THE TONTO KID

Rex Bell as the Tonto Kid

THE TONTO KID (1934). Director: Harry L. Fraser. 

Old Rance Cartwright (Joseph W. Girard of The Spider Returns), who owns a ranch, feels that his time is nearly up, and wants his lawyer, Creech (Theodore Lorch) to find his granddaughter, Edna May. and make her an heiress. Cartwright originally hoped to send his former employee, Skeets Slawson, aka the Tonto Kid (Rex Bell) -- whom he fired for insubordination --  to find the granddaughter, but Skeets has other plans. Creech discovers that the long-lost granddaughter may be dead, so with millions at stake he enlists a friend of hers, Nancy (Ruth Mix), to pose as her. Creech's plans take an even darker turn when he kidnaps the real Edna May (Barbara Roberts) with the help of confused Wesley (Buzz Barton). After saving Creech and Nancy from highway robbers, Skeets and Nancy form a bond, which may come in handy when Creech frames the Tonto Kid for murder. 

Rex Bell with Theodore Lorch

Rex Bell, the handsome husband of "It" girl Clara Bow, was a likable and charismatic western cowboy star. The Tonto Kid, although a mediocre flick, illustrates his considerable, rakish appeal. Skeets is no Roy Rogers -- he's a bit of a rapscallion and most people seem to think he's an actual criminal -- although he's ultimately on the side of the angels. Ruth Mix is the child of Tom Mix, and while no beauty, she isn't a bad actress. The Tonto Kid initially has an interesting premise, but then it goes in too many directions. There are a couple of exciting moments, however.  The ending, in which Skeets is sort of roped into a very sudden marriage without even a proposal, is funny and a little scary! Harry L. Fraser also directed The White Gorilla.

Verdict: Rex Bell is the only reason to watch this. **. 

ULYSSES (1954)

ULYSSES (aka Ulisse/1954). Director: Mario Camerini. 

"There's part of me that's always homesick for the unknown." 

Penelope (Silvana Mangano) rebuffs a horde of boorish suitors while she waits for Ulysses (Kirk Douglas) to come home to her, unaware that he has his hands full with bewitching sirens, the cyclops Polyphemus, and Circe, a temptress who has made herself look just like Penelope (also played by Mangano). Anthony Quinn is cast as the most bold and virile of Penelope's suitors. This is a fair-to-middling version of Homer's great epic, including many of the incidents of the story without being completely faithful to its source material. The special effects are definitely low-tech, but Douglas -- who looks great in his beard -- gives a fine performance, and Mangano and Quinn are also creditable. Ulysses manages to put the cyclops to sleep by giving him -- grape juice? (It takes some time for crushed grapes to turn into wine.)

Verdict: Not especially memorable as adventure or fantasy, but not devoid of interest. **1/2.

W.C. FIELDS: A BIOGRAPHY

W. C. FIELDS A biography. James Curtis. 2003; Alfred A. Knopf.

This is an excellent biography of the great comedian W. C. Fields, from his childhood to his early success as a juggler in vaudeville, to his early film performances, and on to his various successes (and failures) in motion pictures. Curtis describes how certain of Fields' life and career experiences later informed his film portrayals. The book also examines Fields' difficult relationships with his one wife and several mistresses, as well as with his two sons, one legitimate and one not. Curtis goes behind the scenes of such memorable films as The Bank Dick and The Old-Fashioned Way and relates the touchy working relationship between Fields and Mae West on My Little Chickadee. Curtis does a great job of getting across Fields' essentially lovable but often mercurial nature, which was exacerbated by his extreme alcoholism in later years. Sympathetic, incisive and well-researched, this is one superb biography.

Verdict: You'll want to rush out and see every one of Fields' movies! ****.

SLEEPING BEAUTY

SLEEPING BEAUTY (1959). Director: Clyde Geronimi. Walt Disney Studios.

In the 14th century the evil witch Maleficent (expertly voiced by Eleanor Audley) puts a spell on the baby princess Aurora that will have her prick her finger and die before her 16th birthday. Luckily some good fairies are able to alter the spell so that she will only go into a deep sleep, to be awakened by the kiss of a prince. Sleeping Beauty is not without its pleasures, but it isn't in the league of such Disney masterpieces as One Hundred and One Dalmatians and The Princess and the Frog. While the film's animation is fluid, the drawings are disappointing, although the movie comes alive in an exciting, well-directed climax where Prince Phillip hacks his way through a forest of thorns created by Maleficent, and then battles the woman herself after she transforms herself into a fire-breathing dragon. The lilting theme song is taken from the "Sleeping Beauty" ballet by Tchaikovsky. This movie may be made for children, but the all-important kissing scene seems to be over in two seconds flat!

Verdict: The definitive version of this fairy tale is yet to be made. **1/2.

THE MURDERERS' CLUB OF BROOKLYN

George Nader as Jerry Cotton

THE MURDERERS' CLUB OF BROOKLYN (aka Der Morderclub von Brooklyn/1967). Director: Werner Jacobs.

FBI agent Jerry Cotton (George Nader) and his partner Phil Decker (Heinz Weiss) take on a sinister group operating out of Brooklyn that extorts money from wealthy businessmen by threatening to murder their children. Some of these victims are indeed kidnapped and found dead. The businessmen -- Dyers (Karel Stepanek), Johnson (Helmuth Rudolph) and Cormick (Rudi Schmitt), as well as their sons Bryan Dyers (Helmut Fornbacher) and Burnie Johnson (Helmut Kircher) -- come under suspicion as well. The trail seems to lead to a Salvation Army outpost run by one Nash (Horst Michael Neutze). But the true mastermind behind it all might surprise even Jerry. 

Heinz Weiss with Nader

Murderers' Club is one of the most entertaining and well-made Jerry Cotton thrillers. At one point Phil is kidnapped and left to die in the back of a refrigerated truck, and at another point Jerry fakes his own death in an elevator to draw out the criminals. There's a splendid fight scene atop a speeding freight train. Peter Thomas' score is very effective and employs the annoying Jerry Cotton theme sparingly. Phil is given more to do in this installment than in others. Franziska Bronnen makes an impression as Jerry's efficient secretary, Susan, who even gets involved in the action during a car chase. 

Murderers' Club is the fifth in a series of eight West German films starring Nader as Cotton. The movies were based on a whole slew of German-language thrillers by various authors starring the NYC-based FBI agent. A more recent German movie entitled Jerry Cotton came out in 2010.

Verdict: Exciting and fast-paced West German thriller. ***. 

ROPE OF SAND

Burt Lancaster and Peter Lorre

ROPE OF SAND (1949). Director: William Dieterle. Colorized. 

Mike Davis (Burt Lancaster) is an African guide whose charge, Ingram (Hayden Rourke), goes off into forbidden diamond territory while he's sleeping. When Davis finds him, Ingram is near-death, clutching a load of diamonds. Davis leaves the diamonds and tries to get Ingram out of the desert. When police guards, led by Commandant Paul Vogel (Paul Henreid), come upon the pair, Ingram is dead and Davis is tortured, but refuses to tell where the diamonds are located. Two years later Davis is back in the territory, where diamond mogul Martingale (Claude Rains), who pretends to like Vogel but secretly despises him, decides to use a beautiful refuge, Suzanne (Corinne Calvet of Flight to Tangier), to get the location of the diamonds from Davis. A battle of wills ensues between Davis and Vogel as they fight it out for both diamonds and lady, with Martingale manipulating everyone behind the scenes and Toady (Peter Lorre) hoping to score as well. Meanwhile, Davis has decided to go for the gems come hell or highwater ... 

Claude Rains and Corinne Calvet

Rope of Sand is a seriously flawed film, but it is entertaining and well-acted enough to prove a good watch. There seems to be so much missing of the characters' back stories that while you're watching it you think it must be based on a long novel, not all of which made it onto the screen, but this is not the case. This was supposed to be a follow-up to Casablanca with Bogart and Bergman in the Lancaster and Calvet roles, but producer Hal Wallis had to be satisfied with three of the supporting cast of that film. John Bromfield (of The Big Bluff) has a smaller role as one of Henreid's officers. Dieterle's direction is assured, the performances -- especially Rains' -- are uniformly good, there is outstanding cinematography from Charles Lang [Wild is the Wind]  and an exciting score by Franz Waxman, but you may find it hard to tell if there's more -- or less -- here than meets the eye. Lancaster and Henreid have a nifty fist fight at one point. 

Verdict: Certainly it's not boring. ***.  

SERIOUS CHARGE

Andrew Ray, Sarah Churchill, Anthony Quayle

SERIOUS CHARGE (1959). Director: Terence Young. 

Reverend Howard Phillips (Anthony Quayle of Tarzan's Greatest Adventure) lives with his wise, feisty mother (Irene Browne) at the vicarage. Hester Peters (Sarah Churchill of Royal Wedding) is an aging spinster who is almost desperately in love with him. One of the parishioners, Mary (Leigh Madison of The Giant Behemoth), has been knocked up by juvenile delinquent Larry (Andrew Ray), who now wants nothing to do with her. Rejected by Howard, Hester has a bad reaction, especially when she sees Mary coming out of a back door of the vicarage. But just when you're thinking Howard will be accused of fathering Mary's child, the picture -- based on a play by Philip King -- pulls a neat twist: Larry accuses bachelor Howard of "interfering" with -- in other words, molesting -- him in the latter's study. Hester backs up Larry, and now Howard is subjected to a whole barrage of homophobic poison pen letters and more. But Mrs. Philips isn't going to take this lying down ... 

Quayle with Churchill

Thanks to a swift pace and some excellent performances, especially from Quayle, Serious Charge, despite some dated aspects, emerges a credible, entertaining and fairly frank British drama. The juvenile delinquents seem a little too much like the Hollywood version, and due to the casting of singer Cliff Richard, "introduced" in the movie, scenes of the kids dancing as if they were on a TV show look like very weird production numbers -- Richard even sings on more than one occasion. Fortunately, these scenes don't ruin the movie. Of all the things Larry -- played with marvelous sleaziness by Ray -- could have accused Howard of, what he chooses makes one wonder what put it into his mind in the first place. As for Howard's sexuality, this fifties film remains mum on that although Howard's mum seems convinced he only needs a good woman. Well ... This was an early film for director Young, most famous for Dr. No and Thunderball. Percy Herbert of Mysterious Island plays Larry's father. 

Verdict: Fine acting, a good script, makes this a worthwhile watch despite its flaws. ***.   

SADDLE ACES OF THE CINEMA

SADDLE ACES OF THE CINEMA. Buck Rainey. A. S. Barnes; 1980.

In this very interesting volume, Rainey looks back at the cowboy heroes of yesteryear, from the silent era to the mid-fifties when television took over from the B movie westerns that proliferated before the "boob tube" became ascendant. The book is much more interesting than I first imagined, because Rainey's prose is quite good and he unearths a lot of interesting information on these mostly forgotten movie stars. The names of Tom Mix and Gene Autry [The Phantom Empire]  and a couple of others may be familiar to the casual reader, and we've also got the likes of Ken Maynard, Hoot Gibson, Rex Bell, Harry Carey [The Vanishing Legion], Buck Jones, Jack Holt [Holt of the Secret Service] and others. Many of these gentlemen went on to successful careers as character actors in westerns, serials and other genres. The book is packed with black and white illustrations, a complete list of each actor's film credits, as well as lots of biographical information. If nothing else the book makes it clear how fleeting fame can be, but each man had many, many devoted fans in their day.

Verdict: For western fans and film enthusiasts. ***. 

THE RED CIRCLE

The mysterious "red circle" with Renate Ewert

THE RED CIRCLE (aka Der rote Kreis/1960). Director: Jurgen Roland.

A condemned man is saved from the guillotine because the executioner forgets to remove the nail that keeps the blade from descending. Sent to Devil's Island, he escapes and takes up residence in London as the hooded criminal mastermind the Red Circle (who resembles the Shadow). Chief Inspector Parr of Scotland Yard (Karl-Georg Saebisch) and bumbling assistant Haggett (Eddi Arent) are out to stop him as he makes his way through numerous victims including Lady Dorringham (Edith Mill) and Mr. Beardmore (Alfred Schlageter). The latter's handsome nephew, Jack Beardmore (Thomas Alder), is carrying on a romance with suspected jewel thief Thalia Drummond (Renate Ewert) and becomes a suspect along with several others. Meanwhile slick private eye Derrick Yale (Klausjurgen Wussow) does his best to help Inspector Parr, who is given a deadline to unmask the Red Circle or else. 

Thomas Alder, Karl-Georg Saebisch, Klausjurgen Wussow

The Red Circle is another adaptation of an Edgar Wallace story made in West Germany. It is one of the best examples of the genre. Suspenseful, fast-paced, well-acted, and exciting, it maintains suspense and has several surprises, including a couple of twists at the end. True, not everything is cleared up and the resolutions may confuse you, but the whole thing is so damn entertaining it doesn't really matter. Renate Ewert makes a wonderful impression as the irrepressible Thalia who keeps you guessing as to exactly whose side she's on. Tragically, both she and Thomas Alder committed suicide while in their early thirties. 

Verdict: Top-notch West German thriller or Krimi. ***.

ONE TOO MANY

Ruth Warrick contemplates her next drink

ONE TOO MANY (1950). Director: Erle C. Kenton.

Helen Mason (Ruth Warrick of Guest in the House) was once a well-known concert pianist who gave it up when she married reporter Bob (Richard Travis of The Man Who Came to Dinner) and had a daughter named Ginger (Ginger Prince). She has substituted booze for her career while Bob is what Dr. Phil would call an "enabler." Helen is convinced she is not an alcoholic and can get off the sauce without going to AA. But in this she is kidding herself. Helen and Bob find their lives spiraling out of control as Helen not only continues to drink but to drive drunk, endangering herself, her daughter, and everyone else on the road ... 

The Harmonaires pad out the running time

One Too Many probably has its heart in the right place although its polemical approach to the material is not as dramatic as intended. Much of the movie has Bob and others arguing that alcoholism is a disease that needs treatment and special hospital wings, dismissing the notion that all addicts are just weak-willed drunks of low character. Unfortunately these sequences turn the movie into a lecture that makes some good points but is not terribly entertaining. Strangely, the movie is padded with a long concert sequence at the end when the black group the Harmonaires do three numbers, and Warrick plays "The Minute Waltz" and a more contemporary number on the piano in a nightclub. 

An enabler? Richard Travis

Warrick gives a good performance in this although she's not the kind of riveting actress who can give an added bite to the picture a la Stanwyck or Crawford. Travis is, as usual, likable and pleasant and laid-back even when his world seems to be falling apart. William Tracy, who plays a photographer, is given a long, tedious sequence -- more padding -- as he waits outside the window in the maternity ward where his wife is having a baby. Ginger Prince is a talented child actress who can also sing and dance. Rhys Williams, Mary Young, Thurston Hall, and Victor Kilian are all good as Sully the bartender and his wife, newspaper publisher Simes, who hates drunks, and Emery, a mayoral candidate who gets caught in an inebriated state in a bar. Larry J. Blake is fine as Helen's old friend, bandleader Walt Williams. Erm Westmore appears briefly to give Warrick a makeover. Little did audiences of 1950 know that the scourge of drugs would almost replace alcoholism as a social ill. Erle C. Kenton also directed Why Men Leave Home, which also has Westmore and Prince in it and is even worse. From Hallmark. 

Verdict: A long commercial for AA -- a cocktail might help. **.