BY LOVE POSSESSED

Lana Turner and Efrem Zimbalist, Jr. 

BY LOVE POSSESSED (1961). Director: John Sturges.

Two law partners in a small town have personal problems to go with legal ones. Arthur Winner (Efrem Zimbalist, Jr.) is afraid that his wife, Clarissa (Barbara Bel Geddes) and son Warren (George Hamilton) feel completely disconnected from him. Julius Penrose (Jason Robards of Philadelphia) is afraid to get close to his tippling wife, Marjorie (Lana Turner), because of physical problems which undoubtedly include impotency. Meanwhile Arthur's father-in-law, Noah Tuttle (Thomas Mitchell), the head of the firm, seems to be senile and may have even committed embezzlement. Just as Arthur and Marjorie draw closer for an illicit relationship, Warren is accused of rape by the town tramp, Veronica (Yvonne Craig), with his girlfriend, Helen (Susan Kohner of The Gene Krupa Story) waiting in the wings.

Jason Robards (Jr.) and Lana Turner

Although her part is not even that large, Lana Turner was obviously cast and headlined so that the public would think they had another Peyton Place on their hands, which is not the case. Despite all the heavy breathing (especially on Hamilton's part) and other goings-on, By Love Possessed is neither strong drama nor even a trashy guilty pleasure. Zimbalist, who has the biggest part, is adequate and smooth but as bland and pedestrian as ever. He and Turner and some other cast members give overly earnest line readings as if they thought they were reciting something profound. Sometimes there is some interesting dialogue, such as when Veronica tells Warren "If I get drunk and pass out it's no fun for me, and if you get drunk and pass out it's no fun for me." Later Arthur tells his son: "Your generation doesn't have a monopoly on sex, legal or otherwise -- you just talk about it more."

Unrequited: George Hamilton with Susan Kohner

Jason Robards seems a mite uncomfortable acting with Lana, and his performance is actually only adequate. Bel Geddes [Caught] is playing the wise, warm and womanly role years before she enacted same on Dallas but she does it in a rather bland fashion. Old pros Mitchell and Everett Sloane as a doctor are more impressive, and the younger generation of Hamilton, Kohner, and Craig are also on the money. Jean Willes has a small role as a former prostitute suing her late paramour's estate, and she is fine. As for the story, everything with both couples is neatly resolved by the finale, but Warren's fate in the rape trial is left unrevealed, although it's hard to believe anyone would find Veronica -- who always refers to herself in the third person -- a creditable witness. The audience is supposed to be devastated by the sad fate of Helen, but we never get to know her well enough to feel anything for her. Elmer Bernstein's musical score has a few nice moments, but is also a bit sappy, which is no more than the picture deserves.

Verdict: This talky flick would have been more fun if it were just a blatant trash wallow. **. 

HEAR ME GOOD

HEAR ME GOOD (1957). Writer/producer/director: Don McGuire.

"I've always wanted to be a Very Important Freak, Mr. Holland."

A hustler named Marty Holland (Hal March) is down on his luck and hopes to make money off of a beauty contest. Unfortunately, his chosen contestant, Rita (Jean Willes), is on the outs with Marty, as is her boyfriend, an unseen gangster. Marty then hits on the idea of entering would-be stewardess Ruth (Merry Anders) in the contest, and surprises her with an outfit that literally falls apart in front of the cameras. Can Marty and Ruth find true love even though he's a heel?  Don McGuire was an actor who appeared in such films as The Fuller Brush Man before he turned to writing and directing; he was a pal of Frank Sinatra's, but it's unfortunate The Voice couldn't importune Dean Martin to star in the film instead of Hal March, whom I have to assume was also a friend of McGuire's. March was the host of The $64,000 Question quiz show, but is probably best known as the dress-selling cad who tries to make a date with Lucy on an episode of I Love Lucy, but in this movie at least he lacks real comedic flair and is distinctly mediocre. Joe E. Ross of Car 54, Where Are You? does his usual shtick, but Jean Willes [Desire Under the Elms] makes an impression as sexy Rita. The production is almost completely stage-bound, as if it were a filmed play, and is neither well-directed nor well-edited. There are a couple of chuckles but the script is poor; McGuire did better work elsewhere. Don McGuire also starred in the title role in the serial Congo Bill.

Verdict: Fuggetaboutit. *1/2.

THE CROWDED SKY

THE CROWDED SKY (1960). Director: Joseph Pevney.

While Captain Dick Barnett (Dana Andrews) and his bitter co-pilot Mike Rule (John Kerr) fly an airliner, a small Navy jet piloted by Dale Heath (Efrem Zimbalist, Jr.) is heading in the same general direction. Heath notes to his passenger McVey (Troy Donahue) that there are "2000 near-misses each year." As the audience tenses itself for the disaster to come, the movie features flashbacks showing the back stories of several of the characters, including crew and passengers. Rhonda Fleming [While the City Sleeps] is Heath's bored and unfaithful wife; Anne Francis is a stewardess in love with Rule; Barnett has a poor relationship with his son, Dick Jr. (Ken Currie); and so on. The Crowded Sky manages to maintain suspense not just over the plane situation, but also over the various characters' inter-relationships. Some of this is soap opera, but it is generally interesting to watch. Keenan Wynn flirts with a passenger, Jean Willes [Desire Under the Elms], whom he jilted years before and whom he doesn't recognize, while Patsy Kelly is an agent for actor Tom Gilson, both of whom feature in scenes of -- on one occasion -- inappropriate comedy relief. Joe Mantell plays the likable navigator, Louis, whose grotesque death is pretty much forgotten (shockingly) by the other characters. There is evidence that much footage was left on the cutting room floor, as Troy Donahue's role practically amounts to a bit, and another major character's death is also not given any kind of moving post script, making it all seem a rather callous exercise. One suspects there's a much better movie left somewhere, but The Crowded Sky is still quite entertaining. Freida Inescort shows up briefly as a woman who may or may not be Kerr's mother. The acting in this is perfectly okay but nobody really stands out as anything special. Pevney also directed The Strange Door.

Verdict: Stay on the ground. ***.

ABBOTT AND COSTELLO GO TO MARS

Mari Blanchard and Lou Costello

ABBOTT AND COSTELLO GO TO MARS (1953). Director: Charles Lamont.

"He looks worse standing up than he does lying down" -- Allura, referring to Lou

Orville (Lou Costello), a handyman at an orphanage, winds up at a missile base and is mistaken for a professor of aeronautical science, although janitor Lester (Bud Abbott) isn't fooled. The bumbling pair look around Dr. Wilson's (Robert Paige) rocket ship and accidentally take off, landing near New Orleans during Mardi Gras where they think the celebrants are Martians. Two ex-cons rob a bank and stowaway on the ship, hoping Orville and Lester, whom they think are Martians, will take them back to their planet and away from the law. This time the rocket ship winds up on Venus, where the man-hating Queen Allura (Mari Blanchard of Twice-Told Tales) makes Orville her king to please her man-hungry subjects. There's a giant dog, but otherwise a dearth of special effects, except for when the rocket is flying through the Lincoln Tunnel and making the Statue of Liberty dodge and duck. One Venusian vehicle seems to have been borrowed from Forbidden Planet but that movie was made three years later! After the queen puts a curse on Lou, who dares to be attracted to other women, his kiss turns one young lovely into a wrinkled old crone! Martha Hyer is Dr. Wilson's secretary and girlfriend, Jean Willes is one of the queen's entourage, and while Anita Ekberg of Screaming Mimi should certainly stand out even in a crowd of moonlighting beauty queens, her presence in the picture as a guard isn't immediately evident. Abbott and Costello Go to Mars may come off like a spoof of such space-babe movies as Queen of Outer Space, which also takes place on Venus, but it actually pre-dates all of them [the first, Cat-Women of the Moon, was released the same year]. Were A & C starting a trend instead of following one, as they did with Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein? Whatever the case, this is not in the league of that movie, but it does have its amusing moments and the cast has fun. There's too much of those ex-cons, however, and the boys never do wind up on Mars.

Verdict: Amiable nonsense. **1/2.

DESIRE UNDER THE ELMS

DESIRE UNDER THE ELMS (1958). Director: Delbert Mann.

An interesting and absorbing, if imperfect, screen adaptation of Eugene O'Neill's licentious play. Ephriam Cabot (Burl Ives) is a miserable old man who brings home a pretty Italian wife, Anna (Sophia Loren), who married him so she'd finally have a home of her own. At first Anna and Ephriam's son Eben (Anthony Perkins), who despises his father, fight their attraction to one another, but eventually they fall in love -- with extremely dire consequences. Ives doesn't quite dig beneath his character's surface bluster, and Loren, while good, feisty and credible in her early scenes, isn't quite up to the much more difficult moments later on. Perkins gives the best performance in the film as the troubled, determined and tormented Eben. Pernell Roberts and Frank Overton are fine as Eben's half-brothers, and Rebecca Welles -- and especially Jean Willes -- offer spirited performances as their wives. Anne Seymour has some good moments at the opening as Eben's mother, who's determined that the land -- which originally was hers -- will someday belong to her son. Well photographed by Daniel L. Fapp and with a fine score by Elmer Bernstein.

Verdict: Passionate if flawed. ***.