Meet John Doe.

Review #1356: Meet John Doe.

Cast: 
Gary Cooper (John Doe/Long John Willoughby), Barbara Stanwyck (Ann Mitchell), Edward Arnold (D.B. Norton), Walter Brennan (The Colonel), Spring Byington (Mrs. Mitchell), James Gleason (Henry Connell), Gene Lockhart (Mayor Lovett), Rod La Rocque (Ted Sheldon), Irving Bacon ("Beanie"), Regis Toomey (Bert), and J. Farrell MacDonald ("Sourpuss") Directed by Frank Capra (#102 - Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, #319 - It's a Wonderful Life and #456 - It Happened One Night)

Review: 
Frank Capra was a director of tremendous skill who came out of the rags to make great memorable entertainment in the 1930s and 1940s. He had emigrated from Italy with his family at the age of five to America, eventually ending up in Los Angeles. By the time he was 25, he had done a variety of jobs before and after graduating college, ranging from selling newspapers to working at the laundry facility at the California Institute of Technology (where he graduated from in chemical engineering). He would serve in both World Wars, serving as a teacher of mathematics to artillerymen in the former and as a director for war information documentaries (Why We Fight) in the latter. He found his way to films in gagwriting and luck. He directed his first film with independent Fireside Productions in 1922 with Fultah Fisher's Boarding House, getting the job by touting his experience with film (which was scant) but it proved effective. He also wrote gags for the Our Gang series alongside scripts for comedian Harry Langdon, which led to his feature film debut with The Strong Man (1926). After one more film with Langdon, he was fired by the comedian. He eventually found himself with newly named Columbia Pictures, which at the time was a start-up studio in minor status compared to the big icons that had their own facilities and distribution. From 1928 to 1939, he made 25 features for the company, including numerous classics such as Lady for a Day (1933) and Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936) among others, winning Best Director at the Academy Awards three times in a period of four years. This film was one of two films that he did with Warner Bros (the other being Arsenic and Old Lace) along with the last before America entered World War II. The screenplay was done by Robert Riskin (his tenth and last collaboration with Capra) with story from Robert Presnell that was adapted from Richard Connell's A Reputation, a 1922 story originally published in Century Magazine.

Of course who better to headline the film than Cooper and Stanwyck, both veteran actors who had previous experience with Capra that would have decades-long careers of success. They both prove important to the film's success in material that is dark but still relevant in its message about the everyman and creeping corporate influence when dealing with hope. Cooper makes it worth his while as a folksy everyman, rising to the occasion through gradual evolution from anonymous tramp to club-creating philosopher. Stanwyck proves just as well, ambitious but warm to follow along with in her zealous energy. Arnold proves a conniving clever presence, and Brennan proves a worthy tramp foil for Cooper alongside Byington for Stanwyck. Gleason makes a worthy hard-driving role, particularly in one scene where he reveals a deception about to take place to our star while espousing about the good done by him (including unwittingly creating a grassroot movement) to folks that need it. Lockhart and the rest prove just as worthy with filling the details for the film to make its statements without needless aspects for a diverting 122 minutes. The ending is certainly an interesting one. There were numerous ideas shot or edited that found their way into previews, owing in part because Capra hadn't had a clear idea of how it should end when production began. All of them revolved around the exposing the truth of John Doe (done at a convention), with one ending directing ending on the convention scene with his disgrace. Another apparently ended up with him committing suicide, while others involved him being saved or the reforming of Arnold's character. A comment from a preview led to a fifth and eventual ending, where some of the club members show up to express their still-present belief in him and the club (along with a statement by Stanwyck's character about how another "John Doe" already gave himself up for humanity). The film holds itself together without too many troubles, making its point about media and hope without becoming sanctimonious or overly cynical. It's a fair comedy-drama, balancing its way through with enough competency worth a viewing alongside other Capra movies. In fact, it is an easy one to do because of its public domain status (occurring due to a failure in copyright renewal). For each of its main talents at stars and director, it's a good one to go with for curiosity and perhaps some subsequent discussion afterwards.

Overall, I give it 9 out of 10 stars.

His Girl Friday.

Review #1352: His Girl Friday.

Cast: 
Cary Grant (Walter Burns), Rosalind Russell (Hildy Johnson), Ralph Bellamy (Bruce Baldwin), Gene Lockhart (Sheriff Hartwell), Porter Hall (Murphy), Ernest Truex (Bensinger), Cliff Edwards (Endicott), Clarence Kolb (the Mayor), Roscoe Karns (McCue), Frank Jenks (Wilson), Regis Toomey (Sanders), Abner Biberman (Louie), Frank Orth (Duffy), and John Qualen (Earl Williams) Directed by Howard Hawks (#951 - The Big Sleep)

Review: 
Everybody needs a remake now and then. Or, at the very least, an adaptation of material that strives to improve what had been done before without seeming like a complete cash-grab or unnecessary. In other words, it makes sense to have someone like Howard Hawks at the helm of directing an adaptation of The Front Page, which had been adapted nine years prior. It was a chance meeting with cinematographer and future director Victor Fleming (while racing on vacation) that helped him get his first film job in 1917, serving as a prop boy for In Again, Out Again. After serving in World War I (serving in the US Army Air Service), he returned to Hollywood. Over the next few years, he gradually moved from producer on short films to production editing before his eventual directorial debut with The Road to Glory (1926) for Fox Film. He worked with that studio for three years with marginal success, but over the next four decades he worked as an independent producer-director, with The Dawn Patrol (1930) helping in his transition from silent to sound. He directed in various genres, ranging from romance to comedy to westerns to noir to action. Although he received just one nomination for Best Director, he received an Academy Honorary Award in 1974, three years before his death at 81. Hawks aspired to make a fast-paced adaptation, utilizing multiple microphones (which needed to be turned on and off by the sound technician for scenes, which could be done as much as 35 times) and even using a sound mixer to try and speed up the dialogue to be faster than The Front Page. Hawks encouraged his actors to be spontaneous, with improvisation in the lines serving to help in having the film run a few days over schedule. The main difference between the two films is the character of Hildy being played by a woman, with Hawks being inspired by the actor auditions (or more specifically, someone reading lines belonging to a character) and how his female secretary was saying the lines. Charles Lederer (co-writer of the previous adaptation) was brought in to write this film, which would keep some of the dialogue from before. In any case, this is a wonderful movie, having plenty of charming moments within a quick 92 minute pace that lives to its potential through a solid duo in Grant and Russell. Whether bantering with each other or with others, each does their part in generating amusement while following most of the beats from before without seeming old-hat or too familiar. Grant can be quite conniving with charm, and Russell (who was quite talented in both comedic and dramatic roles) holds up with her own energy, with her even hiring an ad-writer to give her more clever lines, which only Grant seemed to notice. Bellamy holds up just as well with being the straight man to these quirky folks, while Lockhart and Kolb make for a crooked pair of chuckles. The others provide a chuckle or two, with nobody seeming too out-of-place in the long run. It's a charming movie, one that runs fast to please and joke around with through some clever work by Hawks and his cast that makes this a worthy comedy to sit through (perhaps more than once). After all, the film lapsed into the public domain, so one can view it any-time they please without trouble, so there really is no reason to avoid this movie and have your curiosity rewarded. A solid remake that improves on the original - no question there.

Next Review: Sonic the Hedgehog.

Overall, I give it 9 out of 10 stars.

Algiers.

Review #1348: Algiers.

Cast: 
Charles Boyer (Pepe le Moko), Sigrid Gurie (Ines), Hedy Lamarr (Gaby), Joseph Calleia (Inspector Slimane), Alan Hale (Grandpere), Gene Lockhart (Regis), Walter Kingsford (Chief Inspector Louvain), Paul Harvey (Commissioner Janvier), Stanley Fields (Carlos), and Johnny Downs (Pierrot) Directed by John Cromwell (#1008 - The Racket and #1341 - Of Human Bondage)

Review: 
It should only figure that some films come from doing it over again for a different audience. As much as one can bemoan the shrinking originality of doing the same source material numerous times (then and now), interest does tend to rise a bit when it comes to how a remake fares in a different country. In this sense, Algiers is a remake of Pépé le Moko (1937), a French film based on the novel of the same name by Henri La Barthe, featuring Jean Gabin as star and Julien Duvivier as director (there also was a musical remake with Casbah in 1948). Of note is the American debut of Sigrid Gurie (who was born in New York but had grown up primarily in Norway) and Hedy Lamarr, who had made appearances in five films (all but one being from either her native Austria or Germany) from 1930 to 1933, with an encounter of Louis B. Mayer scouting for European talent helping to lead her to a Hollywood career, with Walter Wanger serving as producer for this feature. Another emigrant serving as star for this film was Boyer, who had started his career in his native France in 1920 before making a move to do Hollywood films alongside his French films in 1930. He soon gained a reputation as a leading man for romantic dramas, with his work being recognized through four Best Actor nominations (including one for this film) before his last film in 1976. The remake would keep certain aspects of the original, most notably with a majority of the music alongside background sequences (at least ones that weren't shot in Algiers and later integrated later into the film by cinematographer James Wong Howe), although censor demands led to the ending being different (murder rather than suicide), along with other aspects. Boyer was not a big fan of his work on the film, since Cromwell wanted him to emulate Gabin (even running scenes from the original), which he disliked doing as an actor, although Cromwell later gave compliment to Boyer on how his performance had been different from each other in terms of nuance. He certainly does a fine job with this film, where one gets a sense of allure and curiosity from whenever he is on screen, a certain kind of confidence that resonates whenever on screen with someone like Lamarr or his on-screen cohorts. The romance that occurs within this triangle comes out with a bit of passion, although Cromwell felt that Lamarr's problem was that she could not act (stating that he could take some of the credit for making her acting passable, while sharing it with Boyer). She provides some exotic charm, a raw but expressive presence that does tend to benefit when on-screen with Boyer more than anyone (which I suppose isn't too surprising). Gurie pulls off an anguished side of this triangle neatly enough, not getting lost in the shuffle too much. Calleia makes for a decent adversary, while Hale provides a bit of wise levity alongside an effective sniveling Lockhart among the rest. The film moves at a fair pace with 99 minutes, although one does not really seem to sense too much suspense inside it. One gets a fair amount of fleeting pleasure, which should be enough for most. At least one can see why it served as one of the inspirations to be patterned for Casablanca (1942). It goes on the strengths of curiosity over its atmosphere and romance with agreeable results, and its free status in the public domain makes this a curiosity worth seeking out without any doubt.

Next Time: It won't be Love Affair, since an addition has been made to go right before that film to make for a 1939 trifecta to close out February's 30s tribute. That film will be Stagecoach.

Overall, I give it 7 out of 10 stars.

Movie Night: A Christmas Carol (1938).

Review #503: A Christmas Carol.

Cast
Reginald Owen (Ebenezer Scrooge), Gene Lockhart (Bob Cratchit), Kathleen Lockhart (Mrs. Cratchit), Terry Kilburn (Tiny Tim Cratchit), Barry MacKay (Fred), Lynne Carver (Bess), Bunny Beatty (Martha Cratchit), June Lockhart (Belinda Cratchit), John O'Day (Peter Cratchit), Leo G. Carroll (Marley's Ghost), Lionel Braham (Spirit of Christmas Present), Ann Rutherford (Spirit of Christmas Past), and D'Arcy Corrigan (Spirit of Christmas Future) Directed by Edwin L. Marin.

Review

Once again, I'm reviewing A Christmas Carol film (#075 - Scrooged, #076 - Scrooge (1951), #079 - A Christmas Carol (1984), #498 - The Muppet Christmas Carol), with actors like Bill Murray in a mediocre comedy, Allister Sim in a fine telling of the story, George C. Scott rather effectively playing Scrooge, to Michael Caine with Muppets. So with all of the other Christmas Carol films around, how is this? It's an okay film, but it feels really cut down. It lasts only about 70 minutes, it omits the part about Scrooge's past romance and Want and Ignorance are sorely missing, most likely due to wanting a family film, as I'm sure many families will enjoy the scene where Scrooge sees his own grave, truly a happy scene. The actors are fine though, Lockhart is okay, certainly a bright and energetic figure. While Reginald Owen isn't necessarily great, he does bring a presence that carries the film to a short, but mostly sweet finish line. Out of all the Christmas Carol films I've reviewed, this isn't the best one by any means, but if you want something short and mostly sweet, this is the one for you.

Overall, I give it 8 out of 10 stars.