IMDb RATING
6.3/10
1.5K
YOUR RATING
Facing forty, a NYC spinster on a bus tour of the West encounters a handsome rodeo cowboy who helps her forget her unsuitable city suitors.Facing forty, a NYC spinster on a bus tour of the West encounters a handsome rodeo cowboy who helps her forget her unsuitable city suitors.Facing forty, a NYC spinster on a bus tour of the West encounters a handsome rodeo cowboy who helps her forget her unsuitable city suitors.
Jean Stevens
- 'Jitterbug'
- (as Peggy Carroll)
Eddy Waller
- Bus Station Attendant
- (as Ed Waller)
- Director
- Writers
- Robert Ardrey
- Jo Swerling
- Garson Kanin(unconfirmed) (uncredited)
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaAlthough his character in the film is named Duke Hudkins, John Wayne got his nickname "The Duke" long before. In his early teens living in Glendale, California, Wayne had a dog named Duke. They were so inseparable that family and friends called them Little Duke and Big Duke. For Wayne, who soon entered high school theatrical productions, the name stuck.
- GoofsThe story takes place in 1938 many years before wash and wear and permapress, yet Jean Arthur's single outfit remains constantly clean and wrinkle free despite her many misadventures, including sleeping all night on the open desert.
- ConnectionsReferenced in Hollywood Hist-o-Rama: John Wayne (1961)
Featured review
Sweet, funny, charming
I won't bother to rehash the plot details, as others have already done so, but simply wish to express how much I enjoyed this film. It was a real treat from start to finish - slightly offbeat & definitely funny (but not goofy enough to be screwball) and sweet & romantic but not sentimental enough to be sappy.
Director William A. Seiter (who helmed "Sons of the Desert", Laurel & Hardy's best film, as well as other successful comedies) takes what is perhaps a shopworn premise and turns it into something special with the help of two extremely capable stars. John Wayne reveals his often underrated talent for light comedy in this - coming across just as masculine as always but with a sweet, funny softness that makes his Duke Hudkins extremely endearing. Jean Arthur is in a familiar role, playing a quirky but sweet city girl (Molly J. Truesdale) with just the right amount of spunk. Note her unconsciously forward behavior when the two of them first meet - wow! They are surprisingly wonderful together - watch the gentle, tender way the scene in the hay is handled. And never once did I feel like Jean Arthur faded to the background in Duke's presence. (In quite a few of his films, he is so charismatic and powerful a presence that his leading lady winds up looking about as charismatic as wilted celery.)
There are some funny scenes involving long bus rides, cold desert nights, sneezing horses, rodeo "groupies," bucking broncos, and broken cameras. The supporting cast is great, but they haven't much to do as this is really a film about a boy and a girl. Sharp-eyed fans of Gene Kelly and/or Frank Sinatra will recognize Grady Sutton from "Anchors Aweigh" as one of Molly's unspeakably drab beaux.
Director William A. Seiter (who helmed "Sons of the Desert", Laurel & Hardy's best film, as well as other successful comedies) takes what is perhaps a shopworn premise and turns it into something special with the help of two extremely capable stars. John Wayne reveals his often underrated talent for light comedy in this - coming across just as masculine as always but with a sweet, funny softness that makes his Duke Hudkins extremely endearing. Jean Arthur is in a familiar role, playing a quirky but sweet city girl (Molly J. Truesdale) with just the right amount of spunk. Note her unconsciously forward behavior when the two of them first meet - wow! They are surprisingly wonderful together - watch the gentle, tender way the scene in the hay is handled. And never once did I feel like Jean Arthur faded to the background in Duke's presence. (In quite a few of his films, he is so charismatic and powerful a presence that his leading lady winds up looking about as charismatic as wilted celery.)
There are some funny scenes involving long bus rides, cold desert nights, sneezing horses, rodeo "groupies," bucking broncos, and broken cameras. The supporting cast is great, but they haven't much to do as this is really a film about a boy and a girl. Sharp-eyed fans of Gene Kelly and/or Frank Sinatra will recognize Grady Sutton from "Anchors Aweigh" as one of Molly's unspeakably drab beaux.
helpful•296
- jennifbebe
- Sep 2, 2003
- How long is A Lady Takes a Chance?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Runtime1 hour 26 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1
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By what name was A Lady Takes a Chance (1943) officially released in Canada in English?
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