Spéciale première

I am very fond of chamber comedies based on stage plays, so I was looking forward to this one. Maybe too much. I enjoyed the theme, especially when it turned out that some practices in the journalistic industry have not changed much since the 1930s. The characters were excellently written and performed, but the overall execution occasionally fell short. Of course, I expect to laugh with a comedy, but this time, I felt the creators wanted to force laughter out of me. I have no idea why they pushed so hard at times, considering it was an experienced team from whom I wouldn't expect such a mistake. It was really unpleasant, and I would compare it to a not-that-loud but persistent and annoying sound that you almost stop noticing, but you still know it's there. This excessive effort, which at one point turned into a mediocre slapstick, truly disappointed me, spoiled my overall impression, and cost the film at least one star in my rating. / Lesson learned: If your work is your hobby, you risk becoming a workaholic. (22/04/2023)

In The Front Page, two excellent comedy actors came together, who, whether by decision of the producers or based on their own directions, created a successful comedy duo in a series of other films. In this case, it was one of their best works, because Wilder's film relied on a clever script with polished dialogues and well-crafted scenes. The story takes us into the golden age of independent journalism, which was not yet overrun by the internet and the nonsense of bloggers. The rivalry of the newspaper party and their confrontation with the corrupt world of politicians and government officials, along with the efforts of one unfortunate man to escape the noose, creates an endless series of quality gags and crazy situations. Overall impression: 90%. (06/04/2010)

It’s obvious that I chose a more than appropriate film for my first encounter with Billy Wilder. A journalistic comedy full of verbal shoot-outs between Matthau's wonderful editor and his favorite hound dog Lemmon, a doctor who has been shot due to the sheriff's crap, who whines that he wants to be transferred to a Viennese hospital or he'll operate on himself, combing every corner of Chicago, hiding an escaped prisoner in a desk... Each scene is better than the last. Not to mention the ending. The Front Page was simply a success. And as for the journalism - there are so many true things in this film that it's not even satire. (21/01/2014)