I Just Watched...

[Kay]

[...]Interesting film too in that Fred M. was a real life musician and started out being in the orchestra for stage musicals.

 

Maybe it would have been better if they had changed the character to a saxophonist and allowed him to play his own instrument. Might like to see how that would go. Such as it was, the most interesting part of that film to me was seeing a terribly young Anthony Quinn in cameo as a suave local bounder.

 

Was expecting some singing out of Fred MacMurray in this one, too. I was surprised to find out in the film Where Do We Go From Here? (1945)** that he was such a capable singer, (though he did always sound a bit like Fred MacMurray singing...)

 

(**This, while not a good film, is something of a trip. Incidentally, it also features Anthony Quinn in cameo.)

[EugeniaH]

By the way, your great reviewer didn't go near the question posed to the viewer at the end of the film - GUILTY or NOT GUILTY. That, too, is one of the most interesting aspects of this film based upon a real life incident - the moral quandry as to whether or not Power's drastic decisions in the lifeboat were the "right" thing to do.

I did think of that, Tom. I'd vaguely touched on it, but since there was already an entire thread done on this movie, I didn't want to be repetitive.

[MCannady1]

I think technically, Hope Emerson's character is the prison matron. The warden is played by Agnes Moorehead, who gets the movie's great closing line.

It has been so long since I saw the film!  Agnes Moorhead must have been great as the prison warden. and Hope as the matron who makes the girls put money in her little box..  They were both perfect for those roles!

I remember the woman she kept bugging finally threw a fork at her.  Was that in this film?  I just remember the stampede and how shocking that scene was. 

[MCannady1]

I know that you're probably being a little facetious there, Eugenia. One of the reasons that I suspect Power probably emjoyed doing that role in Abandon Ship is because it de-glamourized him. And, let's face it, he looks pretty rough (realistically so), especially towards the end of that film.

 

It's a shame that the film didn't do well at the box office and remains, for the most part, relatively unknown to this day.

 

By the way, your great review didn't go near the question posed to the viewer at the end of the film - GUILTY or NOT GUILTY. That, too, is one of the most interesting aspects of this film based upon a real life incident - the moral quandry as to whether or not Power's drastic decisions in the lifeboat were the "right" thing to do.

You are right that Tyrone got de-glamourized in this film  He did look pretty rough.  I have to admit that most of my favs. with him have him looking pretty attractive; The Rains Came, The Razor's Edge, etc.  But his great acting fit well with those films as well as his different image did him proud here.

 

At the end it is hard to determine if his decisions were the right thing morally.  In some pretty nail-biting events we have to wonder what was the best thing to do. 

[speedracer5]

It has been so long since I saw the film!  Agnes Moorhead must have been great as the prison warden. and Hope as the matron who makes the girls put money in her little box..  They were both perfect for those roles!

I remember the woman she kept bugging finally threw a fork at her.  Was that in this film?  I just remember the stampede and how shocking that scene was. 

Yes.  The matron just goes one step too far for this one inmate and she goes at her with the fork.  It was a great scene.

[Bogie56]

"Don't do it, don't do it" ... Oh, man I did it.  I watched The Twilight Sage: New Moon (2009) the sequel to the first idiotic teen vampire film, Twilight (2008).  This time the heroine, Bella Swan finds herself in a love triangle.  Human, Vampire and Werewolf.  There is plenty of angst to go around and practically nothing happens for the first 70 minutes.  It feels like it was written by tv people.

Kristen Stewart is slightly better in that she can now deliver a line of dialogue without a huge sigh or snort.  Robert Pattinson maintains his cling on the worst new actor of the decade.

Be afraid, be very afraid.  Woooo.

[GregoryPeckfan]

"Don't do it, don't do it" ... Oh, man I did it.  I watched The Twilight Sage: New Moon (2009) the sequel to the first idiotic teen vampire film, Twilight (2008).  This time the heroine, Bella Swan finds herself in a love triangle.  Human, Vampire and Werewolf.  There is plenty of angst to go around and practically nothing happens for the first 70 minutes.  It feels like it was written by tv people.

Kristen Stewart is slightly better in that she can now deliver a line of dialogue without a huge sigh or snort.  Robert Pattinson maintains his cling on the worst new actor of the decade.

Be afraid, be very afraid.  Woooo.

Are you trying to punish yourself in some way?

[Fedya]

Honey no...

 

 

** Oddly though, I must say the mere sight of that avocado green rotary phone makes me want to kill myself.

 

Perhaps, if you're lucky, Sidney Poitier will answer the phone.

[Fedya]

By the way, your great review didn't go near the question posed to the viewer at the end of the film - GUILTY or NOT GUILTY.

I hate to say it, but this made me think of the ending of Mr. Sardonicus.

[MCannady1]

This is a Great write up Eugenia on a great film and a great performance by my guy TY. Last time I watched Abandon Ship was about a year or 2 ago, now I really am so much in the mood to see this film again. Thanks so much for posting for this, again GREAT JOB

I wanted to add that I too will be re-watching Abandon Ship.  Tyrone Power is one of my all-time favorites.  I think his appeal is not just his appearance (lol!) but quite often his fine acting; an earnest air of projecting his feelings and thoughts.  Anyone who has seen The Razor's Edge and The Rains Came can see this as well as This Above All.  In all three films and several others we see the actor projecting himself into the role.  This is  nothing new, but TYrone Power had a unique way of doing this.  (Am I just an obsessed fan?)  Sadly, he left this world before I had seen him in anything. 

 

MY mother loved The Rains Came, so we watched that when we were quite young.  WHenever a Tyrone movie was on TV, we saw it!  By the end of the film my sister and I had fallen for Tyrone Power!  I was 6 or 7 and she was close to 10.  Since that time I have viewed many of his films and am consistently struck by his fine acting.  I loved his performance in Lloyds of London, Son of Fury, Witness for the Prosecution.   After awhile one gets quite engrossed in each and every story.  I do wish he hadn't done that duelling sequence in his last film with George Sanders.  Noone knew he had a bad heart.

 

Thanks from me too on the fine post!

[MCannady1]

Yes.  The matron just goes one step too far for this one inmate and she goes at her with the fork.  It was a great scene.

Yep, that was the one with the scary scene.  I was really shocked that anyone would use a fork (anything but a knife) for a weapon  Of course it would never occur to a yong kid.  I have since seen some where the prisoners secreted knives for weapons and attacked the warder or another prisoner..  Betty Garde was very good as the woman who threw the fork.  SHe did a great job trying to ignore the matron, who was really getting to her. But since I was very young I had never viewed a prison one before - lol.  In the last 30-some years or so I have seen  seen some other scary ones.

 

  One prison film that really scared me was one with Ida Lupino as the jealous warden of a prison -- jealous of an inmate played by Audrey Totter..  Howard Duff was in charge of the men's area. I remember he had empathy with the prisoners.   The story was quite violent and disturbing.

 

Ida was a wonderful actress and director.  Since that time I have seen her in other numerous great performances which really held my attention.  The BIg Knife and Roadhouse were two very compelling movies as well as The Hard Way, and On Dangerous Ground. From child to teen to adult I have been her staunch fan. 

 

Another masterpiece starred Ida  with Robert Ryan and was called Beware, My Lovely.  Whether it was the victim or the killer, Ida could play the part with skill.

 

Robert Ryan did a tour de force with his wonderful performance in Beware, My Lovely.  He could be a tough police officer softened by the sister of a killer in one film or could play the killer himself!   

 

These two performers were a class act!.  The viewer can just envision them living their parts.

[GregoryPeckfan]

THE SOUTHERNER (1945)

 

I watched this movie for the first time via PVR recording from TCM.  I chose to watch it because of it being Zachery Scott's birthday today.

 

I haven't read the book,, but I knew where certain plotlines would go simply because of the subject matter.

 

I won't watch it again, but I am happy to say that I did watch it straight though and did not give up on it though it was depressing in some places.

 

Some thoughts that went through my mind while I was watching it:

 

1.  Wow, how Norman Lloyd has made a career out of playing bad guys!  Love him.

 

2.  The food health and nutrition beliefs about illness and diet really changes from era to era. 

 

3.  Granny irritated me no end.  Being around that type of person would be sure to make me give up.

 

4.  Weird western type brawl interval didn't fit.  I'm not talking about what happens after the wedding.  I'm talking about when Scott is waiting with his friend having beer while his wife has taken their son to see the doctor.  That whole segment with the destruction of the saloon made me think I was in another genre. 

 

Well, I managed to find a film to watch that I did see and enjoyed and still managed to delete it from my PVR.

[MCannady1]

I enjoyed the movie more than you did, I think.

 

The print quality was an issue.

 

However, as the daughter of professional musicians and with musicians on both sides of my family for several generations, I understand the characters very well-perhaps too well.

 

I think the story is a great example of how musicians have hard lives and can burn themselves out in their quest for fame.

 

Interesting film too in that Fred M. was a real life musician and started out being in the orchestra for stage musicals.

I too was surprised about the print quality.  I liked the film and first bought it in the 80's on VHS.  At the time I first saw it there were some dark scenes and small flaws, but I usually don't mind and keep watching (if I like a film).  Years later I taped it from TCM with the same experience.,  I had taped Dive Bomber for a friend and found myself watching it too.  (But the contrast from one to the other was something else.  The vivid color of the latter film brought out the flaws of the earlier one).

 

Anyway, I do like Swing High, Swing Low and hope we get a better print someday.

[LonesomePolecat]

"Don't do it, don't do it" ... Oh, man I did it.  I watched The Twilight Sage: New Moon (2009) the sequel to the first idiotic teen vampire film, Twilight (2008).  This time the heroine, Bella Swan finds herself in a love triangle.  Human, Vampire and Werewolf.  There is plenty of angst to go around and practically nothing happens for the first 70 minutes.  It feels like it was written by tv people.

Kristen Stewart is slightly better in that she can now deliver a line of dialogue without a huge sigh or snort.  Robert Pattinson maintains his cling on the worst new actor of the decade.

Be afraid, be very afraid.  Woooo.

These movies should only be seen with Rifftrax. Then they are HILARIOUS. Even then, though, you have to be in a pretty cynical mood to watch something that bad. I've seen all of them with rifftrax (none of them without) and I can warn everyone that each film gets worse and worse and worse (and the RT gets funnier and funnier), and the plot gets more and more ridiculous, til finally in the last movie, the crowning achievement is (SPOILER ALERT for those who give a hoot) that there is a big fight that turns out to be a dream and Jacob falls in love with a BABY. WHY?!?!?!?!

[LonesomePolecat]

Oh, and the last movie I watched was JAWS, again, and I love this fun roller coaster of a movie, especially John Williams' music. This time I observed that the name of the island is Amity and thought it would be a funny sequel to Divergent to have Tris & Four hide out in THIS Amity and get eaten by sharks. New ending!

[LornaHansonForbes]

THE SOUTHERNER (1945)

 

I watched this movie for the first time via PVR recording from TCM.  I chose to watch it because of it being Zachery Scott's birthday today.

 

I haven't read the book,, but I knew where certain plotlines would go simply because of the subject matter.

 

I won't watch it again, but I am happy to say that I did watch it straight though and did not give up on it though it was depressing in some places.

 

 

I did not know that!

 

It's funny the divergent impressions of things we all get, everyone else in the world besides Fred C. Dobbs and myself seems to loooooooove GRAND ILLUSION and RULES OF THE GAME, which are by the same director as THE SOUTHERNER, JEAN RENOIR.

 

I do not "get" those first two in the least bit- in fact I really dislike RULES, but I loooove THE SOUTHERNER, I think it's just some ace filmmaking and an almost ANG LEE-level of respect and sensibility for a setting so deeply alien to his own background from director Renoir, who earned a richly deserved best director nomination for the film, which sadly did not get a corresponding Best Pic nod.

 

(...and I like BONDI as GRANNY, but I can see how she might irritate some.)

 

I also add that I've grown to really like Zachary Scott- he's in two films I've watched ten million times apiece, FLAMINGO ROAD and MILDRED PIERCE. Yes, he's like a weasel, but he's a sexy weasel, especially without the mustache. I must admit that I rather fancy him to level where any opinion of mine with regard to his acting ability is weighed too heavily by his "10**" on my "would smash" scale.

 

 

** "8" with the mustache.

[LornaHansonForbes]

EDIT:

 

YOU KNOW WHAT?

EVEN WITH THE "MOE LESTER" STASH, HE'S A "10."

 

[Dargo]

EDIT:

 

YOU KNOW WHAT?

EVEN WITH THE "MOE LESTER" STASH, HE'S A "10."

 

 

 

 

Funny Lorna, and while I know mustaches are presently "out of style"(unless it seems some other facial hair is accompanied with it), but much like Gable, whenever I see Scott withOUT a stash in some movie, he just doesn't seem the "same" somehow, and in fact from this straight male's perspective here, I'd say he's less attractive without it.

[LornaHansonForbes]

Funny Lorna, and while I know mustaches are presently "out of style"(unless it seems some other facial hair is accompanied with it), but much like Gable, whenever I see Scott withOUT a stash in some movie, he just doesn't seem the "same" somehow, and in fact from this straight male's perspective here, I'd say he's less attractive without it.

 

[Dargo]

 

So, are you sayin' all us guys who grew stashes(and stashes alone) back in the '70s were "creepy"???

 

(...sorry, but I'm not buyin' into this "science" of yours here...the bottom like here is that presently stashes alone are just out of style, that's all)

[Dargo]

And btw, and speakin' of "beards making a guy hotter"...

 

As soon as this latest little "hipster look" here runs its course...

 

 

...the better.

 

(...nope, once again from this straight male's perspective here, I don't see how this look makes a guy "hotter" lookin'!)

[speedracer5]

And btw, and speakin' of "beards making a guy hotter"...

 

As soon as this latest little "hipster look" here runs its course...

 

 

...the better.

 

(...nope, once again from this straight male's perspective here, I don't see how this look makes a guy "hotter" lookin'!)

From a lady's perspective, I think it's ugly--if you're going to have a beard, fine I guess if that's what you want to do, but groom it! There's a whole trend right now called "lumbersexual."

[LornaHansonForbes]

With regard to beard lengths and maintenance, I think these three words are a maxim:

 

"Stop at Lincoln."

 

(Abe, not Andrew)

[LawrenceA]

My beard can get kind of grizzly. I just took my dog to the groomer, and the groomer looked at me and said, "Sir, if you'll just climb up on the table, we'll see what we can do."

[speedracer5]

So, are you sayin' all us guys who grew stashes(and stashes alone) back in the '70s were "creepy"???

 

(...sorry, but I'm not buyin' into this "science" of yours here...the bottom like here is that presently stashes alone are just out of style, that's all)

I think it depends on the guy and the 'stache. Some guys look better with it (see William Powell & Clark Gable), some shouldn't have one (see Fred MacMurray and Cary Grant) and others look good either way (see Errol Flynn and Claude Rains).