Classic Film Obsessions 2016-- The One Year Blog Anniversary Post

First, excuse me while I congratulate myself 😊. I started this blog exactly one year ago, and 12 months and 44 posts later, it's still going! I had a lot of fun with it, and extended my connections into the fantastic community of classic cinephiles and bloggers, which was my hope, as stated in my very first post.  I was thrilled and humbled to join the Classic Movie Blog Association, enhance my relationship with Turner Classic Movies through participation in the annual film festival, and membership in the Backlot fan club, and have made many friendships in the community, connecting in person as well as online.

I'm establishing a tradition of posting a look back at my 'obsessions' over the course of the last year, and sharing my blog resolutions for the next year.  In 2016 I watched 162 new-to-me movies, slightly under my 2015 total of 178.

Classic Film Obsessions for 2016

Heflin won his only Oscar for his
supporting role in the gangster drama
  Johnny Eager (1941).  Here he shows
off his unique way of holding a cigarette

Van Heflin
Singling out Heflin likely doesn't surprise those who a) know me in person or on social media, or b) who've looked at my blog label list and see his name at the top in large font.  My obsession with the Oklahoma-born Heflin grew from my 2015 obsession with Alan Ladd, as they starred together in the classic Western Shane.  I wrote about Shane for my first ever blogathon, and while I didn't focus on Heflin there, over the course of the year I watched more and more of his films until my love was in full bloom.  I marveled at his versatility and talent, admired his intellectual approach to his craft, and found him a magnetic screen presence.  Also this year, his first-ever biography was published, which I reviewed here, and I featured and/or reviewed five of his films.   I did however, watch a great deal more from his filmography that I didn't write about, and of those, I'll recommend a few, in chronological order:  A Woman Rebels (1936)--this one's an interesting melodrama and vehicle mainly for Katharine Hepburn, who was a friend of Heflin's and helped get him his role.  He really isn't entirely recognizable here and doesn't register strongly, but it's his first role, and one of only six he made in the 1930s.  In the 1940s there are so many good ones, including Johnny Eager, but for a change of pace he is a riot in the comedies Presenting Lily Mars (1943) with Judy Garland, and The Feminine Touch (1941), with Kay Francis, Don Ameche, and Rosalind Russell, proving that this "craggy-faced" Western and Noir star could hold his own in light comedy.  In the 1950s, his best performance for my money may be in The Prowler (1951), where he is a seriously flawed protagonist.  I loved him also in the Rod Serling drama Patterns (1956), and for an all-around fantastic film, check out 3:10 to Yuma (1957), in which Heflin stars alongside a terrific Glenn Ford in this psychological Western.  There are many in his filmography still waiting for me, assuming this obsession continues in 2017.

I was delighted to listen to a recent interview with his daughter, actress Vana O'Brien here, in which, among other things, she commented that her father hated 'over-acting.'  For the most part I found his performances appropriately understated, which adds to the enjoyment of his work.  I hope that someday soon Ms. O'Brien will come to a film festival (TCM??) to share her remembrances of her father and his life and career -- she would receive a tremendous and appreciative reception.

The Western, and John Ford
Following the fun that was the 2015 'Summer of Darkness' dedicated to film noir, I dedicated myself to learning more about the Western in the summer of 2016 -- a vast film genre to be sure, but one most certainly under-represented in my film log. I listened to a recorded online course on the subject, and watched a number of films spanning eight decades, and dipped into several books on the subject. Check my posts from June-August for my thoughts on several of these films.

The genesis of this idea flowed from the delight I took in my first viewing of John Ford's She Wore A Yellow Ribbon (1949) at the 2016 Turner Classic Festival with a crowd of appreciative fans.   I grew to better know and appreciate much of Ford's work this past year, and began to internalize his style and approach.  What a phenomenal treasure he left us in the 140 films he directed.  Additionally, through Ford, I was introduced to the father and son acting duo of Harry Carey and Harry Carey Jr., who devoted their lives to giving us great entertainment in this great American film tradition.  I wrote about them here.

John Wayne, Harry Carey Jr., and Pedro Armendariz
star in Ford's 3 Godfathers from 1948.

New to me this year were the classic Westerns High Noon, My Darling Clementine, Destry Rides Again, and one of the earliest Westerns ever, The Great Train Robbery (1903).  I came to appreciate the acting talent of Dean Martin by watching Howard Hawks' Rio Bravo (1959); in fact, to me, Martin is the main reason to watch this film.  Lesser-known but interesting Westerns I caught this year include The Spoilers (1942) with Marlene Dietrich, Randolph Scott, and John Wayne, and The Texan (1930), starring a young Gary Cooper, previewing how he would come to dominate the genre!

Dean Martin as the alcoholic lawman 'Dude' in Rio Bravo

Berklee Silent Film Orchestra

Prof. Sheldon Mirowitz
 Of  Film Scoring
@ Berklee School
(photo from Berklee School)

Since I'm a fan of music as well as film, attending a screening of a silent film with live musical accompaniment claims a spot in the top five of my favorite things.  When the accompaniment is a local orchestra premiering their own student-composed score, it's a treat that is absolutely unique to the Boston area.  I wrote about the unique process of the Berklee Silent Film Orchestra, a group of top students from Berklee School of Music Film Scoring Department, here.  Well, actually, the secret has gotten out and the reputation of the BSFO has taken them to the prestigious San Francisco Silent Film Festival for two years now, where they've gotten rave reviews.

This year, I saw the world premiere of their score to Variete (1925), at one of our local art houses -- The Coolidge Corner Theatre, which is the BSFO's local partner and features them regularly through their 'Sounds of Silents' rep program.  It's been announced that Kino-Lorber is producing a new DVD of this film featuring the BSFO score; I hope it's available soon!  I also made it to the Coolidge the week of Halloween for their encore performance of their original score to Phantom of the Opera, the Lon Chaney classic.  I don't know what original film score the 2017 students are working on, but I will be sure to feature it here, as I don't miss these live premieres.

The magnificent 'Theatre 1' at the Coolidge 

My 2017 Blog Resolutions
Like most humans, I don't have much luck with annual resolutions (!), but here goes, anyway:

1. Find ways to make my blog more interactive -- with quizzes, Twitter polls, or the like.
2. Continue to use the blog as a way to learn more about film history, by exploring genres, actors, and/or directors that deserve more of my attention.
3. Submit at least one post in the annual CMBA awards process. 
4. Find and comment on more of my fellow bloggers' work.  There is no lack of great writing and interesting classic film commentary out there, and we are all enriched by reading one another.

Wishing all of my readers a healthy and properous 2017!

O.S.S.: A non-noir 1940s Alan Ladd wartime adventure.

In December, Turner Classic Movies, in partnership with Universal, released a packaged DVD set of three lesser-known Alan Ladd films from the 1940s (here).  Having recently tumbled headlong into the Alan Ladd fan club, I was excited to see this when the announcement was first made, and practically ran for my credit card to pre-order the set.  Originally supposed to have had four movies, the set only ended up with three in the finished product.  They are: O.S.S., TWO YEARS BEFORE THE MAST, and LUCKY JORDAN. All three of these films are reminders that Ladd's career during the 1940s extended well beyond film noir. This post focuses on my reactions to O.S.S., a well-made and well-acted WWII adventure film.

Directed by Irving Pichel, O.S.S. was made by Paramount in 1946, and uses the medium of film to inform the public about the heroic actions of the men and women of the 'Office of Strategic Services', the precursor to the C.I.A., during WWII.  To add verisimilitude an opening testimonial was captured on screen from General "Wild Bill" William Donovan, the real head of O.S.S. at the time. According to Marilyn Henry and Ron DeSourdis in their book The Films of Alan Ladd, 30 real O.S.S agents served as advisors on the film.

The story centers around Ladd and his cohort of Allied spies dropped into occupied France near the end of the war, to pose as French citizens and carry out clandestine and dangerous orders to thwart the Nazis at every turn.  Geraldine Fitzgerald is the leading lady, and the cast features terrific support from Patric Knowles, John Hoyt, and Harold Vermilyea.  The tone is quite dark and serious, with very rare touches of humor, quite a bit of irony, and a not insignificant dose of patriotic messaging, which was common in films like these during and after WWII.  There is a little bit of everything:  menacing Nazis, hairbreadth escapes, romance, plastic explosives disguised in sculptured busts (!), and snippets of "My Country Tis of Thee".

What I found fascinating about the film:

--The first episode of the film sets up Ladd, still in the U.S., stealing some important military papers, and leaves the audience initially unsure of who he is or what side he is on.  Eventually after a harrowing interrogation, all is made clear.

--There is a lovely composite scene showing Ladd in various scenarios learning the skills of a spy, with voice over that reads straight from the spy instruction manual.

--We learn early on that if you're an American spy posing as French during the war you must take care to always eat holding your fork in your left hand, and not switch it to the right, which is the custom in the U.S., or fear being found out.  One character lost his life because he slipped up with this!

--Ladd has his typical character arc going from tough cynic to believer through his experiences and the love of a good woman, but a special treat in this is that he has a scene of uncharacteristic emotion near the end of the film where he breaks down in grief and panic--it's a heart-wrenching scene, and makes one wish he'd been able to play more roles requiring him to drop his reserve from time to time.  Apparently Alan was nervous about playing this scene, yet it's really well done.

--There is a lovely little bit piece about a telegraph receptionist and the romance that starts up between her and one of the spies, whom she only knows via love notes he codes in the telegrams he sends her.

What I didn't like:

• Ladd's character early on makes it very clear he doesn't approve of a woman being among his company of spies, and tells Fitzgerald she should be home raising kids in Cleveland Heights or something to that effect.  Although he was expressing a common point of view of the time it was still painful (ugh, come on now Laddie!). 
• The chemistry between Ladd and Fitzgerald is lukewarm and while the two clearly grow in affection and respect during the film, the story and our experience would have benefited from a turning up of the heat just a bit.
• The script ends with a bit too much propagandizing; again, not uncommon during the time.

All in all, a film worthy of Ladd's talents and those of the others, and if not a classic, certainly well worth the 2 hours spent to learn one's history in an intelligent and entertaining way.

Ladd and Fitzgerald surveying their surroundings

Tense meeting between Vermilyea and Hoyt

Fitzgerald is recruited by Knowles