Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967)
When Katharine Houghton returns home to San Francisco from a ten-day Hawaiian cruise, she’s deliriously happy. She’s fallen in love, wants to get married, and has brought her intended home to meet her parents, Katharine Hepburn—her aunt in real life—and Spencer Tracy. On paper, everything’s perfect. He’s a doctor, a humanitarian, morally respectful, and in love with their daughter. When they meet him, though, Kate and Spence are a little surprised. Their daughter wants to marry Sidney Poitier, and while they raised her to be as color-blind as possible, they’re not particularly thrilled that she’s chosen to marry a black man in the 1960s.
If you haven’t seen Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner, you’re missing out on an iconic piece of American cinema. It was nominated for ten Academy Awards, taking home the gold for Best Actress and Best Screenplay, and it’s one of the most defining films of the decade. While Sidney Poitier was universally ignored for this film during the awards season, and for the other famous film he made that year, In the Heat of the Night, his role and performance were etched in film history. There’s a line Sidney says after Spencer voices his concerns about the difficulties of raising bi-racial children, and at the time it was merely considered cute and full of wishful thinking: “Johanna feels that all of our children will be President of the United States. . . I’d settle for Secretary of State.” Watching the film now gives that line an entirely different meaning.
While all the performances in the film are wonderful, watching Katharine Hepburn and her longtime love Spencer Tracy is bittersweet. In their ninth film together, Spence’s health was failing drastically. He died seventeen days after filming completed, and Kate never saw the finished product because it would have been too painful. He gives a very famous speech about true love that brings tears to the audience’s eyes, not only because it’s a well-written speech, but because it’s clear he’s speaking about his onscreen and offscreen partner.
Each character has his or her own fondly remembered lines and speeches in the film: Kate’s unforgettable recitation of the title; Spence’s Oregon boosenberry ice cream scene and “that’s everything” monologue; Sidney’s “get off my back” speech; Katharine’s “Isn’t it just!” exclamation; and Isabel Sanford’s line that proves she’s clinically blind, saying Sidney Poitier isn’t good-looking. I remember watching this movie as a kid, not understanding why anyone would have a problem welcoming Sidney Poitier into the family, and of course being terribly jealous of Katharine Houghton. I’ve had a crush on him ever since, but whatever reason you watch the film, for the Americana, acting, writing, or eye candy, I’m sure you’ll enjoy it.
Want to watch it? Click here to watch it on ok.ru. And thanks "Classic Movies Kristine Rose" for posting!
More Katharine Hepburn movies here!
More Sidney Poitier movies here!
More Spencer Tracy movies here!
If you haven’t seen Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner, you’re missing out on an iconic piece of American cinema. It was nominated for ten Academy Awards, taking home the gold for Best Actress and Best Screenplay, and it’s one of the most defining films of the decade. While Sidney Poitier was universally ignored for this film during the awards season, and for the other famous film he made that year, In the Heat of the Night, his role and performance were etched in film history. There’s a line Sidney says after Spencer voices his concerns about the difficulties of raising bi-racial children, and at the time it was merely considered cute and full of wishful thinking: “Johanna feels that all of our children will be President of the United States. . . I’d settle for Secretary of State.” Watching the film now gives that line an entirely different meaning.
While all the performances in the film are wonderful, watching Katharine Hepburn and her longtime love Spencer Tracy is bittersweet. In their ninth film together, Spence’s health was failing drastically. He died seventeen days after filming completed, and Kate never saw the finished product because it would have been too painful. He gives a very famous speech about true love that brings tears to the audience’s eyes, not only because it’s a well-written speech, but because it’s clear he’s speaking about his onscreen and offscreen partner.
Each character has his or her own fondly remembered lines and speeches in the film: Kate’s unforgettable recitation of the title; Spence’s Oregon boosenberry ice cream scene and “that’s everything” monologue; Sidney’s “get off my back” speech; Katharine’s “Isn’t it just!” exclamation; and Isabel Sanford’s line that proves she’s clinically blind, saying Sidney Poitier isn’t good-looking. I remember watching this movie as a kid, not understanding why anyone would have a problem welcoming Sidney Poitier into the family, and of course being terribly jealous of Katharine Houghton. I’ve had a crush on him ever since, but whatever reason you watch the film, for the Americana, acting, writing, or eye candy, I’m sure you’ll enjoy it.
Want to watch it? Click here to watch it on ok.ru. And thanks "Classic Movies Kristine Rose" for posting!
More Katharine Hepburn movies here!
More Sidney Poitier movies here!
More Spencer Tracy movies here!
Hot Toasty Rag Awards:
Best Picture of 1967
Best Actor: Spencer Tracy
Best Dramatic Screenplay
Hot Toasty Rag Nominations:
Best Actress: Katharine Hepburn
Best Supporting Actor: Sidney Poitier
Best Supporting Actress: Beah Richards