CinemaInternational Posted April 16, 2019 Share Posted April 16, 2019 1941 opened with Paul Muni returning to Fox for the first time since 1929 for the Zanuck production of Hudson's Bay, a historical drama involving the founding of the Canadian company, costarring young Gene Tierney, Laird Creger, Vincent Price, and Nigel Bruce. Romance of the Rio Grande was the penultimate outing for Caesar Romero as the Cisco Kid. The last would come later in 1941. Caesar proved his quick timing by appearing in the next film as well, Tall, Dark, and Handsome, a gangster spoof with Virginia Gilmore, Charlotte Greenwood, and Milton Berle. Girl in the News was a Brit import directed by Carol Reed, detailing Margaret Lockwood as a woman accused of murder. Emelyn Williams also appeared in it. Ride Kelly Ride was a horseracing quickie with a rare lead for Eugene Pallette. Jane Withers tried her hand with horses as well in Golden Hoofs. Robert Young, Randolph Scott, and Dean Jagger all tried a hand at Zane Gray's west in Western Union. Murder Among Friends was a B-film that mixed mystery and comedy. The famous play Tobacco Road made it to the big screen with its rustic tale directed by John Ford, and with Charlie Grapewin, Marjorie Rambeau, Gene Tierney, Dana Andrews, Ward Bond, and William Tracy in the cast. Lloyd Nolan returned for his second Michael Shane mystery, Sleepers West, with Lynn Bari. Dead Men Tell was a Charlie Chan film in disguise. Scotland Yard was a crime drama with John Loder as a fugitive after his plastic surgery that is (Henry Wilcoxon played the part earlier in the film), Nancy Kelly in love with him, and Edmund Gwenn as an inspector. Alice Faye, Don Ameche, and Carmen Miranda brought their brand of uplift to the cheery That Night in Rio, a likable musical with Ameche having fun in a double role. Ride on Vaquero was the last of The Cisco Kid as played by Cesar Romero and at Fox. Alice Faye returned with john Payne, Cesar Romero, and Jack Oakie in The Great American Broadcast, another musical extravaganza. The Cowboy and the Blonde was another bread-and-butter western. Blood and Sand saw Tyrone Power stepping into Valentino's old shoes in the saga of a bullfighter. Linda Darnell and Rita Hayworth were the love interests, and the cinematography won an Oscar.It was a big success, but, personally, I feel as though I should give the movie another chance. For Beauty's Sake was a B-sized Comedy. The Great Commandment was a religious drama originally released minimally in 1939, but its Fox release was in 1941. Man Hunt was the first of four anti-Nazi films directed by Fritz Lang and starred Walter Pidgeon,Joan Bennett, George Sanders, and John Carradine. Roddy McDowell made his first US bow in this film. It was highly regarded and helped pro-British feelings in America in the months leading up to Pearl Harbor. Onward toward mid-adolescence Jane Withers went in A Very Young Lady. This was followed by the B comedy The Bride Wore Crutches. Moon Over Miami was another charming Fox musical, a deliverer of mirth and joy. Betty Grable, Don Ameche, Robert Cummings, Carole Landis, Jack Haley, and high-kicking Charlotte Greenwood starred. George Montgomery and Ona Massen had an Accent on Love. Carole Landis and Caesar Romero had a comic date at the Dance Hall Inspector Hornleigh returned for the third and final time before the Brit mystery series vanished. Charley's Aunt with Jack Benny was a major laugh-earner in its day with Benny impersonating the aunt of the title. Kay Francis, Anne Baxter, Edmund Gwenn, Laird Cregar, and James Ellison were all part of the wildly successful farce. Lloyd Nolan played Michael Shane again in Dressed to Kill (not the one with Sherlock Holmes, or the one with Angie Dickenson) Henry Fonda and Joan Bennett found romance in Wild Geese Calling. Private Nurse featurded a top billed Jane Darwell in a medical-set B. Sun Valley Serenade saw Sonia Henie whipping her skates out of the storage unit for another romantic adventure. Charlie Chan in Rio was the next to last Chan saga at Fox. Belle Starr was a loose adaptation of history with Gene Tierney as the famed outlaw. Randolph Scott was her co star. We Go Fast starred Lynn Bari, who in her career did exactly that from one film to another. Man at Large was a B of most interest today for starring George Reeves. Last of the Duanes was another dose of Zane Gray starring George Montgomery. A Yank in the RAF, a war romance with Tyrone Power and Betty Grable, was the 4th biggest box office success of all films in 1941. War was next parodied by Laurel and Hardy in Great Guns. Riders of the Purple Sage was the second Zane Gray/George Montgomery Western in the matter of weeks. Alice Faye, Carmen Miranda, John Payne, and Casar Romero all had a pleasant musical Week-End in Havana in another big, splashy Technicolor musical Lynn Bari made a comic return in Moon Over Her Shoulder. I Wake Up Screaming was one of the first Fox noirs. Small Town Deb was the newest Jane Withers saga. Rise and Shine was a crime comedy with Jack Oakie, George Murphy, Linda Darnell, Walter Brennan, and Milton Berle. Carole Landis was raising morale in Cadet Girl. It was released less than 2 weeks before Pearl Harbor. The new B offered some advise in its title: Marry the Boss's Daughter Director Jean Renoir started his US period with Swamp Water, a backwoods drama with a notable cast. Confirm or Deny was perhaps the first war film released by Hollywood following the Pearl Harbor attacks, this one being released on December 12th. Don Ameche and Joan Bennett starred Charlie Ruggles was found to be The Perfect Snob. Interesting to note that Anthony Quinn is in the supporting cast. He would keep appearing intermittedly in films for Fox all the way through 1995. Remember the Day was the saga of a teacher looking back at her life starring Claudette Colbert. and finally there was How Green Was My Valley, the enduring classic. It was Fox's first post-merger Best Picture winner and a beloved tearjerker for generations. 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
filmnoirguy Posted April 20, 2019 Share Posted April 20, 2019 Laird Cregar gave one of his best performances in I Wake Up Screaming and he should have received top billing along with the other three. The art deco Moon Over Miami poster is one of the best I've seen from the 1940s. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spence Posted April 23, 2019 Share Posted April 23, 2019 Yeah, but for some reason Fox offers no yours at all for fans? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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