Plum Crazy

It's hardly a scientific sample, as it's based on only four responses, but the votes are in for Cary Grant's best comedic, romantic, and thriller role.

Our panel of experts was split on comedy, with Bringing Up Baby, The Philadelphia Story, and Arsenic & Old Lace each getting a vote. (The fourth voter, John, didn't weigh in.)

All excellent choices, and as far as the role alone, I agree with Dad on Arsenic & Old Lace. Grant is at his slapstick best in ths movie. His facial expressions when he's tied up by half-brother Jonathan (no relation to me) are pure brilliance, again showing the tricks he picked up while working as a mime in the circus. I can think of few actors who can crack people up more with facial expressions alone than Grant. In terms of movie, my choice is His Girl Friday, which gets my vote for best comedy of all time. In the words of the New York Times, it is "fast, fast, fast" with a brilliant performance
by Rosalind Russell as Grant's ex-wife. Along with Katherine Hepburn in Bringing Up Baby, Russell is the only female lead ever to keep pace with Grant, and in my book, she actually outshines him.

Two voters, Lesley and Mom, punted on the question of best romantic part, while Dad voted for An Affair to Remember and John (via Unspecified Chatter) gave his nod to Charade. The problem with this category is that An Affair to Remember is the only true romance that Grant ever filmed. All his other romantic leads came in dramas or comedies. For this reason, I give the nod to An Affair to Remember, but Mom might be right when she says all his movies.

North by Northwest is the unanimous choice as best thriller. No argument here. The American Film Insitute agrees, ranking NxNW as the fourth best thiller of all time. It is higher than any other Grant thriller.

In the end, no matter what you choose, you simply cannot go wrong with a Cary Grant movie. There is a reason why he is the number two actor on AFI's top actors, second only to Bogie himself.