--- title: "It Happened One Night: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/it-happened-one-night/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/it-happened-one-night" critics_score: 86 critics_reviews: 13 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # It Happened One Night (1934): what the critics said Critics' score 86 from 13 reviews: 13 positive, 0 mixed, 0 negative. All thirteen reviews are positive, with praise centred on Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert’s chemistry and the speed and bite of their exchanges. Most critics find the romance playful and sexy, with the mismatched leads’ shifting balance of power keeping familiar situations lively. Frank Capra’s direction also draws consistent approval for its pace and warmth towards the people encountered along the way. The reviews repeatedly stress the film’s influence on romantic comedy without treating that influence as its only attraction. The differences concern the degree of enthusiasm rather than any substantial rejection. Time Out values the charm, dialogue and performances but gives historical importance more weight than outright greatness. The AV Club acknowledges dated elements while remaining strongly enthusiastic about the central pairing. Sight and Sound places particular emphasis on Depression-era toughness and tensions around gender roles, finding more beneath the charm than simple escapism. ## The Times — Kevin Maher Rating ★★★★★. 9 February 2024. This ingenious, fabulously smutty and still relevant 90-year-old two-hander is the grandaddy of all rom-coms. Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert are superb as a mismatched couple in Frank Capra’s classic that won the big five Oscars. [Read the review](https://www.thetimes.com/culture/film/article/it-happened-one-night-1934-review-the-grandaddy-of-rom-coms-bxmvdbzxf) ## The AV Club — Mike D'Angelo Rating A. 19 November 2014. The critic argues the film essentially created the template for every romantic comedy since, with its banter-heavy structure, road trip, and class-crossing romance between a defiant socialite and an arrogant reporter. They praise the ideal chemistry, shifting power balance, and timeless verve while noting some dated elements. [Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/every-romcom-of-the-last-80-years-owes-something-to-it-1798181983) ## Empire — David Parkinson Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 1 January 2000. The critic recounts the troubled production involving Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert under Frank Capra, noting the film's eventual sweep of the major Oscars. It praises the film as a fresh, fast and funny farce that launched the screwball comedy genre. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/happened-one-night-review/) ## RogerEbert.com — Michał Oleszczyk Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 12 November 2013. The critic praises the film as one of the easiest movies to love, highlighting its witty, sexy romance between the spoiled heiress and wisecracking reporter, the sparkling Gable-Colbert chemistry, and its blend of humor, sexiness, and Depression-era American spirit. [Read the review](https://www.rogerebert.com/far-flung-correspondents/looking-back-at-it-happened-one-night) ## The Hollywood Reporter — THR Staff Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 22 February 2018. The critic calls it a charming, human, believable story with charming, human, believable characters that gallops along with joie de vivre and no dull moments. They single out the sparkling dialogue, natural performances by Gable and Colbert, and Capra's direction as perfect. [Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/it-happened-one-night-review-1934-movie-1070399/) ## Los Angeles Times — Susan King Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 14 November 2013. The piece calls the film the quintessential romantic comedy and the first to sweep the five major Oscars, noting its breezy story of the socialite and reporter's romance and how it elevated Columbia Pictures despite initial odds. [Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/moviesnow/la-et-mn-en-oscar-archives-it-happened-one-night-20131114-story.html) ## The Guardian Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 28 October 2010. Frank Capra’s 1934 romantic comedy starring Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert remains buoyant and elegant, surviving due to its wit, charm, romantic idealism and shrewd sketch of married life. The critic highlights the feisty chemistry between the leads and the symbolic 'Wall of Jericho' blanket as a great pleasure. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2010/oct/28/it-happened-one-night-film-review) ## Slant Magazine — Chris Cabin Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 21 November 2014. The critic notes the film's breakout hit status fueled by zippy repartee and manic comic invention unmatched by imitators, highlighting the friction between entitlement and self-reliance in the leads and Capra's reveling in middle-class faces and chance encounters. They single out the strong historical supplements on the Criterion disc. [Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/dvd/it-happened-one-night/) ## Time Out — David Jenkins Rating 4/5. 26 October 2010. Praises the film's charm, dialogue, and chemistry but notes it's more historically important than a masterpiece, forgiving its influence on lesser romcoms. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/it-happened-one-night) ## Sight and Sound Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 8 February 2024. The critic sees it as more than escapist froth, highlighting its Depression-era toughness, gender role tensions, and playful sexual chemistry between Gable and Colbert, while noting its enduring charm despite modern romcom flaws. [Read the review](https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/giddy-adventures-gender-skirmishes-aural-seductions-frank-capras-it-happened-one-night) ## Variety Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 27 February 1934. The original review finds the clean, funny bus story effective thanks to Capra's direction and the spirited performances of Gable and Colbert, calling it chic and noting its appeal. [Read the review](https://variety.com/1934/film/reviews/it-happened-one-night-2-1200410931/) ## Collider — Andre Dellamorte Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 6 December 2014. The critic hails it as a great movie and the first screwball comedy, praising the playful and sexy performances by Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert. [Read the review](https://collider.com/it-happened-one-night-criterion-blu-ray-review/) ## Film Stories — Sarah Cook Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 14 March 2023. The critic praises Frank Capra’s screwball comedy as a sparkling, witty romantic classic that was the first film to sweep the top five Oscars. They highlight the sizzling chemistry between Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert, the snappy script, lively direction, and iconic hitchhiking scene as elements that make it enduring and influential. [Read the review](https://filmstories.co.uk/features/old-movies-celebrating-it-happened-one-night/) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/it-happened-one-night.md