Anthony Mann

[therewillbeblus]

I'm only three Manns away from completing his filmography, and have little to say about what I've caught up with - they're mostly duds - but want to give a special mention to the musical Sing Your Way Home, which is charming in its kittenish exuberance. Hoping the last two musicals on the docket can match its energy - My Best Gal was awful and the bigger-budget later Serenade did little for me either

[bearcuborg]

Jeanine Basinger's book is a real treasure if you don't already have it...

[nicolas]

I'm only three Manns away from completing his filmography, and have little to say about what I've caught up with - they're mostly duds - but want to give a special mention to the musical Sing Your Way Home, which is charming in its kittenish exuberance. Hoping the last two musicals on the docket can match its energy - My Best Gal was awful and the bigger-budget later Serenade did little for me either

Would you mind sharing your favorite titles? I have a few of the bigger titles (Winchester, Furies, Laramie, Man of the West and Naked Spur) but am unfamiliar with all the rest. Maybe there’s one or two worthwhile gems to discover among the rubble. Thanks!

[bearcuborg]

I'm only three Manns away from completing his filmography, and have little to say about what I've caught up with - they're mostly duds - but want to give a special mention to the musical Sing Your Way Home, which is charming in its kittenish exuberance. Hoping the last two musicals on the docket can match its energy - My Best Gal was awful and the bigger-budget later Serenade did little for me either

Would you mind sharing your favorite titles? I have a few of the bigger titles (Winchester, Furies, Laramie, Man of the West and Naked Spur) but am unfamiliar with all the rest. Maybe there’s one or two worthwhile gems to discover among the rubble. Thanks!

His noir stuff is fantastic, especially when working John Alton. I noticed The Far Country missing from your list. John McIntyre is one of nastiest villains in a Mann picture…

[therewillbeblus]

I'm only three Manns away from completing his filmography, and have little to say about what I've caught up with - they're mostly duds - but want to give a special mention to the musical Sing Your Way Home, which is charming in its kittenish exuberance. Hoping the last two musicals on the docket can match its energy - My Best Gal was awful and the bigger-budget later Serenade did little for me either

Would you mind sharing your favorite titles? I have a few of the bigger titles (Winchester, Furies, Laramie, Man of the West and Naked Spur) but am unfamiliar with all the rest. Maybe there’s one or two worthwhile gems to discover among the rubble. Thanks!

I wrote up some of the rarer noirs previously unseen by me in the noir thread recently, and liked a few a great deal, particularly Strangers in the Night, Railroaded! and Strange Impersonation, though Mann has directed much better noirs that I've been familiar with for some time!

I may create a ranked LB list if I move forward with revisiting all of his work. Other than the Westerns you mentioned already, I'd say prioritize (in rough order) Reign of Terror (aka The Black Book), Men in War, The Tall Target, Cimarron, Raw Deal, T-Men, Border Incident

[therewillbeblus]

Revising Desperate, there's a wonderful detail I didn't catch the first time around: In the scene where Brodie is getting pummeled offscreen, the overhead lights are swinging so that the lighting scrolls across Burr's hungry face - finally he says, "Hold it!" to stop the torture, and the lights get held, lingering on his face for just a few seconds before the shot cuts away. It's brilliantly eerie and surreal, as if Burr's domineering cruel force is Satan himself in that moment

[nicolas]

I'm only three Manns away from completing his filmography, and have little to say about what I've caught up with - they're mostly duds - but want to give a special mention to the musical Sing Your Way Home, which is charming in its kittenish exuberance. Hoping the last two musicals on the docket can match its energy - My Best Gal was awful and the bigger-budget later Serenade did little for me either

Would you mind sharing your favorite titles? I have a few of the bigger titles (Winchester, Furies, Laramie, Man of the West and Naked Spur) but am unfamiliar with all the rest. Maybe there’s one or two worthwhile gems to discover among the rubble. Thanks!

I wrote up some of the rarer noirs previously unseen by me in the noir thread recently, and liked a few a great deal, particularly Strangers in the Night, Railroaded! and Strange Impersonation, though Mann has directed much better noirs that I've been familiar with for some time!

I may create a ranked LB list if I move forward with revisiting all of his work. Other than the Westerns you mentioned already, I'd say prioritize (in rough order) Reign of Terror (aka The Black Book), Men in War, The Tall Target, Cimarron, Raw Deal, T-Men, Border Incident

Thanks so much!

[therewillbeblus]

I've completed my Mann viewings. A few thoughts:

God's Little Acre is a hammy mess of strung-together sequences rather than a coherent narrative, but many times threatens to become another slice of Southern perversity a la Baby Doll. I wonder if revisits will be kinder to its fusion of ideas and propel it into something worth celebrating a bit more.

Reign of Terror has only improved on its already stellar impressions with revisits. I'm not sure I'm ready to declare it the greatest noir ever, but it's up there with the most 'fun' movies ever made. I'm bewildered every time I watch, just how little fat there is, and how much Mann and co. are able to squeeze into its brief runtime. Truly a one-of-a-kind film, and probably tied with Man of the West at the very top of Mann's work.

T-Men increases in my esteem each watch as well - it doesn't fall into the slow procedural trappings of Border Incident (though, man, that film might hold the award for the peak of Alton's powers..) but utilizes the format to stretch itself into interesting territory. Lots of going-ons link together loosely (does this have the most 'scenes' out of all noirs?!), all while tightening the noose of suspense, with some very shocking narrative twists that manage to stir me even after seeing it so many times. A strange beast of a film, but one whose greatness shines through the clearer the picture becomes.

[Red Screamer]

The Tall Target is an utter delight (and looks great on blu). It’s one of the more immersive studio-era movies I can remember seeing, with its lack of incidental music, incredible sets, and wide range of spatial variations — despite rarely ever leaving the train! It almost felt like a video game, especially so with how unrelenting it is as a mystery-thriller. Maybe you could also apply that comparison to the fact that it lacks the psychological depth we expect from Mann’s other great films, but like in Reign of Terror, it doesn’t really matter because the film is primarily a showcase for Mann’s assurance and energy as a filmmaker. Plus, its mini-panorama of a paranoid, fratricidal America on the brink of civil war is darker and less sentimental than plenty of the more celebrated pessimistic westerns of the era.