CinemaInternational Posted May 7, 2019 Share Posted May 7, 2019 Firefighting was the name of the game in Red Skies of Montana, the first Fox release of the year with Richard Widmark and Jeffrey Hunter. Mala Powers turned outlaw in Rose of Cimarron, determined to find the people who killed her parents. Japanese War Bride was directed by King Vidor and was a saga detailing the fight against anti-Japanese feelings. Viva Zapata provided Marlon Brando with a meaty part and Anthony Quinn with his first Oscar (and he was very good here) Dale Robertson and Joanne Dru took on another slice of the West in Return of the Texan. Phone Call from a Stranger was a touching drama in which all the players shone, as Gary Merrill visited the loved ones of people lost in a plane crash that he survived. 5 Fingers was also highly regarded as it found James Mason as an enemy spy..... Deadline USA was one of the great newspaper films with a top performance from Humphrey Bogart. With a Song in My Heart was a plush musical biopic that was immensely popular and provided Susan Hayward and Thelma Ritter with Oscar nominations. Dan Dailey played Dizzy Dean in a film that obviously was an attempt to recapture the magic of The Pride of the Yankees..... Belles on Their Toes picked up the story of Cheaper by the Dozen, after Myrna Loy was left a widow. Much warm family stuff must be in store here. The Outcasts of Poker Flat was filmed multiple times, and this one was the last to surface.... Kangaroo was in Australia of course as Maureen O'Hara ran into two outlaws, one of whom was played by Peter Lawford. Lydia Bailey served up tropic adventure and intrigue (foreign poster) Diplomatic Courier was an espionage thriller with Tyrone Power and Patricia Neal. Wait until the Sun Shines, Nellie told of the tale of the changing fortunes of a family over 20 years. First in 1951 there was a loose version of Thwe Count of Monte Cristo; The Man in the Iron Mask got the same treatment in 1952. We're Not Married was an all-star portmanteau film with many couples discovering a side effect to their visit to a justice of the peace.... Don't Bother top Knock had Marilyn Monroe as a psycho babysitter. She was actually quite good. Richard Widmark was her employer, and Anne Bancroft made her film debut. What Price Glory found John Ford remaking one of his own films. This was a hit, but the original remained the critical favorite. Clifton Webb was hilarious in the delicious Dreamboat, a superior comedy in which he played a man less then thrilled to find out his old Silent films were being broadcasty on TV by his former co-star Ginger Rogers. O Henry's Full House was another multi-part all star film which reenacted several stories from the noted writer. All were involving and the film was fascinating. Ginger Rogers appeared again in Monkey Business, another sublime comedy. This time Cary Grant was her leading men, and the film glowed with comic ingenuity. The Snows of Kilimanjaro was a popular Hemingway adaptation, and its also one of the few Fox films that entered the public domain. Night Without Sleep had Gary Merrill worried that he committed a murder while in an alcoholic stupor. Lure of the Wilderness was a remake of Swamp Water.... so more romance in the land of the marshes. My Wife's Best Friend was a twist on Unfaithfully Yours; this time it was Anne Baxter cooking up ideas of how to get revenge..... Crime and romance came to Argentina in Way of the Gaucho. Joseph Cotten committed a big heist but wife Teresa Wright urged him to return it in the thriller The Steel Trap. Wright was the best element. Les Miserables was given a brand new version with an all star cast.... Bloadhounds of Broadway was a musical for Mitzi Gaynor based on Damon Runyon stories. This was remade in 1989. Something for the Birds might have been one of the earliest ecological comedies. The Thief of Venice was a European B that made its dubbed American bow 2 years after being first released. My Pal Gus found Richard Widmark falling for his son's teacher..... the Star was a drama in which as a faded star, Bette Davis received her 9th Oscar nomination. She was the best reason to watch. Pony Soldier returned Tyrone Power to the Western vistas. John Philip Sousa was the latest to go through the musical biopic treatment, played here by Clifton Webb. My Cousin Rachel was a gothic tale with a very impressive starring turn from Richard Burton and with oodles of great atmosphere. Fox made a remake in 2017. Ruby Gentry capped the year with Jennifer Jones as the central part of a steamy love triangle. 1953 would bring big changes to Fox, and they would never be the same again..... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Det Jim McLeod Posted May 8, 2019 Share Posted May 8, 2019 17 hours ago, CinemaInternational said: Japanese War Bride was directed by King Vidor and was a saga detailing the fight against anti-Japanese feelings. This is a good one though seems to be very hard to find today. I saw it in a revival theater several years ago. Don Taylor (he was the young cop in "The Naked City") is a WWII vet returning home with his Japanese wife (Shirley Yamaguchi). Taylor's friend Cameron Mitchell is accepting but Mitchell's wife Marie Windsor is not. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CinemaInternational Posted May 8, 2019 Author Share Posted May 8, 2019 Mislabeled this yesterday by accident. This is 1952, not 1953. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TopBilled Posted May 9, 2019 Share Posted May 9, 2019 My top 10 from this batch: 1. DEADLINE U.S.A. Excellent cast, sharp script, solid production values. A very good crime drama with plenty of commentary about the newspaper business. 2. 5 FINGERS. Another fine film with an excellent cast. Seems to get better with repeat viewings. 3. DIPLOMATIC COURIER. Great thriller. Patricia Neal has a good role in this one. Never understood why TCM doesn't air it. 4. PONY SOLDIER. One of Tyrone Power's better action films from the 1950s. 5. MONKEY BUSINESS. Hysterical. Top-notch cast and direction. Dated but fun. 6. THE SNOWS OF KILIMANJARO. A little slow in spots but the cinematography is wonderful. Peck and Hayward work well together. 7. MY COUSIN RACHEL. Strange, brooding "romance" drama. But wonderfully played by Burton & De Havilland. 8. WE'RE NOT MARRIED. A good portmanteau. Not all the segments hold up, but for the most part, it's well done and entertaining. 9. PHONE CALL FROM A STRANGER. High concept studio product. Performances are uniformly superb. 10. MY WIFE'S BEST FRIEND. I like this Richard Sale comedy a lot. But then I like Macdonald Carey and Anne Baxter too. Cecil Kellaway tries to steal it and almost succeeds. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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