Product Details

• Actors: Jean Arthur, James Stewart, Lionel Barrymore, Edward Arnold, Mischa Auer
• Directors: Frank Capra
• Writers: George S. Kaufman, Moss Hart, Robert Riskin
• Producers: Frank Capra
• Format: Black & White, NTSC
• Language: English
• Rating: Unrated
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Sony Pictures
• VHS Release Date: June 3, 1997
• Run Time: 126 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (91 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 0800114051
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #11,252 in Video (See Bestsellers in Video)

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  #10 in	Video > Classics > Classic Comedies > Screwball
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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com essential video

Frank Capra's 1938 populist spin on the George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart play about a family of happy eccentrics is a great deal of fun, though it significantly rewrites the original work and doesn't represent Capra (Mr. Deeds Goes to Town, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington) at his best. Jean Arthur plays a member of the blissful Vanderhof household who falls in love with a rich man's son (James Stewart) and brings him into her nutty home. Lionel Barrymore, who played such a bad guy eight years later in Capra's It's a Wonderful Life, is the wonderful Grandpa Vanderhof, who addresses God during the dinner prayer as "sir" and speaks plainly and beautifully of why it's good to be alive. Capra took this opportunity to rail against big business and champion the common man, but the overall tone of the film--typical for the director's comedies--is buoyant and snappy. --Tom Keogh

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

41 of 42 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Great classic movie, awful DVD, September 27, 2003

By	R. Price "Eyes to the East" (Suburbia, IL USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: You Can't Take It With You (DVD)

As other reviewers have noted, "You Can't Take It with You" is a CLASSIC movie with a great cast and storyline. **However, this DVD is so poor in quality that I would recommend waiting for another release. It is obvious that this film has not been restored whatsoever. The picture is fuzzy and even jumps a bit at some points. **The sound quality is HORRENDOUS.** Even with the volume at full blast, parts of conversation are simply inaudible. I even tinkered with the treble and bass to try to make it a little clearer, but nothing worked. If you're absolutely desperate to own a copy of this movie now, then get it. But at least try to find a better deal in price.

41 of 43 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars I thought Columbia cared about classics. I thought wrong., March 7, 2003

By	Rachel Lai "jvrlai" (London, Ontario Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: You Can't Take It With You (DVD)

This film itself:

5 stars.

It's a wonderful, warm, witty, and simply enjoyable movie. I love it.

The DVD:

1 star

I bought this DVD without reading any reviews (I also bought "Talk of The Town", a day-and-date Columbia release), because Columbia has, in the past, done astounding work restoring and remastering their old films ("It Happened One Night" from their Classics collection is nothing short of an amazing transfer). Apparently, their agenda has changed: they are now content to simply release anything as long as they can tout it as a "high-definition remaster", thus tricking their customers into thinking that some money and time was actually spent on striking a new print. Both this and "Talk Of The Town" look and sound absolutely horrible. The VHS version of this film has less grain and fewer sound defects (hissing, popping abound). In fact, this transfer is akin in quality to the one I often see on network television -- it's an absolute disaster on all levels. Virtually unwatchable. Avoid at all costs until Columbia treats its customers (and this film) right with a proper DVD release. Even Paramount is doing it with their catalogue releases, Columbia! Get with the program.

29 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Let's get some new staff in the Columbia DVD offices!, February 22, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: You Can't Take It With You (DVD)

Of all the beloved Capra classics, this one probably belongs on the bottom of the list. But it's classic all the same, and as such deserves respectful treatment on DVD. This is not the case here! Once again, Columbia is asking us to pay 30 bucks for a horrible DVD-transfer; in fact, the worst one so far among all the black and white releases produced during the last eight months. A year or two ago, one could rest assured that Columbia tried to give us decent or better transfers of their famous film library of the past. That or those persons responsible must have been fired! After 30 minutes of watching this one I felt so cheated and upset that I had to stop the film. The grain is intolerable; the focus is unstable at best; there are scratches and dirt galore (not to mention big black splices), and the sound is muffled and distorted. Not one cent has been spent on trying to preserve and present Mr. Capra's opus in the best possible way. Just look at what Warner has been doing lately with films like "Now, Voyager" and "Mildred Pierce": They sparkle like first class jewels! (And they charge $ 20.00!)The Columbia library could easily shine just as bright - that means, if somebody cared. Hey, Columbia: How about hiring some new people who love those old black and white classics! They sure would be welcome!