Mr. Thank You (Shimizu 1936). I can see why this is a beloved film. It’s really an original piece, with a light but poetic and human spirit and the added depth of the Depression in the background. The bit of narrative development at film’s end really puts a sweet bow on the thing, while those traveling shots of the Japanese countryside throughout produce a wonderful photographic documentary.
Hôtel du Nord (Carné 1938). The fallout among a hotel’s community of a failed young lovers’ suicide pact. Good bunch of actors to watch (especially Jouvet and Arletty) but the story never catches the way it does in the films it’s sandwiched between (Quai des ombres, Le Jour se lève).
Kameradschaft (Pabst 1931). As much as I was impressed by Westfront 1918, there were a few moments where I was a bit confused about what was going on, and others that were a little duller. That wasn’t the case here. It’s such a heart-warming film in its premise and historical context, but it’s also a really effective suspense-&-drama piece. It’s also shot and edited with great style.
Outskirts (Barnet 1933). The film shares with Westfront 1918 both a spirit of transnational humanism and a focus on the effects of the war in civilian life, indeed the latter even more pronounced here. I’m not familiar with Barnet apart from having read about him, so I was struck by the slightly dreamlike, quasi-surrealistic tone, produced in part by the wild extremes of comedy and tragedy, sometimes occurring simultaneously, and whether intentionally or not, by the non-direct sound (I also noted the director’s innovative use in editing sound and image together). He also seems to have a thing for the grotesque, which perhaps aligns him with the tradition of Gogol. The poetic authorial voice is potent but for me personally this was intriguing and interesting but a bit abstract in its effect and not especially moving or impactful.
The Mr. Bongo dvd is indeed all–region.
Three Comrades (Borzage 1938). I didn’t expect the film to have such a pedigree, to be based on a Remarque novel and the screenplay co-written by F. Scott Fitzgerald. I liked this even though it was from perfect (for one thing the unrest in 1920 Germany is never explained, and the motive for our gang’s adversaries is mysterious, unless I just didn’t catch it). The romance is the winning thing here, in large part because of Sullavan’s presence and effective emoting.
The Man in the Iron Mask (Whale 1939). An independent (Edward Small) production for United Artists. Louis Hayward isn’t an actor I’m very familiar with and I wasn’t sure about him in the lead at the start (playing the dual twin brother roles) but in the end he quite distinguishes himself. This is a great yarn to begin with, similar to The Prisoner of Zenda of course, but it’s really made into a smart, really fun film here. It’s well written and casted (Warren William, Joan Bennett, Schildkraut) and directed with panache. I’ll even give the edge to this one over Zenda, second to Captain Blood among the five swashbucklers I’ve watched for this project.
