SimonJack Reviews

The Perils of Pauline (1947)

The queen of the silent serials comes to life

[7/10 · 12 May 2024]

"The Perils of Pauline" is a very good comedy romance and drama about the famous silent film serial and star, Pearl White. Betty Hutton's perky and bouncy personality makes a perfect fit for portraying the silent film heroine. For this story and the snippets of silent reel segments that are incorporated, I'm surprised that Hollywood didn't bill this also as a biographic film.

Well, although I haven't yet seen the serials, which are now available on a DVD, I think it's safe to say that this film is probably quite realistic in its portrayal of the making of those films. The plot includes a romantic aspect, but the fun and real interest is in the action of the making old movies. Serial, by the way, were ongoing shorts (most around 30 minutes) that were continuing action, adventure or dramas that would be shown as warmups for feature films in the first half of the 20th century. They were most prominently used during the silent era.

Besides Hutton's Pearl White, John Lund plays a traveling troupe impresario and star, Michael Farrington, who becomes Pearls heartthrob. Billy De Wolf plays Mr. Timmy Timmons and Constance Collier is Julia Gibbs, They are two friends of Pearl's. But close to stealing some scenes is George "Mac" McGuire, the director who discovers Pearl, quite by accident and happenstance. William Demarest plays the loud, domineering and imaginative McGuire to the hilt.

All of this makes for some fun and a very interesting look at a piece of the Hollywood of the early years.

A Tattered Web (1971 TV Movie)

Crime doesn't pay ... for anyone

[6/10 · 10 May 2024]

The adage implies the reverse, or that crime cost or must be repaid. "A Tattered Web" is a good film with a message, and some good acting Lloyd Bridges as Police Sgt. Ed Stagg, Frank Converse as his son-in-law and fellow police officer, Steve Butler, are particularly good. And Murray Hamilton as Sgt. Joe Marcus, Ed's partner, is quite good.

The movie involves an accidental killing, adultery, an effort by Stagg to cover up the real truth and his role, a very dysfunctional past family life, and a dark past killing that was never reported but still weighs on Stagg's mind. Will justice be served in the end, and if so, how?

A subtle message of this film, that may not be so apparent with the specific case and situations, is the old adage that "crime doesn't pay." But more specifically, as this plot bears out is that no one can avoid a slippery slope when living lies.

Young Man with a Horn (1950)

Some very good music, and a fine story, inspired by a real life

[8/10 · 10 May 2024]

"Young Man with a Horn" is a very good drama about a boy who becomes a talented musician, and his struggles in life. His dream and drive in life is to be able to play his horn with the best musicians. The horn is what those of us who played in bands called the cornets or trumpets. This is a story that might resemble one of many a talented would-be professional musician in early 20th century America.

The film was billed as a musical biography, based on its source. That was Dorothy Baker's 1938 novel of the same title, that was inspired by the life of Bix Beiderbecke (Leon Bismark Beiderbecke). So, it's not a true biography at all, but a story about a very talented and mostly self-learned trumpet player, as was Beiderbecke, with some aspects about his life in parts of the plot.

As even a brief or summary article on Beiderbecke's life will show, this film has much more fiction than fact. But the facts that it contains provide much interest and enjoyment in the film. His meeting and association with Hoagy Carmichael stands out, and his playing with some other noted musicians of his time. But the romance angles and relationships with two women that occupy a lot of this film are fictional.

It helps one to remember, when watching any films that are based on novels, that someone might inspire a writer - give her or him an idea for a great story, and it may contain a lot or very little factual stuff about that person's life. So, here's a little factual background on Beiderbecke. He was a natural talented musician and self-taught piano and cornet player, who grew up in the Midwest. He became well-known in the 1920s for his musical compositions and particular style on the cornet. Bix played with some top bands and recognized jazz musicians of the day, and had his own band. But, he died at the young age of 28 in 1931. Pneumonia and other physical problems were brought on by alcoholism.

He came from a wealthy family where his father was a lumber dealer. He had a brother and a sister. In between his forays trying to get jobs and playing his instrument for a living, he returned home to his parents for rest and work with his father.

One can understand the sentiments people will have for the character in this story. Some who see it as a real biographical film about Beiderbecke, are disappointed that it doesn't end more realistically, with his young death. But I like the ending, since it is not even close to his life other than his cornet playing. This film gives a story of a happy ending as a sign of hope for those who have exceptional talents and aspire to strike out on their own. And, it can serve as a warning about the pitfalls that can end hopes - alcohol, drugs, bad relationships.

As a biography I would not rate this film very high. As a glimpse of one particular artistic genius, it peaks one's interest in Bix Beiderbecke. But, for the music alone, the playing that the audience hears and can enjoy, "Young Man with a Horn" merits my eight stars. That playing was done by Harry James, a long-lived great trumpet player - one of the greatest.

Along with the music, the performances of the cast make this a memorable film. Kirk Douglas was especially good, and masterfully learned the posture, the lips and mouthpiece, and cornet fingering for a horn player. Doris Day was also exceptional. Hoagy Carmichael was Hoagy Carmichael - he never seemed to deviate from his folksy and matter-of-fact persona. And, while Lauren Bacall was always an alluring personality for films, her persona, again, was one that appeared as much a simple routine as it did acting. Juano Hernndez was very good as Art Hazzard, the Dixieland jazz player who mentored the young boy with the horn.

Here are some favorite lines from this film.

Rick Martin, "You're so confused yourself, you get me confused."

Rick Martin, "What a dope I was. I thought you were class, like a real high note you hit once in a lifetime."

Rick Matin, "Well, you're like these carnival joints I used to work in. Big flash on the outside, but on the inside nothing but filth. "

Smoke Willoughby, "Nobody knows what we're doing except us, the guys that do it. They don't know us. They just hear the words."

Rick Martin, "They only buy records to learn the words. Nobody cares about the music."

Singin' in the Rain (1952)

A tremendous talented trio lead a superb plot

[10/10 · 5 May 2024]

Who couldn't like "Singin' in the Rain?" Even these decades after it was made in 1952 - at the height of Hollywood's golden era,, this film still entertains audiences, old and young. Gene Kelly, Donald, O'Connor and Debbie Reynolds are sure to sing and dance their way into the hearts of audiences for many more decades. The sheer talent in the three leads makes this one of the liveliest musicals of all time. All three sing and dance, and the full cast join in for superb choreographed numbers. Kelly and O'Connor have original and unique routines that are among their best. The film has more than a dozen songs, including hit tunes from Broadway and several earlier musical films of the Golden Era.

To package this exceptional ensemble of entertainment, the producers wrapped it in a scintillating plot. The setting is Hollywood in 1928. The glamorous stars, the top director, the studio head and the cast and crew of a fictional big name studio are in a stew over what to do. Sound pictures are being made. Many put them down but the studio head foresees trouble. Then, Warner Brothers releases "The Jazz Singer," and overnight, audiences clamor for more sound. The era of silent films is about to end, and a new motion picture industry is born.

So, the story provides a fictional look at the big transition period in Hollywood history as well. Then, to top it off, the outstanding writing team of Betty Comden and Adolph Green wrote a humorous screenplay filled with many good laughs and more than a couple of jabs and pokes at the film industry, people in it, and the fans.

The entire cast of this film gave top performances. Jean Hagen did a great job playing the sexy idol of the silent screen who wouldn't make the transition to sound. Her voice said it all, and the story is very funny as everyone keeps Lina Lamont from ever speaking. Kelly's Don Lockwood does all the talking. Of course, the film audience knows what the audiences in the picture don't know until the very end. That the great leading lady of silent film really can't sing or even speak well with her squeaky, high-pitched voice. Lamont answers her own question, "Do you think I'm dumb or somethin'?" Hagen's real voice is normal and very good, but she plays the ditzy blonde bombshell to a tee.

Millard Mitchell is very good as R. F. Simpson, the studio head of Monumental Pictures, and Douglas Fowley is very funny as Roscoe Dexter, the studio's top director. Some of the humor pokes fun at cinema fans when Lockwood and Lamont arrive at an opening night event and fans are lining the streets to catch glimpses of the stars. The young girls scream with delight as Lockwood gets out of their limo with Lamont, and while the police cordon holds back the people, a couple of fawning girls faint. The scenes of Lamont speaking for the first sound picture by the studio are very funny,

This is just top entertainment from start to finish. It's one of the best musicals of all time.

Delightfully Dangerous (1945)

A lesser musical comedy before Jane Powell's star rises

[6/10 · 3 May 2024]

The very talented Jane Powell was a delightful and enjoyable actress, especially in her string of musicals from the mid-1940s to late 1950s. But, this was just her second film, and a loan-out from MGM with much lesser quality material than MGM would provide for her. She doesn't have the wonderful musicians, top actors, writers and material here that were just around the corner for her at MGM. Those would make her star shine brightly in some wonder musical comedies and romance films.

There isn't even much music or comedy here. The best is the school's annual production in which a number of skits - song and dance routines are performed in a carnival setting. The performers appear as mannequins who come to life to sing and dance when a carnival patron shoots the bulls-eye for their skit. It's an original sort of arrangement that is quite good. But the rest of the film has very little music and just a couple brief scenes with slight comedy Arthur Treacher and Louse Beavers provide most of the comedy as Jeffers and Hannah.

There is one little aside for Ralph Bellamy fans. This is one film in which Bellamy gets a girl. In most films with Cary Grant and a host of leading men in which he plays second fiddle, Bellamy always loses out to the more handsome hero.

Of all of the musical comedies and romance films that Jane Powell made, only one was a real dud - "Athena" in 1954. This film is the only other one that isn't at least very good. And she made some great ones.

Man About Town (1939)

A very funny farce in foggy London

[9/10 · 1 May 2024]

"Man About Town" is a very funny comedy with a wonderful cast of top actors of the day. The plot is a familiar one used in a few other good comedies. A woman is ignored by her husband who is all work and no play. So, to rekindle his interest in her she feigns interest in another man to try to make the hubby jealous and come around. Only, this film multiplies that by two women, and a double reverse with one man, who wants to attract a woman he is in love with. Neither of the last two are married.

This isn't anything like love triangles or quadrangles. It's a jungle gym of geometric figures that may make some howl with laughter while others shake their head in disbelief - or confusion. Still, the plot doesn't lay supposed amorous affairs on too heavily or overboard. So it comes off smoothly - except for some wrinkled faces and egos of the characters.

At the heart of this delicious farce is Jack Benny as Bob Temple. The film works so well because Temple is a real nice guy, a show producer, and decent fellow. He's in love with his leading lady, but she thinks they wouldn't hit it off because of their differences - ergo, his too kind, too polite, too nice and too decent persona.. Had Temple been a playboy or late night partier, the film would have lost much of its allure. Insteasd, the situations that unfold are very, very funny.

Well, I won't say how this develops and unfolds. With Benny in this wonderful farce are his long-time radio accomplices, Rochester and Phil Harris. Harris plays Ted Nash and Eddie Anderson plays Rochester. Anderson was one of the earliest., best and long-lasting African-American comedian. Here, his Rochester matches his boss, Bob Temple's snipes and quips jab for jab. And Rochester has a very good and funny song and dance scene. The other prominent players of the day are Edward Arnold as Sir John Arlington< Monty Woolley as Henri Dubois, and Dorothy Lamour as Temple's leading lady and flame, Diana Wilson. And, Binnie Barnes plays Lady Arlington, Isabel Jeans is Madame Dubois, and E. E. Clive is Hotchkiss, the Arlington's butler. Betty Grable has a small part as Susan Hayes.

The setting for the film is London - that is, foggy London as the opening scene shows. In those early years of movies, producers always seemed to play up London's fog, so many Americans thought of it as foggy most of the time. That's where Bob Temple has brought his show.

I would like to find a better copy of this film than the rough quality of the DVD I bought, because this is a great comedy for a keeper to play for family and friends, and to watch again from time to time - on a foggy or rainy day,. Or just when one needs some laughs.

Well, here are some favorite lines from this film.

Bob Temple, "I'm afraid you don't know much about women, Rochester." Rochester, "Well, I only know the difference between 'I can go for you' and 'How are you?'"

Bob Temple, "Get my hat and coat. And it's the last time I sign a butler to a seven-year contract."

Temple, "Why, they told me inside that the fog had lifted." Hotel Doorman, "Only up to the ankles, sir." Temple, "Oh."

Doorman, "It's about a mile, sir, straight ahead." Temple, "Oh, then all I have to do is follow my nose - if I can find it."

Temple, "Pardon me which way is the railroad station?" Englsh Bobby, "Straight ahead, sir, about thee miles." Temple, "Three miles? How'd they ever move it in this fog?"

Diana Wilson, "Money isn't everything, Rochester. You must have heard that before." Rochester, "Oh, I've heard it before, but I still ain't convinced."

Diana, "I've got half a notion to kiss you." Bob Temple, puckering his iips, "Well, I've got the other half."

Diana, "Oh, but we'd never make a go of it. I'm silly and romantic, and you're so solid and respectable." Bob, "Oh, but uh, Diana, I don't have to be so respectable." Diana, "Bob, you couldn't be anything else but."

Ted Nash, "Let him alone. Any girl is safe with Bob."

Bob, "Rochester, who told you to order all of this?" Rochester, "You did, boss." Bob, "Since when are you taking orders from me?"

Bob, "I'll show her I can be just as big a cad as anybody else."

Bob, "Rochester, you're now looking at a broken down Romeo, as of last night."

Bob Temple, to Lady Arington, "You see, I'm solid and respectable, and you're probably hungry."

Sir John Arlington, "Am I making your nervous?" Bob Temple, "Oh, no, no, no. I'm just trying to get the cup off of the saucer, you know."

Meet Me in St. Louis (1959 TV Movie)

A very good remake with favorite stars of the past

[8/10 · 29 April 2024]

This 1959 production of "Meet Me in St. Louis" was an MGM film made for a special TV showing on CBS. I have seen the 1944 MGM color original a couple times, but didn't remember having seen or even knowing about this TV film until recently. Because of the cast, I got a DVD. I was interested especially to see Jane Powell, Jeanne Crain, Myrna Loy and Walter Pidgeon in their roles. Even though most of this cast were past their peak years, this film had more star power than the 1944 film had in its day.

Well, this film was just about as good as the original. In some ways it is better, because it's a more realistic picture and feel of family life. The 1944 film was intended to be an extravaganza, so it's more lush in the sets, scenery, musical productions, etc. I like both films, so these remarks will just be to make some more comparisons. Modern audiences are more apt always to go with color, and the splash of the 1944 original is entertaining. The 1959 TV film is somewhat more subdued and seemingly down to earth, and therefore able to be identified with more closely.

This TV film was made with Tab Hunter in the male lead - a popular rising star among the young set. But I don't think his singing is anything special, and his acting isn't any better than Tom Drake's in the original. Judy Garland was 22 for the 1944 film, and at her best and steady singing voice. Jane Powell, on the other hand, was 30 and had matured and changed her looks quite a bit since the string of very good musicals she had made as a teen and younger adult since 1944 through the early 1950s. This story doesn't have an operatic number for Powell to sing, so her singing is in popular style. And, the mature edge in her voice change makes it a bit older for a teenage girl. Judy Garland's voice nails that superbly. Powell also is a little more serious - connoting maturity, in her role, but she also is less childlike.

Mary Astor played many supporting and second lead roles in her long career, and she was quite good as the mother, Mrs. Anna Smith. But I think Myrna Loy has a clear edge on her, and it was a delight to see this actress who had entertained so much with comedies and dramas over the years, now in a combined role of a believable and wise mother and wife. I also liked Walter Pidgeon as the father and husband, Alonzo Smith, and think he may have put a little more spark of conflict in the character than did Leon Ames - who nevertheless, was very good. But Pidgeon's older age, which is more apparent than for many actors, makes him appear many years older than his wife, and a father of a child as young as Tootie.

Two of the cast in the original are unbeatable for the types of characters they play. Harry Davenport as a feisty grandpa was always a delight in any movie he was in. And Marjorie Main, in whatever housekeeper role she had, was always perky and very good with lines to suit her persona. Ed Wynn as grandpa, and Reta Shaw as the maid, Katey, are good in their respective roles in the 1959 TV film - but somewhat less than the originators of the roles.

Esther's sisters were about equal except for the roles of Rose and Tootie Smith. Jeanne Crain's Rose is better in the TV film than was Lucille Bremmer in 1944. And, although the original film had one of the most popular child actors in Hollywood history, seven-year-old Margaret O'Brien in the role of Tootie Smith, I think she was thoroughly topped by Patty Duke in the 1959 film. Duke was 12 at the time, and with her small frame was able to play down to a young girl of 8 or 9 superbly. It may have been as much a flavor of the times too, where Margaret O'Brien plays a somewhat sweeter, more gentle role. But Duke's Tootie is more feisty and probably identifiable to more audiences. Two scenes of hers are especially notable. The first is when she is crying as Esther holds her, and the next is after she has cut her lip and told a fib about how she was hurt.

This remake of the story for a TV special was filmed and broadcast in black and white. Color might have boosted it some, especially by 1959. And the close cropping when people move off the center, especially outside, gives it the somewhat stagy feeling. It does appear to be as it is, a staged play. However good it is, that does impede one's enjoyment of seeing a picture that he or she can imagine being a part of.

Overall, the original film with its color and vibrant musical production has a one-notch advantage over this TV remake. But movie buffs who like many of the stars of the past will also enjoy this later film, and seeing Myrna Loy, Walter Pidgeon, Ed Wynn and Jane Powell in their more matured years.

Here are some fun lines from this film.

Esther Smith, "Grandpa, you know what's so nice about being a part of this family? You!"

Esther, "John, I'm sorry if I hurt you." John Truett, "It's perfectly all right. It's no worse than football practice. Except it's better with a girl."

Esther, "It's very grown of you to accept my apology." John, "Well, if you're not busy tomorrow night could you come over and beat me up again?"

Mrs. Anna Smith, "Come away from the mirror, dear. Nothing's changed since this morning."

Esther, "Grandpa, you're the first human being I've danced with all evening."

Sobbin' Women: The Making of 'Seven Brides for Seven Brothers' (1997 TV Movie)

There was no sobbing in the making of this great 1954 musical

[9/10 · 29 April 2024]

This documentary short was made for TV in 1997, and gives a very interesting background on the making of the MGM hit musical of 1954, "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers." The male lead of the musical, Howard Keel, hosts this look back of more than 40 years to one of the great hits of his musical film career. And with him are the most impressive list of cast, crew and creators of a movie that I have ever seen in a film's follow-up documentary. Interviews here not only have the top leads of the film, but the major crew and production heads.

Thus movie buffs and 21st century audiences can see and here from a host of the people in and behind the scenes of one of the last great musicals of Hollywood's golden era - the 1930s through 1950s. Director Stanley Donen gives interesting background on how it got started. He told how the MGM front office didn't think much of the proposed project, but that producer Jack Cummings was very earnest about getting it made. Donen was chosen to direct right away, and he and Cummings then went to work assembling the rest of the production team and selecting the cast.

The background on the plot itself was most interesting - especially the source names and how the title came to be. The original source was an ancient Roman legend about a rape of Sabine women. The Sabines were an ancient mountainous tribe in central Italy that warred with the early Romans. They were eventually defeated and assimilated into the Roman populations in the third century B. C.. Well, an American author and Pulitzer Prize winner, Stephen Vincent Benét ("John Brown's Body" of 1928) wrote a short story on the Roman legend and, in a play on words, entitled it "The Sobbin' Women."

The film writers, Albert Hackett and wife Frances Goodrich were joined by Dorothy Kingsley, and based the screenplay on the Benét short story And, Cummings and Donen decided to set the story in the wilds of Oregon around 1850. So, it would have an Old West and pioneer setting in some very scenic country. Although, for a time they still used the title "Sobbin' Women" during the early stages of production.

Saul Chaplin, the musical supervisor weighs in on the musical score and more. And, musical director Adolph Deutsch talks about his work and that of Chaplin that won them the Oscar for best music. Michael Kidd, tells how he got hoodwinked into doing the choreography for the film - by a double-cross from his good friend, Donen. Kidd said he had always liked Johnny Mercer's music, because it was written in the vernacular. Donen says, "Michael Kidd did an indescribable job of choreography - a spectacular job...."

Cummings and Donen wanted to take a year to film the movie because they wanted to get all the seasons in and film it on location in Oregon. Chaplin says that the front office reacted by cutting the film's budget in half and giving that money to "Brigadoon," which MGM was looking to be its big musical for the year. So, all of the filming was done instead on sound stages and the back lot at MGM. The only place where the stage setting was obvious - which really stood out to me in the movie, was a song scene with the mountains backdrop clearly a painting. They had tried to overcome that by having some birds fly through the scene and they released some birds for shooting but they hit the backdrop.

Several members of the cast are interviewed and all commented on the warmth and camaraderie in working on this film. It was unlike anything they had encountered elsewhere in their career. This film brought together some super talented people. The barn-raising scene and town dance scenes are among the greatest choreographed numbers in film or on stage. Kidd needed seven brothers plus seven townsmen to do the dance competition, and the seven women to dance with them. A couple of the brothers weren't dancers and were steered into different rolls. Two were acrobats and did some phenomenal feats in the dance scenes.

Among the cast who comment on the project, besides Keel and Jane Powell, are Russ Tamblyn, Tommy Rall, Jeff Richards, Julie Newmar, Virginia Gibson and Ruta Lee.

Tommy Rall says, "The characters in that particular film became us. And we had so much fun. That's why it appears true."

Virgina Gibson says, "Everybdy got along. Everybody was working for the same thing - a great film."

Keel says, "As you know, we had a hit." Powell says, "They called it a sleeper. It wound up at Radio City Music Hall, and they thought that 'Brigadoon' was going to go to Radio City Music Hall, but it didn't." And, Keel adds, "Even President Eisenhower urged his fellow Americans to see 'Seven Brides for Seven Brothers.'"

The movie got 5 Oscar nominations and won for best musical. Ruta Lee says, "It still hods up." Keel closes this documentary, saying that this film "was one of the last musicals to come out of Metro Goldwyn Mayer, and it has become an American musical classic. You now know half the reason why. The rest is magic."

Kismet (1955)

A couple of hit tunes, but a weak plot that lacks spark and energy

[6/10 · 28 April 2024]

For varying periods and times over the decades, Hollywood has had some specific subject interests besides the major film categories. These would be topics or subjects of particular interests outside of the regular major fields. So, different films of these interests might fit into any one or more of the major categories - action, biographical, comedy, crime and mystery, drama, epic, fantasy, historical, musical, romance, sci-fi, war and western. Biblical stories would be one such special area, and some grand dramas and historical films were made in that field. Another is literary classics which include films of drama, history, fantasy, comedy, mystery, sci-fi and war. Sea and sailing pictures are another such specific field, and jungle pictures are yet another. A smaller group that had particular attention during Hollywood's first few decades was Arabia and nomadic stories of Asia and the Middle east.

These were sometimes called sandals and sand pictures. "Kismet" is in that field. And it has been made several times. Two silent films in 1914 and 1920, and two sound films in 1930 and 1944 were adventure fantasy films based on an original stage play of 1911 by Edward Knoblock. This film of 1955 is the first and only musical rendition of the story, but it is based on the stage musical that was a success in 1953.

"Kismet" is a musical comedy-romance and fantasy film set in Arabia. Stars Howard Keel, Ann Blyth and Vic Damone have songs, and of the dozen or so, there are two that were hits from the 1953 stage musical. They are "Baubles, Bangles and Beads" and "Stranger in Paradise." . The plot is simple but not very well knit together with dialog and scenes.

Compared to most films made in 1955, this film had a very high budget and production costs over $3 million. It was a box office failure and lost MGM more than $2 million. Even with Howard Keel in the lead, a film needs top quality material to win audiences over. But this film had a weak plot to begin with, and lacks the spark and energy that great musicals have.

People who like musicals would probably still enjoy this film these decades later, though few would find it more than mildly entertaining. Others may not be interested at all, or would just become bored before halfway through.

Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome (1985)

Interesting and different sci-fi in the series

[6/10 · 28 April 2024]

The "Mad Max" series and Mel Gibson having gained international acclaim, the Australian producers and star could now bring another big name entertainer into the next film. "Beyond Thunder" does that with popular singer and actress Tina Turner. She plays a sort of queen of what would pass as a metropolis in barbarian lands. Bartertown provides a different setting and sci-fi milieu. And, there's a secondary locale where a nearly dead Max has been taken after being found near death in the desert.

Here we have another outpost of sorts, of a collective group of children, the oldest being teenagers. The anomaly here is where are the parents and how did only kids survive for a time to be in this location. Some are just toddlers. Well, sci-fi in the movies has to overlook such anomalies if it is to provide an entertaining film in under several hours - like the usual 90 minutes or so.

Gibson does a good job, as does Turner. And there are some other unique and interesting characters. The Thunderdome is like an ancient Roman circus - a place of gladiatorial combat, only in a more up-to-date, if still barbaric, setting. It's an interesting and good sci-fi film of survival and living after a general apocalypse of society. But it can't rival the second film of the series, "Road Warrior."

Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior (1981)

A superb action sci-fi flick and harbinger of what might happen

[8/10 · 28 April 2024]

"The Road Warrior" is the sequel to a 1979 apocalyptic sci-fi and action film that is set in Australia. The first, "Mad Max," is the film that introduced Mel Gibson to a world audience. Before that, he was known only in Australia where he had been in just one film and had credits in three TV programs since 1977. But this second film of what would become a four film series made by Kennedy Miller Productions, is the movie that propelled Gibson's star in the world of cinema. And, I think it's the very best of the series, by far. Gibson starred in one more after this, in 1985, and another actor played the role of Max in the last film 30 years later. That was "Fury Road" that starred Tom Hardy.

The apocalyptic setting is one in which civilization has collapsed - all forms of law and order, government, cooperation, community and civility are gone. Chaos reigns, and the only survival for most is joining or belonging to a collective group or a marauding gang of terrorizing misfits. In the first film, Gibson is a police officer in a remnant law and order group. After a motorcycle gang kills his wife and child, Max hunts them down and kills them. He then becomes a loner, drifting across Australia's wasteland. There are some anomalies in the plot, such as bikers and gangs roaming in vehicles and having the fuel to keep going endlessly Another is highways that are in perfect condition after so many years and with no damage and no maintenance. But, for the futuristic and sci-fi enjoyment one must not get hung up on such points.

Well, the matter of gasoline, or petrol to keep that various types of cars, bikes, war wagons and other road machines operating, becomes a focal point of this second film. After a couple of encounters on the highway which he survives, Max sees a compound of sorts from a high hill. It has a drilling rig and appears to be an oil refinery. And it is being confronted by a large number of road thugs and barbarians who seem to want it for the fuel.

The people in the compound are a collection of civilized people who have banned together for protection and to survive.

Before this film ends, Max and the compound occupants will do some battle with the outsiders. Max will decoy the monster thugs away so that the rest can flee to a distant place of safety and civility, and they will set the compound to explode before the thugs can get it. And Max becomes a hero, but doesn't go off with the group..

Gibson's part is played superbly, and so are those by a cast of very good actors all around. The barbarians are very convincing. The film has some of the best road action scenes of any film. It's not hard to imagine something like this if society collapses. And, probably today, more than two decades into the 21st century and the third millennium, the world may be more at risk of societal collapse than it had been during the Cold War and nuclear arms race of the 1950s-1980s.

This sci-fi film should be interesting to audiences yet today and for some time into the future.

The Longest Yard (2005)

A silly remake maybe, but it's not entertaining

[3/10 · 27 April 2024]

"The Longest Yard" was a fine film for its time and place - in the USA of 1974. This film, a remake updated to the then present, is more of a farce than a comedy-crime and sport film. The premise is pretty much the same as the original film plot. The culture changes and times are evident - and not believable even by a stretch of the imagination

The producers did have the sense to change the location, or to eliminate the ill-treatment of chain gangs forced to work in the swamps. Still there is some mis-treatment in the punching and hitting of a prisoner by prison staff. None of the changes from the original film are good, including most of the cast.

Adam Sandler has made some very good comedies, and can act well in comedy dramas. But he just isn't believable in his role in this film. Nor are many of the different characters put in this plot. A black-market guy who gets McDonal's cheeseburgers for inmates? And a convict who pulls a cheeseburger out of his pants? Then there's the cheerleading squad of convicts in drag - supposedly from their own prison cell block. William Fichtner, who plays Captain Knauer, is a good actor. But his turn of heart for the convicts over the football game is quite weak and just not convincing. Most of the rest of the cast have roles that just seem concocted to have a wide range of characters.

And, quite different from the first film - way back when, this remake has a feel or sense of "in-your-face" to law enforcement in general, and the justice system overall. "Silly" may be a better term to describe this film, but it just isn't funny or entertaining.

The Longest Yard (1974)

A comedy-drama set in a prison of the past

[7/10 · 27 April 2024]

"The Longest Yard" is a comedy-drama set in a prison in the swamp area of Florida. Burt Reynolds plays a once top pro-football player who was banned for gambling and throwing a game. He then lives a sort of celebrity life as a show piece and male prostitute for rich women. One night he has had enough. With the latest "sugar momma" spurting angry and vehement words at him, he takes off in her fancy foreign car. She calls the police to report it stolen, and after a lengthy police chase with a number of crashed vehicles, he lets the car roll off the docks and into the bay.

After his sentence to prison for 18 months, Paul Crewe isn't welcomed by other convicts. His joking and kidding persona doesn't gain him friends in prison. As one prisoner says, he could murder, rob, steal or blow up a building, but to sell out his team in a football game - that's too much for these hardened criminals. In time, of course, he does win them over, or at least gets accepted as a fellow con. And that comes about when the debonaire but dastardly Warden Hazen gives Crewe a special assignment. He is to organize a team of prison inmates to give his guards a warm-up game before they go after a semi-pro title Winning a semi-pro title has been a craze for Hazen, who is played very well by Eddie Albert.

Well, there is some good football action on the field when game time comes. But some of the humor - that is, prison humor, comes before that as Crewe tries to recruit a team. With the help of the prison's black market master, Caretaker (played very well by James Hampton), Crewe talks various convicts into being on the team. Most initially don't want anything to do with him, but when he says they will be up against the guards, that does the trick.

One can guess how this will comes out. The fun is in seeing the game and the ending. This film was one of several in the 1970s and 1980s that Hollywood made with comedy set around prisons and crimes. They were not of the category of mystery comedies set around capers - usually jewel thefts or robberies. Most often, the law enforcement characters were portrayed as buffoons or simpletons, and the prison guards and wardens as sadistic purveyors of punishment.

This film was among the earliest in which inhumane treatment and injustice of some notorious prisons was portrayed along with comedy. By the time of this film, prison reform had pretty much cleaned up administration of the justice system in the USA, and prisoners were no longer mistreated. Still, the treatment portrayed when Crewe first goes to prison is a reflection of how inhumane and brutally hard some men could be toward their fellow human beings. That is the best part of the drama of this film. It's not difficult to imagine how audiences might root for criminals to defeat such law enforcement people. Of course, one doesn't think about that when going to see this movie.

"The Longest Yard" was entertaining when I first saw it when it came out. Perhaps not quite as enjoyable watching it these many years later, when I obtained a DVD that had this and the 2005 remake with Adam Sandler in the lead role. I suspect that modern audiences who watch this film for the first time might have conflicting views. A much larger disrespect for law enforcement exists alongside shocking examples of abuses by some officers and especially by government officials. Then there's the effects that many years of computer games that celebrate human violence may have on people who spend, or waste, so much time on this form of "entertainment."

The Happy Years (1950)

A tedious, humorless, and dull film that bombed in its day

[4/10 · 26 April 2024]

"The Happy Years" is a coming of age film - at the earliest stages, of a young boy from a very wealthy family in the northeastern USA of 1896. It is billed as a comedy, romance and family film. But this is an utterly humorless film. There are no funny or clever lines of dialog, there are no humorous antics, and there's not a single comical situation. Perhaps the movie moguls at MGM in 1950 saw a smart-alecky, disrespectful kid and his mean-spirited prank of scaring and humiliating one girl after another as comedy. Well, audiences of 1950 didn't see it that way, and neither do I these many years later.

Before just watching this film on DVD, I wondered why I hadn't seen it before. In my growing up years of the mid-20th century, and young to middle-aged adult years, we watched many nighttime movies and late night movies on TV. But I hadn't even heard of this film before. And, having seen some good to very good films about growing up and coming of age during the late 19th and earth 20th centuries, I thought I might enjoy this one. But after watching it, I can understand why it probably never made the late night movie schedules anywhere.

This movie is dull. There is no comedy. And I can't imagine what the studio saw as romance in it. The family aspect was mostly of a super rich couple with three kids, one of whom was a renegade and apparently not at all or ever disciplined by his parents. The plot has the family sending the rebel son, John Humperdink Stover, off to another private school after he was dismissed from the last one he attended. The film is very slow and mostly tedious. There are just a couple of breaks with any kind of life - one is on a gridiron when the Kennedy house team plays against another house team in an intramural rivalry. This did provide a little interest in showing a football game being played that ended in a 4-4 tie. It didn't show any scoring, but evidently each team scored one, two or four touchdowns, which each counted for 1, 2 or 4 points. But, that aside, there is hardly anything else of interest in this film. Even the transformation of Stover toward the end isn't satisfactory. It happens rather fast and unconvincingly.

This film did have some actors of note. Dean Stockwell was 14 years old when he played Dink Stover in this film. He was at the height of his popularity as a child star then, and he would go on to have a long career, mostly in TV and in supporting roles. Another up-and-coming young actor in the film is Darryl Hickman who would have a long career, again in supporting roles and much on TV. And one of Dink's schoolmates in the film, Tennessee Shad, was played by Scotty Beckett. He was one of the biggest child stars of Hollywood's Golden Era, who also had promise going into adulthood. But Becket's life would turn sour with alcohol, drugs, and crime, and he died of an overdose of barbiturates in a third suicide attempt in 1968, at age 38.

In the better known category of adult actors are Leon Ames as the senior Stover and father, Samuel. And, Leo G. Carroll has the meatiest role as The Old Roman, a teacher, house master and coach at Lawrenceville School. His is the only role of substance that is performed very well. It is for Carroll's role mostly, that I give this film even four stars.

I am surprised to see revews by so many who think this is a very good film -- even with just 760 ratings as of the time of my writing here. It's overall rating of 6.8 in April 2024 is much higher than audiences of the day would have given it. The film bombed at the box office and lost MGM over half a million dollars. It finished the year 147th in ticket sales at the box office. I doubt that many movie buffs today would find this film entertaining or enjoyable.

Carmen Jones (1954)

A modern U.S. opera with an excellent African-American cast

[7/10 · 25 April 2024]

"Carmen Jones" is opera. It's very good, modern opera in the vernacular. Most operas are tragedies. The plot of this film is tragedy. The story and setting are in the South of the Atlantic Coast, with an all African-American cast. Opera tells stories - mostly dramas, with much of the script in songs, interspersed with dialog. Italian is the language of origin of opera, but it has been increasingly translated into the languages of countries where it is performed. Thus it is with "Carmen Jones." It's pedigree includes a 1943 stage musical of the same title, music from an 1875 opera, "Carmen," and an 1845 book of that title by two French stage writers.

The story is a conflicted one, varying around a morality tale with seduction, a fallen hero, obsession, money, power and greed, and revenge. The cast all are very good. Harry Belafonte is Joe, Dorothy Dandridge is Carmen Jones, Pearl Bailey is Frankie, and Brock Peters plays Sergeant Brown. Dandridge's singing was dubbed by Marilyn Horne. Horne said she studied Dandridge's voice meticulously so that her singing voice would sound like Carmen's in the film. The film got good reviews and was a box office success. Otto Preminger produced and directed this film, and also made the successful "Porgy and Bess" of 1959 that had a mostly African-American cast.

I agree with one reviewer who noted that the boxing match should have had a mixed audience. In reality, many boxing fans are white attend pro boxing matches everywhere. Many root for and have favorite African-American boxers and others just as people of all colors and nationalities do. I grew up watching fights on TV with my dad and others. We were fans of Sugar Ray Robinson, Joe Louis, George Foreman, Larry Holmes, and Muhamad Ali - as well as other favorites like Rocky Marciano, Salvador Sanchez and Manny Ortiz.

Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (1954)

A wonderful musical hit that fooled the studio moguls

[9/10 · 25 April 2024]

What a delightful and entertaining film this is. It's no secret that "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers" was not given much thought or expectation by MGM's front office at the time. The studio moguls had relegated it to second tier status. But the producer, director, writers and composer thought otherwise. And, by the time the leads and cast were all selected and onboard, a strong bond and feeling of camaraderie enveloped everyone who had anything to do with the picture. Several of the cast and crew interviewed four decades after the film was made talked about the warmth, humor, and genuine closeness of the cast in the making of this film.

And, it was a good thing for MGM that "Seven Brides" was a smash hit and finished sixth in box office sales for the year. The profit helped cover losses the studio had from a couple of musicals that were duds. This film even far outpaced the studio's favorite with high hopes, "Brigadoon." It's budget was three times larger, and although it was a box office success, it was far below this film. "Seven Brides" also won an Oscar for the best musical score and received four more nominations.

Besides the winning cast of Jane Powell and Howard Keel in the lead roles, Director Stanley Donen and Producer Jack Cummings got Adolph Deutsch for the musical score. And, according to Michael Kidd, Donen double-crossed him after enticing him just to do dance numbers for the music. Instead, he wound up choreographing the whole film. And that involved some of the best dancers from Broadway, as well as a couple of exceptional acrobats. One would think they had met their challenge with a screenplay calling for 14 people up front - the seven brides and brothers. But, because the major choreographed dance scene also had seven townsmen competing for the girls, the number grew to 21. And was that ever a spectacular performance! One of the great ones of all time of choreographed scenes in movies.

The plot has a very interesting background source. It's based on an ancient Roman legend known as the Rape of the Sabine Women. That in turn had been the source of a short story by French author Stephen Benet, entitled "The Sobbin' Women." Anyway, however much of the original legend and story were kept, and how much was changed and new, the story was updated to the 1850s and set in the wilds of Oregon. That was just 50 years after the Lewis and Clark Expedition reached the Pacific Ocean on the Oregon coast in 1805. It was at the height of wagon trains and travel over the Oregon Trail.

The film makers had wanted to shoot the film on location in Oregon, but MGM sliced it budget, so the whole thing was filmed on sound stages and the backlots at MGM. One scene with a mountain background is clearly a painted backdrop. The only stickler I have about this film won't be noticed by most, but some Oregonians will surely notice it. The writers put the Brothers' cabin less than 15 miles from the town, which itself was of some size. Powell's Milly asks Keel's Adam how far it is to their place when they have started their wagon trip from the town He answers about 12 miles. They have a pass to go through that gets closed by snow in the winter. And Adam said he farms 50 acres of wheat. So, their cabin would be on the high plateau on the east side of the mountain crest. Well in the 1850s there wasn't a town of any size anywhere near there. Mt. Hood is 54 miles straight east of Portland - about 70 miles by road travel. And even today there are no towns of any size within 40 miles of the crest of the Cascades along the whole western side of the mountains, from California to the Columbia River border with Washington.

Well, that slight stickler in the script aside, this is a rollickingly good musical comedy-romance and drama. The songs by Johnny Mercer and dance numbers are wonderful. One can look far and wide to find another film with the great dancing and acrobatics in this superbly choreographed film. This film and MGM's whole musicals output for 1954 show that the studio moguls didn't always know what the audiences would really go far, and what they might not like so much.

Athena (1954)

The cast couldn't save this turkey

[4/10 · 22 April 2024]

"Athena" was and is billed as a comedy musical and drama. It was touted as an original story, with all original music (but for one revised song). The cast of Jane Powell, Debbie Reynolds and singer Vic Damone should be a great draw and portend of top musical entertainment. And the popular supporting actors like Louis Calhern and Ray Collins should further signal fine comedy. Why then is this film such a dud? Why then did it flop at the box office?

The answer is because it failed on three of the four aspects of comedy musicals. Instead of attributes, these turned out to be drawbacks. It takes all four aspects in top form to make great musicals, and three of four for very good musicals. Even two of the four can make a good film if they are strong and good enough to overcome the liabilities of the other two. Well, "Athena" has the cast, but nothing else. Where is the comedy? The script is completely devoid of any clever, witty or funny dialog. There are no antics with any humor to suggest comedy. Where is the very good and memorable music? It's a concoction of forgettable tunes and incoherent theme music. Vic Damone gives one weak variation of a revised tune of the day, as "The Girl Next Door." And Jane Powell has one good operatic song. But those can't save this humdrum musical score with nary a catchy or memorable tune. There isn't even another solo or lead number by Powell or Reynolds. A couple of fair dance scenes, Powell's operatic solo, and the cast showing up are the only things that keep this film from being a complete zero.

But, what about a plot - to go with the cast? Indeed, that's the clincher that drives a stake through the heart of this film. The three writers listed for "Athena" all had careers with some fine credits for writing and working on very good comedies and musicals, as well as a range of other films. It's not clear whose "original idea" it was for this film, but the plot has one of the weirdest screenplays I can recall from decades of theater-going and watching movies. The setting in and around the Mulvain family - which is most of the cast, is a concoction of mixed mythologies, astrology, numerology, and vegetarian eating and living.

Look at the names of the characters. The sisters have names from Greek and Roman mythology. Three are goddesses, one is a muse and another is a daughter of a god and wife who kills Jason's children. Grandma Salome's name comes out of the Bible - a granddaughter of Herod the Great. Grandpa Ulysses is named after the king of Greek mythology in Homer's Odyssey. Grandma's numerology and astrology dictate the future of all of the mystical namesakes. And, then these people live in some isolated hilltop close to the city, and thrive on nothing but vegetables -- including some exotic plants. And they run an esoteric fitness hostel of some sort. It could only have been more wierd if this had all been under water.

Well, the first audiences of the film in 1954 struggled through it ut afyrt that even fans who liked musicals "stayed away in droves." MGM lost over half a million dollars on the film. It finished 96th in box office for the year And that was a year that saw several great musicals. Paramount's "White Christmas" topped the box office sales for the year. It had a great musical cast, a great plot, great songs with several memorable tunes, and wonderful comedy. Universal's ":Glenn Miller Story" finished third for the year at the box office. It also had a great cast, the music of Glenn Miller, and a wonderful fictionalized biopic plot. Another big Paramount success was Danny Kaye's "Knock on Wood" that finished 24th for the year. It's zany plot had great comedy and wonderful music.

And, MGM had two successful musicals for the year that helped cover its losses from "Athena" and other weak films. Before Athena's release in November, MGM's "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers" drew crowds to theaters across the country. That Jane Powell and Howard Keel musical comedy had tremendous talents, wonderful songs with superb dance scenes, a very good plot and setting, and wonderful humor. It finished the year in sixth place at the box office. The other MGM musical success for the year was "Brigadoon," with Gene Kelly, Van Johnson and Cyd Charisse. It finished 54th at the box office.

The 1930s through 1950s were the golden era of the Hollywood musicals. That they began to lose popularity may be partly attributable to poorer and weaker films being made - such as this. And, with the demise of the studios went the assembled pools of exceptional talents for dancing, choreography, singing, and musicians that are needed for great musicals.

Many people still enjoy good musicals, and there have been many superb box office hits since the golden era. I wonder what the next great musical will be about. And who will be the performer? And how long before it comes out?

The Battle of Gettysburg (1955)

A bare-bones view of Gettysburg

[6/10 · 19 April 2024]

This is a no-frills, no-thrills and no-action short documentary about The Battle of Gettysburg in the American Civil War. The July 1-3, 1863 battle was considered a key battle in the war. It was the largest and bloodiest by far. More than 165,000 Union and Confederate troops were engaged. And it had more than 50,000 casualties.

MGM sent a crew to, Pennsylvania, to film the Gettysburg National Military Park. Dore Schary wrote the script for this dry documentary. It uses voice over and background war sounds. Leslie Nielsen tells the story of the battle as the camera moves from one place to another.

This is a bare-bones documentary that won't appeal to many people. But what I especially like and credit the film industry for, is its shooting of real places of history for posterity. This 30-minute short picture did get two Oscar nominations.

Those who like history, scenic places and travel should enjoy this brief glimpse of Gettysburg. Of course nothing beats going there when one can.

Crashing the Movies (1950)

Pete Smith narrates comical and daredevil stunts

[6/10 · 18 April 2024]

This MGM short ran in theaters with a feature film in 1950. I saw it last on a DVD with the comedy musical, "Two Weeks with Love." The film is eight minutes and runs like a newsreel, from which several video clips are shown. Pete Smith narrates as it shows various unusual, risky, comical or daredevil feats that different people had done or were trying. Some might leave many people wondering if the performer wasn't off his rocker - or had all his marbles, so to speak.

These weren't all crashes, so I think the title referred to unusual and odd things some people might do to try to crash into moving pictures. These folks made newsreels, evidently. The most interesting clips to me were the human projectile - a guy being shot out of a cannon; and a water skier holding a glider and trying to go aloft while being pulled by a boat.

The craziest one has to be a guy wearing some sort of special pants, riding and holding onto the back of a speeding car, and then lowering himself and letting go so that he slides on his bottom until coming to a stop. The car had to be going at least 30 and maybe 40 miles per hour. He survived it and apparently wasn't hurt, but I wonder if he hadn't lost some of his marbles.

The Greeks Had a Word for Them (1932)

The best plot and acting of any film of this type

[8/10 · 18 April 2024]

The 1930s had a plethora of three types of films that were seldom made after that. They were: (1) the shooting gangster flicks; (2) the high night life of the idle rich; and (3) the young girls who left small towns for a chance at fame or wealth. In some ways, these were a product of the times. Prohibition had just come to an end, but the organized crime that it spawned was well entrenched, and many movies were made from that. Then, the Great Depression was felt everywhere - well, just about everywhere. There still were the wealthy who were above all this - those who hadn't lost everything in the stock market crash. And movies about people who were enjoying the high life were escapist fodder for many audiences.

In that last group, the girls who left home to score in the big city, there were three or four sub groups. Some girls wanted to find good jobs, try to get ahead, and meet Mister Right with whom to marry and settle down. Some had stars in their eyes and hoped to make it big on Broadway or as entertainers. And one group was women who just wanted to find rich men to live off of, and even marry. "The Greeks Had a Word for Them," is about the latter. And the Greek word probably translates to two words in English - gold diggers.

Well, this movie that also went by the title, "Three Broadway Girls," may be the best portrayal of the lot. The plot centers around three single girls who had met in New York, became friends and roomed together. They present a mix of the young ladies who venture to the city for their futures. Polaire Quinn and Schatzi Sutro have an an unseen elderly patron, "Pops," who helps them out in a pinch, between the roles they could get in shows. Polaire has a steady guy, the son of a wealthy man, but she isn't after his money. Schatzi doesn't have anyone in tow, but has a working stiff who would like to be her guy.

These two have been rooming for some time while a third girlfriend, Jean Lawrence, has been in Paris, living it up and pursing a wealthy title or two. But Jean is coming home and Polaire and Schatzi are going to meet her at the docks. Before this film is through, Jean will display her masterful talents of gold digging that will put all others to shame. And, in the process stomp on her friends and break up their chances for love and romance, at least once.

This film is loaded with comedy, but a warning is in order. It takes the right frame of mind to see and enjoy the humor. Jean's portrayal and behavior with her two friends is anything but good and proper for bosom buddies. Seeing this as a serious film, one might want to yell at Polaire and Schatzi to get rid of Jean, or imagine their doing her in. But that would miss the very good, subtle and dog-eat-dog humor that Samuel Goldwyn and his writers came up with.

There's no doubt that this is a masterful plot. Zoe Akins and Sidney Howard were very adept screenwriters. Each wrote many good films in various genres. They each had several smash comedies. Akins wrote for many years and was a poet and journalist besides. Her comedy scripts included "My Man Godfrey" in 1936, and two more films about women gold diggers - "Girls About Town" of 1931, and "How to Marry a Millionaire" of 1953.

Howard died early from a farm accident at age 46. But not before he had won an Academy Award for "Gone with the Wind" in 1940, and two more Oscar nominations for "Arrowsmith" in 1932 and "Dodsworth" in 1937. Among his great comedy scripts were "Nothing Sacred" of 1937 and "He Stayed for Breakfast" of 1940. He also wrote the screenplays for two of the British caper comedies of "Raffles" in 1930 and 1939.

The three women who play the leads in this film were perfect in their parts. Joan Blondell had top billing as Schatzi and was the best known, as she probably is yet today. Madge Evans played Polaire. She made more movies than the others - 100 credits in all, but Evans wasn't especially adept at comedy. She made many serious and dramatic films But the one roll that really puts this film over is that of Jean played so superbly by Ina Claire. She would be the least known among movie goers, but certainly not among the theater crowds.

Ina Claire was a well-known stage actress for the first half of the 20th century. She became best known for her sophisticated comedy. She made only 12 films in her career, four of them were silent films. Her most memorable and familiar film to movie buffs will be "Ninotchka" of 1939. Her second female lead as Swana, behind Greta Garbo, shows her edge in biting humor. But in this earlier comedy Claire's comedy is subtle and wily, both in verse and looks.

Another little plus in this film is in the director, Lowell Sherman, also playing the second male lead as Boris Feldman. Sherman had a fine double career in films but died young from pneumonia - at age 46.

Here are some favorite lines from this film.

Jean Lawrence, "You gonna make me believe that I've bought $43 worth of liquor since I've been on this boat?" Waiter, "Oh, no, madame. These are only the drinks you haven't paid for yet."

Jean, "Say, whatta you do?" Boris Feldman, "I play the piano." Jean, "Is that all?" Boris, "Well, I took tambourine lessons, but I gave them up when I was very young." Jean, "Oh, dear - a comic as well." Polaire Quinn, "He happens to play a little better than anyone else in the world."

Calamity Jane (1953)

A rip-shortn' comedy Western musical

[10/10 · 17 April 2024]

Two legendary characters of the Old West are the stars of this 1953 musical by Warner Brothers. "Calamity Jane" is a rip-snortin', shoot-'em up musical and comedy Western that's set in the Black Hills of South Dakota. Calamity Jane and Wild Bill Hickok are undoubtedly the most famous of the former residents of Deadwood. They weren't sweethearts in real life (Hickok evidently disliked Jane), but their presence in the 1870s Dakota Territory is the basis for a wonderful film. These decades after my first viewing, "Calamity Jane" still is superb entertainment. This10-song musical is lots of fun with comedy galore and a little romance to boot.

And who was there to play the legendary frontier woman and sharpshooter, but Doris Day? While Calamity may not have been quite as robust in real life, Doris Day's athletic and acrobatic portrayal is a real hoot. Calamity also had a rep for spinning some fine yarns. So, Doris meets that fete very well, in between the songs with her great voice. And she has the perfect match with Howard Keel, who lends his voice to a tune or two. Together, and with a fine supporting cast, and a very good plot and script, Day and Keel deliver a great Wild West musical and comedy.

The film was a big hit in its day and finished 30th in box office sales for the year, when Hollywood made a few hundred movies. It earned three Academy Award nominations, and won the Oscar for best original song. "Secret Love" by Sammy Fainn and Pual Webster became a smash hit tune that reached number one on the charts. Several artists since have recorded it, but none have topped the original recording by Doris Day. Two more of the 10 songs in the film became popular tunes of the day - "Windy City" and "The Deadwood Stage."

The real stories of Calamity Jane and Wild Bill Hickok were as big as their legends. Wild Bill (James Butler Hickok) was killed while playing poker in a Deadwood saloon in 1876. Jack McCall shot Hickok in the back of the head and was later hanged for the murder. Hickok was just 39 years old, but had led quite a life by then, He served various times as a marshal or deputy sheriff in Missouri and Kansas. And he and Buffalo Bill Cody served as scouts for Col. George Custer's Calvary regiment. Wild Bill was quick on the draw and had killed several men, most, bot not all, as a lawman.

Calamity Jane was born Martha Jane Canary in Princeton, Missouri, on May 1, 1852. Both of her parents died early, and she raised five younger siblings in the Wyoming Territory. Calamity took various jobs. Little is known about those years except for her own stories, until she wound up on her own in the Dakota Territory. She was a definite sharpshooter, and was involved in the area campaigns and conflicts with Native Americans. Her reputation grew as quite a story teller during that time. While she apparently had a yen for Hickock, he had been married and didn't have much to do with her. Later, Calamity joined Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show as a storyteller. She moved around quite a bit and was a heavy drinker, which led to her death near Deadwood at age 51 in 1903.

There are many places of interest to visit in the Black Hills of South Dakota. A visit to Deadwood is like a look into the Old West. One can gamble yet today in one of the saloons. During the tourist season, the reenactment of the shooting of Wild Bill Hickok takes place. And a must stop while there is the Mount Moriah Cemetery atop the hill above the town. That's where a few legends of the Old West are buried. The most famous, of course, are Wild Bill Hickok and Calamity Jane. Their graves are right next to each other.

Paul, Apostle of Christ (2018)

Paul's last year and the persecution of Christians in Rome

[8/10 · 14 April 2024]

"Paul, Apostle of Christ" begins where the book of "Acts" in the Bible leaves off. The evangelist Luke wrote the fourth Gospel in the Bible that bears his name, and also wrote the book, "Acts of the Apostles." A scene toward the film's end shows Luke talking with Paul and coming up with the concluding words for his story about Paul's life. "And he lived there two whole years at his own expense, and welcomed all who came to him, preaching the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ quite openly and unhindered." (Acts 28:30-31)

It's from that point that this story and film begin. The prologue on the screen sets the stage. It's Rome in AD 67. "A devastating fire has swept over the city. Emperor Nero pins the blame on those that follow Jesus Christ and one of their leaders, Saul of Tarsus - known as Paul to the Roman world. Christians are thrown into Nero's bloody Circus or set on fire as Roman candles to light the streets. Learning of Paul's arrest, Luke enters Rome in secret to capture the last of Paul's wisdom." So, this setting is well after the execution of the Apostle Peter in Rome, and the burning of Rome in 64 AD.

With the title given this film, one might expect a considerable portrait of the Apostle Paul's life as a Christian. It would include his dramatic conversion near Damascus on the road from Jerusalem. And his preaching, teaching, and travails in at least some of the cities and places where he journeyed and established churches. But, that's not what this film is about. Instead it provides a deep look into the person and faith that fills Paul and guides his very being and all that he does. And, it's a look at the evangelist, Luke -the Syrian-born Greek physician and early gentile Christian.

Luke met Paul in Antioch, some time after Paul's conversion. And he become one of several frequent travelers with Paul. Indeed, Luke and some others had traveled with Paul to Rome on his last journey. The others included Aquila and Priscilla, who joined Paul in Corinth. They had lived in Rome but left when Claudius Caesar deported the Jews several years earlier.

The main plot of this film involves Paul, Luke, Paul's fictional second jailer, Mauritius Galias, and the latter's wife and seriously ill daughter. A couple of major subplots fill out this story and film. One is a hidden enclave that Aquila and Priscilla run that harbors persecuted Christians in the city. Another is the persecution of the Christians, and Luke's encouragement of them to hold fast to their faith in the Circus games. Another is Luke's medical treatment and healing of the centurion's daughter. And lastly, Luke's writing letters that Paul dictates in prison, and Luke's writing the Acts to be carried out of Rome by Aquila and Priscilla and their group who are secretly led out of the city at the end.

This film has some grim scenes about the persecution of early Christians. While the story itself is fictional, the principal Christian characters were real, as were the events. The portrayals by Jim Caviezel and James Faulkner of Luke and Paul, respectively, are superb. And all others of the cast are excellent in their roles.

The film has a nice epilogue on the screen. It is "dedicated to all who have been persecuted for their faith." Perhaps it should be updated to include "those who are being and will be" persecuted for their faith. The destruction of churches, violence against Christians, anti-Semitism, and oppression of religious freedom are as prevalent in the 21st century "civilized" world as at any time in the past.

Sparkling Cyanide (2003 TV Movie)

Ultra modern, much revised Agatha Christie story

[6/10 · 4 March 2024]

"Sparkling Cyanide" is a modern updated setting and considerably revised story based on a couple of Agatha Christie original works. Those being a short story, "Yellow Iris," and a later expanded novel from that story, first printed in the U. S. in 1945 as "Sparkling Cyanide." The British publication later that same year was titled "Remembered Death."

"Yellow Iris" was made into a TV movie for the Hercule Poirot series that starred David Suchet; and this film follows the later book plot that involves Colonel Race as the main sleuth and star. Two earlier films were made for TV, in 1983 and 1993. But this version underwent substantial revisions. It's in a 21st century setting, the master sleuth's name is changed to Col. Geoffrey Reece, and he has a wife and partner, Dr. Catherine Kendall.

Perhaps the idea behind such extensive revision of Christie stories, such as this, is to make them appeal more to a modern audience. I don't know, but I prefer works based on novels and stories to be in their original times. Still the ingenuity of Agatha Christie comes through in this plot, so I like it. Not as much as any of the original or earlier versions of the story.

Here's a favorite exchange of lines between Col. Reece and his spouse-partner. Col. Geoffrey Reece, "Oh, Kate, do you remember the old days? Berlin Wall?" Dr. Catherine Kendall, "Russian spies? Cambridge defectors?" Col. Reece, "Political assassinations? Libya? At least there was some dignity in that."

His and Hers (1961)

Terry-Thomas goes Bedouin, and Hyde-White wonders

[6/10 · 4 March 2024]

"His and Hers" isn't anywhere near the top comedy that Terry-Thomas made, but it is good and most fans should enjoy it. The plot is somewhat odd, as a world adventurer and author returns home to England after having been lost in the sands of the Sahara Desert in Africa. Yes, Thomas has that role as Reggie Blake. He and his publisher, Wilfrid Hyde-White's Charles Lunton, created the character and role as a means of steady income. Reggie sets off on an adventure to conquer some unusual feat that no one has yet done, and then to write about it. The two make lots of money on the sales of his books. Of course, there are shenanigans in those very adventures, and those come out around the middle of the film.

Well, after his return from his latest adventure, Reggie brings back with him some strange, unusual and - to say the least, unorthodox to English life and behavior, practices and habits. His adopted Bedouin side carries with it a touch of misogynism. It all leads to some humor with wife Fran, played by Janette Scott. And this is one of the funnier and different films that I have seen Wilfrid Hyde-White in.

This is a light but good comedy that most should enjoy - especially fans of British humor. Here are some sample lines from this film.

Feix McGregor, "Babies taste delicious, no?" Reggie Blake, "I don't know. I've never eaten one."

Reggie. "Who's Brishin?" McGregor, "One of my closest friends. I hate him."

Reggie, "What do you want?" McGregor, "Why should I beat around the bush? It's all over town."

Reggie, "It's funny that every time you stab me in the back, you quote Shelley."

Simone Rolfe, "Remember the night the sheik invited me to join his harem?" Reggie, 'Yes I remember you said you couldn't because you weren't a member of the union."

Reggie, handing Simone a drink he had just made, "Desert Fires, remember?" Simone, "Ah, how could I forget. Wow!" Reggie, "Don't spill any - you'll burn the rug.... Do you remember when we used to sit down on the ground to drink 'em?" Simone, "Oh, yes, of course - to keep from falling."

Crack in the World (1965)

Plenty of interesting scenes with special effects and disasters

[7/10 · 4 March 2024]

Sci-fi films are of all types, from horror and monster films, to deep space and life in other galaxies. "King Kong" thrilled and frightened audiences when it came out in 1933. And it remained a major sci-fi scary movie for many of us in the mid-20th century who first saw it on the late night movies. Then came "Godzilla" of 1954, with a touch or Asian or Oriental humor mixed in with the scary monster and toy sets that looked real as the ancient monster long buried was brought to life by a nuclear detonation. The early Cold War years spawned quite a few sci-fi films with plots surrounding nuclear explosions.

While I have enjoyed the variety of sci-fi films over the years, I especially like those that deal with outer space or that deal with the fate of the world - the earth as we know it. Most of these films have been quite entertaining, and all usually have a good selection of scenes with tremendouos special effects. And, while the drama and acting of "Crack in the World" is somewhat lacking, it has plenty of the special effects. Those alone make this a very good, interesting and entertaining film - in the sense of keeping one on the edge of her or his seat.

And, this is one sci-fi that has a cast of some prominent actors of the past and its day. Dana Andrews is Dr. Stephen Sorenson, Kiron Moore is Dr. Ted Rampion, Alexander Knox is Sir Charles Eggerston and Peter Damon is John Masefield. Filling the obligatory female role for such films is a lesser known but very good actress of the period, Janette Scott, as Dr. Maggie Sorenson.

Anyone who enjoys sci-fi, especially with the emphasis on science and its exploration, should enjoy this film. Even these decades into the 21st century and well beyond the outer space blockbusters of the Star Wars and Star Trek films. Jules Verne first made sci-fi very popular with his 19th century novels. And, even with all kinds of space searching, research and discoveries, it seems mankind is always drawn to cataclysmic events or possibilities with our own planet. It shall probably always be that way because, after all, she is our mother earth. And our earth truly is a garden of Eden compared to anything we have discovered or learned about distant space and the universe.