FilmFanatic.org

Synopsis:
During the Korean War, a platoon tasked with tricking the Communists into thinking their forces are not retreating navigate icy cold conditions while a fearful corporal (Richard Basehart) worries that his superiors — including hard-nosed Sgt. Rock (Gene Evans) — will die and leave him in charge of his men.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

• Cowardice
• Korean War
• Richard Basehart Films
• Sam Fuller Films
• Soldiers

Response to Peary’s Review:
Peary writes that this “action-filled, intelligent war movie” — “written and directed by Sam Fuller” — clearly shows Fuller’s “war experience” given “the believable dialogue between soldiers and the intricate military strategy they conceive.” He notes that this “film is about the responsibility of being a soldier; it doesn’t matter if a soldier is scared or brave, for heroics will come about only if one one does the job.” He asserts that while there are “many fine moments,” there are “none better than when all the soldiers put their bare feet together for protection against frostbite and one foot, which no longer has feeling, has no claimaint.”

I would argue that the minefield scene — in which Basehart is forced to test his own mettle, inch by harrowing inch — is right up there in terms of most memorable moments:

Peary challenges us to “try to pick… out” James Dean (in his first, uncredited role), which is possible with careful scrutiny:

Overall, this compact thriller tells an effectively authentic tale of survival and bravery under extreme duress, and remains well worth a look.

Notable Performances, Qualities, and Moments:

• Fine performances by the ensemble cast
  
• Lucien Ballard’s cinematography
  

Must See?
Yes, as a nifty wartime action flick by a master director.

Categories

• Good Show
• Important Director

Links:

• IMDb entry
• DVD Savant Review
• TCM Article

Synopsis:
In war-torn Italy, an old woman (Emma Gramatica) finds a baby in a cabbage patch and raises the young boy (Gianni Branduani) as her own until she dies and he’s sent to an orphanage. Once Toto (Francesco Golisano) grows up, he joins a poverty-stricken community threatened by a mogul (Guglielmo Barnabo) who is determined to purchase their oil-rich land and send its inhabitants away. When Toto suddenly receives angelic help from his deceased mother, he is able to stave off the encroaching capitalists and help his neighbors’ wishes come true.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

• Do-Gooders
• Fantasy
• Italian Films
• Orphans
• Resistance Fighters
• Vittorio De Sica Films

Review:
In between Bicycle Thieves (1948) and Umberto D. (1952), Vittorio De Sica directed this surprisingly light-hearted, fantasy-filled look at enduring inequities in post-WWII Italy, specifically poking fun at the insidiously heartless encroachment of capitalism on collectivist efforts to survive. The opening cabbage patch sequence (accompanied by Alessandro Cicognini’s lilting score) sets the tone nicely for magic and whimsy:

… as does an ensuing scene in which Gramatica is giddy to discover spilled milk on her cottage floor:

… given that she can instantly turn it into a makeshift map of a village with a milk-river running through it. As she exclaims to Toto, “What a great big place the world is!”

Once Toto has grown up into a preturnaturally positive young man (Golisano):

… he continues to turn every challenge into an opportunity for gratitude and charity — starting with having his valise stolen by an impoverished man, then bunking with him in his freezing-cold, tent-like accommodations.

From there, Toto helps turn their local dump into a livable village, all while ensuring the children learn their multiplication facts by painting them on all the signs:

We root for Toto when he falls instantly in love with a sweet, mistreated servant (Brunella Bovo):

… and are disheartened by the persistent baddies eager to exploit the “disposable” masses:

Thankfully, Gramatica’s magical charm arrives at just the right moment to turn everything around — but to say more would spoil the story. This neo-realist fable remains an unusual treat, and is worth seeking out.

Notable Performances, Qualities, and Moments:

• Fine cinematography
  
• Ned Mann’s charming special effects
  
• Numerous memorable moments
  
  
  

Must See?
Yes, as a good show by a master director. Listed as a film with Historical Importance in the back of Peary’s book.

Categories

• Good Show
• Important Director

Links:

• IMDb entry
• DVD Savant Review (note that his statement about actor Golisano’s death doesn’t hold up according to other sources)

Synopsis:
An alluring factory worker (Dorothy Dandridge) seduces a flight school candidate (Harry Belafonte) away from his sweet fiancee (Olga James), and soon he follows Carmen (Dandridge) to Chicago, where she’s being wooed by a prizefighter (Joe Adams).

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

• African-Americans
• Dorothy Dandridge Films
• Femmes Fatales
• Harry Belafonte Films
• Love Triangle
• Musicals
• Otto Preminger Films
• Play Adaptations
• Star-Crossed Lovers

Review:
Twentieth Century Fox’s second CinemaScope offering after The Robe (1953) was this all-Black musical produced and directed by Otto Preminger, based on Oscar Hammerstein II’s stage musical of the same name, which was itself based on Georges Bizet’s 1875 opera Carmen. Dandridge had to convince Preminger that she was sultry enough to play the seductive Carmen, and she succeeded, with some truly sizzling scenes emerging on-screen:

Unfortunately, I found it hard to have much sympathy for Carmen, whose very first song has her gloating openly:

If you’re hard to get
I go for you.
And if I do,
Then you are through, boy —
my baby, that’s the end of you.

She does everything she can to lure Belafonte away from poor James, who’s done nothing wrong and is simply waiting to marry the man she loves.

If one can get past this initial insult, however, it’s easy enough to get caught up in the travails of star-crossed Dandridge and Belafonte — and along the way, we’re treated to some rousing songs, including “Beat Out Dat Rhythm on a Drum” by Pearl Bailey as Frankie, an acquaintance who wants to take Carmen with her to Chicago:

… and “Whizzin’ Away Along de Track”:

… among others. Carmen Jones remains worthy viewing both for Dandridge’s Oscar-nominated performance (her too-short life and career were truly tragic), and for the film’s historical relevance.

Notable Performances, Qualities, and Moments:

• Dorothy Dandridge as Carmen
  
• Beautiful gowns by Mary Ann Nyberg
  
• A fine musical score

Must See?
Yes, for its historical significance and Dandridge’s performance. Listed as a film with Historical Importance and a Personal Recommendation in the back of Peary’s book. Selected in 1992 for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant”.

Categories

• Historically Relevant
• Noteworthy Performance(s)
• Oscar Winner or Nominee

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

Links:

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

Synopsis:
Shortly after the American Civil War, a former Confederate soldier (Gary Cooper) joins forces with a mercenary (Burt Lancaster) and his crew (including Ernest Borgnine, Jack Elam, Charles Bronson, and Archie Savage) in Mexico, where the pair negotiate for the highest wages to help either the Juarista revolutionaries — led by General Ramirez (Morris Ankrum) and supported by a beautiful pickpocket (Sara Montiel) — or the Emperor Maximilian (George Macready), whose loyal marquis (Cesar Romero) is tasked with helping a countess (Denise Darcel) make it safely to Vera Cruz with a gold-laden carriage.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

• Burt Lancaster Films
• Cesar Romero Films
• Charles Bronson Films
• Ernest Borgnine Films
• Gary Cooper Films
• George Macready Films
• Mexico
• Revolutionaries
• Robert Aldrich Films
• Westerns

Review:
This dark western by Robert Aldrich — based on a story by Borden Chase, and filmed on location in Mexico with cinematography by DP Ernest Laszlo — is often cited as the inspiration for later “spaghetti westerns”, given the presence of plenty of violence and double-crossing, and lack of a clear-cut “hero”. Indeed, both Cooper and Lancaster are looking out for themselves above all else, as we see clearly established in an early scene when Cooper purchases a horse from Lancaster and picks up on every trick Lancaster tries to pull:

The duo remain tenuously aligned when confronting hundreds of white-clad revolutionaries, stooping to the level of endangering young children in order to get away:

Other characters are equally morally dubious — such as Montiel’s beautiful, brazen pickpocket-stowaway:

… and Darcel’s calculating countess:

Naturally, the men fall for these women, though loyalty from any of the players is far from guaranteed. The main drama in the storyline comes from wondering who will outwit who, in order to secure the gold hidden in the carriage:

Interestingly, Bosley Crowther of the NY Times completely slammed this movie upon its release, referring to it as a “pretty atrocious film” “loaded with meaningless violence and standard horse opera clichés,” with “nothing to redeem” it. However, it made a ton of money and has become a critical darling in years since. Watch for Ernest Borgnine in a key supporting role before his breakout performance in Marty (1955):

… and Charles Bronson as an especially aggressive baddie:

Notable Performances, Qualities, and Moments:

• Creative direction by Aldrich
  
• Ernest Laszlo’s Superscope cinematography
  
• Fine location shooting in Mexico
  

Must See?
Yes, as an enjoyable western by a master director. Listed as a Cult Movie in the back of Peary’s book.

Categories

• Good Show
• Important Director

Links:

• IMDb entry
• NY Times Original Review
• Time Out Capsule Review
• DVD Savant Review
• TCM Article

Synopsis:
When his brother Joseph (Cameron Mitchell) marries a well-to-do young woman (Elizabeth Sellars) in Marseilles, young Napoleon Bonaparte (Marlon Brando) falls in love with Sellars’ sister Desiree (Jean Simmons), and the two become engaged — but soon Napoleon disappears to Paris, and Desiree learns he will instead be marrying a wealthy noblewoman named Josephine (Merle Oberon) in order to pursue his path towards global dominance. Desiree marries one of Napoleon’s generals, Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte (Michael Rennie), who eventually becomes king of Sweden and renounces his French citizenship — but Desiree and Napoleon continue to cross paths occasionally, even as their destinies diverge widely.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

• Cameron Mitchell Films
• Historical Drama
• Jean Simmons Films
• Marlon Brando Films
• Merle Oberon Films
• Michael Rennie Films
• Royalty and Nobility

Review:
A year before co-starring in Guys and Dolls (1955), Marlon Brando and Jean Simmons were paired in this historical drama which Brando was notoriously forced to make (contractually speaking). To that end, his Napoleon is serviceable but not much more:

… while Simmons is gorgeous but also not given too much depth.

We’re glad she meets kind Rennie, and we enjoy the beautiful sets and costumes throughout:

… but there’s not much otherwise to hold our attention. I did get a chuckle out of reading NY Times reviewer Bosley Crowther’s pun at the end of his mostly panning review, in which he describes this film as “a colorful vehicle for a pseudo-Napoleonic outing, a streetcar named ‘Désirée’.”

Notable Performances, Qualities, and Moments:

• Fine CinemaScope cinematography
  

Must See?
No, unless you’re curious.

Links:

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

Synopsis:
A lawyer (Scott Brady) seeking vengeance for the death of his Secret Service Agent father falls for a beautiful half-Indian woman (Anne Bancroft) being raised alongside her younger siblings by a pseudo-preacher (Rhys Williams) in a small Texas town.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

• Allan Dwan Films
• Anne Bancroft Films
• Cross-Cultural Romance
• Revenge
• Westerns

Review:
One of pioneering director Allan Dwan’s final films was this simple western about a man seeking justice and confronting baddies. There’s not much nuance to anything going on here — from the opening scene in which Brady learns about his father’s death (and gets to point his finger very specifically to the spot on the map where it happened):

… to the torrid dance Bancroft performs while Brady watches with prurient lust, and her guardian (Williams) watches with… well, let’s call it trepidation:

(Thankfully, he has a painting of her dancing to glance up at again and again throughout the film, to remind us of his horror.)

We see an oft-repeated glimpse of someone sneaking a peak at barroom action through a colorfully wallpapered peephole:

… leading to some “suspense” about who this might be; and we’re “treated” to a relentless theme (in a score by Edward L. Alperson Jr.) that appears over… and over… and over again in various iterations and instrumentations. (Be forewarned: it’s an earworm.) There’s really not much to the rest of the storyline, but I’m sure western fans at the time were simply happy to watch multiple shoot-outs handled with efficiency.

Notable Performances, Qualities, and Moments:

• Fine cinematography for a low-budget film
  

Must See?
No, unless you’re curious.

Links:

• IMDb entry
• TV Guide Review
• Time Out Capsule Review

Synopsis:
Major league baseball pitcher Jerome “Dizzy” Dean (Dan Dailey) marries his sweetheart (Joanne Dru) and has a legendary run of success until injury forces him off the field — but a future in broadcasting beckons…

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

• Baseball
• Biopics
• Dan Dailey Films
• Has-Beens
• Joanne Dru Films

Review:
Peary’s enduring love of baseball is surely what led to the inclusion of this light-hearted biopic about pitcher-turned-broadcaster “Dizzy” Dean in GFTFF — along with the fact that Herman J. Mankiewicz wrote the script. A good portion of the early storyline focuses on Dean’s obnoxious wooing of Dru:

… most likely to show us Dean’s unique “way with words”, and how he simply won’t take no for an answer. This comes back to bite him later in his career, when a random injury escalates his arm beyond repair and he’s finally forced to acknowledge that he can’t pitch in the big leagues anymore. This leads to mild marital challenges…

SPOILER ALERT

… though the remaining narrative tension comes — believe it or not — from school marms upset that Dean’s colloquial English on radio broadcasts is corrupting America’s youth!

Dean appears to have been a beloved figure, and baseball lovers (and/or Dan Dailey fans) may be curious to check this one out — but all-purpose film fanatics shouldn’t consider it must-see.

Notable Performances, Qualities, and Moments:

• Dan Dailey as Dizzy Dean
  

Must See?
No; you can skip this one unless you’re a baseball nut or curious to see Dailey in a non-musical role.

Links:

• IMDb entry
• NY Times Original Review
• TV Guide Review
• Time Out Capsule Review

Synopsis:
An aging mayor (Spencer Tracy) with plenty of Irish-Catholic supporters invites his reporter-nephew (Jeffrey Hunter) to observe his final campaign for re-election, in which his primary opponent (Charles B. Fitzsimons) is funded by a corrupt newspaper publisher (John Carradine) and banker (Basil Rathbone).

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

• Anna Lee Films
• Basil Rathbone Films
• Donald Crisp Films
• Jeffrey Hunter Films
• John Carradine Films
• John Ford Films
• Journalists
• Pat O’Brien Films
• Political Corruption
• Spencer Tracy Films

Review:
Twenty-eight years after Spencer Tracy made his screen debut in John Ford’s Up the River (1930), the two re-teamed for this adaptation of Edwin O’Connor’s 1956 novel about what DVD Savant refers to as “crony politics” (is there any other kind?). Indeed, Tracy’s Frank Skeffington is far from innocent or naive, playing plenty of well-worn “games” to get what he wants and needs (albeit on behalf of his community).

The biggest divide between Tracy’s Frank Skeffington and Fitzsimons’ Kevin McCluskey — other than their ethnic and religious heritage (Catholic versus Protestant) — is campaign style, with television making a huge difference for the younger candidate:

Indeed, we see ample evidence of nearly everyone under fifty (excepting Hunter and his wife) being addle-brained and easily manipulated, as when Tracy bribes his political enemy’s son (O.Z. Whitehead) with a position as “fire chief”:

… or any of the several times we see Tracy’s own son (Arthur Walsh) breezing in and out of various events with immense privilege and ignorance:

There’s not much to the storyline other than following Tracy around on voting day, and waiting to see how things turn out; to that end, the voting tally sequence is appropriately tense and well-filmed.

Meanwhile, Ford fans will likely enjoy seeing a bevy of his stock actors (too many to list) in various supporting roles.

Notable Performances, Qualities, and Moments:

• Spencer Tracy as Frank Skeffington
  
• Charles Lawton Jr.’s cinematography
  

Must See?
No, though Ford fans will of course want to see it.

Links:

• IMDb entry
• TCM Article
• NY Times Original Review
• Trailers From Hell Review
• Time Out Capsule Review

Synopsis:
In a meeting with President Eisenhower, Irish immigrant Martin ‘Marty’ Maher (Tyrone Power) reflects back on his many years of service at West Point Academy, where he began by waiting tables, then was brought on by the Master of the Sword (Ward Bond) to teach athletics. After marrying an Irish maid (Maureen O’Hara) who he falls in love with at first sight, Marty brings his dad (Donald Crisp) and brother (Sean McClory) over from Ireland, and he and his wife enjoy a long career serving as informal parents and mentors to West Point cadets — including introducing one cadet (William Leslie) to a pretty tutor (Betsy Palmer) who he soon marries.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

• Betsy Palmer Films
• Biopics
• Donald Crisp Films
• Flashback Films
• John Ford Films
• Maureen O’Hara Films
• Military
• Tyrone Power Films
• Ward Bond Films

Review:
In between Mogambo (1953) and Mister Roberts (1955), John Ford directed this adaptation of a memoir by Marty Maher, a devoted employee and retiree of West Point Academy who was apparently beloved by many, and gave hair-growing advice at one point to young Eisenhower (Harey Carey Jr.).

Unfortunately, DVD Savant describes this “pure John Ford” film perfectly as “overlong, episodic, and weighed down by cartoonish characterizations and an excess of sentimentality.” Yep. Diehard Ford fans may be delighted by the overload of “blarney quotient” present, but it’s impossible not to view this movie as simply a vehicle for unrealistic adulation of the military. The worst scenes are near the beginning, as Power and O’Hara engage in an extended meet-cute that defies all credibility:

On the up side, Power does a fine job with his Mr. Chips-like role, and keeps us reasonably invested throughout.

Notable Performances, Qualities, and Moments:

• Tyrone Power as Marty
  
• Charles Lawton Jr.’s cinematography
  

Must See?
No; you can skip this one unless you’re a Ford completist.

Links:

• IMDb entry
• NY Times Original Review
• TCM Article (spoiler alert)
• DVD Savant Review
• Time Out Capsule Review