Woman of the Year (1942)

Intro.

It was Katharine Hepburn day on TCM and I cheered!  What a great salute to a sensational actress.  I had been wanting to see more films featuring Katharine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy, so this presented the ideal opportunity.  As I read the description of Woman of the Year, I realized how similar it was to Designing Woman, which I had recently seen.  Watching the original or the movie that inspired another is always great, so I picked the perfect film.

Overview

Woman of the Year begins with top newspaper columnist Tess Harding (Katharine Hepburn) giving a radio interview about international affairs in which she says that sports have no purpose.  Sports writer Sam Craig (Spencer Tracy), who works for the same paper, takes offense and writes his next column as an attack on Tess's statements.  She in turn writes a ripping rebuttal, but before the war can continue, their editor calls them into his office to meet in person and make nice.  They do more than that as Craig falls in love at first sight with Tess.  From their, the mismatched pair continues a fun courtship including a baseball game where Sam has to explain every single move and play on the field to Tess, and then Tess throws a dinner party where Sam is the only English-speaking guest.  They wind up married, but right from the start we can see they're in for a lot of headaches (well, at least Sam is).  While Tess might be spending all of her time trying to improve the world, she spends no time trying to improve (or even have) a marriage.  It all comes to a head when she is named Woman of the Year on the same night that Sam moves out of their apartment.

Highlights
Hepburn and Tracy have undeniable chemistry.  This was their first movie together; in fact it was the first time they had met in person.  And from there, as they say, the legend was born.  A thirty year romance started off-screen, and the love comes across in some wonderful acting on-screen.  

This film is an unusual look at marriage, particularly because Tess is the one career-driven while Sam is the one neglected at home.  The film moves from comedy to drama after the marriage, and Sam's disappointment grows.  It's refreshing to see such real characters and impressive when Sam finally moves out.  I couldn't help but think it was a pretty daring move for an audience of 1942 and would still be considered pretty bold by today's standards. 

Not to give away too much, but the film concludes with both Sam and Tess realizing that marriage is a melding of their two lives, a constant compromise, a meeting in the middle.  That's why Sam has such a good ending line: "I don't want you to be Tess Harding or Mrs. Sam Craig; what about Tess Harding Craig?"

Review and Recommendation

Woman of the Year is one of the great films by one of Hollywood's best couples.  It is a humorous, yet still powerful look at marriage.  It will pack an emotional wallop.  An enduring, endearing film, I'd recommend it to everyone.