Movies
THE LADY EVE Saturday Morning at The Hi-Pointe
“I need him like the ax needs the turkey!”
THE LADY EVE screens this Saturday morning, February 13th at The Hi-Pointe Theater (1005 McCausland Ave., St. Louis, MO 63117) as part of their Classic Film Series.
Barbara Stanwyck should have been court-ordered to keep a safe distance from any future cast member of My Three Sons. In DOUBLE INDEMNITY she cons the future Pa Douglas (Fred McMurray) into a deadly scheme. In the 1941 Preston Sturges comedy THE LADY EVE, she messes with William Demarest, Uncle Charley himself, by whisking gullible Henry Fonda from under his protective glare.
Fonda plays the young heir to the Pike’s Pale Ale brewery fortune, who prefers spending his time chasing snakes in South America while his guardian Muggsy (Demarest) looks on. On a boat for home, young Pike catches the eye of Jean Harrington (Stanwyck) who sets out to scam the boy but winds up falling in love with him instead. But Muggsy intervenes, and Jean, reverting to her former type, plots revenge. THE LADY EVE is a gut-buster in the classic screwball tradition, aiming to please from its opening title sequence (introducing its indelible samba-like theme with the help of a friendly snake) to its door-slamming finale.
At the heart of the film are Stanwyck and Fonda delivering fun performances. Fonda’s a particular surprise, given comedy was not his forte, acting the part of a bookwormy nebbish. And of course Stanwyck steals every frame of the film as both Jean and, later on, the title character. THE LADY EVE is clever, sophisticated comedy, 40’s style, that holds up perfectly despite the passing decades. See for yourself this Saturday morning when THE LADY EVE screens at The Hi-Pointe Theater this Saturday morning (January 9th) as part of The Hi-Pointe Theater’s Saturday Morning Classic Film Series! Doors open at 10am THE LADY EVE begins at 10:30! Admission is only $5!!
The Hi-Pointe is located at 1005 McCausland Ave., St. Louis, MO 63117. Their website can be found HERE
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