The Wasteland Reviewer

The Wasteland Review Request: The Front Page (1974)

How many times should you adapt a famous play for the silver screen? If you are Shakespeare, you do it infinite times but sometimes it works to rediscover a story and update it for a new audience. One of the most iconic comedies of all time is based on the classic crime/journalism comedy “The Front Page” by Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur. In 1931, The Front Page was brought to the big screen, but it was His Girl Friday that became the iconic recreation of this classic play. It is the Cary Grant and Rosalind Russell duo and Howard Hawkes direction that makes it so perfect. But then came 1974 and legendary filmmaker, Billy Wilder, wanted a crack at the play later in his own career. 

How does Wilder’s The Front Page stand up? Instead of a traditional romance that His Girl Friday leveraged, Wilder goes with an editor trying to sabotage the future marriage of his best reporter. What works so well about this Wilder adaptation is the duo which they recruited to bring this important duo to life. Jack Lemmon (a frequent star of Wilder’s comedies) is paired with perennial collaborator Walter Matthau. The two of them had perfect chemistry which started with The Odd Couple and would continue for decades into The Grumpy Old Men franchise. But their dynamic is electric in this film and the film would not work without them. Both characters can be quite unlikeable, but it is the charisma that each of them brings to the table that makes it work. 

Are they alone in making this comedy work? They have plenty of talented actors who bring the rest of the film together. You have a young and beautiful Susan Sarandon in a smaller but significant role as Lemmons bride to be. Austin Pendleton offers up a memorable turn as a death row convict Carol Burnett playing his spirited lover and sex worker. But it is the crew of other reports led by the always game Charles Durning that makes for plenty of the laughs. This film is filled out top to bottom with talented performers that makes this an enjoyable romp. 

Does Wilder live up to his legendary reputation for incredible writing as he adapts this famous play with I.A.L. Diamond? You can tell that Wilder still has a knack for creating detailed and layered stories. This is a challenging tightrope as he lays down so many little details that call back. There is also plenty of sharp dialogue that is always a highlight in a Wilder flick and the whole cast is ready to fire off plenty of fun barbs and jokes. But this film feels a little too comfortable in some aggressively antiquated language as it uses its period piece status as an excuse. There is a surprising amount of long hanging fruit including casual sexism, racism, and homophobia. That feels so disappointing when you know Wilder can write much smarter comedy than this. There is even quite a bit of silly slapstick that just doesn’t feel like the intelligent and biting work of Wilder. Maybe the bar is set too high and maybe he just wanted to have some silly fun this late in his career.

 How does Wilder balance some of the darker crime elements of the story with the comedy? Generally, Wilder has shown in Some Like It Hot and The Apartment that he can balance humor and tragedy easily. But this film feels a bit different. There are some shocking moments that just fit in with the overall silly tone that Wilder is going for. This is an exaggerated period comedy (the production design, costuming, and hairstyling works SO well though) and the darker crime elements of murder and corruption just don’t always sit right. The film feels like it is even playing down some of those darker moments as well to keep things unnaturally light and silly. 

Is Wilder’s The Front Page still a fun and engaging romp? The dynamic duo of Lemmon and Matthau is electric and so worth the watch. They might be a couple of no-good dudes who consistently do immoral and problematic things, but they still have an enjoyable charm. This film (which is already a period piece that takes place 45 years before it releases) has aged poorly and a lot of dialogue moments are going to feel increasingly awkward. But this zany and crazed crime/journalism tale still has a lot of its potential worn on its sleeves. 

Thank you Patrice Downing for the request!