Laura's Miscellaneous Musings

Disney Composer Robert Sherman Dies at 86

2012-03-06T23:14:00.014-08:00

Oscar-winning composer Robert Sherman, a true Disney Legend, passed away in London Monday. He was 86.

Along with his brother Richard, Sherman composed countless songs for Disney films and theme parks which have become part of the soundtrack of our lives.

The Shermans initially attained popularity writing hit songs for Annette Funicello, including "Tall Paul" and "Pineapple Princess," and they also notably wrote "You're Sixteen (You're Beautiful, and You're Mine)."

Through the '60s and '70s the Shermans worked on numerous Disney films, with their memorable songs including "Let's Get Together" from THE PARENT TRAP (1961), "Winnie the Pooh" from WINNIE THE POOH AND THE HONEY TREE (1966), "I Wanna Be Like You" from THE JUNGLE BOOK (1967), and the Oscar-nominated "The Age of Not Believing" from BEDKNOBS AND BROOMSTICKS (1971).

Most importantly, the Shermans gave the world the Oscar-winning score for MARY POPPINS (1964), including "A Spoonful of Sugar," "Let's Go Fly a Kite," "Feed the Birds," "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious," and the Oscar-winning Best Song "Chim-Chim-Cheree."

MARY POPPINS is among my very earliest childhood memories. It was the first film I ever saw in a theater, and in my mind's eye I can see myself sitting by my little record player, looking at an album cover just like the one at the top of this post, listening to the songs over and over. The opening strains of the overture cause me to tear up, as does the emotional finale, "With tuppence for paper and string, you can have your own set of wings..." My favorite song is the haunting "Chim-Chim-Cheree" ("When you're with a sweep, you're in glad company!"). What incredibly special memories the Shermans gave us.

The Shermans are pictured here with MARY POPPINS stars Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke; Richard is on the left and Robert on the right. It's rather remarkable, given the film's impact on my life, that in recent years I've seen three of the four people in this photo in person -- everyone, in fact, but Robert. I saw Julie Andrews on April 8, 2008, Dick Van Dyke on October 2, 2011, and Richard Sherman on September 24, 2010, as well as September 9, 2011.

Dick Van Dyke was quoted today as saying "As songwriters, they were a perfect combination. The emotion was Robert and the fun was Dick's part. They were made by God for Walt Disney. They somehow managed to convey Walt's meaning in those songs."

The Sherman Brothers' most famous Disney theme park song was "It's a Small World," first written for Disney's attraction at the 1964 World's Fair. They also wrote the theme for the Enchanted Tiki Room ("In the tiki, tiki, tiki, tiki, tiki room..."), "Miracles From Molecules" in the fondly recalled Adventures in Inner Space, and "There's a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow" for the Carousel of Progress.

Disneyland paid tribute to Robert Sherman today, placing a wreath next to the Sherman Bros.' window on Main Street.

A public funeral is planned for Friday afternoon in Culver City.

Related Posts: Sherman Brothers to Be Honored at Disneyland (March 8, 2010); Sherman Brothers Honored Today at Disneyland (March 11, 2010); Today at Disneyland: Signs of Spring (March 18, 2010); Coming to DVD: Disney Documentaries (July 15, 2010); Today at Destination D: Disneyland '55 (September 24, 2010); Tonight's Theater: Mary Poppins (August 4, 2011).

TCM Star of the Month: Karl Malden

2012-03-05T23:56:00.011-08:00

This month Turner Classic Movies pays tribute to Karl Malden, showing over two dozen Malden films on Wednesday evenings.

The tribute kicks off this Wednesday night, March 7th, with a seven-film lineup. The titles which intrigue me the most are RUBY GENTRY (1952), also starring Jennifer Jones and Charlton Heston, and PARRISH (1961), with Troy Donahue and Claudette Colbert.

Among the other five films that evening are THE SELLOUT (1951) and BABY DOLL (1956).

March 14th is an especially good night, leading off with A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE (1951), for which Malden won the Academy Award as Best Supporting Actor, and ON THE WATERFRONT (1954), for which he was again nominated as Best Supporting Actor.

Malden's role as the gutsy priest in ON THE WATERFRONT might be my favorite of all his parts. Anyone who hasn't yet seen this film should be sure to calendar the date, and those of us who have seen it may want to visit it again!

Malden directed Richard Widmark in TIME LIMIT (1957), which is also shown that night. Among the other films on the 14th are HOTEL (1967) and the very enjoyable COME FLY WITH ME (1963). In the latter film Malden plays a lonely man who meets stewardess Lois Nettleton at just the right time in his life.
Westerns are among the half-dozen films shown on the 21st, including NEVADA SMITH (1966) and HOW THE WEST WAS WON (1962). METEOR (1979), one of a few films Malden made with Natalie Wood, is also on that evening.

That night I especially recommend the docu-noir BOOMERANG! (1967), also starring Dana Andrews and Lee J. Cobb.

The final Malden evening, on March 28th, includes two more films with Natalie Wood, BOMBERS B-52 (1957) and GYPSY (1962).

Malden plays a police inspector in Hitchcock's I CONFESS (1953). The inspector comes to believe a priest (Montgomery Clift) knows more about a murder than he's letting on, but the priest cannot violate the sanctity of the confessional to tell the inspector the truth. This becomes a particular problem when evidence starts to point toward the priest as the possible murderer.

For more information on TCM in March, please visit TCM in March: Highlights or the complete schedule.

Around the Blogosphere This Week

2012-03-04T22:43:00.008-08:00

Miscellaneous bits of news and fun stuff from around the Internet...

...Don't miss Part 2 of the fabulous French Film Noir Posters at Where Danger Lives. Part 1 is here.

...An interview with Olivia de Havilland about her service as a lay reader at the American Cathedral of the Holy Trinity in Paris provides an interesting and unusual glimpse into her faith and her life in retirement.

...Starting Monday, March 5th, the L.A. Times goes behind a pay wall, allowing access to 15 free stories a month before requiring a subscription. Print edition subscribers will not be charged to access the online edition.

...Colin reviews Glenn Ford and Felicia Farr in JUBAL (1956) at Riding the High Country. Ernest Borgnine and Rod Steiger costar.

...Leonard Maltin shares the story behind a letter from Melissa Fairbanks -- granddaughter of Doug Sr. and daughter of Doug Jr. -- to Jean Dujardin, who won Best Actor for THE ARTIST (2011) last week.

...Most of the cast of DOWNTON ABBEY has re-signed for Seasons 4 and 5. Season 3 is currently filming.

...Mark Wahlberg's CONTRABAND (2012) was based on a film from Iceland. Now he's looking at remaking a Norwegian thriller.

...The Sheila Variations recently posted a well-done analysis of a scene with Elvis Presley and Dolores Hart in KING CREOLE (1958). (A heads-up, there is some R-rated language in the post.) I'm looking forward to seeing this movie.

...Speaking of Dolores Hart, Tom has video of her at the Oscars at Motion Picture Gems.

...Kristina recently posted a fun article on noir portraits at Speakeasy. It's amazing how many memorable portraits there have been in films!

...I found a recent post on the healthcare mandate quite fascinating, as it brings up an issue I'd never heard raised before in this context: would an insurance mandate negate centuries of contract law by forcing the parties to enter into a contract under duress?

...John Lee Hancock, the director of THE ROOKIE (2002) and THE BLIND SIDE (2009), is said to be in talks with Disney to direct SAVING MR. BANKS, about the relationship between Walt Disney and MARY POPPINS author P.L. Travers.

...Currently reading on my Kindle Fire: BELOW STAIRS by Margaret Powell, an absorbing memoir of life as a kitchen maid which is said to have helped inspire UPSTAIRS, DOWNSTAIRS and DOWNTON ABBEY.

...I enjoyed this profile of Shannon Bream of Fox News Channel, who left her career as a successful lawyer to pursue her dream of being a broadcast news reporter. Baseball fans may enjoy knowing Shannon's brother-in-law is former MLB player Sid Bream.

...Coming to the Classic Film and TV Cafe later this month: A Powell-Pressburger blogathon. Details are here.

...James Garner's daughter Gigi is on Twitter. Follow her at MavrocksGirl.

...Jacqueline Lynch of Another Old Movie Blog has edited her posts for a brand-new ebook, CLASSIC FILMS AND THE AMERICAN CONSCIENCE. What a neat idea! Jacqueline has long been one of my favorite bloggers, in part because of the interesting way she presents films in the context of their times. The book is available to download for free from Amazon on Monday, March 5th, through Thursday the 8th.

...Notable Passings: Cinematographer Bruce Surtees, who worked on a number of Clint Eastwood films, has died age 74. His father was Oscar-winning cameraman Robert Surtees...STAR WARS visual designer Ralph McQuarrie has passed on at 82. Visit his official website for a look at some of his brilliant work, which will impact filmgoers for as long as movies survive...Jan Berenstain, co-creator of the Berenstain Bears, died at 88...Those of us of a certain age felt a pang hearing the news of the death of Monkees singer Davy Jones at age 66...Social scientist James Q. Wilson, a graduate of my college alma mater, has died at 80. He pioneered the concept of "broken windows" in policing. He received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2003. Michael Barone pays tribute...I was greatly saddened by the sudden passing of Internet publisher Andrew Breitbart last week, at the too-early age of 43.

Have a great week!

Tonight's Movie: Cornered (1945)

2012-03-04T20:30:00.002-08:00

CORNERED was the second film starring the "new" Dick Powell, following his career-changing success as a tough guy in MURDER, MY SWEET (1944). CORNERED is top-drawer Powell, a rough, gritty tale of postwar vengeance.

Powell plays Laurence Gerard, a Canadian flyer who spent the waning days of WWII in a POW camp. Upon his release, Gerard has only one thought in mind: finding the Nazi collaborator responsible for the execution of his young bride, a member of the French resistance. Gerard's relentless journey takes him to South America, where he must figure out which of the many shadowy figures he meets can be trusted as he searches for the man he intends to kill.

Powell is outstanding as a man who has nothing to lose, making him fearless in his single-minded quest. Powell gives Gerard the usual sardonic wisecracks of his noir-era characters, but he also adds something deeper, an utter sense of despair. The good guys may have won the war, but in a sense Gerard lost. There's a scene where Gerard lays on his bed in shadows, staring into the dark; when he leans closer to the bedside lamp as he answers the telephone, the viewer sees the streak of a tear on his face. It's a very affecting moment.

In an interesting essay at Where Danger Lives, Mark writes "Much of CORNERED'S originality comes from Powell’s interpretation of Laurence Gerard...there’s something in Powell’s performance that goes beyond the clichéd term world-weary — Gerard isn’t just tired, he’s dead tired. This is a man on fumes." His post, as always, is very much worth reading, though I think perhaps I liked the film even more than he did.

I also enjoyed a comment at IMDb which says of the film "Everyone has a card up their sleeve and a gun in the top drawer. Just in case. Shadows, prying eyes, lonely dimly lit streets, whispered mistruths partially overheard but only half understood; that's what this film is about. Some have done it as well but none have done it better."

The international intrigue foreshadows one of Powell's next couple films, TO THE ENDS OF THE EARTH (1948), in which he played a U.S. Treasury agent intent on breaking up an opium ring. The films also share a very bleak look at an uncertain postwar world, tempered by the success of international cooperation and teamwork, shadowy as it may be at times.

Morris Carnovsky (DISHONORED LADY, THE SECOND WOMAN) plays a mysterious man who is after the same man as Gerard. Walter Slezak plays one of the many strange people Gerard meets in Argentina, and Luther Adler has one scene as Gerard's quarry.

The cast also includes Micheline Cheirel, Edgar Barrier, Nina Vale, Jack LaRue, and Steven Geray.

Actress Ellen Corby has a nonspeaking role as a maid who puts a critical letter on a mailbox. Corby had previously appeared in a few films in the '30s and was working on CORNERED as the script supervisor for director Edward Dmytryk. It was the beginning of an acting career which would last over half a century, with her most notable roles being Aunt Trina in I REMEMBER MAMA (1948) and Grandma on THE WALTONS.

Dmytryk and cinematographer Harry J. Wild had both worked on Powell's MURDER MY SWEET, and Wild would go on to shoot Powell's PITFALL (1948), as well as his "Western noir" STATION WEST (1948). In my view CORNERED would be worth seeing for the cinematography alone, whether the gritty shots of postwar Europe or some of the breathtaking shadowy scenes when Powell's character is caught up in a Nazi-chasing noir nightmare in Argentina.

CORNERED runs 102 minutes. It's part of the Film Noir Classic Collection, Volume 5. Other films in the 8-film set are DESPERATE (1947), DEADLINE AT DAWN (1946), and BACKFIRE (1950).

CORNERED and DESPERATE are on a two-film disc which can be rented from Netflix or ClassicFlix.

CORNERED also had a release on VHS, as part of the RKO Collection, and it can additionally be seen from time to time on Turner Classic Movies. The trailer is available at the TCM website.

Fox Movie Channel in March: Highlights

2012-03-04T15:10:00.002-08:00

It seems as though perhaps the writing is on the wall as far as Fox Movie Channel's future showing movies from the classic film era.

I discussed some of the channel's recent changes last month. The number of classic films scheduled in March has declined further, with only one or two films made before 1960 playing on weekdays; some weekend days have no older films at all.

Given that, the list of suggestions this month will be relatively short, but there are nonetheless a few notable titles worth seeing out:

...On Monday, March 5th, GARDEN OF EVIL (1954) will be shown, starring Gary Cooper, Susan Hayward, and Richard Widmark.

...Also on the 5th, THE LONGEST DAY (1962) turns up on the schedule, with its all-star cast including Richard Burton, Sean Connery, John Wayne, Robert Ryan, Henry Fonda, Jeffrey Hunter, Robert Wagner, Robert Mitchum, Eddie Albert, and more.

...The superb KISS OF DEATH (1947), which I saw for the first time at the end of January, will air on March 6th. Victor Mature and Coleen Gray shine in understated, natural performances as a former hood who wants to go good and his adoring young bride, while Richard Widmark sizzles in his Oscar-nominated screen debut as the psychotic Tommy Udo.

...Tyrone Power and Gene Tierney star in the romantic comedy THAT WONDERFUL URGE (1948) on March 9th. This is a fun film worth checking out.

...IN THE MEANTIME, DARLING (1944) was one of Jeanne Crain's earliest films. This film about newlyweds during WWII is a B movie which was directed by Otto Preminger. It has an enjoyable cast including Jane Randolph, Gale Robbins, Frank Latimore, Cara Williams, and Reed Hadley. It airs March 10th.

...A ROYAL SCANDAL (1945), showing on March 12th, was directed by Otto Preminger and Ernst Lubitsch. It stars Tallulah Bankhead, Anne Baxter, William Eythe, and Vincent Price.

...Lloyd Nolan stars as gumshoe Michael Shayne in BLUE, WHITE AND PERFECT (1942) on March 16th.

...LOVE ME TENDER (1956), starring Elvis Presley and Debra Paget, airs on March 20th.

...HEAVEN CAN WAIT, a wonderful Ernst Lubitsch confection starring Don Ameche, Gene Tierney, Laird Cregar, and Charles Coburn, will be shown on March 25th. The great supporting cast includes Eugene Pallette, Spring Byington, Allyn Joslyn, Marjorie Main, and Louis Calhern.

...Linda Darnell stars in FOREVER AMBER (1947) on March 26th.

...Barbara Stanwyck and Joel McCrea costar in BANJO ON MY KNEE (1936) on March 31st. I don't have this film so I'll be sure to set the DVR for this one.

Happy viewing!

Tonight's Movie: Road House (1948)

2012-03-03T23:54:00.107-08:00

I've been looking forward to ROAD HOUSE for quite a while -- since it came out on DVD a few years ago, actually! (So many movies, so little time...) I expected to enjoy a film noir with Richard Widmark and Ida Lupino, and I certainly did.

Lupino plays Lily Stevens, a chanteuse hired by Jefty Robbins (Widmark) to perform in his road house near the Canadian border. Jefty's righthand man Pete (Cornel Wilde) isn't happy about what the expensive new hire will do the roadhouse budget, but eventually Pete and Lily stop bickering and fall for one another -- to the disappointment of bookkeeper Susie Smith (Celeste Holm), who crushes on Pete, and the rage of Jefty, who wants Lily for himself. Matters spiral out of control as Jefty plots revenge.

This film has outstanding performances and really terrific atmosphere, with both the music and set design being key elements in the film's great look and sound. The opening credits sequence sets the tone, with some marvelous shots, including the pins being manually reset in the road house bowling alley. (Those were the days...)

I won't say anything about the film's ending, other than to mention I felt that it raised more questions than it answered, in terms of the paroled Pete's future and what a judge would make of what happened. Will a judge accept Lily and Susie's account or perceive a devious plot?

The hard-drinking, chain-smoking, solitaire-playing Lily is one tough cookie. Her refusal to use an ashtray, instead allowing her cigarettes to burn holes into the top of the piano, seems to illustrate her attitude, daring others to argue with her. Lily isn't blessed with a classically beautiful voice, yet she pours so much emotion into "One for my Baby" and "Again" that audiences are captivated. As Susie exclaims, in one of the film's many good lines, "She does more without a voice than anyone I ever heard!"

Lupino's Lily is mesmerizing, although at the same time she's so cranky and hard-edged that I found it a little difficult to understand exactly why both Jefty and Pete fall for her so hard. (I guess she does look quite nice in her evening gowns...) Given that this is a woman whose first act upon awakening is to reach for her cigarettes, I also couldn't help thinking that she must have absolutely reeked of smoke, but that's a '40s film noir for you.

This was Widmark's third film, following his memorable debut in KISS OF DEATH (1947) and another charismatic performance in THE STREET WITH NO NAME (1948). Jefty starts out as a relatively normal guy, with occasional flashes of anger, but by film's end he's descended into all-out Tommy Udo-like madness, tormenting his former friends. Widmark was always a great villain, including in this film, though I'm glad that his roles later expanded into heroes and anti-heroes.

I've never been a particular fan of Cornel Wilde -- seen most recently by me in THE BIG COMBO (1955) -- but he's fine in this, in a performance I found a little more interesting than his norm. Celeste Holm is sympathetic as the woman who wishes Pete would see her as more than a friend; this was Holm's fourth film, following her Oscar-winning Supporting Actress performance in GENTLEMAN'S AGREEMENT (1947).

The supporting cast includes O.Z. Whitehead, Robert Karnes, Ray Teal, Grandon Rhodes, George Beranger, and Ian MacDonald.

ROAD HOUSE was directed by Jean Negulesco. The beautiful black and white cinematography was by Joseph LaShelle. (IMDb also indicates cinematographer Norbert Brodine did uncredited work.) Kay Nelson designed Lupino's gowns. The film runs 95 minutes.

The set design of the road house and bowling alley is truly gorgeous. Lyle R. Wheeler and Maurice Ransford did the art direction, with set decoration by Thomas Little. The only drawback to the film's great look is the very phony soundstage exteriors during the film's concluding sequence.

ROAD HOUSE is Fox Film Noir DVD release. Unlike most Fox Film Noir releases, it is unnumbered. It's a wonderful print. Extras include a featurette and a commentary track by Kim Morgan and Eddie Muller. The DVD was reviewed at DVD Talk; it can be rented via Netflix or ClassicFlix.

ROAD HOUSE has also had a release on VHS.

ROAD HOUSE rates a definite thumbs up for fans of film noir.

TCM in March: Highlights

2012-03-03T21:05:00.007-08:00

TCM's 31 Days of Oscar Festival concluded yesterday, so it's time to take a look at a few of the most interesting titles airing on Turner Classic Movies in March!

...BOMBSHELL (1933), with Jean Harlow playing a movie star, provides a fun peek at studio life in the '30s. It airs March 5th.

...The pre-Code lineup on Tuesday, March 6th, includes Ann Dvorak in THE STRANGE LOVE OF MOLLY LOUVAIN (1932), which I've been wanting to see for a while now.

...The treasure of the month is HISTORY IS MADE AT NIGHT (1937), starring Jean Arthur and Charles Boyer. Watch it and try to decide if it's a romantic comedy, a heart-tugging melodrama, a disaster film -- or all three! It's not to be missed. Be sure to set your DVR on March 6th -- this one's a keeper.

...One of the unexpected pleasures at last year's Noir City festival was THE HUNTED (1948), a film noir starring Preston Foster and the ice skater Belita. Another of Belita's film noir titles, SUSPENSE (1946), airs on March 7th. It costars Barry Sullivan and Bonita Granville.

...Speaking of Preston Foster, I'm very curious to see TWICE BLESSED (1945) on March 9th. Foster costars with Gail Patrick as parents of twins (Lee and Lyn Wilde) trying to reunite their divorced parents. It sounds a lot like THE PARENT TRAP (1961)!

...On March 10th TCM will be showing several of Clifton Webb's films for 20th Century-Fox, including two TCM premieres, FOR HEAVEN'S SAKE (1950) and MISTER SCOUTMASTER (1953). FOR HEAVEN'S SAKE is a title I fondly remember from multiple childhood TV viewings; it's a fantasy about an angel looking for the right parents for an unborn baby. It costars Robert Cummings, Joan Bennett, and Edmund Gwenn. I've never seen MISTER SCOUTMASTER and particularly look forward to it as one of the costars is Frances Dee, whose work I admire more each time I see one of her films.

...Dolores Hart has been in the news of late, due to the Oscar-nominated documentary on her life as a nun, GOD IS THE BIGGER ELVIS (2011). Her film WHERE THE BOYS ARE (1960), the quintessential "spring break" movie, airs on March 11th. This most enjoyable film costars Paula Prentiss, Jim Hutton, George Hamilton, Connie Francis, Frank Gorshin, and Yvette Mimieux.

...There's a terrific lineup of William Wellman films on March 12th. I'll be recording CENTRAL AIRPORT (1931), which I've never seen. I'm particularly fond of THE PURCHASE PRICE (1932), in which Barbara Stanwyck plays the mail order bride of North Dakota farmer George Brent.

...I'm intrigued by HOTEL RESERVE (1946), a spy thriller starring James Mason. It airs March 13th. It's part of a day of "hotel" films which also includes HOLLYWOOD HOTEL (1937). HOLLYWOOD HOTEL isn't one of Busby Berkeley's best films, but it's still very much worth taking a look. Dick Powell and Rosemary Lane are utterly charming singing "I'm a Fish Out of Water."

...An evening of John Ford films on March 15th includes one of my all-time favorite Ford films, DRUMS ALONG THE MOHAWK (1939). This 20th Century-Fox film stars Henry Fonda and Claudette Colbert, with sterling support from Edna May Oliver and Ward Bond. Like the previously mentioned FOR HEAVEN'S SAKE, I saw DRUMS ALONG THE MOHAWK countless times on TV as I was growing up, and I also read the novel by Walter Edmonds.

...St. Patrick's Day is on a Saturday this year, and the day-long celebration at TCM features eight films, including Dennis Morgan in MY WILD IRISH ROSE (1947), June Haver in THE DAUGHTER OF ROSIE O'GRADY (1950), and Tyrone Power in John Ford's rarely shown THE RISING OF THE MOON (1957).

...My DVR will be humming on March 19th, recording MEN IN WHITE (1934). This film from the waning days of the pre-Code era stars Clark Gable and Myrna Loy.

...Alan Ladd, Veronica Lake, and Robert Preston star in THIS GUN FOR HIRE (1942) on March 20th. Be there.

...Elizabeth Taylor was a teenager when she played the wife of a man (Robert Taylor) who might be a Communist spy in CONSPIRATOR (1949). It's part of a day-long Taylor tribute on March 21st.

...I can't ever make it through the end of Wyler's WUTHERING HEIGHTS (1939) without crying. Laurence Olivier and Merle Oberon get me every time. It airs on March 23rd and is followed by JANE EYRE (1944) and then the Bronte evening concludes with DEVOTION (1946), with Olivia de Havilland, Ida Lupino, and Nancy Coleman playing the Bronte sisters.

...Irene Dunne is one of my favorites, and four of her films will be shown on March 27th: JOY OF LIVING (1938), costarring another favorite, Douglas Fairbanks Jr.; OVER 21 (1945), a WWII service comedy with Alexander Knox; STINGAREE (1934) with Richard Dix; and SWEET ADELINE (1935).

...I'm very interested in checking out THE KING'S THIEF (1955), showing on March 29th. David Niven, George Sanders, Ann Blyth and a young Roger Moore? Sold!

...I've been meaning to catch up with a recording I made of THEY WON'T BELIEVE ME (1947), a film noir starring Robert Young and a terrific trio of actresses, Susan Hayward, Jane Greer, and Rita Johnson. I've read some really good things about this one. It airs March 30th.

...March 31st is a great example of why TCM is so wonderful: the schedule has everything from Chester Morris in ALIAS BOSTON BLACKIE (1942) to Ford's STAGECOACH (1939) to the silent classic SUNRISE (1927) to ATTACK OF THE 50-FOOT WOMAN (1958) to the film noir titles BORN TO KILL (1947) and HUMAN DESIRE (1954). That's entertainment!

Karl Malden is the March Star of the Month starting on the 7th. I'll be posting more information about that lineup of films next week.

For additional information on TCM in March, please consult the full schedule.

Update: TCM Star of the Month: Karl Malden.

Quick Preview of TCM in May

2012-03-01T23:11:00.009-08:00

Turner Classic Movies posted the online preview of the station's May schedule today. Wonderful news: the May Star of the Month is Joel McCrea!

McCrea fans on the Turner Classic Movies discussion boards have been campaigning for a McCrea month for quite a while now, and it's wonderful that TCM has followed through on this request.

Over 40 McCrea films will be shown on Wednesday nights in May, representing a broad cross-section of his work, from pre-Codes to Preston Sturges to Westerns. My 2010 McCrea birthday tribute includes review links for many of the films which will air in May.

Perhaps the most exciting news is that TCM licensed Paramount's WELLS FARGO (1937), which costarred Joel's wife, Frances Dee. The print I reviewed last summer was 97 minutes, but the original release version was 115 minutes. The TCM schedule gives the running time as 115 minutes, so if that turns out to be the print actually shown -- information on the early schedules sometimes changes -- that would be very exciting news indeed.

THE VIRGINIAN (1946) and CATTLE DRIVE (1951), two of the films from the upcoming Joel McCrea Westerns Collection, will be among the films shown in May. The Westerns Collection will be available from TCM on April 2nd.

Some favorite McCrea titles are missing from the schedule, such as the United Artists release FOUR FACES WEST (1948), which was another film he made with his wife, or Universal's SADDLE TRAMP (1950). All in all, however, this is a wonderful tribute which is a great representation of McCrea's long career. I'll be reviewing the McCrea movie lineup in much more detail closer to May 1st.

A few more 20th Century-Fox films have turned up in the May schedule, including BELLE STARR (1941), CAPTAIN FROM CASTILE (1947), BOOMERANG! (1947), CALL NORTHSIDE 777 (1948), MY BLUE HEAVEN (1950), and STARS AND STRIPES FOREVER (1952).

Extra-good news is the presence of a rarely shown Universal film on the schedule, Deanna Durbin's ONE HUNDRED MEN AND A GIRL (1937).

May will also feature multi-film tributes to Glenn Ford, Joseph Cotten, Henry Fonda, Kay Kendall, Barbara Stanwyck, directors Henry Koster and Frank Capra, and novelist Edna Ferber. I'm happy to say the annual birthday tribute to fan favorite Robert Montgomery is also on the schedule for May 21st! And of course Memorial Day weekend will be appropriately commemorated with a significant number of films paying tribute to our armed forces.

The 31 Days of Oscar Festival concludes on Friday, March 2nd, so I'll be back in the next day or two with suggestions for interesting viewing options in March, when Karl Malden will be Star of the Month. The April Star of the Month is Doris Day.

Related article: Joel McCrea Ranch: The Grand Opening.

Coming to DVD: Jean Arthur Drama Collection

2012-03-01T14:25:00.000-08:00

TCM recently announced the upcoming release of the Jean Arthur Drama Collection.

This four-film set will be released on May 7th. The titles included will be WHIRLPOOL (1934) and THE DEFENSE RESTS (1934), both costarring Jack Holt; THE MOST PRECIOUS THING IN LIFE (1934) with Richard Cromwell and Anita Louise; and PARTY WIRE (1935) with Victor Jory.

I reviewed PARTY WIRE in 2008. The film was an interesting time capsule with the story hinging on a type of technology radically different from today's cell phone world.

All four films are restored and remastered.

The box cover art is not yet final; I'll update it when it's available.

Last fall TCM released the Jean Arthur Comedy Collection.

Tonight's Movie: Foxfire (1955)

2012-02-28T23:47:00.006-08:00

FOXFIRE, starring Jane Russell and Jeff Chandler, has been sitting near the top of my Netflix Instant queue for some time now. When I noticed earlier this week that FOXFIRE would be leaving Netflix at month's end due to the expiration of Netflix's contract with Starz, I squeezed it into my schedule. I'm glad I made the time, as I enjoyed it very much.

FOXFIRE is based on a novel by Anya Seton (DRAGONWYCK). It has a number of cool things going for it: 1) Jane Russell, sassy as ever; 2) Jeff Chandler, one of the notable hunks of the '50s (what can I say?); 3) Dan Duryea, who always adds an interesting dimension to a troubled character; 4) a title song by Henry Mancini and Jeff Chandler, sung by Chandler; and 5) terrific Technicolor location filming at the Apple Valley Inn in Apple Valley, California. There's more info on the beautiful, windswept inn in my post on HIGHWAY DRAGNET (1954).

Jane plays Amanda Lawrence, an Eastern socialite who accompanies her mother (Frieda Inescort) to an Arizona resort. Amanda meets half-Apache mining engineer Jonathan "Dart" Dartland (Chandler) and they fall in love -- or maybe lust -- at first sight, followed by a whirlwind wedding ceremony.

Amanda is crazy about Jonathan and eager to adapt to life in the little mining town where he lives, but she struggles with her moody, insecure husband's dark moods. She doesn't understand the emotional walls Jonathan frequently seems to put up between them until she visits an Apache reservation and meets his mother (Celia Lovsky).

This is a very enjoyable film with the great Universal Technicolor look of the '50s. It has a unique story and setting, as well as a sympathetic heroine who is coping with a new lifestyle and racially prejudiced locals along with trying to figure out her new husband. The viewer roots for the tenacious Amanda and hopes she and Jonathan will make a success of their marriage.

Russell and Chandler were both perfectly cast and have excellent chemistry. As a side note, I do wish Russell's hair wasn't quite so short; I've never understood the '50s trend for actresses to wear "helmet hair," which appears matronly to the modern viewer.

Dan Duryea plays the alcoholic town doctor who quickly starts to carry an unrequited torch for Amanda. The doctor is charming when he's sober, but it's a bit hard to understand what his nurse Maria (Mara Corday) sees in him -- or why he ignores the beautiful Maria, especially when it's clear that Amanda is only interested in her own husband.

The early part of this 87-minute film feels truncated. One minute Amanda's mother is booking a flight trying to separate her daughter from her new love, and the next minute Amanda is racing to Jonathan's home and they discuss a problem with a telephone. It felt like there was a scene or two left on the cutting-room floor that should have been left in. For that matter, although I tend to be a fan of shorter films, I would have welcomed a somewhat longer film which delved even more deeply into the characters and their story.

The supporting cast includes Barton MacLane, Arthur Space, Robert F. Simon, Charlotte Wynters, Eddy Waller, and Beulah Archuletta (THE SEARCHERS).

FOXFIRE was directed by Joseph Pevney. Pevney directed several films I've enjoyed, including Jeff Chandler's next film, FEMALE ON THE BEACH (1955). He also directed AIR CADET (1951), TAMMY AND THE BACHELOR (1957), and THE CROWDED SKY (1960).

This film isn't available on DVD or VHS, and in a matter of hours it will no longer be available from Netflix streaming. It seems as though this film would be a good candidate to be released in the Universal Vault DVD-R series sold through Amazon.

Cable subscribers who have the Encore Westerns Channel are in luck, as FOXFIRE will air on that channel on March 9, 2012.

Tonight's Movie: The Horizontal Lieutenant (1962)

2012-02-26T23:28:00.000-08:00

THE HORIZONTAL LIEUTENANT is a military comedy starring Jim Hutton and Paula Prentiss. Although the film is set in the waning days of WWII, the movie's sensibilities -- not to mention the women's hairstyles -- seem firmly stuck in the early '60s.

Hutton plays Lt. Merle Wye, a lieutenant stationed on an island in the South Pacific circa 1944. Merle is tasked with finding a Japanese soldier who's been hiding out on the island, repeatedly stealing rations from the U.S. army outpost.

Merle is a klutz -- hence the title -- who doesn't have much success in his mission. But he does gradually make some headway romancing nurse Molly Blue (Prentiss).

This was the fourth film teaming Hutton and Prentiss, who were first paired in WHERE THE BOYS ARE (1960), followed by THE HONEYMOON MACHINE (1961) and BACHELOR IN PARADISE (1961). They also both appeared in LOOKING FOR LOVE (1964), although Prentiss just had a cameo in that film.

Unfortunately THE HORIZONTAL LIEUTENANT is the weakest of the four main Hutton-Prentiss entries. WHERE THE BOYS ARE, THE HONEYMOON MACHINE, and BACHELOR IN PARADISE are all fine, funny entertainment, but for most of its running time THE HORIZONTAL LIEUTENANT just feels silly. The comedy is excessively juvenile, and there's not enough of Paula Prentiss. The film definitely picks up some energy whenever she's on screen.

Speaking of Prentiss, she and the other nurses in the film didn't look very much like women from films of the '40s. The hairstyles weren't as bad as Susannah York's very 1960s mop top in BATTLE OF BRITAIN (1969), but the film had such little '40s atmosphere that I periodically forgot when the story was supposed to be taking place. It's a very generic, bland "service comedy" in that regard.

In fact, the film's attitude is in many ways so post-WWII that the treatment of Japanese characters seems oddly incongruous at times; thus, some bits may make the modern viewer wince slightly.

The supporting cast includes Charles McGraw, Jack Carter, Jim Backus, Miyoshi Umeki, Lloyd King, Marty Ingels, and Yoshio Yoda.

This MGM film was produced by Joe Pasternak and directed by Richard Thorpe. It runs 90 minutes.

All five Hutton-Prentiss films have been released in remastered widescreen prints by the Warner Archive, including THE HORIZONTAL LIEUTENANT. I've seen all of the Hutton-Prentiss Archive releases except LOOKING FOR LOVE, and they look terrific. A trailer is included on the HORIZONTAL LIEUTENANT DVD.

The trailer can be seen online at TCM.

THE HORIZONTAL LIEUTENANT has also had a release on VHS.

Hutton-Prentiss fans will want to check out THE HORIZONTAL LIEUTENANT, but alas, it's a disappointment compared to their very enjoyable earlier films.

Around the Blogosphere This Week

2012-02-26T19:10:00.004-08:00

Miscellaneous bits of news and fun stuff from around the Internet...

...Here's a really interesting new book that's just out: THE ASTAIRES: FRED AND ADELE by Kathleen Riley. Looking forward to learning more about it.

...And here's a neat children's picture book from last year which my dad called to my attention: JUST BEING AUDREY, about the life of Audrey Hepburn. It's by Margaret Cardillo, illustrated by Julia Denos.

...While on the subject of Audrey, I recommend a book I mentioned here a couple of years ago, AUDREY HEPBURN: INTERNATIONAL COVER GIRL by Scott Brizel.

...For anyone who missed it, the cover art has been revealed for the upcoming release of Season 1 of MAVERICK. Here it is, posted at the right.

...Part 3 of a series on THE MAGNIFICENT AMBERSONS (1942) has now been posted at Jim Lane's Cinedrome. I linked Parts 1 and 2 in my recent review of the film.

...I admire all that Gary Sinise does on behalf of the military and our nation's veterans.

...LOVE IS A BALL (1963) has a fun cast, including Glenn Ford, Ricardo Montalban, and Charles Boyer. After reading Raquelle's review at Out of the Past I'll be sure to see it!

...I really liked Stewart Granger in GUN GLORY a few years ago and was glad to see that Deb of Sidewalk Crossings enjoyed watching it also. One of those relatively unheralded Westerns that's well made and entertaining; it's available from the Warner Archive. Deb's been watching a lot of Stewart Granger films lately, including ALL THE BROTHERS WERE VALIANT (1953) and MOONFLEET (1955).

...The Self-Styled Siren shared thoughts last week on Linda Darnell, an actress I've always very much enjoyed. Darnell was equally effective as the sweet innocent of THE MARK OF ZORRO (1940) or as more hard-edged characters in FALLEN ANGEL (1945) and A LETTER TO THREE WIVES (1949).

...Glenn Erickson has recently reviewed THE MAGNETIC MONSTER (1953) and TCM's new Film Noir Classics collection. I thought THE MAGNETIC MONSTER was quite fun. It stars one of my faves, Richard Carlson.

...I always enjoy the classic film DVD reviews by Barrie Maxwell, which can be found at The Digital Bits.

...New from Warner Archive: UNTAMED (1929) starring Joan Crawford and Robert Montgomery. It's remastered, too. This is a Montgomery film I haven't seen yet, and it's definitely going on my wish list.

...Kristina's got more of the latest releases in her Shopping List at Speakeasy.

...The Hollywood Revue recently posted an account of "An Evening with Kerry Kelly Novick." Kerry is the daughter of Gene Kelly and Betsy Blair. It sounds like it was a very special evening.

...Speaking of Gene Kelly, my friend Moira has posted an introduction to his non-musical films at Skeins of Thought. I'm looking forward to more of Moira's thoughts on these films. And her post includes video of a navy short he made on combat fatigue, be sure to check it out.

...Here's a list of the upcoming guest programmers at Turner Classic Movies. (Via KC at Classic Movies.)

...ClassicFlix tipped me off on a TV series coming to DVD next month: Bob Cummings and Julie Newmar in MY LIVING DOLL, VOLUME 1. It sounds like a crazy premise; Julie plays a robot?!

...John Nolte has written an appreciation of the film THE HUMAN COMEDY (1943) at Big Hollywood. It's available from Warner Archive. The Saroyan novel used to be on the reading list for high school freshmen in California; it's a shame it's no longer used, especially as it's an uplifting title, and so much of the required reading focuses on "downer" material.

...A pair of the fabled ruby slippers from THE WIZARD OF OZ (1939) will be going to the Academy thanks to Steven Spielberg, Leonardo DiCaprio, and others.

...Royal Watch: Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden gave birth to a daughter a few days ago. The future queen's daughter, also a future queen, was named Estelle Silvia Eva Mary.

...At Comet Hollywood, Jessica wrote a lovely post on SINCE YOU WENT AWAY (1944), focusing on the role Soda the Bulldog plays in the family's life. It was part of the recent Classic Movie Dogathon.

...Dennis Quaid, one of the actors I like most from the last couple decades, is filming a pilot about 1960s Las Vegas for CBS. Quaid plays a sheriff cleaning up the city. Michael Chiklis costars as a mobster.

...Leonard Maltin shares photos of a Cecil B. DeMille display at the USC School of Cinematic Arts. There's more info in the L.A. Times and at the USC website. Last fall USC established a Cecil B. DeMille Chair for the Study of Silent Film.

...And here's the no-holds-barred thoughts of esteemed USC professor Drew Casper about this year's Oscar nominees.

Have a great week!

Today at Disneyland: Sunny Saturday

2012-02-25T18:41:00.000-08:00

It's been about a month since our last visit to Disneyland, so we headed out to the park for a few hours this morning. It's nice that our passes aren't blocked out on Saturdays at this time of the year!

We could actually use some more rain here this winter -- looks like we may get some next Monday -- but I was happy to enjoy a beautiful sunny February day in the park! The temp was in the high 60s today.

Here's the view from Town Square this morning:

After breakfast at the new Jolly Holiday Bakery Cafe, we headed over to New Orleans Square for the New Orleans Bayou Bash:

We enjoyed a jazz band...

...and then a vocal performance by Princess Tiana and Prince Naveen:

I really like Randy Newman's songs "Almost There" and "Down in New Orleans" from the PRINCESS AND THE FROG score.

There's another month or so to go, but it's starting to look like spring in the Market House:

I was sorry to learn of the recent passing of longtime New Orleans Square performer Ernie McLean. For over 30 years, he added a lot to the atmosphere of one of my favorite areas of the park, and he'll be missed.

Tonight's Movie: The Beginning or the End (1947)

2012-02-24T23:41:00.006-08:00

THE BEGINNING OR THE END is MGM's telling of the Manhattan Project and the dropping of the first atomic bomb. Given the historic scope of the story, it's somewhat surprising that this film -- made just a year after the war ended -- is today relatively little known.

This movie, which was released in February 1947, traces how scientists from the U.S., Britain, and Canada joined together in atomic testing and the development of the atomic bomb. Brian Donlevy portrays Maj. General Leslie R. Groves, who had the challenge of managing the massive, multi-state project which had to be kept top secret. Documentary footage is briefly incorporated showing the construction of production facilities in Oak Ridge and Los Alamos. The final part of the film depicts the flight of the Enola Gay, a story which MGM would focus on more extensively half a decade later in ABOVE AND BEYOND (1952).

The large cast includes Hume Cronyn as Robert Oppenheimer; his fellow scientists are portrayed by Richard Haydn, Joseph Calleia, Hurd Hatfield, Norman Lloyd, Frank Ferguson, and several other fine character actors. Henry O'Neill is General Farrell, in charge of the mission to drop the bomb, with Barry Nelson as the pilot of the Enola Gay, Col. Paul Tibbetts Jr.

Robert Walker portrays General Groves' aide, with Audrey Totter adding a dash of spice as his girlfriend, who is also General Groves' secretary. The brief scenes depicting their flirtatious relationship provide a welcome lightening of the mood in a very serious story.

The film was somewhat less successful inserting a more detailed personal story with Tom Drake as a civilian scientist who has ongoing doubts about what the bomb will mean for mankind. Drake has a perennially worried expression; he does play well opposite Beverly Tyler as his cute, bubbly bride. (Drake and Tyler had been teamed the previous year in THE GREEN YEARS.) I wondered if the film might have been more effective if it had focused on being a straight docudrama; the story is dramatic enough in and of itself, and the Drake-Tyler storyline adds a bit of unneeded melodrama, culminating in an awkward extended scene which ends the film.

The film is an interesting melding of cinema and history, and I was particularly intrigued to see how the subject matter was treated so soon after the use of the atomic bomb and the end of the war. The story is framed in an unusual manner, beginning with a "newsreel" of a time capsule about the atomic bomb being made for people of the 25th Century, and the movie itself is included in the time capsule. (That's a bit strange to try to follow -- the movie depicting itself being put into a time capsule?) The pros and cons of the atomic bomb are discussed at some length, including a scene where President Truman (Al Baker) lays out his reasons for using the bomb to his press secretary.

At the time of the film's release, Bosley Crowther wrote in the New York Times: "Metro has made a motion picture which fairly re-enacts the main events in this almost incredible story and which gravely points the fearfulness thereof... For the most part, the re-enactments are commendably graphic and tense, and they are competently strung together in an impressive dramatic line... The result is a creditable concept of the energy expended and involved." I also smiled at his comment "Brian Donlevy makes a pretty snappy spark-plug out of dynamic General Groves"; the film could have used a few more scenes with Donlevy. I read Crowther's review after writing most of this post, and it was interesting to see that we had similar reservations about certain aspects of the film. Concerns aside, for the most part it's an absorbing film which is well worth seeing.

Aside from the actors previously mentioned, the extensive cast also includes Moroni Olsen, John Litel, Victor Francen, Jonathan Hale, Nella Walker, and Warner Anderson. Ludwig Stossel plays Einstein and Godfrey Tearle plays FDR. Patricia Medina is listed by IMDb as portraying the wife of Hurd Hatfield, but I don't believe she appeared in the final film.

A fun bit of trivia: There's a scene in the Pentagon where the characters played by Donlevy and Walker meet in front of a long hallway. I immediately recognized that hallway, which also appears in a scene in an office building in THE HUCKSTERS, released the same year. Five years later, Donald O'Connor danced up that "hallway" -- which is actually a large painted backdrop -- while performing "Make 'Em Laugh" in SINGIN' IN THE RAIN (1952). Anyone who's seen SINGIN' IN THE RAIN a number of times shouldn't have any trouble picking out the fake hallway in this film. I wonder if MGM used it in more than three movies?

THE BEGINNING OR THE END was directed by Norman Taurog. The script of this 112-minute film was by Frank Wead, from a story by Robert Considine. The black and white cinematography was by Ray June.

This film is not available on DVD or VHS. It's been shown on Turner Classic Movies, which has the trailer available online. The trailer is rather unusual, interviewing "audience members" (including actor Clinton Sundberg) and a theater manager (played by Morris Ankrum) about their reactions. One of the taglines is "Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer daringly presents the most timely production in motion picture history." The trailer is a bit over the top but it's also quite interesting to see how the film was marketed.

Laura's Miscellaneous Musings at MovieFanFare

2012-02-22T09:24:00.000-08:00

My recently reposted review of ANGEL AND THE BADMAN (1947) has been adapted slightly and posted at MovieFanFare.

MovieFanFare is part of the Movies Unlimited website and is blogrolled here at the left under DVD News and Reviews. I've found MovieFanFare a great way to become acquainted with the work of other classic film bloggers, and I appreciate MovieFanFare sharing my post with their readers.

It would be wonderful if more film fans try out ANGEL AND THE BADMAN, an extra-special movie!

Previous MovieFanFare posts: WESTBOUND (1959), TAMMY AND THE BACHELOR (1957), A YANK IN THE R.A.F. (1941), and a movie still From My Collection.

Tonight's Movie: The Forest Rangers (1942)

2012-02-21T23:48:00.000-08:00

THE FOREST RANGERS is a colorful, entertaining Paramount film, although the plotline at times stretches credulity.

Handsome forest ranger Don Stuart (Fred MacMurray) marries Celia Huston (Paulette Goddard) after a whirlwind courtship. Don and Celia are ecstatically happy, but when they return to the ranger station, local gal Tana "Butch" Davis (Susan Hayward) is green-eyed with jealousy. Tana is in love with Don, but he just sees her as "one of the guys." Pilot Frank Hatfield (Regis Toomey) carries a torch for Tana, to no avail.

Don and Celia struggle through various awkward incidents, sometimes instigated by Tana; most notably she deliberately strands the three of them alone together in the forest overnight, thwarting a honeymoon.

At the same time Don is coping with a series of forest fires set by an arsonist, and he's dismayed when Celia tries to have her daddy (Eugene Pallette) pull strings to transfer Don; Celia just wants a fresh start away from Tana's interference. Does Celia have what it takes to be a forest ranger's wife, or will Tana succeed in driving Celia back to the big city?

It's not much of a hardship watching good-looking folks like MacMurray, Goddard, Hayward, and Rod Cameron (as MacMurray's righthand man) in a beautiful Technicolor forest. (Location shooting took place in Boulder Creek, California.) The actors are personable -- although Hayward's character needs a good kick in the rear at times -- and MacMurray displays a beautiful singing voice on the Hollander-Loesser tune "Tall Grows the Timber." Paulette is sometimes made to look like a clueless idiot, but her innate spunk can't be kept down for long.

Goddard and Hayward had just made Cecil B. DeMille's REAP THE WILD WIND (1942), in which Goddard was a headstrong, tomboyish beauty and Hayward her sweet cousin; in THE FOREST RANGERS their roles were basically reversed, with Paulette the stand-by-her-man gal hit by love's thunderbolt, and Hayward the bratty tomboy who runs a logging operation.

The movie seemed to lose much attempt at realism in the fire sequences. The way the rangers approached the fires didn't seem to be professional know-how, but devil-may-care idiocy. Note, for example, the burning timbers falling to the ground around MacMurray in an early scene. There was no apparent reason for him to have tempted fate by standing so close to the fire while talking on a radio. That said, I can understand why these fiery scenes made a big impression on my husband as a child!

Likewise, the climax of the film, in which -- among other things -- the identity of the arsonist is disclosed, rated a big "Riiiigggght!" from me. The entire sequence, including the big reveal of the bad guy and also the gals trapped by a fire, struck me as on the silly side. Complaints aside, I found THE FOREST RANGERS enjoyable thanks to the cast and the film's great color look.

The supporting cast includes Lynne Overman, Clem Bevans, and Albert Dekker. The blonde friend looking for Paulette Goddard in the hotel early in the film is Karin Booth, who starred in MGM's THE UNFINISHED DANCE (1947) and was later the leading lady in numerous Westerns, such as CRIPPLE CREEK (1952).

THE FOREST RANGERS was directed by George Marshall. Marshall later directed MacMurray in AND THE ANGELS SING (1944), MURDER, HE SAYS (1945), and NEVER A DULL MOMENT (1950). He directed Goddard in THE GHOST BREAKERS (1940) and HAZARD (1948).

IMDb lists the film's running time as 87 minutes. The print I watched was 83 minutes long.

This film does not appear to have ever had a DVD or VHS release. It's yet one more Paramount movie which needs to be made more accessible to the viewing public.

Tonight's Movie: The Reluctant Dragon (1941)

2012-02-20T23:24:00.000-08:00

Earlier today I enjoyed Dorian's post on the Alan Ladd-Veronica Lake film THE GLASS KEY (1942) at Tales of the Easily Distracted. She drew some interesting cast connections with, of all things, Disney's THE RELUCTANT DRAGON! (Be sure to check out her post.) And thus I found myself inspired to pull out my Disney Treasures DVD set, Behind the Scenes at the Walt Disney Studio, so I could watch THE RELUCTANT DRAGON.

THE RELUCTANT DRAGON is a fascinating Disney film in which Disney mixes live action and animation, Technicolor and black and white, fact and fantasy. He chose the format, with relatively brief animated sequences, so that he could quickly release a film and improve the studio finances when the lucrative European markets for his expensive, time-consuming animated films were suddenly cut off by the advent of World War II.

The film begins in black and white, with Robert Benchley swimming as his "wife" (played by Nana Bryant) reads aloud the storybook THE RELUCTANT DRAGON. What she was doing reading him a child's storybook is never clear, but given that he's shooting plastic ducks as she reads it, it fits!

I'd love to know where the "Benchley pool" was located as I had a feeling I'd probably seen it in a film before. In any event, Mrs. Benchley decides her husband must take THE RELUCTANT DRAGON to Walt Disney right away because it would make a marvelous animated movie.

Once on the lot, Benchley escapes his guide and begins wandering through the different studio departments. And midway through the film, he walks through a door and the film switches to Technicolor! Benchley even acknowledges the change when he comments to an actress that she looks great in Technicolor. A sequence in the color mixing department at this point is absolutely dazzling visually. These color sequences were filmed by the great Oscar-winning cinematographer Winton C. Hoch.

The blending of fact and fantasy occurs, in part, as actors play some of the studio employees, while other Disney staffers appear as themselves. Frances Gifford plays an artist who also works on sound effects, and Frank Faylen is the conductor during a rehearsal for a recording session. The cute young Technicolor Alan Ladd -- yes, Alan Ladd! -- is a Disney animator who narrates the story of Baby Weems as he shows Benchley the storyboard. It's kind of hard to wrap one's mind around the idea of film noir icon Alan Ladd as a smiling Disney animator, but there he is. This was the year before Ladd hit it big with Veronica Lake in THE GLASS KEY and THIS GUN FOR HIRE.

What's perhaps even more curious is that actor John Dehner appears alongside Ladd as a Disney animator -- but guess what, unlike Ladd, Dehner wasn't just acting. Dehner really was a Disney animator before the war! He switched to acting as his profession -- and amassed 278 more credits -- in 1944.

Alongside the actors, we see real Disney staff members at work, including Clarence Nash voicing Donald Duck and Ward Kimball animating a Goofy cartoon. There's a tour of Disney's fabled multiplane camera and shots of small statues of Disney cartoon characters -- including Captain Hook, a dozen years before the release of PETER PAN (1953). And at the end of the film, Benchley finally talks to Walt Disney himself.

Aside from the Baby Weems sequence, which isn't a regular cartoon, but illustrations presented with narration and sound effects, there's a delightful Goofy cartoon and then the RELUCTANT DRAGON cartoon itself closes out the film.

THE RELUCTANT DRAGON was released in June 1941, coincidentally the very same month as the film I watched earlier today, POWER DIVE. Child actor Billy Lee, who appeared in a number of scenes in POWER DIVE, voices the the little boy in THE RELUCTANT DRAGON cartoon.

The live action sequences were directed by Alfred L. Werker. The movie runs 74 minutes.

The Disney Treasures DVD which contains THE RELUCTANT DRAGON also has other terrific material such as a "behind the scenes at the studio" film shot to enthuse distributors of SNOW WHITE AND THE SEVEN DWARFS (1937). There's an excellent short documentary created for the set a decade ago, in which Leonard Maltin conducts a tour of the studio, intercut with footage from old Disney programs filmed on the lot; it runs about 25 minutes.

I've been privileged to visit the lot a few times over the past couple of years and see many of the places featured in Maltin's tour, such as Pluto's Corner, seen here in a photo I took a year ago. Robert Benchley walks past this same intersection in THE RELUCTANT DRAGON.

THE RELUCTANT DRAGON is available to rent on DVD from Netflix. It can be rented for streaming from Amazon Instant Video. It's also had a release on VHS.

THE RELUCTANT DRAGON is a unique film which is "must" viewing for Disney fans -- not to mention fans of Alan Ladd!

Tonight's Movie: Power Dive (1941)

2012-02-20T18:32:00.000-08:00

POWER DIVE is a fast-paced 68-minute film which should be of particular interest to fans of aviation movies and admirers of the great cinematographer John Alton, who shot the film.

Brad Farrell (Richard Arlen) and Johnny Coles (Louis Jean Heydt) are test pilots. Brad's kid brother Doug (Don Castle) wants to fly too, but Brad wants Doug to stick to engineering, where he won't be at risk of cracking up in an airplane.

Both brothers fall for Carol Blake (Jean Parker) whose blind father (Thomas W. Ross) has designed a new kind of airplane Brad plans to test for the Army.

The movie is nothing particularly special, but I found it pleasant company, especially as I enjoy movies with an aviation setting. The cast is competent -- although the antics of Cliff Edwards as a mechanic become a bit tiresome -- and the story speeds along at a brisk pace. I'd much rather watch an atmospheric little "B" movie like this than most current TV shows!

I also enjoy films which utilize location shooting in the L.A. area; according to IMDb, the airport seen in the film is Los Angeles Metropolitan Airport in Van Nuys.

I was taken with Helen Mack, who plays Heydt's wife; she looks a bit like Frances Dee. Billy Lee, Roger Pryor, and Tom Dugan are also in the cast. The movie was directed by James P. Hogan.

POWER DIVE was the first film from Pine-Thomas Productions, then called Picture Corporation of America. There's more information about Pine-Thomas Productions in my recent post on NO HANDS ON THE CLOCK (1941), which incidentally also starred Jean Parker.

POWER DIVE is available on DVD-R from Sinister Cinema.

In Disney News...

2012-02-20T15:15:00.000-08:00

...Disney has added some new titles to its Disney Generations Collection, a manufactured-on-demand DVD program which continues to operate very quietly. Recent additions include JUSTIN MORGAN HAD A HORSE (1972) with Don Murray and Lana Wood, the TV-movie BEYOND WITCH MOUNTAIN (1982) with Eddie Albert, and the cartoon BEN AND ME (1953), which has previously been released on VHS and in a Disney Treasures DVD set. All of the Disney Generations DVDs can be purchased from Amazon.

...Disney is said to be looking at acquiring the script for SAVING MR. BANKS, about the relationship between Walt Disney and MARY POPPINS author P.L. Travers. The script was on the 2011 Black List, an industry list of the best unproduced scripts circulating around Hollywood.

...Forgotten Films takes a look at the 1943 Disney film VICTORY THROUGH AIR POWER, which is available in the Disney Treasures DVD set WALT DISNEY - ON THE FRONT LINES.

...A battle is shaping up between Disney and Warner Bros. over WIZARD OF OZ rights. Disney plans an OZ film based on the Baum books, which are in the public domain, but Warner Bros. holds the rights to the characters from the 1939 MGM film. Stay tuned.

...Don't miss this pristine 1957 home movie of Disneyland! It's remarkable that some places haven't changed a bit and other areas have been completely transformed over the years.

...Disney is considering a 28-day window before they will sell new DVDs to rental services such as Netflix.

...Disneyland Imagineering Legend Rolly Crump is looking for vintage photos for his memoirs. Crump was the designer of Disney's Tower of the Four Winds and It's a Small World for the New York World's Fair. A surviving model of the Tower of the Four Winds is seen at the left.

...Slashfilm recently interviewed Diane Disney Miller.

...WDW News Today has lots of photos of the new Art of Animation Resort at Disney World.

...Through March 31st, annual passholders at Disneyland and Walt Disney World can receive a $15 discount for new D23 memberships.

...In late March Disneyland passholders can attend a preview of some of the new merchandise, entertainment, and other fun stuff coming to California Adventure this summer.

...The World of Color show at Disney's California Adventure is expected to add a scene from the upcoming Pixar film BRAVE (2012) later this year.

...Disneyland has a great new idea -- charging lockers. For $2 per hour guests can leave their phone, camera battery, or other electronic device securely locked up and charging. Scroll down at MiceChat's Dateline Disney for a peek, as well as great photos of the Jolly Holiday Bakery Cafe and the New Orleans Bayou Bash Mardi Gras celebrations. We hope to visit the Mardi Gras fun next weekend; Lent starts this week, but apparently Mardi Gras won't come to an end at Disneyland till March 11th!

...The very latest Dateline Disneyland has photos of the brand-new Minnie's Fly Girls show performed in California Adventure. Looks like a fun time.

...For more recent links, please check out the January 30th Disney News roundup!

Tonight's Movie: Shipmates Forever (1935)

2012-02-19T22:08:00.000-08:00

One year after the release of FLIRTATION WALK (1934), a musical set at West Point, stars Dick Powell, Ruby Keeler, and Ross Alexander reteamed with screenwriter Delmer Daves and director Frank Borzage for SHIPMATES FOREVER, a musical set at the Annapolis Naval Academy.

SHIPMATES FOREVER proved to be an even better military service film than FLIRTATION WALK, with a dramatic story arc which provided Powell with perhaps his best performance of the '30s.

Powell plays Dick Melville, a nightclub and radio singer who has resisted the family legacy of naval service. Goaded by his father (Lewis Stone), an admiral, Dick takes the Annapolis entrance exams just to prove he's able to pass; upon hearing the news that he's made it, he ruefully admits that he's actually going to go. Dick doesn't plan to accept a commission upon graduation, but he wants to prove to the old man he has what it takes.

Dick patiently struggles through hazing and is reluctant to form friendships, since he doesn't plan on a career in the navy. His solace is his relationship with June (Ruby Keeler), an Annapolis dance teacher who lost her father and brother in navy service.

As time goes on, Dick begins to take the navy more seriously, and a three-month cruise during his final year at the academy provides a significant turning point in Dick's life.

I thought this was an excellent, underrated picture which does a great job combining a strong storyline, navy traditions, musical numbers, and location shooting. Dick's experiences and gradual changes are very believably done. I sympathized with his desire to room alone and concentrate on his studies. He was a good sport suffering through the hazing of older classmates, but his unspoken annoyance with the immaturity of such practices was understandable and partly helped to explain his withdrawal, along with his conflicted feelings about the navy.

Similarly, the accumulation of the experiences which draw Dick ever closer to the navy were very well done. The most beautiful scene in the film takes place on board a ship late a night, when Dick's classmates are singing and he slowly pulls on his class ring. It's a very touching moment. The final scenes in the film are very emotional, with Powell giving a deeply affecting performance.

The Warren-Dubin songs "Don't Give Up the Ship," "I'd Love to Take Orders From You," and "I'd Rather Listen to Your Eyes" are all worked in very naturally. The movie unfolds like a drama which happens to have music, as opposed to a musical comedy.

Ruby Keeler is sweet, as always; it's very believable that Dick and June would fall for each other immediately and that her love would help him keep going when the going gets rough. She has two short dances.

The supporting cast includes Dick Foran, Eddie Acuff, John Arledge, and Robert Light. Dennis O'Keefe is said to have had one of his many bit parts, but I didn't spot him.

The movie runs 109 minutes.

SHIPMATES FOREVER is available from the Warner Archive. It can also be seen on Turner Classic Movies, which has the movie trailer available on the TCM website.

I've now seen all seven of Dick Powell and Ruby Keeler's movies together. Their titles previously reviewed here at Laura's Miscellaneous Musings are GOLD DIGGERS OF 1933 (1933), FOOTLIGHT PARADE (1933), 42ND STREET (1933), FLIRTATION WALK (1934), DAMES (1934), and COLLEEN (1936).

Around the Blogosphere This Week

2012-02-19T19:30:00.000-08:00

Miscellaneous bits of news and fun stuff from around the Internet...

...Turner Classic Movies has announced the schedule for this year's 10-city Road to Hollywood tour, which will precede the festival being held in Hollywood from April 12 through 15, 2012. The films shown on these special evenings across North America will including SEVEN BRIDES FOR SEVEN BROTHERS (1954), RIO BRAVO (1959), NORTH BY NORTHWEST (1959), and MARNIE (1964); actors making personal appearances will include popular "friends of TCM" such as Jane Powell, Angie Dickinson, Eva Marie Saint, and Tippi Hedren.

...Kristina has a new series at Speakeasy called You Look Familiar, and her first entry is on actor Phillip (sometimes billed as Philip) Reed. As I mentioned to Kristina, I'd just come across his name last week and wondered who he was -- now I know! In fact, I saw him in BODYGUARD (1948) last year, but the name didn't stick with me.

...New on DVD: THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA AT THE ROYAL ALBERT HALL. For those of us who prefer memories of the stage production to watching what sounds like an ill-advised film version, this DVD may be the closest thing to actually experiencing the show again.

...The 1987 TV series BEAUTY AND THE BEAST, which starred Linda Hamilton, Ron Perlman, and Roy Dotrice, is being remade.

...Speaking of remakes, last week I linked to a story about a planned remake of REBECCA (1940), It turns out another remake of a Hitchcock-Fontaine film is planned, as Paramount intends to redo SUSPICION (1941). A 1988 TV version of SUSPICION starred Anthony Andrews (THE SCARLET PIMPERNEL) and Jane Curtin. I have trouble getting the casting of Curtin in that role...

...Mark has a terrific profile of Alan Ladd at Where Danger Lives, which was originally written for the Film Noir Foundation. He gives quite a bit of insight into Ladd, including his working relationship with Veronica Lake and his close offscreen friendship with frequent costar William Bendix. Don't miss it.

...At New England Travels, Jacqueline posted a wonderful review of the new musical theater production of DADDY LONG LEGS. I hope the show is a success and I have the opportunity to see it in the future.

...Cliff recently shared his impressions of the excellent Orson Welles-Joan Fontaine version of JANE EYRE (1943) at Immortal Ephemera.

...ClassicFlix reports several new titles coming to MGM's manufactured on demand DVDR program at month's end, including Robert Mitchum and Julie London in THE WONDERFUL COUNTRY (1959) and Victor Mature and Yvonne DeCarlo in TIMBUKTU (1959). (Hopefully MGM will fix the misspelling of Joanne Dru's name in the cover art of SOUTHWEST PASSAGE before the release!)

...Raquelle's latest posts at Out of the Past include thoughts on Dick Powell and Ruby Keeler in FLIRTATION WALK (1934) and photos of her classic film book collection.

...The Self-Styled Siren just saw Joel McCrea, Maureen O'Hara, and Linda Darnell on the big screen in BUFFALO BILL (1944).

...I just learned about the Classic Movie Dogathon which started today. Click here for a list of participating blogs and the movies they'll be covering. Initial posts include a writeup of Disney's GREYFRIARS BOBBY (1961) at the Classic Film & TV Cafe and Dorian writing on AFTER THE THIN MAN (1936) at Tales of the Easily Distracted. And many thanks to Dorian for mentioning my review of YOU NEVER CAN TELL (1951) in the comments of a post on OH! HEAVENLY DOG (1980).

...I enjoyed Matthew's musings on the Golden Age of VHS at Movietone News.

...A few days ago MC posted some lovely photos of William Holden and Audrey Hepburn on the set of SABRINA (1954) at her blog, Happy Thoughts, Darling.

...Attention Southern Californians: POLDARK star Robin Ellis Tweets that he'll be signing his new book DELICIOUS DISHES FOR DIABETICS at Chevalier's Books in Hollywood from 1:00 to 3:00 on Saturday, March 17th. POLDARK fans will enjoy reading this new interview with Robin from Business World Insider.

...Royalty Watch: Sad news this week, as Prince Johan Friso, the second son of Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands, fights for his life after being buried in an avalanche while skiing. Doctors may not know his prognosis for a few days. Johan Friso is married and has two young daughters.

Have a great week!

Actress Elyse Knox Harmon Dies at 94

2012-02-19T15:38:00.000-08:00

Actress Elyse Knox Harmon, who appeared in over three dozen films between 1937 and 1949, has passed away at the age of 94.

As Elyse Knox, she appeared in bit roles in major films, such as 20th Century-Fox's LILLIAN RUSSELL (1940), and starred in a long line of movies throughout the '40s. Most of her movies were "B" pictures; her most notable role may have been in the Universal horror film THE MUMMY'S TOMB (1942).

Knox married former football star Tom Harmon in 1944 and retired from acting in 1949. Tom Harmon later became a sports broadcaster, and all three of the Harmon children went into the acting profession.

Oldest daughter Sharon Kristin, known by her middle name, married Rick Nelson; their children included actress Tracy Nelson. Tracy was at one time married to actor William R. Moses, who himself came from an acting family.

Kelly Harmon was at one time married to John DeLorean, and people of a certain age will remember her as the girl in Tic Tac commercials.

The Harmons' youngest child, born Thomas Mark Harmon, followed in his father's footsteps as a college football star before becoming a popular TV actor, most recently in the megahit NCIS. In 1987 Mark Harmon married actress-singer Pam Dawber, best known as the star of MORK AND MINDY.

Elyse Knox passed away at her home on Thursday. She was preceded in death by her husband, who died in 1990.

Tonight's Movie: Without Honor (1949)

2012-02-18T22:35:00.000-08:00

Last weekend there was a terrific post by Caftan Woman on the "Desperate Housewives of Film Noir." She reviewed three interesting films, including WITHOUT HONOR; thanks to Amazon, within just a couple of days I had the DVD in hand for $4 and some change.

As Caftan Woman indicates, WITHOUT HONOR is by no means a great film, but I still found it fairly entertaining for several reasons, including the short, odd plot; the excellent cast playing a group of troubled characters; and the glimpses of everyday domestic life in the then-rural San Fernando Valley.

Like CAUSE FOR ALARM! (1951), which was also reviewed by Caftan Woman, WITHOUT HONOR unfolds in a brief time frame, in this case a single afternoon.

Mrs. Jane Bandle (Laraine Day) is surprised when her lover, Dennis Williams (Franchot Tone), visits her at her home. He explains a detective has found them out and he can't leave his wife and teenage daughters to be with her, as he had previously promised.

The distraught Jane, who'd been preparing kabobs for dinner, tries to kill herself with a skewer, but in the ensuing struggle Dennis is stabbed instead. He staggers to the laundry room and collapses, apparently dead as a doornail. Or maybe dead as a skewer.

Jane closes the laundry room door, washes the blood off her hands, and fairly calmly plans to take a taxi to city hall to turn herself in at the police station, but she's interrupted by the arrival of her nasty brother-in-law, Bill (Dane Clark). Bill has resented Jane since she turned down his pass years ago, and he's the one who hired the detective. Moreover, he's invited Mrs. Williams (Agnes Moorehead), the wife of Jane's lover, to join them. Soon Jane's husband Fred (Bruce Bennett) has joined the merry group, and Bill spills the beans on Dennis and Jane's affair. But why hasn't Dennis responded to Bill's invitation? By this time Jane is almost catatonic with hysterical fear, knowing what's lying behind her laundry room door.

This is a really strange group of characters, who all seem to live lives of, as the saying goes, "quiet desperation." Jane has a small but charming little home next to an orange grove, but she dreams of fleeing with her more glamorous lover. (She's embarrassed when he finds her in the kitchen wearing an apron, making a self-deprecating remark.) After the initial confrontation, Day speaks the least of any character in the movie, yet is able to convey a great deal with her panicked expressions. Jane's deep unhappiness really does seem an early incarnation of a "Desperate Housewife," and her future is left very much in doubt. The 29-year-old Day had previously starred as a troubled woman in a better film noir, THE LOCKET (1946).

Bruce Bennett, another film noir veteran, plays a man who seems to be easily led and not too interested in interacting with his wife. He mentions he's spent most evenings out with his brother for the past couple years. He's excited to present Jane with a television -- he quaintly asks her "Don't you know what it is?" after it's unboxed, reminding the modern viewer this was 1949 -- yet when he mentions its uses, such as watching wrestling and night baseball, it's clear the television is for him. It will be yet one more way he escapes from relating to his wife.

The strangest character of the quintet is Bill (Clark), a deeply disturbed man who not only resents Jane, he seems to have some curiously unhealthy feelings toward his brother. By exposing Jane's affair, Bill hopes to have Fred all to himself again. Bill's unsettling feelings become especially clear in the film's final minutes; incidentally, the film's final shot of him, as "The End" comes on screen, is quite nice.

Agnes Moorehead plays perhaps the most interesting and sympathetic character in the film, although it's curious how she continues to sit passively throughout the early goings-on. It's hard to know how to interpret her calmly whispered questions to Bill. When Mrs. Williams finally comes to life in the last quarter of the film, confronting Jane and then unexpectedly helping her, Moorehead also takes the film's entertainment value up a notch.

As for Franchot Tone, he has a few minutes as the typically sleazy, wealthy love 'em and then leave 'em type, then he disappears for the remainder of the 69-minute movie! It's left to his wife to explain his motivations, saying that he craves hero worship and his relationships with other women -- there were others -- have always been about what's in it for him. It's fascinating Tone was able to rate third billing for such a small part. Perhaps the impression he leaves behind is as important as his screen time.

WITHOUT HONOR was directed by Irving Pichel, from a script by James Poe. Like CAUSE FOR ALARM!, WITHOUT HONOR almost seems as if it were originally written for another format, perhaps a play or even a radio show. Poe also wrote the script for the Loretta Young melodrama PAULA (1952), which I saw many years ago; it's been released in the Columbia Classics line, available from the Warner Archive.

The black and white cinematography was by Lionel Lindon. The score by Max Steiner is at times good but at other moments is overwrought when something subtle would be more appropriate.

This film was later reissued under the title WOMAN ACCUSED.

The DVD from Geneon isn't a great print, but it's perfectly acceptable, especially for a relatively unknown film.

I had a good time watching WITHOUT HONOR and am glad Caftan Woman called it to my attention.

Tonight's Movie: This Means War (2012)

2012-02-18T17:08:00.000-08:00

Some critics haven't been very kind to THIS MEANS WAR, the new action-comedy-romance flick starring Chris Pine, Reese Witherspoon, and Tom Hardy. Speaking for myself, I smiled through most of the movie and had a grand time, and I'd happily watch it again.

Pine and Hardy play a pair of secret agents who, unbeknownst to each other, have each fallen hard for Witherspoon. She has no clue the two men know each other, and she particularly doesn't know that the men are putting all the tricks of their profession to use as they woo her while simultaneously trying to sabotage the competition. Meanwhile a dastardly criminal (Til Schweiger) bent on revenge is searching for the agents.

The film starts off with a nice set piece, showing the dashing, incredibly handsome agents at work and setting up the storyline with the villain. The movie has a nice sense of humor throughout, in both the action scenes and the interaction of the lead characters. The guys are gorgeous and funny -- and I love Hardy's British accent -- while the uncertain Witherspoon is cute, as usual; one touch I especially enjoyed is that Witherspoon's professional knowledge as a consumer products tester enables her to help save the day at the climax of the film's action.

The film is total escapist fare, in the mode of films such as MR. AND MRS. SMITH (2005), DUPLICITY (2009), KNIGHT AND DAY (2010), and THE TOURIST (2010). Like those films, THIS MEANS WAR is a humorous romantic fantasy with impossibly attractive leads and nondisturbing make-believe violence. Viewers who have fun watching that type of movie may enjoy THIS MEANS WAR as much as I did.

It's perhaps worth noting that if this film were real life, Pine and Hardy would be creepy stalkers or voyeurs, but since this movie has no basis in reality, in the context of the film it's just fun.

As a movie buff I especially enjoyed a scene in a video store -- which is so nice and well stocked it proves the movie is a fantasy! I mean, multiple copies in stock of THE LADY VANISHES (1938) and ROPE (1948)? A video monitor showing a clip from HEAVEN CAN WAIT (1943)? A poster of ROAD HOUSE (1948) displayed prominently in the center of the store? Talk about blissful alternative reality.

The film was directed by McG -- born Joseph McGinty Nichol -- whose previous films include WE ARE MARSHALL (2006). (He also directed the CHARLIE'S ANGELS films, but I won't hold that against him.) The movie runs 98 minutes. Look for Rosemary Harris and Angela Bassett in the supporting cast.

Parental advisory: This film was originally rated R due to Chelsea Handler's tasteless "jokes." A little of her goes a very long way. Thankfully the film was edited down so that it qualified for a PG-13. It's as close to R as a PG-13 can get, and I personally don't recommend it for the under-16 crowd.

My Twitter buddy Lou Lumenick of the New York Post notes some continuity problems in his negative review. I was fairly oblivious to those issues, although I did realize, as the film ended, that I'd seen stills (such as the one to the right) of scenes which didn't appear in the film. The ending was reshot as recently as last December. Some of the scenes appear to have been shot locally, in the Long Beach area.

Betsy Sharkey of the Los Angeles Times seemed to enjoy the movie fairly well, and Leonard Maltin writes "How well you like the end result...will depend on how much you like the stars — and how hungry you are for escapist entertainment." I like the actors quite a lot, especially Tom Hardy, and I found this film a highly enjoyable Saturday matinee diversion.

The trailer can be seen at First Showing or the movie's official site.

Notable Passings

2012-02-18T15:44:00.000-08:00

...Big band singer Lucy Ann Polk, who sang with Tommy Dorsey, Les Brown, and other bands, passed away in Glendale, California, last October. She was 83.

A biography of Polk, who was one of my dad's favorite singers, can be found here. She came from a very talented musical family. Her brother Gordon was also a film and TV actor.

Here's a fun video of Polk performing with her older siblings in a '40s "soundie":

...Baseball Hall of Fame catcher Gary Carter has died of a brain tumor at the age of 57. Carter was an Orange County native who played for the Expos, Mets, and Giants, and near the end of his career he spent the 1991 season with my favorite team, the Dodgers. He was a tough competitor who by all accounts was a classy gentleman off the field, always willing to make time for fans. Gone too soon.

...Oscar-nominated songwriter Dory Previn has died at the age of 86. Previn's first husband and sometime collaborator was Andre Previn.

...It was touching to note that among Whitney Houston's eulogists today was Kevin Costner, her costar in THE BODYGUARD back in 1992.

Tonight's Movie: No Hands on the Clock (1941)

2012-02-17T21:20:00.000-08:00

NO HANDS ON THE CLOCK is a peppy little "B" mystery starring Chester Morris as a milk-guzzling private detective, with Jean Parker as his lactose-intolerant bride.

Newlyweds Humphrey and Louise Campbell decide to honeymoon in Reno, Nevada. Their marital bliss is soon put to the test as they've been followed to Reno by Humphrey's boss Oscar (George Watts), who wants Humphrey to handle what is supposed to be an easy but lucrative case. There's a mink coat in it for Louise if Humphrey is successful.

Before you know it, Humphrey and Louise are mixed up with a whole lot of strange characters and more than one dead body. Humphrey's got to work fast if he and Louise aren't going to become a Reno divorce statistic instead of honeymooners!

The plot gets a bit too convoluted to follow at times, with perhaps more characters than can easily fit in a 76-minute movie, but it's not very important; it's fun simply being in the company of the quick-thinking Humphrey and spunky Louise. The film has some cute quirks, such as the milk-addicted Humphrey bringing his accordion along on the honeymoon, and there are a couple nice visual touches, such as the Art Deco sign on the Truckee River Hotel.

Maxwell Shane's screenplay was based on the novel NO HANDS ON THE CLOCK, by Daniel Mainwaring, writing under the pseudonym Geoffrey Holmes. Mainwaring/Holmes was also the author of BUILD MY GALLOWS HIGH, which provided the basis for the noir classic OUT OF THE PAST (1947).

This film was made by the Pine-Thomas unit at Paramount, which made numerous movies featuring varying combinations of Morris, Parker, Richard Arlen, and Nancy Kelly. For some reason these films seem to have fallen into the public domain; I'll definitely be checking out more.

The supporting cast includes Rod Cameron, Astrid Allwyn, Keye Luke, Rose Hobart, Dick Purcell, and Robert Middlemass. Look for Milburn Stone (GUNSMOKE) as an FBI man.

The film was directed by Frank McDonald, with black and white cinematography by Fred Jackman Jr.. Jackman, who shot many of the Pine-Thomas films, was married to Nancy Kelly from 1946 to 1950.

NO HANDS ON THE CLOCK is available on DVD from Alpha; Alpha DVDs are often available at a good price from Oldies.com. The DVD print and sound are variable, but I've seen worse; I was glad enough of the film survived to enjoy. It would be interesting to know if a better print still exists.

Dolores Hart Returns to Hollywood

2012-02-17T17:54:00.000-08:00

Actress Dolores Hart, who left a bright career in Hollywood to answer the call to be a nun, will be attending the Academy Awards on February 26th for the first time in over half a century.

GOD IS THE BIGGER ELVIS (2011), a 37-minute film about Hart's life, has been nominated for the Oscar for Best Documentary Short Subject.

At the outset of Hart's film career, she appeared opposite Elvis Presley in LOVING YOU (1957) and KING CREOLE (1958). She combined a wholesome attractiveness with sharp intelligence as the leading lady of early '60s confections such as WHERE THE BOYS ARE (1960) and COME FLY WITH ME (1963). (The latter film likely served as some of the inspiration behind the current TV series PAN AM.) Her other credits included LONELYHEARTS (1958), FRANCIS OF ASSISI (1961), and SAIL A CROOKED SHIP (1961).

As described in a detailed 2011 article in Entertainment Weekly, after concluding publicity in New York for COME FLY WITH ME, a studio car took her to the Abbey of Regina Laudis in Bethlehem, Connecticut, where she has lived ever since.

When Hart chose a life of service as a nun, she not only quit her career, but she also left behind her beloved fiance, Don Robinson, who remained a close lifelong friend and visited her annually. Mr. Robinson passed away in November 2011. Hart and Robinson were both interviewed in an ABC news segment a decade ago, which can be watched at Motion Picture Gems.

A 2010 article in the National Catholic Register discusses Hart's friendships with both Gary Cooper and Patricia Neal. How interesting, given that Cooper and Neal once had an affair, that it was Cooper's daughter Maria who guided Neal to help at Hart's convent at a time when Neal was struggling.

Recent articles about Mother Dolores and the documentary have appeared in the Hollywood Reporter and Deadline.

Monday Update: Susan King has an interesting article in the Los Angeles Times. Mother Dolores has been a voting member of the Academy since 1990 due to the intervention of Karl Malden.

Asked about modern movies, Mother Dolores says "We receive visitors and meet visitors who need help. There isn't really too much in movies that we haven't seen on our doorstep. Hollywood reflects the problems in the society."

Casablanca (1942) Plays Theaters Nationwide on March 21st

2012-02-17T10:52:00.000-08:00

Turner Classic Movies is co-sponsoring a nationwide 70th Anniversary digital presentation of CASABLANCA (1942) on Wednesday, March 21, 2012.

The film will play at 7:00 p.m. local time in theaters across the country. Click here for the current list of participating theaters.

The movie will be preceded by a special introduction by Robert Osborne.

Tickets will go on sale February 24th.

Last November TCM co-sponsored a similar nationwide 50th Anniversary presentation of WEST SIDE STORY (1961).

Coming to DVD: Maverick - Season 1

2012-02-14T16:21:00.000-08:00

The very best Valentine's Day news for MAVERICK fans: Season 1 of the beloved TV series arrives on DVD at long last on May 29th.

MAVERICK will apparently be a regular retail set, rather than being released by the Warner Archive, which has put out another '50s Warner Bros. Western, CHEYENNE. Hopefully the set will sell well and the other seasons will be released in the same format.

The set will include all 27 episodes from the first season, including some of my top favorites such as "Comstock Conspiracy," "The Savage Hills," and "Plunder of Paradise." But they're all good!

No cover art is available yet.

I'm most appreciative of Ivan sending me an email sharing the good news.

Related post: Book Review: A Maverick Life: The Jack Kelly Story.

Update: 50 Westerns From the 50s is celebrating too!

And Ivan mentions "the sounds erupting across the blogosphere are those of champagne corks and general merriment" because of the great news.

February 21st Update: Thanks to ClassicFlix, we now have a look at the cover art!

It's disappointing they left Jack Kelly off the cover, as the Garner-Kelly camaraderie is a big part of what makes the show so special to fans, but I imagine the marketing department sees a big picture of the better-known James Garner as their best selling tool.

Happy Valentine's Day!

2012-02-14T07:30:00.000-08:00

Very best wishes to all for a lovely Valentine's Day!

Have a great day!

Tonight's Movie: Salty O'Rourke (1945)

2012-02-13T22:45:00.000-08:00

SALTY O'ROURKE, directed by Raoul Walsh, is set against the backdrop of horse racing, with a touch of film noir on the side.

Salty (Alan Ladd) owes a large sum of money to a gangster, Doc Baxter (Bruce Cabot). With just a month to pay up -- or else! -- Salty and his sidekick Smitty (William Demarest) hatch a plan which involves hiring a banned jockey, Johnny (Stanley Clement), to pose as his younger brother; Johnny is the only one who can ride a very wild but very fast horse Salty owns. If the horse wins a big race, the purse will be enough to pay off Doc Baxter.

The "underage" jockey is required to attend the one-room jockeys' school at the racetrack, taught by lovely Barbara Brooks (Gail Russell). Matters grow complicated when Johnny falls in love with Barbara, but she loves Salty...and a hurt Johnny threatens to throw the race in the wrong direction.

SALTY O'ROURKE is a pleasant movie with a good cast. It's always nice to spend time with Ladd and Russell, two very enjoyable actors who were later reteamed in CALCUTTA (1947). It's also fun to see Russell and Cabot sharing screen time, two years before they appeared in one of my favorite films, ANGEL AND THE BADMAN (1947). Cabot makes a slick bad guy, and his scenes with Ladd have a nice tension.

When the action focuses on Ladd, Russell, Bendix, Cabot, or sweet Spring Byington as Russell's mother, it's quite enjoyable. The film's main drawback is that Stanley Clements' Johnny is so completely obnoxious, the viewer starts to groan with frustration any time he comes back on screen! It's hard for me to believe, incidentally, that Clements was married to Gloria Grahame around the time this film was made.

The supporting cast includes Darryl Hickman, Rex Williams, and Marjorie Woodworth.

Milton Holmes was nominated for the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay, based on his own story. The black and white cinematography was by Theodor Sparkuhl. The film's running time is 100 minutes.

SALTY O'ROURKE is a Paramount film which has not had a release on DVD or VHS. It's yet another hard-to-find title that needs to be freed from behind the Paramount/Universal "Iron Curtain"; perhaps someday these films will be part of a MOD program. In the meantime, I'm grateful to my friend Carrie for making it possible for me to see it!

New on DVD: Alexandre Dumas Swashbucklers

2012-02-13T18:16:00.000-08:00

Henstooth Video is releasing DVDs of three films based on Alexandre Dumas classics: THE COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO (1934), THE MAN IN THE IRON MASK (1939), and THE CORSICAN BROTHERS (1941).

THE COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO, starring Robert Donat, was released on DVD last week. (Thanks to Kristina's Shopping List at Speakeasy for the tip!) It costars Elissa Landi, Louis Calhern, and Sidney Blackmer.

Tomorrow, February 14th, THE MAN IN THE IRON MASK will be out on DVD. This version stars Louis Hayward, Joan Bennett, and Warren William; it was directed by James Whale.

Douglas Fairbanks Jr. fans should be pleased with the release of THE CORSICAN BROTHERS, in which he plays both title roles! The leading lady is Ruth Warrick, in her first film following her debut in CITIZEN KANE (1941). The supporting cast includes Henry Wilcoxon, Akim Tamiroff, J. Carrol Naish, and H.B. Warner.

THE CORSICAN BROTHERS will be released on DVD April 3, 2012.

ClassicFlix mentions that Henstooth will also release Randolph Scott in THE LAST OF THE MOHICANS (1936) to DVD on April 10th.

Around the Blogosphere This Week

2012-02-12T20:14:00.000-08:00

Miscellaneous bits of news and fun stuff from around the Internet...

...Caftan Woman has a terrific post focusing on "Desperate Housewives of Film Noir." She reviews WITHOUT HONOR (1949), CAUSE FOR ALARM! (1951), and CRIME OF PASSION (1957). I'm going to get WITHOUT HONOR ASAP -- what a cast, with Laraine Day, Franchot Tone, Dane Clark, Bruce Bennett, and Agnes Moorehead. I recommend CAUSE FOR ALARM! which I saw a few years ago and enjoyed.

...Kim reviews THE MAN IN GREY (1943) at Classic Film & TV Cafe. It's quite a melodrama, with villains James Mason and Margaret Lockwood tormenting Phyllis Calvert and Stewart Granger.

...Java's Journey tipped me off to a book that came out a few years ago on dancer-choreographer-director Gower Champion. How did I previously miss out on BEFORE THE PARADE PASSES BY: GOWER CHAMPION AND THE GLORIOUS AMERICAN MUSICAL? I'll definitely be picking it up before too long.

...DreamWorks is planning a remake of Hitchcock's REBECCA (1940). There was actually an excellent TV adaptation of REBECCA back in 1979, starring Jeremy Brett, Joanna David, and Anna Massey, daughter of Raymond, who was perfectly cast as Mrs. Danvers. The TV version was able to be more faithful to the book than the censors of 1940 would allow; I've been wishing it would come out on DVD for years. But another version? Don't see the need.

...There's another interesting blogathon ahead! Jill at Sittin' on a Backyard Fence has organized March in March, in honor of the great Fredric March. There's info for bloggers who would like to offer contributions here.

...The Daily Mail has interesting photos of the interior of Queen Elizabeth II and Princess Margaret's childhood playhouse, which has recently been restored and redecorated by Princess Beatrice.

...Historic Clifton's Cafeteria in Downtown Los Angeles is being remodeled. The building's original exterior has been revealed for the first time in half a century.

...The new film in the works on Princess Grace of Monaco caused me to remember the 1983 TV-movie GRACE KELLY, starring Cheryl Ladd. It's just come out on DVD from Sony Classics, available via the Warner Archive. Lloyd Bridges played Grace's father, with Ian McShane as Prince Rainier. It might be fun to take another look at it.

...Continuing in a royal vein, Naomi Watts will play Princess Diana in CAUGHT IN FLIGHT.

...Redbox will not agree to embargo Warner Bros. titles for 56 days and instead will acquire WB titles "through alternative means."

...The Hollywood Reporter explains why there are only two Best Song nominees this year...unfortunately there's no logical explanation as to why "Life's a Happy Song" was excluded and "Man or Muppet" made the cut.

...Here's even more movie reviews! John Greco writes about THE AMERICANIZATION OF EMILY (1964) at Twenty Four Frames...At Sidewalk Crossings, Deb reviews Stewart Granger in SARABAND FOR DEAD LOVERS (1948) and Charlton Heston in TREASURE ISLAND (1990)...Glenn Erickson reviews Edward G. Robinson and Paulette Goddard in VICE SQUAD (1953) at DVD Savant...and Kim Morgan raves about Robert Montgomery in RAGE IN HEAVEN (1941) at Sunset Gun, and she also reviews several other classic films she enjoyed for the first time in 2011.

...Currently available on YouTube: Joan Fontaine in the 1947 Universal film IVY.

Have a great week!

Tonight's Movie: Until They Sail (1957)

2012-02-11T23:49:00.000-08:00

UNTIL THEY SAIL is the story of four sisters living in New Zealand during World War II. The film was based on a short story in James Michener's RETURN TO PARADISE, a follow-up to his TALES OF THE SOUTH PACIFIC.

I last saw UNTIL THEY SAIL seven or eight years ago and liked it very much, so at Christmas I bought the remastered widescreen Warner Archive DVD, which I enjoyed today. The Archive DVD is a beautiful print.

Coincidentally, UNTIL THEY SAIL pulls together a number of talents from movies I've seen earlier this week: leading lady Joan Fontaine starred earlier today in FROM THIS DAY FORWARD (1946); director Robert Wise was the editor of both CITIZEN KANE (1941) and THE MAGNIFICENT AMBERSONS (1942), seen last night; and composer David Raksin wrote the score for THE BIG COMBO (1955), which I watched just a couple of days ago.

Fontaine plays Anne Leslie, the oldest of the four sisters, who also include Barbara (Jean Simmons), Delia (Piper Laurie), and teenaged Evelyn (15-year-old Sandra Dee, in her film debut). The girls, whose parents have died, share a home in Christchurch as they cope with the tumultuous war years.

Anne, initially wary of the American soldiers who invade their town, falls for Capt. Richard Bates (Charles Drake), then anxiously waits for news about his safety. Barbara waits for word of her husband Mark, who is in the service, and she also frets over her troubled sister Delia, whose hasty marriage to a local soldier (Wally Cassell) is a disaster. Barbara also slowly develops a friendship with Capt. Jack Harding (Paul Newman), who is charged with evaluating the fitness of New Zealand girls to wed American soldiers. Barbara and Anne also make sure their boy-crazy littlest sister, Evelyn, stays out of trouble.

This is an absorbing, interesting drama with a fairly unusual setting for a WWII movie. It's well acted by the entire cast, with a clear-eyed, frank presentation of the sisters' problems. Anne and Barbara face a variety of challenges with a steely resolve, which makes the climactic delivery of a cable all the more emotionally powerful, providing a cathartic moment.

My one criticism of the film is that Delia's motivations and unhappiness are never adequately explained, particularly her decision to marry a completely obnoxious boor. Delia was a lovely girl who surely must have had other options.

The movie was partially filmed on location in Christchurch, with some very clear shots of Christchurch Cathedral which was heavily damaged in the recent earthquakes. The beautiful black and white cinematography was by Joseph Ruttenberg.

The trailer includes a brief scene of the sisters in a bedroom which does not appear in the release version of the movie; there's a shot of Joan Fontaine I don't remember from the film either. There are a couple of spots in the film where characters refer to events that I believe were filmed but cut, such as a lecture to prospective wives of American soldiers; I suspect that deleted scene is pictured in the still to the right. With so many characters in a 94-minute movie, the film could easily have run 10 minutes longer and not been too long.

In addition to the Warner Archive DVD, UNTIL THEY SAIL was previously released on VHS. It can be seen on Turner Classic Movies, where it will next air April 17, 2012.

Tonight's Movie: From This Day Forward (1946)

2012-02-11T19:45:00.000-08:00

FROM THIS DAY FORWARD is a lovingly detailed depiction of the struggles of newlyweds in the late '30s and early '40s, with beautiful black and white photography by George Barnes and an exquisitely nuanced performance by Joan Fontaine.

I've been wanting to see FROM THIS DAY FORWARD since it was featured on the November cover of Classic Images. Quite by chance I recently stumbled across a very good print on YouTube, so I watched it as soon as possible just in case it disappears!

Bill Cummings (Mark Stevens) has returned from service in World War II, and as he spends a day at a New York employment center, he thinks back on his marriage to Susan (Fontaine), beginning with the day he proposed.

Bill and Susan are happy but struggle with economic ups and downs, especially when Bill is laid off from his job. (In the flashbacks, their financial status is made clear, in part, by the various apartments in which they live; the set decoration is excellent.) Bill and Susan's relationship is set against the backdrop of Susan's colorful extended family, including her sister Martha (Rosemary DeCamp), Martha's chronically unemployed husband Hank (Harry Morgan), and Hank's relatives.

Mark Stevens had previously appeared in roughly a dozen small roles, but for this, his first film as a leading man, he was listed at the end of the credits as "Introducing Mark Stevens." He does an excellent job, expressing his frustrations while remaining likeable. I've recently thought that Stevens somewhat resembles Cornel Wilde, but in my opinion Stevens is the much more interesting actor.

Once upon a time, I actually found Joan Fontaine on the dull side, excepting REBECCA (1940) and JANE EYRE (1943). I have since rethought that opinion! As I see her performances, film by film, I'm especially struck by how extremely different her characters are in terms of body language and even vocally. I'm deeply impressed by the varied nuances in her characters. It's almost hard to believe that the same actress who so completely inhabited the teenage Tessa in THE CONSTANT NYMPH (1943) is also the newlywed from the Bronx in tonight's movie. I thoroughly enjoyed her depiction of lighthearted, resilient Susan, and Fontaine was never more beautifully photographed.

Rosemary DeCamp, who plays Susan's sister Martha, is another chameleon I admire tremendously. Was there any accent she couldn't do? Meryl Streep's got nothing on Rosemary DeCamp (grin). I especially admired DeCamp as the Austrian refugee in HOLD BACK THE DAWN (1941) and the warm German-accented psychiatrist she played in DANGER SIGNAL (1945). In FROM THIS DAY FORWARD she sports a tough Bronx accent. The frazzled Martha initially cautions Susan to contemplate the down side of married life before she weds, but at the same time, as the film goes on, it becomes more clear that Martha herself has a loving marriage and that the blustery Hank (Morgan) has a good heart.

FROM THIS DAY FORWARD was one of a few 1946 films on postwar readjustment, which also included TILL THE END OF TIME and, most famously, the multi-Oscar-winning THE BEST YEARS OF OUR LIVES. I was struck by the unique feel and style of FROM THIS DAY FORWARD; it continually amazes me how many different kinds of movies came out of the studio system.

And as a side note, FROM THIS DAY FORWARD seems to be a fairly rare film for the mid '40s in that a married couple are depicted sleeping in the same bed.

The supporting cast includes Bobby Driscoll, Doreen McCann, Mary Treen, Arline Judge, Queenie Smith, Wally Brown, and Erskine Sanford. Ellen Corby pops up as a stressed mother of an infant in a movie theater; I didn't spot him, but director Blake Edwards is listed as a dance extra.

FROM THIS DAY FORWARD was directed by John Berry (TENSION). It runs 95 minutes.

Garson Kanin adapted Thomas Bell's novel ALL BRIDES ARE BEAUTIFUL; the screenplay was by Hugo Butler, with uncredited work by several other writers, including Clifford Odets.

FROM THIS DAY FORWARD was released on Region 2 DVD, although it appears to be difficult to obtain at this point. It doesn't appear to have had a VHS or DVD release in the United States. It deserves it.

In the meantime, I highly recommend catching it soon on YouTube, and also visit Olivia and Joan: Sisters of the Silver Screen in order to hear Fontaine and Stevens in a 1946 Lux Radio Theater production of the story.

Notable Passings

2012-02-11T18:05:00.000-08:00

...Actor Peter Breck, best known as cantankerous middle son Nick Barkley on TV's THE BIG VALLEY from 1965 to 1969, has passed away at the age of 82.

Breck also starred in the 1950s Western BLACK SADDLE and had a recurring role on MAVERICK as Doc Holliday.

Breck's wife said he died after a long illness. She posted a note on his official website last year explaining he was suffering from dementia.

Update: Here's a very nice tribute from the Caftan Woman, a fan of THE BIG VALLEY.

...Author Jeffrey Zaslow has died in a car crash at the age of 53.

Zaslow, who wrote for the Wall Street Journal, coauthored pilot Chesley Sullenberger's book HIGHEST DUTY and THE LAST LECTURE with Professor Randy Pausch.

...Sad breaking news tonight, singer-actress Whitney Houston has died at the age of 48.

I reviewed her 1992 film THE BODYGUARD last fall.

Tonight's Movies: Citizen Kane (1941) and The Magnificent Ambersons (1942) at the Egyptian Theatre

2012-02-10T23:56:00.000-08:00

This month I've had the rather remarkable experience of seeing classic films in four historic theaters within just a 10-day period.

My tour of old movie palaces began on February 1st with A PLACE IN THE SUN (1951) at the Bay Theatre in Seal Beach, California. The Bay opened in 1947, making it the youngest of the four theaters I've recently visited.

Last weekend I had a wonderful experience seeing LADY AND THE TRAMP (1955) at the beautifully restored El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood, established in 1926.

Wednesday evening I enjoyed a film noir double bill of THE BIG COMBO (1955) and PITFALL (1948) at the Million Dollar Theater in Downtown Los Angeles. The Million Dollar Theater is the granddaddy of them all, dating from 1918.

Tonight I returned to my favorite venue, Hollywood's Egyptian Theatre, which opened in 1922. The occasion was an Orson Welles double bill consisting of CITIZEN KANE (1941) and THE MAGNIFICENT AMBERSONS (1942). Ironically, CITIZEN KANE had its world premiere over seven decades ago right down the street, at the El Capitan.

I'm taking the unusual step of jointly reviewing these two Welles classics, released within just a year of each other, in part as I have fairly little to say about CITIZEN KANE. It's a movie well known to most film fans, and as the saying goes, it is what it is. I hadn't seen it since I was in college, when I was surprised to find myself unimpressed with the film's self-consciously showy techniques in service of a dark and depressing story.

I remembered virtually nothing about the film from that original viewing, so I was able to re-evaluate it tonight from a fresh perspective, having seen a few thousand movies in the intervening decades. I was glad to experience it in the best way possible, via a beautiful print on a huge screen.

I appreciated the film more now, especially the stunning cinematography by Gregg Toland and the editing by Robert Wise; and I admired what was accomplished by so many actors at the outset of their film careers. Joseph Cotten is a particular favorite of mine, so I was glad to revisit his performance in this. But while I admired the film's creativity and found it interesting enough to hold my attention, it's never going to be one of my favorite movies.

I was more interested in THE MAGNIFICENT AMBERSONS, the first film to be checked off my "10 Classics for 2012" list. I found this film of Booth Tarkington's novel about the decline of a grand family, which the studio famously edited down from Welles's original vision to a mere 88 minutes, even more visually beautiful than KANE, with deep, rich blacks and whites. The effect projected on the big screen was incredibly powerful. The images from this film, photographed by the great Stanley Cortez (THE NIGHT OF THE HUNTER), will long remain in my memory; even the happiest and loveliest scenes, such as the dance or the drive in the snow, are haunting in retrospect. It seemed, when the film was done, that we'd been visiting with ghosts.

Joseph Cotten and Anne Baxter's finely drawn characters relieved the unrelenting gloom of the Amberson family; I was greatly impressed by the 18-year-old Baxter, especially the scene where she laughingly says farewell to George (Tim Holt). It's also remarkable to realize that Agnes Moorehead's first two films were CITIZEN KANE and THE MAGNIFICENT AMBERSONS; she's quite amazing as Aunt Fanny in AMBERSONS. I also admired the performance of Dolores Costello as Isabel.

Costello, incidentally, was the mother of John Drew Barrymore and the grandmother of Drew Barrymore. Richard Bennett, who played the most senior member of the Amberson family, was the father of Joan and Constance.

Despite the film's positive attributes, the movie is in some ways difficult to watch because Holt's George Amberson Minifer is such an insufferably boring prig. Apparently opposed to his mother's suitor Eugene (Cotten) because Eugene is in trade -- with perhaps a dash of incestuous feelings for his mother thrown in -- George is obnoxious and inscrutable. For instance, there's little understanding regarding his willingness to jettison his own relationship with Baxter's Lucy in order to thwart his mother's romance. (There's also no real explanation for why Lucy loves George, among a sea of willing suitors.) When George finally has his "comeuppance," his body literally broken, the audience doesn't even get to enjoy the catharsis, it's over and done so quickly. Perhaps some of these issues were addressed in the film's original cut, but as it stands the film is a gorgeous mystery.

Jim Lane's Cinedrome has been running a very interesting series on this film, making the case that AMBERSONS is Welles' greatest film; Part 1 is here and Part 2 is here, with more to come in the future.

THE MAGNIFICENT AMBERSONS was previously released as an extra in a CITIZEN KANE 70th Anniversary Blu-ray set. It's just been released as a single-title DVD, but sadly there are no extras included which might shed more light on its production and editing history.

VHS releases of THE MAGNIFICENT AMBERSONS include the RKO Collection and a Turner Classic Movies edition.

CITIZEN KANE is available on standard DVD in a 2-disc special edition and a 70th Anniversary Ultimate Collector's Edition. VHS releases include an RKO Collection video which I own. It can be rented on DVD from Netflix or streamed via Amazon Instant Video.

As a final comment for Southern Californians, I became a member of the American Cinematheque last Christmas and am very glad I did. Due to my membership I received two free passes, which we used this evening, and members can buy one ticket per film, at both the Egyptian and the Aero, for just $7. Additional perks include a members-only ticket phone line (no more Fandango fees for advance purchases) and 10% off at the Pig 'N Whistle restaurant next door to the Egyptian, where we've enjoyed a couple of good meals over the past year. And membership is tax deductible!

Tonight's Movie: Pitfall (1948) at the Million Dollar Theater

2012-02-08T23:55:00.000-08:00

The second film on tonight's film noir double bill at the Million Dollar Theater, following THE BIG COMBO (1955), was PITFALL (1948).

PITFALL stars Dick Powell, Lizabeth Scott, and Jane Wyatt. Like THE BIG COMBO, PITFALL was shown in a 35 millimeter print restored by UCLA.

PITFALL is the story of John Forbes, a somewhat depressed man (Powell) who is bored with his pleasant life, which includes a pretty wife named Sue (Wyatt), a cute little boy, Tommy (Jimmy Hunt), a nice home on a hill, and a secure job working for an insurance company. Though on one level it's clear John loves his wife and son, he can also be remote and use them as targets for his acidic sense of humor.

Mona Stevens (Scott) enters John's life, and he unexpectedly finds himself smiling and relaxing. For a couple of days he enjoys the novelty of playing hooky and spending late hours with her, before coming to his senses.

But it's already too late -- J.B. MacDonald (Raymond Burr), the very strange private investigator John's company contracts with, is stalking Mona, convinced she'll be his. MacDonald jealously beats John to a pulp -- that's interesting for John to try to explain to Sue -- and then sics Mona's gun-toting boyfriend, who's been in jail, on John. John's once placid life has become a total nightmare.

This was an absorbing, dark take on family life in which tensions are always bubbling just under the surface. The uneasiness in the family relationships is made clear right off the bat, as Sue repeatedly calls John to breakfast, nagging at him as though he's a young child. In turn, the uptight John makes wisecracks even as he dishes out the $5 his son needs for a camping fund. All three family members seem stressed and edgy; small wonder that little Tommy wakes up with nightmares.

Powell is always interesting, and there's a poignance to his zingers, as he ruefully sizes up his life and then, later on, his huge mistake. For someone who always has a wisecrack handy, he's painfully inarticulate when it comes time to explain his behavior to his wife.

Scott manages to be sympathetic despite being the "other woman" -- who incidentally attracts the insurance company's attention in the first place as her boyfriend gave her stolen property. She may have a nice smile, but she's no angel.

Wyatt may be the most interesting character in the film, as the steely woman who has sense trouble in her marriage but is determined to hold it together.

As the evening began, Alan Rode of the Film Noir Foundation (pictured at left) shared that he had spoken with Lizabeth Scott about PITFALL. She told him that her experience making PITFALL was "delicious," and she had the highest praise for Dick Powell, saying he was kind and a joy to work with.

Several other bloggers have posted interesting takes on the film, including Moira at Skeins of Thought, Glenn Erickson at DVD Savant, and dfordoom at Classic Movie Ramblings. There are even more links at the bottom of Moira's fine essay. There's some debate among bloggers about whether or not the film is pro-marriage, as well as whether or not Sue is an admirable character. It's definitely a thought-provoking movie.

PITFALL was directed by Andre De Toth, with black and white cinematography by Harry Wild. There are some great shots of postwar Los Angeles.

The screenplay by Karl Kamb was based on the novel THE PITFALL by Jay Dratler. IMDb lists William Bowers and director De Toth as having done uncredited work on the screenplay. The film runs 86 minutes.

Ann Doran, always a very welcome presence, plays John's secretary, Maggie. John Litel is the District Attorney. Mona's convict boyfriend is played by Byron Barr.

PITFALL was released on VHS; I actually purchased a mint condition used copy a few months ago but hadn't gotten around to watching it yet. The videotape is a "Republic Restored Classic" which utilizes the print restored by UCLA.

It's recently been released on DVD but a review at Amazon indicates it's a poor copy; on the other hand, Classic Movie Ramblings says the print is fine.

This movie can also be seen at Amazon Instant Video.

Tonight's Movie: The Big Combo (1955) at the Million Dollar Theater

2012-02-08T23:51:00.000-08:00

Tonight UCLA sponsored a most enjoyable double bill of restored film noir titles at the historic Million Dollar Theater in Downtown Los Angeles.

My visit to this grand old theater came just days after my first visit to another theater dating from the early days of Hollywood, the El Capitan. Sid Grauman opened the Million Dollar Theater on Broadway and Third in 1918. The interior is incredibly ornate; one can only imagine what the theater looked like in its heyday. Although the seats were quite old, they were comfortable enough, and UCLA's 35-millimeter prints looked great on the big screen. If only the theater could be fully restored to the same level of beauty as the El Capitan!

The first film of the evening was THE BIG COMBO (1955) starring Cornel Wilde and Richard Conte. Wilde plays Lt. Leonard Diamond, who is obsessed with bringing down mob boss Mr. Brown (Conte), despite pressure from the brass about the cost of the investigation.

Diamond also seems more than a little obsessive about Mr. Brown's girl, Susan (Jean Wallace). Susan's a society girl who wants to leave Mr. Brown -- she even tries to exit via some pills -- while at the same time she seems powerless to resist him.

The film is quite edgy for the mid-'50s, including a series of memorably staged murders and the unusual relationship between Conte's henchmen, played by Lee Van Cleef and Earl Holliman. The film has a constant capacity to surprise, and it also provides several examples of the proverbial less being more; there's no gore, yet some of the sequences -- especially one played in complete silence -- are unforgettable.

Likewise, there's a steamy scene between Conte and Wallace which simultaneously shows nothing yet is so surprising it causes the viewer's jaw to drop. According to the Film Noir Foundation's Alan K. Rode, whose comments opened the evening, director Joseph H. Lewis managed to convince the censors that what they were seeing was all in their minds, or something along those lines, even though any adult would read the scene the same way. Rumor has it that Wilde, who was an uncredited associate producer and married to Wallace at the time, was incandescent with rage over his wife appearing in this sequence. Nonetheless, it remained in the film.

Initially I wasn't that enthused about the film; I've never been a fan of Wilde's, and as the viewer is dropped smack into the middle of highly dramatic conflicts, the movie at first seemed somewhat cartoonish or exaggerated. This wasn't helped by dialogue which at times was brilliant but at other moments was pretty awful.

And yet, as the film went on, I found myself falling under its spell, thanks to a combination of unforgettably staged set pieces and the stunning black and white cinematography of John Alton. For anyone who wants to know what film noir looks like, this film is Exhibit A. What at first had appeared cartoonish gradually seemed to morph into high style, taking the viewer on something of a noir thrill ride.

I always find Richard Conte enjoyable, whether he's playing the hero or the villain. I'd never seen Jean Wallace before; paralleling the film, her performance initially seemed too vacant or stylized, yet reflecting back on her role, she was noir perfection as a troubled woman who might be a femme fatale...or might be a heroine.

Brian Donlevy is memorable as Conte's bitter lieutenant, whose hearing aid figures significantly in multiple scenes. Helen Walker, in her last feature film role, is among the film's pleasures as a mysterious woman from Mr. Brown's past. This film was just half a dozen years after Walker costarred with Donlevy in IMPACT (1949), but she seems to have aged considerably from her more glamorous past; the change in her appearance plays into the character's history and lends a poignance to her performance. Helene Stanton, who seems to be channeling Marie Windsor with a dash of Carolyn Jones, is excellent as a burlesque dancer who is Wilde's sort-of girlfriend.

The cast also includes Robert Middleton, Ted de Corsia, John Hoyt, and Steve Mitchell. The script of this 84-minute film was by Philip Yordan, and the memorably jazzy score was composed by David Raksin. Raksin's music combines with the atmospheric opening credits for a bit of film noir bliss.

THE BIG COMBO was released on VHS and DVD. It can be rented for streaming via Amazon Instant Video and is available on disc or via streaming from Netflix.

This film can also be seen on Turner Classic Movies.

For more thoughts on this movie, visit Dave's review at Goodfella's Movie Blog, which describes THE BIG COMBO "a truly great film."

The second half of the double bill: Dick Powell in PITFALL (1948).

Repost: Tonight's Movie: Angel and the Badman (1947)

2012-02-07T23:50:00.000-08:00

Note: ANGEL AND THE BADMAN just might be my favorite John Wayne film ever, and I rewatch it every couple years. I last saw this movie about two and a half years ago, so tonight it was time to spend time with it again. This film, with charming performances by John Wayne, Gail Russell, and the entire cast, never fails to delight me! This evening I watched a DVD from Good Times which was quite a good print.

Below is my review from September 2009:

ANGEL AND THE BADMAN is one of my very favorite John Wayne movies, which I revisit on a regular basis.

ANGEL AND THE BADMAN is a simple tale about gunslinger Quirt Evans (Wayne) who is wounded and nursed back to health by a family of Quaker farmers, including beautiful Penny (Gail Russell), who falls in love with Quirt at first sight.

Penny is disarmingly honest with Quirt about her feelings for him, and though at first he struggles against it, Penny's steadfast love and her family's kindness gradually convince Quirt to embrace a new life...if his past doesn't catch up with him.

For those still shortsighted enough to assert that Wayne wasn't much of an actor, I would argue that all one has to do to know the truth about Wayne's acting ability is actually watch his movies. At least half of Wayne's performance in this film was conveyed without dialogue -- his eyes and face are incredibly expressive. There's a wonderful scene where he holds off a trio of bad guys with his steely gaze and an unloaded gun; he also has some quiet comedic moments where he's baffled either by Penny or his own growing feelings for her. I think it's one of his best performances. Wayne was also the film's producer.

Gail Russell is at her most beautiful as angelic Penny, with melting eyes, long dark hair, a gentle smile, and a sense of humor as well. Russell was right up there with Maureen O'Hara in terms of her chemistry with the Duke. Wayne and Russell were reunited the next year in WAKE OF THE RED WITCH.

Sadly, off the screen Russell was very insecure and suffered badly from stage fright; at some point in the '40s she began to steady her nerves with alcohol, and by the early '50s her career was almost at a standstill as a result. Wayne, a good friend, helped resuscitate her career by giving her a leading role in the superb Randolph Scott Western SEVEN MEN FROM NOW (1956), which Wayne produced. Russell died in 1961, just 36 years old.

The supporting cast in ANGEL AND THE BADMAN is outstanding. I particularly love Harry Carey Sr. as Marshal Wistful McClintock, who has a habit of showing up unexpectedly; Irene Rich as Penny's sweet mother, forever downplaying her cooking talents; and Tom Powers as the doctor who respects the Quakers even if he can't understand their ways.

The cast also includes Bruce Cabot, Lee Dixon, Olin Howland, Tom Halloran, and Paul Hurst. Don't blink and you'll see Hank Worden, best known as Mose in THE SEARCHERS (1956), who has a few lines early in the movie.

ANGEL AND THE BADMAN was shot in black and white and runs 100 minutes. It was largely filmed on location in Arizona, although at least a couple shots outside the farmhouse might have been on a duplicate soundstage set.

This is the only movie in my "Wayne Top 5" which wasn't directed by John Ford. (My other favorite Wayne films, for the record, are SHE WORE A YELLOW RIBBON, RIO GRANDE, THE QUIET MAN, and THE SEARCHERS.) ANGEL AND THE BADMAN was written and directed by James Edward Grant.

It seems possible that Grant drew some of his inspiration from the modern-day story in 1934's HIDE-OUT and its remake I'LL WAIT FOR YOU (1941), which both have some parallels with the story in ANGEL AND THE BADMAN. Whether or not Grant was influenced by these films, he wrote an excellent script with memorable dialogue; after many viewings I know some of the lines by heart, but continue to savor them just the same.

As has been mentioned here before, this film may have in turn inspired the release of several films the next year with the theme of a bad man reformed, at least in part, by the love of a strong good woman. Examples include YELLOW SKY, starring Gregory Peck and Anne Baxter; BLOOD ON THE MOON with Robert Mitchum and Barbara Bel Geddes, plus Walter Brennan in a Harry Carey type role; and FOUR FACES WEST starring Joel McCrea and Frances Dee.

James Edward Grant only directed one other film, but he wrote the screenplays for many Wayne films over the years. Films with Grant screenplays reviewed here in the past include BULLFIGHTER AND THE LADY (1951), which was produced by Wayne; Wayne's HONDO (1953); and the Richard Widmark Western THE LAST WAGON (1956).

The little boy playing Penny's brother was named Steven Grant; it was his only film. A relative of the writer-director?

ANGEL AND THE BADMAN has had multiple DVD releases, including this one. It's also had many VHS releases.

The copy I watched this time around was recorded some time ago from Turner Classic Movies, and it was an excellent print.

Most highly recommended.

Tonight's Movie: Lillian Russell (1940)

2012-02-06T23:47:00.000-08:00

Alice Faye is exquisitely beautiful as singing star LILLIAN RUSSELL in a film which has its pleasures but could have been improved considerably.

It's the Gay '90s, and Helen Leonard (Faye), who has wanted to be a singing star from an early age, is discovered by theatrical impresario Tony Pastor (Leo Carrillo). Renamed Lillian Russell, she's an overnight sensation, inspiring wealthy men like Diamond Jim Brady (Edward Arnold) to anonymously send her jewels.

Lillian marries composer Edward Solomon (Don Ameche), a union which ends tragically, but then she's reunited with her first true love, newspaperman Alexander Moore (Henry Fonda).

The film apparently bears little resemblance to the life of the real Lillian Russell, who among other things was married twice as many times as depicted in the movie. That said, I evaluated the film strictly on the basis of how it works as a movie.

The film is on the long side, clocking in at two hours and seven minutes, and it could have used some serious editing and restructuring. William Anthony McGuire's meandering screenplay wastes time on scenes which contribute nothing to the viewer's understanding of Helen/Lillian, her family, or her times, such as an extended opening sequence depicting her birth or scenes dwelling on the bickering of composers Gilbert and Sullivan. Even scenes with Jesse Lewisohn (Warren William) and Diamond Jim Brady (Arnold) telling each other how much they love Lillian don't really add anything to her story.

Producer Daryl F. Zanuck was known as a shrewd script doctor and editor -- he famously shortened the script A LETTER TO FOUR WIVES -- but that ability is nowhere in evidence here. The film is loaded with talent, but there's only so much that can be done with this script.

While all sorts of extraneous bits are jammed into the movie, along with more leading male actors than there's reasonably time for, Lillian's career is given short shrift. She's depicted as becoming an instant sensation on the basis of one production number, "Ma Blushin' Rosie." It's nice enough, but the big group number doesn't really show Faye's voice to its best effect or convey how or why Lillian is suddenly a superstar. The audience is told men want her and women want to imitate her. Why? Perhaps some more dynamically staged musical numbers or even more backstage scenes would have more clearly answered that question.

A later scene where she sings to the President over the phone is quite enjoyable; since it takes place after Lillian has become a huge star, it serves to show in retrospect why she was successful, but doesn't capture how and why she was an immediate phenomenon.

Faye was just 24 when she made LILLIAN RUSSELL, in the superstar phase of her career. She's beautifully filmed in many scenes, and from that standpoint, Russell's success is understandable. She has some good songs, but the film isn't as musically strong as many of Faye's other films. Dramatically, Faye conveys a charming calculation, eagerly accepting the praise of her beauty and predictions for her success, and she's a very likeable personality. Although the film isn't among her best screen work, Faye's presence keeps the film interesting and worthwhile despite its flaws.

Fonda and Ameche were coming off their big success in THE STORY OF ALEXANDER GRAHAM BELL (1939); in fact, since making that film Fonda had starred in three superior John Ford films, DRUMS ALONG THE MOHAWK (1939), YOUNG MR. LINCOLN (1939), and THE GRAPES OF WRATH (1940). Fonda and Ameche are adequate, but as the movie's focus tends to be either on Lillian Russell or on completely nonessential characters, they don't have a great deal to do.

Warren William is also prevented from having much screen time. Edward Arnold reprises his role as DIAMOND JIM (1935) and adds some color, but again, some of his scenes are superfluous and at the expense of Lillian Russell's story being told both more thoroughly and more concisely.

The supporting cast includes Ernest Truex as Lillian's father and Dorothy Peterson as her suffragette mother, with Helen Westley as her grandmother and Una O'Connor her loyal maid. Nigel Bruce and Claude Allister play Gilbert and Sullivan. Lynn Bari is decorative but wasted in a small role. Eddie Foy Jr. plays his own father, a role he would repeat in YANKEE DOODLE DANDY (1942). Don't blink and you can spot Elyse Knox -- later the mother of NCIS star Mark Harmon -- as one of Lillian's sisters.

The movie was directed by Irving Cummings. The black and white cinematography was by Leon Shamroy. Richard Day and Joseph C. Wright were nominated for the Academy Award for Best Black and White Art Direction.

LILLIAN RUSSELL was released on DVD in the Alice Faye Collection, Volume 1. It was also released as a single title in Fox's late, lamented Marquee Musicals series.

Tonight's Movie: Spring Parade (1940)

2012-02-05T22:15:00.000-08:00

SPRING PARADE might be described as Deanna Durbin meets SISSI (1955), as this Austrian-set confection was based on an original story by SISSI writer-director Ernst Marischka. The films definitely share a fairy tale appeal, as well as storylines involving the Austrian royal family. All that's missing from SPRING PARADE is Technicolor!

Deanna plays Ilonka Tolnay, a girl from rural Austria who is accidentally transported to Vienna. (Just go with it.) She ends up living with the family of a baker (S.Z. Sakall) and is befriended by Jenny (Anne Gwynne, grandmother of Chris Pine), who lends her an amazing wardrobe. Curiously, there's never any mention of family back home who might wonder about Deanna's absence!

Deanna meets a soldier-composer (Robert Cummings), and the plot gets crazier from there, involving a composition sent to the Emperor tucked inside some baked goods! It's silly -- and completely charming, especially as the Emperor is played by one of the most lovable character actors ever, Henry Stephenson.

The Gus Kahn-Robert Stolz score includes "It's Foolish But It's Fun" and the hummable "Waltzing in the Clouds." There's a moment halfway into the film, when Durbin and Cummings are waltzing to the latter song, which can only be described as pure movie joy, a feeling which is repeated in the film's closing moments. Those who love Deanna should enjoy this movie.

Durbin and Cummings appeared together the year before in THREE SMART GIRLS GROW UP (1939). The following year they were teamed in one of Durbin's very best films, IT STARTED WITH EVE (1941).

The deep supporting cast includes Allyn Joslyn, Franklin Pangborn, Reginald Denny, Peggy Moran, Walter Catlett, Edward Gargan, and Mischa Auer.

Be sure to visit the SPRING PARADE page at the Anne Gwynne website, which includes stills and screen captures.

SPRING PARADE runs 89 minutes and was directed by Henry Koster. It was nominated for four Academy Awards: Best Black and White Cinematography (Joseph A. Valentine), Best Song ("Waltzing in the Clouds"), Best Score (Charles Previn), and Best Sound Recording. (The winner of Best Song that year? "When You Wish Upon a Star.")

SPRING PARADE is extremely hard to find. It's not had a VHS release and is not even out in the Region 2 series in the UK from which I obtained HERS TO HOLD (1943) and CHRISTMAS HOLIDAY (1944). My great thanks to a longtime reader and friend, Mel, for helping me to see this film at last.

I have just three Durbin films left to see for the first time! The movies still ahead of me are CHRISTMAS HOLIDAY (1944), I'LL BE YOURS (1947), and UP IN CENTRAL PARK (1948).

Links for all Deanna Durbin films previously reviewed here at Laura's Miscellaneous Musings: FIRST LOVE (1939), HIS BUTLER'S SISTER (1943), NICE GIRL? (1941), FOR THE LOVE OF MARY (1948), BECAUSE OF HIM (1946), MAD ABOUT MUSIC (1938), THE AMAZING MRS. HOLLIDAY (1943), THREE SMART GIRLS (1936), THREE SMART GIRLS GROW UP (1939), IT STARTED WITH EVE (1941), CAN'T HELP SINGING (1944), HERS TO HOLD (1943), IT'S A DATE (1940), LADY ON A TRAIN (1945), THAT CERTAIN AGE (1938), ONE HUNDRED MEN AND A GIRL (1937), and SOMETHING IN THE WIND (1947).

Around the Blogosphere This Week

2012-02-05T20:50:00.000-08:00

Miscellaneous bits of news and fun stuff from around the Internet...

...This year's For the Love of Film Blogathon will raise funds to put the long-missing Alfred Hitchcock film THE WHITE SHADOW (1924) online for four months, where it will be accessible to all who wish to see it. For details visit the Self-Styled Siren. The blogathon will take place May 13th to 18th, 2012. I plan to participate! (Perhaps that will be the time I finally see THE BIRDS.) The donor page is already set up at the National Film Preservation Foundation.

...Actress Mary Carlisle, who appeared in over 60 films of the '30s and '40s, turned a century old on February 3rd. Her roles included serving as Gene Autry's leading lady in ROVIN' TUMBLEWEEDS (1939).

...Kevin wrote a neat review of John Wayne in OPERATION PACIFIC (1951) at Kevin's Movie Corner. I've got to pull my son's DVD down off the shelf and watch it.

...For those DOWNTON ABBEY fans who haven't yet heard the news, Shirley MacLaine has been cast in the upcoming third season. She'll play the American mother of Cora (Elizabeth McGovern), the Countess.

...Cliff wrote an extremely informative and interesting post on Edward G. Robinson and his art collection. Visit it at Immortal Ephemera. (Update: Cliff has posted a Part 2 about EDWARD G. ROBINSON'S WORLD OF ART. Fascinating stuff.)

...HOUSE BY THE RIVER (1950) has been sitting in my Netflix Instant queue. Here's an interesting assessment by Colin at Riding the High Country. The movie stars Louis Hayward, Jane Wyatt, Lee Bowman, and Dorothy Patrick; it was directed by Fritz Lang.

...We'll be spared Taylor Swift as Eponine in the film version of LES MISERABLES. The role went to West End musical actress Samantha Barks, who received the news during curtain calls of a Manchester performance of OLIVER! earlier this week.

...I agree with Tom of Motion Picture Gems: only two Best Song nominees, and yet no nomination for the catchy, singable "Life's a Happy Song" from THE MUPPETS (2011)? There's a link to the song at Tom's blog.

...Here's a cute video of a husband and wife learning they've been nominated for an Oscar for Best Live Action Short.

...Jacqueline reviews the very enjoyable noir TENSION (1949) at Another Old Movie Blog. I loved the drugstore, Cyd Charisse, and Audrey Totter. Definitely a good one to catch. It's on DVD.

...A new movie theater has opened at the National Museum of American History at the Smithsonian. It was christened with a showing of CASABLANCA (1942), with Humphrey Bogart's son Stephen in attendance.

...At Sittin' on a Backyard Fence, Jill reviewed HARLOW IN HOLLYWOOD by Mark Vieria and Darrell Rooney. I'm in complete agreement with her, this is a superb book which is a must for anyone who loves films of the '30s.

...Karen has a great post on Joan Crawford in OUR BLUSHING BRIDES (1930) at Shadows and Satin. I also recently loved her post on STRANGERS ON A TRAIN (1951), a film I just saw for the first time last fall.

...Thanks to Shadows and Satin I also learned about an interesting blogathon coming soon, sponsored by Jessica at Comet Over Hollywood: Gone Too Soon, focusing on actors who died before the age of 50. There are a number of bloggers signed up to participate, writing about actors including Linda Darnell, Tyrone Power, Steve Cochran, and more. It will take place March 9th and 10th.

...Notable Passings: Actor Ben Gazzara (ANATOMY OF A MURDER) has passed on at the age of 81...John D. Lowry, who has done important work restoring films for release on DVD, died at the age of 79. He is one of several people due to receive a technical Oscar on February 11th for the development of the Lowry System.

...For lots of recent Disney news, please visit last week's roundup In Disney News...

Have a great week!

Tonight's Movie: Lady and the Tramp (1955) at the El Capitan Theatre

2012-02-04T19:55:00.000-08:00

Disney has operated the historic El Capitan Theatre on Hollywood Boulevard for the past couple decades, but somehow I'd never gotten around to visiting it until we made the trip today to see LADY AND THE TRAMP on a big screen.

I was charmed by the experience, which included a live organist on stage performing Disney songs as the crowd filed in, a Mickey Mouse cartoon themed to match the feature film, and a live welcome from Mickey Mouse, complete with heart-shaped confetti dropped over the audience just before the movie started.

And as for the movie? Well, it was something pretty special, with a presentation to match. I'd forgotten LADY AND THE TRAMP was in CinemaScope, and it was flawlessly projected on a huge screen. It would be hard to have a better experience enjoying a Disney classic!

Last weekend I saw what I consider the best film from Disney's Second Golden Age of Animation, BEAUTY AND THE BEAST (1991); today's movie, LADY AND THE TRAMP (1955), surely represents one of the best of Disney's earlier animated classics.

My favorite among Disney's older cartoons has always been SLEEPING BEAUTY (1959); additionally, I've always been especially fond of ALICE IN WONDERLAND (1951) and PETER PAN (1953), along with LADY AND THE TRAMP. All of these '50s Disney films are significant childhood memories for me, not only seeing them in theaters when they were reissued in the early '70s, but enjoying them over and over again thanks to Disney's storybook record albums. (Curiously, I never saw the 1950 film CINDERELLA as a child, nor did I have a record album.)

LADY AND THE TRAMP is, in a word, a beautiful movie. Every frame has visual appeal, and there are delightful characters and a musical score to match. Disney animators were geniuses at capturing animal behavior, and dog lovers will chuckle over countless "recognizable" moments.

The movie tells the simple tale of Lady (voiced by Barbara Luddy), who lives with Jim Dear (Lee Millar) and Darling (Peggy Lee). Lady's routine is upset by the arrival of a baby in the house, but she soon accepts the little one and life settles back to normal.

Then one day Jim Dear and Darling must leave town, and Aunt Sarah (Verna Felton) arrives to babysit, bringing with her a pair of nasty Siamese cats, Si and Am (Peggy Lee again). Lady runs away after Aunt Sarah puts a muzzle on her, and she's aided by Tramp (Larry Roberts). Lady experiences a memorable spaghetti dinner with Tramp ("Bella Notte"), has an unhappy visit to the pound, and ultimately she and Tramp save the day when a huge rat threatens the baby.

One of this 76-minute film's strengths is its pacing. The story moves along briskly and just when something upsetting happens, it's promptly resolved. Disney cartoons definitely have their dark sides -- even here, there's a pound dog that takes a Walk of No Return -- but LADY AND THE TRAMP has far less angst than many other animated Disney stories.

The score by Peggy Lee and Sonny Burke is marvelous. Besides cowriting the Christmas song "Peace on Earth" and the unforgettable "Belle Notte," Lee voices Peg the pound dog singing "He's a Tramp," and her "Siamese Cat Song" is sheer brilliance. Who could ever forget "We are Siamese if you please...we are Siamese if you don't please!" Those cats are naughty, naughty creatures, perfectly captured by Lee's vocals.

Additional characters were voiced by Bill Thompson (Jock), Bill Baucom (Trusty), Dallas McKennon (Toughy), Alan Reed (Boris), and Stan Freberg (Beaver).

LADY AND THE TRAMP's directors were Hamilton Luske, Wilfred Jackson, and Clyde Geronimi.

I recommend the two-disc Platinum Edition DVD released a few years ago. The DVD can be rented from Netflix. It's also been released on VHS.

A new Blu-ray Diamond Edition was reviewed today by Glenn Erickson at DVD Savant.

Additional information on the El Capitan: Parking is across the street at the Hollywood and Highland Center. There is an automated parking validation machine in the El Capitan lobby, so be sure to take your parking ticket into the theater. Our parking cost was $2 with validation.

We bought our tickets online and printed them at home; we purchased the least expensive General Admission tickets. We were very happy with our seats, and since most of the excited children at the movie were sitting in the VIP sections in the center and balcony, we also had fewer potential distractions in our seating area.

There's a small Disney Studio Store next door to the theater which was full of LADY AND THE TRAMP merchandise. I assume the store stocks up on souvenirs appropriate to each film shown.

We were impressed with the theater staff who were very "Disney" and child-friendly. The theater was beautifully maintained, and the opening organ music and confetti caused my daughter to describe the feel of the overall experience as a "sugar-infused dream." All in all we had a terrific time, and we'd like to visit the theater again in the future.

Tonight's Movie: China (1943)

2012-02-03T23:47:00.000-08:00

CHINA, released by Paramount early in 1943, is a WWII film which was designed to encourage American patriotism and inspire support for our Chinese allies. While lacking the dramatic depth and scope of a film such as Paramount's SO PROUDLY WE HAIL!, which was released the same year, CHINA is an interesting and fairly brutal exemplar of its type.

Set prior to the U.S. entering the war, CHINA tells the story of David Jones (Alan Ladd), who's been selling oil in China with his partner, Johnny (perennial Ladd sidekick William Bendix). Jones is in it strictly for himself and the profits and is even willing to sell gas to the Japanese.

David and Johnny are struggling to make it to Shanghai in their truck when David reluctantly agrees to assist American teacher Carolyn Grant (Loretta Young) and her charges, a bunch of Chinese schoolgirls.

As the group travels, they are exposed to terrible Japanese atrocities which completely change David's attitude toward the war. He joins Carolyn's Chinese friends (Philip Ahn, Richard Loo, and Victor Sen Yung) fighting the Japanese, leading to a fateful confrontation with the enemy.

The film is surprisingly tough at times, not sparing the youngest and most innocent, but the storyline clearly served a dual purpose; beyond the dramatic needs of the film itself, the events depicted were clearly designed to motivate American audiences. Most war films of the early '40s were meant to do this to a greater or lesser extent, but it's particularly obvious here, rather along the lines of a movie like MGM's SONG OF RUSSIA (1944), which was made to drum up support for our Soviet allies.

Ladd and Young are attractive and charismatic leads, but the development of their relationship is fairly sketchy, taking a back seat to their characters coping with the dangers of war, and their romance near the film's closing seems perfunctory.

Perhaps it's just as well that while the film is interesting, it's not especially emotionally involving, or the movie would be too difficult to watch, given the body count.

Aside from the war storyline, I was particularly struck by a scene in which Loretta Young's character reads The Lord's Prayer to a mortally wounded Chinese girl and then explicitly discusses belief in Jesus as Savior leading to life after death. That's just not something one sees in modern films.

In fact, rather than simply accepting the moment at face value, I suspect that these days there are those who would fret that the brief sharing of a Christian message was culturally insensitive. Sometimes it seems we've become a nation of P.C. worrywarts -- the very opposite of this movie's blunt attitude. The film certainly got me thinking about various subjects in that regard, especially as its entire point was to sell American audiences on a necessary but imperfect ally.

CHINA was directed by John Farrow, with black and white cinematography by Leo Tover. According to IMDb, Mesa, Arizona, stood in for rural China.

The Frank Butler screenplay was based on the play FOURTH BROTHER by Archibald Forbes. Loretta Young's subdued, road-worn costumes were designed by Edith Head.

The movie run 79 minutes.

CHINA was released on VHS. It has never had a DVD release.

I'm very grateful to my friend Carrie for enabling me to see this movie, which has been on my "viewing wish list" for years.

Quick Preview of TCM in April

2012-02-03T20:30:00.000-08:00

Turner Classic Movies posted the online preview of the April schedule earlier this week.

The April Star of the Month will be Doris Day. In an unusual move, TCM will devote each evening to Day for the entire first week of April, beginning on Monday, April 2nd. Doris Day will turn 88 on Tuesday, April 3rd.

The third week of April will have a "spring break" theme, including WHERE THE BOYS ARE (1960) and plenty of GIDGET, Elvis, Frankie and Annette.

Among the actors and directors being celebrated in April are Ward Bond, Martha Hyer, Stanley Donen, Kay Francis, Randolph Scott, and Gregory Peck; there's also a day devoted to baseball films.

And my fellow fans of Richard Carlson and William Lundigan -- you know who you are! -- can look forward to RIDERS TO THE STARS (1954) on April 19th.

I love TCM!

I'll share more information about the April schedule around March 31st. In the meantime, the 31 Days of Oscar Festival is now underway, and Karl Malden is scheduled as the Star of the Month in March.

Fox Movie Channel in February: Highlights

2012-02-02T23:57:00.000-08:00

I'm running a little behind this week, but now it's time for a look at some good titles showing on Fox Movie Channel this month.

I took last month off from posting about the Fox lineup in order to take some time to understand the changes going on with the channel. The afternoon and evening hours are now branded "FXM," and those movies include some commercials.

During the morning hours, the station is still called "Fox Movie Channel" and shows commercial-free classics; however, there are fewer "older" films in the lineup, particularly on some weekends. The older movies aren't repeated as frequently as in the past, but they are still drawn from a fairly small pool of titles.

Here are a few interesting movies worth seeking out on Fox Movie Channel this month:

...Early Friday, February 3rd, Alice Faye stars in GEORGE WHITE'S 1935 SCANDALS (1935). Look for a young Eleanor Powell as well, before she was snatched up by MGM.

...ORCHESTRA WIVES (1942) returns on February 4th. This very entertaining movie stars George Montgomery, Ann Rutherford, Cesar Romero, Lynn Bari, and Glenn Miller. "At Last" is one of my favorite movie scenes of the '40s.

...15 years before DIAL M FOR MURDER (1954), Ray Milland and Robert Cummings costarred in EVERYTHING HAPPENS AT NIGHT (1939), vying for leading lady Sonja Henie. It airs February 6th.

...Don't miss KISS OF DEATH (1947), the outstanding film noir I reviewed just a few days ago, showing on February 7th. It stars Victor Mature, Coleen Gray, and Richard Widmark, in his Oscar-nominated film debut.

...Robert Mitchum and Marilyn Monroe star in RIVER OF NO RETURN (1954) on February 13th.

...A really interesting title on February 18th is MUSIC IS MAGIC (1935) starring Alice Faye and Bebe Daniels. My DVR will be running!

...Later on the 18th, DAY-TIME WIFE (1939) stars Tyrone Power and Linda Darnell. The plot isn't much but I like this one anyway, starring two of the most beautiful people ever in the movies.

...DOWN TO EARTH (1932) stars Will Rogers, Dorothy Jordan, and Irene Rich. It airs February 20th.

...Three years ago this month I was charmed by I'LL GET BY (1951), a sprightly feel-good musical starring William Lundigan, June Haver, Gloria DeHaven, and Dennis Day. It's packed with music, a real little gem for fans of musicals. Harry James and Dan Dailey are among the film's guest stars. It's on February 21st.

...On February 23rd Raoul Walsh's THE BOWERY (1933) will be shown. It stars Wallace Beery, George Raft, Fay Wray, and Jackie Cooper.

...Dana Andrews, Jeanne Crain, and Eleanor Parker star in MADISON AVENUE (1962) on February 24th.

...There are two Lloyd Nolan Michael Shayne films on February 27th: BLUE, WHITE AND PERFECT (1941) and DRESSED TO KILL (1941).

...Henry Fonda, Linda Darnell, and Dorothy Lamour star in CHAD HANNA (1940) on February 28th.

...February 29th Lloyd Nolan stars as Michael Shayne in JUST OFF BROADWAY (1942). This is one of two Nolan/Shayne films not out on DVD; the first five films in the series, including the movies showing on the 27th, are available.

The complete Fox Movie Channel schedule can be found here.

New on DVD and Coming to the Egyptian Theatre: The Magnificent Ambersons (1942)

2012-02-02T17:00:00.000-08:00

Thanks to ClassicFlix for the tip that THE MAGNIFICENT AMBERSONS (1942) is out this week as a single-title DVD release.

THE MAGNIFICENT AMBERSONS was included as an extra in last spring's 70th Anniversary CITIZEN KANE Blu-ray set. ClassicFlix reports that the new AMBERSONS release is a pressed disc with no extras.

Southern Californians might like to know that on Friday, February 10th, CITIZEN KANE and THE MAGNIFICENT AMBERSONS will be shown as a double bill at the Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood.

AMBERSONS is on my list of "10 Classics for 2012," so I'm hoping I might be able to fit that evening into this month's busy schedule. I haven't seen CITIZEN KANE since college; it didn't impress me then -- I seem to be a bit of a contrarian when it comes to certain highly regarded classics -- but perhaps I will appreciate it more from my current perspective!

In other Southern California movie news, the Egyptian's sister theater, the Aero, has a great Raymond Chandler double bill planned for February 16th: George Montgomery and Nancy Guild in the rarely shown THE BRASHER DOUBLOON (1947), directed by John Brahm, and Dick Powell in MURDER, MY SWEET (1944), directed by Edward Dmytryk. Alan K. Rode of the Film Noir Foundation will host the movies along with Helen Garber. That's an evening I'd really like to attend.

TCM in February: 31 Days of Oscar

2012-02-02T11:30:00.000-08:00

Happy Groundhog Day! Yes, it's February already!

I'm a day behind owing to a busy schedule this week, and it's time to check out the offerings in the 31 Days of Oscar Festival which began yesterday on Turner Classic Movies. Since it's Leap Year, the festival ends this year on March 2nd.

The February schedule can be found here, and be sure to check out TCM's special microsite celebrating the month's "travel" theme.

Here's a few of the month's highlights:

...Tomorrow, February 3rd, Virginia Bruce stars with John Barrymore in Universal's THE INVISIBLE WOMAN (1940), one of 27 films making its TCM premiere in February.

...Tomorrow evening, February 3rd, the 20th Century-Fox film THE RAINS CAME (1939) will be shown. Fox's Tyrone Power stars with two actors typically associated with other studios in that era, Myrna Loy (MGM) and George Brent (Warner Bros.). The movie won the Oscar for Best Special Effects.

...The evening of February 4th the focus is Britain in WWII, with Tyrone Power and Betty Grable in A YANK IN THE R.A.F. (1941), Greer Garson and Walter Pidgeon in MRS. MINIVER (1942), and Irene Dunne in THE WHITE CLIFFS OF DOVER (1944).

...THE V.I.P.S (1963), showing in the wee hours early on February 6th, has an interesting cast: Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, Rod Taylor, Louis Jourdan, Maggie Smith, Margaret Rutherford, and Orson Welles.

...Later February 6th I'll be recording the Powell-Pressburger film ONE OF OUR AIRCRAFT IS MISSING (1942), starring Eric Portman (MILLIONS LIKE US). It's about a British bomber shot down behind enemy lines and how the crew was aided by members of the Dutch underground.

...February 7th I'm interested in John Farrow's THE COMMANDOS STRIKE AT DAWN (1942), starring Paul Muni, Anna Lee, and Lillian Gish.

...I'm quite excited that the original STATE FAIR (1933) will be shown on February 8th. This Fox film stars Will Rogers, Janet Gaynor, Lew Ayres, and Norman Foster.

...There are a significant number of 20th Century-Fox films on TCM this month. One is SECOND FIDDLE (1939), a lovely piece of escapism starring Tyrone Power and Sonja Henie, with a score by Irving Berlin. It airs on the 9th.

...John Wayne, Montgomery Clift, Joanne Dru, Walter Brennan, and Coleen Gray star in RED RIVER (1948), also on the 9th. The great supporting cast of this Howard Hawks film includes Harry Carey Sr., Harry Carey Jr., Noah Beery Jr., John Ireland, and Paul Fix.

...The engrossing Douglas Sirk soaper WRITTEN ON THE WIND (1956), with its vivid colors and memorable title sequence, airs later on the 9th. It stars Rock Hudson, Lauren Bacall, Robert Stack, and Oscar winner Dorothy Malone, who turned 87 last Monday.

...Zachary Scott gave a highly regarded performance in Jean Renoir's THE SOUTHERNER (1945), about a poor sharecropping family. Betty Field plays his wife. It will be shown February 10th.

...Another TCM premiere is THE BEST OF EVERYTHING (1959) on February 11th. This story of three secretaries, played by Hope Lange, Suzy Parker, and Diane Baker, sounds as though it might be reminiscent of director Jean Negulesco's THREE COINS IN THE FOUNTAIN (1954).

...Those who've not caught John Ford's THEY WERE EXPENDABLE (1945) on a previous showing have another chance on February 15th. One of the finest WWII films ever made, it stars John Wayne, Donna Reed, and Robert Montgomery, who assisted Ford with directing duties.

...Gene Tierney, George Sanders, Bruce Cabot, Harry Carey and Joseph Calleia star in SUNDOWN (1941), directed by Henry Hathaway, on February 16th.

...An all-star cast stars in Edmund Goulding's THE RAZOR'S EDGE (1946), which is on my list of 10 classics to see this year. It stars Tyrone Power, Gene Tierney, John Payne, Anne Baxter, Herbert Marshall, and Clifton Webb. The air date is February 19th.

...Claudette Colbert, Miriam Hopkins, and Maurice Chevalier star in the Ernst Lubitsch film THE SMILING LIEUTENANT (1931) on February 20th. I've heard good things about this film, and in fact own it on DVD, but it's one film among many I still need to catch up with!

...I'm very fond of the bright, colorful DOWN ARGENTINE WAY (1940), starring Don Ameche and Betty Grable. It features a great dance by the Nicholas Brothers. It's shown February 21st.

...THE MORE THE MERRIER (1943) is one of my very favorite comedies. It stars Joel McCrea, Jean Arthur, and Charles Coburn. Don't miss it on February 22nd!

...George Folsey was Oscar-nominated for his Technicolor cinematography of ALL THE BROTHERS WERE VALIANT (1953), a seafaring tale starring three favorites, Robert Taylor, Ann Blyth, and Stewart Granger. It also has an excellent score by Miklos Rozsa. It will be shown February 23rd.

...I've become a fan of Brian Aherne, who stars with Victor McLaglen and Paul Lukas in CAPTAIN FURY (1938) on February 24th.

...Also showing on the 24th: ARIZONA (1940) with Jean Arthur, William Holden, and Warren William.

...February 27th is one of my favorite days on the schedule. It includes BOOMERANG! (1947), the excellent "procedural" film noir starring Dana Andrews; George Sanders and Vincent Price in THE HOUSE OF THE SEVEN GABLES (1940), a Universal film making its debut on TCM; Rene Clair's I MARRIED A WITCH (1942), which is overdue for a release on DVD; and another Fox premiere, COME TO THE STABLE (1949), the story of nuns struggling to build a hospital, which is charming but not cloying. Loretta Young and Celeste Holm star in COME TO THE STABLE, with a great supporting cast including Elsa Lanchester, Basil Ruysdael, Dorothy Patrick, Hugh Marlowe, Regis Toomey, Dooley Wilson, and Thomas Gomez. It was nominated for seven Oscars.

...Another TCM premiere is BLOCKADE (1938), airing February 28th and starring Henry Fonda and Madeleine Carroll.

...One of my favorite films of the '80s is THE RIGHT STUFF (1983), the terrific film about the early days of the U.S. space program, with a great cast including Dennis Quaid, Scott Glenn, Ed Harris, and Sam Shepard. Mary Jo Deschanel, who plays Annie Glenn, is the mother of Emily (BONES) and Zooey (NEW GIRL); Mary Jo's husband Caleb Deschanel was Oscar-nominated for his RIGHT STUFF cinematography. It's on the festival's closing night, March 2nd.

There are definitely a number of nice premieres this month, though I miss the "B" movies and smaller discoveries which make TCM so special. Those who share my feeling that February is the least interesting month on the TCM schedule will enjoy the conversation on this topic at Immortal Ephemera.

For more tips on what to watch on TCM this month, visit Shadows and Satin, where Karen recommends THE GUARDSMAN (1931), airing on February 21st, and Caftan Woman, who recommends John Ford's THE LONG VOYAGE HOME (1940) on February 7th.

Happy viewing!

Tonight's Movie: A Place in the Sun (1951) at the Bay Theatre

2012-02-01T23:31:00.000-08:00

I saw A PLACE IN THE SUN this evening at the Bay Theatre in Seal Beach, California -- the same theater where I saw SUNSET BOULEVARD (1950) on New Year's Day. It was a lovely print, the perfect way to see a classic black and white film. I only wish I could say I liked the movie!

This is the second classic I've seen in a theater this year which has left me disappointed, the earlier film being INHERIT THE WIND (1960). I disliked A PLACE IN THE SUN as much as I liked last night's movie, KISS OF DEATH (1947), which means that I disliked A PLACE IN THE SUN quite a lot.

The film came highly recommended, as it's the favorite film of Drew Casper, a film historian I admire greatly. (My daughter had several classes with him at USC.) Alas, Dr. Casper and I part company on this one, but we'll always share a love for Doris Day!

A PLACE IN THE SUN is the story of ambitious George Eastman (Montgomery Clift), the poor relation of a wealthy family of swimsuit manufacturers. George grew up in a family engaged in mission work, which I imagine is supposed to provide an ironic contrast to his relatives being enriched by the sale of skimpy clothing.

George goes to work in the Eastman factory; bored and lonely, he breaks the rules against employees fraternizing and takes up with Alice (Shelley Winters). George then meets his dream girl, Angela (Elizabeth Taylor), and is gradually accepted in the rarefied social circles of Angela and his relations. George is promoted higher in the company, Angela's parents are starting to accept him as a potential son-in-law, and all is right in George's world...except that Alice is in the family way, which means all George's fine plans are in ruins.

The first 20 minutes or so of the film were engrossing and potentially set up an interesting story. Clift's George was initially sympathetic, and the examination of class divisions was very well done, especially in the scene where George is invited to stop by his uncle's home. The awkwardness and social contrasts made for compelling viewing.

When Elizabeth Taylor enters the picture, she's absolutely dazzling. Indeed, the greatest reason to see this film is the way it captures Taylor at the height of her teenaged beauty. (It's a bit scary she wasn't even 20 yet when this was filmed.) Some of the images of Taylor are justly famous and haunting moments of cinematic beauty; it's hard to forget her expression in the dance scene where Clift declares his love.

But then...let's just say the movie could be subtitled "Stupid People Doing Stupid Things," which I'm borrowing from last summer's review of HUMAN DESIRE (1954). The only sympathetic character for most of the film is the innocent and loving Elizabeth Taylor.

I've never found Shelley Winters an appealing actress, and she's even less so here. Alice is in a difficult position, to be sure, but Winters and the filmmakers seemed determined to provide the most negative contrast possible with Elizabeth Taylor, and they succeed, to the film's detriment. The lack of sympathy engendered for Alice doesn't serve to provide the audience with understanding of George's actions so much as bore the viewer with the tedium of it all.

And speaking of tedium, I can't imagine a worse way to spent 15 minutes or so of a movie than watching Montgomery Clift's George agonize over whether or not to bump off Winters' Alice. Parking the car, renting the boat, minute after minute after minute...I felt no suspense and had no interest in what was going to happen, watching these two unlikeable people. Why should I have cared? Whatever he did, Clift's character had hit a dead end a short ways into the movie, and the story was over there. I really didn't need to follow him all the way to...well, where he ended up.

The film also suffers from an overdose of self-consciously artsy-craftsy shots, with one scene superimposed over another on several occasions. It didn't work for me.

Although this film was a disappointment, I have previously admired a great many films by director George Stevens, including SWING TIME (1936), PENNY SERENADE (1941), THE MORE THE MERRIER (1943), I REMEMBER MAMA (1948), SHANE (1953), and Stevens' later film with Elizabeth Taylor, GIANT (1956). I thought GIANT was a terrific movie, with some of the best work put on film by both Taylor and her costar Rock Hudson. It helped that they played much more dynamic, sympathetic characters, in an interesting story of people and a marriage evolving during changing times.

A PLACE IN THE SUN was based on the novel AN AMERICAN TRAGEDY by Theodore Dreiser, as well as a play adapted from the novel by Patrick Kearney. The screenplay was by Michael Wilson and Harry Brown.

The cinematography was by William C. Mellor. Franz Waxman composed the score. Elizabeth Taylor's gorgeous gowns were designed by Edith Head.

Stevens, Wilson and Brown, Mellor, Waxman, Head, and editor William Hornbeck all won Oscars. The film lost Best Picture to AN AMERICAN IN PARIS (1951).

The supporting cast includes Raymond Burr in an over-the-top performance as a prosecuting attorney. (I can't imagine any judge worth his salt would have approved of the attorney's concluding theatrics.) Anne Revere, Keefe Brasselle, Frieda Inescort, Fred Clark, Shepperd Strudwick, Kathryn Givney, and Walter Sande are also in the supporting cast.

A PLACE IN THE SUN is available on DVD and VHS; the DVD is available from Netflix. It can also be rented for streaming from Amazon Instant Video.

The movie can also be seen from time to time on Turner Classic Movies. The trailer is on the TCM website.

Tonight's Movie: Kiss of Death (1947)

2012-01-31T23:16:00.000-08:00

KISS OF DEATH, the film noir especially remembered for Richard Widmark's stunning film debut as a psychotic killer, is an excellent film which also features what may be Victor Mature's career-best performance.

Mature plays Nick Bianco, a small-time hood who, having been out of work for a year, resorts to robbing a jewelry store in order to try to provide Christmas for his wife and kids. Not too smart! Three years into Nick's jail sentence, his despondent, financially strapped wife has killed herself and his two little girls are in an orphanage.

Nick decides to play ball with the Assistant District Attorney (Brian Donlevy, in a sympathetic performance) and help him nab some criminals in return for being able to visit his daughters at the orphanage. Soon thereafter Nick is paroled. He marries sweet, adoring Nettie (Coleen Gray), his children's one-time baby-sitter who has had a crush on him for years, gets a job as a bricklayer, and for a time the Biancos live a happy life raising Nick's daughters.

Things go south in a hurry when Nick is compelled to testify against extremely dangerous killer Tommy Udo (Widmark) and the jury lets Udo walk free. Nick will do absolutely anything to protect his wife and little girls, resulting in a memorable showdown with Udo.

Although Coleen Gray -- who will be 90 this fall -- had previously filmed her role in RED RIVER (1948), this was the first movie to be released in which she had more than a bit role. I was quite taken with her performance, which seems very natural and emotionally open, whether she's greeting Nick like an excited teenager or sobbing at the dining room table as Nick explains just how bad their situation is. Her acting almost has a modern feel to it that seems rather unlike other performances of the era. Her scenes with Mature are all quite gripping and among the best in the film; in fact, I went back and replayed each one after the movie had ended. I was touched by the progression of their relationship, which is depicted in what is really just a few scenes.

It's interesting to me that while this film is rightly remembered for Richard Widmark's electric, Oscar-nominated film debut as Tommy Udo, some reviews found online are a bit tepid about the rest of the film, including Mature and Gray's performances. For me, Mature and Gray make the movie; and in fact, Mature's quietly played role provides a perfect opposite to Widmark's very flashy part. The contrasting dynamic between the two actors is a part of what makes Widmark so effective. Needless to say, Widmark's giggling killer is a hard character to forget.

Victor Mature may not have had a lot of range -- he never really worked for me in musicals like MY GAL SAL (1942) or MILLION DOLLAR MERMAID (1952) -- but at the same time, in the right types of projects, he was simply terrific. He's underestimated as an actor; there's a great deal going on in his performance in terms of expressions and body language, and he has soulful eyes few could match. The love he lavishes on his little girls is quite touching, especially coming from a man with such a troubled past; Nick's own father was a criminal, but Nick finally gets his act together and turns his life around. Mature's mix of tough and tender makes the transition believable.

Speaking of body language, it's fun to carefully observe the scene where Nick visits Nettie after his release from jail. She's very excited and seems to keep herself from touching him by clasping her hands behind her back and then folding her arms over her chest. Nick, meanwhile, stands with his arms spread open. When Nettie walks past Nick to get him some dinner, he reaches for her and the emotional dam breaks.

I came across a YouTube video in which Coleen Gray discusses being cast in KISS OF DEATH and working with director Henry Hathaway. I must say I was taken aback by her interpretation of the ending and choose to view it differently. Besides, Walter Winchell voices agreement with my interpretation in the trailer!

It seems as though director Henry Hathaway could be a bit of a pill to some actors until they'd had enough. Gray describes Hathaway picking on her while they were on location filming the charming kitchen scene, to the extent that she finally fled upstairs in tears. Hathaway followed her, told her she was doing fine, and from then on they were great friends. Similarly, I've read that Richard Widmark was so exasperated by Hathaway he walked off the set at lunchtime, saying he didn't need the hassle of a movie career, but Hathaway followed him, apologized, and from then on they were friends and worked together again on later films.

KISS OF DEATH illustrates both the strengths and weaknesses of the Production Code. After Udo and Bianco are admitted into a high-security building, as they walk up the stairs Bianco asks "What's that smell?" Udo replies that it's perfume. It's quite clear to adults what sort of establishment the two men are entering, but at the same time a child wouldn't have a clue. It's so much more sophisticated than something blatant, a great example of less being more.

On the other hand, in the real world there's no way a pair of loving newlyweds like Nick and Nettie sleep in twin beds, a rather absurd convention which seems to have existed mainly in the movies.

The film has a great look, with terrific location shooting in New York. I love Nick and Nettie's house, which is just right, a comfortable but lower-class home they could afford, including ancient, too-loud wallpaper. The film also has plentiful noir style, including the men's wardrobes -- love the hats -- and creepy shadows. The finest noir moment is the headlights which shine on Nick and Nettie as they sit at their dining room table, a visually stunning, memorably scary couple of seconds.

Look for Karl Malden in a small role as a police investigator. Millard Mitchell is effective as a cop. Taylor Holmes is a slimy lawyer to lowlifes, and Mildred Dunnock is a woman in a wheelchair who has a most unfortunate encounter with Tommy Udo. Iris Mann plays Mature's older daughter, Connie; IMDb doesn't list a credit for the little girl who played Rosie.

An intriguing bit of information is that Patricia Morison filmed a scene or scenes as Maria, Nick's first wife, but was edited out of the picture. Her name appears on some posters, along with the name of actor Robert Keith, who was also cut. Henry Brandon, who played the often-talked-about mobster Pete Rizzo, ended up on the cutting-room floor as well.

The script by Ben Hecht and Charles Lederer was based on an Oscar-nominated original story by Eleazar Lipsky. IMDb indicates Philip Dunne also did uncredited work on the script. KISS OF DEATH runs 99 minutes.

The theme music heard as the film draws to a close, and also heard in the trailer, is Alfred Newman's "Street Scene." First used in the 1931 film STREET SCENE, the music was used in at least two other Fox noir titles starring Victor Mature, I WAKE UP SCREAMING (1941) and CRY OF THE CITY (1948). It also appeared in THE DARK CORNER (1946) and HOW TO MARRY A MILLIONAIRE (1953).

KISS OF DEATH was released on DVD as Fox Film Noir No. 11. Extras include a commentary track by Alain Silver and James Ursini. It's available from Netflix.

It's also been released on VHS.

KISS OF DEATH can also be seen on Fox Movie Channel, which will next show the movie on February 7, 2012. Incidentally, there's a still on the Fox Movie Channel webpage which misidentifies Coleen Gray; the scene does not appear in the film, and I suspect the woman shown in profile is Patricia Morison.

Highly recommended.

Tonight's Movie: The Second Woman (1950)

2012-01-30T17:00:00.000-08:00

THE SECOND WOMAN is an enjoyable mystery thriller with overtones of "gothic noir," starring Robert Young and Betsy Drake.

Ellen Foster (Drake), a CPA, meets architect Jeff Cohalan (Young) while on the train to visit her aunt (Florence Bates) on the Northern California coast. Jeff has been going through a tough time after the death of his fiancee in a car wreck on the eve of their wedding; at times he's charming, while at other points he is very distant. Life grows even more difficult for Jeff as several upsetting incidents of "bad luck" continue to plague him.

Ellen, with a background in actuarial work, comes to believe the odds are impossible that Jeff is simply experiencing accidents by chance, and she sets out to discover who is causing the increasingly dangerous events before it's too late.

This is a solid film with a number of unique angles. The plot is presented in an interesting manner, starting with an apparent suicide attempt by Jeff, then spending an hour in a flashback before picking up the plot again where the movie started. The script by Mort Briskin and Robert Smith does a good job keeping the viewer guessing whether Jeff is suffering from paranoia or one of several people might be trying to do him harm, and there's an unanticipated twist near the ending, too.

Betsy Drake's character, a professional woman with bracing common sense, provides a nice contrast with the film's "spooky house" mood. So often in the "gothic noir" tradition it's the woman who is in jeopardy, but in this case, it's the hero who is in danger, from himself or an unknown assailant. Having the heroine use her business knowledge to help save the hero is a refreshing switch from the typical storyline of the era.

Perhaps the one lingering question is what exactly draws the sensible Ellen to the moody Jeff so strongly, but the heroine falling for a brooding hero is another old plot standby, so it's not too hard to accept. Young plays the role in such a way that at times it's truly difficult to decide if he's persecuted or a mental case.

One of the film's interesting aspects is the very distinctive modern home owned by Robert Young's character, which has equally original interior decor. I was thus intrigued to learn that the film's production designer was Boris Leven, who was nominated for multiple Oscars over the course of his long career, winning for WEST SIDE STORY (1961). The set direction was by Jacques Mapes.

In another unique touch, the film's score is built around themes by Tschaikovsky, with additional original music by Joseph Nussbaum.

John Sutton plays a sleazy associate of Jeff's who has just divorced his wife (Jean Rogers). Sutton is adequate but a bit overdone at times, in a role Zachary Scott could have played well in his sleep.

Morris Carnovsky plays Jeff's doctor, who is also attempting to understand his mental state. The role is somewhat reminiscent of Carnovsky's role as Hedy Lamarr's doctor in DISHONORED LADY (1947).

It's nice to see Florence Bates, who so often portrayed unpleasant women, playing Ellen's kind aunt. The excellent character actor Henry O'Neill plays Jeff's boss and the father his late fiancee. Head Mouseketeer Jimmie Dodd (billed as Jimmy) has a small role offering some key evidence late in the film.

The ubiquitous Bess Flowers, who was probably in more nightclub, country club, and party scenes than anyone in movie history, can be spotted in two scenes, first at the country club dance and later sitting at John Sutton's table at the fiesta.

THE SECOND WOMAN was directed by James V. Kern. The black and white cinematography was by Hal Mohr.

This film is out on DVD from Alpha, which releases public domain films. The DVD has a couple of brief skips and occasionally the soundtrack seems a bit muffled, but it's very watchable, on the higher quality end of Alpha's releases.

A DVD is available from Netflix, but the release company isn't identified.
It's also currently available on YouTube.

This film has also been released on VHS.

As an aside, what were they thinking with the poor illustrations of Robert Young and Betsy Drake in the poster with the black background, above and second down on the left?! What an odd pose and expressions. The poster at the very top left is much more attractive and in keeping with the spirit of the film.

The film does have an odd moment or two, such as the almost complete lack of reaction when someone is shot near the end of the movie. All in all, though, I found the movie to be a pleasant surprise, delivering 91 minutes of solid entertainment.

In Disney News...

2012-01-30T13:45:00.000-08:00

It's been a couple months now since the last roundup of Disney news!

...The next issue of Disney Twenty-three magazine goes on sale February 14th. It features a beautiful SNOW WHITE cover celebrating 75 years of Disney animation.

...Disney historian J.B. Kaufman, author of the excellent book SOUTH OF THE BORDER WITH DISNEY, has a new book coming out later this year: THE FAIREST ONE OF ALL: THE MAKING OF WALT DISNEY'S SNOW WHITE AND THE SEVEN DWARFS. It will be published by the Walt Disney Family Foundation Press. The Walt Disney Family Museum will also be hosting an exhibit on SNOW WHITE this November.

...California Adventure featured an exhibit titled THE ART OF SNOW WHITE in 2008, and I posted some of my photos at that time.

...Coming to the Hollywood Bowl this summer: Pixar in Concert on Friday, August 3rd. The concert will include clips from Pixar films.

...There are some great new projection shows coming to It's a Small World at Disneyland: a Valentine's themed show starting on February 1st features lanterns from TANGLED and stained glass images of Disney princes and princesses, and a summer show which turns the ride facade into a giant sandcastle.

...I'm not a fan of Disney changing its dress code to allow beards. The dress code and prohibition on beards has been part of the parks' clean-cut look for at least 55 years; why change now?

...Tickets go on sale today for the latest Broadway version of a Disney musical, NEWSIES. It opens at the Nederlander Theatre on March 15th.

...Jim Korkis recently posted a good article on the history of Disneyland's Matterhorn at Storyboard, the official blog of the Walt Disney Family Museum.

...A Matterhorn movie is in the works?!

...By 2014 the Walt Disney Studios Park at Disneyland Paris will be home to a new RATATOUILLE dark ride, with a related restaurant. What could be more perfect for Disneyland Paris? The Studios park is in need of more attractions so this is good news.

...The trailer for Pixar's BRAVE (2012) has been playing before BEAUTY AND THE BEAST (1991). Love the Scottish accents! Hope it's another good one from Pixar.

...Disney's THE SNOW QUEEN project is back on track after being put on hold a couple of years ago; it's gone through the same name change process as TANGLED (2010) and will now be called simply FROZEN. Can't have a title that skews to girls, you see! Unfortunately plans for a hand-drawn 2D cartoon, in the vein of THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG (2009), have been scrapped in favor of 3D computer graphics.

...Registration for the next MouseAdventure event opens tomorrow, January 31st, at 9:00 a.m. The March 11th event will be called "MouseAdventure Card Games," and this year the Basic Division game will take place in Downtown Disney as well as Disneyland. Gulp! Our family's team, Skippers in De Nile, plans to participate again.

...In December Disney confirmed last summer's rumor that Ghirardelli is coming to Disney's California Adventure, moving into the site of the former Mission Tortilla factory. The new location will feature a soda fountain and chocolate shop.

...Disneyland is celebrating "One More Disney Day" by remaining open 'round the clock on Leap Day, February 29, 2012.

...As I mentioned at the end of my review of BEAUTY AND THE BEAST (1991), I'm looking forward to seeing LADY AND THE TRAMP (1955) next weekend at the Disney-operated El Capitan Theatre on Hollywood Boulevard. This will be our first visit to the El Capitan, as well as our first opportunity to see LADY AND THE TRAMP on a big screen.

Around the Blogosphere This Week

2012-01-29T23:00:00.001-08:00

Miscellaneous bits of news and fun stuff from around the Internet...

...Tom Selleck's next JESSE STONE TV-movie, BENEFIT OF THE DOUBT (2012), will be shown on CBS May 20th. Selleck cowrote the screenplay. I need to catch up on seeing the last couple Stone films!

...The New York Post published an interesting interview with Turner Classic Movies programmer Charlie Tabesh today.

...Speaking of TCM, at Immortal Ephemera Cliff has thoughts on the station's annual Oscar month, and he also breaks down by decade the films TCM is showing early this year. I found the results of his tally interesting.

...Cliff also recently reviewed Robert Montgomery in PICCADILLY JIM (1936), a film I reviewed last summer. I always enjoy reading more about Robert Montgomery films!

...At Classic Movies, KC shares thoughts on Robert Montgomery and Joan Crawford in LETTY LYNTON (1932), one of my favorite pre-Codes. Let's hope that Warner Archive succeeds in untangling the legal issues so it can at last be widely seen, in a good print.

...At Dear Old Hollywood, Robby checks out the locations of WHO'S BEEN SLEEPING IN MY BED? (1963). I especially loved the shots of Market Basket, a grocery store I remember from my early childhood. The blue Van De Kamp's bakery sign hanging over the door brings back memories.

...And over in England, Matthew finds a location from Ealing comedies at Movietone News. He shares some terrific photos.

...Debbie Reynolds gave her ONE FOR THE MONEY (2012) co-star Katherine Heigl a new perspective on what constitutes a long, hard day on a movie set.

...Colin shares thoughts on the Randolph Scott-Budd Boetticher Western WESTBOUND (1958) at Riding the High Country, and there's a good discussion which follows in the comments. I liked it. It's available in a boxed set of Randolph Scott Westerns from Warner Archive.

...TRANSATLANTIC (1931), starring Edmund Lowe and Myrna Loy, sounds quite interesting. Read more about it at Where Danger Lives.

...Raquelle recently reviewed James Garner and Eva Marie Saint in GRAND PRIX (1966) at Out of the Past. Racing fans will want to check out her series on other racing films of the late '60s and early '70s.

...Sometimes I enjoy Roger Ebert, and other times we sharply part company. His recent column on DOWNTON ABBEY made me smile.

...Here's a great recipe for molasses cookies published by the L.A. Times. It originates from Milk in Los Angeles.

...Slow-Cooker Brunswick Stew, from Cook's Country, looks good too!

...Why is the first season of L.A. LAW out on Region 2 DVD but not available on DVD or even streaming in the U.S.?

...Restaurants strategize how to deal with their customers' ever-present cell phones. I was amused by the term "reciprocell."

...Reese Witherspoon's new movie, THIS MEANS WAR (2012), is due out on Valentine's Day. It was going to receive an R rating, which would have limited the film's potential audience, but the studio made edits and it's now rated PG-13. That change sounds good to me; I've had my fill of rated R dialogue for a while after seeing THE DESCENDANTS (2011) and CONTRABAND (2012) in recent weeks. I shared a link for the THIS MEANS WAR trailer last fall.

...Yosemite is considering a plan to limit hikers on Half Dome. I've thought the current policy, which allows children on the dangerous trail, was kind of nuts for years now.

...Over at Sidewalk Crossings, Deb reviews Stewart Granger and Valerie Hobson in BLANCHE FURY (1948). It can be streamed on Netflix.

...Attention Southern Californians: On Wednesday, February 8th, UCLA will be hosting a film noir double bill of Cornel Wilde and Richard Conte in THE BIG COMBO (1955), teamed with Dick Powell and Lizabeth Scott in PITFALL (1948). The films will be shown in 35mm prints at the historic Million Dollar Theater in Downtown Los Angeles. Alan Rode, who is always a pleasure to hear speak, will be on hand. I'm hoping to attend.

...Notable Passings: Screenwriter Robert Dozier passed away at the age of 81. He was married to Diana Muldaur and was the son of producer William Dozier. One of his stepmothers was Joan Fontaine, and his stepmother of many decades was Ann Rutherford. (Via KC at Classic Movies.)...Actor James Farentino, who had a long, busy TV career, passed on at the age of 73...Emmy-winning director John Rich, who worked on many episodes of THE DICK VAN DYKE SHOW, has died at the age of 86.

Have a great week!

Tonight's Movie: Beauty and the Beast (1991) 3D Special Edition

2012-01-29T20:00:00.000-08:00

Today I went to see the 3D Special Edition of Disney's BEAUTY AND THE BEAST. Over the last couple of decades it's been easy to take this film for granted, due in part to constant exposure to the movie as my children were growing up, but seeing it today brought home to me anew just how exceptionally good this film is. I consider it to be the gem of Disney's Second Golden Age of Animation.

BEAUTY AND THE BEAST, of course, is Disney's telling of the story of Belle (Paige O'Hara), a beautiful, bookish girl. Belle bravely agrees to live in the enchanted castle of the cursed Beast (Robby Benson) if the Beast will set her imprisoned father free.

The Beast's servants (Angela Lansbury, Jerry Orbach, and David Ogden Stiers), who were cursed to live as a teapot, candlestick, and clock, hope Belle will come to love the Beast and thus set them all free from their spell. Just when it seems their hopes will come true, boorish Gaston (Richard White), who wants Belle for himself, arrives at the castle with evil intent.

It's a simple story ("tale as old as time..."), beautifully told and expertly paced, with a brilliant, Oscar-winning score by Allan Menken and Howard Ashman. The script, voices, and animation all represent Disney in peak form. To borrow a phrase from another classic Disney musical, BEAUTY AND THE BEAST is "practically perfect in every way."

I vividly remember when we took our oldest daughter, who had just turned three, to see BEAUTY AND THE BEAST the year it opened. After the first song, "Belle," my husband and I turned and looked at each other with some amazement. It had the excitement of a big Broadway choral number, with powerful voices to match. (I had the rare chance to share our happy memories and how much I love this sequence with producer Don Hahn when I attended a screening of WAKING SLEEPING BEAUTY a couple of years ago.) Two decades later, this number still thrills me.

Perhaps it's a stretch, but the "Belle" sequence has always reminded me just a bit of the opening "Isn't It Romantic?" sequence in LOVE ME TONIGHT (1932), as various characters in a European town take part in the song and set the story moving on its way. In fact, as I think on it more, LOVE ME TONIGHT also happens to have its moments of enchantment, with the aunts working to cast a spell on Princess Jeanette (Jeanette MacDonald). And Gaston's shadow projected on a wall in BEAUTY AND THE BEAST reminds me Maurice Chevalier's shadow on the wall in the earlier film. Perhaps this is all coincidental, but it does serve to illustrate one way that BEAUTY AND THE BEAST fits into a long tradition of excellent movie musicals.

I believe Belle is one of Disney's best animated characters, both in terms of her personality and the animation itself. Belle is no shy princess, but a girl who isn't afraid to say "no" and who doesn't hesitate to put herself on the line for those she loves. The myriad expressions which cross her face are truly remarkable; it's easy to see just what she's thinking. And her habit of pushing a strand of hair back out of her face is quite lifelike.

I remember how surprised -- even shocked -- I was when I heard that Robby Benson had been cast as the Beast. For me, he was the baby-voiced George Gibbs of OUR TOWN (1977) and other '70s productions. I was quite amazed and pleasantly surprised the first time I heard his deep voice as the Beast. Lansbury, Orbach, and Stiers are also terrific and have their moments to shine, including in the songs "Be Our Guest" and the title track. The film marked Lansbury's return to Disney 20 years after starring in BEDKNOBS AND BROOMSTICKS (1971).

If there is a flaw to be found anywhere in this film, it's perhaps the reference to the castle having been enchanted for ten years, which doesn't seem to compute with the young age of Chip (Bradley Pierce) and may not fit with the curse on the Beast. Was he just 11 when he was cursed?

BEAUTY AND THE BEAST was nominated for Best Picture. Looking back, I personally find it rather appalling that a film as nasty as SILENCE OF THE LAMBS won instead. BEAUTY AND THE BEAST is uplifting, exquisitely made art which represents the very best of movie-making and which will continue to be enjoyed by viewers of all ages for generations to come.

I like my 3D in small doses, and I must say I was particularly impressed with this film's 3D presentation. It's so well done that it appears as though the film was originally designed that way, which strikes me as quite a feat. The opening sequence explaining the curse almost looks like a pop-up book unfolding as the camera moves in closer to the castle. I highly recommend taking advantage of the opportunity to see the movie in this format.

BEAUTY AND THE BEAST was directed by Gary Trousdale and Kirk Wise, from a screenplay by Linda Woolverton. It runs 84 minutes.

BEAUTY AND THE BEAST was preceded by the six-minute short TANGLED EVER AFTER (2012), a very amusing sequel to TANGLED (2010). Zachary Levi and Mandy Moore reprise the voices of Flynn Rider and Rapunzel.

I recommend the 2-disc BEAUTY AND THE BEAST Platinum Edition DVD released in 2002. Another two-disc edition was released last fall.

BEAUTY AND THE BEAST can also be purchased on Amazon Instant Video. It was released on VHS in 1992.

Related posts: Tonight's Theater: Beauty and the Beast; Tonight's Movie: Waking Sleeping Beauty (2009); Tonight's Movie: Beauty and the Beast (1976).

I'm looking forward to another special Disney film experience soon, as we have tickets to see LADY AND THE TRAMP (1955) next weekend at the Disney-operated El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood.

Disneyland: The Jolly Holiday Bakery Cafe

2012-01-29T08:59:00.000-08:00

When we visited Disneyland last Friday, one of the things we enjoyed was taking a close look at the brand-new Jolly Holiday Bakery Cafe, which opened this month on the site of the old Plaza Pavilion restaurant.

In recent years the Plaza Pavilion had served as the processing center for annual passes, but with the Jolly Holiday Bakery Cafe, the building returns to its original purpose as a restaurant. And the theme is so perfect for Main Street U.S.A., one almost wonders why Disneyland didn't use this idea sooner!

Decorative windows with the penguin waiters from the "It's a Jolly Holiday" scene in MARY POPPINS were one of my favorite touches:

The floor in the center of the bakery entrance has this tile image, reminiscent of a sidewalk chalk drawing:

Another nice touch:

It was quite crowded and difficult to get a good overview of the restaurant. Here's a glimpse toward the counter area. One of the things I really liked was some framed photos of birds which call to mind both "Spoonful of Sugar" and "Feed the Birds." The edge of one such picture is barely glimpsed to the right in this photo. (Click any photo for an enlarged view.)

One of the dessert display cases:

Many of the desserts are holdovers from the now-closed Blue Ribbon Bakery, but there are also some new items, including miniature pies. The Jolly Holiday also serves sandwiches. I hoped that the new bakery might emulate Florida's Main Street Bakery and add crumb cake to the menu, but no luck!

Another decorating detail:

All in all, the Jolly Holiday Bakery Cafe is a very nice addition to the park!

For even more photos and information on the menu, visit the Disney Food Blog or Inside the Magic.

Today at Disneyland: Chinese New Year

2012-01-27T20:20:00.000-08:00

We made our first visit of the year to Disneyland this evening. We had a nice dinner at the Plaza Inn, checked out the brand-new Jolly Holiday Bakery, and took in the Chinese New Year decorations along the walkway to It's a Small World.

January flowers on Main Street U.S.A.:

It was a nice day today, although the wind was picking up enough by early evening that tonight's fireworks show had to be cancelled.

The Matterhorn is being rehabbed:

The path to It's a Small World, decorated for the Chinese New Year:

Twilight at Disneyland:

I'll be back to share some photos of the new Jolly Holiday Bakery Cafe later in the weekend.

Update: Here's the Jolly Holiday post!

Tonight's Movie: Colleen (1936)

2012-01-26T16:00:00.000-08:00

COLLEEN is a mixed bag of a movie, with the pleasures of the ever-charming Dick Powell and Ruby Keeler struggling to push aside the leaden goofball antics of Hugh Herbert and Jack Oakie. For the most part Dick and Ruby succeed, which makes the movie worth watching, even if it has more than its share of groaner moments.

In their seventh and final teaming, Dick is the responsible nephew of a crazed millionaire (Herbert), while Ruby is the poor, honest bookkeeper working at a struggling dress shop the uncle purchases on a whim. Dick plans to shut down the shop and chalk it up as one more of his uncle's irresponsible mistakes, but before he can close it, Ruby is turned loose to run the shop and it becomes a success. Dick and Ruby fall in love, have a misunderstanding, and he proposes. The End. (You don't really consider that a spoiler, do you? Don't Dick and Ruby always end up together?!)

This time around the Warren-Dubin score didn't introduce any songs which became lasting hits, but Dick Powell's crooning of "I Don't Have to Dream Again" and "An Evening With You" is pleasant. Ruby has two very enjoyable dances with Paul Draper which I liked as much as any of Ruby's past work; her movements are very fluid and she doesn't do the tapping hunched over and looking at her feet as she sometimes did in earlier films. I've always found Ruby endearing, and I love watching her teamed with Powell, who's one of my favorites.

One of the film's delightfully ersatz moments is when the struggling dress shop puts on a fashion show...and suddenly the shop has a gigantic stage and dozens of models performing a Busby Berkeley style dance number! Even better, bookkeeper Ruby, who has just invited Dick to watch the fashion show with her, is suddenly the dancing star of the show. She does a marvelous tap number with Paul Draper depicting a courtship and marriage. And when it's over, she's back in her bookkeeper wardrobe without a hair mussed or a drop of sweat; you'd never know she'd just been tapping her heart out! Draper and Bobby Connolly created the dances.

Another of the really fun things about the film is watching the faces that float by. There's Charles Coleman, the perennial butler...Mary Treen as Hugh Herbert's secretary/baby-sitter...the tall second process server turns out to be Ward Bond...and if you watch verrrrry closely, Dennis O'Keefe is an extra who dances right behind Dick and Ruby on the ship.

Other highlights include the gorgeous art deco ship, Joan Blondell as a "candy topper," and risque bits of dialogue and song lyrics which almost seem as though they belong in a film of the pre-Code era, which had ended a couple years before COLLEEN was released.

Then there's the down side, which I alluded to earlier. I believe it was Ivan of the blog Thrilling Days of Yesteryear who described Hugh Herbert as the equivalent of a "cinematic toothache" a couple of years ago, and the description was certainly apt. I have a hard time finding any humor at all in a man who is so imbecilic that he can't string a sentence together and comes across as a serious mental case. I like my humor to spring from smart people saying witty things, not idiots in need of round-the-clock observation.

A couple years ago John of Greenbriar Picture Shows, who otherwise enjoyed the movie, wrote "Maybe if Warners told you enough times that Hugh Herbert’s funny, you’d eventually wear down and agree he was... Suppose folks actually found him amusing? What does that say about our forebears?"

Jack Oakie isn't much better, although at least he's capable of talking coherently. By all accounts he was a lovely, popular gentleman off the screen, not to mention a generous contributor to the USC School of Cinematic Arts. But I just didn't find him fun to watch in this.

This movie was directed by Alfred E. Green. It runs 89 minutes. The supporting cast includes Marie Wilson, Louise Fazenda, Luis Alberni, J.M. Kerrigan, and Hobart Cavanaugh.

COLLEEN is available on DVD-R from the Warner Archive. The sound struck me as slightly muffled early on, but the print was otherwise acceptable. The disc includes a trailer.

This film can also be seen on Turner Classic Movies. The trailer is on the TCM website; it's pretty cute.

Dick Powell and Ruby Keeler movies previously reviewed here at Laura's Miscellaneous Musings: GOLD DIGGERS OF 1933 (1933), FOOTLIGHT PARADE (1933), 42ND STREET (1933), FLIRTATION WALK (1934), and DAMES (1934). When I catch up with SHIPMATES FOREVER (1935), I'll have completed seeing all seven Powell-Keeler films.