Arsenic and Old Lace is a farce directed by Frank Capra with an underlying dark comedy. It does feature a tad too much mugging to the camera and its theatrical roots are hard to hide.Mortimer Brewster (Cary Grant) is a famous drama critic known for his anti marriage stance. Which explains why he is trying to get a marriage licence incognito. He is getting married to the girl next door, Elaine Harper (Priscilla Lane.)Before he goes off to Niagara Falls for his honeymoon he brings her to her family home to announce his nuptials only to discover that his two kindly understated elderly aunts have been putting arsenic in their homemade wine and knocked off lonely old men and buried them in the cellar with the help of a delusional uncle who thinks he is Teddy Roosevelt and keeps blowing the bugle.It gets worse, this is the night that his long lost older brother has returned, preferably escaped or on the run from somewhere. Jonathan Brewster (Raymond Massey) has turned up with a Dr Einstein (Peter Lorre.) Jonathan has had plastic surgery which has made him look like Boris Karloff and it seems he has also brought a corpse with him.Mortimer fears for his new bride's safety and in the ensuing mayhem a flatfoot calls to look into the madcap Brewsters.The film is fun, at times frenetic but is really too long for this type of comedy. Cary Grant just about gets away with the mugging to the camera, Lorre and Massey are sinister and funny together. Lane is sidelined too much. The film just feels a little too sloppy and out of control. An honourable failure.

The stage roots of "Arsenic and Old Lace" are clearly visible in the film, but Frank Capra does a good job of expanding some of the action beyond the interior of the Brewster home, where the two spinster sisters, Abby and Martha, reside with Teddy, who thinks he is President Roosevelt. The format is a farce, complete with surprises, misunderstandings, and timely entrances, mostly through the front door. But this unusual comedy set on Halloween evening is much more.Though others reviewers may reveal twists and the writers' intentions, I will only say that this is an unusual comedy that is appropriately called "dark".Cary Grant plays Mortimer Brewster, nephew of the two elderly sisters. When the film opens, he has just--unexpectedly--married Elaine Harper (glowingly played by Priscilla Lane). The couple drops by the house to announce their big news and gather their belongings for a honeymoon trip to Niagara Falls. But circumstances derail their plans and what ensues is a night of absurd hilarity.The supporting cast is wonderful and wonderfully recognizable. Frank Capra may have directed some of them to play their parts over the top, but the wacky spirit of the story shines through. This is a comedy classic.

"Arsenic and Old Lace" is a comedy movie in which we watch a newspaperman and author being married at city hall and after that he goes to tell the news to his two maiden aunts. While he is trying to tell th news he discovers that his aunts have a hobby. Their hobby is to kill lonely old men and burying them in their cellar.I liked this movie because of the plot which I found very good and in many moments simply hilarious. I also liked this movie because of the direction which made by Frank Capra and for one more time he did great job on it. About the cast I have to mention the great interpretation of Cary Grant who played as Mortimer Brewster and of course the equally good interpretation of Priscilla Lane who played as Elaine Harper. This movie reminded me at some points the movie "Bringing Up Baby" in which also played Cary Grant and his interpretation had many commons with his interpretation in this movie.Finally I have to say that "Arsenic and Old Lace" is a nice movie to watch and it combines very well comedy with crime and the result is very good. I strongly recommend it because of you watch it I am sure that you will have a great time and you will enjoy it.

This is definitely the most off the wall and bizarre film that I have ever seen involving Cary Grant and very against type for it's era..Grant was great as usual in this very different setting.The film,I believe helped set the stage for the dark comedies to come in the modern era.I love how the two elderly spinsters are totally oblivious to the fact that they are doing wrong and Grant's discovery and reaction to this.Each character is colorful in his or her own way and lends much to the story.Most who are absorbed in modern film without much experience in watching older era films might take offense in regards to mental illness being used for laughs here,but it was a different time and that must be taken into consideration.Raymond Massey and Peter Lorre do a great job of lending a horror film touch in the middle of the laughs..I like it!