Hello all, 

What better month than February to watch a classic romantic comedy?

On Monday, February 19th, we will be screening legendary writer/director Preston Sturges' delightful film The Lady Eve, in which a trio of card sharks are out to scam a socially awkward brewery heir. Called a "bubbling and frothy comedy-romance" by The New York Times upon its release in 1941, the film stars Barbara Stanwyck and Henry Fonda. Sturges was one of the first film makers in Hollywood to earn the right to direct his own screenplays, and his trademark wit and style are clearly on display in this cinema classic.

Cinema Club meets at 6:30 pm in the Aspen Drive Library Meeting Room in Vernon Hills. No registration is required. We hope you can join us! Add to your calendar.

A few articles of interest about the film can be found below.

Becky and Nate

The Seven Wonders of Preston Sturges

Preston Sturges wrote and directed seven films that are considered Hollywood classics between 1940 and 1944, after which his career suffered a sharp decline. In his essay for Vanity Fair, Douglas McGrath takes a candid look at the highs and lows of the brief, but brilliant career of Sturges and examines the qualities that set him apart from other film makers, both then and now.

"His films, with all their excesses (possibly because of their excesses), offer a truer idea of American life than the films of any other director of his time."

The Lady Eve: Sweet Revenge

In his essay for Criterion, Geoffrey O'Brien examines the enduring appeal of The Lady Eve, the film he believes embodies the very best qualities that make a Preston Sturges film unique: a witty, intelligent screenplay coupled with a stellar cast.

"...the director’s flawlessly engineered farce, while reveling in absurdity and clownish mayhem, never sacrifices the humanity of his characters to the machinery of the plot."