hcoursen The film does a wonderful job of integrating newsreel footage with its narrative. I assume that Lindbergh's triumphal Broadway procession after his return from Paris in 1927 was the basis for Darrington's ticker tape parade after her round the world flight. It was hard to believe that her aircraft insisted on such a dangerous entrance to its cockpit. The pilot had to climb in while only a couple of feet from a rotating propeller (or "airscrew" as the Brits would say). Hepburn is utterly convincing as an aviation obsessed and sexually neutral aristocrat. Her love affair with Strong is nicely contrasted with that of his daughter with her boyfriend. The film also shows how a missed appointment -- insignificant to one person but all the world to the other -- can have fatal consequences. Well-made, well-sequenced -- the kind of film they used to make in wonderful black and white.

Syl This was one collaboration that drew attention. Lesbian film director Dorothy Arzner and film actress Katharine Hepburn. For God sakes, both women wore pants in town when it was seen as scandalous. Anyway, the legendary Kate plays a female aviator much like Amelia Earhart who falls in love with a married man known as Christopher Strong or Sir since he is titled. I loved the old black and white films especially since I think they provide so much more than today's films. Anyway, Kate's character and Strong have an affair. I love the scene where she wears that silly costume. Kate's role as the other woman could have been scandalous back then if it wasn't so obvious to the Strong family. Billie Burke better known as Glinda, the good witch in the Wizard of Oz, plays Lady Strong. I loved Katharine Hepburn and I think a lot of people did whether they were colleagues, friends, relatives, or whatever. I think she would become the other woman in the Spencer Tracy relationship in reality. Oh well, the film is worth watching if just for that costume.

BillButlerB3 Intriguing early flight scenes -especially as a woman flier challenged to set a distance record - then an altitude record. Exquisite cinematic techniques in the final scene which made up for the schmaltzy scenes scattered throughout. Fascinating scene of a man and a woman in bed together - but showing only her hand draped over the bedside clock (showing 3:20am) With the dialog unmistakeably depicting lovers..wow ! the Hayes office must have sizzled about it . Since I missed the opening sequence - I didn't yet realize it was a Hepburn movie - so it was a guessing game a few moments until that deep voice and quirky angular face resolved my question. Some trite arguments about life, love and marriage but I love Billie Burke so I handled it. Guys: please try to stay for the end- its worth it -- I cooked breakfast while it was on. Thanks TCM! Happy B-day Kate ! 8/5/05

lugonian CHRISTOPHER STRONG (RKO Radio, 1933), directed by Dorothy Arzner, with a haunting score by Max Steiner, began production as "A Great Desire." Starring Katharine Hepburn in her second feature film following her successful debut in A BILL OF DIVORCEMENT (1932), it pairs her opposite Colin Clive for the only time. Set in England, she plays Lady Cynthia Darrington, an enthusiastic aviatrix (possibly inspired on Amelia Earheart), who is over 21 and has never had a lover or an affair because she makes no time for it. All that changes when she meets Sir Christopher Strong (Colin Clive), whose life is not only absorbed in his political career, but with his wife (Billie Burke) and his single adult daughter (Helen Chandler) who has a married lover (Ralph Forbes), but becomes her husband after he is finally granted his divorce.CHRISTOPHER STRONG is particularly interesting mainly because of some pre-production code stuff, and seeing Kate playing "the other woman" on screen for the only time who meets her dismal climax, something not common in a Hepburn movie. There is even a "bedroom scene" which camera focuses mainly on Kate's hand by the lamp while the viewer only hears some mono dialog exchange between her and Chris before she turns off the lights, leaving something to the viewer's imagination. By today's standards, this is nothing compared to what Hollywood would make of this particular scene today. I won't reveal any more about the plot, but this is early Kate Hepburn as the liberated woman with carefree ideas that come back to punish her. Maybe casting Hepburn in this type of role was RKO 's way of trying to develop her into a tragic heroine like MGM's own Greta Garbo. Worth a look, however, especially seeing Colin Clive in something other than that as Dr. Henry Frankenstein, his most famous performance(s) in Universal's FRANKENSTEIN (1931) and THE BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN (1935). CHRISTOPHER STRONG, which formerly played on the American Movie Classics cable channel prior to 2001, can be seen occasionally on Turner Classic Movies. It was once available on video cassette through the Nostalgia Merchant and RKO Home Video, but presently, it's out of print. Look quickly for future Warner Brothers actress Margaret Lindsay appearing in a small role as a girl who wants to get Cynthia's autograph. Not a box office success when released, but better roles for Kate in 1933 would soon follow with MORNING GLORY and LITTLE WOMEN. (**1/2)