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Month: June 2021

Mission to Moscow (1943)

Mission to Moscow (1943)

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“At least one European nation without aggressive intentions is ready for anything that comes — and I say, thank God for it.”

Synopsis:
Roosevelt’s second ambassador to the Soviet Union — Joseph E. Davies (Walter Huston) — shares his positive impressions of life in Stalinist Russia, urging the U.S. to join forces with Stalin (Manart Kippen) against Nazi Germany.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

  • Eleanor Parker Films
  • Michael Curtiz Films
  • Walter Huston Films
  • World War II

Review:
This rather astonishing piece of pro-Russia wartime propaganda, produced by Warner Brothers Studios and given full approval by the Office of War Information, presents a cinematic version of Ambassador Davies’ popular 1941 memoir, wherein he asserted that the Soviet Union had been sorely misunderstood and unfairly maligned. As he (played by Huston) says directly to Stalin (Kippen) in the film:

“I’ve been greatly impressed by what I’ve seen — your industrial plants, the development of natural resources, and the work being done to improve living conditions everywhere in Russia. I believe, sir, that history will record you as a great builder for the benefit of mankind.”

DVD Savant accurately refers to the film as “an amazingly didactic speech-fest with almost zero dramatic value,” adding that “insidious is the only word for the film’s whitewash of Stalin’s actions and the motives behind them.” Indeed, critics on both sides of the political aisle — in America and Russia — took issue with the many inaccuracies on display here, perhaps most notably the one-sided view of the murderous Moscow Trials. Mission to Moscow remains merely a cinematic curiosity, and certainly not must-see viewing for film fanatics.

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:

  • Bert Glennon’s cinematography

Must See?
No. Listed as a film with Historical Importance in the back of Peary’s book.

Links:

Proud Valley, The (1940)

Proud Valley, The (1940)

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“Aren’t we all black down in that pit?”

Synopsis:
When an itinerant Black laborer (Paul Robeson) arrives in a Welsh coal mining town, he soon finds himself involved in both the local choir and local labor issues, which are impacting the ability of a poor but ambitious young Welshman (Simon Lack) to marry his sweetheart (Janet Johnson).

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

  • Labor Movements
  • Mining Towns
  • Paul Robeson Films

Review:
One of Paul Robeson’s final films — other than appearing briefly in Tales of Manhattan (1942) and narrating the documentary Native Land (1942) — was this pro-labor film taking place in Wales, and directed by Pen Tennyson (who died in an airplane accident the next year at the age of 28). It’s certainly refreshing to see Robeson playing a more nuanced — and less demeaned — character than usual, though he’s ultimately relegated to the back stage in favor of the broader cause of labor issues, as well as town squabbles over money and class. Less easy to swallow is the final sacrifice he makes in the film — though at least the choice is his own, and seemingly based on age and marital status rather than race. The story covers some of the same thematic territory in another film from the same year, Carol Reed’s The Stars Look Down (1940), which would make for an interesting — if perhaps too-depressing — double-bill.

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:

  • Beautiful singing
  • Fine b&w cinematography


Must See?
No, though of course Paul Robeson fans will want to check it out.

Links:

Crack in the World (1965)

Crack in the World (1965)

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“To obtain limitless energy has been a dream of mankind for thousands of years.”

Synopsis:
When a terminally ill scientist (Dana Andrews) goes against the wishes of his younger colleague (Kieron Moore) and orders a nuclear missile to be sent deep into the earth in order to release magma for energy, he unwittingly causes a life-threatening crack in the world. Can his supportive scientist-wife (Janette Scott) help them reverse the damage they’ve done?

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

  • Atomic Energy
  • Dana Andrews Films
  • Disaster Flicks
  • Love Triangle
  • Mad Doctors and Scientists

Review:
Following The Day of the Triffids (1963), writer-producer Philip Yordan made this similarly-themed apocalyptic tale about the impending destruction of the Earth, once again featuring Kieron Moore and Janette Scott:

… though this time Moore gets to play a reasonable fellow, while Dana Andrews plays Scott’s a-hole husband:

The film convincingly shows the perils of scientists allowed too much power over the state of world affairs; in this case, Andrews’ hubris leads to an instantly disastrous effect that kills off tens of thousands of humans. To that end, this story remains ever so creepy, and possibly prescient.

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:

  • Fine Technicolor cinematography
  • Impressive special effects

Must See?
No, but it’s worth a look if you enjoy this kind of flick.

Links:

Day of the Triffids, The (1963)

Day of the Triffids, The (1963)

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“Keep behind me; there’s no sense in getting killed by a plant!”

Synopsis:
When a man (Howard Keel) recovering from eye surgery learns he is one of the few survivors of a meteorite shower that has blinded most of the world, he teams up with a young stowaway (Janina Faye) and a woman (Nicole Maurey) who can also see as they attempt to protect themselves from marauding killer plants known as triffids. Meanwhile, a married pair of marine biologists (Kieron Moore and Janette Scott) living in an isolated lighthouse soon find themselves surrounded by triffids, and must find a way to survive.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

  • Blindness
  • Horror Films
  • Howard Keel Films
  • Killer Plants
  • Post-Apocalypse
  • Science Fiction
  • Survival

Response to Peary’s Review:
Peary writes that this “enjoyable sci-fi” flick — based on an “exciting, thoughtful novel” by John Wyndham — is “kept from being a classic… because the triffids are foolish-looking and actually get in the way of what would have been a far more interesting storyline: how the world’s survivors cope with the end of civilization” (which is “the part of the story that was emphasized in the 1981 British TV movie”). I agree with Peary’s short review, which doesn’t provide much more than basics of the plot, and also mentions that “Freddie Francis directed the Moore-Scott scenes a year after [listed director Steve] Sekeley completed his work.” The idea of the entire world (minus a few survivors) being blinded is creepy enough that we certainly don’t need the primary plot of killer plants — which are laughably non-menacing.

The best scenes show the fallout of the meteorite-induced blindness — such as the after-effects of Keel chatting with his eye surgeon:


… the chaos of blind passengers emerging from a crashed train:

… and a plane crew’s attempt to keep passengers calm while they request help to land their doomed aircraft:

Unfortunately, nearly everything else about the film is poorly written, with the subplot about quibbling Scott and Moore (a mean alcoholic) especially jarring — though Scott does provide the film’s best scream-shots:

There’s also something inherently compelling about watching motley survivors banding together to figure out their next steps:

However, this film isn’t must-see except for those curious about its cult status.

Note: Click here to watch Janette Scott reminiscing about her experience making the portion of the film she appeared in — which includes a surprising anecdote about Oliver Reed!

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:

  • Some creepy post-apocalyptic imagery

Must See?
No, but it’s worth a one-time look.

Links:

Dog Star Man (1964)

Dog Star Man (1964)

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Synopsis:
A man (Stan Brakhage) walking up a snowy mountain with his dog sees visions of life and the cosmos.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

  • Experimental Films
  • Silent Films

Review:
As noted by Wikipedia, “Over the course of five decades” experimental filmmaker Stan Brakhage “created a large and diverse body of work, exploring a variety of formats, approaches and techniques that included handheld camerawork, painting directly onto celluloid, fast cutting, in-camera editing, scratching on film, collage film and the use of multiple exposures.” Dog Star Man — a compilation of five short films — is likely an excellent representation of his style (at least at one point in time) given that it’s non-linear, highly experimental, and stone silent. Indeed, there was no quote available to choose from, and coming up with a plot synopsis was challenging given that the “film” was crafted as a strategic compilation of images rather than a cohesive narrative. According to Criterion’s essay, “In Brakhage films we enter into momentary perceptual transactions in which we trade unhindered assimilation of images for intensified contact with pictorial or sensory features that might otherwise go unnoticed” — in other words, his films are experiences rather than stories per se. Be forewarned. Like Jack Smith’s Flaming Creatures (1963) and Michael Snow’s Wavelength (1967), this movie will surely test your patience but perhaps make you feel a little better informed about film-as-art during the 1960s. Selected into the National Film Registry in 1992 for being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant”.

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:

  • Innovative cinematic techniques

Must See?
No, though of course any viewer interested in the history of experimental cinema will want to check it out (and it’s easily available for viewing on YouTube these days). Listed as a film with Historical Importance in the back of Peary’s book, which makes sense.

(Listed in 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die)

Links:

Comanche Station (1960)

Comanche Station (1960)

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“Seems long ago, he lost his woman to the Indians — been huntin’ to find her ever since.”

Synopsis:
After freeing a white woman (Nancy Gates) from capture by Comanches, a man (Randolph Scott) runs into a bounty hunter (Claude Akins) and his two assistants (Skip Homeier and Richard Rust), who inform Gates that her husband has offered $5,000 for her return. Will Akins and his team try to grab the bounty for themselves — and if so, at what cost?

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

  • Budd Boetticher Films
  • Native Americans
  • Randolph Scott Films
  • Westerns

Response to Peary’s Review:
Peary writes that this “last of Budd Boetticher’s seven ‘B’ westerns starring Randolph Scott” is “typical of Boetticher westerns” in that “the villain (Akins) is the flip side of the hero (Scott) — a man with a similar background (they were in the army together) and opportunities who chose an amoral way of life; Scott’s Cody has a code of honor.”

He adds that while “they are two interesting characters who are destined to fight with one another,” “neither will change” and “their function is simply to serve as role models for young Rust, who would like to lead a decent life if given the inspiration.”

Peary writes that “throughout [the film] we wonder when Scott will make the same advances to Gates that his character does with Maureen O’Sullivan in the similar plotted The Tall T,” and “only near the end do we learn why neither… attempt a relationship.” Scott is impressive from the wordless opening scenes:

… and the ending (which instantly helps explain so much about Gates’s character) will likely bring a lump to your throat:

This “solid, entertaining western” — which is “best seen on a wide screen” — remains worth a look by all film fanatics.

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:

  • Fine performances across the cast


  • Lovely Technicolor cinematography

  • Burt Kennedy’s script
  • Mischa Bakaleinikoff’s score

Must See?
Yes, as yet another good show by Boetticher, Scott, and Kennedy.

Categories

  • Good Show

Links:

Man From the Alamo, the (1953)

Man From the Alamo, the (1953)

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“You’re not only a coward, Stroud — you’re a fool.”

Synopsis:
When a soldier (Glenn Ford) fighting at the Alamo is randomly selected to check on families back at home, he is spared from massacre but branded a coward. After leaving a surviving boy (Marc Cavell) with a kind young woman (Julie Adams) in a wagon train, Ford seeks revenge on the bandit (Victor Jory) responsible for killing his family — but can he help the entire wagon train stay safe, and earn back his honor?

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

  • Budd Boetticher Films
  • Glenn Ford Films
  • Julie Adams
  • Westerns

Review:
Before achieving breakthrough success with the so-called “Ranown” cycle of films he made with Randolph Scott — including Seven Men From Now (1956), The Tall T (1957), Decision at Sundown (1957), Buchanan Rides Alone (1958), Westbound (1958), Ride Lonesome (1959), and Comanche Station (1960) — Budd Boetticher directed this solid western for Universal Pictures about a brave man unfairly accused of cowardice. There are definite parallels between Ford’s character here and another film he made the same year — The Big Heat (1953) — given that both protagonists are embittered men seeking vengeance after losing their wives; however, in this case, while Ford’s John Stroud temporarily pretends to be corrupt (siding with Jory’s gang for instrumental purposes), he never seriously goes down a path of moral descent. (He’s clearly meant for a future with beautiful Adams.) Russell Metty’s cinematography is lovely, and Boetticher keeps the action moving nicely, especially towards the unique ending; it’s nice to see women given a chance to shine in a western showdown.

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:

  • Glenn Ford as John Stroud
  • Russell Metty’s cinematography



  • An exciting climax

Must See?
No, but it’s strongly recommended as another fine outing by Boetticher.

Links:

Silver Lode (1954)

Silver Lode (1954)

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“Mob violence is the death of any town.”

Synopsis:
As he’s about to marry his sweetheart (Lizabeth Scott), a rancher (John Payne) is falsely accused by a newly arrived “marshal” (Dan Duryea) of murdering his brother, and relies on help from a friendly bargirl (Dolores Moran) in keeping his name clear.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

  • Allan Dwan Films
  • Dan Duryea Films
  • Falsely Accused
  • John Payne Films
  • Lizabeth Scott Films
  • “No One Believes Me!”
  • Ranchers
  • Westerns

Review:
Allan Dwan directed this compact, fast-moving western thriller set in real-time — just like its more celebrated counterpart, High Noon (1952). The movie opens on a wedding-interruptus, and we’re never clear from then on — intentionally so — about the true motives and realities behind the main characters. We know we’re supposed to believe that the protagonist (Payne) is telling the truth — but is there more to his story? Adding interest to the storyline is the fact that a beautiful bargirl (Moran, always feisty) is resentful about Payne’s marriage to the local rich-girl (Scott) — will she try to help or hinder him in his efforts? — and that Payne can’t seem to stop causing deaths all around him as he attempts to clear his name. The final unexpected sequence is a true humdinger, calling into question what we thought was a fairly standard end-of-a-western resolution. This one remains worth a look, especially given John Alton’s fine cinematography.

Note: Much has been made about the fact that Duryea’s character is named “McCarty” and that nearly the entire town gives into hysterical beliefs about sudden accusations made towards a man they otherwise trusted and respected for the past two years; the timeliness and parallels with HUAC couldn’t be clearer.

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:

  • John Payne as Dan Ballard
  • Dolores Moran as Dolly
  • Dan Duryea as Fred McCarty
  • John Alton’s cinematography

Must See?
Yes, as a fine western by a hard-working director.

Categories

  • Good Show

(Listed in 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die)

Links:

It’s a Big Country (1951)

It’s a Big Country (1951)

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“Yes, it’s a big, wonderful country — proud of its past, strong in its present, confident in its future.”

Synopsis:
When a man (James Whitmore) asks a fellow train passenger (William Powell) to verify how amazing their country is, we see an episodic film about various individuals navigating the American Experience — including an elderly woman (Ethel Barrymore) upset about not being included in the census; various Black Americans serving their country; a Hungarian immigrant (S.Z. Sakall) concerned that his daughter (Janet Leigh) is dating a Greek grocer (Gene Kelly); a young Jewish man (Keefe Brasselle) visiting the mother (Marjorie Main) of a deceased Army buddy; A Texan (Gary Cooper) clarifying “tall tale” facts about his state; a preacher (Van Johnson) learning to make his sermons more relatable; and a father (Fredric March) upset that his son’s teacher (Nancy Reagan) insists he needs glasses.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

  • Clarence Brown Films
  • Episodic Films
  • Ethel Barrymore Films
  • Fredric March Films
  • Gary Cooper Films
  • Gene Kelly Films
  • James Whitmore Films
  • Janet Leigh Films
  • John Sturges Films
  • Keenan Wynn Films
  • Van Johnson Films
  • William Powell Films
  • William Wellman Films

Review:
This well-intentioned anthology film was MGM Studios’ attempt to portray the “melting pot of America” through various touching and/or humorous anecdotes — but the entire thing comes across merely as hokey, dated, and/or offensive (as with the segment about African-Americans consisting exclusively of newsreel footage — presumably to be able to easily cut it out for screening in the South).

Poor William Powell’s beleaguered “Professor” — forced to listen to Whitmore’s clueless rah-rah banter before he turns the tables on him and “gets philosophical” — becomes a proxy for us as we sit and watch the various stories play out.

One mildly amusing stand-out in the bunch is Gary Cooper’s aw-shucks spiel about Texas (“Fact is, folks in other parts of this country got a lot of funny ideas about Texas… How come folks exaggerate so much? It just burns me up!”):

… but the others are all pretty groan-worthy, and, naturally, white-wash the American experience so that the worst sentiments we apparently dealt with back in the day were patronizing (and/or forgetting about) the elderly:

… mild antisemitism:

… prejudice between different white ethnicities:

… alienating white church-goers with boring sermons:

… and a notion that wearing glasses is for sissies (!).

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:

  • The mildly amusing Texas segment with Gary Cooper

Must See?
No; you can skip this one.

Links:

Spies / Spione (1928)

Spies / Spione (1928)

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“Nothing is to deter a man from the path of duty — not even a woman.”

Synopsis:
The head (Rudolf Klein-Rogge) of an underground espionage network hires his best agent (Gerda Maurus) to get secrets from an agent known as 326 (Willy Fritsch), and the pair quickly fall in love. Meanwhile, Haghi (Klein-Rogge) asks a beautiful blonde (Lien Deyers) to set a trap for a Japanese head of security (Lupu Pick) in order to obtain a crucial treaty, and the head of the German Secret Service (Craighall Sherry) attempts to determine Haghi’s secret whereabouts.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

  • Fritz Lang Films
  • German Films
  • Silent Films
  • Spies

Response to Peary’s Review:
Peary writes that this “less heralded” German silent film by Fritz Lang — taking place in a “postwar world where everyone seems to be either a criminal or a spy” — is “nevertheless great fun,” and was likely an influence on Hitchcock in terms of “the film’s exciting train sequence and the finale in which [a villain] (who is dressed as a clown) is trapped on a stage.”


Peary notes that while the “film is a mite confusing and overplotted” (I agree), it “would have made the perfect serial” given “its diabolical supervillain, his assorted crimes, the pulp-fiction plotline (with sex and action), and the numerous episodes that end with cliffhangers.”

Peary lists this movie at 98 minutes in his GFTFF, but we’re now able to see a much lengthier version. According to TCM’s article, “Like Metropolis, surviving prints of Spies were severely edited and the original cut was unavailable for decades until, in 2004, the Murnau Institute restored the film with over 50 minutes of missing footage,” and “Lang’s cinematic spy fantasy is [now] available in its full glory once again.” While it’s not quite must-see silent viewing like Lang’s Dr. Mabuse, the Gambler (1922), Siegfried’s Tod (1924), Kriemhild’s Revenge (1924), or Metropolis, film fanatics will likely be curious to check this one out once.

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:

  • Gerda Maurus as Agent Sonya
  • Fine production design

  • Powerful imagery


Must See?
No, but it’s recommended for one-time viewing, and of course a must for Lang enthusiasts.

Links: