You Can’t Take It With You

Martin Vanderhof — also known as Grandpa — reigns over a delightful madhouse full of his children and grandchildren and their spouses, as well as folks who came for a visit and never left. All are artists, philosophers, and inventors, and not one of them lets a lack of talent interfere with having a good time. That’s fine with Grandpa — he opted out of the rat race years ago because it was no fun. Today, he “doesn’t believe in income tax” and allows fireworks experiments to go on in the basement.

Into this circus atmosphere comes Tony Kirby, wooing granddaugther Alice, a sweet girl who works for Tony’s father. When the romance draws Tony’s parents to meet their son’s intended, the stuffed-shirt Mr. Kirby and the snobby Mrs. Kirby inevitably get more than they expected. A loving and wacky paean to nonconformity, You Can’t Take It With You may be over the top but the moral of the story is a serious one: Find in yourself the courage to do with your life what you really want to do.