Born Yesterday (1950)

Born Yesterday (1950), directed by George Cukor.

A crude, blustering Boss Man arrives in Washington for heavy lobbying. Judging his girlfriend lacks sufficient couth for such refined surroundings, he hires an intellectual to improve her manners and knowledge. That's a mistake.

I was constantly distracted while watching this, wondering "Why does this look so different than movies made just a few years earlier?" I never figured it out. Was it the quiet pacing, contrasted with the earlier frenetic screwball formula? A more modern look -- in what way? -- perhaps less stagey than the 1940s. Maybe the character of Broderick Crawford, which could just as easily have fit in a crime or corruption drama?

Low intensity comedy, with good use of DC locations and a dose of patriotic idealism.

Twilight Time Blu-ray.