Call It a Day

Call It a Day
Call It a Day
	Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Archie Mayo
Screenplay by	Casey Robinson
Based on	Call It a Day (play); by Dodie Smith
Starring	Olivia de Havilland; Ian Hunter; Anita Louise; Alice Brady; Roland Young; Frieda Inescort;
Cinematography	Ernest Haller
Edited by	James Gibbon
Music by	Heinz Roemheld
Production; company	Cosmopolitan Productions
Distributed by	Warner Bros. Pictures
Release date	April 17, 1937 (USA);
Running time	90 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

Call It a Day is a 1937 American comedy film directed by Archie Mayo and starring Olivia de Havilland, Ian Hunter, Anita Louise, Alice Brady, Roland Young, and Frieda Inescort. Based on the 1935 play Call It a Day by Dodie Smith, the film is about a day in the life of a middle-class London family whose lives are complicated by the first romantic signs of spring.^[1]

Cast[]

Olivia de Havilland as Catherine 'Cath' Hilton
Ian Hunter as Roger Hilton
Anita Louise as Joan Collett
Alice Brady as Muriel West
Roland Young as Frank Haines
Frieda Inescort as Dorothy Hilton
Bonita Granville as Ann Hilton
Peggy Wood as Ethel Francis
Marcia Ralston as Beatrice Gwynn
Walter Woolf King as Paul Francis
Peter Willes as Martin Hilton
Una O'Connor as Mrs. Milson, the Housekeeper
Beryl Mercer as Mrs. Elkins, the Cook
Elsa Buchanan as Vera, the Maid
Mary Field as Elsie Lester, Roger's Secretary
May Beatty as Frank's Landlady
Sidney Bracey as Flower Shop Owner
Leyland Hodgson as Sir Harold
Robert Adair as Butler
Louise Stanley as Girl on Bus
Clarissa Selwynne as Annoyed Woman in Theater

Production[]

Soundtrack[]

"I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles" (James Kendis, James Brockman, Nat Vincent, John W. Kellette) performed by Ian Hunter
"Isn't It Romantic?" (Richard Rodgers, Lorenz Hart) performed by Marcia Ralston

Reception[]

In his May 7, 1937, review, The New York Times' Frank Nugent said that he "enjoyed" the "tolerant and quietly humorous piece", and praised the ensemble cast.^[2] Two months later, writing for , Graham Greene gave the film a poor review and complained about the self-sanitized story of temptations rejected in the face of infidelity. Greene also complains of the use of clichéd dialogue, which includes the stale line, "Do you mind if I slip into something more comfortable?" which, Greene adds, "to our astonishment [leads to] the temptress reappear[ing] in just another evening dress."^[3]

References[]

^ "Call It a Day (1937) - Overview - TCM.com". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved 2020-07-04.
^ "THE SCREEN; One More Film of a Last Year's Play Comes to Town: This Being 'Call It a Day' at the Capitol". timesmachine.nytimes.com. Retrieved 2020-07-04.
^ Greene, Graham (22 July 1937). "Parnell/Call it a Day". . (reprinted in: Taylor, John Russell, ed. (1980). The Pleasure Dome. Oxford University Press. pp. 155–156. ISBN 0192812866.)

External links[]

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[1] "Call It a Day (1937) - Overview - TCM.com". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved 2020-07-04.

[2] "THE SCREEN; One More Film of a Last Year's Play Comes to Town: This Being 'Call It a Day' at the Capitol". timesmachine.nytimes.com. Retrieved 2020-07-04.

[3] Greene, Graham (22 July 1937). "Parnell/Call it a Day". . (reprinted in: Taylor, John Russell, ed. (1980). The Pleasure Dome. Oxford University Press. pp. 155–156. ISBN 0192812866.)

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