DAVID COPPERFIELD (1935)

Freddie Bartholomew and W. C. Fields

DAVID COPPERFIELD (aka The Personal History, Adventures, Experience, & Observation of David Copperfield the Younger/1935). Director: George Cukor.

"They seem rather obstinate oysters!" -- Aunt Betsey.

After his beloved mother's death, little David Copperfield (a wonderful Freddie Bartholomew) finds himself at the mercy of his hated stepfather, Murdstone (Basil Rathbone) and his equally loathsome sister (Violet Kemble Cooper), then sent off to work in a factory where he is befriended by the benevolent Micawber (W. C. Fields, pictured). Then the poor boy has to make his way on foot, penniless, to the home of his peppery Aunt Betsey (Edna May Oliver). The problem is that when David grows to manhood and is played by the relatively colorless Frank Lawton, he becomes a supporting character in his own story, which on the whole is full of too many characters that you just don't care about. For the most part, the acting is excellent, however, with Oliver and Rathbone as good as ever -- not to mention Jessie Ralph as nurse Peggotty -- and Roland Young making a striking Uriah Heep. Lewis Stone, Elsa Lanchester, Lionel Barrymore, Una O'Conner and others are lost in the episodic and sometimes dull picture, but Fields and Bartholomew make an engaging pair. Even at 130 minutes' running time there's simply too much plot crammed into the movie, and the second half is not nearly as good as the first. I generally like honest sentiment, but in David Copperfield the sentiment is often treacly, the characters' affection for one another bordering on the cloying. Everyone is just too "cutesy." However, the movie certainly has its admirers.

Verdict: Has its moments, but it's no Tale of Two Cities. **1/2.

TALES OF MANHATTAN

TALES OF MANHATTAN (1942). Director: Julien Duvuvier. 

This very entertaining film is a series of tales connected by a tailcoat that proves lucky or disastrous for whoever wears it, including an actor (Charles Boyer) who is in love with a married woman (Rita Hayworth); a man (Cesar Romero) who is about to get married and who has a jealous fiancee (Ginger Rogers) and a friend (Henry Fonda) who tries to help him; a musician (Charles Laughton) whose wife (Elsa Lanchester) gets him the tailcoat to wear on the night he conducts his symphony, to disastrous (and somewhat unlikely) results; and a down-on-his luck lawyer (Edward G. Robinson) who wears the coat to a reunion of his ivy league college buddies who have no idea of how far he's fallen. The final sequence stars Paul Robeson, Ethel Waters, and Eddie Anderson in a charming tale of poor folk (who are not exactly in Manhattan) who have to decide how to spend the money that falls out of the tailcoat. A brief but amusing sequence with W. C. Fields (appearing with Margaret Dumont!) lecturing society folk was cut out for the initial theatrical release, but has been wisely reinstated. The entire cast is good, with special honors going to Boyer, Robinson, and Fields. 

Verdict: Who knew a movie about a coat could be such fun? ***.

MURDER BY DEATH

Truman Capote

MURDER BY DEATH (aka Neil Simon's Murder By Death/1976). Director: Robert Moore.

"As a man you are barely passable, but as a woman you are a dog." -- Milo Perrier summing up the situation. 

A mysterious man invites variations of Sam Spade, Charlie Chan, Nick and Nora Charles, Miss Marple. and Hercule Poirot to his home where he challenges them to solve a murder that will occur at midnight. The host is played by Truman Capote, and the detectives by James Coco (Milo Perrier); Peter Sellers (Sidney Wang); Elsa Lanchester (Jessica Marbles); David Niven and Maggie Smith (Dick and Dora Charleston); and Peter Falk (Sam Diamond). If there's one problem with this rather cute movie is that it's a complete farce, with no real plot (just a premise) and nothing much to hang the jokes on. As for the jokes, for every one that garners a laugh there's two that land with a thud. However, the performances are all wonderful, and there's expert support from Estelle Winwood (Miss Marbel's nurse, who now needs looking after herself); Richard Narita as Wang's son; Nancy Walker as the deaf-mute maid; James Cromwell [American Horror Story: Asylum] as Perrier's chauffeur; Eileen Brennan as Diamond's girlfriend; and especially Alec Guinness [The Swan] as the blind butler, Bensonmum. Truman Capote is no actor, but on an amateur level he isn't too terrible as Lionel Twain. On the other hand, Peter Sellers [The Wrong Box] is simply wonderful. Don't expect any coherency (even for a comedy) and you may have fun.

Verdict: Silly, hardly for all tastes, but beautifully-acted and zany. ***.

HELL'S HALF ACRE

HELL'S HALF ACRE (1954). Director: John H. Auer.

Donna Williams (Evelyn Keyes) has always thought that her husband of a short time died during the war. But then she sees a story about a man named Chet Chester (Wendell Corey) who has been arrested for murder in Hawaii and who greatly resembles the dead man. Chester is a deserter, black marketeer, and shady criminal, and when Donna confronts him he insists that he is not her husband. Can Donna get the man she apparently still loves to tell the truth? Meanwhile her poking her nose into Chet's business is bringing her to the attention of assorted nefarious elements. "Hell's Half Acre" refers to a dangerous, crime-infested section of Honolulu where much of the action takes place. While the movie has an intriguing premise, Hell's Half Acre isn't very good. Knowing what she knows about "Chet," it seems incredible that she wouldn't just walk away from the creep, especially when she finds out he was a deserter. The scenes between Donna and Chet don't work because the two actors just walk through their roles, perhaps because even they weren't convinced by the script. Philip Ahn plays a gangster who slaps around Marie Windsor, and Elsa Lanchester [Les Miserables] is a spirited lady cab driver. Keye Luke is the police chief, and Jesse White, annoying and unimpressive as ever, plays another hood who comes to a bad end. Windsor [Swamp Women] probably comes off the best with her typically vital portrayal. John H. Auer also directed The Crime of Dr. Crespi and quite a few melodramas and musicals.

Verdict: Not half as interesting as it sounds. **.

THE RAZOR'S EDGE (1946)

Tyrone Power at the height of his good looks

THE RAZOR'S EDGE (1946). Director: Edmund Goulding.

Larry Darrell (Tyrone Power) is engaged to wealthy Isabel Bradley (Gene Tierney), who wants Larry to get a good job and make money. But Larry is seeking something other than mere materialism in his life, so instead of marrying Isabel he goes off to find himself in India. Observing, commenting and interacting with the others is Somerset Maugham himself (Herbert Marshall), who wrote the novel upon which the film is based. Other major characters include Isabel's uncle, Elliot Templeton (Clifton Webb) -- of Larry he says, "my feeling is he's living in the Latin Quarter with some 'bint' who's no better than she ought to be" -- and Sophie MacDonald (Anne Baxter), whose life becomes embroiled in tragedy upon tragedy. As a fairly obvious Christ figure (although in some ways Larry comes off more like an unambitious schmo), Power is adequate, but his insufficiency shows up in such scenes as when he reacts [or doesn't] to sad news about Sophie; he's hardly ever looked more handsome, however. The best performances come from a poignant Anne Baxter and from an especially superb Webb, who etches a fascinating portrait in his personification of the snobbish but likable Templeton, but Tierney and Marshall are also effective, along with Lucile Watson [Templeton's sister] and Elsa Lanchester in smaller roles. John  Payne has a fairly good part and is fine, although out-classed by the rest of the cast. At one point Maugham remarks that Templeton is "sitting pretty" -- Webb would appear in the famous film of that title two years later -- to which Templeton replies: "that is an American colloquialism, which you British seem to use, but which describes my state accurately." In addition to its over-length, The Razor's Edge has underdeveloped supporting characters whose fates never have the impact they're supposed to, and the movie never seems to get anywhere. Still, Webb and Baxter make it worth watching.

Verdict: Entertaining, in spite of itself. ***.

LES MISERABLES (1952)

LES MISERABLES (1952). Director: Lewis Milestone.

Victor Hugo's famous novel had already been filmed with Fredric March and Charles Laughton in 1935 when this remake appeared 17 years later. In this version Michael Rennie stars as Jean Valjean, convicted of stealing a loaf of bread, and later coming afoul of policeman Javert (Robert Newton). This version shows us much more of how ex-convict Valjean transformed himself into the eminently respectable Mssr. Madeleine, but it completely cuts out the innkeepers, as well as the business with Javert getting suspicious when he sees Madeleine lift a carriage off of a man, The chase sequence from the first picture has also been eliminated. What this version substitutes is much more of a romance between Marius (Cameron Mitchell) and Cosette (Debra Paget), and unfortunately it's dull; it also intimates that Valjean might be in love with Cosette. The scene in the sewers has been expanded and is rather well-done. Rennie is just as perfunctory in the opening courtroom scenes as March was, but in general he's competent if unexciting. Edmund Gwenn and Sylvia Sidney both make positive impressions as, respectively, Bishop Courbet and Fantine; Elsa Lanchester and James Robertson Justice are also in the cast and are fine. As Javert, Newton is much more low-key than Laughton was, and about one fifth as memorable. Well-directed by Milestone, and with a memorable theme by Alex North.

Verdict: Interesting, but a cut below the 1935 version. **1/2.

THE MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E. SEASON ONE

Robert Vaughn

THE MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E. SEASON ONE 1964.

With the spy craze at its height, and bolstered with the name of a leading character provided by no less than James Bond-creator Ian Fleming, The Man from U.N.C.L.E. was primed to succeed and it did, although it took a while to gather steam. There was always a light, playful element to the series, although eventually it was practically -- and unfortunately -- turned into a comedy. The first season black and white episodes are often considered the best in the program's [almost] four year run, although later seasons also had their highlights. Especially memorable episodes include: "The Double Affair" in which Napoleon Solo (Robert Vaughn) is replaced with a double; "The Giuoco Piano Affair" in which villainess Gervaise Ravel (an excellent Anne Francis of Honey West and Forbidden Planet fame) hides out and causes mischief in the Andes; "The Deadly Decoy Affair" in which a top Thrush agent (Ralph Taeger) is transferred by UNCLE agents besieged at every turn; "The Yellow Scarf Affair" which involves airline crashes and Indian Thuggees; "The Brain Killer Affair" with Dr. Dabree (Elsa Lanchester) hoping to operate on Alexander Waverly (Leo G. Carroll); "The Bow Wow Affair" in which very dangerous dogs play a key role;'The Secret Sceptre Affair" with an unusual turn from old-time star Gene Raymond; "The Gazebo in the Maze Affair" with George Sanders and Jeanette Nolan as a weird old husband and wife; and "The Odd Man Affair" with Martin Balsam as a long-retired UNCLE agent helping out on a case and overstepping his bounds. Two episodes featured the evil mistress of disguise, Dr. Egret : "The Girls of Nazarone Affair" featured pumped-up female Thrush agents, and -- possibly the best first season episode -- "The Mad,  Mad Tea Party Affair" had the quirky Zohra Lampert giving a fine performance as an innocent and baffled woman embroiled in bizarre and dangerous events inside UNCLE headquarters. Egret, who was played by Lee Meriwether and Marian Moses, was never seen on the series again; neither was Dr. Dabree [even though she vowed vengeance] or Angelique (Janine Gray), a sexy THRUSH assassin who appeared only once in "The Deadly Games Affair." Even the lesser episodes of the show were of interest, and Vaugh, Carroll and David McCallum as Ilya were perfectly cast. True, the show was on occasion stupider and sillier than it needed to be -- it got worse in later seasons -- but it was slick, well-made for the most part, and quite entertaining.

Verdict: Can't beat these boys! ***1/2.

THE GIRLS OF PLEASURE ISLAND

THE GIRLS OF PLEASURE ISLAND (1953). Director: Alvin Ganzer.

Towards the end of WW2 a contingent of marines come to a small island to build an air field. Among the island's inhabitants are a man named Roger Halyard (Leo Genn) and his three nubile daughters. Halyard is afraid his girls will get involved with one or more marines, but nature will have its way... If only this movie were the riotous, sexy romp that the poster suggests [pictured]. Instead it's a mildly pleasant and not-very-entertaining light romance that never rises above a superficial level and isn't even very funny; maybe songs would have helped. Elsa Lanchester is cast as the dithery housekeeper and alleged comedy relief. Don Taylor isn't bad as a marine who romances daughter, Hester (Audrey Dalton, who is better in this, her second screen appearance, than in several subsequent pictures) and Gene Barry of War of the Worlds, Burke's Law and Amos Burke Secret Agent fame, puts in an appearance or two as well. Dalton and the other "sisters" were introduced in Girls as "new Paramount personalities," but Dorothy Bromiley and Joan Elan -- the other two sisters -- had very low profile careers afterward.

Verdict: 1500 marines -- and still not a lot of action! **.

LADIES IN RETIREMENT

LADIES IN RETIREMENT (1941). Director: Charles Vidor. 

Ellen Creed (Ida Lupino) is secretary-companion to wealthy Leonora Fiske (Isobel Elsom) on a large, isolated estate. Learning that her two somewhat "eccentric" sisters are about to be tossed out onto the street and possibly into an institution, Ellen importunes her employer to let the women come and stay with them for awhile. But even the kindly Mrs. Fiske can only take so much, and after a time the dithering, rather batty women drive her to distraction. When Ellen protests her treatment of them, she is fired -- so now all three sisters have nowhere to go. What to do? What to do? Ellen eventually comes up with a solution... Lupino is good in the movie, as are Elsa Lanchester and Edith Barrett as the sisters. Louis Hayward, who at the time was married to Lupino, is fine as Ellen's roguish nephew, and Evelyn Keyes sparkles as maid Lucy. Isobel Elsom practically steals the picture, however, as the charming if practical Mrs. Fiske. The macabre movie is pictorially interesting and absorbing, but when all is said and done the characters are almost all unsympathetic and after awhile you don't really care what happens to them. There isn't nearly enough suspense or tension, and Vidor never really brings it to a full bloody boil. 

Verdict: Portrait of a lady not so retiring. **1/2.

DREAMBOAT

DREAMBOAT (1952). Director: Claude Binyon.

Carol Sayre (Anne Francis) is horrified to learn that her distinguished educator father Thornton (Clifton Webb) was once the silent film "dreamboat" Bruce Blair. Thornton is equally horrified, as he fears the showing of his films on television (hosted by his old leading lady Gloria Marlowe, played with expert panache by Ginger Rogers) will undermine his efficacy as a teacher. Therefore Thornton sues to prevent any more of his films from being shown. While it's unlikely that college kids in the fifties would bother to watch silent movies on television, and Webb at sixty-four makes an unlikely romantic swashbuckler in the movie-within-a-movie "flash backs," this is still a very cute, amusing picture -- with a hilarious post script. Webb is as wonderful as ever and Anne Francis is very sweet as Carol. Elsa Lanchester is a riot as Thornton's boss, who has a crush on him, and Jeffrey Hunter is a TV associate who develops a crush on Francis --and vice versa. Rogers and Webb have a very funny bar scene being bitchy with each other.

Verdict: You can't beat Clifton Webb! ***.

SON OF FURY

SON OF FURY (1942) Director: John Cronwell.

Tyrone Power gives a highly effective "star" performance as Benjamin Blake who is born in England during the reign of George III. His evil Uncle Arthur (George Sanders) takes him away from his poor but loving grandfather (Harry Davenport) only to turn him into a servant on the huge estate that by rights should belong to him! Wanted by the authorities for the attempted slaying of Arthur, Benjamin sails to the south seas and swims to an island which a buddy Caleb (John Carradine) has told him is full of a fortune in pearls. There he meets an island beauty he christens Eve (Gene Tierney) while back home his cousin Isabel (Frances Farmer), whom he loves, wonders if he's alive or dead. Back in England the now-rich Benjamin still finds he has to fight duplicity and betrayal to finally claim his birthright. This is a rousing, handsomely produced, entertaining adventure story with fine performances, solid direction from Cromwell, and an evocative, excellent score from Alfred Newman. Elsa Lanchester has a nice bit as a prostitute who hides Ben out while he's on the run. George Sanders is at his oily, sinister best. But Tyrone Power's presence and authority add immeasurably to the picture's dramatic veracity.

Verdict: Great fun! ***.