Topper

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1h 37m

Comedy

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89%

Tomatometer

18 Reviews

80%

Audience Score

2,500+ Ratings

George (Cary Grant) and Marion Kerby (Constance Bennett) are a young, happy-go-lucky couple who love to party. But after a car accident kills them both, they discover that they haven't done enough good deeds to earn a trip to heaven. To remedy this problem, they decide to help their old uptight boss, Cosmo Topper (Roland Young), live a little. While Topper begins to take their ghostly advice and enjoy life for a change, his controlling wife finds her husband's laid-back behavior infuriating.

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TIME Magazine

Signalizes [Roach's] entry into full-length sophistication.

Sep 17, 2008

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Variety Staff

Variety

Cary Grant and Constance Bennett, as the reincarnated Kerbys, do their assignments with great skill.

Sep 17, 2008

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Geoff Andrew

Time Out

Too gentle and leisurely to survive as a solid classic, though there's pleasure to be found in the cast's graceful way with comedy and their smooth ensemble playing.

Jun 24, 2006

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Mike Massie

Gone With The Twins

Despite the originality of the premise, there's a slowness to the introduction of the supernatural elements, as well as with Topper's reception of his ghostly tutors.

Rated: 3/10

Jul 30, 2020

Full Review

Ann Ross

Maclean's Magazine

It's the old story of the turning worm, and while it's handled briskly here, most of the entertainment is in the ingenious camera trickery.

Jul 23, 2019

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Emanuel Levy

EmanuelLevy.Com

Boasting strong performances from Cary Grant and Constance Bennett, this sophisticated screwball comedy was so popular that it led to two sequels (without Grant).

Rated: B+

Jul 28, 2012

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Justin R

One of the great early classic comedy films.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

08/27/23

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joel h

I didn't know anything about Topper before watching it, so parts of it were quite surprising to me. To be honest, I was kind of annoyed by Cary Grant's and Constance Bennett's characters at first. I also didn't understand why Topper was the main focus. However, by the end, this film had just enough charm to win me over. I still don't get how this movie spawned multiple sequels, though.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

03/30/23

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Audience Member

Some great sight gags made this a big hit in its day, enough that two sequels were made (although not nearly as good.) Cary Grant and Constance Bennett certainly are a handsome leading couple but it's Roland Young, as "Cosmo Topper," who steals the show. He's a stiff old man who quickly loosens up and the transformation is fun to watch. Bennett was a legitimate 1930s glamor girl who looks just great in here and pairs off well with the handsome Grant. The two of them also exhibit a good comedic touch. They had a lot to offer besides good looks. Even more handsome than those two was the automobile - wow, what a great-looking sports car! I''m glad to see other reviewers comment on it. It was awesome. By the way, I know Hollywood liked to preach in some of these classic films that everyone gets into heaven, but this was "topped" them all. In here, the theology was that "all it takes is ONE good deed" during your lifetime. Ohhhhh-kay.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/08/23

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Audience Member

A pretty funny film with great performances from Young, Grant and Bennett. The film sees Topper get into a lot of funny altercations with the ghosts of Mr and Mrs Kerby. The special effects are very impressive in the film and helped sell the comedic scenes. There is one scene where Topper is being carried out by the two ghosts which was particularly funny. The interactions between Topper and his wife are also pretty funny and well-acted. Young was nominated for an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor and, in my opinion, was better than the other nominees I have seen (Bellamy & Mitchell). There were some problems with the film such as the ghosts bringing attention to themselves when it wasn't needed. For example, Mrs Kerry being invisible just to cause shenanigans when it wasn't needed. Another odd aspect of the film was when Topper went to jail and, as a result, his wife made new friends because they thought they were cool now. Overall, a fun film that is well-acted and has some great gags.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/11/23

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steve d

It has not aged well.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

03/30/23

Full Review

Audience Member

I was a bit surprised by the concept of Topper, because I never would have expected Cary Grant and Constance Bennett to die since it seemed the whole movie was going to be about their story. I think I was led astray more by the fact that they both get top billing over Roland Young, when in reality the top three credits should be in reverse order. That was one of the things I didn’t love so much about Topper. I get such a kick out of Cary Grant in any comedy, and yet he’s not in several large chunks of this movie. I don’t know what was going on, but if this happened in a modern movie with a big-name celebrity, I’d probably assume the studio could only get him for a few days of filming, so they just worked him in where they could and filled out the rest with Constance Bennett. Even the excuses they wrote for why he’s not there made no sense to me, and I kept wondering what we were meant to think he was doing during those times he was gone. The humor is what saves Topper for me. It is one of those wacky stories where one person is aware there are ghosts around, but everyone else is stymied by the mystical craziness that is happening. It felt like the crew had a good time coming up with ways of moving things without someone visibly touching them, and Roland Young’s physical humor was gold. There was one scene in particular where he is supposedly being carried by the two ghosts and his movements were simply genius. Topper is one of those movies where you can’t ask too many questions, though. The strange logic of how the ghosts work makes no sense, and honestly it seems like they are basically just humans but with the added benefit of being able to disappear. You’d think there would be some limits, like not being able to change clothes, or not being able to eat and drink, but they can do it all. I mean they can even appear in full form to everyone in a crowded restaurant. The whole plot, or at least the primary motivation for these two characters is their journey to do a good deed. This might be where Topper is most fundamentally flawed. First of all, it never feels like they have any idea what they are doing. They have a general plan of helping out the title character, but helping him do what exactly? Then their execution of that good deed is utter nonsense. They don’t even seem to know where they are going at any given moment, let alone how they will turn these random meandering into something good for Topper. And, without going too philosophical or theological, their idea always seems selfishly motivated to get themselves into Heaven, rather than selfless because they desire to help for no other reason than it’s the right thing to do. So, if you’re doing something for your own benefit, is it really a good deed at all? I know, I’m over-analyzing a silly comedy, and this isn’t the first time I’ve fallen into that trap. None of this ruined Topper for me, but it held the movie back from being one I loved, and made it more like mindless fun.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

06/18/20

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Norman Z. McLeod

Director

Cary Grant

George Kerby

Constance Bennett

Marion Kerby

Roland Young

CosmoTopper

Billie Burke

Mrs. Topper

Alan Mowbray

Wilkins

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Synopsis

George (Cary Grant) and Marion Kerby (Constance Bennett) are a young, happy-go-lucky couple who love to party. But after a car accident kills them both, they discover that they haven't done enough good deeds to earn a trip to heaven. To remedy this problem, they decide to help their old uptight boss, Cosmo Topper (Roland Young), live a little. While Topper begins to take their ghostly advice and enjoy life for a change, his controlling wife finds her husband's laid-back behavior infuriating.

Director: Norman Z. McLeod
Screenwriter: Eric Hatch, Jack Jevne, Eddie Moran, Thorne Smith
Distributor: Film Classics Inc., Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Distributing Corp.
Production Co: Hal Roach Studios Inc.
Genre: Comedy
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jul 16, 1937, Wide
Runtime: 1h 37m
Sound Mix: Mono