It's the John Ford film you never heard of, not because it's bad, but because it's a little confused. Richard Greene, David Niven and an emotional George Sanders (!) dedicate their lives to clearing their father's name of a smear by international arms smugglers! Their spirited companion Loretta Young behaves almost as if this were a screwball comedy. So does the director! Ford aficionados will be fascinated. Four Men and a Prayer 20th Century Fox Cinema Archives 1938 / B&W / 1:37 flat Academy / 85 min. / Street Date December 15, 2015 / 19.98 Starring Loretta Young, Richard Greene, George Sanders, David Niven, C. Aubrey Smith. J. Edward Bromberg, William Henry, John Carradine, Alan Hale, Reginald Denny, Berton Churchill, Barry Fitzgerald, Chris-Pin Martin. Cinematography Franz Planer Film Editor Louis R. Loeffler Written by Richard Sherman, Sonya Levien, Walter Ferris from a novel by David Garth Produced by Kenneth Macgowan Directed by John Ford
Reviewed by Glenn Erickson
We all...
Reviewed by Glenn Erickson
We all...
- 1/9/2016
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
By Lee Pfeiffer
The decline and decay of American urban centers in the 1960s- along with the inevitable soaring crime rates- inspired Hollywood studios to reflect the general mood of society. It was clearly a tumultuous period, perhaps the most divisive era in American history since the Civil War a hundred years before. Race riots, Vietnam War protests, assassinations of high profile figures and soaring poverty rates combined to provide a perfect storm of social unrest. Always a barometer of where society was at at any particular point in time, the major studio releases begat a tidal wave of urban crime movies. Many of these centered on a single "lone wolf" protagonist...the "dirty cop", if you will, who generally had disdain for following constitutional rights in his quest to fight crime, often within the very police department he worked for. From the late 1960s through the 1970s, we saw...
The decline and decay of American urban centers in the 1960s- along with the inevitable soaring crime rates- inspired Hollywood studios to reflect the general mood of society. It was clearly a tumultuous period, perhaps the most divisive era in American history since the Civil War a hundred years before. Race riots, Vietnam War protests, assassinations of high profile figures and soaring poverty rates combined to provide a perfect storm of social unrest. Always a barometer of where society was at at any particular point in time, the major studio releases begat a tidal wave of urban crime movies. Many of these centered on a single "lone wolf" protagonist...the "dirty cop", if you will, who generally had disdain for following constitutional rights in his quest to fight crime, often within the very police department he worked for. From the late 1960s through the 1970s, we saw...
- 5/9/2015
- by nospam@example.com (Cinema Retro)
- Cinemaretro.com
I’ll tell you right up front that I had a stronger emotional reaction to the film than most audience members, largely because of the theme of loss that permeates most of the story. As a result, I found myself loving the We Bought a Zoo and have been recommending it to families ever since. Now that it is out on DVD from 20th Century Home Entertainment, I’m here to recommend it as a purchase as well.
Since we’re all about to fall in love with Scarlet Johansson all over again when she kicks ass in The Avengers, it’s good to see her actually acting here, paired nicely with Matt Damon, the grieving patriarch who needs to change his life in some way and chooses to do so in a rather radical fashion.
Based on a real family – The Mees, of the Dartmoor Zoological Park in Devon,...
Since we’re all about to fall in love with Scarlet Johansson all over again when she kicks ass in The Avengers, it’s good to see her actually acting here, paired nicely with Matt Damon, the grieving patriarch who needs to change his life in some way and chooses to do so in a rather radical fashion.
Based on a real family – The Mees, of the Dartmoor Zoological Park in Devon,...
- 4/10/2012
- by Robert Greenberger
- Comicmix.com
Don't overlook Cameron Crowe's film of We Bought A Zoo. It's surprisingly charming, and human, cinema, even if it does go on a bit...
Sometimes, the world forgets just how good a filmmaker Cameron Crowe is. Appreciating that his output has been bumpy since the release of Almost Famous, there are moments in We Bought A Zoo where you appreciate what he can do, that others struggle with. For instance, he can coax excellent performances out of younger actors. He’s able to put across characters that you actually care about. And he’s capable of springing a bit of a surprise.
I can’t be the only person who got the impression from the promotional material that We Bought A Zoo was mawkish, overly sentimental piece of Hollywood nonsense. Granted, it’s based on a true story, but that’s hardly a factor that encourages film makers to put the sugar bowl away.
Sometimes, the world forgets just how good a filmmaker Cameron Crowe is. Appreciating that his output has been bumpy since the release of Almost Famous, there are moments in We Bought A Zoo where you appreciate what he can do, that others struggle with. For instance, he can coax excellent performances out of younger actors. He’s able to put across characters that you actually care about. And he’s capable of springing a bit of a surprise.
I can’t be the only person who got the impression from the promotional material that We Bought A Zoo was mawkish, overly sentimental piece of Hollywood nonsense. Granted, it’s based on a true story, but that’s hardly a factor that encourages film makers to put the sugar bowl away.
- 3/15/2012
- Den of Geek
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