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Synopsis:
81-year-old Marlene Dietrich shares memories from her past with former co-star Maximilian Schell, while refusing to be photographed.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

• Documentary
• Marlene Dietrich Films
• Maximilian Schell Films

Review:
Classic movie buffs will surely delight in this most unusual interview between Maximilian Schell and octogenarian Marlene Dietrich, made under the strictest of conditions: that Schell would get only 40 hours of her time, and that her current image would never be shown on film. The result is a vibrant and creative — if at times necessarily constrained — walk back through memory lane with Dietrich, who reveals herself to be simultaneously cantankerous (“‘Falling in love again…’ I mean, really! It’s ridiculous”), obstinate (“It’s all in my book”), humble (“I didn’t understand anything in those days”), self-effacing (“I wasn’t erotic at all — I was snobby!”), mysterious (“What’s true is that what you read is untrue”), reflective (“I’ve never actually felt at home in any one place”), admirable (“Naturally we were against the Nazis; of course we were”), dismissive (“Do you think I’d go and sit in some sad, stuffy old cinema and watch an old film?”), bitchy (“I don’t call them women. I call them females. They can’t think clearly”), clear-headed (“You can’t miss what you’ve never had”), mendacious (she claims she had no siblings), and opinionated (“You can’t use that — really, you can’t”), among many other qualities. It’s well worth a listen.

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:

• A creative rendering of a life recounted
  

Must See?
Yes, as a fascinating if fragmented glimpse into Dietrich’s storied life. Listed as a Personal Recommendation in the back of Peary’s book.

Categories

• Historically Relevant

Links:

• IMDb entry
• Village Voice Review
• Washington Post Review (Rita Kempley)
• Washington Post Review (Desson Howe)
• NY Times Original Review

Synopsis:
Promising baseball player Jim Piersall (Anthony Perkins) is mentored by his ambitious and hard-driving father (Karl Malden) until he makes it to the Red Sox — but despite the love and concern of his new wife (Norma Moore), Piersall heads steadily towards a mental breakdown.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

• Anthony Perkins Films
• Baseball
• Biopics
• Father and Child
• Karl Malden Films
• Mental Breakdown
• Robert Mulligan Films

Response to Peary’s Review:
Peary writes that this “interesting but dated adaptation of the first [best-selling] autobiography by controversial baseball player Jimmy Piersall” depicts his “mental collapse” as “the result of trying to live up to his father’s impossibly high expectations for him as a player.” He notes that “in effect, this film is rooted in the youth-problem pictures of the fifties: it is the reverse of Rebel Without a Cause, in which a troubled boy can’t express to his weak father his desperate need to receive some fatherly advice for once”, while “in Piersall’s case, he can’t express to his strong father his desperate need to stop being barraged with fatherly advice.” Peary adds that “with his display of nervous energy, emotional instability, paranoia, pent-up rage and finally, strait-jacketed catatonia”, Perkins “may well have been using Piersall to prepare himself for Norman Bates” in Psycho (1960) — indeed, his performance here remains potent evidence of his capacity to take on that role of a lifetime. Like Norman, Jimmy is severely (psychotically) hampered by parental pressure — though in this case, he emerges sane and whole after support from both his wife and consistent medical care. While the biopic storyline (naturally) plays fast and loose with the facts, the narrative is tightly constructed and refreshingly respectful of mental illness; Malden’s figure (purportedly exaggerated for the sake of dramatic tension) isn’t demonized, but rather presented as someone unable to see beyond his own vision of success for his son. While Peary (an enormous baseball fan) argues that the “film looks flat and phony, especially during the baseball scenes”, most film fanatics likely won’t be bothered by this.

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:

• Anthony Perkins as Jimmy Piersall
  
• Karl Malden as John Piersall
  
• Norma Moore as Mary Piersall
  
• Haskell Boggs’ cinematography
  
  

Must See?
Yes, for Perkins’ performance and as a fine film overall.

Categories

• Noteworthy Performance(s)

Links:

• IMDb entry
• DVD Savant Review
• NY Times Original Review
• TCM Article

Synopsis:
An aspiring dancer (Ann Sheridan) chooses a performing career over marriage with a truck driver (James Cagney) whose decision to fight for a boxing title leaves him with devastating consequences.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

• Anatole Litvak Films
• Ann Sheridan Films
• Anthony Quinn Films
• Aspiring Stars
• Boxing
• Career Versus Marriage
• Dancers
• Donald Crisp Films
• James Cagney Films<
• New York City

Review:
DVD Savant nicely summarizes this Anatole Litvak-directed flick as follows:

City for Conquest is an ambitious James Cagney movie given the full Warner treatment. Although it doesn’t quite hit the mark on any of its four or five themes it gives them all a college try… It is a gangster picture, a boxing picture, a “poetic” symphony-of-the-city epic, a starstruck show-biz career picture — and for a finale it even tries to graft on the end of Charlie Chaplin’s City Lights.

Indeed, there’s a heck of a lot packed into this “ambitious” film, which purportedly disappointed Cagney enough to prompt him to write a letter of apology to the source novel’s author. With that said, it’s atmospherically shot by James Wong Howe, and never boring to watch, even if one wishes for a little less going on. Perhaps least successful is the framing use of “Old Timer” Frank Craven (narrator of Our Town) for opening, closing, and intermittent commentary as a hobo who’s seen all sorts of misadventures occurring in the Big City of New York. This footage was excised for many years and suddenly reappeared — though it arguably should have been left aside. Watch for Arthur Kennedy in his film debut, and Elia Kazan in a supporting role.

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:

• Ann Sheridan as Peggy
  
• James Wong Howe’s cinematography
  
  

Must See?
No, though it’s worth a look by Cagney or Sheridan fans. Listed as a Sleeper and a Personal Recommendation in the back of Peary’s book.

Links:

• IMDb entry
• TCM Article
• DVD Savant Review
• NY Times Original Review

Synopsis:
Jazz composer W.C. Handy (Nat “King” Cole) goes against the wishes of his religious father (Juano Hernandez) in joining forces with a dance hall singer (Eartha Kitt); meanwhile, his loyal girlfriend (Ruby Dee) waits in the wings.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

• African-Americans
• Biopics
• Father and Child
• Juano Hernandez
• Morality Police
• Musicals
• Musicians
• Ruby Dee Films

Review:
This biopic about “Father of the Blues” W.C. Handy is notable for starring Nat “King” Cole in a leading role, as well as featuring many other famous black musicians (including Eartha Kitt and Cab Calloway):

… and offering up plenty of fine musical numbers. Unfortunately, Cole isn’t quite up to the task of such a major acting role; he’s clearly at his most comfortable when singing and playing the piano (a personal favorite is his rendition of “Morning Star”). The storyline, while based on facts — Handy was indeed quite religious, and his father even more so — is thin and poorly structured, with sudden-onset blindness appearing as an odd and inexplicable narrative crutch. With that said, film fanatics may still be curious to check this one out, simply for its historical value as a film with black actors in all leading roles, and for the musical performances.

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:

• Many enjoyable musical numbers
  
  

Must See?
No, though it’s worth a look for its historical relevance and the fine music.

Links:

• IMDb entry
• NY Times Original Review
• TCM Article

Synopsis:
Accused of participating in a murder, ex-convict Barbara Graham (Susan Hayward) awaits execution at San Quentin while the media hovers in the wings.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

• Biopics
• Courtroom Drama
• Ex-Cons
• Prostitutes and Gigolos
• Robert Wise Films
• Strong Females
• Susan Hayward Films

Review:
Peary doesn’t review this Oscar-nominated film in his GFTFF, but agrees with the Academy’s decision to name Hayward Best Actress of the Year in his Alternate Oscars, where he discusses her performance in depth. He writes that the picture — “which takes a strong stance against capital punishment” — “supports Graham’s innocence, contending that she was convicted in the press before her trial began”, and notes that “a major source for the strong Oscar-nominated script by Nelson Gidding and Don Makiewicz were articles written in the San Francisco Examiner by Ed Montgomery (played in the film by Simon Oakland), who first thought her guilty and then became her chief advocate.” Hayward purportedly “took the role without having read the script” because she related to Graham’s hard-scrabble upbringing and challenging adult life. Peary explains that “like Graham, who had a difficult childhood, was a target of the press, separated from her husband, and lost her child when she went to prison, Hayward was a tough woman who fought for her own survival, mostly against men (her husband, reporters, agents, judges, studio executives).”

As depicted by Hayward in this film, Graham has “volcanic energy” and is “always moving about, dancing (she loves jazz), hugging and kissing men, mingling with her wild crowd… She takes her lumps, willingly making sacrifices and taking raps for irresponsible men, even going to jail on their behalf.” Meanwhile, “because she is a woman on death row, she is big news, and is exploited unmercifully”, though she’s a “tough cookie [who] doesn’t crack”. Peary argues that while Hayward “is convincing showing the gutsy, rough side of Graham”, “some of her finest moments come when Graham calms down and speaks forthrightly to someone she is fond of”: while “all the men in the picture seem to have conspired against her” (at least “until late in the film”), she does have “some well-played, tender scenes with women”. Ultimately, as Peary argues, “Hayward’s heartfelt performance in the last few scenes makes us see the cruelty and criminality of the death penalty, as well as the lack of dignity accorded to those who are about to lose their lives.” With all that said, this isn’t an easy film to watch by any means, especially knowing Graham’s outcome from the start; I recommend watching it once for Hayward’s performance, but not feeling any obligation for a revisit.

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:

• Susan Hayward as Barbara Graham
  
• Lionel Lindon’s cinematography
  

Must See?
Yes, for Hayward’s Oscar-winning performance.

Categories

• Oscar Winner or Nominee

Links:

• IMDb entry
• NY Times Original Review
• TCM Article
• TV Guide Review

Synopsis:
An earnest new doctor (Robert Donat) meets his wife (Rosalind Russell) when working and researching tuberculosis in a hard-scrabble Welsh mining town. With assistance from a friend (Rex Harrison), he soon finds himself living a more luxurious existence serving wealthier clients — but when his old friend (Ralph Richardson) suffers grave consequences from medical neglect, Donat begins to rethink his goals.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

• Do-Gooders
• Doctors and Nurses
• King Vidor Films
• Ralph Richardson Films
• Rex Harrison Films
• Robert Donat Films
• Rosalind Russell Films

Review:
King Vidor’s adaptation of A.J. Cronin’s semi-autobiographical novel tells a compelling tale of how easily youthful idealism can shift to settled complacency within the medical field. As noted in TCM’s article:

In many ways, The Citadel is the missing link between idealized medical biographies like The Story of Louis Pasteur (1936) and strong, socially conscious films like John Ford’s How Green Was My Valley (1941). The only reason American doctors didn’t raise a fuss over the film’s often negative view of the medical profession is probably because the story takes place in England and not the United States.

However, despite being very specifically about a doctor, The Citadel’s take-aways can easily be translated to countless other spheres. When faced with the choice between a hard-scrabble life fighting for social justice versus enjoying a career of ease and comfort, it’s hard to say how many would willingly pick the former. Donat imbues his complex role with authenticity and pathos, and Russell is admirably resolute as his loyal (and razor-sharp) wife. This one is worth a look.

Note: It’s impossible not to notice the parallels between this and the previous year’s Oscar-winning Best Picture, The Life of Emile Zola (1937), also about tensions between the comforts of fame and fighting for what’s right.

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:

• Robert Donat as Dr. Manson
  
• Rosalind Russell as Donat’s supportive wife
  
• Fine cinematography
  

Must See?
Yes, for Donat and Russell’s performances.

Categories

• Noteworthy Performance(s)
• Oscar Winner or Nominee

Links:

• IMDb entry
• TCM Article
• TV Guide Review

Synopsis:
After steadily growing fame and fortune, French author Emile Zola (Paul Muni) — enjoying a comfortable life with his loving wife (Gloria Holden) — is called to action when a Jewish captain (Joseph Schildkraut) is falsely accused of treason, and his wife (Gale Sondergaard) seeks Zola’s help.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

• Biopics
• Courtroom Drama
• Donald Crisp Films
• Falsely Accused
• Louis Calhern Films
• Paul Muni Films
• William Dieterle Films
• Writers

Review:
William Dieterle directed this Oscar-winning biopic about France’s most famous “naturalist” author, who gained both infamy and renewed respect after speaking out against the French government on behalf of falsely accused Jewish military captain Alfred Dreyfus. Indeed, only the first half-hour of this film is focused on Zola’s meteoric rise from a penniless artist sharing quarters with his childhood friend Paul Cezanne (Vladimir Sokoloff) to a best-selling author who appears to have “sold out” and settled into a life of comfort and riches. At this point, we abruptly switch to the Dreyfus Affair, and viewers unfamiliar with this historical travesty may well wonder what’s going on with the film’s pacing and narrative focus. Naturally, Zola steps up to save the day — where else could the story be headed? — and is appropriately honored as a hero.

Peary doesn’t discuss this movie in GFTFF, but in Alternate Oscars he admits that while “Muni was terrific” as a “man with the courage of his sometimes foolhardy convictions”, the “film [he] loved so much as a kid is quite tiresome today”, and he questions how the Academy could consider “honoring this biography in which there is no verbal mention that Alfred Dreyfus was Jewish.” Along those lines, as DVD Savant writes in his review:

At only one point in The Life of Emile Zola is Alfred Dreyfus identified as Jewish, and I’ll bet that the writers and producers of the movie had to fight to keep that reference, seen only as a fleeting word on a statistical blotter.

The script emphasizes the incompetence and corruption in the French general staff but barely touches on the heinous anti-Semitism that was at the heart of the Dreyfus affair.

I’ll agree that even a brief glimpse of the words “Religion: Jew” on a piece of paper — after which Dreyfus is accused of a crime without any evidence — remains a minor but laudible gamble on the part of the filmmakers at a time when European anti-semitism was so rampant. While the film focuses on military corruption more broadly, the point is clearly made that celebrities with pulpits should be brave enough to use them.

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:

• Paul Muni as Emile Zola
  
• Tony Gaudio’s atmospheric cinematography
  

Must See?
No, though it’s recommended for its historical importance as an Oscar-winning feature. Listed as a Personal Recommendation in the back of Peary’s book.

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

Links:

• IMDb entry
• NY Times Original Review
• TV Guide Review
• TCM Review
• DVD Savant Review

Synopsis:
A vaudevillian (Dan Dailey) and his wife (Betty Grable) perform together on stage until Grable becomes a mother. When she eventually decides to return to her performing career, her oldest daughter (Mona Freeman) is mortified by how their family will be perceived by her boarding school classmates.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

• Betty Grable Films
• Class Relations
• Dan Dailey Films
• Historical Drama
• Musicals
• Vaudeville

Review:
This innocuous turn-of-the-century musical was 20th Century Fox’s most successful movie of the year, and Grable’s highest grossing film to that point. Unfortunately, the storyline is slim to none, hinging almost exclusively on class tensions and conventions (mother once wore tights! on stage!) that don’t feel relevant today. For post-WWII Americans seeking escapism and portrayals of family cohesion, this film — featuring vivid Technicolor cinematography, enjoyable dance numbers, and a pleasing couple (Grable and Dailey) — probably fit the bill quite nicely; but it hasn’t held up particularly well for modern audiences.

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:

• Some colorful, nicely danced musical numbers
  

Must See?
No; this one is only must-see for Grable fans.

Links:

• IMDb entry
• TCM Article
• NY Times Original Review

Synopsis:
A young woman (Lina Romay) imprisoned for killing her incestuous father (Jess Franco) joins a cell with a babbling redhead (Beni Cardoso) who has gone off the deep end; a blonde (Martine Stedil) who killed her brother; and a nymphomaniac (Peggy Markoff) obsessed with Christopher Columbus and Queen Isabella. Will they be able to withstand the wrath and torture of their evil female guard (Monica Swinn) and her henchmen?

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

• Corruption
• Jess Franco Films
• Prisoners
• S&M

Review:
Fans of the sadistic degradation on display in Ilsa: She Wolf of the SS (1975) are surely the target audience of this “companion piece”, made just a few years later by exploitation-maestro Jess Franco. Franco had shown cinematic promise earlier in his career with atmospheric films such as The Awful Dr. Orloff (1962), but this kind of WIP (Women in Prison) trash is what he had reduced himself to just a decade later. Several reviewers have noted the film’s most infamous scene — a flashback shot in real-time slo-mo, which is rather morbidly fascinating to watch.

Otherwise, get your remote ready to fast-forward through this purely exploitative flick which features near-constant female nudity, gratuitous sexual violence galore, and no redeeming qualities at all (other than perhaps a brief moment of genuine female bonding and comraderie between Franco and Stedil).

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:
Nothing, unless this is what you’re into.

Must See?
Nope. Listed (appropriately) as Trash in the back of Peary’s book.

Links:

• IMDb entry
• Exploitation Retrospect Review
• Spinning Image Review