Monthly Archives: September 2014

Commandos Strike at Dawn
Directed by John Farrow
Written by Irwin Shaw from a story by C.S. Forester
1942/USA
Columbia Pictures Corporation
First viewing/Amazon Instant Video

[box] Erik Toresen: …I’ve lived a quiet life. The Germans have not lived quiet lives. We must learn from them how to become gangsters, thugs, useful with knife, dynamite, poison![/box]

I was not looking forward to watching a combat movie with Paul Muni.  I was pleasantly surprised.

Eric Toreson (Muni) is a quiet, scholarly man who does some kind of fisheries research in his native Norwegian coastal village.  He is a widower who lives with his mother (Lillian Gish) and is raising his small daughter.  Lately, a British admiral (Sir Cedric Hardwicke) and his daughter Judith (Anna Lee) have been holidaying in the village.  Eric has fallen in love with Judith.  We see the peaceful village life and traditions of the people through a wedding that Eric and Judith attend.

The British return home before Erik works up the courage to ask Judith to marry him.  Then the Nazis arrive. They say their only purpose is to free the Norwegians from the “British invador” but soon reveal their utter brutality. All but the local intellectual (Ray Collins) initially try to cooperate.  Eventually, even Eric comes to believe that the only answer is to adopt the Nazi philosophy of “kill or be killed.”

When Eric is rightly suspected of killing the German colonel, he flees to England and tells them that the Germans are building an aerodrome near the village.  He returns to guide British commandos to the spot.

This is so much more than a combat picture.  Most of it is scenes of life under the Nazis in Norway.  The fantastic cast brings the situation to life.  This well made in every respect and reminded me more of the British war pictures of this year than of the American ones I have seen up until now.

Commandos Strike at Dawn was nominated for Best Music, Original Scoring of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture.

Trailer

Flying Tigers
Directed by David Miller
Written by Kenneth Garnet and Barry Trivers
1942/USA
Republic Pictures
First viewing/Amazon Instant Video

[box]”Since the Flying Tigers first spread their wings in the skies above China, the enemy learned to fear the intrepid spirit they have displayed in face of his superior numbers. They have become the symbol of the invincible strength of the forces now upholding the cause of justice and humanity. The Chinese people will preserve forever the memory of their glorious achievements.” ‘Generalissimo Chiang Kai-Shek’ – opening title card[/box]

This not a bad movie but come prepared for a representative collection of tropes from every other flight combat movie out there, with some from Only Angels Have Wings thrown in for good measure.

The movie is the story of the all-volunteer Flying Tigers squadron that fought missions against the Japanese in China in 1941-42.  It was thus made almost contemporaneously with these activities.

Capt. Jim Gordon (John Wayne) commands the squadron.  He is well respected by his men and loved by nurse Brooke Elliot.  As the movie begins, we see the carnage wreaked on little children in a refugee shelter by Japanese bombers.  The vastly outnumbered fighters of The Flying Tigers wipe out the bombers but not without the loss of a rookie pilot who, however, heroically lands his plane before dying.  Gordon has a whole collection of the personal effects of these heroes in his desk drawer.

He goes to Rangoon to pick up supplies and replacement pilots.  One he brings back is his old buddy ace pilot Woody Jason (John Carroll).  Woody is in it strictly for the money — the men are paid per mission and per “kill”.  His avarice causes him to take a bunch of unjustified risks that make him unpopular with the rest of the pilots.  The final straw comes when he arrives too late for a mission he was supposed to back Gordon on and all because he was out with Gordon’s girl.  Will the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor show Woody the error of his ways?

The movie moves along at a good clip and there are lots of exciting flight sequences.  Evidently, pilots grounded because of their eyesight, disgraced pilots seeking redemption, and sacrificial lambs had become de rigeur for this kind of movie by this early date.  I especially enjoyed seeing Anna Lee and look forward to more of her.  Wayne is awfully good too.

Flying Tigers was one of the highest grossing movies of 1942 and broke all box office records for a film made by Republic Pictures.

The film was nominated for Academy Awards for Best Sound, Recording; Best Effects, Special Effects and Best Music, Scoring of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture (Victor Young).

Trailer

Reap the Wild Wind
Directed by Cecil B. DeMille
Written by Allen LeMay, Thelma Strabel, Charles Bennett, and Jesse Laskey Jr.
1942/USA
Paramount Pictures
First viewing/Netflix rental

[box] Tagline: CECIL B. DEMILLE’S MIGHTY SPECTACLE! Men Against Giant Sea Monster 50 Fathoms Down (1955 Re-release poster)[/box]

Who could pass up the chance to see John Wayne fight with a giant octopus? Unfortunately, the rest of this DeMille epic dragged for me.

The setting is Key West, Florida sometime before the American Civil War.  The main occupation of the town is the rescue and salvage of ships that founder on the coast.  King Cutler (Raymond Massey) is widely suspected of giving the ships a little push toward disaster.

Loxi Claiborne (Paulette Goddard) is a fiery tomboy who relishes dressing in man’s clothes and assisting in salvage operations.  Her cousin Druscilla (Susan Hayward) is secretly in love with King Cutler’s brother Dan (Robert Preston).

Captain Jack Stewart (John Wayne) commands a ship that founders with the assistance of the evil Cutler.  He is blamed by his employer for the wreck.  Loxi falls for Captain Jack and determines to assist him when he meets the boss in South Carolina.

Captain Jack also longs to be put in charge of a new-fangled steam ship.  But the supposedly effete Steven Tolliver (Ray Milland), a relative of the boss, has an inside track on the job.  When Loxi meets Steven, it is love at first sight for him and Loxi starts using her feminine wiles on him to help Captain Jack.

The plot of this thing is too complicated to go on with.  Suffice it to say that the love triangle is resolved dramatically and John Wayne does indeed defeat a giant octopus.

This kind of DeMille epic just isn’t for me.  The performances are OK but the 2+ hour movie could have been trimmed by more than half an hour.  The action sequences, while way too far apart, look good.

Reap the Wild Wind won an Oscar for Best Effects, Special Effects.  It was nominated in the categories of Best Cinematography, Color and Best Art Direction-Interior Decoration, Color.

Clip — The battle with the octopus!

Der Fuehrer’s Face
Walt Disney Studio
Available on YouTube

This might just be the rudest cartoon Disney ever put out and very, very funny.  Donald Duck is subjected to short rations and forced labor in Nazi Germany, all the while heiling Hitler like mad.  Very deserving of its Oscar win for Best Short Subject, Cartoon.  You really should give it a try but don’t blame me if you can’t get the music out of your head for days.

All Out for ‘V’
Terrytunes/Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation
Available on YouTube

When their forest home is bombed and war declared, the animals all do their bit for victory. They produce munitions, food, and wool, donate money, enforce the blackout, and even launch an attack on Japanese Beetles.  Moderately amusing, if a bit heavy-handed.

Blitz Wolf
Directed by Tex Avery
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Available on YouTube but only with non-English dubbing

The Big Bad Wolf (AKA “Der Fewer”) doesn’t stand a chance against the heavily armed and fortified Three Little Pigs.  Almost equal to the Disney cartoon in rudeness and hilarity.

Juke Box Jamboree
Walter Lantz Productions

I’ve been unable to find this cartoon online anywhere that does not require downloading something or other. Would love to hear from those who have seen it!

Pigs in a Polka
Directed by Friz Frelang
Warner Bros.

Tulips Shall Grow
George Pal

The following Disney cartoons were nominated in the category of Best Documentary.

The New Spirit
Walt Disney Studios

This was the best I could do in terms of quality

The Grain That Built a Hemisphere
Walt Disney Studios

Moontide
Directed by Archie Mayo
Written by John O’Hara from the novel by Willard Robertson
1942/USA
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation
First viewing/Fox Film Noir DVD

[box] My agent had told me that he was going to make me the Janet Gaynor of England – I was going to play all the sweet roles. Whereupon, at the tender age of thirteen, I set upon the path of playing nothing but hookers. — Ida Lupino[/box]

It was a little hard getting used to Jean Gabin speaking English!  This early film noir is recommendable for its beautiful cinematography.

Bobo (Gabin) is a hard-drinking dockworker with a violent temper and prone to blackouts. His “friend” Tiny (Thomas Mitchell) is Bobo’s self-appointed babysitter.  As the story opens, Tiny is urging Bobo to go to San Diego for work but Bobo drinks on.  Once again Bobo is completely blotto.  When he comes to, he is sleeping in a waterside bait shop owned by some friendly Chinese who offer him work.  He learns that one of his drinking companions from the night before has been strangled.

While walking on the beach with night watchman and homespun philosopher Nutsy (Claude Rains), Bobo spots a girl walking into the sea fully clothed.  This is Anna, a “hash-house dame”.  Bobo rescues her then lies to the police to prevent them taking her in for attempted suicide. Marie’s domestic care begins to ground Bobo’s life and he asks her to marry him.  But Tiny is not about to lose his meal ticket, and takes drastic action.

This movie had real potential and perhaps if Fritz Lang had stayed on the project until completion it would have realized it.  As it was, he was replaced by Mayo with three weeks left due to disagreements with Darryl F. Zanuck.  According to the commentary, Gabin was none too pleased with Zanuck’s approach to the material either.

None of this discord was fatal and Moontide, if not great, is very watchable.  The cinematography is innovative and stunning.

Hollywood wasn’t really for Gabin and by 1943 he had returned to Europe to fight with the Free French.

Charles G. Clarke was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Cinematography, Black-and-White for his work on Moontide.

Clip – Bobo’s bender – Sorry for the Russian overdubbing but you can see the crazy camera work

George Washington Slept Here
Directed by William Keighley
Written by Everett Freeman from the play by George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart
1942/USA
Warner Bros.
First viewing/Warner Archive DVD

[box] Moving Man: You know what that dame told me? “George Washington slept here.”

Moving Man: Yeah? I guess that’s what drove them to Valley Forge.[/box]

This is another one of those wacky non-stop stage comedies adapted for the screen. It is over the top, but pretty funny.

Bill Fuller (Jack Benny) and his wife Connie (Ann Sheridan) are evicted for the umpteenth time from their city apartment because of their untrained little dog.  Connie is quite the antiques collector and longs for a home of her own.  Although Bill hates the country, she can’t resist the impulse to buy a dilapidated old house where George Washington once allegedly slept.

Connie’s real estate smarts are not of the best and the couple immediately discovers that the well on the property has gone dry.  The local they put in charge of renovations (Percy Kilbride) is a bottomless pit of supply needs.  Their access road goes through a neighbor’s property and he refuses to let them use it.  Then Connie cannot say no to visits by her bratty nephew and rich uncle (Charles Coburn).  With Hattie McDaniel as the Fuller’s sassy maid.

It’s a stretch to suspend disbelief for this one but once this is accomplished, it’s an enjoyable romp.

The only thing I knew about Ann Sheridan before I started this blog was that she was known as the “Sweater Girl”.  She is really so much more.  She’s very adept at comedy and always lends a down-to-earth presence to her characters.

Though this was not his first film, Jack Benny started Percy Kilbride (“Pa Kettle”) on his Hollywood career by insisting that he reprise his role in the stage play.  His deadpan delivery is priceless.

George Washington Slept Here was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Art Direction-Interior Decoration, Black-and-White.

Trailer

My Sister Eileen 
Directed by Alexander Hall
Written by Joseph Fields and Jerome Chodorov from their play based on stories by Ruth McKenny
1942/USA
Columbia Pictures Corporation
First viewing/Netflix rental

[box] [last lines] Subway Builder: Hey Moe, I think we made da wrong toin![/box]

This is a madcap “laugh a minute” comedy filled with kooky characters that chronicles the adventures of two poverty stricken would-be career girls in New York.  It is based on autobiographical pieces published in the New Yorker magazine.

Ruth (Rosalind Russell) and Eileen (Janet Blair) Sherwood are sisters from Columbus, Ohio who arrive in New York City with $100 between them.  Ruth hopes to find work as a writer and Eileen has her sights set on the stage.  They move into the basement apartment from hell as they set out to find their fortune.  Their window puts them in ear and eye range of the sidewalk, blasting for a new subway line rocks the apartment from early morning until midnight, and a faulty door lock has a series of odd balls dropping in day and night.

Both of the women are getting nowhere in their chosen professions but Eileen, a man magnet, at least does not have to subsist on pasta and bread like older sister Ruth.  Ruth starts having success first, however, when she meets a man (Brian Ahern) who is trying to bring the “Manhattaner” magazine up-to-date with some human interest stories.  With George Tobias as the sisters’ Greek painter-landlord, Allyn Joslyn as a womanizing reporter, and June Havoc as the former tenant.

This is funny, if hectic, and Rosalind Russell handles the comedy expertly.  It is all a little too much but does get the flavor of small town girls starting out in the big city with dreams and some talent.

My Sister Eileen was remade in 1955 with Betty Garrett and Janet Leigh. Rosalind Russell reprised her role as Ruth in 1953 in the Leonard Bernstein Broadway musical Wonderful Town; Edie Adams played Eileen.

Rosalind Russell was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance in My Sister Eileen.

Clip – Three Stooges Cameo (the best I could do)