Kitty Foyle (1940)

Ginger Rogers won a best actress Oscar for portrayal of Kitty Foyle from Irish working class roots. Told in flashbacks, the film starts with Wyn asking Kitty to run away with him to South America and live in sin as he is already married.

We see the Kitty is torn between, wealthy and monied Wyn (Dennis Morgan) or marry a safe and sturdy Doctor Eisen (James Craig) who woos her.

Kitty enchanted by the dashing Wyn from Philadelphia aristocracy but his family disapproves of her.

The film has a feminist bent as it recounts of the independence of women in 20th century America. It also with Dalton Trumbo as a screenwriter has political leanings which lends the film more interest.

This demonstrates clearly that Ginger Rogers was much more than just a dance partner, as she pretty much single-handedly holds this rather sweet melodrama together. She starts work as the secretary to Philadelphia gent "Wyn Stratford" (Dennis Morgan) and before long they fall in love... but what can come of it? He is from a wealthy society family, she a hard working gal of Irish-immigrant stock. Sam Wood takes us on a gentle ride as their on/off relationship thrives then falters as they try to reconcile what divides them with what drives them. Rogers plays the eponymous "Kitty" delicately and purposefully; feisty when she has to be, romantic and sensitive when called for too. Morgan is a good looking young man, and his performance as the fella just a bit too tied to the apron-strings (of the money, if not the family) is good too. For it's time, it also touches on a few subjects that might be considered risqué and it does not follow the traditional happy-ever-ending route that you might expect. To beat an Oscar nomination list including Fontaine, Hepburn & Bette Davis to the statuette speaks volumes...