Clash by Night (1952)

World-weary Mae Doyle (Barbara Stanwyck) returns to her hometown, defeated by the past ten years. Now just wanting to be safe, she agrees to marry nice guy fisherman Jerry (Paul Douglas). Mae hates Jerry’s boorish, arrogant friend Earl (Robert Ryan), so predictably, they have an affair.

Marilyn Monroe plays the girlfriend of Mae’s little brother. On loan from 20th Century Fox, this was her first sizable role. Back-handed compliments aside, her performance earned her better roles. Old friend J. Carrol Naish played Uncle Vince. A very different role for him.

Commonly labeled film-noir, Clash by Night certainly has a noir title. It also has a noir cast and director, and the tone is fairly pessimistic, but It seems to just miss. Even TCM’s Eddie Muller seems to waffle on the subject.

Clash by Night is a domestic drama populated by fully flushed out characters. The setting feels very ‘lived in’, probably because it was based on a successful play. Robert Ryan performed in the play as Joe Doyle. Maybe not noir, but excellent performances make it an entertaining watch. AMRU 3.5.

Love Happy (1949)

A theater troupe struggles to finance their show (named Love Happy), jewel thieves are trying to locate a million dollar necklace they stole, and the brothers clown around. There is a lot going on, little of which is of much consequence.

This last Marx Brothers film came together somewhat accidentally. Harpo planned it as a solo project, but couldn’t secure financing unless Chico and Groucho came along. Harpo playing the Harpo character and doing all of the Harpo bits without his brothers doesn’t really make sense anyhow. Many of Groucho’s scenes appear to be filmed at a different time, improvised and poorly shot. He serves as the story’s narrator but interacts somewhat during the third act.

Vera-Ellen is charming as the plucky and lovelorn dancer. Baroness Frankenstein herself Ilona Massey is the exotic and enigmatic leader of the thieves. Her performance is peculiar but I blame the source material. Raymond Burr is one of her thugs. Marilyn Monroe had a very short and entirely gratuitous scene. That, and conspicuous product placements, may have been part of the financing agreement.

Like the worst of the Brother’s films, it transitions from a mostly uninteresting story line, to unfunny comic bits, to tedious song and dance numbers, then back again. To be fair there were a couple amusing bits, one in particular involves a handheld mirror. Unfortunately Harpo chooses to repeat it, just in case the audience was napping.

The Marx Brothers were a moment in time. Their downtrodden but irreverently upbeat act played well during the Depression, but became increasingly anachronistic as we inched towards the affluent and optimistic 50’s. Besides, only baby Groucho was under sixty at this point. It was a good time to move on.

So, this is it. The last of the Marx Brothers films. Famously Groucho omitted in his autobiography, naming A Night in Casablanca as their last. But the Brothers did appear, separately, in one more film, but I think I’m done here.

The boys did thirteen films together, but I can only recommend their second through seventh. Love Happy might be the worst of the lot, Groucho apparently thought so, and unless you feel compelled to complete arbitrary lists, it is completely skipable. AMRU 2.

The Misfits (1961)

A divorced hot chick (Marilyn Monroe) and her landlady (Thelma Ritter) meet up with a tow truck driver (Eli Wallach) and his cowboy friend (Clark Gable). They later swap out the landlady for a troubled ranch hand (Montgomery Clift), then go rustling Mustangs. They all fall over Marilyn while she falls out of her dress.

Clark Gable was 59 going on 109 and would pass just after filming wrapped. He had said that working with Marilyn was going to give him a heart attack and, well, it seems he was right. He got in shape for the roll, quitting booze and losing weight, but too little, too late. There was a doctor on call but it was for the troubled Monroe and Clift. This would also prove to be Marilyn’s last film, dying of a semi-accidental drug overdose a year and a half later. Of the five principles, only Eli Wallach would see 1970, leaving us in 2014 at 98.

Maybe because he wasn’t playing the romantic lead, I liked Montgomery Clift’s performance. He played a neurotic, self-destructive cowboy. A role I suppose he could relate to. Except for the cowboy part. I’ll again repeat Marilyn’s quote about him: "the only person I know who is in worse shape than I am".

Not what I was expecting. There is a whole lot of ogling of Marilyn to the point where it seems to serve the dual purpose of making a point and appealing to men who like ogling Marilyn. She was 34 or 35 here and still effectively playing the 20-something bombshell, if maybe carrying a bit more weight than normal. It was said that they suspended production for two weeks so she could detox but that may have been a ruse to cover director John Huston’s gambling losses.

The four main characters (excluding Ritter’s landlady) are trying to figure out where they fit in. The aging cowboy out of touch in the new west, the tow truck driver dealing with the dead wife he worshiped, the young ranch hand not sure where he is going in life, and of course the divorcee who based her identity on the men who want her. You know, Misfits. They seem to come to terms with their issues, but it is not altogether clear.

The Misfits is an interesting film. Here we say goodbye to two icons of classic Hollywood. However I don’t know what to make of the overt “male gaze” aspect of the film. It felt very intentional. I may not see it again, but I do find myself thinking about it. AMRU 3.5.

"Honey, we all got to go sometime, reason or no reason. Dyin's as natural as livin'. The man who's too afraid to die is too afraid to live."

Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953)

Showgirl Lorelei (Marilyn Monroe) is engaged to a millionaire dork and for reasons of the plot goes on an all-expense paid trip to France without him. Co-star Dorothy (Jane Russell) goes along as chaperone because if there is any hint of scandal, sugar-daddy’s daddy will forbid the marriage. Once embarked, Lorelei proceeds to look for another millionaire to milk. Hint, hint.

Arguably the film that made Monroe a superstar, it’s not exactly a story of women’s empowerment. Lorelei is an unabashed gold digger, obsessed with diamonds. Dorothy, meanwhile, just wants to ‘make love’, money be damned. Lorelei’s target is the ruddy and bloated Piggy Beekman (ruddy and bloated Charles Coburn). Piggy owns a diamond mine and likes to court the young ladies, once he gets away from his shrew of a wife.

Everything starts to unravel as the ship approaches Europe, but song, dance, and musical comedy magic solves everything. But let’s focus on a particular phrase that struck my attention: Make Love.

In modern parlance, making love directly means the physical act of sex. Not so in old movies, where it simply refers to the act of courtship. Dorothy makes reference to another character making love with her, but there is no inference to the modern sense. Just dinner, drinks, and dancing. This also tames down the line from The Inspector General (1949) where the Mayor famously exclaims: “... he even made love to my wife! How could I doubt that he was an Inspector General?”

So this begs the question, when did the filmmakers recognize the changing meaning, and could they have been using it to imply scandal with a wink and nod to a younger audience? Seriously asking.

Technically Russell is the star, but Monroe steals the show. If you remember a single song from the film, it’s hers. And you just can’t take your eyes off of her. The studio hired a coach to adjust the sexiness of the actresses' movements: tone Jane’s upward and Marilyn’s downward. They didn’t do enough because next to Marilyn, pretty Jane looked almost manly. Marilyn may have been the Blonde that Gentlemen Prefer, but she was paid $500 a week compared to Jane’s $150,000 total. So, who's the gold digger now?

The film’s message seems to be that it's fine for pretty women to play dumb and use rich men for their money. Of course I may be reading too much into this piece of fluff. Its 1953 and Howard Hawks was no feminist, after all. It was amusing enough with maybe a few too many songs. Not my kind of film but a worthwhile watch. AMRU 3.

The Asphalt Jungle (1950)

A big time operator (Sam Jaffe) is released from prison and has a plan for a big score. He seeks out a money guy to finance the heist to hire a box man (safe cracker), a driver (James Whitmore), and a thug (Sterling Hayden).

Our money guy (Louis Calhern) has been in a fair number of decent movies. I’m sure our paths will cross again. He was also in a Jungle of the Blackboard variety. Here, his piece on the side is a cusp of famous Marilyn Monroe. She was quite good in the small role.

Even outside the presence of Sterling Hayden, this film bears a strong resemblance to The Killing. Big, complex heist, recruitment of people, complications and double-crossing, then things fall apart. That’s not a spoiler. Bad guys didn’t get away in the 50’s. Between the two, I prefer The Killing. The heist itself was more interesting and I like Hayden in the Boss role. Here he was a hooligan on the spectrum. Jean Hagen (Singin’ in the Rain) played his Doll.

Modern life once again has crept into this historical document. In the interest of law and order, the police chief advocates roughing up suspects and victims alike. When a cop is discovered to be a ‘bad apple’, he monologues how cops, good and bad, are necessary to fight this existential threat that is crime. It was quite strident and very close to the zeitgeist of the day. This isn’t a commentary on the present situation. Law enforcement was extremely different in 1950 and a very complex topic. It was simply a thing that made me go “huh”.

Another theme was the creepy old man. The older Calhern shacking up with the hot Monroe ("young enough to be his granddaughter") is derisively viewed by the police. Another character stares creepily at a teenage girl while she dances. That was borderline uncomfortable. I looked it up. She was twenty during filming. We’re cool. I believe the point was to keep the audience from sympathizing with the criminals too much.

The Asphalt Jungle is an entertaining heist film. It is interesting how 50’s noir has a distinctly different feel than the earlier ones. They feel more grounded in the real world. John Huston’s Maltese Falcon is a landmark in the genre and very different in tone. He would deconstruct the genre, with dubious success, three years later with Beat the Devil, and appear in, but not direct, a landmark of neo-noir with Chinatown. AMRU 4.

Niagara (1953)

A young couple on honeymoon at Niagara Falls meets up with another couple with problems. George (Joseph Cotten) is a troubled veteran married to Rose, a much younger Marilyn Monroe type (Marilyn Monroe). They have a couple blow-outs that bring Polly and Ray into their situation. It soon becomes clear that secrets are being kept.

Tagged Film-Noir, it is slightly outside the genre (vibrant color, American director). But it checks enough boxes so I’ll allow it. Marilyn’s character is perhaps the most complex of her career with lines way longer than “It’s me, Sugar!”, and she does well with them. Not academy award nominee level, but a step above her regular. Forty eight year old Cotten looked ridiculous next to peak Marilyn hotness but that was the point. I expected to read how he buffed-down for this part.

Speaking if Marilyn, this was her first color film and her first starring role. She would go on to make Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and How to Marry a Millionaire the same year banking a fortune for Twentieth Century Fox, but because she was contracted as a stock actress, she would earn less then her makeup man.

Our lead is pretty Polly (Jean Peters). Not the flashy beauty of Marilyn, but perhaps prettier. Also a solid actress, she likely would have had a long career had she not married Howard Hughes. She had a late TV revival after the divorce. This film would have been shorter had the people listened to her instead assume she was just a hysterical woman. Men, am I right?

There is a lot going on here and any more detail would be in spoiler territory. Niagara is an excellent thriller that keeps you guessing. It is visually stunning with a very 50’s look and feel but the film-noir elements are still intact. Suffice to say that this is a thrilling, complex film with great performances. It, the falls, and Marilyn in the shower all look great. It's a real treat. AMRU 4.

Monkey Business (1952)

Absent minded professor Barnaby (Cary Grant) is working on an elixir of youth. He thinks he solves the problem but in reality a chimp (or “monkey”) had escaped its cage, mixed up the concoction, and put it into the water cooler. Hilarity ensues.

I have to give him credit. The 48 year old Grant was more believable as the college aged wildling than as the stodgy old scientist. But screen wife Edwina (Ginger Rogers) was downright convincing (and charming) in both roles. Hugh Marlowe of All About Eve and Day the Earth Stood Still fame gets another paycheck. Marilyn Monroe played the Marilyn Monroe character.

Don’t confuse this with 1931 Marx Brothers vehicle. I liked this one slightly better probably because it's a more conventional screwball comedy but fans of the Bros will disagree. It was pointlessly zany and holds your interest, but don’t look for any classic bits. It is what it is and that’s fine. AMRU 3.5.

The Seven Year Itch (1955)

In the summer, wives and children of the well to do escape the Manhattan heat for lakeside paradises, leaving husbands and fathers behind to behave like unsupervised delinquents. Richard Sherman (Tom Ewell) wants to be good, yes he does, but, you see, this hot blond (Marilyn Monroe) just moved upstairs, and you know …

Originally a play, the story revolved around a man’s affair when the wife is away. No, actual affairs just won’t do, says the Hays office. Instead of feeling guilty for having an affair, good old Sherman has to feel guilty about WANTING to have an affair. So Ewell plays the aging, dorky, ladies-man-wanna-be to Monroe’s ditzy sexpot confused why men react strangely to her baby-doll act. We, the audience, grin and pretend to be wiser.

For reasons that escape me, now that I’ve seen the film, I don't understand how Marilyn’s subway skirt scene became so iconic. It is shorter and less sexy than I expected, and, well that’s all I have to say about that. Hey, look! It’s Carolyn Jones, again in a tiny role. She played Morticia …. nevermind.

The production code turned a very provocative stage play into a somewhat confounding film. Billy Wilder and George Axelrod did their level best to create a viable comedy out of a redacted screenplay, but the end result is only mildly amusing and eminently dated. Compare this to Irma la Douce made seven years later also by Wilder (and originally was to star Monroe) after standards were loosened quite a bit. Neither were fantastic films, but Irma at least had sex appeal. In a very giggling-twelve-year-old sort of way, but still. I would be curious what a faithful adaptation would look like.

The Seven Year Itch isn't uninteresting, but it is somewhat strange (Sherman has fantasy conversations and narrates his own life). There is humor, but nothing to evoke an actual laugh. AMRU 3.

“Miss Morris, I'm perfectly capable of fixing my own breakfast. As a matter of fact, I had a peanut butter sandwich and two whiskey sours.”

How to Marry a Millionaire (1953)

Three hot gold diggers (Lauren Bacall, Marilyn Monroe, and Betty Grable) set themselves up in a fancy Manhattan apartment intent on catching a rich man to becoming their trophy wives. Hilarity ensues.

They scam their way into an apartment, try to snare rich men, end up falling in love. Do they find true love? Will they learn valuable lessons in the process? Who cares. Marilyn was hot.

After the low quality schlock I've been seeing lately, I was longing for some high quality schlock. Total Hollywood bauble production value. This fits the bill. Big names, clever dialog, great sets. Kinda throw-away story, but fun. AMRU 3.5, now lets get on with the Grable.

Heard of her. My son (WWII obsessed) knew her name. Didn't know anything about her. Here, she was getting a little long in the tooth (mid-thirties) but still appealing. She showed off her legs once or twice, for what that's worth. She was, however, the most forgettable of the three ladies. Lauren, playing the older, wizened leader of the group, was the central character. It's her game we revolve around. It's her who woos big star William Powell. Being the best actress of the group (by more than a length) this makes sense. Young starlet Monroe, however, totally charmed. Nobody played hot, stupid, and blond like her.

So, what we have here is Hollywood doing well what Hollywood does well. If this kind of movie appeals to you, then this movie will appeal to you. It does to me, in certain doses.

"We'd better put a check on that one. Nobody's mother lives in Atlantic City on Saturday."

Some Like it Hot (1959)

Joe and Jerry (Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon) are down on their luck musicians. The only job offered is for an all girls band in Florida. When they become witness to the Valentine's Day massacre, they decide to borrow some dresses and take that gig.

So, on the train they go with a bunch of women trying hard not to stand out. There they meet troubled hottie Sugar Kane, played by troubled hottie Marilyn Monroe. George Raft played a gangster, like in that other movie that featured the Valentine's Day massacre.

Anyhow, they get in and out of trouble, meet strange and interesting people, and find true love, of a sort. Curtis and Lemmon were great, the dialog was crisp, and the hottie was hot. Way to camouflage a pregnancy, Marilyn. She'd be dead in three years.

Monroe, I understand, was an utter train wreck on the set. Always late, couldn't remember her lines, difficult to the end. She wasn't invited to the wrap party. Billy Wilder hated her, though used her notoriety for his own gain. He considered Mitzi Gaynor for the role.

Banned in Kansas and condemned by the Catholic Church, Some Like it Hot was a well written, well made, and wonderfully crafted movie. AMRU 4. By the way, the title refers to how they like their Jazz. Sugar liked it hot.

"Well, nobody's perfect."