door- and the sweet, innocent daughter of a minister, to boot. To his shock, he found himself proposing marriage to Elaine which is how we find the couple at City Hall. Soon, despite some last-minute misgivings on Mortimer's part, the two are married and travelling back to Brooklyn to break the news to their families and pack to leave on their honeymoon. Reaching Brooklyn, they ask the taxi to wait while they, after pausing for a couple minutes to canoodle in the church graveyard, go to pack their bags. Elaine rushes into the manse to tell her father and Mortimer strolls into the house next door where he grew up, raised by his two Aunts and Uncle Brewster. Mortimer tells his Aunts Abby and Martha that he and Elaine are married, and they are delighted. They insist that they must host a celebration party for them, though Mortimer tries to convince them that they don't need one- he wants to leave on his honeymoon. Nevertheless, they have their hearts set on it and he doesn't like to disappoint the old ladies, who are a bit dotty but sweet. Though he no longer lives at the Brewster homestead, Mortimer is very fond of his aunts, who care for their brother Teddy. Teddy has slipped over the line from eccentricity into downright crazy. He believes that he is Theodore Roosevelt; he insists on being addressed as 'Mr President' and frequently re enacts the Battle of San Juan Hill, blowing a bugle and running up the stairs shouting "Charge!" While waiting for Abby and Martha to rustle up cake and wine, Mortimer happens to open up the window seat and then does a double- and triple- take. There is a dead body in the window seat! Mortimer instantly assumes that Teddy's crazy has gone to a whole new level, and steels himself to break the terrible news to his aunts as they reenter the room with refreshments. To his shock, his aunts affectionately chide him for "peeking" and smilingly tell him that Teddy didn't kill the man in the window seat (Mr. Hoskins)... they did. They happily explain that it's one of their charities; for some time they've been inviting in elderly gentlemen with no family and giving them a glass of their elderberry wine spiked with a blend of arsenic, strychnine, and "a pinch of cyanide." They explain that they're saving the old men from their lonely lives. Each time they tell Teddy that the gentleman is a yellow fever victim and he buries the body in the basement where he- as Roosevelt- is digging the Panama Canal. Mortimer is naturally a little upset by this- too upset to notice that Elaine is trying to contact him from her house, ready to leave. Despite what they've been up to, Mortimer cares about his aunts and doesn't want to see them carted off to the penitentiary. It has always been the plan to have Teddy committed to the Happydale Asylum when Abby and Martha passed on, and Mortimer decides to have him committed now, and if the murders are discovered, they'll be blamed on him. While he's on the telephone with Happydale, the aunts invite another gentleman in. Mortimer hangs up and turns to see the man about to take a drink of wine. He shrieks, causing the man to drop the glass, then chases him out of the house to save his life. His aunts are annoyed- after all, Mortimer has his little hobbies; they don't see why he is interfering with theirs. Mortimer has to get a judge to sign the commitment papers, so he rushes out to do so, making his aunts promise not to let anyone into the house while he's gone. Unfortunately, while Mortimer is gone, his older brother Jonathan, who left home many years before, shows up with his colleague- or rather, partner in crime Dr Einstein. Always cruel and sadistic, Jonathan has become a career criminal and murderer. He is on the run from the police, has a dead body (Mr. Spinalzo) in the trunk of his car, and needs a place to hide out. He also needs a place for Dr Einstein to operate and change his face (he's a criminal plastic surgeon). They are going to stay at the house until the operation and Jonathan's recovery is done. Teddy, not knowing anything is wrong, shows Dr Einstein the new "lock" he's just dug in "Panama" and Einstein realizes it's the right size to bury a body- Mr Spinalzo- in. Jonathan orders his terrified aunts to bed, and he and Einstein take up residence in one of the other bedrooms, intending to carry in the body once everyone's asleep. (To Be Continued) |
About MeI'm a lover of good books, classic movies, and well-written shows (as well as some pretty cheesy ones, to be completely honest). Categories
All
Archives
January 2024
Fun SitesOdds & Ends |