The Grass Is Greener (1960)

Director:

Stanley Donen

Writers:

Hugh Williams (screenplay) and
Margaret Vyner (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

27 February 1961 (Sweden)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

Tagline:

Variety is the spice of life!

Plot:

Victor and Hillary are down on their luck to the point that they allow tourists to take guided tours of their castle...

Plot Keywords:

Color In Title | Beautiful Woman | Marriage | Independent Film | Based On Play

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Golden Globes. Another 2 nominations

Cast

Cary Grant	...	Victor Rhyall, Earl
Deborah Kerr	...	Lady Hilary Rhyall
Robert Mitchum	...	Charles Delacro
Jean Simmons	...	Hattie Durant
Moray Watson	...	Trevor Sellers, the Butler

Runtime:

104 min | UK:80 min (VHS version)

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

Iceland:L | USA:Approved (certificate #19674) | Finland:S | Spain:13 | Sweden:15 | UK:A (original rating) | UK:PG (video re-rating) (1999) | UK:U (video rating) (1986) | Australia:G

Filming Locations:

Lacock Abbey, Lacock, Wiltshire, England, UK

Company:

Grandon Productions Ltd.

Trivia:

Cary Grant refused to wear a smoking jacket for one scene, believing that if the audience saw him dressed that way they would immediately lose sympathy with his character. The director later said that a type of old-fashioned comedy died that day.

Quotes:

Victor Rhyall, Earl: Sellers, have you seen my bible?
Trevor Sellers, the Butler: I'm afraid I've got it. I wanted to look something up.
Victor Rhyall, Earl: First you borrow my times, now you pinch my bible. That's democracy running amok!
Trevor Sellers, the Butler: I'm extremely sorry, Mylord. I put it back beside your bed.
Victor Rhyall, Earl: Anyway, you should have a bible of your own!
Trevor Sellers, the Butler: Well, the one you're using is mine, Mylord.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Silhouettes: The James Bond Titles (2000) (V)

Ahead of its time

This delightful morsel is even more impressive given the bare post-Eisenhower era of its release. While we tend to view 1960 as the beginning of the JFK cultural renaissance, in fact the decade dawned with Ike in the White House and Nixon on the horizon. Extramarital hijinks, dealt with adult sophistication, tolerance and forgiveness are rare enough, but the Bible-thumpers must have bust a gut on this one. I disagree with those who chastise the title, I think it's perfect. That such a topic is explored without losing the light comedic magic of Grant, the earnest angst of Kerr, the irreverent sexuality of Simmons and the brooding strength of Mitchum is testament to the ability of Stanley Donen to guide without herding. It all fits, wonderfully, in a movie that glows brighter with the passage of time, and the tsunami of trash that was to follow.