Tonight's Movie: The Undercover Man (1949)

The title THE UNDERCOVER MAN is a misnomer, as no one in the film ever works undercover!

This well-made, absorbing film is basically an early telling of the UNTOUCHABLES story, as federal Treasury agents work to bring in "the Big Fellow" on charges of tax evasion. The agents include Frank Warren (Glenn Ford) and George Pappas (James Whitmore, in his film debut). The film isn't a classic, but it's a solid effort worth seeing, and it's particularly interesting to see an early telling of a familiar crime tale.

The story is told in a style approaching "docu-noir," although the only narration provided is in the film's opening scene. (Actor John Ireland does the voiceover work.) As is often the case in docu-noir films, the movie spends a fair amount of time on forensic work, in this case depicting the analysis done by a handwriting expert.

The movie shows the long months of painstaking footwork and dead ends faced by the Treasury agents, as well as the problems they deal with in making their case when the mob keeps bumping off witnesses. The film also depicts the personal toll on agents, particularly when the mob seems to threaten Frank's wife (Nina Foch).

Ford seems to often play fairly morose characters, and Frank Warren is no exception. Frank is dedicated to his job but pained at being separated from his wife for lengthy periods of time, and an implied threat to her life is almost the straw that breaks the camel's back. Foch is charming as his supportive wife Judy.

Whitmore, who had appeared in the Broadway production of COMMAND DECISION in 1947, is very much at home on the screen despite this being his very first movie; rather remarkably, he was nominated for the Supporting Actor Oscar for his second film, BATTLEGROUND, released the same year.

Sean Penn's father, Leo Penn, plays one of the key witnesses who manages to avoid being killed and helps put "the Big Fellow" behind bars. (Columbia apparently didn't want to use Al Capone's name for legal reasons.) There are some moments where the senior Penn looks quite a bit like his son. He's seen between Whitmore and Ford in the photo to the left; Penn's wife, seen here at the left, is played by Patricia Barry, then known as Patricia White.

Additional members of the supporting cast include Barry Kelley (effective as the mob attorney), David Wolfe, Frank Tweddell, Howard St. John, Angela Clarke, Esther Minciotti, John F. Hamilton, and Kay Medford.

THE UNDERCOVER MAN was directed by Joseph H. Lewis, who also directed Foch in the minor classic MY NAME IS JULIA ROSS (1945). According to TCM's Robert Osborne, Lewis filmed the most emotional scenes with a three-camera setup so that he could capture the actors reacting to one another as the scenes unfolded; one scene, where Frank is provided with critical information by the family of a murdered mob accountant (Anthony Caruso), was actually rehearsal footage that Lewis used in the final film.

The black and white photography was by Burnett Guffey, who also filmed the Ford film noir FRAMED (1947). The Columbia Classics blog posted a brief article on Guffey's work in April 2010.

THE UNDERCOVER MAN is not available on DVD or VHS. It's been shown on Turner Classic Movies.

Update: Thanks to Colin for mentioning in the comments that this film is out on a Region 2 DVD.

January 2013 Update: THE UNDERCOVER MAN will be out on DVD as part of the TCM Vault Collection in March 2013.

Around the Blogosphere This Week

Miscellaneous bits of news and fun stuff from around the Internet... I'm posting this Easter Weekend edition a bit earlier than usual!

...One of the most interesting recent releases from the Warner Archive is SO GOES MY LOVE (1946), a romantic comedy starring Myrna Loy and Don Ameche. I'm completely unfamiliar with it. It's also interesting to note that the film is from Universal -- will the Archive be releasing more Universal films in the future?

...I'm sending best wishes to KC of Classic Movies, who is beginning a maternity leave with a series of "Guest Linkers" providing the material for her "Classic Links" feature. (I'll be participating late next week!) It's been a lot of fun to see what various people have come up with; for instance, Guest Linker Page led me to the amazing Hooked on Houses website, which is now blogrolled to the left under "Miscellany." A Hooked on Houses post on one of my favorite movie houses, from MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS (1944), also led me to a post at Sweet Sunday Mornings examining the film's costumes.

...Sweet Sunday Mornings also did a terrific examination of the costumes in ROYAL WEDDING (1951), starring Fred Astaire, Jane Powell, and Peter Lawford. It airs on TCM next Friday, April 29th, in conjunction with the real royal wedding taking place that day.

...Back at Classic Movies, Guest Linker Tom found a review of Ray Milland and Paulette Goddard in THE CRYSTAL BALL (1943) at Une Cinephile. I'm really looking forward to this one!

...Moira Finnie has posted a very amusing review of PARRISH (1961), starring Troy Donahue, Claudette Colbert, and Karl Malden, at Skeins of Thought.

...At Another Old Movie Blog, Jacqueline takes a close look at LIFE WITH FATHER (1947), a film I've seen countless times. (I also liked the book, which I bought in an omnibus edition with LIFE WITH MOTHER around the time I first saw the film as a child.)

...A cat interacting with dolphins? This video is fun to look at.

...Mark of Where Danger Lives reviews THE KILLER IS LOOSE (1956) at Noir of the Week. Mark feels that THE KILLER IS LOOSE was Wendell Corey's best role. He's definitely creepy as a milquetoast psychopathic murderer!

...Amazon plans to launch a lending library for the Kindle later this year. (Via Missy.) I'll be curious how that would work.

...Glenn Erickson's reviews this week include CHANCE AT HEAVEN (1933), a Warner Archive release starring Joel McCrea and Ginger Rogers. With those actors, that's a title I'll definitely want to catch up with!

...At her latest column for Landmark Report, Kristina reviews five reasons she loves GUNGA DIN (1939). I could add that I love that it was filmed in Lone Pine, California; check out the mementoes on display in the Lone Pine Film History Museum in my post from last summer.

...The government, via the National Labor Relations Board, is attempting to dictate to Boeing the state in which it's allowed to build the 787 Dreamliner. I'm still trying to wrap my head around the idea that this could happen in what is supposed to be a free country.

...Speaking of freedom, longtime readers know I have strong feelings about the government mandate that we use toxic, mercury-filled CFL light bulbs. Consumers may wish to be aware that there are also concerns about the bulbs causing cancer and exploding and causing house fires. Why can't we let the free market work? If the CFL's really save energy and money, consumers will flock to use them. Why force us to buy bulbs some scientists say "should not be left on for extended periods" because of cancer risks?

...Java's Journey makes some very interesting points about THE HEIRESS (1949). It's been a while since I've seen it, and I'll be thinking of her comments about Catherine's late mother's presence next time I watch it.

...Java's been busy of late, she also has an interesting post up at The Amazing Deanna Durbin on LADY ON A TRAIN (1945), a film I enjoyed for a second time last Christmas.

...TV host Jeff Probst has bought the Gene Autry Estate for $5 million.

...The changeover from film to digital projection may drive some smaller movie theaters out of business.

...I enjoyed a look at the number of Westerns airing on TV in 1959 at Caftan Woman. In 1959, viewers had their pick of over two dozen primetime TV Westerns each and every week!

...Here are reviews from Leonard Maltin and Kenneth Turan of the L.A. Times of Reese Witherspoon's brand-new film, WATER FOR ELEPHANTS (2011). They agree that the film was well-made yet could have been even better. Here is a trailer.

...Jim Lane's Cinedrome has a photo-filled review of the new book HARLOW IN HOLLYWOOD, which was written by Darrell Rooney and Mark Vieira.

...Here's a fun exercise: at Forever Classics, Meredith lists "100 Things I Love About the Movies." She was inspired by the blog Defiant Success.

...Notable Passings: Sol Saks, the creator of the BEWITCHED TV series, has passed away at the age of 100...Screenwriter Kevin Jarre, whose credits include GLORY (1989) and TOMBSTONE (1993), passed on at 56...and actor Michael Sarrazin, familiar from many TV productions, along with films of the '60s and '70s, has died at the age of 70.

...Thanks to reader Greg for passing on a link to John Murray's Wall Street Journal essay "The Gospel According to Hollywood," which has a very interesting anecdote about the impact of DeMille's THE KING OF KINGS (1927) on a Nazi prison camp. (I had the pleasure of saying hello to Greg at one of the Noir City screenings a few days ago.)

...Finally, Marcia Morrissey shares the story of her Easter 1995 kidney transplant in "The Easter Sunrise of My New Life."

Have a great weekend, and best wishes for a very happy Easter Sunday!

Tonight's Movie: Somewhere in the Night (1946)

SOMEWHERE IN THE NIGHT is a meandering but ultimately worthwhile film noir which stars John Hodiak as an amnesiac war vet in search of his identity.

John Hodiak plays a man who might be named George Taylor. He's not really sure, because he lost his memory when wounded during service in World War II. (Watch for a young John Russell during the field hospital sequence.) Upon being discharged, George follows the only clues he has about his past to Los Angeles, in search of a man named Larry Cravat and possibly two million dollars; the winding trail ultimately leads to the solution of a murder mystery.

Along the way George is aided by Christy (Nancy Guild), a nightclub singer; nightclub owner Mel (Richard Conte); and police detective Donald Kendall (Lloyd Nolan).

The film is somewhat hampered by its leisurely pace and Hodiak's fairly one-note performance, but there are a number of things which make it worth seeing, starting with the supporting cast. Richard Conte is smooth as the nightclub owner, and as the detective, Lloyd Nolan effortlessly steals every scene he's in.

When Nolan walks on screen, the film's energy level jumps considerably. During his first scene, discussing matters with other characters over a Chinese lunch, I kept marveling at how "real" he seemed. After the film I came across this article by Moira Finnie at the TCM blog; I remember reading it when it was posted, but had forgotten Moira's on-target comment about Nolan: "...to enjoy his apparently effortless skill at creating a character, providing exposition and giving a realistic texture to an otherwise bland, clichéd scene, check out his scene in a Chinese restaurant in Somewhere In the Night." One of the comments adds "I have often thought that acting schools should show that scene to prospective students." Amen.

The deeper supporting cast is filled with great faces like Sheldon Leonard, Harry Morgan, Whit Bissell, and Josephine Hutchinson.

And then we come to leading lady Nancy Guild, who is definitely one of the reasons to see the film, if only because she's such a curious case. I wasn't quite sure what to make of her and almost feel like I need to see the film again to further evaluate her performance. This starring role was Guild's first film, and she only made a small handful of other movies. She's attractive and poised onscreen, and she's considerably more lively than Hodiak, yet there's something subtly "off" about her. Her lines are delivered with what might be called a confident flatness, and somehow they don't sound believable. Nonetheless, I found her interesting and enjoyed watching her.

Guild passed away in 1999, and her life was briefly outlined by the New York Times.

The film was directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz from a script he cowrote with Howard Dimsdale. It was Mankiewicz's third directorial effort. The underlying writing credits are rather fascinating, as the script was based on a story (by Marvin Borowsky) adapted by W. Somerset Maugham and Lee Strasberg. Mankiewicz is known for his sharp dialogue -- think A LETTER TO THREE WIVES and ALL ABOUT EVE -- and while this film has some gems, at times it gets way too chatty for its own good, clocking in at a somewhat slow-paced hour and 48 minutes.

As the title suggests, the film is chiefly set at night, and the gleaming black and white photography was by Norbert Brodine.

SOMEWHERE IN THE NIGHT is available in a fine print on DVD as No. 8 in the Fox Film Noir series. The extras are a trailer and a commentary by noir expert Eddie Muller.

It's also shown occasionally on Fox Movie Channel.

May 2019 Update: I had the wonderful opportunity to see this film in 35mm at the Arthur Lyons Film Noir Festival.

In Disney News...

It's been a while since I posted my last Disney news roundup, and there's lots to share.

...Disney Imagineering great Collin Campbell passed away on April 2nd at the age of 84. Jim Hill has a wonderful post filled with Campbell's artwork which illustrates the scope of Campbell's Disney contributions, which included everything from working on animated movie classics to designing Disneyland's Enchanted Tiki Room and Splash Mountain to concept artwork for Florida's Disney theme parks to illustrating the classic Haunted Mansion storybook album. I'm quite surprised that Campbell does not seem to have been named a Disney Legend, but perhaps that will be awarded posthumously.

...The Summer 2011 issue of Disney Twenty-Three magazine will be on the stands on May 3rd. The cover story focused on the newest film in the PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN franchise. Other topics include a tribute to the late Bill Justice, the soon-to-open LITTLE MERMAID ride at Disney's California Adventure, Pooh voice artist Jim Cummings, and Walt Disney in 1940. (Update: There's now a story on the new issue posted on the D23 website.)

...Jim Korkis posted a good story on Disney great John Hench and "the language of vision" at MousePlanet.

...Those who love Disneyland's PeopleMover, and they are legion, will enjoy The WEDway PeopleMover Story, posted by Sam Gennaway at MiceChat. Sam's blog is SamLand's Disney Adventures, blogrolled at the left.

...Last month Jim Fanning posted one of his excellent articles on Disney film history at the D23 website, this time focusing on THE ABSENT MINDED PROFESSOR (1961), which I had the pleasure of seeing on the Disney lot around the time the article ran.

...Tokyo Disneyland reopened last Friday, April 15th, and a portion of ticket and hotel sales through May will be donated to the Red Cross. The neighboring Tokyo DisneySea park will reopen on April 28th. An interesting article on the impact of the closures was posted by the L.A. Times earlier this month. Like those in the article, our friend who works at Tokyo Disneyland had been anxiously awaiting the reopening and a return to semi-normalcy after the earthquake.

...Disneyland's Hungry Bear Restaurant has reopened with a new menu. I have to say I wish they still had traditional French fries available along with the more exotic sweet potato fries...

...In other Disneyland restaurant news, I like the sound of turning the Plaza Pavilion into a larger bakery than the current Blue Ribbon Bakery (maybe they'll serve crumb cake like at WDW!); and after a protest by Disneyland cast members, a hot breakfast menu returned to the Inn Between employee cafeteria behind the Plaza Inn. Eating there was a cherished privilege when I was a park employee during my college years. There's a little more info about the Inn Between in a 2007 story on the Red Wagon Inn by Wade Sampson of MousePlanet.

...No more photos on annual passes at Disneyland?

...And no more Grad Nites at Disney World in Florida?

...Speaking of Florida, here's a look at the new Art of Animation resort, a "Value" resort which will include affordable rooms for larger families, something Disney World has long needed. I love the resort's logo, seen at the left. It will open Summer 2012.

...I enjoyed this article on Disney voice artist George Walsh which was originally published in a 1988 edition of the Disneyland cast newsletter, the Disneyland Line.

...Here's an article on the fun D23 2nd Anniversary gathering I attended last month, which included passes to the World of Color show at Disney's California Adventure. My husband and I are somewhere in the crowd to the right! (P.S. Disney Imagineering Legend Bob Gurr is the silver-haired gentleman front and center.)

...Finally, enjoy this Disney Parks blog time lapse video of dawn at Disneyland's Sleeping Beauty Castle.

Huge Dodger News

As a lifelong Dodgers fan, the news that Major League Baseball has had to take over running the team makes me sad, but it had to happen.

Articles I've read over the past couple years make it clear that owner Frank McCourt is a financial flim-flam man who has no business running what has always been one of the greatest franchises in sports.

The sooner the McCourts are completely out of the picture, the better.

Notable Passings

...This evening I learned from the Noir and Chick Flicks blog of the passing of actress Myrna Dell.

Miss Dell died on February 11, 2011, a few weeks shy of turning 87.

Dell was one of a bevy of beautiful dance hall girls in a little Western I especially liked called ROUGHSHOD (1949). ROUGHSHOD also starred Robert Sterling, Gloria Grahame, and Claude Jarman Jr.

Dell's personal website has a nice page of stills from the film, and the blog Film Noir Photos also has a terrific publicity still featuring Dell and the cast.

Myrna Dell's film career began in 1941, when she was in the chorus of ZIEGFELD GIRL (1941), and included at least 75 film and TV credits, including the film noir NOCTURNE (1946).

Dell had small roles in two films reviewed here, THE LOCKET (1946) and THE GIRL FROM JONES BEACH (1949). She was also in an episode of my favorite TV series, MAVERICK.

Update: There's another tribute to Dell at Boot Hill. (Via Tom, guest linking at Classic Movies.)

...Actress Elisabeth Sladen, beloved to DR. WHO fans as Sarah Jane Smith, a role she played for nearly four decades, passed away today at the age of 63. She had suffered from cancer.

Beginning in 1973, Sladen played Sarah Jane in various incarnations of the long-running British series, working on the show as recently as last year. She also starred in a spinoff series, THE SARAH JANE ADVENTURES, which still has unaired episodes.

Sladen's autobiography will be published in June.

New on CD: Classic Film Scores Series

When my husband and I were teenagers we collected a significant number of "Classic Film Scores" albums with Charles Gerhardt conducting the National Philharmonic Orchestra. (When I discovered my then future husband had his own collection, that was a good tipoff he might be the right guy for me!) My collection included recordings of music by Korngold, Steiner, Herrmann, Tiomkin, Rosza, Raksin, and more. A picture of one of the original LP covers is seen here at the left.

Some of the albums, such as CAPTAIN BLOOD: CLASSIC FILM SCORES FOR ERROL FLYNN and THE SEA HAWK: THE CLASSIC FILM SCORES OF ERICH WOLFGANG KORNGOLD, were released on CD in the early '90s.

I was delighted to discover that a significant number of these collections were re-released on CD last month, and some were also released last fall. For what it's worth, one Amazon customer review indicates this series is of higher sound quality than the '90s versions. (Update: Be sure to catch Al Lutz's knowledgeable response to the reviewer, indicating "Sony's reissues use the same critically acclaimed RCA Victor Dolby Surround CD masters" as the previous CD releases. There's more info at the link. Thanks to Al -- better known to Disney fans as the proprietor of MiceAge -- for passing on the info!)

One of my favorites in the series is CAPTAIN FROM CASTILE: THE CLASSIC FILM SCORES OF ALFRED NEWMAN. It includes Newman's famous "Street Scene," which was used in numerous Fox films (more here), Cathy's theme from WUTHERING HEIGHTS, and suites from THE SONG OF BERNADETTE, THE ROBE, and of course CAPTAIN FROM CASTILE. The latter includes the stirring "Conquest" march which was later donated by Newman to USC as its fight song. I bought the CD last week so I could enjoy listening to it in my car on my numerous recent trips to Los Angeles.

Some of the other recordings I own on LP are LOST HORIZON: THE CLASSIC FILM SCORES OF DIMITRI TIOMKIN, NOW VOYAGER: THE CLASSIC FILM SCORES OF MAX STEINER, CASABLANCA: CLASSIC FILM SCORES FOR HUMPHREY BOGART, and GONE WITH THE WIND.

One of the other titles in the series features David Raksin conducting his own scores for LAURA, FOREVER AMBER, and THE BAD AND THE BEAUTIFUL.

I'll probably gradually pick up the CD versions so I can load them in my iPod and play them while on the go.

There are several more titles in the series. All are highly recommended to those who love classic film music.

New on DVD: Westerns

I was aware that MGM had recently released a new batch of manufactured-on-demand DVD-R Westerns, including MAN FROM DEL RIO (1956), but I didn't realize how many new titles were out until reading comments accompanying a post at 50 Westerns From the 50s.

Thanks to the info acquired there, today I purchased a nice widescreen print of Ben Johnson and Kent Taylor in FORT BOWIE (1958), a film I've previously recorded in pan & scan from Encore Westerns. I haven't yet had time to see it so I'm looking forward to my first viewing being a good DVD print. The few minutes I saw of the film when I recorded it looked quite interesting.

Also out from MGM: FORT DEFIANCE (1951), a good-looking film starring Johnson, Dane Clark, and Peter Graves; George Montgomery and Ellen Drew costarring in DAVY CROCKETT, INDIAN SCOUT (1950); and Joel McCrea in FORT MASSACRE (1958).

The MGM DVD-Rs can be purchased at Amazon and also at Screen Archives Entertainment.

Warner Archive News: Columbia Classics, Extras

Over the past few days there have been some very interesting developments at the Warner Archive. I'm just now catching up on sharing the news here after a somewhat reduced blogging schedule due to spending a great deal of time over the past couple weeks at the Noir City Film Festival.

A few days ago it was announced that Warner Archive will be selling Columbia Classics DVD-Rs at the Warner Archive site. The Archive now has a special page just for Columbia Classics titles.

The titles will also continue to be sold at Columbia Classics.

I think this is an excellent move. Although I've had some complaints about the Archive site not always being user-friendly, I feel it's better organized than the Columbia Classics site, and the Archive gets a big thumbs up for their publicity efforts. They do terrific work advising interested consumers about new releases via email, Facebook, and Twitter, and their Twitter reps are always available to answer questions and take requests.

Hopefully this change will also signal an increase in the previously sluggish pace of Columbia releases.

The other big news is that some new Warner Archive releases, including remastered prints of MEET ME IN LAS VEGAS (1956), ROSE MARIE (1954) and I LOVE MELVIN (1953), include extras!

In a second anniversary interview last month, Archive head George Feltenstein had indicated that musical outtakes were a possibility for future releases.

According to the listings at the Archive, ROSE MARIE contains the deleted number "Love and Kisses," with Marjorie Main and Bert Lahr.

MEET ME IN LAS VEGAS has two outtake numbers, a song by Lena Horne and a dance by George Chakiris and Betty Lynn. This blog has more information about the Chakiris-Lynn number.

I posted a review of MEET ME IN LAS VEGAS last year.

The remastered I LOVE MELVIN (1953) upgrades an earlier unremastered Archive release which is no longer listed at the site. The outtake musical number included is "A Lady Loves."

Some of the other interesting new releases which will appeal to MGM musical fans are the underrated, visually stunning YOLANDA AND THE THIEF (1945), starring Fred Astaire and Lucille Bremer, and remastered prints of THE UNFINISHED DANCE (1947) and RIO RITA (1942). The restoration of THE UNFINISHED DANCE, which stars Margaret O'Brien and Cyd Charisse, is said to be "gorgeous." RIO RITA is an Abbott & Costello film which also stars singers John Carroll and a young Kathryn Grayson.

Two other notable remastered titles which were recently released are a pair of Fritz Lang films, BEYOND A REASONABLE DOUBT (1956), starring Dana Andrews and Joan Fontaine, and an all-star cast in WHILE THE CITY SLEEPS (1956).

I reviewed WHILE THE CITY SLEEPS in 2008.

Kudos to Warner Archive for releasing so many remastered titles and including extras. It's this kind of "value added" which will induce me to buy an increased number of Archive titles.

Now that extras are included, can commentary tracks be far behind?

And when will 20th Century-Fox get on the MOD bandwagon? I know that Drew Casper of USC put in work on extras for a volume of Betty Grable musicals that was never released. If the technology is there, hopefully one day those titles will come out from Fox with the extras included.

Around the Blogosphere This Week

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

...Here's the cover art for NIGHT FLIGHT (1933), which, as previously mentioned, comes to DVD on June 7th.

...Dear Old Hollywood takes a look at the Downtown L.A. locations of BUREAU OF MISSING PERSONS (1933), which stars Bette Davis and Pat O'Brien. Robby does such a great job matching up current locations with screen captures in his location posts, and he also shares a significant amount of research on Los Angeles. 8th and Spring Street is remarkably unchanged despite the decades which have passed since 1933.

...The 1985 miniseries ROBERT KENNEDY AND HIS TIMES was released on DVD last month. The main thing I remember about this telling of the Kennedy story is Veronica Cartwright as Ethel. It seems that's often the way with Kennedy miniseries; in THE KENNEDYS OF MASSACHUSETTS the really memorable character was Annette O'Toole as Rose. I recently recorded the latest Kennedy miniseries, starring Greg Kinnear and Katie Holmes, from Reelz Channel and am curious to check it out.

...Say it ain't so: Many Nordstrom stores, including the tony South Coast Plaza location, are getting rid of in-store pianists.

...The times are changing, but it was still a surprise to hear that both ALL MY CHILDREN and ONE LIFE TO LIVE have been cancelled by ABC after runs of over four decades. This will leave ABC with just one soap left, the one I watched for many years, GENERAL HOSPITAL... And speaking of GENERAL HOSPITAL, longtime GH superstar Genie Francis has just signed with THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS, which will reunite her with former GH star Tristan Rogers.

...The Lady Eve reflects on FATHER OF THE BRIDE (1950).

...Megyn Kelly of Fox News Channel has given birth to a girl, her second child.

...Kevin's Movie Corner recently reviewed THE SNIPER (1952), which my dad just mentioned to me he watched today. He enjoyed Eddie Muller's commentary, especially as the film is set in Muller's hometown, San Francisco. I'm looking forward to seeing it, especially as I'm a big fan of Richard Kiley.

...Over at 50 Westerns From the 50s, Toby has interesting info on the screen ratio for the new edition of TENNESSEE'S PARTNER (1955), a film I reviewed last summer. His post includes a fabulous shot of John Payne at the gambling table. (April 18th Update: Toby says the release of TENNESSEE'S PARTNER has been pushed back from tomorrow to May 3rd.)

...Here is an interesting post on a lost film, CONVENTION CITY (1933), starring Joan Blondell. (Via Lou Lumenick.)

...The Space Shuttle Endeavor will be permanently retired at the California Science Center in Los Angeles, which we've visited numerous times. (But what's with New York getting a space shuttle instead of Houston?! Does not compute...)

...Another new release of note: Frank Sinatra and Ethel Merman in a 1954 TV production of ANYTHING GOES, which was reviewed by Mike Clark at Home Media Magazine.

...The aforementioned Mike Clark, who was previously the DVD columnist at USA Today for many years, has also just reviewed the remastered Warner Archive release of WHILE THE CITY SLEEPS (1956).

...Royal wedding watch: Less than two weeks to go until the big day. Catherine Middleton has been rehearsing with the wedding party, sans the groom, and took time out to be confirmed in the Church of England. If you had any doubt, the TV networks will be going all out. And if you want to escape the royal wedding on April 29th, Turner Classic Movies has an invitation for you.

...Ivan shared his movie and TV collection at Thrilling Days of Yesteryear, and he also recently posted a birthday tribute to James Garner.

...Public schools forbidding children from bringing home-packed lunches to school is a disturbing level of intrusion and control over citizens' personal lives. Is this what our Founding Fathers expected, children being forced to eat whatever is dictated by the state? And where does this slippery slope lead next?

...Distant Voices and Flickering Shadows muses about the prospect of seeing two Ray Milland Westerns, CALIFORNIA (1946) and COPPER CANYON (1950). Thanks for the links!

...We'll close out this weekend with a lovely essay remembering childhood Sundays, posted at Ferdy on Films. Ah, I remember well the days of lifting pictures from the Sunday funnies with Silly Putty...

Have a great week!

Tonight's Movie: Mr. Soft Touch (1949) at the Noir City Film Festival

At this evening's Glenn Ford night at the Noir City Film Festival, FRAMED was followed by Ford as MR. SOFT TOUCH.

MR. SOFT TOUCH is better known as Joe Miracle, and it's a nicely shaded role in that Ford gets to play a bad guy who's not really a bad guy. Joe returned from service in the war to discover the mob had taken over his nightclub and killed his partner, so he holds up his own club and makes off with $100,000. The film begins with Joe in a wild car chase on the run from both the cops and the mob.

Joe ends up hiding out in a settlement house, where he is smitten with a social worker named Jenny Jones (Evelyn Keyes). Joe is both hindered and helped by reporter Henry Byrd (John Ireland) as he tries to avoid the mob until he can flee the country on a Tokyo-bound ship.

I found Ford quite compelling and charismatic in this film; his performance seems dusted with an intense star quality which wasn't as apparent as a different war vet in FRAMED. His scenes with Keyes are filled with unspoken yearning, and in a lighter vein he has a very good scene teaching some young punks a lesson when they invite him to play a dice game.

Keyes is also solid as the woman with a darker back story than Joe suspects. Keyes isn't classically beautiful here, but she has a winning personality, and it's fun to watch her reactions, especially as donations arrive from unexpected sources.

The film has a supporting cast of familiar faces, with Percy Kilbride quite amusing as a resident of the men's dormitory at the settlement house. (He received a round of applause from the audience when he first appeared on screen.) Beulah Bondi, Clara Blandick, Ted de Corsia, Ray Mayer, Angela Clarke, and Ray Teal are also in the cast.

The movie would make good "outside the box" Christmas viewing, as the entire story takes place at Christmastime; one scene even finds Joe donning a Santa suit to escape the bad guys -- shades of LARCENY, INC. (1942).

I think the film's biggest drawback was the ambiguous ending; without being too plot spoilerish, I'll just say I'd have liked to be sure whether or not Joe had a happy future.

Ford and Keyes were regular costars in the '40s, including the very good Randolph Scott Western THE DESPERADOES (1943) and the romantic comedy THE MATING OF MILLIE (1948), which ran regularly on TV when I was growing up.

Last January Kevin's Movie Corner mused about both MR. SOFT TOUCH and THE DESPERADOES.

MR. SOFT TOUCH was codirected by Gordon Douglas and Henry Levin. The film also had two cinematographers, Joseph Walker and Charles Lawton Jr. The running time is 93 minutes.

This film is not available on DVD or video, but it has been shown on Turner Classic Movies.

January 2013 Update: MR. SOFT TOUCH will be out on DVD from the TCM Vault Collection in March 2013.

Tonight's Movie: Framed (1947) at the Noir City Film Festival

Tonight's Glenn Ford double bill at the Noir City Film Festival led off with FRAMED starring Ford and Janis Carter.

The film starts off with classic noir elements established in the opening moments: the down-on-his-luck WWII vet (Ford) arriving in a small town, where he meets an eye-popping dish (Carter) behind the counter at the local coffee joint/bar.

Mike (Ford) is thrown in jail due to an incident involving a brakeless truck and doesn't have the money to meet bail. Waitress Paula (Carter) pays the bail and rents him a hotel room for the night. Paula pretends to be interested in the suspicious Mike, but it transpires that Paula has a rich, married banker boyfriend, Steve (Barry Sullivan), who's embezzled a whole lot of cash; she sees Mike as the perfect patsy to be mistaken for the banker in a fatal car crash.

Over the course of its 82 minutes the film conjures memories of scenes from other film noir titles, including THEY DRIVE BY NIGHT (1941), DOUBLE INDEMNITY (1944), and FALLEN ANGEL (1945); in turn, later films such as IMPACT (1949) have small bits which are familiar from FRAMED, such as the plan to bump off the hero. A scene involving poison, on the other hand, was straight out of CLEOPATRA (1934)!

Although the script and occasionally the acting lack subtlety, I found the film quite entertaining; in fact, at times it was the "over the top" aspect -- particularly with regard to Janis Carter's vivid femme fatale -- which made the film so enjoyable. The Egyptian Theatre program aptly described the film as "prime grade pulp."

At times plot developments can be seen coming far in advance; for instance, the audience waits for the payoff when Mike will spot Paula's name on a bathrobe hanging in Steve's house. At the same time, there is some genuine suspense. I doubted Glenn Ford would be bumped off by Paula at the critical juncture but was quite curious about what would happen, and the moment was nicely carried off.

Given her dynamic performances in both FRAMED and NIGHT EDITOR (1946), it's fascinating that Janis Carter is so little remembered today, even by some fans of film noir. (At Twenty Four Frames John Greco calls her Paula "one of film noir's forgotten femme fatales.") After the film I briefly chatted about Carter's performance with Eddie Muller, who noted Paula's strange pleasure in things like exploding cars. I mentioned her role in NIGHT EDITOR, in which her character's fascination with death is even more pronounced. I felt this was Carter's film all the way, and she makes it a "must see" for those who love the genre.

Ford was solid as the beaten-down college grad in need of a job, but I felt he gave a much more interesting, more developed performance in the other film on the double bill, MR. SOFT TOUCH (1949). One of his best sequences in FRAMED involved a dice game and a gold watch; by coincidence, he also has an excellent dice scene in MR. SOFT TOUCH.

Barry Sullivan alternated between playing noir heroes and villains; in TENSION (1949) he was a relentless detective, while in CAUSE FOR ALARM! (1951), which is arguably a modern "Gothic noir," he was creepy as Loretta Young's deranged husband.

Karen Morley appears in a single scene as Sullivan's betrayed wife. Edgar Buchanan plays a silver prospector who befriends Mike, and Barbara Woodell and Jim Bannon are effective as a bank secretary and her husband. (A small blooper: the secretary's desk nameplate said "Miss Woodworth," but she was actually Mrs. Woodworth.)

The movie was directed by Richard Wallace, who passed on in 1951.

Burnett Guffey, who also filmed Carter in NIGHT EDITOR, shot the film in black and white. Guffey's outstanding credits also included MY NAME IS JULIA ROSS (1945) (showing at the festival on Wednesday, April 20th), JOHNNY O'CLOCK (1947), THE RECKLESS MOMENT (1949), and IN A LONELY PLACE (1950), among many other notable titles. Locations included Big Bear Lake, California.

This movie is not available on DVD or VHS, but it's been shown on Turner Classic Movies, which has a film clip available on their website.

January 2013 Update: FRAMED will be out on DVD from the TCM Vault Collection in March 2013.

An Amazing Evening at the Noir City Film Festival

It's been a wonderful couple of weeks at the Noir City Film Festival at Hollywood's Egyptian Theatre. Thanks to the support of my family of classic film fans, I managed to see 14 movies in 7 trips in 15 days! I was accompanied by family members to some of the screenings, and I also dashed up to L.A. on my own for some of the movies while my husband and kids were busy with other activities. (Things like volleyball games and color guard practice don't stop for a film festival!) Three of the films were second viewings, and the other 11 were enjoyed by me for the first time ever.

Although the festival continues through Wednesday, April 20th, last night was my final visit to this year's festival, and the most special experience was definitely saved for last.

Last night was a double bill of Glenn Ford films which included Glenn's son Peter signing his new biography of his father. Peter used his father's diaries and wrote what looks like a very detailed book of over 300 pages.

Below, Peter busy signing his book. The entire stock of books provided by Larry Edmunds Bookshop sold out.

I enjoyed briefly meeting Peter and having the opportunity to tell him how much I admired the work of not just his father, but his mother, dancer Eleanor Powell. Peter smiled as he told me his mother was "an angel."

Peter announced the arrival of his friend Paul Peterson (THE DONNA REED SHOW) to those of us in line...little did I know how many more people were due to arrive to enjoy the movies and help celebrate the launch of Peter's book.

Alan K. Rode introduced the films, FRAMED (1947) and MR. SOFT TOUCH (1949). He then announced that a number of Peter's friends were in the audience, beginning with a great friend of the Film Noir Foundation, actress Marsha Hunt. Longtime readers know that I'm a big fan of Miss Hunt, and I've reviewed many of her films here over the years.

Also in the audience were Ruta Lee, who I had the pleasure of meeting at a screening of SEVEN BRIDES FOR SEVEN BROTHERS (1954) some years ago; Patty McCormack of THE BAD SEED (1956); Daniel Selznick, whose legendary father owned the home across the street from Glenn Ford when Peter was growing up; Yoshihiro Tomita, from the cast of BLACKBOARD JUNGLE (1955); and Peter Mark Richman, known to those of us of a certain age as Andrew Laird on DYNASTY. Alan also mentioned that Ann Rutherford was expected but hadn't arrived yet.

During intermission, Alan interviewed Peter, who said he had so much material -- including his father's diaries -- that originally the book was 30,000 words longer, but the publisher insisted he edit it down.

Peter touched on a variety of topics, including growing up in a Hollywood wonderland with Charlie Chaplin and Fred Astaire as neighbors, and the difficulty of being the child of actors; he cited as one example his high school classmate Michael Boyer (son of Charles), who killed himself. He said he was determined not to go down that kind of path in life, and also said that he came to appreciate that while his parents hadn't always been there for him when he was young due to their work, they had had a wonderful impact on countless people, which he really valued. He also said that while his father wasn't a particularly good hands-on father when he was young, they later became great pals and enjoyed each other's company.

After their talk I went out to the lobby, where I found Eddie Muller and Marsha Hunt. It was so nice that Eddie remembered meeting me on the festival's opening night and greeted me, and I had the opportunity to listen to Eddie and Marsha reminiscing about her friend, the late Hugh Martin.

I then had a really special opportunity to chat with Miss Hunt one-on-one for a few minutes, which I will always remember. She shared how difficult it was to sing off-key as Mary in PRIDE AND PREJUDICE (1940) and said she had to practice for weeks because she was actually very musical. I told her one of my favorites of her films was THE AFFAIRS OF MARTHA (1942), and she said it was also a favorite of hers. I also told her how much I love her beautiful book of fashion stills from her films, THE WAY WE WORE. I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves Marsha Hunt, MGM movies in general, or fashions of the '30s through '50s.

My apologies to Eddie Muller for catching him with his eyes shut in the hurriedly snapped photo below, but I wanted to share this picture of Marsha Hunt with Eddie and Alan Rode, as I think it reflects how lovely she is, both inside and out. She radiates happiness and serenity.

At one point she clasped my hand and said "I've had a wonderful life!"

For me, the chance to briefly talk with someone I admire so much was a very memorable experience.

But the evening wasn't quite over! As I was leaving, I realized that I'd just walked past Miss Hunt's PRIDE AND PREJUDICE sister, Ann Rutherford.

I also love Miss Rutherford and paid tribute to her on her birthday last year. As I saw Daniel Selznick greet her with a kiss, my mind registered that they knew each other, and then I did a mental double-take, as it clicked into focus that in front of me was one of the last surviving principal cast members of GONE WITH THE WIND (1939), talking with the producer's son. And they had just finished watching a film starring Evelyn Keyes, who played Rutherford's GWTW sister.

The lights were being switched off, the crowd was filing out, and Rutherford was busy chatting with Peter Ford and Daniel Selznick, so I didn't feel it appropriate to approach her, but I did snap a quick non-flash photo from a distance; Rutherford is in the background between Peter and Daniel. The lady in red in the foreground is Peter's wife of over 40 years, Lynda; they met as students at my daughter's alma mater, USC.

What a memorable conclusion to a great couple of weeks! My thanks to everyone at the Egyptian and the Film Noir Foundation, especially Eddie Muller and Alan K. Rode, for putting on such a wonderful festival. I hope it will return next year, and I'll definitely be there!

Links for my reviews for all 14 films seen at the festival can be found in this post. Coming soon: reviews of FRAMED and MR. SOFT TOUCH.

Update: Here are links for the reviews of FRAMED (1947) and MR. SOFT TOUCH (1949).