film lover 293

1949: 1.) All The Kings' Men 2.) Adams' Rib 3.) On The Town 4.) The Set-Up 5.) Kind Hearts and Coronets 6.) The Heiress 7.) The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad 8.) The Bribe 9.) Take Me Out To The Ball Game--Thin story is basically an excuse for a string of musical numbers--the marvelous, soon to be blacklisted Betty Garrett strikes comic sparks with Frank Sinatra. 10.) Lust For Gold--Historical noir about the Superstition Mountain range in AZ; all the characters are ********, so sit back and enjoy the double, triple, and quadruple cosses that happen. Camp Classic-- Bride of Vengeance--Lucretia Borgia is just a poor, misunderstood girl in this delight from Paramount.

I saw ten movies this week: "The Lost World" (1925)--Special Effects done by Willis O'Brien (he's best known for "King Kong (1933), Ray Harryhausen's forerunner, are the main attraction here. And they are Good. Based on the Arthur Conan Doyle story, film takes thirty minutes to get started, then doesn't slow down. Two good prints on YT. "Maniac" (1934)--Incompetent mess makes "The Brain That Wouldn't Die" (1963) look like "Citizen Kane" (1941). A waste of time and celluloid. "A Royal Scandal" (1945)--Farce about Catherine the Great stars Tallulah Bankhead, Charles Coburn, & Anne Baxter; they are excellent, & if Vincent Price had been Bankheads' co-star instead of William Eythe, this would be an acknowledged classic. But Eythe is overly sincere and vocally too slow (Otto Preminger keeps things moving at breakneck speed--he knows that Farce needs to Move, and slow line readings kill laughs). Not as good as it could be, but not the disaster 1945 critics said it was. "Bluebeard" (1944)--Low-budget film from PRC distinguished by Edgar Ulmers' direction--bizarre camera angles and a rare leading role for John Carradine (he's excellent) make the predictable film interesting. Film has an Awful musical score by someone named "Erdody" that acts for the actors and tells the audience how to react and what to expect five minutes in advance. A Lousy print is on YT. "Cluny Brown" (1946)--A girl has a passion for plumbing in 1938 London, and that's just not socially acceptable--Jennifer Jones, Peter Lawford, Charles Boyer, & Helen Walker all prove expert farceurs under Ernst Lubitsch's direction; Jones' innocent quality lets Lubitsch get away with double & triple entendres. Walker is the only actress I've seen who can scream while reading a book and looking bored. "New Orleans" (1947)--Forget the ******* plot. Film is a rare chance to see Billie Holliday on film, as well as Louis Armstrong and I'm not sure how many other jazz greats. Others on this board are more qualified than me to say. I can say that when the film concentrates on music, it soars; when plot gets in the way , it Thuds. "Bride of Vengeance" (1949)--Film is beautifully restored on The Paramount Vault on YT. The film is beautiful: set & art decoration, costumes, etc. Problem is the script. It has Lucretia Borgia as an innocent, never meaning anyone harm, until misled by various villains. Macdonald Carey gets the historical implications across, as does Paulette Goddard. The scripts' tone veers from domestic comedy, to swashbuckler, to palace intrigue. Actors do their best, but film is still reminiscent of "I Love Lucy" played in 16th century fancy dress. "Forever Amber" (1947)--Beautiful film is hampered by what had to be discarded from Kathleen Winsor's novel. Linda Darnell never quite masters an English accent, but otherwise she has the spirit and fire of the novels' Amber. Cornel Wilde is OK as the object of Ambers' affections. George Sanders is the only one in the cast who looks and sounds at home in post-Cromwell England. Enjoyable film. "Lust For Gold" (1949)--Film is about The Superstition Mountains in AZ and the cursed gold that is supposedly hidden there. Everyone in LFG is a *******, so the fun is in watching them double and triple cross each other for gold, water, whatever's needed at the time. A fun watch. "M" (1951)--Shockingly good remake of Fritz Langs' 1931 classic. Joseph Losey directed, updating it to 1951. & David Wayne gives a very good performance (not quite great, although the final scenes come close). Recommended.

"M" (1951)--Joseph Losey directed this remake of the 1931 Fritz Lang classic that stars David Wayne. Wonder of wonders, it almost lives up to Langs' film. Losey updated the film to 1951. Wayne looks like the least threatening person anyone will ever meet, and is very effective in the role, if not reaching the greatness of Peter Lorre's portrayal in the original. He had acting ability to spare. Losey kept the basic structure of M, & certain shots; the M scrawled on the killer's back. Losey made changes to update the film, which generally work. There is an impassioned anti-capital punishment speech at the end of the film, and it's interesting what triggers itshowed the. Think of the phrase "In vino veritas". TCM showed the 2013 restored version by someone named Nebenzal (I missed the first name). If I say more I'll spoil the film. 8/10 stars (the original rates 9.5/10 stars).

"Lust For Gold" (1949). Enjoyable melodrama about The Superstition Mountains in AZ starts out with a signed paper from AZ's 1949 governor, saying the story is based on fact. Take that with a shaker full of salt. Yes, The Superstition Mountains exist, and Spanish/Indian gold is supposed to be hidden there. The filmmakers also get the name of the person who found the gold correct, Jacob Walz (Wikipedia has it as Waltz). LFG takes off from these basic facts. Everyone in the film is a *******: I didn't root for any of them, but enjoyed seeing Glenn Ford in a non-hero role,& Ida Lupino in another of her gallery of independent women. The fun is in watching the characters double and triple cross each other for money, booze, water, whatever's needed most at the moment. This bunch could give lessons to the ones in "Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948), LOL. 7/10 stars despite all the talk at the beginning.

End of decade lists would be fine with me before we hit 1950--but we have 1949 to go.

SPOILERS TopBilled--"Von Ryan's Express" (1965)--Sinatra is killed--he's implied to be killed in "The Devil at Four O'Clock" (1961).

Seconding Diana D.'s plot point for "Some Came Running (1958): MacLaine threw herself in front of Sinatras' character To Protect Him; she did NOT commit suicide, in the film or James Jones' book!

lydecker--David Wayne won two Tony's (for "Finian's Rainbow, 1947, & in 1954 for "The Teahouse of the August Moon". In films he's known for lightweight comic roles, but he tackled more dramatic stuff on Broadway and television. Most importantly, "M" (1951) didn't stop him from accepting dramatic roles after 1951,as it probably would have had the film been a total disaster, nor did the film stop Wayne's career momentum; if anything, he was more in demand after this role, with only one "hold your nose & cash the paycheck" stinker made after this (1953's "Down Among the Sheltering Palms"). My point is: Wayne was a talented actor; he was directed by Joseph Losey, whose films were almost always interesting, rarely a total Bomb. No, I haven't seen the remake myself. but I'll be watching: my GUESS is, this is worth watching. JMO.

1948: 1.) "The Pirate" 2.) "The Treasure of the Sierra Madre" 3.) "Easter Parade" 4,) "Act of Violence" 5.) "Letter From An Unknown Woman" 6.) "The Red Shoes" 7.) "Fort Apache" 8.) "A Foreign Affair" 9.) "Portrait of Jennie" 10.) "Red River" worst casting of 1948--Frank Sinatra as "The Kissing Bandit'.

New Orleans (1947)

Noonan, Tommy

HIGH BARBAREE (1947)

"Strike Me Pink" (1936)

Christopher Walken

SansFin: You listed five film noirs: I listed eight. You're in good company, and company that shares your film tastes. We just listed different films.

"A Day at The Races" (1937)--The last Marx Bros. movie I haven't seen--& it's almost as funny as "A Night at the Opera".

TopBilled--I edited my post--put "Monsieur Verdoux" in at #11 because of Martha Raye. Most comedies this year tried to jerk tears as well, or just weren't as good as the noirs. You'll see I listed only one musical; & technically, it's a musical comedy. Musicals & comedies will make more of an appearance in subsequent lists.

Too much mucus this year; my list is dominated by noirs 1.) "Out of The Past" 2.) "Kiss of Death" 3.) "Brute Force" 4.) " A Double Life"--In her first autobiography, Shelley Winters said she was going to make Ronald Colman look so good he'd win Best Actor Oscar. She did. 5.) "Nightmare Alley" 6.) "Ivy"--Joan Fontaine isn't a simp, for once; and she does well! 7.) "Black Narcissus"--plays like a noir, IMHO, except nuns don't smoke. 8.) " Green Dolphin Street"--won Best Special Effects Oscar for 1947--& they're worth sticking out the sticky melodrama to see. Lana's character is Not the "fluttering & fainting" type. 9.) "Body and Soul" 10.) "Good News"--forget June Allyson; film is a rare chance to see Joan McCracken in action, she was in Broadway's "Oklahoma" & was a wonderful dancer--check out the number "Pass That Peace Pipe" where she does the vocal & is lead dancer--marvelous. 11.) "Monsieur Verdoux"--Chaplin is preachy, but Martha Raye is hilarious in the rowboat scene.

"Forever Amber" (1947)--Linda Darnell does better than I expected; she never really masters an English accent, but certainly plays out the spirit and fire, and loyalty of Amber from the book. She's quite good, in spite of what 1947 critics said about her performance being lacking. Cornel Wilde is good as the fellow she falls in love with & is repeatedly parted from; George Sanders is very good as King Charles; he is the only one who actually looks at home. The script is the big problem; much of the book had to be toned down or totally eliminated from the script. Still,in spite of the script, a better than average costume film. Lush score by David Raksin & Alfred Newman. 7/10 stars.

"Bride of Vengeance" (1949)--Restored version from The Paramount Vault on YT. Restoration was done near perfectly, as far as I can tell; video and audio are excellent, Films' Art Decoration and Costumes are beautiful, even in black & white. Film's acting is underwhelming, overall, but Macdonald Carey as Cesare Borgia gets the historical implications across; Paulette Goddard does what The Code allowed; the rest of the cast is sunk by the sublimely silly script, which has poor Lucretia Borgia as a misled slip of a girl who never meant anyone any harm, until events persuaded her to do otherwise; her middle name is Madonna (no joke)! At times, the script is more like "I Love Lucy" done in 16th(?) Century fancy dress than drama; for example, on Lucretia's wedding night, as her husband carries her to bed, a messenger dashes in to inform him the foundry (don't ask) is on fire. Hubby promptly drops Lucretia and races to the fire. Great fun.

"New Orleans" (1947)--Forget the ******* plot; film is a rare chance to see Billie Holliday, Louis Armstrong, Woody Herman, & I don't know How many other jazz Greats. Film is non-stop music for the first 26 minutes. When music plays, the film soars; when plot intrudes and music is silenced, film falls to Earth with a resounding THUD. 8/10 stars. A copy is on YT, with Portuguese(?) subtitles.

1946 favorites: 1.) "Notorious" 2.) "The Big Sleep" 3.) "The Harvey Girls" 4.) " Ziegfeld Follies"--If all the film were as good as "Limehouse Blues", danced by Fred Astaire & Lucille Bremer, ZF would be #2. 5.) "The Best Years of Our Lives" 6.) "Gilda" 7,) " The Postman Always Rings Twice" 8.) " Cluny Brown"--Ernst Lubitsch's last completed film--Jennifer Jones is an expert farceur--who could have guessed--almost perfect small scale film--only flaw is it depends on ones' knowledge of British social classes--but this is nitpicking. Wonderful comedy that doesn't have the general acknowledgement it deserves as a comedy classic . 9.) "The Strange Love of Martha Ivers"--classic noir with dream cast; Barbara Stanwyck, Van Heflin, Kirk Douglas, Lizabeth Scott, & Judith Anderson. Two way tie for #10: 10.) "Bedlam"--Good script, good acting, & Producer Val Lewton spent money on this film. 10.) "Deadline at Dawn"--Good little noir where Susan Hayward has the brains and figures things out herself. Oddity--"Yolanda and the Thief". Stick out the first 20 minutes. Film gets crazier and crazier--Fred Astaires' dream sequence has to be seen to be believed. Song "Coffee Time" was a minor hit. MGM still lost a bundle on this fragile, wispily plotted musical.

LornaHansonForbes--replying to your post of July 24th, 2015; Neat little play--even the commercials are a nostalgia trip; Lizabeth Scott was an excellent actress, on film and radio. Thank you for the link.

TikiSoo--Good points, all of them. Especially re Matthew Broderick. I missed the intro to "These Three" (1936), so here's my problem; the first posts in this thread didn't just say Joseph Cotten Appeared in "These Three", that he Starred in it. I can forgive a misread cue card Much more easily than a cue card with Wrong, Basic information (yes, the stars of a film you're introducing are basic information. IMHO). So does the problem come down to an amateur co-host, or is it a problem in basic research by TCM--or is it both??

Minor Spoiler There is a scene where she reads poetry of some sort to Andrews, to get him to sleep, about three verses or so. And Faye gets the inflection, the intonation of every word exactly right. It's awe inspiring how good she was. In comedy also; she's gently sarcastic to a soldier going overseas the next day in "The Gang's All Here" (1943). She was smart, & a better actress than she's given credit for.