Tonight's Movie: The War of the Worlds (1953)

I've always felt irrational fear watching most old sci-fi films, no matter how hokey they look to the modern viewer. I'm not quite certain why these particular movies evoke such a strong reaction, but I suspect it may have to do with years of nightmares caused by a scene in THE BLOB (1958)! In any event, I decided now was the time to stretch myself a little and try out watching THE WAR OF THE WORLDS.

The film drew my interest for a few reasons, starting with its Technicolor filming of Los Angeles of the early '50s. I was also intrigued as I've seen a number of films this year which were written by TWOTW screenwriter Barre Lyndon. A short piece by Jacqueline at Another Old Movie Blog also caught my attention. Finally, the Welles radio broadcast -- played on LP -- was a staple of late-night slumber party entertainment when I was growing up in the '70s, so I was curious how the story translated to film.

This 1953 film version transfers the main action to Southern California, where scientist Clayton Forrester (Gene Barry) meets Sylvia (Ann Robinson), a pretty library instructor from USC, just as Martians are invading the world. The military, led by Maj. Gen. Mann (Les Tremayne), proves to be no match for the invaders, while Dr. Forrester and his colleagues try to come up with scientific solutions. But time is running out...

I enjoyed the film, although I can't say it was a relaxing experience; even without my predisposition to be nervous during sci-fi films, if one is willing to buy into the story, this is a nerve-wracking experience. The Oscar-winning special effects still impress and spook today, nearly six decades later.

I especially enjoyed the film's vivid Technicolor, particularly the aforementioned scenes shot in Los Angeles. (The cinematographer was George Barnes.) The superbly designed opening credits also make great use of Technicolor.

I'm not sure I'd seen Gene Barry in a theatrical film before, and I thought he and Ann Robinson were an appealing team. It was quite believable, given the end-of-the-world circumstances, that they'd pair up immediately!

I also liked how the story was brought to a conclusion near the end of its 85 minutes. The miracle of God's design of life on earth accomplishes what the military and science could not.

Screenwriter Barre Lyndon had a number of creepy films in his prior credits, including THE LODGER (1944), HANGOVER SQUARE (1945), and NIGHT HAS A THOUSAND EYES (1948). This film has very different subject matter from the '40s movies, yet in various ways the same otherworldly malevolence suffuses all these titles.

The movie was directed by Byron Haskin and produced by George Pal.

The large supporting cast includes Robert Cornthwaite, Lewis Martin, Paul Frees, and Ann Codee. Edgar Barrier, a member of Orson Welles' Mercury Theatre, plays Professor McPherson. The narrator is Sir Cedric Hardwicke.

WAR OF THE WORLDS has had more than one DVD release, including a Collector's Edition DVD which includes a commentary track by lead actors Gene Barry and Ann Robinson. I watched this edition, and the print was outstanding.

The film was also released on VHS.

2016 Update: I saw THE WAR OF THE WORLDS introduced at the TCM Classic Film Festival by special effects experts Craig Barron and Ben Burtt, with leading lady Ann Robinson in the audience.

April 2020 Update: This film will be released on Blu-ray and DVD by the Criterion Collection in July.

2024 Update: I saw a special "Flights of Fantasy" screening of this film as the Fox Village Theatre in Westwood.

Quick Preview of TCM in September

Earlier this week a somewhat incomplete schedule for September appeared on the Turner Classic Movies website.

The schedule has since disappeared -- along with the previously posted schedules for July and August! I've been holding off posting the September preview in hopes the schedule would reappear, but since it's been a few days now I'm going to go ahead and share the information I have based on what was previously posted, with the caveat that titles are subject to change.

September's Star of the Month is Kirk Douglas. Over two dozen Douglas films will be shown on Tuesday evenings in September.

Titles shown will include OUT OF THE PAST (1947), A LETTER TO THREE WIVES (1949), ACE IN THE HOLE (1951), THE BAD AND THE BEAUTIFUL (1952), LUST FOR LIFE (1956), SPARTACUS (1960), and SEVEN DAYS IN MAY (1964), along with many others.

Particular highlights for me on the September schedule are YOUNG AND WILLING (1943), a hard-to-come-by Paramount film starring William Holden and Susan Hayward; UNION DEPOT (1932), a pre-Code starring Douglas Fairbanks Jr. and Joan Blondell; and LOVE, HONOR AND BEHAVE (1938), one of the last films I need to complete my Priscilla Lane collection. After September the only Lane films I need to track down are SILVER QUEEN (1942) with George Brent and THE MEANEST MAN IN THE WORLD (1943) with Jack Benny.

The long-sought THE CONSTANT NYMPH (1943) is said to be showing on September 28th, though it's not on the calendar I printed.

THE STORY OF TEMPLE DRAKE (1933), a somewhat infamous pre-Code starring Miriam Hopkins, is slated for September 14th.

Also coming to TCM in September: tributes to William Holden, Ann Blyth, Robert Benchley, Walter Pidgeon, Deborah Kerr, and Merchant-Ivory films. There will be an evening of mermaid movies, including MIRANDA (1948) and MR. PEABODY AND THE MERMAID (1948), and another evening focusing on ballet films such as THE UNFINISHED DANCE (1947) and INVITATION TO THE DANCE (1956).

Over at Thrilling Days of Yesteryear Ivan also took a gander at the September schedule while he could, and he's posted his thoughts.

I'll have more comments on TCM in September somewhere around September 1st!

Meanwhile, coming to TCM this summer: Singing Cowboys in July and Summer Under the Stars in August.

Tonight's Movie: Dishonored Lady (1947)

DISHONORED LADY is an enjoyable drama starring Hedy Lamarr as a reformed party girl who becomes entangled in a murder case.

Lamarr plays Madeleine Damien, who lives the glamorous high life working as the art director at a magazine by day, then romancing various men and drinking too much by night.

One evening a lonely and despondent Madeleine drives recklessly and -- perhaps deliberately -- crashes her car, which leads to a chance meeting with a psychiatrist (Morris Carnovsky). Madeleine ultimately decides to go into therapy, and as she begins to understand the upbringing that led her to an unhealthy lifestyle, she decides to completely turn her back on her current life. She moves into a run-down apartment building where she begins a new existence as an artist under an assumed name. She also finds love with a research scientist, Dr. David Cousins (Dennis O'Keefe).

One evening while David's out of town, a former colleague (Natalie Schafer) lures Madeleine out of hiding. Madeleine goes off the wagon and ends up at the home of Felix Courtland, one of the men from her past. (Courtland is played by John Loder, then Lamarr's husband offscreen.) The ring of the doorbell jolts the tipsy Madeleine, who thinks better of the situation and leaves out the back door. Moments later, Courtland is murdered, and Madeleine ends up charged with the crime. David is shocked, all the more so when he learns of his sweet Madeleine's decidedly impure past. Will he stand by her?

The first few scenes of the film are a bit disjointed, as the car crash and ensuing scene almost seem ready to launch a flashback or some sort of explanation for Madeleine's strange, possibly suicidal behavior. We jump from this sequence to watching Madeleine at work and play, and it's only later, when Madeleine revisits the psychiatrist, that the narrative settles down and becomes easier to follow.

The film has some moments which are a bit hokey or cliched, but all in all it's an entertaining 85 minutes, especially if the viewer is a fan of the gorgeous Lamarr. She was an underrated actress with particularly expressive eyes, and she gives an interesting performance as the tormented heroine. One only wishes that the screenwriters had more fully fleshed out the character, as most of Madeleine's issues and motivations are glossed over at a rapid pace.

In my eyes this relatively little-known film qualifies as film noir. Cinematographer Lucien Andriot captures some of the dark, rainy streets and shadowy walls which are so often an essential element of noir titles. The heroine caught up in a nightmare beyond her control also seems to be the essence of film noir.

Additionally, DISHONORED LADY is yet one more example of Hollywood's mid-'40s love affair with psychology. Several other mid-'40s titles in which psychology is a major plot point are listed in my review of SHOCK (1946); CONFLICT (1945) is another example seen since that post was written.

This was one of a string of film noir titles made by Dennis O'Keefe in the late '40s. DISHONORED LADY was immediately followed by T-MEN (1947), RAW DEAL (1948), and WALK A CROOKED MILE (1948). Here he has a relatively light role as Madeleine's clean-cut white knight who is surprised to learn of her colorful past associations.

William Lundigan typically played square-jawed, straight arrow hero types, such as in the film noir THE HOUSE ON TELEGRAPH HILL (1951). Here, however, he has quite a different role, as a slimy, money-grubbing colleague of Madeleine's who is also entangled in the murder. It's a different side of Lundigan, and it's fun to see him in an atypical role.

The supporting cast includes Margaret Hamilton, Paul Cavanagh, and Douglass Dumbrille.

The movie was directed by Robert Stevenson, director of JANE EYRE (1943), TO THE ENDS OF THE EARTH (1948), and MARY POPPINS (1964). The opening credits note that his work on the film was by "special arrangement" with David O. Selznick.

The screenplay by Edmund North also had uncredited work by Ben Hecht and Andre De Toth. It was based on a play by Edward Sheldon and Margaret Ayer Barnes.

DISHONORED LADY, which was at one time reissued under the title SINS OF MADELEINE, is in the public domain. It's had multiple releases on VHS and DVD.

I watched an ACME DVD from VCI Entertainment; ACME is VCI's line of public domain films. The print ranged from good to very good, depending on the scene; it was far better than most public domain prints. The ACME DVD also includes Lamarr's film THE STRANGE WOMAN (1946), which makes it a great deal at a low price.

DISHONORED LADY can also currently be seen on YouTube.

Coming to DVD: Ill Met By Moonlight (1957)

In last weekend's link roundup I noted the passing of British author-adventurer Sir Patrick Leigh Fermor at the age of 96.

The 1957 Powell-Pressburger film about Fermor's wartime exploits, ILL MET BY MOONLIGHT, known in the United States as NIGHT AMBUSH, will be released on Region 1 DVD in the U.S. on August 16, 2011.

The film has previously been released on VHS as well as on Region 2 DVD.

The movie stars Dirk Bogarde and Marius Goring.

Leonard Maltin, in a three-star rating, describes the film as a "Taut WW2 actioner set in Crete, with fine British cast." The film also has a three-star rating from Steven Scheuer.

ClassicFlix shares the information that the DVD will be the uncut 104-minute British version. The U.S. version was 93 minutes.

In addition to the roundup links on Fermor, there's much more information about his fascinating life from a 2008 article in the Daily Telegraph, as well as in a reminiscence from Paul Rahe at Ricochet (via Power Line).

The Daily Telegraph obituary headline says Fermor was "one of the few genuine Renaissance figures produced by Britain in the 20th century, a man both of action and learning." The paper also notes "Leigh Fermor was the architect of one of the most daring feats of the Second World War, the kidnapping of the commander of the German garrison on Crete, and also the author of some of the finest works in the canon of English travel writing."

Tonight's Movie: Three Brave Men (1956)

THREE BRAVE MEN is a fine drama about a civilian Navy clerk unfairly dismissed, after over two decades of service, when he is incorrectly branded a Communist. The film is loosely based on Pulitzer Prize winning articles written by Anthony Lewis.

Bernie Goldsmith (Ernest Borgnine) receives a bolt from the blue when he is dismissed from his job as a security risk. Bernie and his wife Helen (Virginia Christine) are labeled Communists and ostracized by some in their community, but they receive support from friends including the police chief (James Westerfield), the mayor (Edward Andrews), and a minister (Andrew Duggan, then a TV veteran, in his first film). Bernie hires attorney Joe DiMarco (Ray Milland) to represent him, and together they must fight multiple battles on the road to clearing Bernie's name.

The entire cast is excellent. As the warm and dedicated attorney, Ray Milland shows once more why he's one of my very favorite actors. His most touching moment may be his last scene, when he turns his back to the camera, obviously overcome with emotion.

Besides all the actors named above, other notable actors appearing in the film include Dean Jagger as the Secretary of the Navy, Frank Lovejoy and Nina Foch as members of a Naval Hearing Board, Richard Anderson as a member of the Secretary's staff, and Frank Faylen in a colorful role as an ornery mailman. The actors playing the Goldsmiths' children include the excellent young actress Sandy Descher, who also appeared in THE MAN IN THE GRAY FLANNEL SUIT in 1956.

Virginia Christine is really lovely as Bernie's almost saintly wife. 1956 was a good year for the actress, as she also had a strong supporting role in THE KILLER IS LOOSE (1956). Those of us of a certain age will forever think of Christine as Mrs. Olson from over 20 years of Folger's Coffee commercials, and it's good to be reminded that beneath that friendly exterior pushing "the richest kind" of "mountain grown" coffee was an excellent actress.

One side note: After watching the film I'm not certain who the "three brave men" were -- there were a number of people in the movie who stuck their necks out in order to do the right thing and make sure justice was served.

This film was written and directed by Philip Dunne, whose credits included the script for HOW GREEN WAS MY VALLEY (1941). It was filmed in black and white by Charles G. Clarke. The running time is 88 minutes.

This movie isn't available on DVD or video, but it's shown from time to time on Fox Movie Channel. Unfortunately FMC shows this CinemaScope film in a pan and scan format, although the incorrect screen ratio isn't as noticeable with this movie as it is for many other CinemaScope films.

THREE BRAVE MEN is recommended as an absorbing drama which also presents a thought-provoking slice of Cold War history.

Tonight's Movie: Dressed to Kill (1941)

DRESSED TO KILL is the third of Lloyd Nolan's seven appearances as private investigator Michael Shayne.

This time around Shayne is set to marry a singer, Joanne La Marr (Mary Beth Hughes), but on the way to see the justice of the peace he's distracted by a screaming maid in Joanne's apartment building. Upon investigating, Shayne discovers a macabre double murder scene, and he's off and running with little thought for the wedding.

I didn't find this entry nearly as enjoyable as MICHAEL SHAYNE, PRIVATE DETECTIVE (1940) or SLEEPERS WEST (1941). Shayne's character is usually lighthearted, not to mention broke, but in this film he's more annoying and less serious than in the previous films. For example, Shayne blithely tampers with the murder scene and then tells the police inspector (William Demarest) that he didn't touch it. The character, in general, seems a bit "dumbed down" this time around. I was ready for the movie to end by the time it completed its 74-minute running time.

The supporting character of Otto (Edwin Kalser) is particularly tedious, and on the whole the suspects aren't very interesting. Character actor Henry Daniell probably comes off best. Sheila Ryan, who's a little more lively than most of the cast, unfortunately only has a couple of scenes and disappears from the story early on.

Hughes, playing Shayne's much-put-upon fiancee, just pops in every so often to whine about Shayne putting off the wedding. It's hard to imagine Shayne going from romancing the sophisticated Lynn Bari in SLEEPERS WEST to wanting to marry Hughes' character. Hughes played a much more interesting role in SLEEPERS WEST; she would return in the next film, BLUE, WHITE AND PERFECT (1941), as yet another character!

I seem to be having a mini-Hughes festival in recent days, as along with her first two Shayne appearances I saw her last week in EL PASO (1949). I would venture to guess that it's the rare filmgoer today who knows Hughes' name, yet she had over 90 film and TV credits in a period of a little over two decades. She started out at MGM in films such as THESE GLAMOUR GIRLS (1939) and DANCING CO-ED (1939). Her films at Fox included ORCHESTRA WIVES (1942) and THE OX-BOW INCIDENT (1943). Hughes was most typically the leading lady in "B" movies.

As with SLEEPERS WEST, DRESSED TO KILL takes a character created by Brett Halliday and drops him into a story by another author. In this case the movie is based on a novel by Richard Burke, THE DEAD TAKE NO BOWS.

Eugene Forde directed DRESSED TO KILL, as well as the first two films with Nolan. Nolan's next four Shayne films would be directed by Herbert I. Leeds.

For reasons unknown to me, this film is not in the Michael Shayne Mysteries Vol. 1 DVD collection. Instead, it was released as a single title; the print is excellent, and the film's beautiful look is perhaps its most enjoyable aspect. Nolan's fourth and fifth Shayne films complete Vol. 1, and his last two performances as Shayne have yet to be released to DVD.

Tonight's Movie: Piccadilly Jim (1936)

PICCADILLY JIM is a well-written comedy based on a novel by P.G. Wodehouse, starring a marvelous cast.

Robert Montgomery plays the title role; Jim Crocker is an American cartoonist living in London. He falls in love with and attempts to woo beautiful Ann (Madge Evans), while initially unaware that he's been poking fun at her aunt (Cora Witherspoon) and uncle (Grant Mitchell) in a comic strip.

Jim had been getting back at the unpleasant aunt and henpecked uncle because they frowned on Ann's other aunt (Billie Burke) marrying Jim's father (Frank Morgan). Needless to say, Ann's not happy when she finds out Jim's true identity. Through it all Jim's loyal butler Bayliss (Eric Blore) tries to keep up with the goings-on and offers sage advice, culminating in telling the story of Robert the Bruce watching a spider.

The film is a bit slow out of the starting gate, as Jim spends quite a bit of time drinking in the company of his friend Bill (Robert Benchley). However, once Jim falls for Ann he decides the life of a barfly is no longer for him.

The film's other drawback, other than being a bit longish at approximately 96 minutes, is that the chemistry between Jim and Ann is a long time developing. A little more reciprocation on Ann's part, earlier on, would have made it a more interesting and romantic story.

That said, this is a witty film with a great deal to recommend it. Montgomery always excels in this type of part, and he's in fine form. The script has some excellent lines, with many of them going to Eric Blore, who is simply superb as Jim's butler. The translation of the Pett family into cartoon characters is very funny and well done, and the cast in general does an excellent job. I especially enjoyed Billie Burke as sweet, scatterbrained Aunt Eugenia.

All in all, the film is a great example of the glossy MGM romantic comedy of the '30s, with the kind of cast that makes films of the era so remarkable. They really don't make 'em like that anymore.

This was the last of five films starring Robert Montgomery and Madge Evans; the other titles were LOVERS COURAGEOUS (1932), HELL BELOW (1933), MADE ON BROADWAY (1933), and FUGITIVE LOVERS (1934). They're seen at the left during the filming of the final scene, via the LIFE Internet photo archive.

Watch carefully as Jim and Ann dance together shortly after meeting. The nightclub crooner is a young Dennis Morgan, in the very earliest phase of his career at MGM. The supporting cast includes Ralph Forbes, Billy Bevan, and Tommy Bupp.

The film was directed by Robert Z. Leonard.

PICCADILLY JIM isn't available on VHS or DVD. It can be seen from time to time on Turner Classic Movies.

Incidentally, the original Wodehouse novel is in the public domain and is free for Amazon Kindle and Kindle smart phone apps.

April 2016 Update: PICCADILLY JIM is now available on DVD from the Warner Archive. My September 2016 review of the DVD is here.

Around the Blogosphere This Week

Miscellaneous bits of news and fun stuff from around the Internet...

...A new book due out this week celebrates a half century of WEST SIDE STORY: SOMETHING'S COMING, SOMETHING GOOD: WEST SIDE STORY AND THE AMERICAN IMAGINATION by Misha Berson. There's another recent book on the film musical version, which I reviewed in December.

...James Garner now has an Official Fan Page on Facebook.

...Last weekend I shared reviews of the new DVD release of NIGHT FLIGHT (1933) by Glenn Erickson and Leonard Maltin. Here's two more, from Mike Clark and Lou Lumenick.

...Mike Clark also reviewed the recent Twilight Time release of FATE IS THE HUNTER (1964).

...Reviews, reviews, and more reviews: Une Cinephile looks at DEADLINE AT DAWN (1946) starring Susan Hayward...Judy has a great write-up on William Wellman's BEAU GESTE (1939), which also features Hayward, at Movie Classics...MONDO 70 reviews Jane Russell and George Brent in MONTANA BELLE, which was filmed in 1948 but not released until 1952...and Clara reviews Gene Tierney in DRAGONWYCK (1946) at Via Margutta 51.

...The Lady Eve has a wonderful post on Catalina Island and the movies.

...British films coming from VCI Entertainment on July 19th include Dirk Bogarde in PENNY PRINCESS (1952) and SIMBA (1955). Earlier in July, on the 5th, VCI releases TIARA TAHITI starring James Mason and John Mills.

...My daughters saw SUPER 8 (2011) this afternoon and give it a thumbs up. Leonard Maltin and Chris Yogerst liked it too. It sounds like a fun throwback to the Spielberg films of the late '70s and early '80s.

...For British royalty watchers: the Daily Mail has lots of beautiful photos of yesterday's Trooping the Colour ceremony celebrating the Queen's 85th birthday...and the Duchess of Cambridge looked beautiful attending her first official public charity event following the wedding.

...At Sisters of the Silver Screen, Tom's got video of PASSWORD -- with Joan Fontaine and Douglas Fairbanks Jr. That's about as classy as a game show can get!

...Are you stocking up on incandescent light bulbs yet?

...Netflix has made some changes to its website which aren't universally loved. The giant posters seemed to me akin to the "non-reference" version of IMDb -- there's an impulse out there to make things about the visuals and bury the information so people have to go hunting for it.

...And what's with Netflix streaming a 1940 film in widescreen? CinemaStyles shows how THE GRAPES OF WRATH was strangely stretched out.

...Notable passing: British travel writer Sir Patrick Leigh Fermor has passed on at the age of 96. Earlier this year IN TEARING HASTE, a collection of letters between Fermor and the Duchess of Devonshire, was published; a link is in this roundup. Fermor's wartime experiences, chronicled in a fellow officer's book, ILL MET BY MOONLIGHT, were told in a 1957 Powell-Pressburger film with Dirk Bogarde playing Fermor.

...I've been to the Curious George bookstore in Cambridge's Harvard Square on multiple occasions, though it's been a decade since my last visit. I was sorry to learn it's closing.

Have a great week!

Tonight's Movie: Shane (1953) at the Autry

It's hard to believe, but somehow I made it to this point in my life without ever seeing SHANE.

I think at a younger age I was put off because I erroneously thought it was a sad movie, perhaps because all I knew of it were the film's famous final words. As I learned more about the film, I felt sure I'd like it, and it became one of those movies I thought would be extra-special and wished to see at just the right place and time. I've occasionally done this with other films I've long wanted to see, such as THE CONSTANT NYMPH (1943); I wanted it to be an undistracted viewing when I could fully savor the experience and its expected impact. With half a dozen people and four animals in our house, sometimes those "perfect viewing" moments aren't all that easy to come by!

Nonetheless, when I made a list of 10 classics to see for the first time in 2011, SHANE headed the list. And when I read it would be shown in 35 millimeter at the Autry in Los Angeles, I knew I'd finally found the perfect moment to see it.

Today was the day, and hours later I'm still trying to process the experience. I loved it, I absolutely loved it.

It's hard to know where to begin with SHANE, and indeed, the film is so familiar to so many people that there's probably not much need to say a great deal by way of introduction.

SHANE is the story of a range war between farmers, led by Joe and Marian Starrett (Van Heflin and Jean Arthur), and cattlemen, headed by Ryker (Emile Meyer). Shane (Alan Ladd), a mysterious loner, shows up at the Starretts' homestead one day and befriends them; he's idolized by the Starretts' little boy, Joey (Brandon De Wilde), and there's an unspoken attraction between Shane and Marian. Shane ultimately battles Ryker's hired gun, the evil Jack Wilson (Jack Palance).

That's the main thrust of the story, and yet it doesn't do the film justice. This is a beautifully made film which is as rich in substance as any great work of literature or art. Many moments linger in the memory, and it's clear there will be new things to discover on future viewings.

Some random thoughts on the movie:

I loved the barroom brawl between Shane and Chris (Ben Johnson). It was a superbly staged fight that looked real. Contrast it, for example, with the typical saloon brawl from an Errol Flynn Western, which almost looks like a choreographed musical number or stuntman's exhibition, and no one really looks hurt. In fact, that "realness" is one of the reasons the film works so well, in general. In every respect -- such as Brandon De Wilde's remarkable performance as little Joey -- the film feels authentic and as though it actually could have happened.

One of the great little moments is when Shane and Jack Wilson size each other up over a dipper of water. You just know they know they're going to be shooting it out one day soon.

During the final confrontation, I loved something as simple as the way Shane positions himself next to the bar. That final spin of his gun back into his holster is as exciting a cap to the film as Luke Skywalker successfully firing the shot to destroy the Death Star. The audience breathes a sigh of relief.

One wonders why there was concern about Alan Ladd's height. It's not height that matters, but attitude, and Ladd's Shane has attitude to spare.

Something that has always puzzled me about the film, dating to when I first saw stills from the movie, is Jean Arthur's mop of hair, which doesn't seem to "fit." I don't recall seeing another woman in the film with her hair in that sort of unkempt, boyish style and wish the filmmakers had chosen something else. That might be my sole criticism of the film, which in a backwards way illustrates the movie's strength in every area.

One of the aspects I particularly enjoyed was the gradual transformation of the character Chris, played by one of my favorite actors, Ben Johnson. According to the moderator at the Autry, Chris was originally supposed to have a romance with Susan Lewis (Janice Carroll), the daughter of Fred (Edgar Buchanan), and that provided some of the motivation for Chris's change of heart. That part of the story was cut for time reasons, but the character still works, because Johnson is such an effective actor. Without a single word of dialogue, he conveys his guilt and disgust during two critical scenes late in the film. I was hoping there would be a followup payoff to those brief moments, and indeed there was.

I'm sure many more such thoughts will come to me after I post this, and next time I see it, and the time after that. It's that kind of movie.

I mentioned in passing last summer that director George Stevens was inspired by my favorite little town, Bridgeport, California, when he was designing the setting for SHANE. In the book GEORGE STEVENS INTERVIEWS he spoke about Bridgeport, which he said was "very unlike other California towns," and described how it influenced SHANE: "There was the funeral on the hilltop, and there was the distance where the cattle grazed, and then there was the town at the crossing, a western town like other western towns were. There were the great mountains that rose behind it. This was all arranged in one camera view... That worked its way into the picture from an idea that came to me in Bridgeport, a small town in California." The meadows outside Bridgeport are pictured here.

Loyal Griggs won a much-deserved Oscar for Best Color Cinematography. The excellent score was composed by Victor Young. The screenplay was by A.B. Guthrie Jr., based on the novel by Jack Schaefer. The film runs 118 minutes.

The supporting cast includes Elisha Cook Jr., Ellen Corby, Douglas Spencer, John Dierkes, Nancy Kulp, and Beverly Washburn. Alan Ladd's children, David and Alana, have bit parts.

SHANE is available on DVD. Extras include a commentary track with George Stevens Jr. participating. It's also had a release on VHS.

A re-release trailer is currently available on YouTube.

The 35 millimeter print shown by the Autry was quite good much of the time, but far from perfect. The beginning of each reel was rugged, especially during the opening credits, and periodically a thin vertical colored line would appear near the edge of the screen. In this day and age when we're blessed with beautiful DVD prints and can also sometimes see restored prints on the big screen, it's a disappointment when a print has some issues. However, the overall print quality was such that it was worth the occasional distractions in order to see the film for the first time on a screen in 35 millimeter.

For more on SHANE, check out two excellent blog posts from earlier this year: "The Movie That Made Me Love Movies" by Caftan Woman, and a thorough, very appealing analysis by Jacqueline Lynch at Another Old Movie Blog. I waited to reread Jacqueline's post until after I wrote this, and as I revisited it for the first time in months I was impressed anew; if you love SHANE, by all means read it and enjoy her insights into the film.

And if you haven't yet seen SHANE, please don't put off enjoying it as long as I did!

2025 Update: SHANE is now available on Blu-ray and 4K from Kino Lorber Studio Classics.  I've reviewed the Blu-ray at Classic Movie Hub.

Weekend Fun in L.A.: Philippe's and The Autry

Today was a wonderful series of firsts for me: my first-ever visits to Philippe's and The Autry National Center, followed by my first-ever viewing of SHANE (1953), which I loved.

I've heard a great deal about Philippe's over the years, as various family members have eaten there. Philippe's history goes back over a century, and it's said that the French Dipped Sandwich was created there in 1918. The restaurant has been in its current location since 1951.

The place is always packed. You pick a line and the "carver" quickly makes your sandwich and rings you up. Cash only!

The sandwich buns are actually dipped in the meat juice, which is a unique style of preparation.

I got the classic beef "double dipped" sandwich (bottom right), and it was as tasty as I'd been led to believe. I'll be back!

There's a great California's Gold episode on Philippe's, hosted by Huell Howser.

That's Union Station right across the street, seen in so many classic films. Between Union Station and signs for nearby Bunker Hill, I couldn't help thinking of CRY DANGER (1951), which was filmed in both locations.

From there it was a few minutes' drive to the Autry, located in Griffith Park immediately across from the Los Angeles Zoo:

Incidentally, the gray skies are typical June weather in Southern California, referred to as "June gloom." The sun usually comes out around mid-afternoon.

The screening took place in the Wells Fargo Theater...

...which is right next to the Mary Pickford Education Center:

Our movie tickets included admission to the museum, which had all sorts of wonderful things, such as this clothing worn by John Wayne...

...and Gary Cooper painted by Norman Rockwell:

Memorabilia from Alan Ladd in WHISPERING SMITH (1948):

From a display on museum co-founder Gene Autry:

Charles Starrett memorabilia:

And Johnny Mack Brown's boots:

Actor-artist George Montgomery was one of the museum's benefactors:

A visit is definitely recommended for fans of Western films or those interested in the American West; there are displays on many aspects of Western history in addition to depictions of the Western on film.

For more on Westerns being shown at the Autry in coming months, please visit last weekend's post Classics on the Big Screen in Los Angeles.