

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.
Acting
Stanwyck's ankle-closeup seduction—acting school in 30 seconds
Writing
Sturges' dialogue machine-guns faster than comprehension
Direction
Razor-sharp comic timing that never pauses to breathe

Director
Preston Sturges
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Sturges had to fight studio head William LeBaron to keep the long flashback structure—studios hated delaying the meet-cute.
This cemented the 'screwball' template where female desire drives the plot—radical for 1941 and still rare now.
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