Apr. 14 … “The
Woman in the Window” (1944), a
wonderfully entertaining “film noir” by master
director Fritz Lang, is a curiosity, defying all of
our expectations as a viewer and basically
subverting the “noir” genre barely before it had
gotten started. The dark shadows, the femme fatale,
the hardboiled detectives, the murder - all the
elements are in place for a typical outing, but when
all is said and done, look back at the motivations,
the events, even the “femme”, and what we have is
not a world of evil (the typical “noir” stance) but
a world of innocence darkened by a few petty thugs.
Like the more obviously subversive (and equally
wonderful) “Kiss Me Deadly” fifteen years later,
“The Woman in the Window” seems to say that evil
only lives when people look hard enough for it -
practically a “film noir” rebuttal. As in “M” and
“Fury,” Lang (a refugee from the Nazi regime) once
again examines issues of social evil in ways more
complex than any of his contemporaries. Enjoy “The
Woman in the Window.” The cast is impeccable, the
writing a delight, the direction peerless, the music
score years ahead of its time. A small feast.
Apr. 21 … In “One
Touch of Venus” (1948), Robert Walker
gives a flawless comedic performance as a department
store window dresser who kisses a statue of Venus
which then comes to life. A wonderfully written,
intelligent script, the most beautiful love song
(Speak Low) written by Bertolt Brecht as its theme
music, a supporting cast that boasts one of Eve
Arden’s most brilliant performances and ‘40’s
singing heartthrob Dick Haymes, as well as the most
glorious wardrobe for the 3 female leads, all add up
to an evening on Olympus. It is, however, Ava
Gardner who will captivate your heart, capture your
soul, and make you believe in magic. It really is a
once in a lifetime performance - her look, her vocal
inflection, and her miraculous stance and walk will
convince you that she IS the Goddess of Love. A
classic beauty.
Apr. 28 …
Although a few “prestige” actresses (Bette Davis
among them) continued to play “vixen” roles, during
WWII most of Hollywood’s leading ladies were
presented as the sort of woman a soldier could dream
about: whether bouncy like Betty Hutton or glamorous
like Joan Crawford, they were good-hearted,
dependable, and waiting for the boys to come home.
Then in 1945 one of Hollywood’s most beautiful
leading ladies played a role that undercut the girl
next door with an ax, and after that nothing would
be quite the same.
Seen within the
context of its times, it is easy to understand why “Leave
Her To Heaven” (1945) was one of the
great shockers of its day. Based on a popular novel
by Ben Ames Williams, the film tells the story of
Ellen Berent, a woman who seems absolutely flawless
in every way imaginable: she is beautiful,
intelligent, and of good social background. But she
is also a psychopath who marries novelist Richard
Harland (Cornel Wilde) because he looks a bit like
her dead father, to whom she had an obsessive
attachment - and once married she determines to have
him completely to herself, even if that means
destroying anyone with the slightest claim on his
affections.
May 5 … “Top
Hat” (1935) has everything to make a
perfect musical - great leading stars in Astaire and
Rogers, good character support from Edward Everett
Horton, Helen Broderick, and Eric Blore, fabulous
numbers (Top Hat, White Tie and Tails, Isn’t it a
Lovely Day, The Picolina, and Cheek to Cheek), an
hilarious plot of mistaken identity, and
breathtaking designs which transport you into a
Hollywood fantasy of Venice. This was the stars’
greatest teaming and the film packs a great deal of
energy, fun, and sex all these years later. A true
musical classic and one of RKO’s finest.
May 12 … Most
American theater lovers think that greatness
descended upon Arthur Miller in 1947 with his great
play The Death Of A Salesman. It certainly is the
play that people remember above all his work, even
such later classics as The Crucible and A View From
The Bridge. But as a matter of fact, just like The
Glass Menagerie preceded Tennessee Williams’ A
Streetcar Named Desire, “All
My Sons” (1948) preceded The Death
Of A Salesman.
If Williams found a
tragic poetry in the soul of his fallen aristocratic
characters - his Amanda Wingfields and Blanche
Dubois - Miller found a mine of power in the
failures of the American cult of business success.
In Salesman it is Willy Loman’s gradual realization
that a lifetime of hard struggle and strife serving
his company did not result in his being shown any
respect when he can no longer bring in any large
business. In All My Sons, Joe Keller (Edward G.
Robinson) is not a small peg in the economy like
Willy Loman. He is the owner of a factory - on his
way to being a millionaire which (in 1948) is the
proof of success in America. But while Willy Loman
has a dirty secret that cost him his son’s respect
for him as a father, Keller has a dirty secret that
makes him a criminal.
May 19 … “The
Good Fairy” (1935) may well deserve
the title of Best Kept Secret of the ‘30s; it’s a
delight in every department yet somehow remains all
but unknown, even among film buffs. Based on a play
by Hungarian playwright Ferenc Molnár, whose play
Liliom was the basis for the Broadway musical,
Carousel, The Good Fairy is funny and warm, full of
richly detailed, eccentric characters brought to
life by an ensemble of terrific character actors.
The direction, scenic design, and cinematography are
all first-rate products of the Hollywood studio
system in its prime, but despite the uniformly high
level of craftsmanship on display here, most of the
credit for this gem rightfully belongs to Preston
Sturges for his screenplay. Sturges was forced to
make changes in Molnár’s story in order to
accommodate the standards of the newly powerful Hays
Office, but in so doing he managed to create an
adaptation with a special loopy charm all its own,
and one that deserves a place alongside his more
characteristic masterworks of the ‘40s. Considering
the increased interest in Sturges’ work in recent
years and the vast elevation of his standing in the
Hollywood Pantheon, it’s all the more surprising
that this film remains so obscure.
May 26 … In “The
Moon and Sixpence” (1942), a simple
but effective treatment of an extraordinary story,
George Sanders, as the Gauguin-like painter Charles
Strickland, actually does a bit more than play his
‘typical cad’, but relishes his character’s poking
fun at a hypocritical society, and shows real
passion in describing to the Maugham-like figure
(Herbert Marshall) exactly why he leaves his
ordinary London existence. We absolutely believe him
when he insists “I HAVE to paint”. Wisely, the
director doesn’t let us see any of Strickland’s
canvases, and we are only limited by our own
imaginations as to how powerful they must be. The
only exception comes at the end, and without
spoiling anything, I believe that it’s handled
extremely well. Other performances are a delight,
particularly in the entertaining vignettes of
turn-of-the-century Tahitian life.
Jun. 2 … “An
American in Paris” (1951) was in many
ways the ultimate mixture of art and Hollywood
musical. Made at the height of MGM’s powers as a
musical powerhouse, the film features memorable
music from the Gershwins. Gene Kelly was also at the
height of his powers in this film, and the rest of
the cast is uniformly excellent. Leslie Caron,
incredibly making her film debut, shows a maturity
that makes you think she’d been making films for
years. Her introductory dance sequence, and later
her work in the Ballet, provides some surprisingly
sexy moments. Oscar Levant is hilarious as Kelly’s
stoic pal, who gets two of the film’s best moments,
including one of the film’s most memorable musical
numbers coupling his incredible piano skills with
state-of-the-art special effects. An American in
Paris rightly ranks alongside the best of
Hollywood’s musicals, and it remains a testament to
Gene Kelly’s skills as one of the greatest dancers
of all time.
Jun. 9 … An
excellent script, unobtrusive direction, superb
performances, and a wonderfully noir-ish atmosphere
are some of the ingredients that make “House
of Strangers” (1949) a memorable
viewing experience. In one of his best performances
Edward G. Robinson plays Italian banker Gino Monetti,
who has managed to raise a pack of deceitful sons.
It is ‘King Lear’ with a modern urban setting.
Robinson’s powerful screen presence dominates the
film but Richard Conte is excellent as one of
Robinson’s sons. Susan Hayward plays a fascinating
‘dame’ - an independent-minded woman with a carefree
lifestyle. It is refreshing to see this kind of
character in an older movie. Hayward and Conte have
a wonderful chemistry and their sassy dialog
anticipates the wonderful repartees in Mankiewicz’
“All About Eve”. Milton R. Krasner’s b/w
cinematography is a plus. It is a smart,
unpredictable and totally engrossing film;
definitely one of Mankiewicz’ best.
Jun. 16 … “Waterloo
Bridge” (1940) is one of those rare
films that never seems to strike a false note nor
put a foot wrong. There is not a wasted moment in
the screenplay - every shot has meaning, every scene
plays its part, and the dialog gains its power
through the lightest of touches. Yet for a film that
centres around wartime separation and hardship in an
era where unemployment could mean literal
starvation, it contains perhaps more scenes of
unalloyed happiness than any modern-day romance. The
script is understated, sparkling with laughter, and
even at its darkest, salted with black jest, while
no-one can doubt the central couple’s joy in each
other. They themselves acknowledge, and repeatedly,
the sheer implausibility of their romance: but war
changes all the rules, makes people - as Roy says -
more intensely alive.
Waterloo Bridge has a
touch of everything: laughter, tears, tension,
misunderstanding, sweetness, beauty and fate. It
could not be made in today’s Hollywood without
acquiring an unbearable dose of schmaltz; in the era
of ‘Pretty Woman’ it probably couldn’t be made at
all.
Jun. 23 … “That
Hamilton Woman” (1941) deals with the
relationship between England’s greatest naval hero,
Lord Horatio Nelson, and his mistress, Emma Lady
Hamilton. In command of the Mediterranean Fleet in
1797 – 98, Nelson frequently docked in the allied
Kingdom of Naples. The royal family was advised
closely by Sir William Hamilton, the British
Ambassador there. Sir William and his wife Emma held
a miniature court, advising the locals and meeting
celebrities. Emma Hamilton was a very beautiful
woman, and Sir William married her because of that -
her background was not great (one of her best jobs
was working for a quack doctor in London). Emma met
Nelson, and the two fell in love. Hamilton was aware
of this, but as it was England’s greatest hero he
winked at his wife’s new lover. This film is a rare
one. It is one of the few made by Olivier and his
wife Vivien Leigh. Both give good account of
themselves as the lovers, although their
relationship was a bit more boisterous than this
account makes it. Gladys Cooper is splendid as
Nelson’s wronged wife confronting Leigh, and Alan
Mowbray gives a very moving performance as Emma’s
husband, Sir William Hamilton.
Jun. 30 … When
an unexploded bomb goes up in a street in the London
area of Pimlico, it exposes a cave containing
goblets, gold, art and other valuable artifacts. The
gold is immediately claimed by the crown, but expert
Professor Hatton-Jones comes forward with a royal
charter that proves the area is legally Burgundy.
With their newfound independence, the residents
scrap rationing and opening hours and adopt an
altogether more continental lifestyle. However,
Whitehall cuts them off, leaving Pimlico overrun by
undesirables seeking refuge from England’s laws.
Things get harder as the political tensions between
the two ‘countries’ increase. In true Ealing
fashion, “Passport
to Pimlico” (1949) is a gently comic
satire on the British way of rule. In Pimlico, the
residents are fast to turn their back on England in
favor of a life outside of rationing and rules.
Needless to say things don’t go quite as they
planned, and the more fanciful it becomes the more
whimsical it feels - it never gets silly because the
tone is so well pitched throughout to avoid it being
daft at any point. Overall this is an enjoyable
little film that has digs at the British government
and way of life but ultimately acknowledges England
as the best place to be - for all its rain, low
temperatures and taxation, it’s better than going it
alone! A witty little film that will please any
audience that is in the mood for a bit of Ealing
whimsy (and who isn’t?).
Movies in Skidompha Classic Film Series Available at
the Library
Frustrated that you could not attend
Skidompha Library’s Monday Classic Film Series
showings? No need to be. If you missed one of
your favorites, and if you are a resident of
Damariscotta, Newcastle and Nobleboro, you can check
out the DVDs or videotape movies simply by
presenting your free Library card at the front
desk. All previously shown films are in Skidompha’s
collection. Films such as Charlie Chaplin’s “The
Gold Rush”, Harold Lloyd’s “The Kid Brother”, Jean
Gabin and Erich Von Stroeheim’s “The Grand
Illusion”, Lew Ayres’ “All Quiet on the Western
Front”, and Alec Guinness’ “The Ladykillers” and
“The Captain’s Paradise”, and many more from the
past few years are available for checkout.
Residents of other towns can join
Skidompha for an annual fee of $40, and use these
cards to check out books, audio and video tapes and
DVDs as well as classic film DVDs and tapes.
SKIDOMPHA
Public
Library