Month: October 2021

At the end of a secret mission during World War II, black soldier James Edwards suddenly becomes paralyzed. He undergoes psychoanalysis to get to the root of his problem which has no physical explanation. It’s a quickly told story of one man’s experience dealing with racial prejudice in the Army and feeling like an outsider because of it. With a rather small cast, it often resembles a stage production, particularly during the actual psychoanalysis. There is an interesting camaraderie between Edwards and fellow soldier/longtime friend Lloyd Bridges, a relationship that epitomizes the difficulties James has experienced.  

Kay Francis is a hard-working magazine editor who falls in love with her new secretary, played by David Manners. Unfortunately she is married to a philandering playboy and Manners is engaged to Una Merkel. While not a terrible film, the plot is as thin as that and goes in all the expected directions as the two navigate their attraction to each other.

I wouldn’t have watched this, particularly so close to viewing the one from 1937, except it was included in the DVD set that I had borrowed and thought I’d see if it had anything to offer. I shouldn’t have bothered as it holds so close to the earlier version that it could be treated as a colorized copy, except the acting is not quite as good despite having a cast with the likes of Stewart Granger, Deborah Kerr, and Louis Calhern. James Mason is one bright spot, bringing extra villainy to the character of Rupert of Hentzau, but also is pale in comparison to Douglas Fairbanks Jr. from the other version.

Traveling salesman David Manners sweeps church organist Loretta Young off her feet when he visits her small town. After her adoptive parents chase her away with accusations of being the wrong type of woman, she follows Manners to New York where she discovers he is already engaged. George Brent completes the love triangle while Una Merkel fills in as the sassy best friend who shows her the ropes in the big city. The shoestring plot, which includes a hokey last-minute exonerating medical procedure, is all held up with Young’s acting. She manages to convey the whole range of emotions as a small town girl dealing with the highs and lows of young love and navigating the alien, big city filled with villains willing to take advantage of every angle.

Myrna Loy and William Powell start off married in this slapstick romp. When the planned celebrations for their fourth wedding anniversary get waylaid through a series of mishaps and misunderstandings, they find themselves on the verge of divorce, an outcome that Powell will do anything, including dressing in drag and trying to have himself committed, to prevent from happening. The chemistry between the two is near its highest in this, their eleventh film together. They are helped along the way by Jack Carson and Gail Patrick, both trying in their own ways to pull apart the couple.