The Palm Beach Story
The 1940s was the golden decade for the magnificent director, Preston Sturges. The previous year, in 1941, Sturges made his masterpiece in, “ Sullivan’s Travels”, but the director made a lot of movies throughout the decade. While Sullivan was his most solemn and serious film, Sturges mostly dealt in the romantic screwball comedy and succeeded in making this Genre his own. “The Palm Beach Story”, is one his best examples. It is the story of a marriage breaking up and then repaired through hilarious circumstances. This was not a new theme at the time, but Sturges found an original setup for his story. This set up is not explained until the end of the film. The unhappy couple in the movie is both identical twins who mistakenly married the wrong twin. That is about as about as similar as identical twins can get. Somehow the couple played by Joel McCrea and the wonderful Claudette Colbert stayed married after this mistake for five years, before they decide to breakup. From there they both end up in Palm Beach where they are courted by some very rich and eccentric characters. The end has them realize that they are really still in love and with their new suitors ending up hitched to their twins. Everybody is happy. That is a nice Hollywood ending; however, what makes the movie special is not the plot but all the characters the plot throws at us. We have the strange and rich little man who gives both of our heroes his money so that they can travel to Palm Beach. His motives are suspicious and a bit creepy. They both know this but take his money and generosity anyway. To top it all off, Colbert goes off looking for a new and rich husband. Colbert is a terrific actress and her persona comes off as not only pretty but also adorable, even though she is basically looking for a sugar daddy. The sugar daddy she finds was an, at the time novice in film comedy, named Rudy Vallee who steals every scene he is in. The film has a lot of fast talking and smart dialogue that keeps things rolling along making the viewer laugh out loud every once in a while. If you are looking for a funny and fast paced comedy, you could do a lot worse than this movie.
Now Voyager
While watching, “Now Voyager”, I was struck with two themes. One was “The Woman’s Movie”, which is a film genre in itself that dealt with strong woman characters that through experiences of pain and heartbreak develop into heroic and selfless heroines. “Now Voyeger”, is a superb example of this genre. The other theme that stood out for me was the theme of the “in control and powerful Starlett”, which is about those extremely talented woman who demand full control of their movie careers and in the films they appear in. Legend has it that Bette Davis controlled almost every aspect of this film. From the actors chosen to the clothes they wore. She also handpicked the director. Her talent allowed her to do this. This is the same talent which allowed her to overcome, overly melodramatic material, such as that shown in this film. Davis plays what is basically the Cinderella story, but without the fairy tale ending. She is an unwanted spinster who is mentally abused by her hateful mother, to be finally transferred into a sparkling beauty. The twist is that the plot throws us out of the fairy tale world and into the real world of jealousy and child abuse. Davis’ character in this movie can’t fully overcome her childhood abuse and ends her days in an asylum, taking care of a similarly abused girl. The daughter of the man she loves but can never be with. It was the type of heartbreaking story that enthralled its audience. In order for such a convoluted plot to work the audience needs to believe in the main character. Believe her as a mousey subservient girl. Believe her as a ravishing and gentle lady. At the end of the film, they had to believe her as the self-sacrificing and accepting heroine. Bette Davis succeeds in making believers of us all with a power house performance that would forever place her at the pinnacle of her field. The movie works because of the lead actress who apparently knew what she was doing while controlling all aspects of this interesting picture.
Casablanca
Not a lot can be said, that has not been said already about one of the greatest films ever made and on everybody’s top 5 lists of greatest movies ever. This movie is legendary and I can write a whole book about it. One of the things that differentiates this movie from others of “The greatest films ever” lists is that unlike movies like “Citizen Kane” or “Tokyo Story”, “Casablanca”, is in addition to everything else a highly entertaining adventure story. Made in 1942, at the height of the world war raging in Europe and Asia, the movie is based in War Time, North Africa, in a the town the film is named after, which is controlled by the Nazi sympathizing, French Vichy Government. It features an American run bar / casino, run by Humphry Bogart at his most romantic. Here he calls himself Rick. Rick is a fantasy for all men. We all want to be Rick. He is financially independent, free, charming, witty and heroic. Rick owns the bar, which is simply called “Ricks Place” and the first time we meet him he is at the bar shown to be aware of everything and in complete and utter control. The first few minutes of the movie show this control as being tough, fair and unsentimental. I can go on and talk about Rick/Bogey forever in terms of this movie but I wanted to paint a wider and broader picture about this film. Sure Bogey is amazing here, but this is a movie that has 22 speaking parts. Of those 22, there are at least 8 who deserve their own movie. They are all interesting characters with their own stories that this movie just hints at. Each character has depth and texture that is like colors in an exquisite oil painting. There is Peter Lorre, who made a career as a heavy in horror movies and was the child killer in Fritz Lang’s “M”. Here has a small part and shines in his few minutes as the sniveling scared smuggler being hunted by the Nazis and doomed to death. You feel his pitiful situation as you understand why nobody helps him. Sydney Greenstreet here plays another cold fat man who works together with the Nazis through bribes and corruption. Conrad Veidt as the Nazi Major stationed to take charge of the city. Dooley Wilson plays Sam who is the African American piano player. It is one of the few films from the 40s were African Americans are not shown as subservient. Sam is not only the hired piano player but also a close friend of Ricks. His part also plays and important part in the moving the story along. Paul Henreid is the stoic Victor Laszlo who exists to show what is meant by a true unfiltered hero. The top three actors in the movie give performances that transcend cinema history. They are unforgettable scene stealers at each turn. Humphrey Bogart would never have attained his legendary status if it were not for his performance in this iconic film. He is not only Rick. He is America. Rick is independent, rich and full of charismatic personality. His independence and vow to mind his own business is interrupted by the appearance of his past love. His character also says some of the most iconic lines in film history such as;
- “Louis, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship” – A line that successfully represents the US relationship with the Free France movement at the time
- “Play it, Sam. Play ‘As Time Goes By’” – A line that is consistently misinterpreted as “Play it again Sam” and is the musical vehicle for a memory flashback that would be a cinematic ploy used to introduce flashbacks for years to come
- “Of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world, she walks into mine” – One line that successfully conveys the anger, love and pain his character felt when his lost love suddenly appears.
Bogey’s lost love is played by the Swedish actress, Ingrid Bergman. If there is another film with a more beautifully filmed female character, then I have yet to see it. Bergman absolutely shines through the screen and glows with utter beauty. It is impossible to take your eyes off her. She is a natural and amazing beauty but in this movie she is much more than that. Her eyes shine and her voice utters pure passion and love. When she looks at Rick, it is a look of such intensity; it makes everyone understand why she is someone for which it is impossible to resist. Their scenes together are electric. The last of the three main characters in the film is played by the Great Claude Raines who is probably the best actor in the movie. He plays the French captain Louis Renault. Captain Renault represents at the beginning of the movie the despicable French Vichy Government. He abides by the minimum requirements asked of him by the Nazis, yet he befriends Rick and admires him and his independence. He plays both sides and does it with dash and flair. At the end of the film he makes a moral decision that goes against everything he represented up to that point and is the object of Rick’s claim of a new and beautiful friendship. It is here we see that he has moved from Vichy to free French. A switch that is thoroughly believable because of the completely sympathetic portrayal the Raines brings to what is basically a shady character. I will end this post with a few words about the ending of this film. I believe it is the greatest ending ever. I have yet to see a better one. It covers so much of what the movies covered up until that point and ends it all to perfection. We have an heroic sacrifice straight out of Dickens and the coming together of worlds to fight evil. A strong message with a sweet romantic ending that foretells the American liberation of France with the start of a beautiful friendship. This is one amazing movie.
To be or not to Be
It is 1942 and the entire world is fighting against evil and fascism. Thousands of people were dying each week and Hollywood, with this film, decided that the war was a subject worth trying to laugh about. The idea was that if we can find the absurd humor in something so dark and horrifying, laughing at the idiocy of it all, it will help the common man get through his day to day life. The danger that comes with doing this type of satire was that there was very little room for failure. The satire had to be not only funny but sharp in its critique of the situation. Ernst Lubitsch, who came from Eastern Europe before he arrived in America, knew what was happening to his homeland and as a creative comedic filmmaker, decided to lampoon it by incorporating characters that he knew so well. These were actors and the men and women of the Theatre. “To Be or Not to Be”, is the result of his efforts and became one of the greatest comedies ever made. It is one of those rare films that succeed in making you laugh from its beginning until its end, while staying true to its dark nature of Nazism and the occupation of Eastern Europe. The plot centers on Poland’s most famous Theatre troupe who on the eve of the Nazi invasion are set to perform a play about life within the Gestapo. The war changes their minds and they change their production into Shakespeare’s Hamlet. This becomes the first source of the film’s title, from Hamlet’s famous soliloquy. There is a hilarious running gag throughout the movie concerning this line as each time the lead Actor, Jack Benny in his greatest role, would state it, his wife and leading lady, the amazing Carole Lambard, would queue her army pilot lover to leave the theatre for a rendezvous. Benny, who plays the egotistical star to the hilt, is so upset that someone would walk out during his performance that he never guesses it is for his wife. The plot continues to make the pilot into a hero trying to confiscate, from the Nazis, a list of resistance leader relatives. He enlists Lambard to help him. It is from Jealousy and circumstances that pulls Benny and the entire troupe into accomplices on behalf of the resistance. The result is great characterization, pacing and wonderful jokes throughout. Jack Benny who plays the lead here was a popular comedian at the time, made famous through a very droll persona that reveled on constant jokes and shtick. In this movie he wisely avoided reverting to his comfort zone persona. He puts his trust in the material given him in the script. It is a wise choice, as this movie is wonderfully scripted. He brings to life, the so full of himself, actor who is moved to action through his own high opinion of himself and his ability to act his way out of any situation. He is a delight in the role. Lambard, who was sadly killed in an airplane crash before the release of the film, was, at the time, the greatest comedy actress in the world. She was not only great in timing and body language, but had a sweet beauty that just added to the love she demanded from the audience. She is the emotional string the movie needs to pull its characters through all the many pitfalls. She is either in grave danger or realizes that danger is lurking close by. There are many fine and extremely funny supporting characters as well. Tom Dugan is one of the actors who impersonate Hitler to hilarious effect. There are the actors who play the Nazis as evil buffoons. Then there is Felix Bressart who almost steals the movie as the Jewish actor who dreams of playing Shylock from Shakespeare’s, “The Merchant of Venice”. The beauty of the movie is that, while the laughs are plenty, Lubitsch never loses site of the war and the tragedy going on all around his characters. He speaks about the destruction created by the Nazis and shows us some of it carnage. Then he makes us like and love his heroes, so that we care about them. This allows us to hate anyone that would hurt them and make the laughter stop. We feel wrath towards the Nazis, while having us a jolly good time. That is comedy genius.
The Cat People
Have you ever watched a Horror movie that has a lone lady walking at night in a park or at an empty street, hearing footsteps or other noises behind, to be suddenly startled by something normal like another person or a the arrival of a bus? That is a famous horror film technique titles “The Lewton Bus”. It was developed by grade B horror producer Val Lewton and the underrated director, Jacques Tourneur. This technique was first developed in this 1942 horror film about a woman who turns into a panther when she is either angry or sexually aroused. The connection of sexually active victims in Slasher movies can also find its roots from this film. The movies story is pretty basic. We have an immigrant from Serbia who has a curse from her homeland that turns her into a panther during periods of high emotion (jealousy or lust). She marries a normal American who only realizes his mistake after it too late. It is not the plot that makes this movie worth seeing, but rather its stylistic direction. Tourneur was a stylist who experimented in filming atmosphere and the horror of the movie is based on suggestions and psychology rather than actual action. His slow and suggestive pacing leaves the audience with a sense of unease that transcends its simplistic material. One scene in particular should be lauded. One of the characters is in love with our protagonist’s husband. She goes into a strangely empty, public swimming pool and is followed there by the transformed panther. All the audience sees however are the beast’s shadows. The fear of shadows and what casts them is brilliant here and quite chilling. This is an historic horror film that is worth looking at and appreciating for what it is.
The Magnificent Ambersons
What does a person do after he creates what many consider the greatest movie ever made with his first film? That was the predicament that Orson Welles found himself in after “Citizen Kane”. Since that movie was based on his own script, Welles decided for his second film, to make an adaption to a popular classic novel. “The Magnificent Ambersons” by Booth Tarkington is that novel and Wells did not disappoint. It should be pointed out that the final cut of this film was done by the studio, without Welles’ consent, cutting some 40 minutes. The cut film has been permanently lost, so the studio cut is the only existing version today. It is still a strong and compelling movie. The movie revolves around an old school Aristocratic family at the turn of the 20th century and their reaction to the changing industrial world. It boasts a superlative performance by an unknown actor named Tom Holt. The fact that Holt portrayed such a disagreeable character would make him poison to Hollywood going forward. This movie was the only true stage to his immense talent. The movie shows us how a fine rich woman decides to marry for money instead of love and how that decision would have disastrous effects on her family’s eventual future. The man she actually loved goes on to become an even richer and successful automobile manufacturer and when he returns to his home town riding his classic car, he builds a house even grander than that of the Ambersons, who is the family our heroine married into. She has a child named George and due to being stuck in a loveless marriage, spoils the child rotten. As expected from a spoiled upbringing, George grows up as an annoying, spoiled and spiteful man. This is the character played by Holt. The industrialist, who still loves Georges Mother, comes back a rich widower after George’s Father dies. He courts the Mother and has a pretty daughter, for whom George adores. The problem lies in the fact that Georges entitled and unpleasant personality will not win over the girl and causes him to hate her father. This is an interesting story and the movie is filled with great background scenery and period setups that make us feel like we are looking at a window into the past. The movie stands out in its magnificent scenes inside the Amberson’s home. The home is a large extravagant mansion and Welles had a life size model made specifically for this movie. The model had movable walls that allowed Welles to film long tracking shots that follows his characters as they roamed the inside of the building. These shots are enthralling and give a special depth to the story. The most famous scene of the movie is the dance Ball scene, taking place in the house. We see the characters’ dance and change partners while they dance. Each time they change a partner, depending on who Welles wants us to follow, the camera, without stop, follows the character constantly changing direction. We hear the conversations that add insight to each character and their thought process, showing the vastness and beauty or the magnificence of the Amberson’s mansion. The studio ending is a sanitized happier version than what Welles envisioned and as such a bit disappointing. The film however is a work of art that makes for fascinating viewing.
Yankee Doodle Dandy
James Cagney is today world famous for his portrayals of gangsters and tough guys. He was also a fine actor. Most people do not know that he started his career as a stage, song and dance man. He also made a few musicals in the 30s such as the enjoyable, “Footlight Parade”. When Hollywood wanted to make a warm musical biography of the song and dance man, George M. Cohan, Cagney was a natural choice for the lead. He could sing and dance and was a good actor. The result is a Technicolor and very favorable movie about the man all Americans loved. Nothing dark or secret is told in this film. It skirts over his first marriage and divorce and does not even mention his stance against unions. It is all love and goodness. For this reason, I could do without this movie. The singing is nice and the dancing is entertaining, but the movie itself as a biography concerning an interesting man, is actually quite boring. The movie however is well acted and directed and the Broadway dance numbers are colorful and fun.
Mrs. Miniver
As World War 2 was raging around the world and the United States joined their English brothers in battle, Hollywood was pressured into helping the cause with inspirational stories. Most of these movies were brave and unrealistic ware stories, but every once in a while, Hollywood got it right. Mrs. Miniver was one of those films, where they got it right. It is an American film, but is about British people during the war. All the actors are British and only the direction and production remained American. It shows the suffering, normal middle class British citizens had to endure during the War. There were bombings, the danger of parachuted enemy soldiers and the fear of one of their own dying on the battlefield. We see these issues played out through the eyes of a brave stoic house wife. “Mrs. Miniver”, played by Greer Garson, who while pretty, was not glamorous and succeeds in conveying the everyday person perfectly in the film. The movie is not overly melodramatic and all the actors are very good. Greer and Walter Pigeon as her husband are especially good. Suspense is built when a wounded German pilot breaks into the Miniver home. We feel the anguish of the eldest Sons service as a fighter pilot. Then there are the bombings that are consistent and cause the people in this film to be living in constant fear. There are sad poignant moments here, but the beauty of the film is the way it succeeds in inspiring its viewer to support the war against evil. For that, this movie should be highly commended.
1001 Movies before you die 