Citizen Kane II - The Revenge of Rosebud And Other Reasons To Be Glad Sequels Were Less Common in the 30s and 40s

As even the most causal films fans are aware there is nothing more certain in this world than death, taxes and sequels to hit movies. On rare occasions a sequel will be nearly as good as the original. Even more rarely a sequel will be the equal to the first. And once in a very blue moon the sequel will even surpass its predecessor. Generally speaking however, sequels stink, stank and stunk, especially when the story in the original needed no follow up.

Of course some sequels are natural (see Godfather Part 2) and others appropriate as in the Raiders of the Lost Ark series. Still they rarely capture what was special about the parent film. Usually they are lazy ways for producers to cash in on a hit film by luring audiences into a cheap imitation.

It wasn't always this way. Yes, there were some sequels in days of yore such as The Thin Man series, but this was the exception. What if, however, today's cinema bigwigs had been running the show 75 years ago? Can you imagine the tripe audiences would have been exposed to? Never mind, I've done your imagining for you. Here are ten possible sequels that could have been made during Hollywood's Golden Age. Thank God they weren't.

Casablanca II - - Rick and Louie on the Run. The two members of the that "beautiful friendship" operate cafes throughout Nazi occupied territories and they're always on the lookout for sexy resistance members (married or single, makes no difference to the boys) to help escape. Will the Germans finally catch on or can our two heroes continue to outwit them?

Arsenic and Old Lace II -- The Ladies on the Loose! The Brewster spinsters are out of the funny farm and are hosting arsenic laded teas for elderly gents again. You'll roar with laughter at the madcap antics of their nephew Mortimer to foil their shennigans. Meanwhile Mortimer's whacky homicidal brother escapes prison and adds to the merriment.

Mr. Smith Goes to Washington II -- Smith's Revenge. Not satisfied with vindication and a seat in the U.S. Senate, Jefferson Smith wants revenge against those who plotted against him and lied about him. Armed to the teeth with the latest in sophisticated weaponry, Smith goes on a bloody revenge to settle scores.

Duck Soup II - - Freedonia's Blitzkrieg. Emboldened by their victory over Slyvannia, self proclaimed dictator Rufus T. Firefly finds other nations whose ambassadors have called him an upstart. Pinky, Chicolini and Mrs. Teasdale lead Freedonia's brutally efficient armed forces to a series of devastating victories. Can Freedonia be stopped?

Grapes of Wrath II -- The Joads Strike it Rich. When we last left our favorite Okies their prospects were dim, but their luck quickly changes with a fortuitous discovery of gold by Pa Joad. Tom's back in the fold and there's no more battles with the law. But when love comes a calling the Joads find that all that glitters isn't gold.

Angels With Dirty Faces II -- The Angels Clean Up. With their hero dead and apparently having gone to the electric chair a coward, the boys turn over a new leaf and dedicate their time to performing good deeds. But what happens when school and homework interfere with their charitable work?

It's A Wonderful Life II - - Old Man Potter Strikes Back. George Bailey appeared to be the richest man in town by virtue of all the friends he had. But mean old Mr. Potter is fighting back. He's turned over a new leaf and is now the nicest man in Bedford Falls. Can the new Mr. Potter woo more friends than George?

Bringing Up Baby II -- Baby Has Babies. Everyone's favorite leopard, Baby, has had babies of her own. You'll roar with laughter at Baby's owners, Susan and David as they try to cope with the kittens, especially when some old dinosaur bones go missing!

The Big Sleep II -- Everyone Wakes Up. Life seems grand for Philip Marlowe and his new bride Vivian. They're retired on her riches when suddenly all the murder victims from the original feature appear as ghosts and haunt them! The accent is on horror on this time.

Ninocthtka II - Love on the Run. Ninotchka and the count are together again and for good but their troubles aren't over. Soviet assassins have exacted terrible revenge on Iranoff, Bujanoff and Kopalski and the two lovers are next on their list.

You Know You Really Like A Director If... (Part Eight)

Yes it's true, proof positive that you really like a director is the fact that you can create a list of ten films of his that you really like. I have proved this in the past with lists of top ten films from: Woody Allen, Alfred Hitchcock, John Ford, William Wellman, Martin Scorsese, Howard Hawks and Frank Capra. This week's honoree is Billy Wilder.

When various actors for the same director keep getting nominated for Oscars or are otherwise recognized for their work it ain't no coincidence. The likes of Wiliam Holden, Jack Lemmon, Ray Milland, Gloria Swanson, Shirley MacClaine and even character actors like Robert Strauss were honored for work in Wilder films. Surely much credit must go to Wilder the writer who provided or tinkered with the screenplays for most of Wilder the director's films. Indeed Wilder started as a screenwriter with such classics as Ninothcka and Ball of Fire to his credit.

The relationship with Ninothcka's director is significant. The man was Ernest Lubitcsh who was Wilder's idol. Both came to the U.S. via Germany. Wilder was one of Adolph Hitler's unintentional gifts to Hollywood. When Der Fuhrer came to power a veritable who's who of German cinema hightailed out of the the Fatherland. Wilder may have been the greatest among them.

Though many of his films were comedies and many others were cynical (and some both) Wilder directed a wide variety of film. He made films dealing with Alcoholism, World War II, romance, newspapers, Sherlock Holmes, murder plots, courtroom drama and however you'd classify Sunset Boulevard.

Wilder was a daring director. While avoiding elaborate camera work or sets, he focused on subject matter that pushed the boundaries of what Hollywood would allow and he maintained his focus on character and plot. The results were some of the best films of his era and any other era for that matter. I believe the list bellow will illustrate this point.

1. Sunset Boulevard (1950). My fourth favorite all time American film, which is my way of saying I think it's a masterpiece. Not like any film made before or even since.

2. The Lost Weekend (1945). Take it from one who knows, Ray Milland's portrayal of the alcoholic Don Birnahm is spot on. Wilder and Milland created a compelling look at the depths to which a drunkard can and will sink.

3. Some Like it Hot (1959). One of the greatest comedies of all time. Marylin Monroe jiggles and giggles, Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon in drag are fast talking and funny. Surely you've seen it.

4. Double Indemnity (1944). Barbara Stanwyck, silly wig and all, is sexy and evil. Fred MacMurray is a slick talking sap but Edward G. Robinson steals the picture. Film noir at its absolute best, indeed a highly influential film in the genre.

5. The Major and the Minor (1942). The premise is ridiculous. Ginger Rogers could no more have passed for a 12 year old girl than I could, but that does little to diminish the laughs which are plentiful in Wilder's directorial debut. He wanted to start with a sure fire hit and he did.

6. Stalag 17 (1953). William Holden won the Best Actor Oscar for his brilliant portrayal of a cynical wheeler dealer who's suspected of being a Nazi plant. The setting is a German POW camp during World War II and the drama is deep but cut nicely by moments of humor.

7. Witness For the Prosecution (1957). An interesting twist on the usual stuff of courtroom dramas what with Charles Laughton and Marlene Dietrich heading the cast. Has the requisite plot twist at the end but mostly enjoyable for the performances.

8. The Apartment (1960). That it was overly lavished at the Oscars reflects on the quality of what Hollywood was producing back then and in no way detracts from what a fine film this is. Jack Lemmon and Shirley MacClaine couldn't be more watchable, which makes the film worthy of repeat viewings.

9. Fortune Cookie (1966). Walter Matthua and Lemon together for the first time and what a winning note they started on. Matthau is positively brilliant as the prototypical shyster lawyer and Lemon does a whole lot more with an rather ordinary part than most anyone else would or could have.

10. The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes (1970). I know you can't believe this made my top ten but I really love this irreverent look at the legend of the great detective. He's a druggie and his sexuality is subject to debate. Wilder wisely cast unknowns as Holmes and Watson (they remain so today) and created an oddly effective film, never mind the somewhat silly case they're on.

Is 1939 Overrated or are 1940 and 1941 Underrated?

This month Turner Classic Movies (aka the world's greatest TV station -- ever) is celebrating the 70th anniversary of 1939.TCM is calling it's tribute: 1939 Hollywood's Greatest Year and showing 39 films from that year. Fair enough. There were many a good film released that year (check out TCM for examples) including some of my favorites. But in my estimation the two years following were equally good, if not better. And I have some pretty strong arguments, as you'll see below.

There are probably more good films in '39 than any other year. But in terms of great and near great the two subsequent years are every bit as good. What follows is the 15 best films from those years, it's my bold contention that they match up quite favorably with any top 15 from '39.

From 1940:

Foreign Correspondent. Speaking of underrated. This is Alfred Hitchcock's most underrated film. (Poster above.) On the eve of war in Europe, Joel McCrea is a reporter sent abroad to get the scoop. He finds love and adventure and gets the story.

His Girl Friday. Cary Grant and Rosalind Russell in a screwball comedy with deeper truths to tell. As I said in a recent post that you're more than welcome to read.

The Philadelphia Story. George Cukor directed Cary Grant, Katharine Hepburn, and Jimmy Stewart star in the story of a society wedding that doesn't go as planned. Like I need to tell you anything about this movie. Sheesh.

The Letter. Goodness is Bette Davis amazing in this film, though actually goodness had nothing to do with her character. See my post from last Fall, if you'd like.

The Grapes of Wrath. John Ford directed this adaptation of John Steinbeck's novel. Henry Fonda starred in the story of Depression Era farmers dispossessed by the Dust Bowl who head for California only to face new heartache and anger. I rattled on about this fine film last Spring.

The Shop Around the Corner. Ernest Lubitch directed, Jimmy Stewart, Maureen Sullavan and Frank Morgan star. If you've ever wondered what the Lubitcsh touch is watch this film. Great Christmas season viewing.

Brother Orchid. Edward G. Robinson plays a gangster for the umpteenth time but this time he's hiding out in a monastery. So what's it going to be, the monastic life or the rackets? Worth watching to find out.

The Great Dictator. Charlie Chaplin's satire of Hitler and Mussolini is a subtle as a sledge hammer and just as effective.

Rebecca. Joan Fontaine couldn't be lovelier. Judith Anderson couldn't be creepier. Laurence Olivier couldn't be better. Hitchcock directed. See my post from a few months ago for more.

City for Conquest. Jimmy Cagney reluctantly becomes a prize fighter to support his brother's ambitions of being a concert pianist and composer. Ann Sheridan is his girlfriend and I wish she were mine.

Gaslight. The original version of the story of a man who tries to convince his wife she's loony. I prefer this one. Thorold Dickinson directed Anton Walbrrok and Diana Wynyard and no you shouldn't feel bad about not having heard of any of them.

My Favorite Wife. Cary Grant has two wives. He'd thought the original was long dead. Imagine the newlywed's embarrassment when wife number one shows up! It's between Irene Dunne, the loving mother of their two children and Gail Patrick the stereotypical nasty step mom. Guess who prevails?

The Great McGinty. Preston Sturges started his brief run of brilliant films with this story of corrupt politics. Brian Donleavy is the title character. The usual cast of Sturges characters are around to provide laughs.

The Mortal Storm. Here was a film to stir audiences up for a little Nazi hating. Stewart and and Morgan are together again but this is no comedy. See my post from last Fall.

The Westerner. A William Wyler Western. Wow! Walter Brennan is the onery but love struck Judge Roy Bean and Gary Cooper is Cole Harden, the one man who can match wits and gun play with the Judge.

From 1941:

Sullivan's Travels. I just raved about this Preston Sturges masterpiece the other day. Check it out.

The Maltese Falcon. Bogie is unforgettable as Sam Spade. The rest of the cast ain't half bad either. Mary Astor, Peter Lorre, Sydney Greenstreet and let's not forget Elisha Cook. John Huston's directorial debut.

Meet John Doe. One of director Frank Capra's best. Stanwyck is the reporter, Gary Cooper is the hobo. Edward Arnold is the bad guy. Walter Brennan is the sidekick. Great film.

Citizen Kane. You may have heard of it. Young wunderkind Orson Welles produced this opus and ticked off William Randolf Heart and company something awful. A film so good that it lives up to its hype.

The Lady Eve. Another 1941 classic from Preston Sturges. How many other directors have had two great films within 12 months? Henry Fonda and Barbara Stanwyck star and the latter put the exy in sexy.

Mr. and Mrs. Smith. An Alfred Hitchcock screwball comedy. His one and only and he was a most emphatic one- for-one in this category. Robert Montgomery and Carole Lombard are the stars.

The Sea Wolf. Why the hell is this film not available on DVD? Someone get on that, pronto. Edward G. Robinson is superb as a sadistic sea captain. Michael Curtiz directed, Ida Lupino and John Garfield co star. It's not on TCM's schedule for the next couple of months, so now I'm getting mad.

Ball of Fire. Stanwyck is sexy again this time in a comedy from Howard Hawks. Cary Cooper is her co star. For more see this post from last Summer. And say, any year that's got three great Stanwyck films is all right by me.

The Devil and Daniel Webster. I can't say enough good stuff about this film, although I tried recently and you might want to read that post.

Here Comes Mr. Jordan. The original of the Heaven Can Wait stories stars Robert Montgomery as a boxer who shuffled off this mortal coil before his time. It's heaven's mistake so they give him another chance, this time in the body of a millionaire who's just been offed by the missus. Much under appreciated film.

High Sierra. Bogie is bad man Roy Earle who hooks up with Ida Lupino and Joan Leslie before shooting it out with the cops from the side of a mountain. Raoul Walsh directed.

Love Crazy. You can't go wrong with Myrna Loy and William Powell and this wacky comedy proves it. Powell has to pretend he's off his rocker to keep Loy. Trust me, it's a gas.

Sergeant York. Another Hawks film with Cooper in the lead, this time its the true story of World War I hero, Alvin York. Strong supporting cast featuring Walter Brennan, Joan Leslie and the ubiquitous Ward Bond.

The Devil and Miss Jones. Sam Wood directed this delightful story of a Scrooge like business tycoon (Charles Coburn) who goes undercover to find union agitators at one of his department stores. Instead he becomes one of the gang which includes Jean Arthur and Robert Cummings and Spring Byington (who Coburn ends up being daffy for). Love and laughs triumph.

The Big Store. For a Marx Brothers film this is pretty lame but compared to most comedies its top drawer. Another film set in a department store but this time anarchy is the order of the day (so to speak).

Ladies and gentleman, I rest my case.

What Film is Even Better than Ants in Your Plants of 1939 and Hey Hey in the Hayloft?

Answer: Sullivan's Travels (1941).

But I immediately introduce a new question: Why is the main character, a film director, named John L. Sullivan? Oh sure it's explicitly John Lloyd Sullivan but it can't be coincidence that the writer director of the film, Preston Sturges, gave him the same name as a heavyweight boxing legend.

No way.

Get back to me on that one.

And say, I've got another question for you. How come they don't write dialogue as good as this these days?

Sullivan: This picture is an ANSWER to Communists. It shows we're awake and not dunking our heads in the sand like a bunch of ostriches. I want this picture to be a commentary on modern conditions, stark realism, the problems that confront the average man.
Lebrand: But with a little sex.
Sullivan: A little, but I don't want to stress it. I want this picture to be a document. I want to hold a mirror up to life. I want this to be a picture of dignity - a true canvas of the suffering of humanity.
Lebrand: But with a little sex.
Sullivan: With a little sex in it.
Hadrian: How about a nice musical?
Sullivan: How can you talk about musicals at a time like this? With the world committing suicide, with corpses piling up in the street, with grim death gargling at you from every corner, with people slaughtered like sheep!
Hadrian: Maybe they'd like to forget that.
Sullivan: Then why do they hold this one over for a fifth week at the Music Hall? For the ushers?
Hadrian: It died in Pittsburgh.
Lebrand: Like a dog.
Sullivan: What do they know in Pittsburgh?
Lebrand: They know what they like.

That's pretty good stuff, no? If you're anything like me (God forbid) you answered with an emphatic, yesiree. It comes at the beginning of the film when Sullivan is pitching his latest film idea to studio bigwigs.

It's interesting the way Joel McCrea plays Sullivan. There is such earnestness, such naivete and such noble aspirations. Here's a director making pictures like "So Long Sarong", a man of 31 born with a silver spoon in his mouth, or at least a nice clean spoon. Look, it was clean enough that he could go to boarding school and one of them fancy eastern colleges. Point is, he was a whiz bang director but with a conscience from here to the Poconos. It's not that he couldn't live with taking a postage stamp from the office, no his conscience is about the whole friggin' world. There's war in Europe, poverty and despair everywhere. Given that, how the deuce can he make light comedies and musicals? No, not our Sully, he's got to expose what ails us. He wants to hold a mirror up to society.

Not only does this not sit well with studio execs, but even his butler pooh poohs the notion that what the world needs now is take a good hard look at itself through film.

Butler: The poor know all about poverty and only the morbid rich would find the topic glamorous.
Sullivan: But I'm doing it for the poor. Don't you understand?
Butler: I doubt if they would appreciate it, sir. They rather resent the invasion of their privacy...I believe quite properly, sir. Also, such excursions can be extremely dangerous, sir...You see, sir, rich people and theorists, who are usually rich people, think of poverty in the negative, as the lack of riches, as disease might be called the lack of health, but it isn't, sir. Poverty is not the lack of anything, but a positive plague, virulent in itself, contagious as cholera, with Filth, Criminality, Vice and Despair as only a few of its symptoms. It is to be stayed away from, even for purposes of study. It is to be shunned.
Sullivan: Well, you seem to have made quite a study of it.
Butler: Quite unwillingly, sir. Will that be all, sir?

But Sullivan, convinced that he must experience poverty to truly tell its story, decides to go out into the world as a hobo, torn clothing, bindle and all. He does take a dime, I mean there are limits.

Now we get the "sex" in the form of Veronica Lake. She plays an aspiring actress who has given up aspiring and is heading home. She meets John L. and they fall for each other and into his pool, don't you know.

So yes there are laughs aplenty but also right smack dab in the middle of this romp, a long stark and wordless look at life among the dispossessed, of which there was still quite a bit in the U.S. in 1941 (and not incidentally the extremely poor are making a comeback in this day and age often through no fault of their own). That stark look is not an insignificant interlude.

The course of true love does not always run smooth and neither does the course of trying to find out what life in the raw is really like. Sullivan's last grand gesture costs him a trip to a chain gang. I have to ask: don't you just hate it when that happens? I thought so. But there he finds that what those on the lowest rung want is to forget, to laugh like they've never laughed before. In this case it comes via Pluto and Mickey Mouse. Says Sullivan, "There's a lot to be said for making people laugh. Did you know that that's all some people have? It isn't much, but it's better than nothing in this cockeyed caravan."

There are great truths in this film. It's the best of Sturges' films which is going some considering he also wrote and directed The Lady Eve (1941) and The Miracle of Morgan's Creek (1944) just to name two others. You want I should go on? But I already did and this sentence is linked to that post of last summer wherein I did, go on that is.

We like McCrea's studied indifference to the external in his pursuit of the internal. Don't say anything to him, he needs to experience. We like Veronica inasmuch as that Lake looks so inviting -- care for a dip? We like the Sturges acting troupe with reliable chaps like Porter Hall, William Demarest, Franklin Pangborn, Jimmy Conlin and well, you get the idea. We also like that he augments this group with Eric Blore and Robert Grieg as his valet and butler, respectively and yes they were typecast in those sorts of roles but so what, they were good, weren't they?

We also like the messages. Sure we get it. Everyone, perhaps especially the down and out, really really need all the chuckles and guffaws they can get. Hell, we all do. Savvy. But we further note that Sturges is poking a wee bit of fun at Hollywood, or hadn't you noticed? He's also shining a pretty bright light on the sorrowful conditions that beset those aforementioned tramps and hobos (today they are less colorfully known as homeless). In saying we all need to laugh he can get pretty serious.

Gracious. How can you not love a movie that has the main character confess to murdering himself to get out of jail? How, sir or madam, can you not love a movie that references "Hey Hey in the Hayloft" and "Ants in Their Plants of 1939?" And oh I almost forgot, the movie he was gonna make, "O Brother Where Art Thou" is based on the novel by Sinclair Beckstein.

Prutty cool.

Depp Does Dillinger Delightfully

Saw Public Enemies today, Michael Mann's new film about famed gangster John Dillinger.

I'd been intrigued by the movie when I first heard about it, having read the book by Bryan Burrough upon which it is based. I'm also a connoisseur of gangster films, Hollywood having produced so damn many good ones. Lastly the casting of Johnny Depp as Dillinger was inspired. Depp was born for the role. He's facially a bit softer looking, but like Leo DiCaprio as Howard Hughes in The Aviator (2004), needed neither gobs of make up nor the vivid imagination of audiences to play the historical figure. It was clear from the previews that Depp had the Dillinger posture and smirk down, leaving the rest up to director Mann.

Christian Bale was just fine as Melvin Purivs and Billy Crudup was a perfect 30 year old J Edgar Hoover. Marion Cotillard, not seen since her Oscar winning turn as Edith Piaf on La Vie en Rose (2007) seemed a risky choice to play Dillinger's moll Billie Frechette. But she was wonderful and hopefully we'll be seeing much much more of her in years to come.

Mann makes technically perfect films, See Heat (1995), Ali (2001), Collateral (2004) and The Last of the Mohicans (1992) as examples. He scrupulously avoids anachronisms. Mann's attention to detail is unmatched (that is not to say there aren't those who'll find some "goofs" for IMDb, but they are relatively few). Mann's recreation of the early 1930s Midwest is uncanny. Students of the era will love it.

It's useful to compare Public Enemies to a couple of earlier films on Depression Era gangsters. Brian De Palma played much looser with the facts in The Untouchables (1987) going so far as to have Elliott Ness toss Frank Nitti off a roof. He allowed a bloated performance by Robert DeNiro as Al Capone, which was closer to vamping than acting. Worse he tried to pay homage to Battleship Potemkin's (1925) famous baby carriage scene and as a consequence merely drew attention to himself and away from the film. The Untouchables was initially entertaining but grows tiresome with increased viewings. I suspect Pubic Enemies may well improve with age. It is a visual smorgasbord without hammy performances or unneeded directorial flourishes to interfere with it.

Bonnie & Clyde (1967) also played fast and loose with the truth of the events it depicted but did so in the service of creating a ground breaking cinematic experience. Bonnie & Clyde, like Public Enemies, was about some Depression Era Robin Hoods who robbed from banks, not never from plain folks. But Bonnie & Clyde was much as much about the time of its release as it was about the depression. It spoke to contemporary audiences who were in the midst of a cultural revolution. Bonnie & Clyde was wildly eccentric characters and Flatt & Scruggs driven car chases. Public Enemies is much more about the destinations than the journeys. Yet its not meditative, it has too much to tell to stop and think about it.

Mann does not mythologize Dillinger. Yes, we see that Dilligner was all about beating the establishment (for the sake of their money) and wouldn't hurt a poor person's fly. But though charismatic, he was not by any means a man of either deep or particularly interesting character. The guy was cool and sexy but still a thief.

Dilligner and Frichette's relationship is two people fatalistically clinging to one another with the specter of death or prison hanging over them. It's not presented as a great screen romance nor should it have been. To make a romance out of Public Enemies would have trivialized its truths.

As a matter of fact Public Enemies is pretty straight forward story telling. This is a speciality of Mann's. He doesn't tend to make great films (except for Heat, which is a masterpiece) but they're pretty much all very, very good. Public Enemies is the type of picture the Oscars can get so wrong by either totally ignoring it or lavishing it with far too many statuettes.

It's always a challenge to tell a story that has an ending that most audience members know full well. Mann does a masterful job, particularly with how he shows Dillinger watching Manhattan Melodrama (1934), the movie he'd just seen before being gunned down by the law. It starred Clark Gable as a gangster, William Powell as the D.A. and Myrna Loy as the woman they love. I've found it interesting to watch the film wondering what Dillinger thought as he watched it and what an interesting thing it is that this of all films is what he saw in his last hours. In it Gable nobly gives himself up to save his childhood chum the D.A. and willingly goes to the electric chair. He's a tough egg all right, but one with a big heart. What must Dillinger have thought!

Quite obviously Mann has thought about the strange juxtaposition of Manhattan Melodrama and Dillinger's imminent death. The manner in which we view Dillinger watch the movie and the scenes from it Mann shows is fascinating.

It's easy to look at a film like Public Enemies and wonder how it could have been elevated to greatness. But I think it far more useful to look at a film like Public Enemies and enjoy it for what it is -- a damn good movie.

Just Asking....

If Admiral Robert Peary had been a manic depressive, would he be known today as a famous bi-polar explorer?

OMG These Movies Totally Cracks Me Up -- Every Time

There are movies aplenty that will induce hearty laughs the first time you watch them. A second viewing is often disappointing because all the punch lines and surprises are well remembered. However there are those rare comic masterpieces that are funny with each and every viewing.

You can pop the DVD in every year or two and once again find yourself slapping your knees, rolling on the floor and wiping away the tears as your sides split.

I recently read an online discussion on what makes a good comedy funny. Folks, it was dreadfully boring reading. There are some things I just don't feel the need to analyze, like why a strawberry tastes good or why Groucho Marx makes me laugh. So I will spare you any analysis of why the 12 films below continue to tickle my funny bones. They just do. Of course a quick gander at the list will reveal some familiar names like the afore mentioned Groucho and Woody Allen, Bill Murray and Steve Martin. Oddly there are some among you might not find one of these gents particularly amusing. Just as I am left yawning by many supposed funny men that are otherwise popular. Much of what makes us laugh is a matter of personal tastes that often relates to our age and thus our early comic influences. That's as much analysis as I care to indulge in.

Here are a dozen films that are guaranteed to leave me in stitches. When you've finished perusing the list I invite you to offer a film or two that always leave you rolling in the aisles.

The Movie Animal House (1978) The Director John Landis The Stars John Belushi, Tom Hulce, Peter Reigert The Line Nothing is over until we decide it is! Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor? Hell no! The Comment Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha.

The Movie Stripes (1981) The Director Ivan Reitman The Stars Bill Murray, Harold Ramis, John Candy The Line C'mon, it's Czechoslovakia. We zip in, we pick 'em up, we zip right out again. We're not going to Moscow. It's Czechoslovakia. It's like going into Wisconsin.
The Comment Ho ho ho ho ho ho ho ho ho ho ho ho ho ho ho ho ho ho ho ho ho.

The Movie Duck Soup (1933) The Director Leo McCarey The Stars The Marx Brothers The Line Nobody calls a Firefly an upstart! The Comment He he he he he he he he he he he he he he.

The Movie To Be Or Not To Be (1942) The Director Ernest Lubitsch The Stars Jack Benny, Carole Lombard, Robert Stack The Line So they call me Concentration Camp Ehrardt, do they? The Comment Har har har har har har har har har har har har har.

The Movie Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975) The Directors Terry Gilliam, Terry Jones The Stars Michael Palin, Eric Idle, John Cleese, Terry Jones, Terry Gilliam, Graham Chapman The Line I didn't know we had a king. I thought we were an autonomous collective. The Comment Yuk yuk yuk yuk yuk yuk yuk yuk yuk yuk yuk yuk.

The Movie Some Like it Hot (1959) The Director Billy Wilder The Stars Tony Curtis, Jack Lemmon, Marylin Monroe The Line Real diamonds! They must be worth their weight in gold. The Comment Chuckle chuckle chuckle chuckle chuckle chuckle chuckle chuckle chuckle chuckle chuckle.

The Movie The Lady Eve (1941) The Director Preston Sturges The Stars Barbara Stanwyck, Henry Fonda The Line Postively the same dame. The Comment Haw haw haw haw haw haw haw haw haw haw.

The Movie Manhattan (1979) The Director Woody Allen The Stars Woody Allen, Diane Keaton, Mariel Hemingway The Line They probably sit around on the floor with wine and cheese, and mispronounce allegorical and didacticism. The Comment Guffaw guffaw guffaw guffaw guffaw guffaw guffaw.

The Movie Arthur (1981) The Director Steve Gordon The Stars Dudley Moore, Liza Minelli John Gielgud The Line Thank you for a memorable afternoon, usually one must go to a bowling alley to meet a woman of your stature. The Comment Chortle chortle chortle chortle chortle chortle chortle chortle chortle chortle chortle chortle chortle.

The Movie Bananas (1971) The Director Woody Allen The Stars Woody Allen, Louise Lasser The Line I once stole a pornographic book that was printed in braille. I used to rub the dirty parts. The Comment Giggle giggle giggle giggle giggle giggle giggle giggle giggle giggle giggle giggle giggle.

The Movie A Night at the Opera (1935) The Director Sam Wood The Stars The Marx Brothers The Line I have here an accident policy that will absolutely protect you no matter what happens. If you lose a leg, we'll help you look for it. The Comment Titter, titter titter titter titter titter titter titter titter titter titter titter titter.

The Movie The Jerk (1979) The Director Carl Reiner The Star Steve Martin The Line I was born a poor black child. The Comment Hardy har har har hardy har har har hardy har har har.

Now remember to submit your own cinematic comedy gold.

You Know You Really Like A Director If... (Part Seven)

You know you really like a director if you can make a top ten list of your favorites from among his films. Previously I've offered top tens of Woody Allen, Alfred Hitchcock, John Ford, William Wellman, Howard Hawks and Martin Scorsese. This week's installment features Frank Capra.

Capra was supposedly a Republican who voted against FDR four times. Yet he made some of the most liberal, verging on radical, mainstream films of Hollywood's Golden Age. In Mr. Smith Goes to Washington and Meet John Doe in particular, he warned against shadowy powers exerting unimaginable powers in our political process. In Smith it was graft hungry businessmen who could control congressman and muzzle the press. In Doe it was a megalomaniac with fascist tendencies who could aspire to the highest political position in the land.

Capra imagined an America where an ordinary Joe (or Jefferson) could take on these giants like a modern day David slaying Goliath. The love and support of a formerly cynical woman helped. Indeed what Capra did so well was show people transforming. Not just just falling in love but embracing ideals or values.

To many Capra is overly sentimental. It's not productive for me to address this view of Capra which folks are fully entitled to. I do feel he went to heavy on the schmaltz with You Can't Take it With You (1938) a film I don't particularly care for. But a movie like It's A Wonderful Life, in my mind, hits at too many truths to accurately and too adroitly to be thought maudlin.

Capra loved the notion of ordinary people a heroes and in a day and age when we're inundated with super natural crime fighters this is especially to be appreciated. But Capra also was adept at comedy, witness Platinum Blonde and Arsenic and old Lace, but also note the humor in even his most dramatic films.

Lubitsch had a touch but so too did Capra. His films celebrate its characters. They move along deftly and entertain us along the way. There is room, in fact a lot of it, for Capra's depiction of gritty common folk fighting for better days. Capra loved America. It shows. Nothing wrong with that, especially when he can show its underside and give us chuckles along the way.

Here are my ten favorite Capra films.

1. Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939). My second favorite film of all time. Upon its release it was assailed by fascists, communists and even good ole American capitalists. In fact even today Mr. Smith draws fire for its supposedly subversive political message, mostly from conservatives. Obviously this film did something quite right. It's the story of political corruption over running one state that reaches all the way into the hallowed halls of the U.S. Senate. Jimmy Stewart plays the naive Senator Jefferson Smith who challenges the graft hungry Taylor Machine. In addition to Stewart the all star cast includes Claude Rains, Thomas Mitchell, Edward Arnold, Jean Arthur and Guy Kibbee.

2. It's A Wonderful Life (1946). Now a Christmas classic although only the very beginning and the end of the film are set during the holiday. Stewart stars again this time paired with Donna Reed. Also returning is Thomas Mitchell who is a delight as Uncle Billy. It's one of the few movies that seeks to be heart warming and succeeds beyond any possible expectation. Its eternal themes of appreciating what you have and the importance of family and friends have and likely never will be better realized on screen. For me watching it is one of the joys of the Christmas season.

3. Meet John Doe (1941). Like many great films it comments on several themes. One is the madcap world of newspapers, another it the Great Depression and a third is the politics of demagoguery. I've only just started. Gary Cooper is the title character, a hobo who becomes a political cause celebre. Barbara Stanwyck is the reporter who creates the John Doe character and unwittingly launches a populist movement. Edward Arnold is as evil, nasty and mean as he was in Mr. Smith.

4. Arsenic and Old Lace (1944). One of the screwiest of all screwball comedies and the only film Capra made with Cary Grant. Grant hated his performance but the rest of us delight in his turn as Mortimer Brewster a newlywed who discovers that his old maid aunts are poisoning elderly gents (don't you hate it when that happens). With the likes of Peter Lorre, Raymond Massey, Jack Carson and Edward Everett Horton on hand, this is comic gold. Priscilla Lane is the blushing and befuddled bride.

5. It Happened One Night (1934). Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert in a road picture the likes of which you'll we've never seen since. Gable is a reporter, Colbert an heiress on the run from daddy and the two form a partnership that can only lead to them falling in love. It swept the Oscars but more importantly has endured and stands up no matter how often you watch it.

6. Platinum Blonde (1931). It's a Jean Harlow picture but 18 year old Loretta Young is do damn gorgeous and plays such a sweetie pie that she steals the picture. The great tragedy of watching the film is to realize that the male star, Robert Williams, died about the time of the film's release. he was on the verge of stardom. Thankfully we have this delight to enjoy him in, Young and Harlow. Williams plays a reporter who in the process of looking for the scoop on a young heiress (Harlow) falls in love and marries her. They're mismatched. A fellow reporter (Young) is more his cup of tea. Will true love out or will this unhappy union go on?

7. Broadway Bill (1934). What, another heiress? Yup, this time played by Myrna Loy with Warner Baxter as the male lead along with a horse named Broadway Bill. There's horse racing, gambling, romance and comedy. It is a vastly under appreciated film despite its presence on DVD. Do yourself a favor and rent it some time. Thank me later.

8. Lost Horizon (1937). It's rotten luck when your plane crashes in the Himalayas just as you've escaped war torn China, but if you in turn stumble upon Shangri-La, it's your lucky day. Such is the happy lot of the five protagonists of this story. They find Eden within the mountains, peace and serenity abound and people suffer no ill health and live eternally. It could be pretty cornball stuff but Capra does a nice job with James Hilton's novel. Ronald Colman, Thomas Mitchell, H.B. Warner, Edward Everett Horton and Jane Wyatt star.

9. Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936). What could be better than in inheriting a fortune? As far as Longfellow deeds is concerned, plenty. Especially when big city shysters come along and try to take advantage of him. He's a small town lad, happy enough to play his tuba. Jean Arthur plays a reporter who uses deception to get the scoop on Deeds. But wouldn't you know it, the two fall for each other. Meanwhile our hero has to fend off the swindlers.

10. Lady for a Day (1933). With character names like Dave the Dude, Missouri Martin, Apple Annie, and Shakespeare you know your watching a Damon Runyon story. From IMDb's plot summary because I couldn't put it better myself: "Apple Annie is an indigent woman who has always written to her daughter in Spain that she is a member of New York's high society. Now her daughter plans to return to America with her new fiance and his father, a member of Spain's aristocracy. Annie must pretend to be wealthy or the count will not give his blessing. She gets the help of Dave the Dude, who considers Annie a good luck charm, to obtain a luxury apartment and entertain the visitors, but things don't always go quite as planned." May Robson and Warren Willliam star.

My Turn, Ten Facts About Me

Recently on a few of the blogs I follow, bloggers posted ten random facts about themselves. No one asked me to post ten facts about yours truly (most people know better) but I've never been one to let common sense interfere with a really stupid idea. So here goes. I've got ten of my own that will shock, appall, amuse, delight and stupefy. Enjoy!

1. I once crossed the Alps on stilts.

2. A drunken Jodie Foster once seduced me mistaking me for an oddly proportioned woman. (That's her mug, above.)

3. I am an opium addict and frequent the neighborhood opium den.

4. For two years in the 80s I was world heavyweight boxing champion.

5. Though a vegetarian I occasionally like to eat raw squirrels. In fact I prefer them to still be alive when I begin my repast.

6. I like shovels a lot. In fact, I really dig them.

7. My seven favorite days of the week are (in no particular order): Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

8. My favorite hobby is performing unnecessary surgery on the elderly -- without anesthetic.

9. I started the whole Abe Lincoln was gay thing.

10. My favorite color is blue.