Arsenic and Old Lace | Blu-ray

The secret sauce of the screwball comedy era of Old Hollywood came from air-tight screenwriting. Without a script that keeps the plot humming along at a breakneck pace, all the slapstick and goofing often results in big jokes jutting out from long stretches of meandering plotting (see: most Jerry Lewis movies).

For that reason, some of the very best screwball films are adaptations of plays. A good play requires high energy and meaningful dialogue or audiences will quickly revolt. Arsenic and Old Lace was a sensational play before it ever hit the screen and its success shows through every minute of the run time.

Buoyed by the king of fast-talking, slapstick comedy, Cary Grant—and with wonderful villainous support from Raymond Massey and Peter Lorre—Frank Capra’s adaptation is just about the ideal expression of the art form. Two hours of non-stop jokes, macabre misadventure, and comic romance. An ideal viewing experience.