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Rosalind Russell, Forrest Tucker, Coral Browne, Fred Clark, Roger Smith ... see more see more... , Patric Knowles , Joanna Barnes , Peggy Cass , Jan Handzlik , Pippa Scott , Lee Patrick , Willard Waterman , Robin Hughes , Connie Gilchrist , Yuki Shimoda , Carol Veazie , Henry Brandon , Olive Blakeney , Booth Colman , Margaret Dumont , Gregory Gaye , Rand Harper , Terry Kelman , Owen McGiveney , Barbara Pepper , Richard Reeves , Dub Taylor , Ruth Warren , Morton Da Costa , Charles Heard , Doye O'Dell , Cris Alexander , Paul Davis , Fred Clarke

Auntie Mame began as a novel by Patrick Dennis (aka Ed Fitzgerald), then was adapted into a long-running Broadway play by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee. This 1958 film version permits Rosalind Rus... read more read more...sell to recreate her stage role as Mame Dennis, the flamboyant, devil-may-care aunt of young, impressionable Patrick Dennis. Left in Mame's care when his millionaire father drops dead, young Patrick (Jan Handzlik) is quickly indoctrinated into his aunt's philosophy that "Life is a banquet--and some poor suckers are starving to death." Social-climbing executor Dwight Babcock (Fred Clark) does his best to raise Patrick as a stuffy American aristocrat, but Mame battles Babcock to allow the boy to be as free-spirited as she is. In 1974, Auntie Mame was remade as the filmmusical Mame with Lucille Ball. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

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91% liked it

7,699 ratings

Critics

92% liked it

13 critics

Unrated, 2 hr. 24 min.

Directed by: Morton DaCosta

Release Date: December 27, 1958

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DVD Release Date: October 1, 2002

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Stats: 663 reviews

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Rosalind Russell & Peggy Cass in Auntie Mame Peggy Cass in Auntie Mame Auntie Mame Peggy Cass in Auntie Mame Auntie Mame Auntie Mame Rosalind Russell in Auntie Mame Peggy Cass & Rosalind Russell in Auntie Mame Auntie Mame and her nephew Peggy Cass in Auntie Mame Peggy Cass in Auntie Mame Peggy Cass in Auntie Mame
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Flixster Reviews (663)

  • MeetMeinMontauk
    May 17, 2010
    MeetMeinMontauk
    NEVER have I seen such a stylish set. Massive props on that.
    Rosalind Russell is a goddess. And anyone who says otherwise should be done away with. Yes, it was a bit long and dragged at times, but the comedy was so witty and on the ball that who cares?!
    I loved this. It's such a ... read moreperfect film and perfect comedy!
  • groaningbitch
    August 2, 2008
    groaningbitch
    the 1958 "auntine mame" is the pinnacle of rosalind russell's career, and it does jolly rosalind great justice to glitter her comic genius in screwball comedy gendre that had been neglected or underused before. overlooked by most, rosalind russell has uncanny parallel to another ... read moreclassic star katehrine hepburn who was also a screwball diva in the 30s, considering her numberous collaborations with cary grant like "bringing up baby". they share the traits of being tall fair brunette and both funny with their non-stop swift-paced british accents except hepburn had more sharp edginess within her aggressive mannerism which has been constantly mocked in movies like "woman of the year" and "philadelphia story". (after all, we all like to cut a lofy dame down, aren't we?)

    mame dennis is an eccentric socialite from the roaring 20s, wallowing in an extravangant life of endless gayety and diversities of styles and interior decors. mame has a stuff-shirted brother who sets up a will to keep her little son from her "bad influence" after he passes away. unfortunately it arrives soon, so auntine mame is ready to open doors for her nephew with mighty enthusiasm.

    the title protagonist auntie mame is a larger than life character as you cannot demand realism upon such a cozy heart-warming fair tale. it is a comedy which relies upon its witty lines nourished by its deviant naivete of exaggerated demeanors. and this sort of comedies could merely exist among the 50s (age of innocence despite its fatal mccarthyism) since the cleverly phrased comedy without relishing profanity is no longer popular after the mid 60s, another read-between-the-lines "refined" humor celebrating "santized bohemianism".

    the philosophy behind "auntine mame" is more of a hygienic hedonism without the darkness of alcoholism and prosmiscuity as mame exclaims "life is a bandquet, and most suckers are starving to death". and it does pose some anti-bourgeois sign without intruding middle-classed moralisticness. perhaps it casts a positive user-friendly democratic view that everyone should live beyond prejudice to appreciate a lovable cucko-cucko like auntine mame with enormous social acceptance. and my conclusion would be auntie mame is a fruitation of indulgent whims upon childlike innocence.

    one praise goes for orry-kelly who designs most clothes for warner bro. from 30s~40s,, also lots of bette davis vehicles like jezebell and little foxes. and rosalind russel does have episodic sections of various dyed hairdos and exotic costumes, and she even dresses herself like a drogn lady with a dragon-headed doorgate which fumes everytime guest rings the bell. that anchors the great idiocyncrasy of auntine mame.

    except katherine hepburn, no other actress could deliver those oddball lines so well so proficiently as rosalind russell who is mildly underrated. russell does appear as demure love interest in her 30s mgm days in flicks like "china seas" and "they met in bombay" with, again, clark gable. russel could be competent in most roles hepburn made prestige among 30s~40s. the major distinction would be russell is more feminine and less domineering and invasive than hepburn. thus rosalind russell makes an appropriate goofy adorable auntine mame as every adolescent boy's ideal auntine. an escapic retreatment for childhood dreams.
  • mwilliams078
    August 1, 2008
    mwilliams078
    Rosalind Russell is terriffic in this 1958 musical film version of the stage and novel hit. Auntie Mame (Russell) has her only surviving family member whom is her young nephew move in after his father passes away. Mame is a very colorful woman and together they open each other's ... read moreeyes with a lot of crazy charaters and moments along the way....a very good movie.
  • jjnxn
    March 29, 2007
    jjnxn
    great, great central character and fun supporting ones
  • dreamfaeries
    January 31, 2007
    dreamfaeries
    A so-so film. I have tried watching it in the past and always got bored with it or fell asleep. Well... the tradition continues. I just can't get into this film.
  • smith44
    June 5, 2006
    smith44
    One of the funniest films I have seen, Aunty Mame is a comic classic. A comedy that the whole family can enjoy. "Life's a banquet, and most suckers are starving to death."
  • SunilJawahir
    May 15, 2011
    SunilJawahir
    They've made this into a movie twice - once with Rosalind Russell and again with Lucille Ball. This one is the better of the two but would have been best if they had stuck with Angela Lansbury. These actresses can't sing!
  • littlecharmer1959
    June 25, 2009
    littlecharmer1959
    Just hilarious, with an endlessly quotable script. All the cast are outstanding, from Peggy Cass as Agnes Gooch ("Will it mix with Dr.Pepper?"), Coral Browne as Vera Charles ("My God that moon's bright!") and Joanna Barnes as Gloria ("It was ghastly! Simply ghastly!"). But best o... read moref all of course is Rosalind Russell, "Yes! Live! Life's a banquet and most poor suckers are starving to death!".
    Greatly exceeded my expectations, I wish I had an Auntie Mame.....
  • ileo
    December 18, 2007
    ileo
    Great movie! Lots of laughs.
  • redrkr
    December 4, 2011
    redrkr
    I can see why someone would revere the performance of Rosalind Russell in this performance. Virtually every scene shows her a nice eccentric spouting off words a mile a minute. Another performance adapted from the stage, Rosalind brings all of the dynamic shouting needed to carry... read more a theater into a Hollywood studio. She's fun-loving in times of triumph, and steadfast in times of trouble.

    Having said that, most of the script is just value-less fish out of water humor of a socialite who a.) inherits a child; b.) goes broke c.) marries a southerner and d.) puts on a proper face for New England WASP in-laws.
    The jokes are simply not that funny, the resolve for each situation is never that interesting. They string together these storylines like they're moving from one episode of a bad sitcom to the next.

    As an adapted stage screenplay, there's no real direction or cinematography or anything that makes it work as film. Certainly not enough to garner a Best Picture nom. And at 2:24- it is ENTIRELY too long. I was expecting each scene to have credits roll, but the bits seemed neverending. Russell gives a commanding performance, but it is not enough to recommend this.

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Critic Reviews

Emanuel Levy
March 9, 2008
Emanuel Levy, EmanuelLevy.Com

Base on a book and Broadway play, the movie is still too theatrical due to Da Costa's mediocre helming, but it's a great, campy and colorful showcase for comedienne Rosalind Russell in her best-known ... Full Review

Steve Crum
January 5, 2005
Steve Crum, Kansas City Kansan

THE Rosalind Russell movie, and still fabulously funny.

Gabriel Shanks
October 3, 2003
Gabriel Shanks, Mixed Reviews

Possibly the greatest comedy of all time, with a performance by Rosalind Russell that can only be described as 'bravura'.

Pablo Villaca
July 25, 2003
Pablo Villaca, Cinema em Cena

Supostamente baseado em fatos reais, traz Russell em uma atuação sensacional e conta com ótima direção de arte.

Ken Hanke
November 5, 2002
Ken Hanke, Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

Stage-bound, but classic

Wesley Lovell
January 1, 2000
Wesley Lovell, Oscar Guy

Rosalind Russell in a brilliant turn as we examine the manic life of an eccentric rich aunt who must spoil her niece at all costs. Full Review

Bosley Crowther
March 25, 2006
Bosley Crowther, New York Times

Click to read the article Full Review

Dave Kehr
January 1, 2000
Dave Kehr, Chicago Reader

Click to read the article Full Review

Michael W. Phillips, Jr.
October 18, 2008
Michael W. Phillips, Jr., Goatdog's Movies

Click to read the article Full Review

Nell Minow
March 24, 2005
Nell Minow, Movie Mom at Yahoo! Movies

No review available.

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Facts

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    • Mame Dennis: Life is a banquet and most poor suckers are starving to death.
    • Patrick Dennis: Pipe down, kid. Your Auntie Mame's hung.
    • Gloria Upson: You could practically write a whole book about what happened to me.
    • Agnes Gooch: How bleak was my puberty.
    • Mame Dennis: Oh, I adore gin!
    • Mr. Claude Upson: Good! I'll get the cards.
    • Mame Dennis: Exclusively what and restricted to whom?
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Auntie Mame Trivia

  • In what movie do you hear this phrase "Life is a banquet and most poor suckers are starving"  Answer »
  • Which 1940's movie was later recreated as a musical starring Luciele Ball?  Answer »
  • Who starred in the classic film "Auntie Mame"?  Answer »
  • Rosalind Russell broke her ankle in the first take of the scene where she comes flying down the stairs in her gown with carpi pants in Auntie Mame ?  Answer »
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