The Lady Eve

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The Lady Eve

1941

1h 37m

Romance

Comedy

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

99%

Tomatometer

104 Reviews

87%

Popcornmeter

5,000+ Ratings

It's no accident when wealthy Charles falls for Jean. Jean is a con artist with her sights set on Charles' fortune. Matters complicate when Jean starts falling for her mark. When Charles suspects Jean is a gold digger, he dumps her. Jean, fixated on revenge and still pining for the millionaire, devises a plan to get back in Charles' life. With love and payback on her mind, she re-introduces herself to Charles, this time as an aristocrat named Lady Eve Sidwich.

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Critics Consensus

A career highlight for Preston Sturges, The Lady Eve benefits from Barbara Stanwyck and Henry Fonda's sparkling chemistry -- and a script that inspired countless battle-of-the-sexes comedies.

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Otis Ferguson

The New Republic

Dec 29, 2022

Some of it is slapstick; a little of it is impossible the wrong way; but in general its pleasures come from the characters as found.

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Ida Belle Hicks

Fort Worth Star-Telegram/DFW.com

Dec 29, 2022

The Lady Eve cinches Sturges as an important personality in films... It is highly entertaining movie fare -- the kind that keeps the box offices busy.

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Mildred Martin

Philadelphia Inquirer

Dec 29, 2022

[The Lady Eve] is by all odds the best and breeziest thing at which Sturges has turned an impish hand and an equally impish pen.

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Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

Feb 15, 2026

3.5/4

A riotous screwball classic.

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Julian Singleton

Cinapse

Jul 12, 2025

Sturges’ screenplay unfurls with fiendish glee through its brisk 90-minute runtime, and gives each character big and small a feast of comedic scenery to chew on.

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Rachel Wagner

Hallmarkies Podcast

Apr 7, 2025

A very silly comedy but a lot of fun

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Cindy P

@Cindybelle Aug 14, 2026

Barbara Stanwyck deserved an Oscar for her hilarious and heartbreaking performance, and I’ve never laughed so uproariously at Henry Fonda. Preston Sturges was a comic genius as a director. I laugh every time I watch this classic.

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Ed .

@RT01276001 Aug 22, 2025

Classic comedy - one of the very best ever made. Imagine the gall it would take, after getting dumped once discovered to be a fraud... to then invite yourself to a party he is hosting in his house... pretending to be someone completely different... despite looking no different at all - and succeeding! Chutzpah!

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Stephen C

@bob25009 Jun 7, 2025

Success in 1 hour and 37 minutes.

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Will G

@Wgoodeve Jan 17, 2025

A great classic film! The acting performances were nice. Henry Fonda from “12 Angry Men” we’re in it. This is a romance story about a couple who meets on a cruise. There’s also an actress from Double Indemnity.

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Jeremy O

@RT66281026 Dec 16, 2024

Barbara Stanwyck carried this movie. Highly entertaining and definitely a must-watch BW flick.

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Isaiah Y

@zayman2 Nov 3, 2024

One of Preston Sturges best films with great performances from Barbara Stanwyck and Henry Fonda

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Preston Sturges

Director

Barbara Stanwyck

Jean Harrington

Henry Fonda

Charles Pike

Charles Coburn

"Colonel" Harrington

Eugene Pallette

Horace Pike

William Demarest

Muggsy (Ambrose Murgatroyd)

The Lady Eve: Official Clip - Not Over a Sofa!

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The Lady Eve: Official Clip - She Knows His Type

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The Lady Eve: Official Clip - Father Loves to Lose

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The Lady Eve: Official Clip - An Ideal Mate

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The Lady Eve: Official Clip - Positively the Same Dame!

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The Lady Eve: Official Clip - What a Friend!

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The Lady Eve: Official Clip - I Like Him, Too

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The Lady Eve: Official Clip - Who's Emma?

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The Lady Eve: Official Clip - Hello, Hopsie!

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The Lady Eve: Official Clip - Charles Meets The Lady Eve

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Synopsis

It's no accident when wealthy Charles falls for Jean. Jean is a con artist with her sights set on Charles' fortune. Matters complicate when Jean starts falling for her mark. When Charles suspects Jean is a gold digger, he dumps her. Jean, fixated on revenge and still pining for the millionaire, devises a plan to get back in Charles' life. With love and payback on her mind, she re-introduces herself to Charles, this time as an aristocrat named Lady Eve Sidwich.

Director: Preston Sturges
Producer: Paul Jones
Screenwriter: Monckton Hoffe, Preston Sturges
Distributor: Criterion Collection, Paramount Pictures
Production Co: Paramount Pictures
Genre: Romance, Comedy
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Feb 25, 1941, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Mar 18, 2014
Runtime: 1h 37m
Sound Mix: Mono
Aspect Ratio: 35mm, Flat (1.37:1)

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