1930s List Discussion and Suggestions (Lists Project Vol. 3)

[Murdoch]

I was beginning to pick up on that after the stowaway scene in Safe in Hell and the mentioned Ox-Bow, it's styllistically dissimilar from the type of shot I'm so accustomed to with actors' faces always visible that each time it threw me.
I'm loving Wellman's work though and eagerly await watching more.

[myrnaloyisdope]

I was beginning to pick up on that after the stowaway scene in Safe in Hell and the mentioned Ox-Bow, it's styllistically dissimilar from the type of shot I'm so accustomed to with actors' faces always visible that each time it threw me.
I'm loving Wellman's work though and eagerly await watching more.

Well there's lots of it too be sure. Oddly enough though I'm a huge Wellman booster, I just can't really get into Nothing Sacred. I really want to like it, I am a big fan of the two leads and I was really looking forward to it after reading some great reviews, but it just doesn't connect with me. I didn't find it funny and the story just didn't do anything for me.

[swo17]

I'm sure I'm not the first person to realize this but my, 1939 was certainly kind to Thomas Mitchell. He was featured in these five (and only these five) films that year: Stagecoach, Only Angels Have Wings, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, Gone with the Wind, and The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Of course he won an Oscar that year.

Speaking of Stagecoach, rewatching this recently with the rules of the Hays Code in mind, I'm curious how this film was able to get away with its ending:

Spoiler

an escaped convict murders three men, evades jail, and rides off into the sunset with a prostitute.

It's a great ending of course, and these actions are all portrayed as noble in context, but on paper it just sounds like something that wouldn't fly.

[zedz]

Speaking of Stagecoach, rewatching this recently with the rules of the Hays Code in mind, I'm curious how this film was able to get away with its ending:

Spoiler

an escaped convict murders three men, evades jail, and rides off into the sunset with a prostitute.

Answer:

Spoiler

John Wayne

[Shrew]

I'm no expert on this, but might it have to do with the fact Stagecoach was "independent"?

But just within the context of the narrative: Wayne is captured by the law, but then let go. Plus, the final shootout isn't shown. It's one of those 'duh' things, but perhaps enough to pass code.

[swo17]

Okay, confession time: The '30s have always been a bit of a blind spot for me--by my count, at the start of the project I had only seen about 100 films from the decade. So I've been spending a lot of time so far the past couple months just catching up for the first time on well established classics. (Anyone jealous?) I only mention this to establish that, to my utter shame, up until a week ago I had never before seen a Busby Berkeley film. Heard the name, sure, seen homages, knew generally what to expect, only no. Not at all. Nothing to prepare me for the experience of seeing the real thing straight from the source. These aren't just imaginative, well choreographed films--they feel like life changers, in the same way that you can never go on living like before after surviving a plane crash, or eating your first Reese's peanut butter cup. These are films that elicit irrational levels of hyperbole from normally level headed lists project coordinators. Admittedly, some of the films drag a little in between the songs, but all is forgiven once Berkeley takes the reigns again. Kind of like how you forget about whatever boring thing you were just eating ten minutes ago the moment you put a Reese's peanut butter cup in your mouth.

It looks like these films suffered heavily from vote splitting in the last go-around. In light of this, I would just point out that even if you use up 3 or 4 or 5 spots with Busby Berkeley films, that still leaves you basically 50 spots (after rounding) for other stuff. :-"

And finally, a totally random observation--I love Dick Powell's distanced introduction of Al Jolson for the finale of Wonder Bar: "Ladies and gentlemen, Monsieur Al, who will do one of his characteristic numbers, for which he is famous."

[knives]

Wonder Bar is the one with the Donkey song in heaven right. I love that film if just for being the most ridiculously racist thing I've ever seen. Also I'm sure I had seen even less '30s than you at the start of this, only about 78 by my count. Over doubled that by now though. Where should I start on Busby Berkeley by the way. Haven't seen any of his(other)stuff yet.

[myrnaloyisdope]

I discovered Busby Berkeley a couple of years ago and I feel the same way as you swo, it is life changing stuff. I'm most partial to 42nd Street as a movie, though Gold Diggers of 1933 is right up there too. Footlight Parade is a bit slow at times, but the final two sequences make me smile so much. I once read "By The Waterfall" described as the Intolerance of musical numbers and I'm inclined to agree. Just astonishing creativity and execution. Wonder Bar is so cheerfully malevolent and Al Jolson's Goin To Heaven on a Mule so cheerfully racist that it's hard to know what to do with. I sort of sit back and just admire the spectacle, much like The Mask of Fu Manchu, it would be deeply offensive if it wasn't so awesome. (perhaps it still is?). I find outside of those four movies the rest of the Busby Berkeley associated films aren't too hot, though I'm not sure Berkeley or anybody has ever done anything so good as "Lullaby of Broadway", it's so overwhlemingly good that I'll likely give Gold Diggers of 1935 a vote solely on the strenght of it. Gold Diggers of 1937 yields the very fun "All's Fair in Love and War" number, which gives us the brilliant use of atomizers as mustard gas in trench warfare and an impossibly cheerful Joan Blondell.

Whoopee is his first credited film and it's a technicolor western musical with Eddie Cantor (!), and it's watchable, and interesting to see some of the stylistic traits (top view camera and gemometric patterns) of Berkeley two years before he made it big. Night World is a fun universal pre-coder with Berkeley choreographing one number featuring the lovely, Mae Clarke. Not a Berkeley film per se, but he was involved. Add in Lew Ayres, Bert Roach, Boris Karloff and Clarence Muse giving a really great (yet totally forgotten) performance and you have a fun little film.

[swo17]

Wonder Bar is the one with the Donkey song in heaven right.

Yep.

Where should I start on Busby Berkeley by the way. Haven't seen any of his(other)stuff yet.

I'd recommend just watching the whole first Warners set in chronological order (42nd Street, Gold Diggers of 1933, Footlight Parade, Dames, and Gold Diggers of 1935) to start, and then there's more to seek out after that if you want (probably with diminishing returns though). I want to say GD33 seems like the strongest film overall to me, with 42nd Street a close second, and then Footlight Parade a close third, and...well, at the very least each of these films has at least one or two absolutely stunning numbers that I would consider essential viewing, not only for this project but for life in general. Many of them don't come until late in their respective films though, so don't go and do anything rash like giving up on one of the films halfway through. They're each only around 90 minutes long or so anyway.

[knives]

Wonder Bar is the one with the Donkey song in heaven right.

Yep.

Okay. I only found it recently and fell in love. I can't explain how horribly great the film is. Myrnaloyisdope said it as well as it goes I guess. Everyone should see it at least once. also thanks for the recommendation. My library seems to have the first set.

[swo17]

The Mask of Fu Manchu, it would be deeply offensive if it wasn't so awesome.

I'm glad you brought this up, because I forgot to mention it as a real highlight of the Legends of Horror set (which itself is a real highlight among DVD sets). Fu Manchu saw my jaw dropping repeatedly, and most of the time not even for being offensive. This is a film that really goes for the jugular again and again, and then using that up, finds other vital veins you didn't even know existed and proceeds to rip them from your tender throat while you just lie there in a confused glaze of agony and admiration. Definitely making my list.

[movielocke]

I finally read through the entire thread. I think reading through Lubitsch's first post on the 30s took about as long as reading the next five pages.

The thirties are one of my favorite decades, and around a decade ago was the first area of film I tackled after becoming passionate about film (I discovered DVDs, the internet, and friends who kept telling me to see these old movies like Lawrence of Arabia, 400 Blows, Casablanca and Grand Illusion). The first three films I watched for my personal 30s project were The Thin Man, Stagecoach and 42nd Street. I think 42nd street suffered by comparison. :-p Thin Man remains one of my absolute favorites of the decade, but some other personal gems that I really enjoy are: Stage Door, Crime of Monsieur Lange (I like this better than Rules of the Game), Sisters of Gion, Merrily We Live, Five Star Final, Gold Diggers of 1933, Red Dust, the Music Box and a whole host of other flicks. :-p I've seen some really awful films too (many were nominated for Best Picture), and my least favorite is probably Stella Dallas (this is the only Stanwyck I don't like) or Oil for the Lamps of China.

I agree with Swo that GD33 is the best of the Berkeleys, although my opinion is mainly formed because I find Pettin in the Park to be one of the greatest musical numbers I've ever seen, on the other hand, I was surprised on a rewatch that the plot of GD33 held up a lot better than the plot of 42nd street.

In short films, I'd like to pimp a personal favorite of mine, Who Killed Cock Robin? it's a Disney Silly Symphony that they hid very sneakily as an easter egg on the first set, It's essential 1930s, imo, great parodies of 1930s movie stars and with all the things 'wrong' with it (police brutality, mocking the judicial system, Mae West breasts and judge staring at them, horrible stereotypes and the final chorus of the jury) it really is amazing.

[Sloper]

I've never seen a Berkeley film - after the last few posts, though, I'll try a bit harder! And my vague memories of Fu Manchu are very fond indeed. It is the one with the horrendous 'bell torture' scene, right? And I vaguely remember an escalating series of elaborate traps and violent deaths at the climax. One of those old films where you think twice before watching it with your grandmother.

The 1930s has somehow never been one of my favourite decades, and I'm not sure if I've seen much more than 100 films from this era. In the last round, I found myself really missing the innocence (so to speak) and pioneering spirit of the pre-20s films; the gloss and sophistication of the things being produced in the 20s can be quite alienating, at times. To go from that to the relatively static camerawork, scratchy soundtracks, stiff acting and nasal voices that pervade so many (though not all, or even most) films from the 30s is, for me, quite a lurch. It's still a wonderful decade, of course, just not one that I feel as drawn to as I do to the 1910s or 20s.

Anyway, I've been catching up on some classics I should have seen long ago. The best discovery so far has been A Nous La Liberté - I don't feel capable of saying anything meaningful about it (obvious words like elegant, witty, charming, etc, come to mind), except that it's very rare for a film to have me falling off my chair laughing and marvelling at its beautiful imagery at the same time.

The second best discovery has been The Prisoner of Shark Island. I know it's morally problematic, but that scene where Baxter persuades the black prison guards to come out of their hiding place and help him battle the yellow fever is absolutely masterful. So is the whole film, compelling and harrowing throughout. (I also re-watched Drums Along the Mohawk recently; even more morally problematic, but still a gorgeous film.)

I've also enjoyed I Was Born But... (can't believe I waited this long, what a film) and Only Angels Have Wings, which seemed to go on forever, but I didn't want it to end.

And then I, ahem, didn't so much like Limite, Le Grand Jeu or Mayerling. I was particularly looking forward to the latter, and it's full of great things - not least Danielle Darrieux's ability to convey about five layers of emotion without moving a single facial muscle - but somehow the film's approach to this would-be tragic story felt rather detached. I'd like to re-watch all of these, though; especially Limite, which I'm afraid went right over my head.

[domino harvey]

I like those Jusy Garland/Mickey Rooney "let's put on a show" musicals that Berkley made, which are so low-key for most of the running time and then out of nowhere comes these insane, super-intricate musical routines

[swo17]

And my vague memories of Fu Manchu are very fond indeed. It is the one with the horrendous 'bell torture' scene, right?

That's the one. The film also has a really strong visual sense that seems at least partly carried over from the '20s, leaving you with images like the following that will haunt your dreams:

from the first five minutes of the movie

[Finch]

Personally, I found Fu Manchu pretty lousy but I will admit that it has some curiosity value as a prime example of Hollywood racism (the mass killing of the Asian villains with the laser beam was a real jaw dropper in that sense) and it is so openly nasty that it feels like a 1930s precursor to today's "torture porn" (particularly striking I found the scene in which Myrna Loy gets a sexual kick out of whipping Charles Starrett). I'll grant that the film has some arresting shots in it, but I thought it became very dull too soon. For me, it was the one outright stinker in the Warner set (didn't care for Browning's Shadow of the Vampire either).

[Gregory]

The Mask of Fu Manchu is a total camp film, and I'd bet that a lot of viewers watched it on an ironic level even when it was first released, (though we know that some were outraged at the time as well). The reason I think that is that Myrna Loy's performance seems like a dead giveaway of her awareness (and probably anyone involved who really thought about it and had a sense of humor about the whole thing) of how ridiculous it was. Prior to The Thin Man, Loy was almost always cast in preposterous roles like this, and I think it's admirable, and really fun to watch, how much of a sense of humor she has about it. Normally I'm not big on camp, or describing any film worth watching as mere entertainment, but this is one of those cases, where something is so outlandish that it's almost a parody of racist archetypes of the time.

[myrnaloyisdope]

Loy has said that she and Karloff conspired beforehand to play the film with an added gusto in order to give the film an added layer and at the very least amuse themselves.

[Mr Sausage]

Karloff had impeccable taste for a guy who spent most of his career playing monsters. He knew exactly what monster to play over-the-top and which to play restrained. So while he resists giving the Frankenstein monster any unnecessary exaggerations (a role that, with its stilts, boots, and heavy make-up could have tempted any other actor into overacting), he lets his Fu Manchu go gleefully over-the-top. Whether he goes one way or the other, his choice is always pitched just right. For a useful study in range, I recommend watching Mask of Fu Manchu, The Black Cat, and Night Key (all worth watching for the 30's list anyway) back-to-back. It hardly seems like the same guy in each role.

[Mr Sausage]

Speaking of 30's Karloff movies to watch, has The Black Room been mentioned yet? Because it's fantastic, with Karloff playing (seamlessly, effortlessly) a pair of twins. The plot is a rather usual old family/ancestral curse deal, but it's done with competence, and as said, Karloff is fantastic. See it for the performances at least.

[movielocke]

Karloff is very memorable in Ford's The Lost Patrol as well.

[Cold Bishop]

And wonderfully sleazy as the "Reverend" in Five Star Final

[Tommaso]

To get back to something mentioned here a while ago:

Speaking of Grémillon, I'm inclined to mention that his two Spanish films from the decade are available now with English subs if you know where to look for them. La dolorosa is an adaptation of a famous Spanish zarzuela (like an opera) about a woman who falls for a brute, and the man who can rescue her torn between his love for her and his commitment to God as a monk. The songs are memorable (some of them continue to be interpreted by singers like Plácido Domingo) and some of the visuals are quite nice as well.

I watched this last night, only my second Grémillon film (the other's "Maldone", unsurprisingly), so I can't say whether this film is typical or important for this filmmaker, but I found it pretty amazing. Perhaps it's just because I had never seen (or even known about) a zarzuela before, but seeing a true 'folklore musical' (probably the wrong word) caught me somewhat unawares. The story of La dolorosa itself isn't much, but the combination of semi-operatic tunes with a stark visual style that reminded me of both Bunuel and Dreyer in places was fascinating. To lighten the predominantly gloomy mood, there's also a pair of simple, but endearing young lovers, even though the main focus is on the plight of the main female character which gives the film its title, ravishingly played by Rosita Diaz Gimeno.

Very often Grémillon chooses not to show the performers singing, but we hear the music off-screen and see visualizations of the characters' moods and feelings instead, done with fine superimpositions of images and montage sequences. Great images of the Spanish landscape and in the end a village festival with archaic rites and masks on top of it (this very slightly reminded me of Trenker's "Der verlorene Sohn"). Beautiful stuff.

[zedz]

Very often Grémillon chooses not to show the performers singing, but we hear the music off-screen and see visualizations of the characters' moods and feelings instead, done with fine superimpositions of images and montage sequences.

I haven't seen this Gremillon, but that's an interesting stylistic choice given what he does in Le ciel est a vous - a film about the intoxicating allure of flight which steadfastly excludes any airborne footage. Off the top of my head, sublimation could be an interesting thematic lead to follow through his work (e.g. the male romance in Gueule d'Amour; the exploding landscape in Lumiere d'Ete)

[knives]

So I've watched Happiness twice in about a week's time and it's arguably the funniest thing I've seen from the decade(and easily from the country). There's so many marvelous gags that to list all of the ones I like would take too long. The humour itself seems to be from the earliest days if the movies. Stuff like the moving house or the perpendicular hill are the sort of jokes that I haven't seen since two lists ago. All of this shockingly plays to a rare sophistication. This is the highest 'quality' Russian film(along with Ivan) I've seen from the Stalin era.

That said I really can't make heads nor tails of the story and the way the movie treats the final fate of the priest is just odd. I'd love to hear everyone's opinions about the story itself.