Change Your Image
GaryLThompson
Reviews
A Place in the Sun (1951)
I'm focusing here on a late plot progression than the heart of the story here...
The reason I'm not going to address the heart of the movie is that so many reviewers have already said it all as far as the brilliance of the scripting, direction and acting. Rather, I would like to zero in on the scenes resolving what had gone on before...
Frankly, I found the courtroom scenes rather jolting after all the relatively subdued buildup. Raymond Burr has been criticized for chewing the scenery here. Well, yes, absolutely--but the movie demanded HE BE OVER THE TOP. I know the real-life swanky swain inspiring the novel and movies also got the chair in real life--but unfortunately real life has provided a number of examples of the opposite; in which a young woman's drowning is suspicious; but the obvious suspect will skate because of too much social, economic and political status. Clift makes his character oozing upper class charm, while presenting a face of a handsome promising but now tormented young men. Plus, Clift even (for understandable reasons) regards himself as innocent! Authorities and juries have had their sympathies played on with less. Raymond Burr's character won't allow such a thing to happen. Yes, he comes across as the usual "heavies" Burr usually played in this period, but he's one clearly crusading for good, and ruthlessly shakes his hearers out of any romantic illusions they may have had on the case. In the end, even the Eastman's self-assured innocence is shaken, and the courtroom scenes effectively set up the contrasting prison chaplain's quiet approach, which brings Eastman to the place of realizing his real guilt, and reach the point to where he can make his peace with his Maker, while mourning what straying from his mother's teachings and hopes for him had led him to.
And yes, it should be crystal clear to anyone watching this movie why the Perry Mason show casting call tried out Burr for the Hamilton Burger role. I believe this movie shows Burr would have kllled the role with ease, though fortunately for the future of the character and Burr's own career, Earle Stanley Gardner experimentally having William Talman and Burr switch roles made him realize he had found the first actor ever to perfectly nail the Perry Mason character. All I can say is, it's very fortunate for courtroom gladiators of that day that Raymond Burr was only an actor and not a trial attorney in real life, because their cases would be in danger all the time with a opponent like this on the other side.
Xanadu (1980)
A would-be musical classic in search of a star
Xanadu should rank right at the top of the best Hollywood musicals, in the same company as the Fred Astaire-Ginger Rogers movies, Singing in the Rain, An American in Paris, White Christmas, Mary Poppins, Sound of Music, Fiddler on the Roof, etc. Unfortunately, the reason it doesn't is due to one missing ingredient that glares out at the audience right in the opening credits.
The opening credits blazon the names of Gene Kelly and Olivia Newton John. And then after the movie's opening scene comes on screen, the movie adds almost as an afterthought "Michael Beck".
That's the central problem of Xanadu right there. When Gene Kelly is on screen, you can't take your eyes off him. When Olivia Newton John is on screen, you can't take your eyes off her. Unfortunately, Kelly is the supporting player and Newton John is the leading lady, but neither is the main star. Michael Beck is not bad. He's not good either. He's NOTHING. Kelly and Newton John are valiantly trying to push forward this train lacking an engine to pull it, two stars of first magnitude orbiting a black hole. There's a simple way to demonstrate this reality. If you've seen the movie, I'm sure there's any number of trippy scenes you could easily pull out of your memory. However, aside from that opening quiet scene of a drawing being sketched, I defy anybody to recall any scene in Xanadu which took place in that artists studio. That's because there's no Danny McGuire or Kira character to prop up the Sonny Malone character while he's working at his day job--it's up to Michael Beck alone to carry those scenes, and he's just not up to it.
It undermines the romantic plot line that is so key to the climax of Xanadu. Supposedly Kira is smitten by a forbidden erotic passion for Sonny Malone. Again, I ask those who have seen the movie, is it really credible that Newton John's character would be totally immune to Gene Kelly's charms decades before (heck, was it that believable that she would have been immune to Danny McGuire in the MODERN DAY?) and totally fall for a nonentity utterly lacking in charisma like Sonny? Frankly, the Nick character in that old movie watched by Sonny and Kira at one point in Xanadu showed more charisma and stage presence in those few seconds than Michael Beck showed in the entirety of Xanadu!
As heretical as it was to Hollywood's legendary ageism, I think Xanadu would have been immensely better if the movie had centered around just Gene Kelly and Olivia Newton John. As it is, Xanadu becoming a successful stage musical shows the vehicle itself was never at fault in the movie. Xanadu does have many great songs, superb choreography, and a superb tribute paid to the nostalgia of Golden Age Hollywood. So the movie is well worth watching, if for no other reason to ponder what it might have been with a REAL LEADING MAN.
Murder, She Wrote: When the Fat Lady Sings (1989)
One of the show's best fun episodes
When the culprit sees a confession immediately followed by Jessica Fletcher, Dennis Stanton and the cop working the case filing into the room, it's pretty clear the, ah, fat lady has sung on this murder plot. It's one of the nice classic scenes of the season, but it's only the pinnacle of an episode in which the creators and cast must have had quite a bit of fun with.
This Murder She Wrote episode wasn't filled with soap opera plot developments--it's pure opera itself, with suitable musical score and Italian-opera style twists and complications in the plotting. When Jessica tries to solve this one even she admits that she's beginning to lose track of the developments swirling about the opera company, the Puccini-hating cop is experiencing culture shock, and Dennis seems to have stumbled across the development that the opera company seems to be mixed up with a jewel-smuggling racket. Of course it proves out in the end that Jessica is the only one who can read all the right clues correctly, and expose the culprit. And as bonus, the viewer also is treated to some of the sounds and sights of San Francisco.
Frosty Returns (1992)
I have to agree, not the classic the original was, but not horrible or lacking in interest
I'll come right out and admit that I regard Rankin-Bass' "Frosty the Snowman" as one of the all-time great holiday classics, a glowing happy memory from my teen years that does not dim with each repeat viewing. I'd be the first to admit it's a bit of fluff that one reviewer especially well could have had in mind, when he complained that none of the holiday specials really reflected the real meaning of Christmas aside from "A Charlie Brown Christmas" or "How the Grinch Stole Christmas!"-- but hey! How can anybody hate a special in which the villain snivels at the end-- "Us evil magicians have to make a living too you know!"
On the other hand, it's clear far too many people found it all too easy to hate "Frosty Returns!" Okay, I regard it mainly as an interesting curio, its chief charms being that it answers the question, "What would Frosty the Snowman be like if handled by the creators of the Peanuts specials instead of Rankin-Bass?" Yes, Jonathon Winters is no Jimmy Durante and John Goodman is no Jackie Vernon, but I thought the cast members made a game effort with what could have been better material (as often the case, creators who produced magnificent creations don't have as deft a touch handling another creator's classic work).
A lot of the viewers' anger at the special seems based on it connecting strictly with wintertime and not with Christmas at all. Well, in the special's defense, that's really in keeping with the original song (even if this special doesn't really incorporate the song's basic story). I never connected Frosty the Snowman with Christmas when my elementary school teacher read Frosty's story from one of those little thin-volumed kiddie books, or when I played a 45 having the song on one side on my children's record player at home. The perception of Frosty the Snowman becoming a Christmas carol has seemed to grow over the years since the 1960s (the now unbreakable tie-in of Frosty into Christmas was undoubtedly aided in no small part by the Rankin-Bass special coming out at the end of the 1960s).
Like I said, not great, but it can be a pleasant innocuous half hour to spend if you take it just for what it is.
Perry Mason: The Case of the Sleepwalker's Niece (1957)
Shocker of an ending unveils the secret to Perry Mason's constant successes
The classic B western movie formula is kind of an inversion of the whodunit mystery genera. The audience is aware of whom the hero is, and who is the true culprit in the heinous outlawry besieging the frontier community, but invariably it's the hero who is under suspicion (by one side in a feud, by the leading lady, by the authorities, even the hero's own family, sometimes all of the above), and the villains are respected and seen as above reproach. The movie invariably ends when the hero succeeds in exposing the villains, and rounding them up in an exciting shootout finale.
In later years, after William Boyd spent or mortgaged everything he had to buy the rights to his Hopalong Cassidy character, Boyd continued making Hoppy movies but no longer had the financial resources to wind up those films by rounding up those huge posses to run down the black hats. So his postwar approach was to depend more on mystery and moody atmosphere. Unlike many of the B cowboys, Boyd actually possessed the acting chops and gravity in his character to pull that off successfully, and maybe his finest effort was "Silent Conflict." You have the classic B western conflict set up, the obvious villains talking of getting a big payroll entrusted to Hoppy's sidekick, but when Hoppy confronts the villains, no fight takes place because both the hero and bad guys come to realize the other side has no clue to what happened to the missing money and young cowpoke either! Eventually, the true culprit is unveiled in a direction the audience never would have expected, as the story takes as eerie and shocking resolution as any B movie you're liable to see.
This early Perry Mason episode reminds me strongly of that "Silent Conflict" episode. The villains again seem to be glaringly obvious: the ex-wife of Perry's client, her new boyfriend and his shady attorney. Again though, appearances prove to be deceiving as Perry unmasks the real murderer in a real shocker of an ending.
And in bringing the trial to a conclusion with his brilliant interrogation, Perry reveals just why he'll keep on winning case after case in all the coming years that his series will run. Why does the ex-wife conclude her negotiations with Perry Mason by declaring she despises him, but if she's ever in trouble she'll want Mason as her lawyer? Why is it in one Perry Mason novel, in which Mason for once is not forthcoming on his conclusions and the identity of the murderer (because of another of Hamilton Burger's ill- advised attempts to get Mason disbarred), even Della complains that Perry is the most baffling and exasperating person she has ever known because "All those clues are so plain once you explain them...They're so VERY, VERY plain...But somehow I can't ever arrange them and interpret them" and even Burger is forced to admit in the end that perhaps Perry has "applied the knowledge we all have to better advantage." When Lt. Tragg and even Paul Drake can dig up more facts and evidence than Perry could ever hope to, what is the secret behind his constantly beating them to the true solution to a case?
You can find the answer in another adventure in Perry Mason's victorious legal career--"The Case of the Sunbathers Diary." In the conclusion of the novel version, nowhere does Perry explain his approach more clearly and succinctly: "The only flaw in his reasoning was that he made the mistake so frequently by professional as well as amateur detectives of making up his mind in advance as to who was guilty and then trying to fit the facts to suit the guilt of that particular person...Once again...the greatest obstacle to any fair and impartial investigation is jumping to conclusions." Perry Mason always tries to keep an open mind to all possibilities in a case, and whenever he is irritated at failing to arrive at the right conclusion sooner, it's invariably because Perry realizes he failed to do this, at least until the end.
For example, because Hamilton Burger constantly throws himself into action without reexamining the situation, can anybody even picture Burger ever choosing to believe the denial of a hostile witness? Or having chosen to believe that witness, start wondering if he should start looking for the murderer among HIS OWN ranks? Certainly the murderer in "Perry Mason: The Case of the Sleepwalker's Niece" never dreamed that Perry would do this, and so he walks unsuspectingly right into Perry's inescapable trap. All in all, an exceptional and highly satisfying episode which is a great portent of the classic TV seasons to come.
The Miracle of the Bells (1948)
Fond memories of a good movie reawakened
I had absolutely no knowledge of the "Miracle of the Bells" when it came on TV in a colorized version a number of years ago, as one of those SFM or Hallmark weekend special presentations (a recurring image I recall was bells pealing and swinging as the announcer said "And now back to the Miracle of the Bells"). It started out as Fred MacMurray playing the type of hardboiled role he was known for in his film noir movies, this time mysteriously appearing in a small town to arrange a funeral. I admit it--the movie grabbed me as the funeral proceeded and the background of the movie's characters slowly became unveiled, and the tension built through various plot twists until the eventual happy ending (face it, it's just about impossible to review this movie without giving away much of the plot). I never saw the movie again until Turner Classics unearthed it again for a holiday showing--and its magic was as strong as ever.
I might give a little advisory here--contrary to other reviews, Frank Sinatra was not in this movie, at least not for me. When I first saw this movie, I didn't connect the priest in any way with the very well-known rough Rat Packer of the 1960s and 1970s. That's maybe why I took the character at face value, a green kid presiding over a parish that has seen its better days, but by flashes he increasingly shows the growing capacity to meet the phenomenon that is overtaking him and his flock. Of course I recognized him this time around, but Frankie's performance still holds up for me.
The leading lady's performance was absolutely luminescent, and that scene at the Chinese restaurant was indeed a gem as others have pointed out. And MacMurray is definitely at the heart of this movie, his chemistry with Cobb, Sinatra, and Valli (and later with the reporters) is what makes the whole story work--certainly has to be one of the highlights of a great career. The title is strange in a way, in that the movie (and reviewers) go out of the way to emphasize there is nothing really miraculous about the events of this movie. I venture to disagree. There is something miraculous about the way these events worked on the characters of the leads, so that MacMurray, Sinatra, Cobb and the population of Coaltown itself are far different people at the end of the movie than at the beginning. Yeah, it's not perfect, the movie does lag and hit its points with a heavy hammer in spots, but, to steal a line from another miracle movie, "Miracle on 34th Street"-- this movie was declared special and a classic on TV years ago, and years later I have to say, professionally and personally I have to agree with them!
Supergirl (1984)
Perfect choice for star, great music and shots let down by script
Of all the line of Super movies made by Salkinds, people seem pretty universal in their praise for the first movie as a classic, fans of Superman II seem to get the urge to up-heave at Superman III, while people who love Superman III tend to dis Superman II, while everyone seems to regard Supergirl and Superman IV as dying gasps of a franchise.
My own experience? Well, I was living in the area of Fenton, MI at the time, and somehow I ended up seeing, if I recall right, Supergirl four or five times.
Why? Well, Helen Slater proved to be perfect casting for the role of Supergirl. While not quite as landmark as Williams' immortal Superman theme, the score of Supergirl is as memorable in its own right (curiously enough, it was reused for a Power Rangers movie a few years later). And scattered through the movie are some magnificent scenes,such as Supergirl first emerging on Earth, and your gang- bangers from Hollywood central casting who discover they picked the WRONG girl for their victim.
Nonetheless I have to acknowledge the movie's weaknesses. It was in retrospect that I realized the movie's script essentially copied in color-by-the-numbers fashion the script of Superman I, this time done in a duller and less interesting manner. Even the very first Superman movie had its flaws, but it was really the sequels hurt by these flaws as the cynical and camp elements grew and became magnified with every passing movie.
I thought DC Comics/Time-Warner missed an opportunity with Superman IV. If only they had just made a movie titled V (acknowledging both Superman I-III and Supergirl as prequels) and actually tried to find out what actually happened to Superman on one of those old chestnut "out of the office while on a mission to another galaxy" jaunts. They just might have made a great movie, if say, Superman were to show up on Earth with a character in tow by the name of Brainiac, supposedly on a diplomatic mission of peace. Meanwhile, Supergirl had already returned to earth in search of Superman's help because Argo City has mysteriously vanished, only for her overtures to be sabotaged by a mysterious enemy who steals her superpowers and labels her as a mental case. Meanwhile, as Clark Kent is enjoying a reunion with Lana Lang,Jimmy Olsen and Lucy Lane have dragged Lois Lane into taking a second look at that this mystery girl Linda, with the unexpected help of Nigel and Gorman (genuinely reformed, but still far from paragons of virtue, who form a comic odd-couple in trying to work together). Together, they turn up evidence that Brainiac may not have come in peace as claimed but has been duping Superman all along, but it's already too late as now Earth's cities are suddenly mysteriously vanishing...
Oh well, we got Superman IV instead (*SIGH*). And we had to wait some years before another Superman movie would tackle the theme of Superman coming back to earth after a considerable time of exile, not to mention some years before the Supergirl character would literally come back from the grave (meaning no more Helen Slater as Kara Zor-El--*DOUBLE SIGH*--though apparently she made a great Lara later on).
Hart to Hart (1979)
Typical Spelling cotton candy, but Hart to Hart is the cream of that crop
Spoiler warning: Don't get too attached to the Harts' friends. Pretty high mortality count by the end of most episodes!
Seriously, it's Nick and Nora Charles Lite, but with Spelling Productions you're expecting something profound or fiendish mystery plot twists? But Spelling always knew how to entertain, and he also had a knack of hiring top acting professionals. The charm and talent of the three leads here (the dog Freeway isn't bad either) is obviously the biggest factor in the show's success. And Spelling did have a knack for great opening sequences, and Hart to Hart is no exception.
So if you're looking to unwind from the pressure of a tough day, turning on Cozi or Hallmark Mystery to spend a couple hours with Jennifer and Jonathan and Max wouldn't be your worst choice for diversion.
Wild West (1946)
Maybe best movie Eddie Dean ever made
Western fans well know that among the B cowboys, Republic stands at the top as far as great entertainment and production values. Just a notch below was Monogram. At the bottom of the heap was PRC, barely a step (if that) above those Grade Z fly-by-night studios always dissolving into bankruptcy. PRC product can generally be readily recognized for aspects such as heroes faced with gangs that did not exactly present overwhelming odds (casting budgets, ya know), screens often filled more with leisure than action, second-rate musical scores, etc. and other shortcomings that made PRC's stars struggle to rise above the material.
That being said, the thing most striking about the opening "Prairie Outlaws" (the version I recently viewed on Encore Western Channel) is a list of acting credits that seems to go on forever. PRC apparently expanded its budget for casting this baby, and these actors seem to respond with greater effort than usual. Even this somewhat mutilated version (color changed to B & W, running length cuts) can't quite hide the charms of the "Wild West" original.
This is about the only movie you'll see both Eddie Dean's warbling tonsils and LaRue's snapping lash in the same picture. That alone would be worth seeing, but the funny thing is that things don't slow down a bit during extended sequences when both are off screen. Roscoe Ates is in the thick of the action instead of merely being there for hijinks (though there's one explosive bit of business at the very end!), and there's other supporting actors who really do provide a lot of support. Yes, the hero being lured out of retirement to avenge an old friend is an old B-western cliché, but in this case it is well utilized to provide some winsome characters in the dead lawman's family, who do plenty on their own account to push the plot forward at crucial moments. The plot is fairly straightforward (outlaws try to stop telegraph and railroad from bringing civilization and law and order to their territory) and moves briskly to the denouement. That denouement is a long and rousing battle scene that even Republic would have been proud off; as Dean, LaRue, Ates and their telegraph operator friend fight it out with the outlaws; while the fallen lawman's family labor mightily to get out a message in time for Rangers to ride to the rescue.
I would have to rate this as the greatest Eddie Dean western I have ever seen, and though LaRue would go on to make his own series of Westerns that had its own share of keepers, this has to rate among his best work as well. Fans of the B western genre should find this highly satisfying.
Games People Play (1980)
A curio that should intrigue Gen-Xers today
As one who was there when this originally aired, take it from me that if VCRs had been common back then, I would have this show archived today. As it is, I think people are really missing a unique piece of Americana by not being able to pick this up at their local Blockbusters (which would not be too much trouble, as 13 episodes would only take a DVD or two, or six videotapes, at the most).
This came from the era of "trash sports" programming, when "Superstars", "Challenge of the Sexes", "Almost Anything Goes", "Battle of the Network Stars", etc. were competing with the real thing for airtime. Of these, I think "Games People Play" would reveal some unexpected charms in retrospect:
A) Main host Bryant Gumbel caught in the transition between NFL football coverage and NBC's "Today".
B) Arte Johnson
C) Johnny Bench and (I think) Cyndy Garvey co-hosting a "King of the Hill" competition with Cincinatti's "Kings Island" in the background, as contestants battled against elimination in foosball and mechanical bull competitions.
D) The actress playing the role of Debra Winger's friend in "Urban Cowboy" competing in the above-mentioned mechanical bull competition.
E) Arte Johnson.
F) A truly weird competition in which men competed busting through a door to a bar in the least time....
G) Nice bouncy score, particularly during the bumpers showing what was coming up....
If they have a category for offbeat TV shows (like "Plan 9 From Outer Space" has infamously been for bad movies), those who release videos should consider this a prime candidate for it.