Twelve Hidden Yuletide Gems
Desk Set is a great treat to give to a loved one who worries about the “changing economy” as time passes into another year, or who’s always got to be an “early adopter” of new technological trends. This witty treasure from the mid-1950s not only shows old favorites (Katherine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy) at their best, but has a thoughtful, comfortable way of looking at the world – even as the zingers fly. All in all, the story reassures us, no matter how much times change, it’s people who still stay the same.
Hepburn shines in her scenes as the beleaguered head of a network reference library, set upon by Tracy, an “efficiency engineer” hired by her company. With no thought to the approaching Christmas holiday, Hepburn’s bosses have decided that the reference library could be replaced by computers… Hurrumph! You can almost hear it before the fire blazes in Hepburn’s eyes. Tracy and Hepburn’s spicy chemistry, first featured in great films like Woman of the Year and Adam’s Rib, has softened into a mellow patina, which gives Desk Set a very special charm. Very few films, even today, acknowledge that romance does not end at forty (or even thirty, if you’re watching TV channels like the CW), which is why the recent Something’s Got to Give (with Diane Keaton and Jack Nicholson) was an “unexpected” success.
Some scenes have an second layer of humor today, reminding us that we still don’t live in a “paperless society” — especially when they feature Tracy’s behemoth computer “Emerek” (fancifully poking fun at “Eniac,” the real life, room-filling supercomputer created in 1945). A great supporting cast rounds out the film, especially Gig Young as a supercilious executive and Joan Blondell as Tracy’s best pal, an equally able librarian.
Katherine Hepburn also figures highly in this next film, or at least one of them, like Kate herself, a New England classic…
