Frank Capra directed this film version of Joseph Kesselring's Broadway play in 1941, but the film's release was held up until the play ended its run in 1944. Cary Grant stars as a New York theater critic whose honeymoon is ruined by the discovery that his two timid aunts have been entertaining prospective lodgers with a lethal brew of elderberry wine, arsenic, and “a pinch of cyanide.” Their weird Brooklyn household also includes the evil cousin Jonathan (Raymond Massey), who, locked in fierce competition with his aunts to top their even dozen victims, sets his sights on Grant; Jonathan's sidekick, Dr. Einstein (Peter Lorre), whose experimental surgery has turned Jonathan into a dead ringer for Frankenstein; and one relatively harmless relative, Teddy (John Alexander), who keeps himself occupied with fantasies of his chosen persona, Teddy Roosevelt. Capra's brilliant casting mixes the talents of the original stage production with familiar Hollywood stars in uncommon roles and the pace of this hilarious comedy, set on high to begin with, has no where to go but up. As one critic noted, “Even in the torture scene, with a gag over his face, Grant can express hope, fear, cunning and a wonderful brand of amazement.”