Directed by Fritz Lang
Produced by Erich Pommer
Written by Thea von Harbou
Fritz Lang (uncredited)
Starring Alfred Abel Brigitte Helm
Gustav Fröhlich
Rudolf Klein-Rogge
Music by Gottfried Huppertz (original version)
Cinematography Karl Freund, Günther Rittau &Walter Ruttmann
Distributed by UFA(Germany)
Paramount Pictures (US)
Release date 10 January 1927 (Germany)[1]
6 March 1927 (US)
Running time 153 minutes/24 frame/s (German premiere cut)
114 minutes/25 frame/s (1927 US cut version)
Country Germany
Language Silent film
German intertitles
Metropolis is a film that features some incredible visuals. The art-deco inspired backgrounds look very stunning as well. As for the content of the film itself, well I am not so sure. A lot of the time I wasn’t exactly sure of what was going on, and a lot of the characters seemed to be really quite stupid, especially Joh Frederson the industrialist/dictator. I did enjoy some of the facia; expressions shown by the actress Brigitte Helm when she was the Machine Man, intent on causing chaos and destrucion and the scenes of her dancing as well. One thing that helps make these sort of scenes look amusing is the fact that silent films run at a different speed to talkies, so the action goes a little faster
Directed byNorman Taurog Produced by John W. Considine Jr. Written byDore Schary, Eleanore Griffin & John Meehan StarringSpencer Tracy Mickey Rooney
Henry Hull Music by Edward Ward Cinematography Sidney Wagner Editing by Elmo Veron Distributed byMetro-Goldwyn-Mayer Release date 9 September 1938 Running time 96 minutes Country United States Language English
Boys Town is a hard film to review for me because although I thought it was a great story, and Spencer Tracy’s fine portrayal of Father Flannigan was pretty good, there was one element that almost ruined the film for me. I am talking about Mickey Rooney’s performance as Whitey Marsh.
I have seen a few Mickey Rooney films and know that he can be quite a ham, but here his over-acting really affected my enjoyment of the film. The part really could have used a little subtlety instead of Mickey trying to steal every scene when he really didn’t have to. Perhaps I could put it down to him just being 18 at the time he made this film BUT… he had been acting in vaudeville and movies all his life so there shouldn’t be an excuse. Perhaps because Tracy’s portrayal of Father Flannigan is very understated the director wanted to have the Mickster play his part way OTT.
Directed byFrank Tashlin Produced by Frank Tashlin Written by Frank Tashlin & Herbert Baker Starring Tom Ewell Jayne Mansfield
Edmond O’Brien Music by Bobby Troup Cinematography Leon Shamroy Editing by James B. Clark Distributed by20th Century Fox Release date December 1, 1956 Running time 99 min Country United States Language English
The Girl Can’t Help It is an interesting film for a number of reasons. Firstly, it was one of the first rock ‘n’ roll movies and featured performances by Little Richard, Gene Vincent and others. In fact this film was the inspiration for a couple of Liverpool lads to get decide to become rock stars too. Apparently some guy named John Lennon was obsessed with the film and seeing all of his heroes on the big screen, while another guy, Paul McCartney impressed Lennon with his impression of Eddie Cochran’s performance of Twenty Flight Rock from this movie. They started their own band which later became known as the Beatles or something. You may have heard of them.
The film was directed by Frank Tashlin, who as I have previously said started off directing cartoons for Warner Bros. He brings a few cartoony gag including one that I found quite funny and was a little rude. I am talking about the scene where Jayne Mansfield walks past the milkman and the lids of the milk bottles pop off and the milk starts coming out.
The film’s star is Jayne Mansfield who really was nothing more than a Marilyn Monroe wannabe. This may seem a bit harsh but it looks as though she was told in this film to act as much like Marilyn as possible, as that is all she does. Mansfield was not really known for her acting ability but for something else, as Sophia Loren can see in the picture here. Let’s just say that her bosoms were bigger than her talent. Later in her career Mansfield became more well-known for her wardrobe malfunctions than any of the movies that she made. She later appeared in a film called Promises! Promises! where she became the first mainstream film star since the early 30s to appear on film in the nude, thanks to the demise of the Hays Code. Jayne’s daughter is Mariska Hargitay, who plays Olivia Benson on Law & Order SVU. You can certainly see the resemblance between the two, especially in the facial features.
As for the film, it is funny and entertaining and the music is great but it is a bit dated.
Directed by Jean Yarbrough Produced by John Grant & Edmund L. Hartmann Written by Edmund L. Hartmann, John Grant, Edmund Joseph &
Hal Fimberg Starring Bud Abbott
Lou Costello
Alan Curtis
Rita Johnson Music by Lloyd Akridge & Paul Dessau Editing by Arthur Hilton Distributed by Universal Pictures Release date June 20, 1945 Running time 76 min Language English
This is one of Abbott & Costello’s funniest films and includes a few of their better known sketches, including Who’s On First.
I’d recommend the film just on the basis that it contains Who’s On First as it’s probably one of the best film comic routines ever. (I do know that A&C did do it in an earlier film and that a lot of their material was recycled over and over again, but I really don’t care!)
Directed by George Marshall Produced byArthur Hornblow, Jr. Written byWalter DeLeon Starring Bob Hope
Paulette Goddard
Richard Carlson
Paul Lukas Music by Ernst Toch Cinematography Charles B. Lang Editing by Ellsworth Hoagland Distributed byParamount Pictures Release date June 21, 1940 Running time 83 min. Country United States Language English
The Ghost Breakers is another one of the 1940s comedy/horror films that were made during that time. (I realise that this sentence sounds awkward) This one starred Bob Hope and Paulette Goddard and is a sequel of sorts to the haunted house comedy The Cat And The Canary from a year earlier.
While it probably wasn’t as funny as Abbott & Costello’s similar type film Hold That Ghost, this film did have a few more scary scenes in it. Hope has a few good lines and is quite funny but I found Goddard’s performance to be a little disappointing, especially when compared to her other big role from 1940 in The Great Dictator. My favourite role of Goddard’s so far is in Modern Times. In The Ghost Breakers she has a few good scenes but doesn’t really do anything funny. I guess you could stereotype her role as standard damsel in distress.
The Ghost Breakers was still quite an enjoyable film to watch and one that I enjoyed a lot.
Directed byNorman Z. McLeod Produced by Herman J. Mankiewicz(uncredited) Written byS. J. Perelman & Will B. Johnstone Starring Groucho Marx
Harpo Marx
Chico Marx
Zeppo Marx
Thelma Todd Music by John Leipold (uncredited) Cinematography Arthur L. Todd Distributed byParamount Pictures Release date 19 September 1931 Running time 77 minutes Country United States Language English
This is the third film that the Marx Bros. made, the one that features them as stowaways on a ship. The film is perhaps a bit more chaotic that the later Marx films but it still has some funny moments. Perhaps the most well known scene in this film is this one…
The only real downer in the film comes in the last fifteen minutes when Chico has his obligatory piano recital and Harpo plucks the harp. Then again these things happen in all Marx Bros. films and one can always press the fast forward button. You can at least be thankful that there is no lame crooner taking up screen time from the Brothers’ antics, which would happen when they went to MGM.
It is a great film although not quite as funny as Duck Soup.
It’s currently available from Target for less than $10 and has just been re-released by Universal as part of their Studio Classics range.
Directed byLowell Sherman Produced by William LeBaron Written byMae West (play Diamond Lil)
Harvey F. Thew & John Bright Starring Mae West Cary Grant
Owen Moore
Gilbert Roland
Noah Beery Music by John Leipold (uncredited) Cinematography Charles Lang Editing by Alexander Hall Studio Paramount Pictures Distributed by Paramount Pictures Release date January 27, 1933 Running time 66 min CountryUnited States
I’ve always wanted to see this film for a couple of reasons. Firstly I do like Mae West’s double entendres and one liners and secondly we get to see a young Cary Grant. Here he is the one who is being lusted after by West, which is strange since in years to come it would be Grant who was the older man lusting after and getting the younger woman. It’s odd to see the roles reversed.
Whilst I admit that I enjoy West’s wit I must also admit that she is a bit of a one trick pony in that he sly one liners are the only things she can really do. Worse still she hogs the spotlight so that nothing of interest occurs when she is on the screen.
When compared to other comedians of the 1930s West’s act isn’t as interesting. W. C. Fields, who West is often compared with, had some amazing one liners in his films too but he also was pretty good with the slapstick stuff and could share the spotlight with others who were funny too, while Groucho Marx had his brothers to play off, even if we had to endure a boring Harpo harp recital or Chico putting the audience to sleep with his piano playing. West too insists on showing off her non-comedic talent when she decides to sing… and it is excruciating. Unlike when Groucho sings West is serious and is not doing it for laughs so it makes it even more intolerable. I guess that Mae wanted to sing and no one had the guts to say no?!
The film is interesting and does feature Mae reciting he most well known line to Grant, “Why don’t you come up sometime and see me?”, but the film could have been better in my opinion.
Directed byGeorge Marshall
Edward F. Cline (uncredited) Produced by Lester Cowan Written byW. C. Fields (as “Charles Bogle”) (story)
Everett Freeman (screenplay)
Richard Mack (screenplay)
George Marion Jr. (screenplay) Starring W. C. Fields Edgar Bergen
Charlie McCarthy CinematographyMilton R. Krasner Editing by Otto Ludwig Distributed byUniversal Pictures Release date February 18, 1939 Running Time 76 min.
This was quite a good W. C Fields comedy film. It features a lot of classic lines from Fields, as well as some good slapstick pratfalls, but also features a continuation of his wonderful rivalry with a ventriloquists’ puppet.
It’s a bit hard to explain but for many years Fields had a radio rivalry with Charlie McCarthy, Edgar Bergen’s (Candice’s father) dummy. It’s strange indeed to think of someone doing a ventriloquist act on the radio, but that is where this funny rivalry was created. Both Fields and Bergen have some great moments to themselves in the brief moments when they are in a scene together there is some really good chemistry and funny jokes.
Directed by Bruce Beresford Written by Bruce Beresford & Barry Humphries Starring Barry Crocker,
Barry Humphries,
Donald Pleasance,
Dick Bentley Music by Peter Best Release date 1974 Running time 93 minutes CountryAustralia LanguageEnglish
Compared to the original this is a pretty awful film. It doesn’t have the charm of the original and seems to think that it’s funny just saying the words abo, slant eyes and poofter as often as you can if an hour and a half. There is a huge cringe factor involved in this film and its celebration of ockerism. It could have worked if it satirised instead of celebrated the boof headed stereotype or made it like the first movie where we had an unsophisticated fish out of water story, but instead Humphries and Beresford tried to make it some stoopidly lame comedy. It is a shame as the are both very talented and can do much better than this shit. As a gross out comedy it doesn’t work as there is just one clever double entendre in the entire film. Thank Christ we’ve progressed ever so slightly in the 35 years since this was released, although I know that there are some rednecks who mourn the fact that it is now frowned upon to go out of your way to be as offensive as possible for no reason whatsoever.
I suppose the only redeeming feature of the film is Crocker’s sincere performance. The rest of the film is just a whole lot of stereotypes and crudity for the sake of crudity.
As you can see, very classy indeed. Also I have to ask… where we so insecure at that time? It’s almost as if we had to reassure ourselves that Australia had a place in the world and that we could in fact do worthy things. Unfortunately the only thing this film is worthy of is being thrown in the garbage.
If you really want this piece of crap it is available from EZYDVD for $15, but I have seen it for $10 from other places (Dirt Cheap in Collins Street).
Directed by Fritz Lang
