January - June 2017 Round-Up
TOTAL FILMS SEEN FROM JANUARY TILL JUNE: 96
(see the film posters below, arranged in watching order)
NEW-TO-ME: 94
REWATCHES: 2
SEEN ON THE BIG SCREEN: 7
*In JANUARY I was busy preparing for the move from Amsterdam to Barcelona, but I still had time to watch films. My classic film watching mainly takes place online (and in bed). (I do watch DVDs occasionally but since I hardly buy new ones, I've already seen most of the films from my collection. From June onwards I started watching classics on the big screen!) There is a handful of websites that I regularly visit and the amount of films that is to be found on these sites is just incredible. We're not only talking about the big films here, the great and famous classics, but also the obscure and underrated ones, sometimes films that not even 10 people on Letterboxd have watched. Because there is soooo much to see, it's really frustrating to realise that I will never find the time to watch as many films as I would like to see. Going through other people's accounts on Letterboxd and seeing the huge amount of films that some of them have seen the past year, makes me feel even more frustrated ánd envious but I also wonder where the hell they found the time to do so.
But as it is, I managed to watch 21 films in January, and although it doesn't even equal one film a day, I think it's still a fair amount.
The year started with binge-watching some of Herbert Marshall's films. The Dark Angel (with Fredric March and Merle Oberon), Four Frightened People (with Claudette Colbert), Secrets of a Secretary (again with Colbert) and I Was a Spy (with Madeleine Carroll) were all average and not very memorable but I did like Mad About Music a great deal (also thanks to the lovely Deanna Durbin) and Crack-Up (with Pat O'Brien and Claire Trevor) was an enjoyable and suspenseful watch.
Then I began binge-watching Joel McCrea's films, an actor whom I like very much but had not seen many films of. It also gave me the opportunity to see Barbara Stanwyck films — she's one of my favourite actresses — because she and McCrea starred in six films together (I watched three now). I really liked Internes Can't Take Money, Barbara looks so beautiful here. The Great Man's Lady was not as good as I hoped it would be but I found the story compelling and actually liked Brian Donlevy's character and performance better than McCrea's. Gambling Lady, also starring Pat O'Brien and Claire Dodd, was enjoyable too and I loved Stanwyck's scenes with McCrea. I also watched two McCrea films with Constance Bennett as his co-star, Bed of Roses and The Common Law, both pre-codes. Bed of Roses benefits from a racy and witty script but The Common Law has uninspiring dialogue and McCrea's character is boring. The best thing about the latter film is that Robert Williams makes an appearance as McCrea's friend.
More McCrea films: Girls About Town with Kay Francis (not much of a plot, only watchable for its pre-codeness and Francis' dress sense), Reaching For the Sun with Ellen Drew (totally forgettable, cannot remember any of it now), Border River with Yvonne De Carlo (a solid western but no chemistry between the two leads), Adventure in Manhattan with Jean Arthur (anything with Arthur is a must-see for me but apart from the lovely bread and beans dinner at The (make-believe) Ritz, this film is rather unremarkable), and Chance At Heaven with Ginger Rogers (had high hopes for this one but was disappointed with the development of the story and Ginger sure could have used more screen time).
The other four McCrea films were all pretty good: Four Faces West with Frances Dee (an unusual feel-good western where no gunshot is fired and not one punch thrown), Stars In My Crown with Ellen Drew (a heartwarming and atmospheric coming-of-age story narrated by Dean Stockwell's character at an older age), Ride the High Country with Randolph Scott (my first Peckinpah and not as gritty, violent or sleazy as I thought it would be; loved the friendship between McCrea and Scott), and Dead End with Humprey Bogart, Claire Trevor and Sylvia Sidney (a decent film but could have been a lot better if it would have had less of The Dead End Kids and more of the four adult actors). I also watched another Stanwyck film without McCrea: The Other Love with David Niven (not very good and strange pairing with Niven).
*FEBRUARY marked the move from Amsterdam to Barcelona and I started a new job, full-time. With plenty of things to do and adjusting to a new rhythm, also being tired all the time, I only watched six films, all starring Stanwyck and all new to me. The Moonlighter is not very exciting and is only watchable because it pairs Stanwyck with Fred MacMurray once again. I also didn't really like Witness to Murder with George Sanders but The Man With a Cloak with Joseph Cotten and Ever In My Heart with Otto Kruger are worth a watch. The two films that stand out are All I Desire by Douglas Sirk with Richard Carlson (with Barbara dancing the bunny hug) and The Violent Men with Glenn Ford and Edward G. Robinson (a compelling western/family drama). If you're a Missy fan like me, then every film still has some merit so just watch them all, even the pretty bad The Moonlighter.
*MARCH didn't get any better with finding time or energy to watch films. Continuing Stanwyck's filmography, I watched another seven of her films never seen before. You Belong To Me with Henry Fonda was by far the worst of them all. I do like the leads a lot and they have great chemistry but Fonda's dopey character is insufferable and just ruins the film. At least Stanwyck looks lovely. The Bride Walks Out with Gene Raymond and Robert Young is not good either but still better than You Belong To Me and I actually enjoyed most of it. The Lady Gambles with Robert Preston, The Bitter Tea of General Yen with Nils Asther, and Crime of Passion with Sterling Hayden are all enjoyable watches, not the best of what Stanwyck has to offer but you wouldn't want to miss them either. Flesh and Fantasy is a bit of a strange film in Stanwyck's oeuvre since it's an anthology film and her story with Charles Boyer is just one of three. The film as a whole is enjoyable but clearly doesn't have enough Stanwyck in it. And the best of the stories is the one starring Thomas Mitchell and Edward G. Robinson. The stand-out film among these March viewings is Clash By Night with Robert Ryan and Paul Douglas. Actually not only the best of these March films, but just a darned good film and Stanwyck gives a terrific performance. Also notable for Marilyn Monroe being part of the cast and I like her feisty character and friendship with Stanwyck.
*With APRIL and spring coming to Barcelona, I must have had other things to do because this month I only watched five films. Alice Adams with Katharine Hepburn and Fred MacMurray I really really liked. Kate looks beautiful in all close-ups and plays a very likeable heroine. I also enjoyed The Whole Town's Talking with Edward G. Robinson and the incomparable Jean Arthur. Robinson is very good at portraying gangsters and helpless timid men effortlessly and here he does both at the same time. But Pot o'Gold with Jimmy Stewart and Paulette Goddard is not very good. Apparently Stewart considered this to be his worst film, and I can see why. Broadway Bad with Joan Blondell and Ginger Rogers doesn't have enough Ginger in it, and though I enjoyed this film to some extent, I think it's one of those pre-codes that could have benefited from a longer running time. Last but not least is Seven Days in May, a good film with a lot of star quality that needs a rewatch because when I saw this, I didn't give it the proper attention it deserves.
*MAY saw a considerable improvement, movie-wise. I watched 30 films! And a lot of them starred Tyrone Power, 13 to be exact. The Tyrone films seen are:
Untamed (with Susan Hayward, the worst of these Tyrone May viewings)
Thin Ice (silly and forgettable, with Sonja Henie skating)
Son of Fury (with Gene Tierney, only worthwhile to see Tyrone shirtless)
Rose of Washington Square (with Alice Faye, a disguised biopic of Ziegfeld girl Fanny Brice)
Second Fiddle (also with Henie, I enjoyed this a lot better than Thin Ice)
The Mississippi Gambler (with Piper Laurie, surprisingly enjoyable and Tyrone's character is very likeable)
That Wonderful Urge (with Gene Tierney, remake of Love Is News (starring Mr. Power himself and Loretta Young), great chemistry between the leads but disappointing)
Johnny Apollo (with Dorothy Lamour, she's the real surprise of this noir because I thought I didn't like her but I did here; also nice chemistry between her and Tyrone)
Diplomatic Courier (solid thriller with Patricia Neal)
Captain from Castile (with Jean Peters, overly long, but entertaining nonetheless)
In Old Chicago (with Alice Faye and Don Ameche, about the Great Chicago Fire of 1871, with the fire sequence looking really impressive)
Ladies In Love (pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed the performances of the three lead actresses, too bad Tyrone's role as Loretta Young's love interest is so small)
The Rains Came (the best of the Tyrone May films, I really enjoyed this, very compelling, and I loved George Brent here; also great special effects during the earthquake and flood scenes)
What else did I watch? One Barbara Stanwyck film (A Lost Lady with Frank Morgan), three Bette Davis films (The Dark Horse with Warren William, Fashions of 1934 with William Powell, and Jimmy the Gent with James Cagney), two films starring George Brent (Miss Pinkerton with Joan Blondell, and The Goose and the Gander with Kay Francis), three Joan Blondell films (Miss Pinkerton with George Brent, Traveling Saleslady with Glenda Farrell, and Lawyer Man with William Powell), two films starring Warner Baxter and Myrna Loy (Penthouse and To Mary - With Love), three Franchot Tone films (Midnight Mary with Loretta Young, One New York Night with Una Merkel, and Five Graves To Cairo with Anne Baxter), one Joan Crawford film (The Last of Mrs. Cheyney with William Powell and Robert Montgomery), two Van Heflin films (Black Widow with Gene Tierney and Ginger Rogers, and Grand Central Murder with Virginia Grey), and one film starring Humphrey Bogart (They Drive By Night with George Raft, Ann Sheridan and Ida Lupino). Of these films They Drive By Night was the most disappointing (tonally uneven, with the second half of the film dominated by an over-the-top performance by Lupino). I didn't expect anything from an unknown film like One New York Night, and though it's light fluff more than anything, I totally enjoyed it and it was nice to see Una Merkel in a leading role.
*In JUNE I watched 27 films. I continued Tyrone Power's filmography and this month was also my first encounter with the FILMOTECA. Having lived in Barcelona since February, my sister and I never bothered to check out their program (I later realised we had missed 42nd Street in February, such a bummer!). When we saw June's program showing a little retrospective of Joan Fontaine and Susan Hayward, we first purchased a booklet for 20 euros giving access to 10 films and soon afterwards decided to opt for the abono for one year: 90 euros gives unlimited access to films, the library, exhibitions ánd discount in the film bookshop. This pass is the best thing ever!
7 films I watched at the Filmoteca this June. 5 were part of the Joan and Susan special and all new to me: Born To Be Bad with Joan Fontaine and Robert Ryan; Garden of Evil with Susan Hayward, Gary Cooper and Richard Widmark; The Lusty Men with Susan Hayward, Robert Mitchum and Arthur Kennedy; Beyond a Reasonable Doubt with Joan Fontaine and Dana Andrews; and I Want To Live! with Susan Hayward and Simon Oakland. The other two films seen at the Filmoteca were the only rewatches from the past 6 months (January till June): the amazing The Red Shoes and the silent and beautiful The Wind with Lillian Gish. Of the 5 films new to me the stand-out film was The Lusty Men. I thought Garden of Evil was thoroughly enjoyable too (watching a good print on the big screen also helped) and Hayward's Oscar for her performance in I Want To Live! made sense to me.
All films seen this June not shown at the Filmoteca and not starring Tyrone Power:
You Can't Beat Love with Preston Foster and Joan Fontaine (totally forgettable, can't remember any of it now)
Adam Had Four Sons with Ingrid Bergman, Warner Baxter and Susan Hayward (Bergman kicking ass when she wants to kick Hayward out of the house)
My Foolish Heart, a sentimental drama starring Dana Andrews and Susan Hayward (good chemistry between the two leads and great Oscar-nominated performance by Hayward; Victor Young's Oscar-nominated title song is lovely and stays in your head afterwards)
Midnight Alibi with Richard Barthelmess and Ann Dvorak (the flashback made this into a more unusual gangster flick; watched this for the lovely Dvorak)
Heat Lightning with Aline MacMahon, Ann Dvorak and Preston Foster (great pre-code, never seen MacMahon in a leading role before, she's terrific)
And finally the Tyrone films I've watched this month, 15 in total:
A Yank in the R.A.F. (with Betty Grable, totally forgettable and Tyrone's cocky character is a bit annoying; well-done action scenes)
Suez (with Loretta Young and Annabella, only worthwhile because of the great storm sequence and to see Tyrone and Annabella together)
The Sun Also Rises (with Ava Gardner, Errol Flynn, etc., despite the stellar cast this was disappointing)
Blood and Sand (with Linda Darnell and Rita Hayworth, also disappointing film but I love the Spanish setting and to see Tyrone and Darnell together, their interplay looks so natural)
Abandon Ship (with Mai Zetterling, found it a bit difficult to watch because of the subject matter, the morality question, and this film also made me seasick)
Alexander’s Ragtime Band (with Alice Faye and Don Ameche, enjoyable musical with great Berlin songs but Tyrone is not believable at all as a conductor/violinist)
Brigham Young (with Linda Darnell, this film could have done with a lot more Tyrone and Linda (love them as a couple!) and less Dean Jagger)
Prince of Foxes (with Orson Welles and Wanda Hendrix, surprisingly entertaining, even suspenseful until the very end)
The Razor's Edge (with Gene Tierney, etc., drama with a stellar cast but disappointing; Tyrone looked never more beautiful, though)
Marie Antoinette (with Norma Shearer as the titular Queen of France; Tyrone himself is not very memorable here but it's not so difficult to imagine how someone can break down in tears when seeing Tyrone right before being taken away to the guillotine)
Crash Dive (with Dana Andrews and Anne Baxter, Tyrone's last film before he entered military service; with decent action scenes)
American Guerrilla in the Philippines (with Micheline Presle, unusual Lang film but enjoyable and Tyrone looking handsome in his khaki uniform)
The Black Swan (with Maureen O'Hara, great entertainment in gorgeous Technicolor, love me some swashbuckler now and then)
The Rising of the Moon (short and sweet, full of delightful Irish characters and humour; I loved to see and hear Tyrone as Tyrone, introducing these three Irish stories)
The Long Gray Line (with Maureen O'Hara, feel-good movie with Tyrone in one of his greatest and funniest roles, the Irish accent is really well done (he's from Irish descent himself); I found the first (funny) part better than the second (more dramatic) half)
So it's been quite a Tyrone-some first half of the year. Let's take a look at what else I watched in 2017 in the upcoming post!
