FilmFanatic.org

Synopsis:
A free-spirited, Mussolini-loving teacher (Maggie Smith) — who’s had an affair with a married artist (Robert Stephens) and is currently dating her school’s music teacher (Gordon Jackson) — attempts to teach “her girls” — including dependable Sandy (Pamela Franklin), beautiful Jenny (Diane Grayson), sentimental Monica (Shirley Steedman), and stuttering Mary (Jane Carr) — to recognize their own greatness; but when a fantastical letter written by one of her students catches the attention of the school’s headmistress (Celia Johnson), Smith’s career and reputation are on the line.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

• Boarding Schools
• Celia Johnson Films
• Maggie Smith Films
• Morality Police
• Strong Females
• Teachers

Review:
Maggie Smith won an Oscar for her leading role in this adaptation of Muriel Spark’s novel, inhabiting a complicated female protagonist who stays true to herself yet remains a highly questionable influence on her students’ lives. Indeed, the primary power of this story is how easily we’re drawn into Smith’s world — who wouldn’t be rooting for a passionate, empowering, professional, unmarried woman in the early 1960s? — then given a sucker-punch to the gut as we realize her narcissistic ideology is leading to undeniably toxic outcomes. The nature of ideologies, of course, is that they’re so often taken as obvious and true — and when one is in any position of power and moral authority (as teachers are), they’re oh-so-easily transmitted. Franklin plays a pivotal role in this story as well, representing another type of powerful female — one who refuses to play along with the label she’s been assigned by her elder, and who is willing to take action on behalf of justice, albeit justice heavily tinged with resentment. The remaining supporting performances are also spot-on, from the various other girls in Jean Brodie’s “in-group”, to Johnson as her supervisor, to Stephens as her temperamental lover and Jackson playing (coincidentally?) a chap named “Gordon”. While Peary argues in Alternate Oscars that Smith’s “performance is too mannered and theatrical for [his] tastes”, it’s difficult to imagine any other actress embodying this troubling literary icon.

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:

• Maggie Smith as Jean Brodie
  
• Pamela Franklin as Sandy
  
• Robert Stephens as Teddy Lloyd
  
• Celia Johnson as Miss Mackay
  

Must See?
Yes, as a compelling drama with strong performances.

Categories

• Noteworthy Performance(s)

Links:

• IMDb entry
• DVD Savant Review
• TV Guide Review
• Tired Old Queen at the Movies Video Review

Synopsis:
When the nightclub-singing moll (Barbara Stanwyck) of a gangster (Dana Andrews) goes on the lam, she lands at the home of a group of professors working on a new encyclopedia. Soon she and Professor Potts (Gary Cooper) begin having romantic feelings for one another, which complicates her original plan of returning to Andrews as soon as it’s safe to do so.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

• Barbara Stanwyck Films
• Character Arc
• Dan Duryea Films
• Dana Andrews Films
• Gangsters
• Gary Cooper Films
• Howard Hawks Films
• Professors
• Richard Haydn Films
• Romantic Comedy

Review:
Peary doesn’t review Howard Hawks’ Ball of Fire (1941) — scripted by Charles Brackett and Billy Wilder, and loosely based on the tale of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs — in his GFTFF, but he nominates it as one of the Best Movies of the Year in his Alternate Oscars (Citizen Kane wins), and names Cooper and Stanwyck as Best Actor and Actress of the Year. He points out that they each starred in three films that year: Cooper in Sergeant York (for which he won the actual Oscar), Stanwyck in The Lady Eve, and both in Meet John Doe — but he votes to award them for their work in this romantic screwball comedy about a “sassy, sexy nightclub entertainer, whose ambition is to marry… rich gangster Joe Lilac (Dana Andrews)” but who falls for Potsy (Cooper) because “he’s the kind of guy who gets drunk on a glass of buttermilk”. Despite — or perhaps because of — its zany premise, this film offers an unexpectedly wild cinematic ride, including a most-enjoyable musical interlude with Gene Krupa’s orchestra, a rafter of memorable supporting performances, and some truly zinger lines: “I shall regret the absence of your keen mind; unfortunately, it is inseparable from an extremely disturbing body.” Speaking of the script, my favorite throwaway line is by Aubrey Mather as Professor Peagram: “No, no, no, no… I insist that the happiest marriages are those which produce three children at intervals of not less than two or more than three years.” (!!!) (My three kids were born 20 months and 29 months apart — they almost qualify for these precise criteria, but not quite.)

In Alternate Oscars, Peary writes that Cooper’s Potsy is “extremely likable, genuinely funny, and much more aggressive and chatty than some of his most annoying innocents” — a point well-taken. He adds that Potsy “is Cooper’s sweetest character (even Mr. Deeds kept slugging people). Here’s a man who has had so few perks in his life that he gets excited just hearing Sugarpuss deliver slang” — and while he “thinks it’s only the phrases that thrill him… of course she has a lot to do with it.” Meanwhile, he writes that Stanwyck was “never sexier, more vivacious, or more energetic” than when she played Sugarpuss O’Shea, the “title character, who sets a fire in the boring, secluding lives of Potsy and his equally sweet collaborators and housemates” (who she describes as “eight squirrelly cherubs”). He points out that Stanwyck “zips around the frame with unbridled energy and quick, nonstop talk”, offering “opinions, information, slang, [and] wisecracks” while singing, dancing, and being extremely “fetching in both glittery bare-midriff costumes and casual dress”. Indeed, Cooper and Stamwyck make an ideal odd couple: it’s easy enough to invest in their happiness together despite her ongoing initial deception. By the climactic finale, we’re genuinely rooting for these two and their future.

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:

• Barbara Stanwyck as Sugarpuss O’Shea
  
• Gary Cooper as Professor Potts
  
• Fine performances by the ensemble supporting cast — especially Mary Field as Miss Totten, Richard Haydn as Professor Oddly, and Dana Andrews as Joe Lilac
  
  
  
• The “Drum Boogie” music sequence with Gene Krupa and his orchestra
  
• Gregg Toland’s cinematography
  
• Charles Brackett and Billy Wilder’s script: “Well, patchy my panty-waist!”

Must See?
Yes, as a most enjoyable romantic comedy. Nominated as one of the Best Movies of the Year in Peary’s Alternate Oscars. Selected for inclusion in the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress in 2016.

Categories

• Genuine Classic

Links:

• IMDb entry
• TV Guide Review
• Combustible Celluloid Review
• TCM Article
• NY Times Original Review
• Tired Old Queen at the Movies Video Review

Synopsis:
When a bookie (Adolphe Menjou) accepts the young daughter (Shirley Temple) of a suicidal gambler as collateral, he and the moll (Dorothy Dell) of a local gangster (Charles Bickford) end up caring for her — but when Temple starts to pick up bad habits and slang, they realize they must craft a recreation of King Arthur’s legend to restore her faith in magic.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

• Adolphe Menjou Films
• Charles Bickford Films
• Gambling
• Gangsters
• Orphans
• Shirley Temple Films

Review:
Shirley Temple made her cinematic lead debut in this adaptation of Damon Runyon’s short story, featuring such colorfully-named characters as Sorrowful Jones, Bangles, Big Steve, Regret, Sun Rise, Dizzy Memphis, Buggs, and Sore Toe — not to mention “Marky” herself (Temple), so-called because she’s handed over as a human marker for her dad’s gambling. This pre-Code flick doesn’t shy away from noting that Temple’s sour-luck dad kills himself from despondence — and while the entire tale eventually devolves into schmaltzy saccharine, at least it’s all befitting a Temple vehicle. (Who would want anything but the absolute best outcome for a girl as adorable as her?) Speaking of Temple, she really is charming — it’s easy to see why she was, and remained, such a favorite with audiences.

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:

• Shirley Temple as “Marky”
  

Must See?
Yes, once, for its historical relevance as Temple’s breakthrough role, and as the first cinematic adaptation of a Runyon story. Selected for preservation in the U.S. Film Registry by the Library of Congress in 1998.

Categories

• Historically Relevant
• Noteworthy Performance(s)

Links:

• IMDb entry
• NY Times Original Review
• TCM Article

Synopsis:
When a destitute apple vendor (Bette Davis) learns her grown daughter (Ann-Margret) will be arriving from Spain with her noble fiance (Peter Mann) and his father (Arthur O’Connell), she enlists the help of a superstitious gangster (Glenn Ford) and his warm-hearted fiance (Hope Lange) in putting on an elaborate charade, including finding a man (Thomas Mitchell) to pose as Davis’s husband.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

• Alcoholism and Drug Addiction
• Ann-Margret Films
• Bette Davis Films
• David Brian Films
• Frank Capra Films
• Gangsters
• Glenn Ford Films
• Hope Lange Films
• Mistaken or Hidden Identities
• Peter Falk Films
• Thomas Mitchell Films

Review:
Frank Capra remade his own Depression-era classic — Lady for a Day (1933) — into this Technicolor star vehicle that really… didn’t need to be made. Everything about his earlier version is superior, from the appropriately atmospheric b&w cinematography, to Robson’s genuinely touching lead performance, to its faster-paced running time (96 minutes in comparison with Pocketful…‘s dragging 136 minutes). Ford, Davis, and Lange try their best here, but Ford and Lange’s ongoing quibbling distracts from the central storyline, and Lange’s character undergoes far too rapid of a transformation for us to believe in. The material ultimately comes across as maudlin, with Apple Annie’s love of classical music a distraction rather than a pleasing backdrop. This film is primarily notable for offering Peter Falk a stand-out supporting role as Ford’s sidekick “Joy Boy”, and for introducing a giddy Ann-Margret to the big screen.

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:

• Peter Falk as Joy Boy
  

Must See?
Nope; you can skip this one, unless you’re a Bette Davis completist.

Links:

• IMDb entry
• Combustible Celluloid Review
• DVD Savant Review
• TCM Article

Synopsis:
With support from a family servant (Eddie ‘Rochester’ Anderson), a clarinetist (Bing Crosby) in New Orleans builds on a rich tradition of African-American blues music in constructing his own White band — including a recently jailed cornet player (Brian Donlevy) and a singer (Mary Martin) with a young aunt (Carolyn Lee).

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

• Bing Crosby Films
• Brian Donlevy Films
• Gangsters
• Love Triangle Films
• Musicians

Review:
The Oscar-nominated score is the best feature by far of this white-washed recounting of “how the blues were born”. To the film’s credit, it openly acknowledges the origination of the blues with Black players (albeit showing them stereotypically wide-eyed), and doesn’t shy away from using era-specific language around the “need” to find a White cornet player for the band — but modern-day viewers’ tolerance for watching this kind of narrative will likely be limited. Making matters worse, the framing storyline is shaky at best: meager comedic mileage is milked out of the band’s “meet-cute” with Martin and her 5-year-old (!) aunt (Carolyn Lee); a fabricated (and unconvincing) love triangle plays out between Crosby, Martin, and Donlevy; and the sudden introduction of a gangster-driven subplot near the end forces things to literally get moving. While some film fanatics may be curious to see Martin in one of her rare on-screen appearances, this one unfortunately doesn’t do her justice.

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:

• Many fine musical numbers
  
• Some atmospheric cinematography
  

Must See?
No; you can skip this one unless you’d like to hear the music.

Links:

• IMDb entry
• NY Times Original Review
• Spinning Image Review

Synopsis:
When a German doctor (Paul Lukas) comes to America to foment support for the Nazi cause, an unemployed man (Francis Lederer) eagerly joins forces with him in a fifth column — but they and their secret compatriots are soon foiled by an FBI sting headed by an intrepid agent (Edward G. Robinson).

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

• Anatole Litvak Films
• Edward G. Robinson Films
• George Sanders Films
• Nazis
• Paul Lukas Films
• Spies<
• World War II

Review:
When discussing Paul Lukas’s Oscar-winning role in Watch on the Rhine (1943) in his Alternate Oscars, Peary notes that he prefers seeing the Hungarian-born Lukas as a “baddie” — including in this flick (based in part on the Rumrich Nazi Spy Case) as the head of an American espionage ring during World War II. According to TCM’s article, Confessions of a Nazi Spy was the “first anti-Nazi film produced by a major studio”, and it caused major ripple effects — including the banning of all Warner Brothers films in Germany. At this point in history, it must have been incredibly satisfying for Americans to watch an FBI dragnet ready to take down our hidden enemies — and while the lines between good and evil are starkly drawn, this feels like an acceptable narrative choice given the real-life stakes. Meanwhile, it’s exciting to see how the sting itself plays out.

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:

• Paul Lukas as Dr. Karl Kassel
  
• Sol Polito’s cinematography
  

Must See?
Yes, once, for its historical relevance. Listed as a film with Historical Importance in the back of Peary’s book.

Categories

• Historically Relevant

Links:

• IMDb entry
• DVD Savant Review
• TCM Article

Synopsis:
A reporter (Robert Williams) falls for and marries a blonde heiress (Jean Harlow), not realizing that his gal-pal (Loretta Young) has a crush on him.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

• Cross-Class Romance
• Frank Capra Films
• Jean Harlow Films
• Journalists
• Loretta Young Films
• Love Triangle

Review:
Frank Capra directed this pre-Code romantic comedy featuring a fine lead actor with a tragically short life: Williams (who I hadn’t seen in anything before this) seemed destined for some kind of stardom, given his natural ease and humor on-screen, but died of peritonitis four days after this film’s release. Meanwhile, 18-year-old Loretta Young is wide-eyed and luminous in her supporting role as Williams’ would-be girlfriend, and Harlow shows typically sassy charm. The storyline itself is a fairly standard tale of classes clashing (we can predict who will end up with whom), but it offers a few memorably nutty moments — most notably Williams and Harlow singing a variation on “The Farmer in the Dell” as Harlow insists to Williams, “You’re gonna be a good boy and wear garters!”, and the scene in which a butler (Halliwell Hobbes) attempts to demonstrate what “puttering” means to Williams.

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:

• Robert Williams as Stew Smith
  
• Jean Harlow as Anne Schuyler
  
• Loretta Young as Gallagher
  
• Some enjoyable “pre-Code moments”
  
  
• Joseph Walker’s cinematography
  
  

Must See?
No, but it’s recommended for one-time viewing.

Links:

• IMDb entry
• Pre-Code Review
• Laura’s Miscellanious Musings Review
• TCM Article
• NY Times Original Review (scroll down)

Synopsis:
Napoleon III (Claude Rains) and his wife (Gale Sondergaard) arrange for an Austrian archduke (Brian Aherne) and his wife (Bette Davis) to become Mexico’s new imperial rulers — not informing them that the Mexican people are actually loyal to their president, Benito Juarez (Paul Muni), and will stop at nothing to regain their autonomy.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

• Bette Davis Films
• Brian Aherne Films
• Claude Rains Films
• Donald Crisp Films
• Historical Drama
• John Garfield Films
• Louis Calhern Films
• Mexico
• Paul Muni Films
• Revolutionaries
• Royalty and Nobility
• William Dieterle Films

Review:
Following on the heels of his success in biopics such as The Story of Louis Pasteur (1936) and The Life of Emile Zola (1937), Paul Muni was well-poised to play the “Abraham Lincoln of Mexico” (Benito Juarez) in this historical drama, based on a novel by Bertita Harding and a play by Franz Werfel, and scripted after much research by John Huston, Aeneas MacKenzie, and Wolfgang Reinhardt. I’ll admit to knowing nothing at all about the brief period of empirical reign in 19th century Mexico, and became increasingly intrigued as the unpredictable narrative played out. Muni is appropriately stoic and impressively made-up as Juarez, but it’s Aherne’s character who really shines: his character is set up in an unenviable position from the start, and we’re ready to hate him, but instead we’re shown a nuanced conflict of interests as both Aherne and Muni stand their grounds and Juarez refuses to compromise his country’s goal of complete independence.

A pivotal side story involving Aherne’s unstable wife (Davis) goes in unexpected directions, and Davis does well in her challenging supporting role.

Tony Gaudio’s Oscar-nominated cinematography is appropriately atmospheric and effective throughout.

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:

• Brian Aherne as Maximilian I
  
• Fine make-up by Perc Westmore
  
• Tony Gaudio’s cinematography
  

Must See?
Yes, as a powerfully told historical drama.

Categories

• Good Show

Links:

• IMDb entry
• TCM Article
• DVD Savant Review

Synopsis:
During the reign of Queen Elizabeth I (Bette Davis), Sir Walter Raleigh (Vincent Price) and Sir Robert Cecil (Henry Daniell) are determined to separate the aging queen from her young lover — the Earl of Essex (Errol Flynn) — by sending him to battle in Ireland, and enlisting the help of jealous Lady Gray (Olivia de Havilland) in intercepting his letters to Davis. When Flynn returns and demands joint power with the queen, their romance becomes more tenuous than ever.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

• Alan Hale Films
• Bette Davis Films
• Donald Crisp Films
• Errol Flynn Films
• Henry Daniell Films
• Historical Drama
• Michael Curtiz Films
• Olivia de Havilland Films
• Play Adaptation
• Royalty and Nobility
• Star-Crossed Lovers
• Strong Females
• Vincent Price Films

Review:
Michael Curtiz directed this adaptation of Maxwell Anderson’s play Elizabeth the Queen, originally starring Lynn Fontanne and Alfred Lunt as the star-crossed regal lovers. The basic theme of this historical romance is that it’s lonely at the top: poor Queen Elizabeth can’t afford to truly trust anyone, even the man she’s clearly happiest and most relaxed with. Davis and Flynn have fine romantic rapport, and turn in first-rate performances; they’re a suitable match for one another. Meanwhile, the entire production — including the inspired art direction (by Anton Grot), vibrant Technicolor cinematography (by Sol Polito), majestic score (by Erich Wolfgang Korngold), and ornate costumes (by Orry-Kelly) — is lushly mounted, so that even the relatively stage-bound feel of the film doesn’t detract from the inherent drama of the story.

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:

• Bette Davis as Queen Elizabeth I
  
• Errol Flynn as the Earl of Essex
  
• Vibrant cinematography and sets
  
  
  
• Orry-Kelly’s regal costumes
  
• Erich Wolfgang Korngold’s majestic score

Must See?
Yes, for the lead performances and overall production values.

Categories

• Good Show

Links:

• IMDb entry
• DVD Savant Review (scroll down to second review)
• TCM Article
• Tired Old Queen at the Movies Video Review