MovieChat Forums > The Talk of the Town (1942) Discussion > favorite scene

favorite scene

posted 19 years ago by dancing_pears
24 replies | jump to latest

I think this is such a delightful movie. One of Cary Grant's best. (But my favorite scene doesn't involve him.) My fav scene is when prof. Lightcap is about to read his morning newspaper and thereby discover that Leopold Dilg is living in his house, and Nora dumps a plate of eggs on the newspaper to cover Dilg's face telling the professor that "it isn't his egg day." The image of two cheerful, sunny-side up fried eggs donning hat and coat is really too funny. It's like Dilg's face is made up entirely of two huge, goggling, yellow eyes. Makes me giggle every time i think of it. Also Nora screaming "no no no no no!" over again in her funny, raspy little voice. . . It's great. I love this movie.

"Abide, thou art so fair." --Faust

[–] csu16387 19 years ago

It's been a while since I've seen this brilliant, underrated film. My favorite scene, if I can remember it correctly, is when Leopold is in the attic dying to get something to eat. Nora and Professor Lightcap are outside. Nora's writing things down Lightcap is telling her. She sees Leopold begging for some food, but brushes him off. He goes downstairs and looks in the fridge for a fruit (an apple or something). He hears Lightcap's ideals and instead of hiding back upstairs, Leopold immediately opposes the professor's views.

"Dry your eyes baby, it's out of character."

[–] 19 years ago

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[–] dancing_pears 18 years ago

That's a good scene. I also like when she's in the professor's PJs and talking to herself in the mirror. She reminds me of me! =)

[–] crisso 18 years ago

The Talk of the Town is truly a class act, with one sparkling scene after another. I especially love the early scenes between Jean and Ronnie, but really I love them all!

[–] 18 years ago

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[–] angelfromhell926 16 years ago

yah that was cute and her mother comes in and is like...who's pajamas are those? with this like thought about her daughter already made up. and he comes down the stairs and she says something about him being an older man or somehting and she's like MOTHER!!!!!! that's hilarious.

[–] Mimi38 18 years ago

I love the egg thing. And the part with the mirror was great too. I also love Lightcap's tone when he says "She must have adenoids."

[–] purr123 18 years ago

I just rented this movie and don't think I have seen it before.(I am older than the movie). As usual Cary Grant is his usual suave self; Ronald Colman even more so. I do love Jean Arthur's voice. Fun movie! Did you catch Lloyd Bridges as a young reporter?

[–] seedsower-2 18 years ago

Mimi38 wrote...I also love Lightcap's tone when he says "She must have adenoids." ...

Yup,that gave me a belly laugh!!!
I like when she says something like"why does everything always happen to me?"

[–] fancy_joy 18 years ago

My favorite scene is that when the professor Lightcap tried to woo Regina Bush (the hairsalon girl), so that he could get the evidence of the case. It's so funny because his dialogue is so awkward but the girl still likes it.

This is the most fun I've had without lubricant

[–] cnb 16 years ago

I loved it when Cary Grant entreated Jean Arthur not to so tenderly call him "Leopold," because he said "you just can't do that with a name like Leopold!" I laughed aloud at that one.

[–] glrandich3 18 years ago

I have too many favorite scenes in this movie to mention, but one of them is Ronald Coleman's "concessions" exclamation. I fell in love with Ronald Coleman in this movie.

1942. Ronald Coleman. Cary Grant. Jean Arthur. Boy was I born too late!

[–] commalette 18 years ago

My favorite scene is when she finds him in the attic and she says his name and he said stop saying leopold all tenderly like that, you can't with a name like that. I also like when the professor hits Leopold and Nora starts kissing him where it hurts. It was so cute.

[–] Goodbye_Ruby_Tuesday 17 years ago

Aaaawwwww, I love Jean Arthur and Cary, Cary, Cary.

My favorite quote:

Nora: How are the zinnias?
Leopold: [eating an apple] Dying.

Did he train you? Did he rehearse you? Did he tell you *exactly* what to do, what to say?!

[–] sarchiorama 16 years ago

miss lake was a joy just watch her splendid charm

[–] mrplankton 16 years ago

hallo dancing_pears- the egg scene is perhaps my favourite as well! another scene that makes me laugh is when the professor is wearing the slippers grant had once worn and then is chased by dogs. looks like they may have sped up the film cuz it looked like he was running extremely fast!

cheers.

[–] KatzaSchuk 16 years ago

The egg scene is my favorite, but I also loved it when she was peeking into Colman's bedroom and discovers that he isn't there. What she does with the candle in her hand is hillarious! Then she turns and finds that he is right behind her and has to make up a silly lie to explain herself!

"She is tolerable I suppose, but not handsome enough to tempt me!" Mr. Darcy

[–] bruce-129 14 years ago

Funny how that scene is so real you mention the "yellow" eyes ... and it's in black and white! ;-)

That scene was a screamer. I just saw this movie in a full theater at the Stanford theater in
Palo Alto CA, where every day they show these kinds of old movies. It is such a treat to see
a movie like this for the first time and be able to appreciate it and laugh as hard as anything
in the movies today, and have it be inspiring and clean and fun and funny.

The transformation of the professor ... his thawing is an amazing process, and the pulling
of the wool down from the audience's eyes as we are told what America is really like and what
it could be like ... that is the point of a movie, and they stopped doing that many years ago
to show corruption, violence, sex, greed, etc. These old movies are so fantastic. Wish these
kind of movies would come back at some point, the could be even better today.

[–] megadance03 13 years ago

I agree with everyone here on the favorite seens. I do love when she is looking into the Professors room and he isn't there. I especially love when they both go to their rooms after that and she tries to sneak out again and just how Jean acts is just wonderful. I also LOVE the part where Leopold is grabbing for his boot on the window sill in the attic and it drops and she catches it! I had to rewind it because Jean Arthur was so perfect at comedy that she was just brilliant in how she caught it. And then throwing it up to him again! I watched it again and again!

[–] Errington_92 13 years ago

I found it funny when Nora was playing with her hair and talked in a different voice looking at the mirror before Lightcap saw her.

"I'd rather be hated for who I am, than loved for who I am not".

[–] Jealous_Skunk 12 years ago

Ahhhh, to many wonderful scenes but I think the " LOVELY, LOVELY " scene is kinda special!

JeSkuNk

[–] pennyserenade1208 12 years ago

I love this movie, and there are many great scenes. Some of my favorites have already been mentioned - the egg scene, the scene where Arthur looks at herself in the mirror and impersonates Veronica Lake, the scene with Grant and Arthur when he says "Stop saying Leopold like that!". My favorite bit is when Arthur is trying to come up with an excuse for why she has to stay at the cottage, then SHE locks her bedroom door. Coleman's expression is priceless! I always think he looks like - hey I'm the one who should be locking MY door, this girl is crazy!