Mr. & Mrs. Smith (1941)

Loving couple Ann and David (Carole Lombard and Robert Montgomery) discover that their marriage three years ago was technically invalid. Marital antics ensue.

This is the second film I’ve covered recently where Cary Grant was unavailable for the lead, the first being A Foreign Affair. Oddly I have never covered any of Montgomery’s films. None of his others are even on my radar. Perhaps the only reason why I know him is because he is Elizabeth Montgomery’s dad. He would never work with Hitch again. As for Lombard, she would do only one more film before tragically dying.

The 2005 Pitt/Jolie film was very loosely inspired by this film, but it was mostly a remake of a short lived 1996 Scott Bakula TV show, where it got the espionage/assassin angle. There is also a 2007 TV movie as well as the current Donald Glover vehicle. All of these later properties wisely focused on the action elements.

Lombard convinced Alfred Hitchcock to do this film, or maybe she didn’t. Hollywood stories are to be taken with a grain of salt. While there is humor in many of Hitch’s films, this stands as his only screwball comedy. I support his decision to avoid the genre. Few laughs, little chemistry, wonky ending. If you are looking for this kind of film, consider The Palm Beach Story, Move Over Darling, or even My Favorite Wife. It was just done better. AMRU 2.5.

The Black Cat (1941)

The matriarch of a vast estate is nearing death and her greedy heirs gather to get their share, and maybe help her along. Into this our hero (Broderick Crawford) arrives with a batty antiques dealer (Hugh Herbert) in hopes of making some scratch himself.

Many of the old dark house tropes are on display, including the mysterious last will and testament, secret passages, a crypt, and creepy staff (Bela Lugosi). Creepy atmosphere, however, is undermined by the comedic tone, specifically from Herbert’s Mr Penny character. He would be the comic relief character had there been any tension to cut.

Herbert was a popular comedian of the 30’s and 40’s, and his likeness and distinct mannerisms were lifted by Warner Brothers cartoons. His distinct “hoo-hoo-hoo” was copied by Daffy Duck and inspired Curly Howard’s signature “woo-woo”. Basil Rathbone appears as one of the unpleasant heirs, as does Alan Ladd, whose career was just taking off. Some may remember today’s hero (Crawford) as the heavy in Born Yesterday.

Our hero enters the story uninvited with money as his motivator (and perhaps a little romance), is repeatedly told to leave, and somehow stays around sleuthing for clues. More than a little strange, it’s an awkward story contrivance that could have been addressed at least in part.

The Black Cat shares a title with the Poe story and little else. It’s only a fair mystery because of the precious few clues leading to the villain. Not much of a mystery, not much of a comedy, not at all horror, but somehow watchable. Consider the vastly superior Cat and the Canary instead. AMRU 3. I feel generous.

“Everything here is for the cats, which is why this place is going to the dogs.”

Penny Serenade (1941)

Julie (Irene Dunne) announces that she is leaving her husband Roger (Cary Grant) because they don’t need each other anymore. While looking through her record collection, she reminisces about their life together, the good times and the bad.

Dorothy Adams is a familiar face, memorable as Laura’s maid. Character actress Beulah Bondi also made a thirty year career playing old ladies, including It’s a Wonderful Life, which I rewatched this season. And if It’s a Wonderful Life is sappy done right, Penny Serenade is sappy done wrong. Starting in the second act the sentiment is poured on fairly thick, and it only got worse.

This was Grant’s first of two competitive Oscar nominations. He was up against Gary Cooper as Sergeant York, so he had no chance here. I never saw None But the Lonely Heart, so I don’t know what chance he had against Bing Crosby.

Penny Serenade is a tiresome watch. Grant is always entertaining, though I prefer when he doesn’t play an idiot. The story isn't very compelling, but it’s the sentimentality that ruins it for me. AMRU 2.5.

The Gay Falcon (1941)

George Sanders is Gay Laurence (aka The Falcon), a bored stock broker and amateur sleuth who becomes involved in a jewel theft, and tries to keep his fiancee from getting the wrong idea.

The Falcon series was criticized as a cheap rip-off of The Saint. I haven’t seen any of the Saint films, but from what I gather it’s an unfair comparison. The Falcon is a series of mystery films featuring an erudite womanizer who solves crimes, starring George Sanders in the title role of four of them, includes an embarrassing asian stereotype character in a servant role, with one film named The Falcon Takes Over, while The Saint is a series of mystery films featuring an erudite womanizer who solves crimes, starring George Sanders in the title role of five of them, includes an embarrassing black stereotype character in a servant role, with one film named The Saint Takes Over. There’s no comparison at all.

Many character actors are here, notably Wendy Barrie, who appeared in three Saint films and another Falcon. Willie Fung played the asian stereotype servant Jerry. He died tragically young at 49. Comic actor Allen Jenkins is The Falcon’s assistant in this and two other films. He appears in a surprising number of films, including King Kong, and most recently as a bumbling detective in SH! The Octopus.

Twelve year olds today may giggle at the character name, particularly when he says ‘Call me Gay’ to a lady in a vaguely foppish manner, but there is no queer coding here. Cary Grant may have gone “gay all of a sudden” three years earlier in Bringing up Baby, but that meaning hadn’t yet entered the popular vernacular.

Saunders grew tired with the role and perhaps thought himself too good for such films. I would agree. His purring sarcasm was a delight with the proper script and he would go on to appear in some great films. He handed it over to his real life brother, Tom Conway, a fine actor perhaps more suited to B movie roles. Conway appeared in three of the Lewton horrors and finished out the string of sixteen Falcon films.

There is no end to light mystery series made during the 30’s and 40’s. Torchy Blane, Boston Blackie, Philo Vance, Sherlock Holmes, even the Thin Man, and many more. The Gay Falcon is, by all accounts, no worse than the rest, and I briefly toyed with the idea of shooting through the series, to which my son retorted “Well, you know what you should do”. Yea. We will leave this series where it is. AMRU 3.

The Big Store (1941)

Tommy Rogers (Tony Martin), an aspiring singer who owns shares in a department store, wants to sell so he can fund a music conservancy in the neighborhood where he got his start. But the bad guy doesn’t want him to sell for some reason and hatches a plan to kill him for some reason, but the Margaret Dumont character (Margaret Dumont) hires a detective (Groucho) for some reason.

Is Tommy a big star or trying to get his start? Are his shares valuable or almost worthless? Doesn’t matter because we get the deal. The Brothers clown around ostensibly trying to protect the cartoon good guy from the cartoon bad guys, roll credits. The plot isn’t secondary, it’s irrelevant. Truth be told the bits aren’t that bad, but the trouble begins with the inclusion of pointless musical numbers.

Chico does the same piano number as always and Harpo his harp number as always, just in case we haven’t seen it a dozen times already. To make matters worse, the story (such as it is) halts in the second act for a ridiculous swing number that went on forever. But it gets worse. There is a big finale that Groucho called “The most godawful thing I’d ever heard”. I tend to agree.

There is a big chase scene near the end that is a bit unusual for a Marx Brother's film. It was silly without being particularly funny, and I found it odd to see the boys, now in their 50s, behaving like 20-somethings.

Here is the eleventh of the twelve Marx Brother films, and it only took me a little over ten years to see them. The final is the somewhat hard to find Love Happy (1949) which was disowned by Groucho. So, yay. It has the lowest IMDb score of the lot and hopefully I can finish off the set this year.

I began the night with the intent of watching a Buster Keaton talkie but quickly aborted that plan. As disappointing as The Big Store was, there are worse films. To see Keaton, who should have been at the top of his game, in such a terrible production was heartbreaking. I saw maybe fifteen minutes before declaring it unwatchable trash. The Big Store, as uninspired as it was, was still watchable. Well, most of it was. AMRU 2.5.

Invisible Ghost (1941)

Seeing the wife who ran off on him, standing in his lawn causes Bela Lugosi to go into a trance and kill people.

Let me get this straight. The rich and influential Charles Kessler is so traumatized by his wife leaving him that he won’t leave the house in case she returns. Even though people are being murdered inside the house! Next we learn that the gardener is secretly hiding her in the garden shed for who knows what reason. She was hurt in a car accident that killed her lover and is now in a semi-vegetative state. So each night she leaves the shed and stands in the lawn, magically compelling Bela to the window, causing his murderous trance.

That’s not a spoiler. This is all established early. And he is Bela Lugosi after all.

None of this makes any sense. But taken as read, how terrible must the cops be if multiple people are murdered inside a house and none of the occupants are even suspected? There were at least two murders prior to the film’s beginning. No checking for forced entry, securing perimeter, nothing that even resembles police work. Just “Gosh, we’re stumped!” In fact Bela and another possible suspect seem to drive the investigation, finding evidence and deciding how to proceed.

It took me a while to realize that I’ve seen this one before. The year before my blog I watched a bunch of films that were never covered. This was one. It should be no mystery how I forgot about it, this being squarely in Bela's Nick Cage phase of role selection.

Invisible Ghost lacks atmosphere, mystery, and runs short on drama. It really feels like they started filming with a partial script and were winging it much of the time. The best thing I can say is that it is short and isn’t painful to watch. In fact, Bela as a genuinely nice guy who has no idea he’s the murder is a unique angle. I just wish there was a story to go along with it. AMRU 2.5.

High Sierra (1941)

After being released from prison, Roy Earle (Humphrey Bogart) does one last job to set himself up for life. From his hideaway High in the Sierra Nevada mountains, he plans the robbery of a California resort. Along the way he helps a man and falls in love with his underaged granddaughter, and has to deal with incompetent co-conspirators, a floozy tag-along (Ida Lupino), and a cursed dog.

Bogart’s Roy Earle was loosely based on John Dillinger. It was Bogart’s performance in Petrified Forest that made studio heads consider him for a lead role, but that too was hard fought. Paul Muni and George Raft had to first turn down the role. Bogie’s ability to make this role his own convinced them to cast him in the Maltese Falcon. The rest is cinema history.

Joan Leslie played the good girl that Roy wants to love. Throughout there is a theme of keeping with your own kind, and Velma’s wholesome goodness contrasted too much with Roy’s hardened criminal nature. Besides, Joan turned sixteen the day after the film was released. Ida Lupino’s Marie with her hard knock life was more his type.

Not in real life, however. Ida didn’t like working with Bogie and would refuse in the future. Too bad because she spent the bulk of her career in lesser film-noirs and might have seen a bigger hit had they got along. But at this point the 22 year old Lupino was the bigger star and got top billing. After climbing the studio ropes in B movies (frequently as an underaged love interest - I sense a trend) she would get better roles and better movies through the later 1930’s and 1940’s, some of which she directed. In the 50’s she would retire from movies and act and direct in television before returning to cinema in the 1970’s.

High Sierra plays more like a melodrama than a crime film. Roy is the great guy/hardened criminal who goes out of his way to help some people, and plug others. He wants to be good but it’s just not in the cards for him. The old man he befriends was Clarence the Angel, Henry Travers. He shows up whenever an affable old man is needed. Unrecognizable in Colonel Sanders cosplay is Henry Hull, the Werewolf of London himself. I thought he was a Brit but being from the Bluegrass state I suppose his country gentleman character is closer to reality. On the topic of Colonels, or more precisely Cornels, the Wilde variety appears here in his first credited role. Too far to go for that one? I may edit it out later.

A film on the cusp between traditional Gangster flick and film-noir, it clearly sits in the former category. Which may explain why Raft and Muni were uninterested. They had been making this kind of film for a decade. While the end result is somewhat unremarkable, it’s not uninteresting. Bogart makes for a compelling character, hero and villain alike. AMRU 3.5.

"Remember what Johnny Dillinger said about guys like you and him. Said you were rushin' toward death. Yes, just rushin' toward death."

Meet Boston Blackie (1941)

Reformed jewel thief Boston Blackie (whitey Chester Morris) returns from abroad and is under close watch by Inspector Faraday who would love to pin a pearl heist on him. He tries to catch the eye of a pretty blonde by defending her from a rude man. Later that rude man turns up dead in Blackie’s cabin and he now has to solve the mystery to clear his name.

Smarmy and wise cracking, Blackie is helped by his trusty servant “the runt” without any explanation why. Much of the story revolves around a carnival, because why not. Pretty blond vaguely outlines part of the drama he stepped into in the tunnel of love. Will love last? Hey, here’s Schlitze! Old friends will remember him from Freaks (1932). Here he plays a pinhead.

Meet Boston Blackie is a paper-thin mystery with cheesy-ass dialog. But it’s short run time (61 minutes) and upbeat tone made for a pleasant watch. They did fourteen of these things in nine years and I’ll see at least one more. Thin Man it’s not, but enjoyable nevertheless. AMRU 3.5.

“We’ve got Faraday in a cage for you. Just like a canary. Come on, maybe he’ll sing for us.”

Ball of Fire (1941)

Nightclub singer Sugarpuss O’Shea (Barbara Stanwyck) must hide out until the heat is off her gangster boyfriend (Dana Andrews). She stumbles upon a group of professors (NNNNNERRRRRDSSSSS!!) working on an encyclopedia, and they want her help studying modern slang. The cops would never think to look for her there. Will love bloom?

Much of the story makes no sense but it doesn’t matter. It is just a framework for the fish out of water to fall in love with the head nerd … I mean professor (Gary Cooper). The seven other professors are modeled after the seven dwarfs, presumably with Stanwyck as Snow White and Cooper as the prince. Billy Wilder wrote the story prior to the release of the Disney movie and in one shot a marquee can be seen showing the Disney flick.

Because the plot revolves around our nerds … I mean professors trying to learn modern slang, the dialog is chuck full of exaggerated or completely made up terms, sounding silly or awkward. This is to heighten the sense of the other fish being out of the other water. Unfortunately our two leads didn’t show much on-screen chemistry. Maybe because their characters were from such different universes or maybe because Cooper acts with all the panache of an uncooked potato. Plus, the 40ish never-been-kissed Cooper looked old enough to be 34ish year old Stanwyck’s dad.

Some prolific character actors make up the the seven dwarfs, most notably S.Z. Sakall from Casablanca and most recently Christmas in Connecticut. Also here is the prolific Charles Lane, whose career spanned from the early 30’s until the mid 90’s. If ever you needed a grumpy lawyer, he was your man. His docket is even longer than Ian Wolf’s, whom I detailed recently. Between the two they appeared in almost 700 movies and TV shows, with only a half dozen titles in common, maybe because they played similar character types.

I wanted to like this film a bit more but I simply didn’t buy either character actually falling for the other. There were funny parts and Stanwyck was as charming as ever, but I have yet to see Cooper in something I liked. That said, mom would have enjoyed it. AMRU 3.

Sullivan's Travels (1941)

Director (Joel McCrea) of lighthearted comedies wants to make serious films about the downtrodden. When it's pointed out that he knows nothing of trouble, he has wardrobe bring up a bum costume, puts a dime in his pocket, and tries to live among the poor. Along the way he meets up with a struggling starlet (struggling starlet Veronica Lake) and proceeds to find all the trouble he was looking for.

I suppose this is a romantic comedy, but Sullivan's quest to learn about the disenfranchised takes top priority. This movie appears to explore liberal guilt. Rich white man taking up the cause of the poor without having any clue what it means to be poor. Boy howdy, does he find out.

Nineteen year old Lake was seven or eight months pregnant while filming, and you'd never know it. She's jumping on trains and falling into water just as the doctor ordered. There's a scene in a black church that was rather interesting. It depicts the poor black people as, well, people. This was 1941, remember. Being a frightened or bumbling servant was the BEST they normally could hope for. Director Preston Sturges received a letter from Walter White (not THAT Walter White!) from the NAACP in appreciation. I guess the scene with the bumbling chef was easily ignored.

So wonderfully written, Sullivan's Travels is delightful. His dialog had just enough edge to make production code Hollywood interesting. Definitely a see-again. AMRU 4.

"Just an extra girl having breakfast with a director. Only I didn't used to have breakfast with them. Maybe that was my trouble.
Did they ever ask you to?
No.
Then don't pat yourself on the back."

Suspicion (1941)

Lina (Joan Fontaine) is a pretty bookworm. A spinster in training, really. When she crosses paths with the fast talking charmer Johnnie (Cary Grant), she isn't sure what to make of him. After she discovers her parents have given up on her ever catching a man, she decides to return Johnnie's advances. They elope.

Soon Lina realizes that Johnnie is broke. Instead of working he is at the races. She catches him in lie after lie. She first suspects he married her for her money (not as grand as once thought), then to kill her for the insurance.

Suspicion plays heavy on the melodrama, and if the storyline doesn't lend on, just listen to the overbearing soundtrack. Like many Hitchcock films, the focus is square on the pretty young woman. Nothing happens without her on screen. Grant is playing mostly against type here, much to the dismay of RKO who wanted all scenes where he appeared menacing cut. This wasn't going to work.

This is really a story about two people, but the supporting cast is excellent. Dame May Whitty, whom old friends may remember her in The Lady Vanishes and the Hollywood version of Gaslight, plays Lina's mom. Longtime Dr. Watson Nigel Bruce plays Johnnie's friend Beaky. He was in She that should have been filmed in color. Both he and she were in a lot of movies I should have seen by now were I not overly focused on genre films. Leo G. Carroll had a small role. He has been in quite a few Hitchcock films. He was over a barrel when Tarantula took to the hills, but that's another story.

Before I am finished with this blog, I will have seen all of Hitch's available films. My appreciation grows with each one I watch. Suspicion is by no means a masterpiece, but it's a satisfying mystery and well crafted film. Even if the ending is somewhat lacking. AMRU 3.5.

"Well, well. You're the first woman I've ever met who said yes when she meant yes."

The Lady Eve (1941)

A cruse ship picks up Charles Pike (Henry Fonda), the socially awkward heir to the Pike's Ale fortune, who was in South American to study snakes. He's not much into the brew, you see. Con artist Jean (Barbara Stanwyck) sets out to fleece him. Things become complicated when she starts to fall for him. Anything more would encroach upon spoilage.

My first Stanwyck movie, and I have to say, not the total babe I was expecting. Better than fair no doubt, but not the hottie of legend. Later in life she would be the matriarch in The Big Valley, a favorite of my youth. Have to see an episode now. Back then my eyes wandered towards the young Linda Evans, not the oldie. Not on Netflix. I'll check Amazon Prime ...

Not much else to say. really. Fonda's on screen dad was Eugene Pallette, the dad from My Man Godfrey, doing basically the same character. The caretaker looking after Fonda was played by William Demarest, better known by me as Uncle Charlie from My Three Sons. I knew I recognized that voice.

Fairly complex plot, great script, and top notch acting, especially for a romantic comedy. The dialog had a very His Girl Friday quality about it and a second viewing would not be wasted. AMRU 3.5.

"Positively the same dame!"

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1941)

We know the story. Doctor Jekyll (Spencer Tracy) is experimenting in the true nature of man. The father of his hottie fiancee (Lana Turner) disapproves, but Jekyll can't help himself. Quite by accident he bumps into a low born cockney girl in the street (Ingrid Bergman) and falls deeply in lust. But he is a good man and mustn't allow base instincts take over. So he just kisses her. Nighty-night.

Well, where Jekyll must be a proper gentleman, good friend Hyde has no such requirements. Hyde coerces his concubine into being a kept woman and things slowly get out of hand. Again, you know the story. Tragedy for all.

For the most part, this was a remake of the famed 1931 version rather than the Stevenson work, and suffered the consequence of comparison. Tracy was eager to take the role but was embarrassed by it after fan reaction was rather harsh. Also, Bergman as a cockney barmaid? Hmmm. That's a bit of a stretch. Hotness allows one to get with many crimes and she did have it to spare.

There is one scene where a fevered Jekyll is struggling with his lust for the Bergman character and his duty to his fiancee. He is seen driving two horses, one dark and one white, with a manic expression on his face. Then the horses turn into Bergman and Turner, seemingly topless, with frantic, worried looks on their faces. How's that for slipping it by the sensors? This photo doesn't do it justice, but it's the best I could find.

 

This version was killed by the critics when it was released, but in fairness it's not bad. I haven't seen the Fredric March version yet, so I'll hold off final judgement, but it was definitely worth a look. AMRU 3.5.

 

One final comment about the media. I requested a set of disks from the library and when it was available, I didn't remember what it was or why I ordered it. I discovered that it was a four movie set, two of which were on my see list. This and House of Wax. With both movies, the DVD menu promised that the older version was on the flip side, but the set had Freaks and The Haunting instead. This matched the case, so I'm guessing someone bought the resale rights to the movies and didn't bother to change the menu.

The Wolf Man (1941)

The eldest son of the affluent Talbot family dies in a horrible hunting accident, so ne'er-do-well younger son (Creighton Chaney) returns home to patch things up with 'oll dad (Claude Rains) and take his place as favorite boy. Dad shows junior around the laboratory. Seems Larry knows a thing or two about telescopes as he took a janitorial job in a California observatory. Straight away he points said telescope townward to spy the young hotties.

His eye lands on young Gwen (Evelyn Ankers). He pays her a visit and creepily explains how he has been stalking her. She is a proper lady and engaged to a proper gentleman, but for some reason cannot resist his lumpy goodness. He coerces her into visiting those lovely gypsies that are welcomed everywhere they go. To keep her virtue intact, Gwen brings along her undoable friend, Jenny (Fay Helm).

They visit the Gypsy fortunate teller Bela (Bela). Jenny gets her fortune read first. Seems her future has her being chowed on by an Evil man-wolf. Lumpy Larry arrives in the nick of time to kill the offending wolf, but after her throat has been ripped out. For his troubles, he gets a nasty bite to his chest. When the authorities arrive, they find Bela's body and Larry's walking stick. Hmmmm ...

Would I be spoiling things to say that Chaney becomes The Wolf Man?

Rains playing Chaney's father was rather interesting, because in real life Creighton's father was also a little man who could act circles around him. Bela was also good in his limited role, and Ralph Bellamy was good in his supporting role, but who I really noticed was Jessie Arnold as the Gypsy woman. Creepy and nuanced, the right kind of character actor. Chaney, as always, is ham-fisted in every scene.

Now, I've pointed out that the modern incarnation of zombies (post-Romero) are actually ghouls, not zombies as they exist in "real life". So too will I criticize the werewolf. IMdb asserts that many myths of werewolves come from The Wolf Man, but a few came from Werewolf of London, most notably that being a werewolf is a curse brought on by a bite. In folklore, however, one is granted the power of a werewolf by signing a pact with the Devil.

That aside, this icon of horror that made Chaney "Jr." a star, owes very little to him. The good story and script, good acting (mostly), and quality sets and production survived a mediocre actor in the lead. Imagine if Karloff got the role. AMRU 3.5.

"Even a man who is pure in heart and says his prayers by night, may become a wolf when the wolfbane blooms and the autumn moon is bright."

Shadow of the Thin Man (1941)

William Powell is still a witty drunk. Myrna Loy is still a hottie. Baby Nickie is a little older. Same kind of story, different details. Nick keeps walking into a murder investigation, and tries as hard as possible to avoid getting involved, but it's no use. First, a jockey is shot while in the shower. Then there's this binder that everybody is trying to get their hands on. Another murder and way more characters than I am able to keep track of. 

Maybe I started the movie when I was just too tired. Maybe I'm growing tired of the series, but the charm factor was gone. About an hour into the film I shut it off and went to bed. 

More awake after work, I watched the end. Guess what? Detective stories are way more entertaining when you have enough brainpower to actually follow the story. The characters and format are basically identical to the first three movies, but here are my observations: 

A 20 year old Donna Reed was basically forgettable in the second role of her career. Asta again provided comic relief. The joke here being that he was afraid of everything. To illustrate the point there were sequences of sped up film of Asta running and hiding. Funny stuff. The cops are incompetent, of course. 

Maybe I will watch it again. I really enjoyed the last twenty or so minutes. I have a busy weekend, we'll see. I'm curious to see the mystery when you know who the murderer is. And it'll be nice to see it while awake. AMRU 3.5.

King of the Zombies (1941)

Three people on a plane over the Caribbean are blown off course and land when they hear a radio broadcast. They become the guests of the mysterious Dr. Sangre. The passengers manservant, played by old friend Mantan Moreland, becomes convinced the mansion is crawling with zombies.

Mostly predictable story. Not too funny, not very original, not at all scary, it would seem this film has little going for it. The one thing it does is Mantan. He has quickly become my favorite racial stereotype. Another good point is Marguerite Whitten, who plays a maid who feeds Mantan zombie stories and pie. The whities in the story, mostly forgettable. The poster doesn't show the darker actors, so I have to include a photo of the people that made this thing work.

Here is what sticks in my memory: Dr. Sangre requiring Mantan to sleep in the servants quarters. It seems that the movie makers wanted to take half a stand against racism. A forgettable film if it weren't for the black actors. Shockingly enough, this movie was nominated for an Oscar. So, where do I put it? 2.5? 3? I'm a bona fide fan of Mantan now. AMRU 3.

The Maltese Falcon (1941)

This adaptation of a Dashiell Hammett novel stared Humphrey Bogart, Mary Astor (remember her from Red Dust? She's not hot in this film either.), Peter Lorre, Sydney Greenstreet, and also featured Eliza Cook Jr (from just about everything). Directed by John Huston. Arguably, this is Bogart's most famous role after Casablanca. 

Sam Spade and red shirt Miles Archer are detectives. Stereotypical bombshell walks into their office with a hard luck story. They take the case, and soon Archer is dead. Different groups of people turn to mess with Spade, who slowly pieces the real story together. Everyone has a back story and everyone is searching for a jewel-encrusted falcon statue, painted black to disguise it's real value. Who gets it? With all the smoking going on in this film, a black lung was more likely than a black bird. It says something about cigarettes when obese Greenstreet outlives Bogart and Lorre by more than ten years. Cook, it should be noted, lived to a ripe old 172. 

The American Film Institute ranked this the 31st greatest movie of all time in 2007, then called it the 6th best in the genre of Mystery. It was nominated for Best Picture, Best Supporting Actor, and Best Screenplay. 

With the marquee names and reputation, I have to say this was a bit of a let down. I enjoyed the movie, but I couldn't make heads or tails of the story. I think I'll need to watch it again. This time without child interruption. AMRU 3.5.

Citizen Kane (1941)

Everybody knows this movie. Orson Welles' masterpiece. Everybody's pick for best movie ever. Nobody's pick for what they want to rent tonight. 

I was given this film many years ago back when it didn't seem strange to give someone a VCR tape for birthday. I tried watching it once but found it long, confounding, and frankly rather dull. Maybe I got a half hour into it. Finally, I gave it another try. 

The movie starts with the death of Charles Kane, wealthy newspaper magnate (in olden times, newspapers used to turn a profit!) His last word (although nobody is there to hear it) is "Rosebud". The media, fascinated by what this could mean, investigate Kane's life to find out what was so important to a man that had everything. Apparently there wasn't anything else going on in 1941 worth reporting. We learn about Kane's life in retrospective. 

Charles Foster Kane is supposed to be William Randolph Hearst. There are lots of connections between the story and Hearst's life, and stories how Hearst tried to stop the films release, but I'll let you read them for yourself on IMDB or Wikipedia. 

So, what's all the hullabaloo about? Camera angles? Clever narrative tricks? Techniques so apparent that they actually interfere with the story? Is this a film that nobody but a film student could ever love? 

Nope. I really liked it. Now, I will say that the story wasn't all that compelling. It kept my interest, and was very well written, but it's not the "main feature". So much of the story is told with how Orson filled the screen. You could have the audio off and never be unsure what the character's relationship was. Every scene was laid out artistically. It's hard to explain. 

And, if you are not paying attention to what he was doing, you could miss much of it. I was a little surprised how much I enjoyed watching Citizen Kane. Now, I do own the film, but I wouldn't have purchased it for myself. In truth, the story and acting do not distinguish Kane, and that is what I respond to in cinema, but still, AMRU 4.