February 2018 Round-Up
TOTAL FILMS SEEN IN FEBRUARY: 28
(see the film posters at the bottom of the post, arranged in watching order)
NEW-TO-ME: 25
REWATCHES: 3
SEEN ON THE BIG SCREEN: 4
MOST WATCHED ACTOR: Lew Ayres & Edmond O'Brien (6 in total)
February saw a very small increase in classic films watched (2 more than last month) and it was an average of one film a day (because of the shorter month) so I actually met my goal. I continued watching Dr. Kildare films starring Lew Ayres and I felt sorry and sad when the series came to an end. I saw a total of five Kildare films this month: Dr. Kildare Goes Home, Dr. Kildare's Crisis (with Robert Young as nurse Mary's brother), The People vs. Dr. Kildare, Dr. Kildare's Wedding Day and Dr. Kildare's Victory. If you want to see the series too, then skip reading the next part because it contains a major SPOILER.
I really enjoyed the series, especially the relationships between the characters, between Dr. Kildare and Dr. Gillespie, and Dr. Gillespie and Molly Byrd — and like the romantic at heart I am — the relationship between Dr. Kildare and nurse Mary. I have to say that I was a bit disappointed how the love story developed between Jimmy and Mary. They started off with a purely working relationship but shared their first kiss already at the end of The Secret of Dr. Kildare (seen in January) without enough scenes between them leading up to that moment. It might just be me but I would have liked to see them sharing more scenes together. And then they decide to get married, but the actress Laraine Day reportedly had enough of nurse Mary so the producers made sure her character would not come back after Dr. Kildare's Wedding Day, and they killed her off. They just let her walk in front of a car and let her die in the hospital. I had read beforehand that something tragic was going to happen to Mary in Dr. Kildare's Wedding Day so I was prepared but it still came as a shock. And I felt so sorry for Dr. Kildare who was left numb and heartbroken, and Lew Ayres really conveys these feelings well. I saw the last film in the series as well, Dr. Kildare's Victory, but with Mary dead and all I enjoyed it less and I was also sad that the series had come to an end after having spent all this time with the characters. There's still the Gillespie series (with Lionel Barrymore) for me to watch and I might do so at a later date but it won't be the same without Jimmy Kildare and Mary.
I also managed to see one other Ayres film, The Capture with Teresa Wright. It's full of plot holes but it has a nice noirish atmosphere and I enjoyed it, and it was good to see Ayres in another role than Dr. Kildare and he looked good in his leather jacket, smoking cigarettes all the time, and even got himself into a fist fight. I didn't watch more Ayres films this month but will definitely continue later. I also still haven't seen the much acclaimed All Quiet On the Western Front but I'm still hoping it will be shown at the Filmoteca on the big screen. (I wrote an article about Ayres and his choice to be a conscientious objector during World War II. You can read it here.)
What else did I watch? This month started with a Dana Andrews film, high on my watchlist: Swamp Water with Anne Baxter, Walter Brennan and Walter Huston. It turned out to be compelling and enjoyable and it was nice to see Brennan in a more serious and subdued performance. Near the end of the month I watched three other films starring Dana Andrews: Sealed Cargo (with Claude Rains), I Want You (with Dorothy McGuire and Farley Granger), and The Iron Curtain (with Gene Tierney).
Of these three films I Want You made the biggest impression. Reminiscent of The Best Years of Our Lives (also with Andrews), though never reaching the same level as that masterpiece, it's a solid and moving drama with great performances, and there are plenty of moments that feel very real and make you believe in the characters. Sealed Cargo was entertaining and suspenseful but The Iron Curtain is only watchable because of the appeal of the leading stars and because they look so darn beautiful together. Better watch Andrews and Tierney's other collaboration, Laura, even if you have seen it many times already.
In February I also took four trips to the Filmoteca and saw the following movies on the big screen:
Singin' In the Rain with Gene Kelly, Debbie Reynolds and Donald O'Connor; one of my favourite musicals of all time;
Moby Dick with Gregory Peck; Peck is miscast as Captain Ahab but the whale hunting scenes are thrilling;
High Sierra with Humphrey Bogart and Ida Lupino; better than the first time I watched it and seeing this on the big screen made even more of an impression; really like the love story between Bogart and Lupino and that final car chase in the mountains is truly exhilarating;
The Hitch-Hiker with Edmond O'Brien and Frank Lovejoy; atmospheric and suspenseful noir with O'Brien and Lovejoy believable as buddies.
The first three films were rewatches (the only three rewatches this month), and with The Hitch-Hiker I started a little Edmond O'Brien binge because I really like him.
Including The Hitch-Hiker I saw a total of 6 films starring O'Brien, two of them featuring Deanna Durbin, The Amazing Mrs. Holliday and For the Love of Mary. I enjoyed seeing Durbin paired with O'Brien (I love Durbin in general and O'Brien is handsome and young in both films), especially The Amazing Mrs. Holliday was very entertaining. For the Love of Mary is one of Durbin's lesser films but still worthwhile because of her and O'Brien, and it was actually a bummer that they didn't end up together. I wanted to see some O'Brien noirs as well and finally watched the acclaimed D.O.A. which has a great story premise and beautiful black-and-white photography by Ernest Laszlo. Man in the Dark with Audrey Totter is a solid noir, apparently made in 3-D, and Shield For Murder is really suspenseful, with great pacing and a stellar performance from O'Brien.
Which brings me to another film noir, one that had been very high on my watchlist and is praised by many. Sweet Smell of Success (with Tony Curtis and Burt Lancaster) is the best new-to-me film of this month. This fast-paced noir stays compelling and suspenseful until the very end, has a fine script by Ernest Lehman and Clifford Odets, amazing cinematography by James Wong Howe, a wonderful music score by Elmer Bernstein, but above all great performances from both Curtis and Lancaster (with Curtis stealing the show). After watching this you almost feel the need to take a shower and shed some of the dirt you've just witnessed. So I felt like watching another Curtis film where he plays a likeable character. I found a Douglas Sirk film unknown to me, No Room For the Groom (with Piper Laurie), which is really nothing special but I enjoyed it and Curtis and Laurie make a cute and believable couple.
Talk about a cute couple ... I had already seen the very enjoyable Hands Across the Table with Carole Lombard and Fred MacMurray but never bothered to check out their other three collaborations. They are: The Princess Comes Across, Swing High, Swing Low and True Confession. The Princess Comes Across was a bit of a disappointment, though still enjoyable. I didn't have any expectations of Swing High, Swing Low and it was actually better than I thought it would be, even sweet and touching, and I liked Lombard's role here. True Confession was the last of the four Lombard/MacMurray's films I hadn't seen yet and I was surprised to read so many good write-ups because I thought this was one of their lesser collaborations. Lombard is a bit wacky and John Barrymore's eccentric character gets tiresome at times, but as a whole it turned out to be thoroughly entertaining. And I loved Una Merkel as Lombard's friend!
I watched another four films. Two film noirs starring Sterling Hayden: The Asphalt Jungle (with Jean Hagen and Marilyn Monroe) and 5 Steps to Danger (with Ruth Roman). The Asphalt Jungle is not as good as The Killing (a great heist film starring Hayden as well) but it is very enjoyable and well made, more character-driven than action-driven. The performances are all solid, even Marilyn Monroe in a small role performs well. The cinematography by Harold Rosson is a treat for the eyes, as is Hayden. He looks so good. I liked Hayden's relationship with Hagen, even though he acted tough at times but deep down he probably was fond of her. 5 Steps to Danger is a solid noir with Roman and Hayden making a believable couple. They also look physically good together and I loved the fact that this time Hayden plays a likeable and trustworthy guy whose only aim is to relax and go out fishing.
I ended the month with two light romantic comedies, The Mating of Millie (with Evelyn Keyes and Glenn Ford) and You Gotta Stay Happy (with Joan Fontaine and James Stewart). Both were enjoyable and fun, and I was especially glad I finally watched You Gotta Stay Happy, which had been on my watchlist for ages.
So it's been a good classic movie month for me. This March I will take more trips to the Filmoteca and I might also focus on one or two actors in particular.
PHOTOS/GIFS IN THIS POST FROM TOP TO BOTTOM:
*Dr. Kildare Goes Home (1940) with Lew Ayres and Laraine Day;*Dr. Kildare's Crisis (1940) with Lew Ayres, Laraine Day, Robert Young and Lionel Barrymore;
*Dr. Kildare's Crisis (1940) with Lew Ayres and Laraine Day;
*The Capture (1950) with Teresa Wright and Lew Ayres;
*Swamp Water (1941), on set with Dana Andrews, Anne Baxter and Jean Renoir;
*I Want You (1951) with Dorothy McGuire and Dana Andrews;
*The Iron Curtain (1948) with Gene Tierney and Dana Andrews;
*Singin' In the Rain (1952) with Gene Kelly and Cyd Charisse;
*High Sierra (1941) with Humphrey Bogart and Ida Lupino;
*The Hitch-Hiker (1953) with Edmond O'Brien, Frank Lovejoy and William Talman;
*The Amazing Mrs. Holliday (1943) with Edmond O'Brien and Deanna Durbin;
*The Amazing Mrs. Holliday (1943) with Edmond O'Brien, Deanna Durbin and Harry Davenport;
*For the Love of Mary (1948) with Edmond O'Brien and Deanna Durbin;
*Sweet Smell of Success (1957) with Tony Curtis and Burt Lancaster;
*No Room For the Groom (1952) with Tony Curtis and Piper Laurie;
*The Princess Comes Across (1936) with Carole Lombard and Fred MacMurray;
*Swing High, Swing Low (1937) with Carole Lombard and Fred MacMurray;
*True Confession (1937) with Carole Lombard and Fred MacMurray;
*The Asphalt Jungle (1950) with Jean Hagen and Sterling Hayden;
*5 Steps To Danger (1957) with Ruth Roman and Sterling Hayden;
*The Mating of Millie (1948) with Evelyn Keyes and Glenn Ford;
*You Gotta Stay Happy (1948) with James Stewart and Joan Fontaine.
*The Iron Curtain (1948) with Gene Tierney and Dana Andrews;
*Singin' In the Rain (1952) with Gene Kelly and Cyd Charisse;
*High Sierra (1941) with Humphrey Bogart and Ida Lupino;
*The Hitch-Hiker (1953) with Edmond O'Brien, Frank Lovejoy and William Talman;
*The Amazing Mrs. Holliday (1943) with Edmond O'Brien and Deanna Durbin;
*The Amazing Mrs. Holliday (1943) with Edmond O'Brien, Deanna Durbin and Harry Davenport;
*For the Love of Mary (1948) with Edmond O'Brien and Deanna Durbin;
*Sweet Smell of Success (1957) with Tony Curtis and Burt Lancaster;
*No Room For the Groom (1952) with Tony Curtis and Piper Laurie;
*The Princess Comes Across (1936) with Carole Lombard and Fred MacMurray;
*Swing High, Swing Low (1937) with Carole Lombard and Fred MacMurray;
*True Confession (1937) with Carole Lombard and Fred MacMurray;
*The Asphalt Jungle (1950) with Jean Hagen and Sterling Hayden;
*5 Steps To Danger (1957) with Ruth Roman and Sterling Hayden;
*The Mating of Millie (1948) with Evelyn Keyes and Glenn Ford;
*You Gotta Stay Happy (1948) with James Stewart and Joan Fontaine.