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alred-patrick
Reviews
The Woman on the Beach (1947)
I want to like it
I want to like this film but indeed there are issues with it that prevent a higher rating mainly screenwriting and plot issues, I just don't understand how Tod (Bickford) lost his sight exactly how did this happen and what about Joan Bennett's character's former relationship with the soldier Bel Geddes what became of that I don't quite understand why it was even brought up other than to show that she has tried to manipulate men in the past maybe. Unlike most who reviewed the film on here the score didn't bother me, I could understand the pull to Bennett from Robert Ryan's character because he has been tortured by trauma and ghosts from his past and Bennett has endured the same causing Ryan to go into White Knight Mode to save her from her dysfunctional relationship but is he being used and manipulated or coming up with these ideas of taking out and exposing Bickford on his own. The ending is flat very flat, let's just walk away like nothing ever happened after we burn these paintings and house down therefore extinguishing our ghosts I could hardly see either Ryan or Bennett's characters accepting that as such a simple translation because they are so complicated. Interesting to note Jean Renoir making a movie about a tortured painter who lost his sight makes me wonder could someone in his family have suffered this way.
The Life of Jimmy Dolan (1933)
Fairbanks Jr.'s best role
Very similar to the remake They Made Me A Criminal but the stories are not completely identical and although I rate John Garfield as one of the best actors in any era I must tip my hat to Fairbanks Jr.'s performance here. While it must have been hard to emerge from the shadow of his silent film mega star father, Jr really won me over with his performance in this film, seeing him without the moustache initially threw me off but then made sense as he became Jack Daugherty. Jr showed shades of being tough, romantic, selflessness to the point of surrender at one point but at the same time a desperate man who still finds nobility in his character despite losing his name and former life all while trying to avoid being a sucker. As a boxing historian myself it is interesting to note the uniqueness of being a southpaw whereas today a boxer fighting southpaw is much more common because it has been labeled as an advantage because orthodox fighters used to struggle to find sparring partners who are southpaws and so the 10% of the population that are left handed was also represented at about the same rate of southpaws in boxing until righties started seeing the advantage of going southpaw to throw their opponent off. I find it funny that John Wayne plays a cowardly reluctant boxer afraid to fight the behemoth King Cobra, before he goes into the ring Jr tries to comfort him and ease his mind about fighting, hardly ever something you see John Wayne doing is showing an inch of cowardice on film. The ultimate man's man Mr. Macho next to Clark Gable would never agree to something like this at the peak of their careers, they never sought to show their acting range they always strived to protect their manly persona to the point of Gable of taking hair growth treatments for his chest hair! The young cat eyed Loretta Young fits nicely into her role, the pre-code drinking, brawling, and efforts to avoid being a sucker are fun and thank God for that ending because that would've tanked my rating if Jr actually let Kibbee take him in.
Soldiers Three (1951)
Can't compare to Gunga Din
This version of the Kipling tale is much more slapstick and parodical in its delivery. Granger seems to be trying awfully hard to be funny because it's not natural for him but I will say it seems like the entire cast seemed to be having a great time and I'd guess a lot of alcoholic beverages were consumed off set. Robert Newton is genuinely funny as a bumbling oaf who says "Argh" more than any pirate in this role as a British colonial soldier whereby in one scene they look more like hotel bellhops than soldiers. Also I wonder what was the audience reaction to these shirtless men who don't look like soldiers wading through a river it was a comical sight. Walter Pidgeon and David Niven were a wonderful pair in this film I enjoyed their banter and performances with Niven giving the best all around performance. It is fun to watch actors enjoying their jobs even if the script material is subpar. Cheers.