CinemaInternational Posted April 25, 2019 Share Posted April 25, 2019 Sorry i took a break the last few days (have been juggling a lot of films, both classic and modern, both from Fox and outside Fox) 1947 awaits! The year opened with Betty Grable as a musical suffragette in The Shocking Miss Pilgrim. Retrospective note: Marilyn Monroe had a brief vocal cameo unbilled in the film. If voices count, it was her film debut. James Cagney was on the trail of escaped Nazi spies in 13 Rue Madeleine. George Montgomery's tenure at Fox ended after The Brasher Doubloon, a Raymond Chandler adaptation. Backlash was a B noir that was a pickup from an independent company, something quite common for Fox in the postwar 1940s. Dana Andrews was wrongfully accused of murder in Boomerang, a noir based on a true story that also featured Jane Wyatt, Lee J. Cobb, Karl Malden, Ed Begley Sr., Cara Williams, and Arthur Kennedy. (20th Century Fox Sensation, no less I see on the poster!) Ronald Colman starred in The Late Geoge Apley, a comedy with him as a stuffy father with a family who plan things differently. (Kind of like Life with Father) the musical extravaganza train headed south in Carnival in Costa Rica. Miracle on 34th Street is one of the most beloved of Christmas films. It was actually released in May (!) Weird date aside, there was no stopping this solid gold chamer with its sublime turns from Edmund Gwenn, Natalie Wood, and Maureen O'Hara. A film for many generations. (Fox remade this in 1994 with Richard Attenbourough. That version is not a patch on this one, but its still not too bad) Maureen was kept busy also appearing almost simultaneously with Cornel Wilde in the horsey romance The Homestreatch. Crime returned in Jewels of Brandenburg. Noir gathered a period-era cast with Victor Mature and Peggy Cummings in Moss Rose. Another classic was incoming with the etherial The Ghost and Mrs. Muir, an achingly romantic fantasy that served uip meaty parts for Gene Tierney and Rex Harrison, and a beautiful moving ending. Crime was big in late 40s cinema. Another one was arriving then in the package of The Crimson Key Second Chance continued in the same vein. Crime took a two film reprieve with two frothy musicals. First up of those was the musical biopic I Wonder Who's Kissing Her Now. Betty Grable scored her biggest hit in Mother Wore Tights, and rightfully so, because she and Dan Dailey were dynamos here, and the film is truly charming. Charming could definitely not be used concerning the next film, Kiss of Death. Victor Mature was the lead, but as the sadistic villain, Richard Widmark flooded the screen in his film debut and left no trace of the rest. Who can forget that horrifying scene with Mildred Dunnock? Rex Harrison returned as a gambler in the southern-set saga The Foxes of Harrow with Maureen O'Hara as his wife. The Invisible Wall returned Fox to noir country. Forever Amber, a costume drama, was much toned down from the book it was based on. Unfortunately, despite the cost and the cast, it seemed like it could have been better. Tyrone Power begged to be cast as the rat fink in Nightmare Alley, and got some of his best reviews for it. It was also definitely one of the darkest, seediest, and randiest A-list films made up to that point, and it was a most unusual viewing. 1947 audiences didn't take to it, but its reputation continues to rise. A remake was just announced that will star Leonardo Di Caprio and will be directed by Guillermo Del Toro. Just a few years after A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, Peggy Ann Garner was involved in on screen romance in Thunder in the Valley. Roses Are Red, violets are blue, Fox made another noir for the public to view. Gentlemen's Agreement was searing at the time on the topic of anti-Sematism. It won Best Picture and was much admired. Today, its not as highly regarded (I've seen some downright hostile reactions), but I feel it is still an important film one filled with exceptional acting and a literate script. Dangerous Years was a youth tale. Captain from Castille found Tyrone back in swashbucking country. An Ideal Husband was a star-studded British version of the classic Oscar Wilde comedy-drama. Daisy Kenyon was Joan Crawford's turn at Fox and it was a fascinating melodrama, with truly subtle work from her. 4 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Det Jim McLeod Posted April 26, 2019 Share Posted April 26, 2019 On 4/24/2019 at 8:00 PM, CinemaInternational said: Sorry i took a break the last few days (have been juggling a lot of films, both classic and modern, both from Fox and outside Fox) 1947 awaits! This was the year I was waiting for. My favorite Christmas movie "Miracle On 34th Street" and my favorite gangster/noir film "Kiss Of Death" 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
filmnoirguy Posted May 17, 2019 Share Posted May 17, 2019 Despite negative reviews today, Gentleman's Agreement deserved it's Best Picture Oscar. Director Elia Kazan and supporting actress Celeste Holm were also honored. Mother Wore Tights won the Oscar for Best Scoring of a Musical. Edmund Gwenn in Miracle on 34th Street won for Supporting Actor and the film also received two more Oscars for Best Screenplay and Best Original Story. So 20th Century Fox cleaned up at the 1947 Academy Awards! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kingrat Posted May 18, 2019 Share Posted May 18, 2019 1947 is one of my favorite years in film. Fox had a great year. Gentleman's Agreement won the Oscar, Miracle on 34th Street was nominated for best picture, and I actually like The Ghost and Mrs. Muir and Nightmare Alley even better. Would love to see some of the lesser-known crime films from that year. Musicals, too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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