People Will Talk (1951)

77% of users liked it
(2,827 ratings)

People Will Talk was less a movie than a conduit for the genteel liberalism of screenwriter/director Joseph M. Mankiewicz. Cary Grant plays Dr. Praetorius, an unorthodox medical professor at a sedate midwestern college who seems more interested in the human soul than in the cold facts of the human… More People Will Talk was less a movie than a conduit for the genteel liberalism of screenwriter/director Joseph M. Mankiewicz. Cary Grant plays Dr. Praetorius, an unorthodox medical professor at a sedate midwestern college who seems more interested in the human soul than in the cold facts of the human body. Praetorius' nemesis is a conservative rival doctor (Hume Cronyn) who presses for an investigation of our hero's clouded past--with special emphasis given the mysterious old man (Finlay Currie) who lives with Praetorius and waits on him hand and foot. In the course of the film, Praetorius falls in love with one of his students, an unmarried pregnant girl (Jeanne Crain). At the climactic hearing concerning Praetorius' fitness, the presiding judge (Basil Ruysdael) decides that Praetorius' "modern" methods are more worthwhile than the pragmatic, cut-and-dried theories of his enemies. Based on a German play by Curt Goetz, People Will Talk is a bit too proud of its own cleverness, with Mankiewicz' political planks being wedged in at all the inappropriate times (while conversing with the father of the pregnant girl, Praetorius launches on a gratuitous attack against farm subsidies!) Still, the film is ten times more intelligent than most of Hollywood's 1951 output, and contains one of Cary Grant's best and subtlest seriocomic performances. Bonus: In the first scene of People Will Talk, the snoopy lady who brings Praetorius' "shady" past to the attention of Hume Cronyn is played by an uncredited Margaret ("Wicked Witch of the West") Hamilton. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: Unrated, 1 hr. 50 min.
Directed By: Joseph L. Mankiewicz
Written By: Joseph L. Mankiewicz
Genres: Classics, Comedy

In Theaters: Aug 29, 1951 Wide
On DVD: Jan 6, 2004
Studio: Twentieth Century Fox

Critic Reviews

Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews
Mankiewicz's chatty and dyspeptic liberal response to Senator McCarthy's witch hunting days.
Ken Hanke, Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)
Brilliant, brilliantly subversive anti-McCarthy comedy

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

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Featured Audience Ratings

AJ V

A very touching drama and a funny comedy. Plus is stars Cary Grant in another great humorous role. I liked this movie, and if you're a fan of Grant, you'll like it too.
Jennifer D

What a bizarre film. No, really. The first time I tried to watch it, I gave up about 30 minutes in. I tried again and got through it but was man, it was strange. This is most certainly NOT a romantic comedy of any kind and there is a kind of split interest going on here, Grant's… More
What a bizarre film. No, really. The first time I tried to watch it, I gave up about 30 minutes in. I tried again and got through it but was man, it was strange. This is most certainly NOT a romantic comedy of any kind and there is a kind of split interest going on here, Grant's relationship with Crain and Grant's relationship with Currie, something I could never quite figure out, either. In the end, I'm not even sure I really *liked* it as a film, but it was still well done in terms of storytelling. Strange.
Randy T

Delightfully off-beat Cary Grant comedy that's a little risque and completely unpredictable. Anyone who tells you that they saw this ending coming is either psychic or lying through their teeth.
cody f

Don't be fooled by the title,this is not a romantic comedy. I was surprised at how serious and enjoyable this film was. I love Cary Grant and was really surprised how original and against type his performance was. He is flawless in this and it's probably one of his best… More
Don't be fooled by the title,this is not a romantic comedy. I was surprised at how serious and enjoyable this film was. I love Cary Grant and was really surprised how original and against type his performance was. He is flawless in this and it's probably one of his best roles. The screenplay is one of Mankiewicz best and I was shocked that the subject matter was produced in 1951. It is about a genius doctor who meets,falls in love and marries a suicidal woman who is pregnant from another man. At the same time Grant in being investigated by the university for a secret past and mystery man who doesn't leave his side(played by perfection by Finley Currie). The performances are A+ and the script is something I have never seen before.Grant and Crain fall in love a little too easily, but it is still believable and they are great together. Hume Cronyn is great as a jealous weaselly bad guy, and after watching Brute Force you really see what a great actor he was. This film should be shown in every screen writing class, it is filled with unorthodoxed scenes, original characters, and some of the best dialogue in a film from that era. A must see and possibly a 5 star film if the love didn't happen too quickly,followed by conventional courtroom scenes at the end.

Cast

            Cary Grant as Dr. Noah Praetorius

            Jeanne Crain as Debbie Higgins

            Finlay Currie as Shunderson

            Hume Cronyn as Prof. Elwell

            Walter Slezak as Prof. Barker

            Sidney Blackmer as Arthur Higgins

            Basil Ruysdael as Dean Lyman Brockwell

            Katherine Locke as Miss James

            Will Wright as John Higgins

            Margaret Hamilton as Miss Pickett

            Esther Somers as Mrs. Pegwhistle

            Carleton Young as Technician

            Ray Montgomery as Doctor

            Joe Gilbert as Nurse

            Ann Morrison as Dietician

            Julia Dean as Old Lady

            Gail Bonney as Secretary

            William R. Klein as Student Manager

            George Offerman as Haskins

            Adele Longmire as Mabel

            Billy House as Coonan

            Al Murphy as Photographer

            Parley Baer as Toy Salesman

            Irene Seidner as Cook

            Joyce Mackenzie as Gussie

            Maude Wallace as Night Matron

            Kay Lavelle as Bella

            Stuart Holmes as Board Member

            Jack Kelly
            
            Paul Lees
            
            Billy Mauch
            
            Lawrence Dobkin as Business Manager

            Ted Offenbecker as Haskins
See full cast