Twentieth Century (film)

Not to be confused with The Twentieth Century (film), 2019.

Twentieth Century
Theatrical release poster
Directed byHoward Hawks
Written by
Based onNapoleon of Broadway
1932 play
by Charles Bruce Millholland
Produced byHoward Hawks
Starring
CinematographyJoseph August
Edited byGene Havlick
Production
company
Distributed byColumbia Pictures
Release dates
  • May 3, 1934 (1934-05-03) (New York City premiere)
  • May 11, 1934 (1934-05-11)
Running time
91 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Twentieth Century is a 1934 American pre-Code screwball comedy film[1][2][3] directed by Howard Hawks and starring John Barrymore, Carole Lombard, Walter Connolly, and Roscoe Karns. Much of the film is set on the 20th Century Limited train as it travels from Chicago to New York City. Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur adapted their 1932 Broadway play of the same name[4]—itself based on the unproduced play Napoleon of Broadway by Charles Bruce Millholland—with uncredited contributions from Gene Fowler and Preston Sturges.[5]

Along with Frank Capra's It Happened One Night, also released in 1934 (which coincidentally has the same music over the opening titles), Twentieth Century is considered to be a prototype for the screwball comedy. "Howard Hawks' rapid-fire romantic comedy established the essential ingredients of the screwball – a dizzy dame, a charming, but befuddled, hero, dazzling dialogue, and a dash of slapstick."[6] Its success propelled Lombard into the front ranks of film comediennes. The film was added to the National Film Registry of the Library of Congress in 2011.[7][8]

  1. ^ Levy, Emanuel (January 18, 2014). "Twentieth Century (1934): Howard Hawks' Top Screwball Comedy, Starring John Barrymore and Carole Lombard". Emanual Levy Cinema 24/7. Retrieved June 9, 2024.
  2. ^ Wigley, Samuel (October 22, 2018). "10 great screwball comedy films". British Film Institute.
  3. ^ Morgan, David (September 26, 2012). "National Film Registry 2011: 'Twentieth Century' (1934)". CBS News.
  4. ^ "Twentieth Century – Broadway Play – Original". Internet Broadway Database.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference afihistory was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Columbia Tristar Home Video, 1992, CVR 11493 notes on back cover
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference LOC was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ "Complete National Film Registry Listing". Library of Congress. Retrieved May 13, 2020.