Category Archives: Movie Reviews

The Song of Bernadette
Directed by Henry King
Written by George Seaton based on the novel by Franz Werfel
1943/USA
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation
Repeat viewing/Netflix rental

[box] Bernadette: The spring is not for me.[/box]

Jennifer Jones won the Academy Award but the tons of great character actors steal the show in this first-rate production.

This is a somewhat fictionalized account of the life of Bernadette Subirous, a poor and uneducated teenager whose visions of a “beautiful lady” near the village of Lourdes shook all of France.  Bernadette’s father (the excellent Roman Bohnen) is a complainer who barely supports his family on odd jobs and the money her mother (Ann Revere) brings in doing laundry.  The mother, in particular, is a God-fearing woman.  The sickly Bernadette is frequently absent from school and she considers herself to be “stupid”, an opinion which Sister Marie Therese (Gladys Cooper), the nun who is teaching her catechism, shares.

One day, she and two other girls go out to collect firewood.  Bernadette is left behind waiting on one side of the river near the city dump due to her asthma.  That is when a beautiful lady dressed in white, with a blue girdle, and golden roses on her feet appears to her.  Reports of this only cause her parents to forbid her to go back to the site.  But Bernadette’s distress finally causes her relatives to join and before long there is a crowd of peasants praying at the site.  The town fathers – Imperial Prosecutor Vital Detour (Vincent Price), the Mayor, the Chief of Police (Charles Dingle) and the local doctor (Lee J. Cobb) – and Father Peyramale (Charles Bickford), the dean of the local parish, all believe Bernadette is a fraud.  Wary of bad publicity, each man wants somebody else to close the site.  When Bernadette visits Father Peyramale to tell him the lady has asked that a chapel be built at the site and pilgrimages organized, he says that if the lady is real she should be able to prove it by making wild roses bloom in February.

The lady does something else.  She tells Bernadette to go and eat plants near a spring. But there is no spring.  Bernadette starts stuffing leaves into her mouth and washing her hands in the dirt.  All present now think she is insane.  But just as the crowd reaches the top of the hill, water springs from the ground.  The first miraculous healing follows immediately.

The authorities try everything in their power to get Bernadette to recant her story including threatening her with jail and commitment to an insane asylum.  Bernadette’s story is unshakeable.  Finally, she gains a champion in Father Peyramale.  Then the authorities decide the village can cash in on the hordes of people visiting the site.  Although Bernadette would like nothing better to marry and have children, she ends up having to go into a convent.  Unluckily, Sister Marie Therese is the supervisor of the novices and she is convinced that Bernadette is nothing more than a publicity hog who cannot possibly have seen the Virgin Mary because she “has not suffered”.  Bernadette had suffered though and would suffer far more before her life was through.  With Linda Darnell (!!) as “the lady”. (We see her only briefly and flooded with light.)

Jennifer Jones plays Bernadette with a simplicity and wide-eyed innocence that suits her character.  The real stars are in the outstanding supporting cast who each do themselves proud.  The film has an almost neo-realist feeling and is beautifully staged.  The filmmakers rather tip their hand on the side of Bernadette’s story but the movie is open enough to the possibility that she could have been deluded that it should be enjoyable even by non-believers.  The one weakness is that the film is 2 1/2 hours long.  It could have been trimmed by 30 minutes with no harm to the story.

The Song of Bernadette won Academy Awards in the categories of: Best Actress; Best Cinematography, Black-and-White (Arthur C. Miller); Best Art Direction-Interior Decoration, Black-and-White; and Best Music, Scoring of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture.  It was nominated for the following awards: Best Picture; Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Bickford); Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Cooper); Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Revere); Best Director; Best Writing, Screenplay; Best Sound, Recording; and Best Film Editing.

Re-release trailer

So Proudly We Hail
Directed by Mark Sandrich
Written by Allan Scott
1943/USA
Paramount Pictures
Repeat viewing/Netflix rental

[box] Kansas: I never get killed.[/box]

Uneven but ultimately powerful movie about the loves, work, and sacrifices of nurses near the front lines in the last days of Bataan and Corregidor.

As the movie begins, we see a group of nurses being unloaded from a plane in Australia. Looking tired and broken, they are one of the last groups of people to be evacuated by the military from Corregidor.  Among their number, Lt. Janet ‘Davy’ Davidson (Claudette Colbert) is carried out on a stretcher.  The group heads home by ship.  The rest of the nurses are soon fixed up with some food and rest but Davy remains essentially catatonic. The navy doctor asks the nurses to tell their story so he can get some insight into how to treat her.  Segue into flashback with voice over narration largely from Lt. Joan O’Doul (Paulette Godard).

The nurses were scheduled to go to Pearl Harbor by ship but the Japanese attacked midway en route so they got shipped to Bataan instead.  Davy was the senior officer of her group.  Nurse Olivia D’Arcy (Veronica Lake) is a sullen problem child whom no one likes. Davy finally gets her to open up and tell her story.  It turns out she witnessed her fiancé’s death at Pearl Harbor and now is going to the Philippines specifically to “kill Japs”.  She becomes much more friendly after her secret is out.

The nurses get down to long shifts of work at Bataan.  At first this is done at a hospital, but later they work right in the jungle or in makeshift quarters.  They struggle with short rations and dwindling medical supplies.  Then they are bombed and the U.S. is pushed off Bataan onto Corregidor.  The only reason the nurses manage to escape is due to the heroic act of one of them.

On Corregidor, the nurses are slightly safer due to the massive tunnels that the military previously constructed on the island base but the supply problem and overcrowding of the wards continues.  Finally they learn that no relief is coming and that MacArthur has left for Australia.  Our nurses are in the first, and almost the last, group to get evacuated amid horrific shelling.

The romances of Davy with a medical technician (George Reeves) and Joan with an enlisted marine (Sonny Tufts) are important running sub-plots.

Those that don’t like rather corny patriotic speeches should know going in that there are several of them, mostly coming in a religious context from the Chaplin.  The romances are rather routine stuff, though heightened by the dangerous situation.  The scenes showing the camaraderie and tireless work of the nurses and the combat scenes are really gripping, however. It’s like a window into another world and a beautiful tribute to some courageous women who face terrifying conditions, unarmed and with tremendous responsibility for the lives of other, largely helpless, people.  The acting is excellent across the board. Veronica Lake gives, by far, the standout performance of her career in this film.  Recommended.

So Proudly We Hail was nominated for Oscars in the following categories:  Best Supporting Actress (Goddard); Best Writing, Original Screenplay; Best Cinematography, Black-and-White (Charles Lang); and Best Effects, Special Effects.

Trailer

Sahara
Directed by Zoltan Korda
Written by John Howard Lawson, Zoltan Korda, and James O’Hanlon based on an incident in the Soviet Photoplay, “The Thirteen”
1943/USA
Columbia Pictures Corporation
Repeat viewing/Netflix rental

[box] Giuseppe: But are my eyes blind that I must fall to my knees to worship a maniac who has made of my country a concentration camp, who has made of my people slaves? Must I kiss the hand that beats me, lick the boot that kicks me, no! I rather spend my whole life living in this dirty hole than escape to fight again for things I do not believe against people I do not hate. As for your Hitler, it’s because of a man like him that God – my God – created hell![/box]

Made almost contemporaneous with the events surrounding it, this solid if unbelievable combat movie features some good performances only slightly marred by some heavy-handed speechmaking.

Career Army Sgt. Joe Gunn (Humphrey Bogart) and his men are one of the few American outfits training with the British army in desert combat early in the North Africa campaign  The three survivors and their tank have been left behind by the retreating British army and are short on water.  They meet up with the survivors of a British unit, likewise out of water.  Later they pick up a Sudanese British army soldier (Rex Ingram) who is escorting his Italian prisoner (J. Carol Naish) through the desert.  The tank manages to shoot down a German plane and when the pilot parachutes out they take him prisoner and the party is complete.

The group slowly warms to the Italian, who is a simple family man, but the German is an unrepentant Nazi who is looking for every opportunity to make trouble.  The water situation gets more dire until the Sudanese finally leads them to an old fort with a well.  Although there is only a trickle left, this is barely sufficient to keep the group going.  Then the well runs dry.

An advance team from a battalion of Germans comes scouting for water.  Instead of taking these guys prisoner and hitting the road,  Sgt. Gunn asks his men to stay put and try to bog down the Germans to play for time for the British.  Despite the 100 to 1 odds, Joe sends the German scouts back to tell their leader that there is plenty of water and the men are willing to trade it for food.  When the Germans get there, Joe tells them he will only trade water for their guns and a ferocious battle ensues.  With Dan Duryea as a GI, Bruce Bennett as the ranking Brit and Lloyd Bridges as a British soldier who bites the dust shortly after he pulls out his sweetheart’s photo.

Humphrey Bogart is really good in this as a crusty cavalry veteran who treats his tank like he used to treat his horse, calling it Lulubelle and babying it constantly.  J. Carol Naish gives the Italian a warm and human portrayal in a role that could have been just a vehicle for some anti-Nazi speeches.  The filmmakers made the Sudanese human and heroic as well.  I didn’t believe the story for a minute but must admit that it was fairly thrilling anyway.  I’m just getting started seeing combat films but I can believe that this is one of the better ones.

Sahara received Academy Award nominations in the categories of: Best Supporting Actor (Naish); Best Cinematography, Black-and-White (Rudolph Maté); and Best Sound, Recording.

Clip

The Spoilers
Directed by Ray Enright
Written by Lawrence Hazard and Tom Reed from a novel by Rex Beach
1942/USA
Universal Pictures/Frank Lloyd Productions/Charles K. Feldman Group
First viewing/Netflix rental

[box] Cherry Malotte: What you win, you can keep.[/box]

This solid, entertaining Western was the most successful of the five movies adopting the novel about the Alaska Gold Rush.

The story is set in 1900 Nome, Alaska.  Cherry Malotte (Marlene Dietrich) runs the local saloon.  We learn early on that outsiders have started to make false claims on the informally organized mines.

Cherry is awaiting the return of her lover, miner Roy Glenniston (John Wayne),  from Seattle and is mightily displeased to see him on the arm of Helen Chester (Margaret Lindsay).  She sets out to make him jealous by cozying up to “Gold Commissioner” Alex McNamara (Randolph Scott).

Helen has been traveling with her uncle, a judge who has come to adjudicate the claims.  Roy’s partner (Harry Carey) wants to fight but the judge persuades Roy to let the law take its course.  But the law is being administered by a bunch of crooks and Roy is at last forced to save the day, helped in the end by Cherry. With Richard Barthelmess in one of his last appearances.

It’s not so much the story but the way it is told that makes this so enjoyable.  Dietrich keeps the exposition humming along with plenty of double entendres and it builds nicely to a well-choreographed fight sequence.  It’s interesting to see Randolph Scott as a villain, paving the way for the morally ambiguous Western protagonists he played later in his career.

The Spoilers was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Art Direction – Interior Decoration, Black and White.

Trailer

Desperate Journey
Directed by Raoul Walsh
Written by Arthur T. Horman
1942/USA
Warner Bros
First viewing/Errol Flynn Adventures DVD

[box] Flying Officer Johnny Hammond: [has just double-talked, sucker punched and knocked out Baumeister] The iron fist has a glass jaw![/box]

What with the banter among the air crew and some incredibly stupid Nazis, this journey was less desperate than entertaining.

An RAF bomber crew led by Flight Lt. Terry Forbes (Errol Flynn) is sent on a mission over Germany to finish off a sabotage job done by a Polish guerilla on some rail lines.  After completing its run, the plane is shot down and the crew is captured.  American bombarder Johnny Hammond (Ronald Reagan) easily overpowers SS Major Otto Baumeister (Raymond Massey) while he is being politely interrogated for top secret info on the bomber.  The other members of the crew are allowed to stroll into Baumeister’s office and steal German secrets over the bodies of three vanquished Nazis before departing through the window.

The rest of the movie is devoted to the crew’s escape overland from the desperate Baumeister. Fortunately for them, Terry speaks fluent German (with a horrible Australian accent that however is the equal of the American-accented German spoken by the Nazis. Happily for the audience, Baumeister is constantly shouting to his underlings – SPEAK ENGLISH!) and the crew is able to travel disguised in German army uniforms acquired from the many guards they subdue.  Will they make it to safety in England with the plans?  Not before destroying an incendiary bomb factory that’s for sure.  With Alan Hale as an overage veteran of WWI and Arthur Kennedy as a practical former accountant who just wants to quickly elude the Nazis so he can resume winning the war and get back to his bookkeeping.

This movie is a hoot and, if approached in the right spirit, totally enjoyable.

Desperate Journey was Oscar Nominated for Best Effects, Special Effects.

Clip – Raymond Massey tries to “do business” with Ronald Reagan – this is a must see!

Bambi
Directed by David Hand et al
Written by Perce Pearce, Larry Morey et al from the story by Felix Salter
1942/USA
Walt Disney Studios
Repeat viewing/Netflix Rental

[box] Young Bambi: What happened, Mother? Why did we all run?

Bambi’s Mother: Man was in the forest.[/box]

What is it about the folks at Disney and separation anxiety?  This beautifully drawn animated feature takes it to a whole new level.

The fawn Bambi’s father is the Prince of the Forest and Bambi will inherit that title when he grows up.  We see him getting to know new friends in the forest, including the rabbit Thumper, the skunk Flower, and Friend Owl.  The woods are populated with a host of birds and small mammals.  The deer enjoy a life without animal predators.  Everybody sings and plays.

Spoiler alert.  Then one day, Bambi’s mother takes him to the beautiful meadow.  She warns him that it is very dangerous because there is no way to hide from Man.  Bambi gets to know the female fawn, Faline.  Soon enough, poor Bambi’s mother is shot and killed by hunters.  Bambi goes off with his father, who really hasn’t been in the picture up to now.  Bambi grows up to be a fine young buck.  He pairs off with Faline.  Then come more hunters.  They almost get Bambi.  He survives to confront a massive, very scary forest fire,  Faline is attacked by savage dogs.  Then all of a sudden the circle of life is complete and Bambi is presiding over the birth of twin fawns.

I haven’t seen this movie since I was a child myself and I didn’t have any desire to see it again until now.  It may have permanently scarred me.  How could Disney do this to us?

The first part of this movie is animated to appeal to very small children.  It has the kind of gentle sweetness that pre-schoolers would like.  All the children go merrily along identifying with Bambi and then they lose their mother?  I’m sure all the events after that are meant to provide drama and excitement but I thought they would be pretty horrifying for someone small.  The animation can’t be faulted though and there is a kind of realism behind the anthropomorphized creatures that is very nice.  The music is pleasant too.

Bambi was nominated for Academy Awards for Best Sound, Recording; Best Music Original Song (“Love Is a Song”); and Best Music, Scoring of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture.

Clip – Spring is in the air

Woman of the Year
Directed by George Stevens
Written by Ring Lardner Jr. and Michael Kanin
1942/USA
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
First viewing/Netflix rental

[box] Sam Craig: I don’t want to be married to Tess Harding any more than I want you to be just Mrs Sam Craig. Why can’t you be Tess Harding Craig?

Tess Harding: I think it’s a wonderful name.[/box]

This was the first of the nine pictures in which Katharine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy were paired and the beginning of one of Hollywood’s most iconic love affairs.  Their chemistry fairly explodes from the screen.

Tess Harding (Hepburn) is multi-talented, multi-lingual and knows everybody who is anybody.  She is a political columnist on a New York paper.  During a radio interview she is asked who will win the World Series and replies that people should put such frivolous things as sports aside for the duration.  Sam Craig (Tracy), the sports columnist on the same paper, is mightily offended by this and the two start sparing in their columns.  But when Sam actually meets Tess the attraction is instantaneous.  He asks her out to a baseball game and she falls for him too.  After some very romantic scenes they marry.

Married life is nothing like what Sam expected or wanted.  Tess is in such demand that they can hardly get a moment alone together, even on their wedding night.  And Tess, despite her true love for Sam, doesn’t seem to understand that there are two people to take into account now.  The final straw comes when she adopts a little Greek refugee without asking Sam about it.  Can such a marriage ever work out?  With Fay Bainter as Tracy’s aunt.

I had seen so many clips from this film in documentaries that I was sure I had seen it before.  Not so and it has become a new favorite.  I hope Tracy’s wife didn’t see it since it is very clear that the two are madly in love.  This is one of those rare romantic comedies that is also mature and intelligent at the same time.  I absolutely loved it.  Highly recommended.

Woman of the Year won the Academy Award for Best Writing, Original Screenplay. Katharine Hepburn was nominated as Best Actress.

Tracy and Hepburn meet for the first time in a movie