Category Archives: Movie Reviews

My Favorite Wife
Directed by Garson Kanin
Written by Bella Spewak, Sam Spewak, and Leo McCarey
1940/USA
RKO Radio Pictures
First viewing/Netflix rental

[box] Nick Arden: Something’s come up. My wife.[/box]

If William Powell and Myrna Loy had the best chemistry in classic Hollywood, Cary Grant and Irene Dunne were not far behind.  This screwball comedy produced by Leo McCarey who directed 1937’s sublime The Awful Truth delivers the laughs beautifully.

As the story begins lawyer Nick (Grant) seeks to have a judge (Granville Bates) declare his wife – who has been missing, presumed drowned for seven years – declared legally dead so that he can marry Bianca (Gail Patrick).  Naturally, immediately after the wedding long-lost Ellen (Dunne) shows up at home to introduce herself to the children.  When her mother-in-law tells her about the wedding, Ellen rushes to the honeymoon hotel.  Nick is thrilled to see her but afraid to tell his new wife the news.  Misunderstandings and hilarity abound.  With Randolph Scott as the Adonis who was stranded on the desert island with Ellen.

This is a ton of fun and not to be missed by anyone who loved this couple in The Awful Truth.  The scenes with the judge are genius.

Trailer

Gaslight
Directed by Thorold Dickinson
Written by A.R. Rawlinson and Bridget Boland from the play by Patrick Hamilton
1940/UK
British National Films
First viewing/Streaming on Amazon Instant Video

[box] Song at Cadbury Music Hall: It’s very aggravating when your love isn’t true…[/box]

I’m very glad I finally caught up with the original version of 1944’s Gaslight.  I loved it.

Paul Mallen (Anton Walbrook) and his wife Bella (Diana Wynyard) move into a long-disused mansion where a woman was brutally murdered 20 years before.  They also buy the empty house next door but Paul has refused all offers to lease it.  It soon becomes clear that the marriage is not a happy one.  Paul constantly berates his wife for forgetting things, losing things, and making things up and threatens her with commitment to an asylum.  He generally makes her life completely miserable.  In the meantime, retired detective Rough is sure he has seen Paul before as Harry Bauer. the chief suspect in the murder of his aunt for her rubies, which were never found.  He spends the rest of the story attempting to find evidence to support his suspicion before Bella slips into insanity for real. With Robert Newton as Bella’s cousin.

I generally love Anton Walbrook and he is great here.  In stark contrast to the suave, oily Charles Boyer, he portrays Paul from the start as the dispenser of the most vile emotional and verbal abuse.  I rapidly grew to hate this man but could not deny his fascinating but demented charm.  This version is also blessedly free of the romantic sub-plot but compensates by having a delightful turn by the cagey old Rough as Bella’s guardian angel. Diana Wynyard is suitably fragile and Cathleen Cordell as the flirtatious parlor maid Nancy is quite effective.  The film is taut and suspenseful right through.  I wouldn’t want to have to choose between this one and the Bergman version.  Very highly recommended.

Clip

Under Texas Skies
Directed by George Sherman
Written by Anthony Coldeway and Betty Burbridge based on characters created by William Colt McDonald
1940/USA
Republic Pictures
First viewing/Streaming on Amazon Prime Instant Video

[box] Tagline: A RAIDER-BUSTIN’ Buckeroo in a ROARIN’ ROUND-UP OF BLAZIN’ Action![/box]

I have not been religious in watching all the “B” Westerns available to me but this one was highly rated (7.8/10 on IMDb) and I had the time so I gave it a try.  It was quite OK but nothing special.

The Civil War causes the government to pull troops out of the frontier, leaving the ranchers without protection. Sheriff Brooke is looking for men to take their place and varmint Tom Blackton manages to get himself and part of his gang deputized.  The other members of the gang proceed to terrorize the county.  When Tuscon Smith finds them out, Blackton frames him for the murder of the sheriff.  Stony Brooke (Robert Livingston) arrives in town and starts to hunt down his old friend Tuscon who has escaped from jail.  Soon enough, he discovers the true culprit and, with the aid of feckless Lullaby Jones and Tuscon, hunts him down.

This is sort of a prequel to the Three Musketeers series in that the boys are not yet a team at the start.  It also marked the return of Robert Livingston, who had been replaced by John Wayne for several films, as Stony.  The story has all the elements that would appeal to its target audience.  Unfortunately, this includes some fairly lame comic relief by Lullaby who continues to specialize in ventriloquism.

Although no attention is called to it, these guys appear to be time travelers.  In the last episode I watched they were driving pickup trucks.

The Great McGinty
Written and Directed by Preston Sturges
1940/USA
Paramount Pictures
Repeat viewing/Netflix rental

[box] Skeeters: If it wasn’t for graft, you’d get a very low type of people in politics. Men without ambition. Jellyfish.

Catherine: Especially since you can’t rob the people anyway.

.Skeeters: Sure. How was that?

Catherine: What you rob, you spend, and what you spend goes back to the people. So, where’s the robbery? I read that in one of my father’s books.

Skeeters: That book should be in every home.[/box]

In his first effort as a writer-director, Preston Sturges shows all the elements of comedic brilliance that have endeared him to his fans to this day.

From exile in a banana republic, Dan McGinty (Brian Donlevy) tells the story of his rise from a bum to governor of a great state and subsequent fall due to “one crazy minute” of honesty.

Ward-heeler Skeeters (William Demerest) finds McGinty in a soup line and offers him $2 to vote for a mayoral candidate.  McGinty is so good at this kind of thing that he does it 37 times.  This brings him to the attention of the local Boss (Akim Tamiroff), who admires McGinty’s pugnacious spirit and makes him a collector for his protection racket.  He rapidly rises to alderman and proves good enough at dispensing graft that the Boss decides to make him the “reform” candidate for mayor.  Unfortunately for himself, the Boss thinks McGinty needs to marry to attract women voters and Dan’s adoring secretary (Muriel Angelus) is quickly chosen as the token bride.

But six months into the marriage, McGinty unexpectedly falls in love with his wife and her children and when he is elected governor, she inspires him to do “one crazy thing” against his better judgement.  With the Sturges stock company at their eccentric best.

What genius does it take to be able mix biting satire with some of the most over-the-top slapstick like Sturges can?  At his best, he has me grinning for minutes at a time when I am not laughing out loud.  This was a great start to a short but inspired directing career.

This has got it all.  It might just be Tamiroff’s best performance.  His many slug-fests with Donlevy are a highlight of the movie.  But the actors in the smallest parts, even those without dialogue, consistently make me smile.  It is a shame Angelus retired so early.  She is excellent here.

Sturges won the Academy Award for his Original Screenplay.

Clip – Tamiroff tries to get Donlevy to take the plunge

The Mark of Zorro
Directed by Rouben Mamoulian
Written by John Taintor Foote et al from a story by Johnston McCulley
1940/USA
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation
First viewing/Special Edition DVD

[box] Inez Quintero: Oh, Diego, when may we expect you and our dear little Lolita in Madrid?

Don Diego Vega: Not for some time I’m afraid. We’re going to follow the customs of California.

Inez Quintero: What do you mean?

Don Diego Vega: Well, we’re going to marry and raise fat children and watch our vineyards grow.[/box]

I thought this was everything a Zorro film should be.  It was a joy to see Basil Rathbone take up his sword again.

Don Diego Vega (Tyrone Power)is known in old Madrid as the “California Cockerel”, a master at fencing, womanizing, and carousing.  He is abruptly called home by his father, the alcalde (mayor) of Los Angeles (Montague Love).  When he arrives, he finds his kindly father has been deposed by the cruel and greedy Don Luis Quintero and power-behind-the-throne Capt. Esteban Pasquale (Rathbone), who have been abusing the peons with high taxes and brutal punishment for non-compliance.

Don Diego immediately determines to set things right.  His father is a strong believer in law and order, so Diego adopts the disguise of masked avenger Zorro.  His aim is to scare the cowardly Quintero to resigning and returning to Spain.  At the same time, in everyday life, he adopts the persona of an effeminate fop, much to the disgust of his father and former teacher Friar Felipe (Eugene Pallette).

Diego takes a two-pronged approach.  As Zorro, he becomes a Robin Hood, robbing the tax collections and returning them to the people and threatening to kill Quintero if he does not resign.  As the fop, he worms his way into the affections of Quintero’s wife Inez (Gale Sondergaard) promising to present her at court (and more) if she will return to Spain. Finally, Esteban comes up with the idea of marrying Diego and the Quintero’s daughter Lolita (the very young Linda Darnell) to forge an alliance between the government and the caballeros.  This Diego enthusiastically embraces as he has become enamored with the gorgeous Lolita in real life.

Naturally, Zorro must triumph.  Fortunately, this does not occur before a really splendid sword fight between Power and Rathbone.

I thought this was enormous fun.  My husband joined me half way through and loved it too. I had not known Power was so agile.  He does very well as a dancer and as a swordsman. Of course, it was hard to take my eyes off of Rathbone during the sword fight.

Alfred Newman was nominated for an Oscar for his rousing Original Score.

Trailer (in color)