Thomas Drufke There may not be a more likable combination of actors than Cary Grant and Katharine Hepburn. The great thing is, they would still be stars even if they were actors today. Of course I love this film. It's coming up on 80 years old pretty soon, but it isn't dated at all. I'm actually really surprised that it hasn't been remade all this time. It's just an incredibly cheerful movie from the get-go. Grant & Hepburn have immediate chemistry as soon as they connect on screen together.The story involves Case (Grant) falling in love with a woman, Julia, played by Doris Nolan. He really wants to take a 'Holiday' and find out who he really is instead of continuing to work. Julia is more lenient towards staying around by her father and have him help support them. Case, being the independent man he is has a lot of trouble with this idea. It's only till he connects with Julia's sister, Linda, played by Hepburn, that he relates to the family. The film doesn't have an exact focus after about 40 minutes of family room talk, but it flows really well. I wasn't too worried about where it's going because by the cover of the movie and the stars involved, I think it was pretty obvious. I do think when the problem comes up they could have tackled the issue sooner. For example, I didn't think Hepburn had that big of a daddy issue until almost an hour in.The brother, Ned, turns out to have most of the comedic relief and does a fantastic job with it. He captures that dry drunk humor we all know and love. The highlights are mostly with Hepburn in the latter half. But what I think was most gratifying about Holiday was how romantic it was. It's the type of film that isn't trying to shove romance down your throat but it ends up pulling your heart strings anyway. I think it would be a huge success with people if it was released today. Hepburn makes quick love believable and Grant is one of the most likable actors of all time. I don't know how you cant love this film. Not to mention it involves the classic couch moment with Grant and Hepburn.+Chemistry & charisma with leads +Ned's one-liners +Believable and timeless +Romantic without trying to be +Re-watchable -Tackle issues a bit sooner or make it longer! 9.3/10

SimonJack During the 1930s, Hollywood cranked out far more comedies and romances than any other genres. It was the time of the Great Depression, and the U.S. and the world needed their spirits lifted. Hollywood did its part to help raise hopes with its films to make people laugh and smile. Looking back on that time now, it may seem strange that so many of the films were about the wealthy or people living a high lifestyle. But being well off and having fun were things that people often aspired to, and thus, something to keep their hopes up. So, the plots of many films were about such people living a wealthy lifestyle. Some other films, though, treated the rich from another standpoint. The wealthy were portrayed as snobbish and unhappy in the midst of all their riches. Enter Columbia's "Holiday" in June, 1938. It is a witty, clever, funny film about life – enjoying life. There can be no doubt about the clash of the haves and have-nots in this hilarious and not subtly biting derision of money and riches for their own sake. Cary Grant, as Johnny Case, has had to work since the age of 10. Doris Nolan, as Julia Seton, imagines the thrill of business conquests. The countenance of her father, played by Henry Kolker, belies any sense of enjoyment or happiness for all his wealth. Lew Ayres as the son, Ned, and Katherine Hepburn as eldest daughter, Linda, epitomize family members whose spirits have been squelched by their wealth and social position. The only flaw in the plot is the notion that Grant's Johnny Case and Nolan's Julia Seton could fall for each other in the first place. They are at opposite ends on everything in the film. Was it mere infatuation by both, with nothing spoken or discussed between them. Of course, that's absurd. So, we're left with this strange and inexplicable situation. But, to the rescue come Edward Everett Horton and Jean Dixon as Case's close friends Professor Nick Potter and Susan Potter. The witty dialog between them and with Johnny adds life and spice to the film. The later encounters with Linda and Ned further add to the humor so we soon forget the damnable question. It still bites a bit, but we move on from wondering how Johnny and Julia ever got together and were engaged in the first place.Amidst this comedy of errors, the satire becomes more apparent as the plot unfolds. We see more and more how the enslavement of wealth suppresses individual spirits and robs people of true happiness. The screenplay, direction and acting all lend to an excellent film. One extra bonus to me is that we get to see some of Cary Grant's acrobatic skills. I can't recall any other film in which we see Grant doing flips, cartwheels and tumbles. It all adds up to an entertaining film. It is a great comedy – with a message.

ALauff An excellent Hollywood chamber drama. Cary Grant plays an investor who dreams of saving enough money for early retirement, and then discovering his real purpose in the world. He's set to marry the daughter of a banking tycoon for whom the accumulation of wealth is everything. Almost completely set within the family's sprawling mansion, the film is essentially composed of two extended set-pieces consisting of Grant's efforts to gain the father's marriage blessing and the ensuing New Year's Eve celebration. Grant gradually learns that his fiancée is very similar to her father, but the other sister (Katharine Hepburn) finds in him a kindred spirit, and a drunkard brother (Lew Ayres) encourages their budding infatuation. There's quite a lot of pleasant humor, but also a palpable sense of deep-seated resentment and stifled dreams that play out against a well-defined family dynamic. Most beautiful are the scenes set within a rustically designed room—an escape from the father's unwavering stoicism—viewed by the estranged characters as a revivifying place where the real living happens, divorced as it is from crippling bourgeois expectations. Cukor's economical direction makes the most of the geography of several rooms and Donald Ogden Stewart's screenplay is particularly attuned to the broken relationship between the old-fashioned father and Hepburn's free-thinking dreamer, as incisively drawn here as in The Philadelphia Story. Highly recommended.

AaronCapenBanner Cary Grant plays Johnny Case, a free-thinking man who is engaged to Linda Seton(played by Katharine Hepburn) who is a daughter of a millionaire, who wants Johnny to settle down and join his business, which he is reluctant to do, preferring instead to take a "holiday" for a few years while he is young, and able to enjoy it! This baffles his would-be father-in-law, though Linda and her brother Ned are sympathetic, as are Nick & Susan Potter, two old friends of his. What will Johnny do? OK comedy is amiable and breezy, if talky. Amusing to an extent, but awfully frivolous too. Works because of the good acting, especially Cary Grant, who is at least sympathetic here.