BELLE OF THE YUKON

Randolph Scott and Gypsy Rose Lee

BELLE OF THE YUKON (1944).  Director: William A. Seiter. 

Former con man "Honest" John Calhoun (Randolph Scott of Captain Kidd) owns an Alaskan nightclub and saloon which is managed by Pop Candless (Charles Winninger). Pop's daughter, Lettie (Dinah Shore), is breathlessly in love with handsome piano player, Steve (William Marshall), but there is a rumor that Steve may have a wife and children. Then John's old girlfriend, an entertainer named Belle De Valle (Gypsy Rose Lee), turns up as the star attraction at the saloon  -- and with marriage in mind. When Honest John decides to open a bank and importunes everyone to put their money in it, the trouble really begins. 

Dinah Shore and William Marshall

Belle of the Yukon is one of those movies that is perfectly pleasant while it's unfolding, but when it's over you realize that there really wasn't much to it. There's no great plot to speak of aside from the misunderstandings between Lettie and Steve and John and Belle, and attempts to make off with the bank's gold engineered by George (Robert Armstrong) and Sheriff Maitland (Guinn "Big Boy" Williams). The songs by Burke and Van Heusen [Duffy's Tavern] are no great shakes although "A Slay Ride in July" is one that could grow on you. Scott is stalwart but not really a deft comedian; Gypsy Rose Lee (the subject of Gypsy) is okay but nothing that special; Dinah Shore sings quite well and is reasonably appealing; and William Marshall has little to do but look quite dreamy and now and then punch out the sheriff. Charles Winninger and Florence Bates as Lee's companion easily walk off with the movie, which so often was the case. 

Verdict: Amiable if minor-league piffle with some good performances. **1/2. 

LOVER COME BACK (1946)

George Brent and Lucy

LOVER COME BACK (1946). Director: William A. Seiter.

"Jealousy is a particularly crude manifestation of the uncultured."

"Your complete and unashamed lack of principles almost amounts to integrity." 

"That's different -- I'm a man!"

Executive Kay Williams (Lucille Ball) cleverly fobs off a variety of wolves, including her boss, while her husband, Bill (George Brent), a war correspondent, is overseas. When he returns home, Kay discovers that he had a number of dalliances with women, including his photographer Madeline (Vera Zorina of On Your Toes). She decides to get even by pretending that she also saw different men while he was gone -- and after. Madeline waits hopefully in the wings, while Kay's in-laws -- Bill Sr. (Charles Winninger) and his wife (Elisabeth Risdon) -- offer conflicting advice to both parties and bicker with each other. Will the younger couple work out their problems or wind up in Reno? 

Elisabeth Risdon and Charles Winninger

Lover Come Back is a breezy and delightful film bolstered by excellent performances from the entire cast, with Lucy being especially bright-eyed, effective, and resplendent. This is a clear example that Ball's talent did not begin and end with the wonderful I Love Lucy. Brent gives one of his more memorable performances, and one can't say enough about the terrific Winninger and Risdon, who make quite a pair of nattering lovebirds. Then we've got Austrian actor Carl Esmond as dapper and aggressive Paul, who wants to marry Kay; William Wright (of Philo Vance Returns) as photographer Jimmy, who makes frequent passes; Raymond Walburn (of And the Angels Sing) as Kay's amorous boss J. P. Winthrop; Wallace Ford as the lawyer Tubbs, who switches sides in this battle of the sexes after he gets punched; and spirited Louise Beavers as the couple's lovable domestic, Martha. Others in the cast who appear briefly are Franklin Pangborn as a hotel clerk; Ellen Corby as a secretary; and Joan Shawlee as one of Bill's rather bitchy ex-girlfriends.

Lucy!

One could easily argue that Lover Come Back is a slight picture were it not for the feminist sub-text. The picture argues against the double standard that it's acceptable for men to cheat -- "I'm a man, after all!" -- but that it's somehow worse for women to do so. The screenplay by Michael Fessier and Ernest Pagano is also full of good dialogue, and while the flick is not a laugh-riot it is consistently amusing. Brent is a likable enough performer so that his slightly sleazy character -- despite his love for his wife -- is made more palatable. This was the last of nine films for the German actress and dancer Vera Zorina, who has a certain undeniable appeal. As for Lucy, she is just splendid and looks absolutely gorgeous throughout!

Verdict: Lucy leads a cast of pros in an amusing comedy. ***.

ONE TOUCH OF VENUS

Sleeping Beauty: Ava Gardner

ONE TOUCH OF VENUS (1948). Director: William A. Seiter.

"Debussy. Debussy does something to women." -- Mr. Savory.

"Personally, I go for Buzzy Balou and his Musical Crew." -- Molly.

Eddie Hatch (Robert Walker of My Son John) is a window dresser for Savory's department store. Mr. Savory (Tom Conway) has just acquired a $200,000 statue of Venus which he wishes to unveil and he instructs Eddie to make sure the curtain rises perfectly at the right moment. Eddie impulsively kisses the statue, and the next thing he knows it has come to life. Venus (Ava Gardner), Goddess of Love visiting from Olympus, is charmed by Eddie, and he is smitten with her, although he already has a girlfriend in clerk Gloria (Olga San Juan). Eddie's buddy, Joe (Dick Haymes of St. Benny the Dip) has a secret crush on Gloria, as secretary Molly (Eve Arden) does on her boss, Mr. Savory. Spotting her asleep in a model home on the first floor of the store, Savory determines to drape this goddess in gowns and make her his own. Will all of these lovers get together with the right person, and will Eddie have to go to jail for stealing a very expensive statue? One Touch of Venus, adapted from the Broadway show that starred Mary Martin, takes a while to get its footing (a third of the movie has gone by before anyone sings a song, for one thing), but it develops into a charming and well-performed musical comedy. Gardner [The Night of the Iguana] makes a luscious Venus, and is good in the role, although her singing is dubbed. The other performers are all on the money -- Sara Allgood has a nice turn as an anxious landlady --  and Eve Arden adds just that extra special sparkle that the proceedings require. The movie drops about half of the songs (Kurt Weill and Ogden Nash) -- some are heard in the background -- but retains "Speak Low;" "That's Him;" and "My Foolish Heart." Olga San Juan was in the original Broadway cast of Lerner and Loewe's Paint Your Wagon.

Verdict: Romantic tomfoolery perhaps, but it certainly has its delights. ***.

IF YOU COULD ONLY COOK

Jean Arthur and Herbert Marshall

IF YOU COULD ONLY COOK (1935). Director: William A. Seiter.

Jim Buchanan (Herbert Marshall) is engaged to Evelyn Fletcher (Freida Inescort), whose chief interest in him seems to be his money. One afternoon in the park Jim encounters job-hungry Joan (Jean Arthur), who assumes he's out of work and importunes him to go with her to answer an ad for cook and butler in the mansion of gangster Mike Rossini (Leo Carrillo of Horror Island). Smitten with the refreshingly sweet and honest Joan, Jim goes along with the gag, although Rossini assumes the two are married. Understandably, all manner of complications occur. If You Could Only Cook is standard, silly, highly contrived screwball comedy stuff, only the laughs don't quite arrive with enough frequency. Arthur and Marshall are both wonderful, however, and their performances are the chief reason for watching the movie. Carrillo is fine, Inescort is given little to do but does it well, and Lionel Stander [Mr. Deeds Goes to Town] is simply gross and typically repulsive as Rossini's good right hand. Jean Arthur and Leo Carrillo also appeared together in History is Made at Night.

Verdict: Slight and over-familiar, but the stars are great. **.

FOUR JILLS IN A JEEP

Martha Raye, Carole Landis, Kay Francis, Mitzi Mayfair

FOUR JILLS IN A JEEP (1944). Director: William A. Seiter.

Loosely based on the wartime experiences of the four leading ladies, this has them playing themselves as they go on an entertainment tour for the fighting GI's. Kay Francis, who can't sing or dance, acts as the mistress of ceremonies, while Carole Landis sings, Mitzi Mayfair dances, and Martha Raye (who was not a bad singer herself) mugs and makes the usual jokes about her appearance. John Harvey [The Man with My Face]  plays Landis' love interest, who marries her during the film (Landis did marry an Army man during the war but the union only lasted two years). Phil Silvers plays the Army jeep driver who escorts the ladies everywhere and tries to get a date with Raye. Dick Haymes [Irish Eyes are Smiling] is cast as Mayfield's love interest and he offers a smooth delivery of a couple of romantic ballads. Bandleader Jimmy Dorsey [Lost in a Harem] is pleasant playing himself. Landis' apprehension when Harvey, a flier, is late in coming back from a mission is well delineated, but it leads to an odd sequence. One of the other pilots crashes off-screen and literally a second later Harvey shows up for a clinch., but neither of them ever say a word about the flier who was presumably killed, making them seem cold-blooded to say the least. The film's highlights include Mayfair's scintillating dance numbers; Betty Grable singing "Cuddle Up a Little Closer;" the drag queen-like Carmen Miranda dancing and warbling in her inimitable manner; and especially Alice Faye's moving rendition of  her haunting signature tune, "You''ll Never Know." Another terrific number, Rayes' "With a Wing and a Prayer," was left on the cutting room floor but can be seen on the DVD along with Miranda's rendition of "Mama yo quero." The songs were by McHugh and Adamson. Mayfair was essentially a Broadway tap dancer and made few films. She's cute, perky, and talented, and could have had a nice career playing second leads in romantic musicals.

Verdict: For what it is, a kind of time capsule with good performances from all. ***.

IT'S A PLEASURE

Michael O'Shea and Sonja Henie

IT'S A PLEASURE (1945). Director: William A. Seiter.

Figure skater Chris Linden (Sonja Henie) has a hopeless crush on hockey player Don Martin (Michael O'Shea). When Martin gets fired off the team due to bad behavior, he is importuned by Chris and boss "Buzz" Fletcher (Bill Johnson) to join their ice show. Chris and Don get married but his drinking -- and Buzz' predatory wife, Gale (Marie McDonald of Guest in the House) -- cause problems for their marriage. Poor Henie [Thin Ice] can't really act to save her life, but the other cast members are swell. After a painful break-up, Henie displays all the emotion of someone who's been told by a waiter that they're all out of roast beef. Bill Johnson was really a stage actor and singer who made few film appearances, and played Doc in the original Broadway cast of Rodgers and Hammerstein's "Pipe Dream" -- he had a wonderful voice and died much too soon. Johnson has a particularly good moment in this when he pantomimes his sad reaction to the realization that his wife is not in love with him. It's a Pleasure is the kind of movie in which characters make supposed sacrifices for love that only leave the one they love worse off than they were before. Iris Adrian adds a little spice as the oldest figure skater in the world. This was associate-produced by Don Loper, the fashion designer who appeared on I Love Lucy. O'Shea and Adrian also appeared in Lady of Burlesque.

Verdict: This actually isn't much of a pleasure. **.

HOT SATURDAY

Randolph Scott and Nancy Carroll

         
 HOT SATURDAY (1932). Director: William A. Seiter.

Ruth Brock (Nancy Carroll) works in a bank and has several suitors, but her troubles begin when she goes to a party at the estate of wealthy Romer Sheffield (Cary Grant) and rumors spread about her allegedly spending the night with him. But can she find true love with old family friend, Bill (Randolph Scott of Go West, Young Man), or will those pesky rumors get to him, too? The ending is a little unexpected but not entirely satisfying, as she chooses a man who has already proven to be a heel and doesn't give another guy much of a chance [and has pretty much used him in the first place]. With her flat, broad face and cartoon lips, Carroll is an unlikely sex symbol, but her performance is quite good. Cary Grant is excellent, and Scott is not bad. Grady Sutton [The Bank Dick] and Jane Darwell [The Loves of Edgar Allan Poe] are fine in supporting roles. The pre-code Hot Saturday tries hard to be risque and daring, but it comes off more as confused, and is too short to do justice to its story line and characters.

Verdict: A movie about the private lives of Grant and Scott would probably have been more entertaining. **1/2.

LITTLE GIANT

LITTLE GIANT (1946).Director: William A. Seiter.

Bennie (Lou Costello) leaves his mother (Mary Gordon), gal Martha (Elena Verdugo), and farm and heads for the big city to find fame and fortune. An uncle gets him a job at a vacuum company where his unpleasant boss, Morrison (Bud Abbott) is secretly married to his secretary, Hazel (Jacqueline deWit). Morrison has a much nicer cousin, Chandler (also played by Abbott) who runs another branch of the same firm. Naturally Bennie has assorted misadventures trying to sell the firm's product. The best scene has him demonstrating a vacuum cleaner to Margaret Dumont, but why oh why isn't the sequence longer  -- I mean Lou Costello and Margaret Dumont! You would think they would have given the lady a little more screen time. Brenda Joyce makes a nice impression as a kind secretary, Ruby, who befriends the hapless Bennie.In a sub-plot wherein Hazel tries to get information from Bennie, the two sort of wind up in bed together!

Verdict: Good-natured, pleasant, and occasionally amusing as well. **1/2.

SONS OF THE DESERT

SONS OF THE DESERT (1933). Director: William A. Seiter.

Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy want to go off to a convention of the Sons of the Desert in Chicago, but their wives won't have it. They cook up a ridiculous scheme to get out of town, and nearly get away with it – but the fates conspire to reveal their perfidy to their vengeful wives. This is a very funny movie with some great gags and the boys in top form. Mae Busch and Dorothy Christy are also excellent as the wives, with Charley Chase notable as a fellow conventioneer addicted to practical jokes. Full of comic inventiveness and a lot of merriment this movie above all others shows the Laurel and Hardy influence on TV's The Honeymooners. At one point Oliver tells Stan that he is “king of his castle”and his wife has to do what he says. Sound familiar? Ralph Kramden and Ed Norton were even members of the Raccoon Lodge, a Sons of the Desert-type organization. One quibble about the picture: although it turns out that the boys weren't actually on the boat, and the wreck itself is never shown, it was perhaps ill-advised to make a ship wreck with people dying at sea a key point in the plot.

Verdict: Great fun! ***1/2.