Expected more

Tells a fascinating and unsettling true story, and does so well, without pretending to have all the answers.

While it is a pity that the story wasn't told with more visual finesse, this is trivial compared to our real-world problems. It takes a good movie to put that into perspective.

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

Cary Grant and Irene Dunne play a married couple who divorce due to (mostly) mutual misguided suspicions of infidelity. As the divorce proceeds, both hook up with other romantic partners, and each does their best to sabotage the other's relationship. This is one of the best screwball comedies and a perfect example of the comedy of remarriage, a genre created to largely tell slightly racy comedic stories while not running afoul of the Production Code. Grant and Dunne have incredible screen chemistry and both are at the top of their game here. Ralph Bellamy co-stars as a fairly dumb suitor ... a role he seems to have been born to play over and over again ... and there's a good reason for that. The scene where he dances a ridiculously elaborate dance with Dunne while Grant looks on is one of the funniest sequences committed to film.

Irene Dunne is wonderful in "The Awful Truth" an actress largely forgotten today I beg movie lovers to watch this movie (and others she has dunne-ha ha) and maybe together we can resurrect her formidable career! I don't waste time on plot, lets talk about the highlights in this achingly funny film: Irene being tickled by Cary, Irene being forced to dance with oaf Ralph Bellamy, Irene passing herself off as Cary's trashy sister and singing the mildly risqué song "My dreams have gone with The Wind". Irene Dunne was delightful, delectable, dynamite and most important durable. She lasts! She sang superbly, acted effortlessly and danced with precision and panache. One of AFI's 25 greatest female stars lets affirm her legacy and make her viable again! Here are some of her other films I have seen: "Show Boat", "Roberta", "My Favorite Wife", "Love Affair". Musical, comedy, drama, heck she even tackled westerns ("Cimarron"). C'mon people! Make the next film you watch an Irene Dunne vehicle! This is Daniel at the movies. Till we meet again don't know where don't know when.

In general, Cary Grant comedies are not my favorites, and this offering is thus far my least favorite. Even the later "My Favorite Wife", despite it's plot problems, was a pleasure to watch compared to this turkey.During parts of the film, costar Irene Dunn reminded me in hair style, speech and mannerisms of Katharine Hepburn, say in "Bringing Up Baby", released the following year. The humor in that Grant film was miles more effective. Not sure if the title is supposed to relate to the plot? Is the point that there was no awful truth to be discovered, thus wrongly leading to the divorce. Never understood why it was so important for Cary's character to lie about going to Florida? The hint is that he went to California. Why? This only relates to the rest of the film in providing some reason for Dunn's character to wonder about his fidelity, eventually leading to divorce.

Jerry Warriner (Cary Grant) returns home from a trip but he lies about it being to Florida. His wife Lucy (Irene Dunne) is nowhere to be found. She returns home with suave foreigner Armand Duvalle. Everybody is suspicious. He doesn't believe her car broke down and his Florida story doesn't hold up. They decide to get divorced. They fight over their dog Mr. Smith but she wins with a toy. She moves in with her Aunt Patsy and goes out with her neighbor oil-rich Oklahoma hick Dan Leeson. Dan's mother disapproves. Jerry ends up with socialite Barbara Vance. Jerry and Lucy constantly fight and can't seem to get over each other.Cary Grant and Irene Dunne are a fun couple. Their jabs are always sharp and utterly endearing. They are a cute couple and I rather like this rom-com premise. The start is a little clunky with the misunderstandings but it quickly falls into the classic formula. The thing is that this movie is one of those that created the formula. Grant and Dunne can't be any more lovable. The jokes are funny and this is a charming movie.