#54
Post
by reno dakota » Fri May 15, 2009 4:43 am
1932-33:
42nd Street – A step up from the Broadway Melody films, but still hampered by some of the same problems that made those films less compelling than they ought to have been. The music and staging are what you would expect—good, solid, though not jaw-dropping—but the screenplay gives the players little to do when they’re not rehearsing or performing. Its first two thirds nearly eroded all of the good will I had toward it going in, but the final twenty minutes and those Busby Berkeley numbers gave the film a strong finish.
A Farewell to Arms – All the ingredients for a great film are here—Gary Cooper and Helen Hayes together, with Borzage at the helm, working from Hemingway material—but the film does not radiate the passion that lies at the core of this story. For too much of its running time, the narrative lacks urgency and, at times, even seems unsure of where it’s going. The conclusion is rousing, but it doesn’t feel genuinely connected to the dramatically inert material that has come before it. The production values, however, are first rate.
Cavalcade – Oscar does love an epic, and that’s no less the case when the film in question is one of the weakest in the field. Banal, overwrought, badly acted and mawkish from start to finish, it’s hard to see why this was the Noel Coward adaptation to garner so much attention and praise (over the vastly superior, and also eligible, Design for Living), or why 17 months worth of films—the longest eligibility period in Oscar history—couldn’t produce a more deserving, less embalmed, winner of the top prize.
I Am a Fugitive From a Chain Gang! – What a comeback for LeRoy, after the disappointing Five Star Final! Here we have a great film—full-blooded, thrilling and heartbreaking. We follow Paul Muni’s character from a time of great hope to moments of deepest despair, and his performance is so immediate and affecting that it’s hard not to feel the sting of each hard-luck turn along with him. The film does stumble slightly during the climactic legal proceeding (did we really need Hale Hamilton’s preachy monologue when every point it makes has already been driven home, with more subtlety and grace, by Muni’s performance and story arc?), but the rousing final ten minutes are atonement enough for this misstep, and give the film a powerful, albeit bleak, conclusion.
Lady For a Day – A sweet and charming fairytale of a film. The story is engaging, and the performances are quirky and fun, but what I appreciated most was Capra’s light, whimsical shaping of this material (which I much prefer to his more heavy-handed, overly sentimental approach in later projects). This is a good film, for sure, but certainly not an outstanding one.
Little Women – A solid film that succeeds largely due to fine ensemble work from the cast, including a standout performance from Hepburn. She glows in this role, and the film is at its most engaging when she is on screen. However, like many of the nominees from this lot, the film itself is warm and enjoyable without being terribly compelling or remarkable otherwise. I cannot say that I love this one, but I certainly do admire it.
The Private Life of Henry VIII – 94 minutes of Charles Laughton behaving like a wild animal and shoving obscene amounts of roasted meat down his throat. The story itself—covering five of the six wives—is told without much flair, and at such break-neck speed that it’s hard to care about any of the characters (most register as little more than plot points) or events as they zoom past. Perhaps that is a blessing, though, as an epic presentation of this material would have been unbearable.
She Done Him Wrong – A narratively uneven film that seems to have been little more than a showcase for Mae West’s saucy performance and famous dialogue. It’s a short film—clocking in at just 65 minutes—whose elliptical editing gives the impression that significant story developments are missing from the final cut. Still, it’s worth a look for its overall salaciousness and the added treat of a young Cary Grant in a supporting role.
Smilin’ Through – A marginally decent film, but not worthy of much praise. The story itself is rife with implausible coincidences and bone-dry dialogue, but it’s more often engaging than not. The acting, however, is a weak spot. Norma Shearer’s performance as Kathleen is a miscalculation—she often seems to think she’s doing theater, projecting her lines emphatically to the back rows until she really should be exhausted from all the effort—and Leslie Howard does what he can—which is to say, not much—with a character that is little more than a plot obstacle. Fredric March, on the other hand, seems to understand the limitations of this material and turns in a wonderfully understated performance. The film’s best moments are his, and when he was on screen I desperately wanted to see him surrounded by a better film.
State Fair – A sweet and innocent film, with a good performance from Janet Gaynor at its heart. For a pre-Code romantic drama, the film’s attitude to sex and relationships is surprisingly chaste, which is unfortunate, and there is not much dramatic tension to drive the story along. However, the final scene—the one that will stay with you—is passionate, beautifully photographed, and very satisfying.
My vote: I Am a Fugitive From a Chain Gang!
Seeing Fear and Desire is more complicated but if one wanted to, one would be on the right path by starting their search there.
