What makes Howard Hawks’s films “some of the most purely pleasurable movies in the history of cinema”? In this introduction, critic Imogen Sara Smith explores the Hollywood legend’s approach to improvisation, blending genres, overlapping dialogue, and keen interest in human behavior and interaction.
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Red River
Directed by Howard Hawks • 1948 • United States
Starring John Wayne, Montgomery Clift, Walter BrennanNo matter what genre he worked in, Howard Hawks played by his own rules, and never was this more evident than in his first western, the rowdy and whip-smart RED RIVER. In it, John Wayne found on...
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Gentlemen Prefer Blondes
Directed by Howard Hawks • 1953 • United States
Starring Jane Russell, Marilyn Monroe, Charles CoburnTwo glamorous showgirls have everything a girl could want—except engagement rings! In a quest for true love, Lorelei (Marilyn Monroe) and her gold-digger pal Dorothy (Jane Russell) set sail on a...
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Ball of Fire
Directed by Howard Hawks • 1941 • United States
Starring Gary Cooper, Barbara StanwyckBarbara Stanwyck and Gary Cooper make sparks in this snappy screwball take on the Snow White tale. She’s a burlesque queen with a colorful vocabulary who needs to lay low for a while as the police close in on ...
