The Lady Vanishes.

Review #2014: The Lady Vanishes.

Cast: 

Margaret Lockwood (Iris Henderson), Michael Redgrave (Gilbert), Paul Lukas (Dr. Hartz), May Whitty (Miss Froy), Cecil Parker (Mr. Todhunter), Linden Travers ("Mrs." Todhunter), Naunton Wayne (Caldicott), Basil Radford (Charters), and Mary Clare (Baroness) Directed by Alfred Hitchcock (#219 - Rope, #223 - North by Northwest, #446 - Spellbound, #447 - Psycho, #450 - Vertigo, #455 - Rear Window, #553 - Strangers on a Train, #800 - Shadow of a Doubt, #910 - Notorious, #963 - The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog, #964 - The Ring (1927), #965 - Downhill, #970 - Mr. and Mrs. Smith, #977 - Frenzy, #1343 - The 39 Steps, #1739 - The Birds, and #1828 - Rebecca)

Review: 

Admittedly, I haven't covered many British films in the line of Alfred Hitchcock, but the man made a film in six different decades, so clearly there will be time yet to cover more of his films, especially when doing 18 of them isn't even covering half of his filmography. The Lady Vanishes is the penultimate film that Hitchcock made in his native England, as he would move to the States to direct in Hollywood after Jamaica Inn (1939). He had attracted attention with previous British classics such as The Man Who Knew Too Much (1934) and The 39 Steps (1935), and American producer David O. Selznick believed he had talent waiting in America. However, Hitchcock still had a contract to go through with Gainsborough Pictures (with this being the 12th and final film with the studio), and it just so happened that a film idea called "The Lost Lady" fell into his lap, as plans to do the film with Roy William Neill fell through when background filing in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia ended in embarrassment. The film is based on the novel The Wheel Spins by Ethel Lina White, with a screenplay by Sidney Gilliat and Frank Launder. The book has been adapted once more in film in 1979 (a Hammer production with Cybill Shepherd and Elliott Gould as stars) and it has been adapted to television (most recently as 2013 on BBC One) and radio. The nature of the book was shifted by Hitchcock and company, most notably with the climax, since the book did not have a gunfight resolution. There have also been thriller films released with premises that sound a bit similar to the one presented here, such as with So Long at the Fair (1950), about a suddenly missing hotel room and Flightplan (2005), which involved a missing daughter on a plane.

The patience one has with an innocent being thrust into peril will determine just how much of its exhilarating attempts at mystery thrills work for you, with most of it being set on a train filled with a few characters that have evident reasons to maintain the status quo no matter what. With a 97-minute runtime, it does a reasonable job with building the eventual confrontation that comes with trying to confront bold-faced statements without cheating. Lockwood makes a useful lead to follow with when it comes to a archetype familiar in a handful of Hitchcock films: an innocent thrust into a situation with little choice but to dig their way out. Granted, dealing with oddball hotel people that either won't shut up about cricket or music is pretty mundane when compared to missing old ladies, but I'm sure you get the picture of seeing how an ordinary person like her could get swept up in a sea of people being human in "decision-making"; Hitchcock once described her having a gift for both "expressing her beauty in terms of emotion" when it comes to camera shots and also the insight to get the feel of lines, and she became a prominent British star for several years. Redgrave was in his first film role after spending time in the theater, and he does pretty well here in general conviction for wavering belief when spent with Lockwood (whether the belief to mess with her or to be on her side). Lukas and his veteran presence makes a quality adversary in swift conviction that keeps the viewer occupied. Whitty makes a quality presence to serve as the title character, which goes over better when compared to Wayne and Radford, who actually played these "characters" (comedy relief) for a handful of other movies- eh, theyre okay. The funniest thing that happens is probably when one of the characters gets shot the hand when stumbling into a standoff. That, or the attempt at trying to get a "nun" away quietly.

Honestly, I wish I liked it more, but I suppose being a "good" film that just meets expectations is better than being a supposed great film that flounders if one expects way too much. The climax is when the film tries to play neat and tidy with resolving things in clever fashion, which does work out fine. As a whole, it certainly is a movie worth recommending for those quite familiar with the famed director Alfred Hitchcock, especially if one wants to see exactly where the line went from his British roots in directing to taking on Hollywood came with this particular film. You will find plenty to like if you are in the mood for it, and some have even called it one of his best films, so take that for what it is worth.

Overall, I give it 8 out of 10 stars.

Mrs. Miniver.

Review #1360: Mrs. Miniver.

Cast: 
Greer Garson (Kay Miniver), Walter Pidgeon (Clem Miniver), Teresa Wright (Carol Beldon), Dame May Whitty (Lady Beldon), Reginald Owen (Foley), Henry Travers (Mr. Ballard), Richard Ney (Vin Miniver), Henry Wilcoxon (The Vicar), Christopher Severn (Toby Miniver), Brenda Forbes (Gladys), and Clare Sandars (Judy Miniver) Directed by William Wyler (#509 - Roman Holiday and #1022 - Jezebel)

Review: 
War-time films could come in many genres, and 1942 is a prominent one to spotlight. After all, this film dominated the Academy Awards for its year, winning for Best Picture, Director, Actress, Supporting Actress, Screenplay, and Cinematography. The film is based on a series of newspapers columns for The Times by Jan Struther, which had started in 1937 (with a collection of those columns being published into a book in 1939) on an ordinary sort of woman with ordinary sort of life, with most of the essays being done before World War II was declared, and four writers were credited for adapting it to the screen: Arthur Wimperis, George Froeschel, James Hilton, and Claudine West. At the hand is a director with a prime like no other in William Wyler, who came from working at Universal Studios as a stage cleaner and mover to director of Western quickies in two years. In the next decade, he would hone his craft in a variety of genres from drama to comedy that would lead to plenty of notice with films such as Dodsworth (1936) and Wuthering Heights (1939). A noted perfectionist, he would generally insist on multiple re-takes, which proved to be worth it for several actors, directing 36 actors to Academy Award nominations and 14 to wins, both records. He directed films in six decades until his last with The Liberation of L.B. Jones (1970). Garson and Pidgeon make for a well-rounded bunch of leads (with this being the 2nd of eight collaborations, including a sequel with The Miniver Story eight years later), both having risen from stage to screen (the former in the 30s, the latter in the late 20s) to carry a movie that certainly rouses plenty of spirit and inspiration to make for a solid romance war drama, one wrapped in sentiment under propaganda that makes its mark most of the time.

It certainly rose plenty of spirits, with Winston Churchill once stating that it had done more for the war effort than a flotilla of destroyers, and Franklin D. Roosevelt had ordered the final speech (involving how this is a "war of the people", not just soldiers) broadcast over radio. That speech was written by Wilcoxin (the one who says the striking words) and Wyler the night before filming it. Regardless of its war elements, there is a tender touch to the film that manages to resonate in drama after nearly eight decades that can't be lost to time. It works with a 133 minute pace in holding its family aspects and the looming war together with patience and skill. Garson commands the screen with grace, a courage in the manner of the stiff upper-lip that resonates for her time on screen. Pidgeon does just as much in conveying charm with capable chemistry in the ways you would expect with Garson alongside other scenes when dealing with the war efforts. Wright makes her presence clear any time she is on screen, a vivid and ideal one in a weary-but-able world. A noted actress of the screen (along with her charity work during the first World War) before making her screen debut at 72 in 1935, Whitty strikes attention with no trouble at all, marked with discipline in her nerves in her moments on screen. The other members of the cast do just fine in rounding out the elements necessary to make for capable drama in perseverance. It is the kind of stuff that can drive emotions out for passion, for sacrifice and support that one can still identify with in some way in our trying times today, whether one resides in Europe or elsewhere. For the most part, the film knows where to go in making capable entertainment, and it rightfully endures as a fair gem for both its director and Metro Goldwyn Mayer.

Overall, I give it 9 out of 10 stars.