SS in SS

Katharine Hepburn was fairly new to the screen when she won an Oscar for Morning Glory (1933). She'd win four overall, but have to wait more than 30 years for her next one. (During the winless period she'd do all her best work.)

I recently saw Stage Struck (1958), a remake of Morning Glory. The original was a pretty creaky story about Broadway to begin with (Hepburn's Stage Door (1937), set in the same milieu, is a much better film), so redoing it 25 years later wasn't much of an idea.

Both the original and the remake feature a talented supporting cast, but the whole things lives or dies with its lead, Eva Lovelace, the girl who wants to break into the theatre. The character is both naive and overbearing, and so can easily end up being annoying. Ironically, it requires a true star to play the part of someone who isn't a star. Hepburn was a star (and was also a unique individual) and it came across. Susan Strasberg, however, doesn't have it. She comes from a famous theatrical family, but her line readings are so odd that you almost wonder if there's something wrong with her.

Best thing about the film is some location shooting on Broadway in the 50s--in color.