That was an excellent one.

How sad is this?

Good concept, poorly executed.

Very interesting film. Was caught on the premise when seeing the trailer but unsure as to what the outcome would be for the showing. As it turns out, it was a very good film.

Aviation is my hobby, and I DVRed this to see if it had any worthwhile aviation footage. The scene with the takeoffs for the around the world race is actually the beginning of the Dole Air Race (financed by the pineapple magnate), a tragic fiasco that lead to a number of deaths, two aircraft never found, and only a few of the contestants actually making it from Oakland to Honolulu. Hepburn's plane (G-FERN) might be the famous Winnie Mae, a Lockheed Vega, that was the first plane flown solo around the world by Wiley Post, the pilot that was killed with Will Rogers in Alaska. I must admit, I really did not pay much attention to the plot after listening to some English drawing room dialogue at the beginning.

In London, bored rich and royal party guests are challenged to find a faithful husband and an attractive woman over 20 who has never had a love affair. Sounds like a tough assignment, but we have two winners. Successfully recruited are single-minded aviator Katharine Hepburn (as Cynthia Darrington) and happily married Colin Clive (as Christopher Strong). The two don't hold their status for long, however, as they are headed for bed… "Christopher Strong" may have originally been intended as a vehicle for a male star, as betrayed by the title, but the focus is clearly altered to fit Ms. Hepburn. This RKO feature is her second...Due to subsequent reputation of its female lead, plus the gender of its director (Dorothy Arzner) and screenplay writer (Zoe Akins), it may be tempting to analyze this as a step forward in portraying women on film. No. Hepburn wears the pants only as it suits her profession ("aviatrix"). She is decked out in stunning attire and always attentive toward make-up. Most importantly, her character meets an expected end for wayward women. Better than the odd pairing of Hepburn and Mr. Clive is the subplot involving naughty upper class couple Helen Chandler (as Monica Strong) and Ralph Forbes (as Harry Rawlinson).***** Christopher Strong (3/9/33) Dorothy Arzner ~ Katharine Hepburn, Colin Clive, Billie Burke, Helen Chandler

This film is Katharine Hepburn's second film and her first in a starring role. In her first film, 1932's "A Bill of Divorcement", Billie Burke had starred with Hepburn fourth billed. Here the situation has reversed itself, and Hepburn supplants Burke in more ways than one. Hepburn plays Lady Cynthia Darrington, a member of the British gentry whose family has lost its money. As a result, she pursues aviation for both her love of it and for money to try and restore the family fortune. She has forsaken love up to this point in her life, and as the result of a human scavenger hunt at a party attended by one of her friends, she winds up at the party because she is a virgin, and Christopher Strong (Colin Clive) winds up there because he is a faithful husband to Billie Burke's character. The two meet, fall in love, and eventually this leads to the loss of what distinguished both of them in the first place.There are several things that make this film interesting - not the least of which being that Hepburn's role turns out to be semi-autobiographical. In actuality Hepburn was an athletic and independent woman of aristocratic roots who fell for a married Spencer Tracy who also never technically divorced his wife. Then there's that metallic moth suit complete with antennae that Cynthia wears to a party - yikes! And the middle-aged Lord Strong doesn't even do a double take when she walks in wearing this outfit. So much for the stuffy image of the British aristocracy. The ending is odd since it doesn't seem consistent with Cynthia's strong independent streak. Her solution to her dilemma when she realizes that, although Strong loves her, he would only actually leave his wife out of a sense of duty to Cynthia, seems completely out of character. Also, Billie Burke does such a good job of playing the wronged wife who suffers in silence and dignity that it is really hard to sympathize with anyone but her. Finally, the title is a bit of a mystery. The title character, Christopher Strong, is really secondary to Hepburn's Cynthia Darrington, and I can't help but wonder why the film wasn't titled after Hepburn's character instead.Director Dorothy Arzner, the only female director in Hollywood during this time, certainly took some chances with this one. Some of the film worked and some of it didn't, but I don't think it would have had a chance without Hepburn in the lead. I recommend this film to anyone interested in the evolution of Hepburn's acting style.

Sir CHRISTOPHER STRONG, staunch family man and Conservative MP, finds himself falling in love with a free-spirited aviatrix.Given splendid production values by RKO Radio Pictures, this high-class soap opera proved to be an excellent showcase for the talents of young Katharine Hepburn. Tall, angular, tomboyish, in a role patterned after Amelia Earhart, Hepburn is utterly fascinating as the woman who's never loved. Whether striding about in men's clothing or swathed in an outrageous moth costume, she makes the heartache & jubilation of her character play across her expressive features. It is almost painful to try imagining anyone else in the role. Her final scene, as she gives the ultimate sacrifice, is especially poignant.Colin Clive seems an unlikely choice as the object of Hepburn's passion, but he acts his part with great earnestness, deftly underplaying what could have easily been a stiff & cardboard characterization. In a serious role, the wonderful Billie Burke skillfully delineates the agony of the unloved wife. Like Hepburn, she remains in the memory long after the film ends.Helen Chandler & Irene Browne, as Clive's daughter & sister respectively, do well with their portrayals of socially irresponsible females. Ralph Forbes, as an upper class philanderer, also resonates in an important supporting role; here was an actor with the talent & charm to have become a major Hollywood star, but it was not to be.Pioneering director Dorothy Arzner includes subtle suggestions of the sapphist in Hepburn's character, to be rejected or respected by individual viewers. As it is, certain situations in the plot show its pre-Production Code status.