It Happened One Night

"An unforgettable entertainment...the outstanding performance of two outstanding careers!"

1934 1h 45m EN

🙌

7.8

BANGER

★7.8TMDB · 1,464

ComedyRomance

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

A runaway heiress makes a deal with the rogue reporter trailing her but the mismatched pair end up stuck with each other when their bus leaves them behind.

“An unforgettable entertainment...the outstanding performance of two outstanding careers!”

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Cast

Clark Gable
Peter Warne
Claudette Colbert
Ellie Andrews
Walter Connolly
Alexander Andrews
Roscoe Karns
Oscar Shapeley
Jameson Thomas
King Westley
Alan Hale
Danker
Arthur Hoyt
Zeke
Blanche Friderici
Zeke's Wife

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Frank Capra
Writers: Robert Riskin, Samuel Hopkins Adams
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $0.3M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Grossed $5M — a 13.8× return. The kind of profit studios chase for a decade.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

ERA

Did you know

92 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Frank Capra, shot by Joseph Walker. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Howard Jackson. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Gene Havlick shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert and Walter Connolly carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "An unforgettable entertainment...the outstanding performance of two outstanding careers!".

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Frank Capra directs. Joseph Walker behind the camera. Howard Jackson scores. Gene Havlick cuts. Made its budget back several times over at the box office. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Shot for just $0.3M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
2Grossed $5M — a 13.8× return. The kind of profit studios chase for a decade.
392 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
4Directed by Frank Capra, shot by Joseph Walker. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Original score by Howard Jackson. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
6Editor Gene Havlick shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
7Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert and Walter Connolly carry the top of the cast.
8Marketing tagline: "An unforgettable entertainment...the outstanding performance of two outstanding careers!".
9IMDB entry: tt0025316 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
10Classified under 19 themes, including "newspaper", "miami, florida", "marriage", "reporter".
11Released under 13 different titles around the world.

The technical file

Cinematography: Joseph Walker
Original score: Howard Jackson
Editing: Gene Havlick
Costume design: Robert Kalloch
Runtime: 105 min · 1h 45m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $325,000
Box office: $4,500,000
Return: 1385% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): NR
IMDB: It Happened One Night (1934)

Awards

Academy Award for Best Writing, Adapted Screenplay
Academy Award for Best Actress
Academy Award for Best Director
National Board of Review Award for Best Film
Academy Award for Best Actor
Academy Award for Best Picture

Individual records documented via Wikidata; the summary above may count more.

Also by

Frank Capra

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Community reviews

What people are saying

Andres Gomez2013-08-21
★ 8/10
A classical comedy which would be setting some standards with great performance from Clark Gable.
JTomKinser2022-01-31
★ 10/10
Made nearly 90 years ago and still fun to watch. Sarcastic, witty, and entertaining. "Mind if I tried? ... You? Don't make me laugh."
CinemaSerf2023-03-25
★ 7/10
Claudette Colbert is great as the independently-minded heiress "Ellie" who jumps from her father's yacht and finds herself, nigh-on penniless, on a bus to New York. Also angling for that last seat on the bus is the roguish "Warne" (Clark Gable) - a journalist with a nose for a good story. Determined to track her down, her father uses his media empire and soon her photo is all over the press. This doesn't go unnoticed by the shrewd "Warne", who soon reckons her story is worth a load of cash to his editor. What neither reckon on though, is that their initial hostility/indifference to each other gradually morphs into something - well, yes, you can guess that bit. Indeed, the story itself has a degree of predictability to it - but that doesn't matter here. This is a quickly paced, well written comedy drama that utilises the intimacy of the bus (or the motels) to provide an excellent vehicle for two actors who just exude a joyous chemistry - never a romantic, or sentimental one - as they try to stay one step ahead of the blokes sent by her father to return her to safety and to her affianced "King Wesley" (Jameson Thomas) who is the latest cause of the familial discord (her father loathes this opportunist fellow). Tables are turned and turned again as each try to outmanoeuvre the other - with Walter Connolly turning in quite an engaging performance as the dad who also knows there is more than one way to skin a cat. This might be my favourite Gable outing - he had a lovely smile and glint in his eye for comedy parts when he was enjoying himself and Colbert is also at the top of her game for a thoroughly enjoyable and spirited look at human nature and bloody-mindedness.