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Film Arsenic and Old Lace (1944)

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Arsenic and Old Lace embraces rule No. 1 for a screwball classic: the hero must have a mayhem-making secret. For Cary Grant, an anti-marriage newlywed (rule No. 2: contradictions become common sense), the "secret" is his kooky family — two kindly spinster aunts who inure themselves to the idea of Kevorkian-style "assistance" for lonely old gentlemen; a brother who thinks he's Teddy Roosevelt; and another, murderous, brother who resembles Boris Karloff. Once director Frank Capra situates the relatives (and 13 dead bodies) under one roof, Grant's many confused, kabuki-like faces encapsulate his try at resolving family matters before his honeymoon. But with all the macabre amusement, even the traces of Capra-corn seem forgivable.

– Jason Jude Chan

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