Category: 1940s

Posted on 2022-08-31 | No Comments |

Bernice Bobs Her Hair (1976)/Tulips Shall Grow (1942)

Adapted from a short story by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Shelley Duvall’s Bernice visits her more sophisticated relatives and is shunned for not being as socially adept as her beautiful cousin Veronica Cartwright. Duvall is delightful as Bernice going from an awkward city mouse to surpassing the lessons given by her snobby cousin. Reading a synopsis of the actual story, the script ignores Bernice’s mixed-race heritage which would give more poignancy to the ending, but the whole production is so entertaining that I’m wanting to check out more of these American Short Story collection films.

Equally delightful are the Puppetoons featured in Tulips Shall Grow. Obviously referencing the Nazis’ aggressive occupation campaign, a Dutch boy and girl fall in love in their idyllic tulip-filled countryside only to have their happiness destroyed by an invasion by the mechanical Screwballs. The aesthetics of George Pal’s Puppetoons are so my bag that I could watch this film repeatedly for days despite its depressing subject matter. It’s impressive that it’s able to distill the horrors of war in such a cute six and a half minutes.

Oscar Nomination: Best Short Subject, Cartoons (Tulips Shall Grow)

Posted on 2022-08-21 | No Comments |

Desert Fury (1947)

Having dropped out of yet another finishing school, Lizabeth Scott runs into gangster John Hodiak on her way back home. Despite her casino owning mother Mary Astor’s misgivings, she falls for the gangster despite various rumors swirling around him. The romance here, which is about the only plot available, is poorly sold with little reason given for its development or even for the disapproval from Scott’s family and friends other than Hodiak being a ‘bad’ guy. What really doesn’t help that relationship is the surprisingly, almost blatant same sex relationship between Hodiak and his partner-in-crime Wendell Corey. The two intimately share their work and home with Corey becoming possessively jealous as Lizabeth weasels her way in.

Posted on 2022-08-17 | No Comments |

The French Way (1945)

Parisian neighbors Micheline Presle and Georges Marchal have fallen in love but their parents’ long standing feud sits in the way of their long-term bliss. Enter cabaret star Josephine Baker and World War II with its necessary bomb shelter drills to bring the families together. A short and fluffy Romeo and Juliet tale, I really checked it out to see Baker in one of her film roles. She really lights up a screen, making everyone else, who are more than competent in their roles, dull in comparison.

Posted on 2022-08-17 | No Comments |

Pitfall (1948)

Bored and frustrated insurance investigator Dick Powell is tasked with recovering gifts given to Lizabeth Scott, the girlfriend of an embezzler serving time in jail. Discovering an attraction to Scott that brightens up his conventional life, he must contend with private investigator Raymond Burr who also has eyes for her. A fairly dull story with the actors mostly going through the motions with their performances, it gives a decent exploration of the middle class monotony in the post World War II years. The ending does not speak well of the treatment of the crimes depending on gender.

Posted on 2022-08-16 | No Comments |

Portrait of Jennie (1948)

Impoverished painter Joseph Cotten struggles to find heartfelt inspiration for his work until meeting young Jennifer Jones in Central Park. He’s fascinated by the mysterious girl who seems to come from another era and ages years in the short periods between their meetings. I hadn’t gone into this with too much expectation, but was delighted by the simple, time-bending love story. The romantic hints early in the relationship are somewhat off-putting but they at least remain chaste until the age difference is no longer pronounced. There’s a beauty in the artistic inspiration that the mysteries of Jennie provide for Cotten the artist.

Oscar Win: Best Effects, Special Effects

Oscar Nomination: Best Cinematography, Black-and-White

Posted on 2022-08-08 | No Comments |

Roger Youngson shorts (1949-1956)

Looking for some Oscar nominated short films, I ran across a handful directed by Youngson on youtube. Almost universally they are edited together bits of old film footage around a singular theme: Spills and Chills (1949, early daredevils), Cavalcade of Girls (1950, accomplishments of 20th century women), Blaze Busters (1950, firefighters), World of Kids (1950, cute kids), This Mechanical Age (1954, early aviation), Gadgets Galore (1955, early automobile driving), and I Never Forget a Face (1956, earliest footage of famous people). They’re relatively amusing and slightly educational, though watching them in sequence makes it obvious that the footage is often reused from film to film. Despite its obvious era-related sexism, my favorite of the group was the only unnominated one from the group, Cavalcade of Girls, as it offers more educational opportunities though I Never Forget a Face is interesting in noting the begins of celebrity film coverage.

Oscar Wins: Best Short Subject, One-reel (World of Kids; This Mechanical Age)

Oscar Nominations: Best Short Subject, One-reel (Spills and Chills; Blaze Busters; Gadgets Galore; I Never Forget a Face)

Posted on 2022-07-31 | No Comments |

Children of Paradise (1945)

In the theatrical world of Paris’s Boulevard du Crime, unattainable courtesan Arletty encounters and forms relationships with four men of vastly disparate backgrounds and demeanors. Notable for being filmed during the Nazi occupation of France, it’s an incredibly sweeping epic that somehow never feels like it’s overstaying its more than three hour runtime as it details the intrigues of the five characters’ entwined lives. In a role inspired by the famous mime Jean-Gaspard Deburau, Jean-Louis Barrault is beautifully melancholic, bearing witness to the virtues of mime as an art form in ways I never knew possible while also portraying the desperate heartbreak of a love that, even when unrequited, won’t die.

Oscar Nomination: Best Writing, Original Screenplay

Posted on 2022-07-28 | No Comments |

The Perils of Pauline (1947)

A seamstress in a sweatshop, Pearl White, portrayed here by Betty Hutton, discovers a change in careers when a set of circumstances leads her to starring in her own series of silent movies. A fairly standard biopic of the era, it focuses more on romance and songs than any adherence to reality. I’m not generally a fan of Hutton’s broad humor, but her fans will probably like her performance here. I’m fascinated about White’s history as a film pioneer, but that fascination isn’t to be fulfilled here.

Oscar Nomination: Best Music, Original Song

Posted on 2022-07-15 | No Comments |

My Favorite Blonde (1942)

With German operatives on her tail, secret agent Madeleine Carroll surreptitiously enlists the help of vaudeville performer Bob Hope to transport classified plans out of New York City. A riff on the type of films Hitchcock made during this era, it’s not as funny as I would have expected but not without its delights especially in its quick paced jaunt across the country using planes, trains, and automobiles. Hope’s penguin companion steals every scene he’s in as does Carl Switzer in his one scene as an unruly child.

Posted on 2022-07-14 | No Comments |

Star-Spangled Rhythm (1942)

Victor Moore led his son Eddie Bracken to believe that he is the head of Paramount Studios instead of a lowly security guard. When Eddie and his friends arrive in Hollywood on shore leave, Moore, with the help of ditzy switchboard operator/Eddie’s fiancé Betty Hutton, promises to put on a star spangled show for the troops. It’s a silly romp intended American spirits during World War II with as many stars that were available to show up for a minute or two. Veronica Lake even appears in the same shiny black fishing outfit she wore in This Gun for Hire . Some of the bits are cute though just as equally there are some that are dull or drawn out far too long.

Oscar Nominations: Best Music, Original Song; Best Music, Scoring of a Musical Picture