FilmFanatic.org

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

Synopsis:
A man (Vincent Price) falsely accused of fratricide eludes execution by ingesting an invisibility serum created by a doctor (John Sutton) whose brother was the original “Invisible Man”. While Sutton works frantically on an antidote to the serum’s side-effect of toxic grandiosity, Price — supported by his loyal fiancee (Nan Grey) — tries to elude capture by a Scotland Yard detective (Cecil Kellaway) and convince his co-worker (Cedric Hardwicke) to confess to the murder.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

• Falsely Accused
• Horror
• Science Fiction
• Vincent Price Films

Review:
Universal’s follow-up to The Invisible Man (1933) was this “sequel”, which actually simply retells the original story with a weak narrative connection that Sutton’s brother was the original ill-fated “Invisible Man” (thus adding to his sense of guilt and urgency). As Frank Nugent wrote in his review for the New York Times, “Somehow we were not as astonished as once we were when a man unrolled a bandage from his head and revealed no head, or when he shucked off his clothes and became nothing but a nothing, or when he went for a stroll in the woods and all we could see were twigs snapping back and underbrush being trampled.” It’s fun to hear Price’s distinctive voice, though one wishes to see him live for more than the final minute. This was Price’s third film of note after supporting roles in Tower of London (1939) and The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex (1939); he would go on to play many more unhinged “villains” (though in this case, his megalomaniacal behavior is beyond his control).

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:

• John P. Fulton’s clever special effects
  
  

Must See?
No; you can skip this one unless you’re a fan of the series.

Links:

• IMDb entry
• NY Times Original Review
• DVD Savant Review (scroll down)
• Spinning Image Review

Synopsis:
A Hollywood producer (Richard Mulligan) despondent over the failure of his most recent kiddie musical must deal with his furious studio head (Robert Vaughn), a relentlessly shrewish gossip columnist (Loretta Swit), and his fed-up wife and leading lady (Julie Andrews). When Mulligan becomes inspired to turn his flop into a soft-core porn flick, he faces mixed reactions from everyone involved — including his director (William Holden), his best friend (Robert Webber), and Andrews herself.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

• Blake Edwards Films
• Comedy
• Hollywood
• Julie Andrews Films
• Paul Stewart Films
• Robert Preston Films
• Robert Vaughn Films
• Rosanna Arquette Films
• Shelley Winters Films
• William Holden Films

Review:
An all-star cast rallies together for Blake Edwards’ darkly satirical look at the vagaries of Hollywood, where a box office flop can lead to existential despair, and (in a running gag) people are too distracted to notice a corpse washed up on the shore outside their beachfront home. Edwards is cynical all right: purportedly this film was made in response to his own experience making Darling Lili (1970) with Andrews, and he spares no one in taking down the narcissistic excesses of the movie industry. Unfortunately, it’s simply not funny watching this crew of self-absorbed players going about their lives. Edwards had achieved success as a comedic director with his wildly popular Pink Panther series — including the title film as well as A Shot in the Dark (1964) — and he fills this film with every antic trope in the book, including foiled suicides, pesky corpses, potty humor, “boobies” jokes, wild car chases, sexual chicanery, and demeaning racial stereotypes. The film does have its fans: see Vincent Canby’s review for the New York Times, for instance, or DVD Savant’s assertion that “there’s wit to most of the characterizations, and the constant ribbing of Hollywood’s venality and lust for power and wealth is spot-on”; however, I simply found this a tedious chore to sit through.

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:

• Julie Andrews trying her best
  

Must See?
Nope; you can skip this one unless you’re a diehard Julie Andrews or Blake Edwards fan.

Links:

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

Synopsis:
After being bailed out of jail by a wealthy man (Franchot Tone), an ambitious hoofer (Joan Crawford) makes her way to Broadway, where Tone secretly buys her a spot in a play run by a talented but resentful director (Clark Gable). Will Crawford achieve her dream of dancing fame, or choose a life of ease and comfort with Tone?

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

• Aspiring Stars
• Career-versus-Marriage
• Clark Gable Films
• Cross-Class Romance
• Dancers
• Franchot Tone Films
• Fred Astaire Films
• Joan Crawford Films
• “Let’s Put On a Show!”
• Love Triangle

Review:
MGM’s response to the success of Warner Brothers’ 42nd Street (1933) was this similarly themed “gotta dance!” tale of a plucky young dame determined to pursue a career on Broadway. The storyline is slight and predictable, but moves along quickly enough, with some clever editing and an enjoyably flamboyant finale. As usual, Crawford and Gable have fine chemistry together (Crawford requested his casting). This film is notable for featuring Fred Astaire in his film debut (as a lead dancer in the performance), though he doesn’t make much of an impact.

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:

• Atmospheric cinematography
  
• The Busby Berkeley-esque musical finale
  
  
  

Must See?
No, though it’s worth a one-time look. Listed as a film with Historical Importance in the back of Peary’s book, which makes sense.

Links:

• IMDb entry
• NY Times Original Review
• TV Guide Review
• TCM Article
• Laura’s Miscellanious Musings
• DVD Savant Review

Synopsis:
During World War II, a military adjutant (James Garner) tasked with keeping a Navy admiral (Melvyn Douglas) happy on the home front falls in love with a widowed chauffeur (Julie Andrews) who has mixed feelings about Garner’s access to rationed goods and his cynical insistence on keeping himself out of harm’s way. When Douglas has a nervous breakdown and insists that a film be made of the first Naval officer to die during D-Day, Garner is pressured by his buddy (James Coburn) to take part; but will Garner follow orders or save his own skin — and how will Andrews feel about his choice?

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

• Corruption
• James Coburn Films
• James Garner Films
• Julie Andrews Films
• Keenan Wynn Films
• Melvyn Douglas Films
• Mental Breakdown
• Military
• Romance
• Widows and Widowers
• World War II

Review:
Paddy Chayefsky wrote the ultra-cynical script for this film in which, as DVD Savant writes, “War may be Hell, but… its glorification is a worse obscenity.” Garner plays a self-professed proud coward whose primary goal is to stay alive while the machinery of war works its lethal way around him. Andrews — in her second movie role, just after Mary Poppins (1964) and before The Sound of Music (1965) — is appropriately wary of Garner at first, but soon decides she’d rather enjoy a fling than continue to mourn the string of heroes she’s lost in her life (including not just her husband, but her father and brother as well). Unfortunately, the presentation of “dog-robbing” in the military is so blatantly womanizing that it’s hard to stomach, as women are literally objectified and treated as “procurement” for officers (complete with happy willingness to dye their hair and offer sex in exchange for chocolates, drink, and dresses); a running gag has Garner walking in on Coburn as he’s bedding various beautiful women, all positioned as brainless and vapid. Level-headed Andrews is presumably meant to be the counter-balance to this portrayal, but Chayefsky ultimately has her give in and agree she “shouldn’t be a prig”. Meanwhile, hearing dialogue like, “Do the Russians still like their girls short, fat, and reactionary?” becomes not only tiresome but radically unfunny. With that said, the rest of the narrative does eventually pay off, to an extent; but the road to get there — while expertly filmed, especially during the D-Day sequences — isn’t worth it.

Note: Another minor irritant, as pointed out by DVD Savant, is “the women’s hairstyles: Andrews, [Liz] Fraser and all of Garner’s good-time motor pool girls have poofy 1964 big-hair hairdos … there’s little or no period feeling.”

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:

• Philip Lathrop’s cinematography
  
  

Must See?
No, though film fanatics may want to check out beautiful Andrews in one of her earliest roles.

Links:

• IMDb entry
• DVD Savant Review
• TCM Article

Synopsis:
When a destitute apple vendor (May Robson) learns that her grown daughter (Jean Parker) will be arriving from Spain with her noble fiance (Barry Norton) and his father (Walter Connelly), she enlists the help of a superstitious but grateful gangster (Warren William) and his moll (Glenda Farrell) in putting on an elaborate charade to present herself as a “lady”, including finding a man (Guy Kibbee) to pose as her husband.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

• Do-Gooders
• Frank Capra Films
• Gangsters
• Jean Parker Films
• Mistaken or Hidden Identities
• Single Mothers
• Warren William Films

Review:
Frank Capra’s first adaptation of Damon Runyan’s short story “Madame La Gimp” — remade as A Pocketful of Miracles in 1961 — earned him a Best Director and Best Picture nomination, though he didn’t win until the following year for It Happened One Night. Lady for a Day remains a touching tale of collective support for a down-and-out friend with a complicated request — and the fact that the level of deception necessary to sustain Parker’s belief in her mother’s status would never last (Robson is only made a “lady” for a day) is part of the story’s fairy-tale charm. It’s impossible not to compare this with Pocketful of Miracles, which pales in comparison despite its vibrant Technicolor hues: Robson embodies Apple Annie and her transformation in a much more convincing and pathos-driven fashion than Bette Davis, and it’s nice to see William and Farrell’s characters mutually supportive of Annie (rather than quibbling and taking up screen time, as Glenn Ford and Hope Lange do in the remake). Joseph Walker’s cinematography bathes the entire movie with an appropriately melancholy yet magical atmosphere. This early Capra flick is worth a look.

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:

• May Robson as Apple Annie
  
• Fine supporting performances
  
• Joseph Walker’s atmospheric cinematography
  
  

Must See?
Yes, as an enjoyable Oscar-nominated classic. Listed as a film with Historical Importance and a Personal Recommendation in the back of Peary’s book.

Categories

• Oscar Winner or Nominee

Links:

• IMDb entry
• TCM Article
• DVD Talk Review

Synopsis:
When three bank robbers (John Wayne, Pedro Armendariz, and Harry Carrey Jr.) are driven out of town and into the desert by a sheriff (Ward Bond) who’s shot holes in their water bags, they shortly encounter a pregnant widow (Mildred Natwick) who gives birth to a baby boy and asks the men to be his godfathers.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

• Ben Johnson Films
• Cat-and-Mouse
• Deserts
• Do-Gooders
• Father and Child
• John Ford Films
• Outlaws
• Survival
• Ward Bond Films
• Westerns

Response to Peary’s Review:
Peary writes that this “minor John Ford film is, of course, a Christian parable — the Christmas story”, and argues that while it’s “sentimental, funny, [and] overly symbolic,” it also “suffers because of sharp changes in tone”. He points out that the “story bears some resemblance to The Searchers, in that Wayne plays a character with a shady past who exorcises his bad qualities while returning a child to civilization — only here Wayne is welcomed (in Welcome, Arizona) with open arms by the citizens because they realize he has reformed and can fit into their town.” I’m a little fonder than Peary of this quirky tale, which plays as though the Three Wise Men were on the lam in the Wild West trying to survive a dust storm. There’s a kind of surreal magic in the scenes of the men making their way across desolate landscapes, happening upon a dying widow (Natwick is a tad too old to be playing a first-time mother) who gives birth to a son and therefore to a new life and sense of meaning for the bandits. Their need to care for this helpless creature trumps all other considerations, leading to the unexpectedly happy ending. Beautiful on-location cinematography and typically fine direction by Ford make this a one-time must-see for film fanatics.

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:

• Strong direction by Ford
  
  
• Excellent on-location cinematography
  
• Many memorable moments
  

Must See?
Yes, as a charming film by a master director.

Categories

• Important Director

Links:

• IMDb entry
• TCM Article
• DVD Savant (scroll down)
• Combustible Celluloid Review
• NY Times Original Review