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Spencer Tracy won an Oscar for his portrayal of Father Flanagan, who opens Boys Town and dedicates himself to helping juvenile delinquents go straight. Mickey Rooney plays one of the tougher kids, figuring out early on that Flanagan is nobody's fool. Warmhearted and inspiring, the film's inevitable sentimentality is nicely cut by Tracy's performance and a smart script by Eleanore Griffin and Dore Schary (who also won Oscars). A good film for all ages, directed by Norman Taurog (Adventures of Tom Sawyer). --Tom Keogh ... Read more

Reviews (13)

PRIME TRACY PERFORMANCE.
Father Flanagan takes in abandoned boys between the ages of 12 to 18, regardless of race or creed, and fights to raise money, to feed and teach and mother his friendless charges. Mickey Rooney - bless him - runs the gamut of emotions from the tough, poker-playing gangster kid, through the tear-choked, made over youngster, to the final noble youth who becomes mayor of Boys Town. The film manages - in spite of its embarrassing sentimentality of its closing scenes - to be a consistently interesting and frequently touching movie. A burning desire to help his fellowmen and a belief that there is no such thing as a "bad boy" inspired and assisted the Reverend Edward J. Flanagan to found "Boy's Town". Spencer Tracy's sincere portrayal of the role of the priest Father Flanagan was truly an outstanding performance in his career, it even ranks above his Father Tim in SAN FRANCISCO; Tracy simply IS Father Flanagan! As a footnote, in real life, Tracy donated the Oscar he won for his portrayal as Father Flanagan TO Father Flanagan himself; Tracy had it inscribed thusly: "To Father Edward J. Flanagan, whose great human qualities, kindly simplicity and inspiring courage were strong enough to shine through my humble efforts. S/Spencer Tracy".

great movie
This is a movie that is still good even after all these years. Spencer Tracy and Mickey Rooney give two of the greatest performances of their career. It should have one best picture for 1938, It was far better than "You cant take it with you". "Boys Town" is one of the best fims of all time.

Good Movie
I don't like Spencer Tracey all that much, but he is wonderful in
this movie. Mickey Rooney is excellent too. Very heart warming, good movie to watch around Christmastime.

An inspiration
I had watched this movie on TV a few years ago and was moved especially as it was based on the true story of Fr. Flanagan.
Movies like these uphold human values and dignity and give hope in a world were these values are getting blurred and ambiguous as is reflected in today's 'sensational' hollywood movies most of which promote superflous and artificial lifestyles and senseless action which please the senses but leave a vacuum in the soul. Of course, movies like Men of Honor and Jerry McGuire are an exception. Also it is commendable that there also exist producers like Mel Gibson who has the courage to produce "The Passion" in Aramaic (the language spoken by Christ) though it does not make much commercial sense.
All of this makes me think, is Hollywood reflecting contemporary life or is life reflecting Hollywood.
Wonder why no movie is made on the life of Fr.Maximilian Kolbe who resisted the Nazis in Poland and ultimately sacrificed his life in the Gas Chamber in exchange for another inmate in the Nazi Auchwitz camp in WWII. It could make a real good drama movie.
Hope the DVD that comes out on Boystown will have a special feature on the life and times of Fr. Flanagan.

My Favorite show
Boys town and sequael(Men in Boys Town) are the by far my most favorite films. I watch them on an old VHS copied from TV in Holland in the PAL format. I had to buy a special muti-system TV and VCR just to watch them. I hope when the DVD comes out they will come together as a 2 disk packet. ... Read more

Reviews (14)

Hollywood's first great sequel!
"After the Thin Man" is the second of five sequels in "The Thin Man" series. It was released in 1936, two years after the original movie, and literally takes up where the first one left off - aboard the Sunset Limited headed from New York to California.

Having had their Christmas holidays in New York interrupted by a murder mystery [much to Nick Charles' dismay and wife Nora's delight], the couple is looking forward to a quiet New Year's Eve at home. This is not to be. Their house, it seems, has a huge cocktail party going on in it. And - you guessed it - there's another mystery brewing. Nora's cousin's husband has gone missing, and scandal threatens her stuffy, socialite family. Nick could care less. He has no use for his holier-than-thou in-laws. Nora is concerned - and not a little thrilled at the prospect of another adventure.

William Powell and Myna Loy are, as always, Nick and Nora. They are one of the great screen couples of all time. Their relationship is often hysterically funny, sometimes touching, and more than a little complicated. A very young James Stewart has a meaty supporting role. The star quality is easy to see. Selma Landis is in top form as the neurotic cousin who is under the thumb of her frightfully domineering mother.

"After the Thin Man" [great sequel title!] is only slightly less entertaining than its predecessor and is certainly superior to most of the comedies of today. That superiority is due to great screen writing, true star power and a genuine zest for life that rarely is seen today - at least in the movies.

By the way, there IS no thin man!

A Worthy Sequel
Although it lacks the sharp edge of the original, AFTER THE THIN MAN is a worth sequel to THE THIN MAN, with the famous William Powell and Myrna Loy chemistry as intoxicating as one of Nick Charles' famous cocktails.

The sequel finds Nick and Nora Charles newly returned to their home in San Francisco in the wake of Nick's successful handling of "the thin man" case--only to find Norah's formidable aunt Katherine determined to keep the family name out the papers re cousin Selma's wayward husband, who has been missing for several days. Nick is accordingly summoned to track him down as discreetly as possible. But where Nick and Norah go, both murder and publicity is sure to follow.

AFTER THE THIN MAN boasts a cast equal to the original, most notably a young James Stewart as cousin Selma's former love, Jessie Ralph as Aunt Katherine, and a truly delightful Penny Singleton as Polly, the hard-knocks cabaret singer who leads wealthy husbands astray. The story is a bit convoluted, but the complications never get in the way of the film's witty dialogue, and while many may find the killer a bit obvious it doesn't prevent the film from being a great deal of fun. Recommended.

Best of the 6 THIN MAN movies!!!
The very first THIN MAN movie was so popular due to love bickering relationship between Nick and Nora. It was no doubt a treat to see a married couple pick at each other and all the while the love they shared for each other was evident to all. The murder mystery almost takes second place to the bickering between Nick and Nora. Not so in AFTER THE THIN MAN.

AFTER THE THIN MAN devotes the bulk of the story to the murder mystery. Nick, who is still supposedly retired from detective work, gets lured into another case. A relative of Nora's needs Nick to prove her innocent. The case seems iron clad and Lieutenant Abrams, portrayed by Sam Levene is sure who the killer is. Only Nick seems to be able to sift through all the circumstantial evidence and get to the real evidence. Nora dogs his every step as she attempts to convince her family Nick is a good man even if he wears a "blue" collar.

James Stewart, prior to becoming famous, does well as the rejected love interest of the accused murderer. He will do anything to help her...or will he? Penny Singleton, prior to her role as Blondie Bumstead in the BLONDIE movies and her providing her voice as Jan Jetson on the JETSONS, has an interesting role as 1930's sexy street sassy blonde. As she would tell you, she's not illiterate because her parents were married at city hall.

So, while the original THIN MAN was fresh and new AFTER THE THIN MAN has all the dents and dings banged out of the script. It is a much better and much more interesting film. It is my favorite of the six THIN MAN films.

The DVD edition of this film is long overdue.

MORE BRILLIANCE FROM NICK AND NORA
The second in the series of Thin Man films and the second best one, just a notch below the first. The story begins just days after the first movie. Nick and Nora have returned to their very luxurious home in California from New York.

They arrive home to find a house full of (uninvited) guests who are there to welcome the couple back home. They attend a Dinner party at Nora's very uptight socialite Aunt. Hilarious watching Nick interact with these old, wealthy step-relatives.

Soon, though, Nora's cousin Selma is accused of murdering her estranged husband and Nick and Nora have to step in to investigate.

This time the Charles celebrate New Years Eve with plenty of drinks at the night club of a small-time hood named Dancer. Nick is joined by a table full of his less than savory past friends who tell Nora "I don't like Dames who get mouthy afte a couple of snorts!"

Sam Levine is very funny making his first of two appearances as Lt. Abrahms. A young Jimmy Stewart is also along as the unrequited love of Selma.

As with the first, the drinks flow freely, particularly in the night club scenes where Nick finds himself the object of affection of a drunken young lady, much to the chagrin of her boyfriend.

Fantastic banter between the two stars as usual. Their chemistry was second to none. Asta is along too.

This was also, I think one of the better mysteries of all the Thin Man movies. Where is the DVD????

Still Meaningful After All These Years
Great periscope view of the thirties. Everybody wears a mustach (except the women). Humor still valid. And cocktail- drinking? sheesh! Humor still valid. Good acting. And where does one find a marriage like this? Wonderful. Take me back (altho I wasn't even a gleam yet). ... Read more

Reviews (40)

The 2nd Best Marx after Duck Soup
Night at the Opera is different from their first 5 - in a nutshell, as everyone else had commented, there's no Zeppo, more music, Margaret Dumont is back, bigger role for romantic leads, and the comedy is somewhat more disciplined, i.e., the antics are perhaps less spontaneous than earlier films.

I understand criticisms leveled by those who prefer to skip the plot, musical numbers, and romantic plot development, but I wholeheartedly disagree that the movie is somehow lesser because of it, particularly the music. The brothers were an extemely musically talented trio, and throughout their lives saw themselved less as a Comedy show and more a variety show. To disregard the musical numbers as "filler" is to show a lack of appreciation for a performing art they held in very high regard.

I have always felt The Marx Bros. were more "in Character" here than in most of their other films (Duck Soup, Horse Feathers, Animal Crackers, are also good in this regard, as is Day at the races, to a lesser degree). Everything from the contract swindle ("the party of the first part...") to the organized fooling of sgt. Henderson ("now there are four beds - I know I'm crazy!") to the stateroom bit ("Is my Aunt Minnie in here?") to the methodically brilliant destruction of Il Trovatore in the finale are examples of great writing that suited the personalities of the brothers.

Duck Soup or Horse Feathers may be their funniest films, and Animal Crackers may be more memorable for it's classic scenes, but Night at the Opera in my opinion is the most well-balanced of all thier movies. I feel it's the best-written, best-produced, has the best plot, and contains BY FAR the best acting among suporting roles. If Duck Soup weren't so well-paced and funny, Night at the Opera would be my favorite.

The Marx Brothers at their very, very, best. Classic Comedy
On the one hand I want to say that I think "A Night at the Opera" is the greatest Marx Brothers comedy because their peculiar brand of lunacy works better when given a real world target such as Opera than in the fantasy land of Freedonia in "Duck Soup." On the other hand I want to say that I think "A Night at the Opera" has more funny stuff in it than "Duck Soup." I do not even want to begin to get into any consideration of what difference the retirement of Zeppo meant in all this. I just want to laugh my head off.

Groucho is Otis P. Driftwood, too busy trying to fleece Mrs. Claypool (Margaret Dumont) to waste time running an Opera Company. Harpo is Tomasso, the much abused valet to the pompous tenor Rudolpho Lassparri (Walter Woolf King), while Chico is Fiorello, self-appointed agent for the unknown but talent young singer Ricardo Baroni (Allan Jones), who is in love with Rosa Castaldi (Kitty Carlisle). When Groucho loses his job to stuffed shirt Herman Gottlieb (Sig Ruman), it is up to the Marx Brothers to restore order and sanity to the universe.

In terms of classic comic routines "A Night at the Opera" gives you (1) the Stateroom scene with all those people (and don't forget the hardboiled eggs); (2) Groucho and Chico discussing the clauses in a contract (including the Sanity Clause); (3) Chico and Harpo working "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" into the overture of the opera (get your peanuts); (4) a dinner date between Groucho and Margaret Dumont (looking at him is the price you have to pay); and (5) Chico the Russian aviator explaining how they flew across the Atlantic Ocean in a boat (always remember to take enough gas or else you will have to turn back). There are more-you now Chico plays the piano, Harpo plays the harp, and Groucho deflates a pompous windbag at some point--but I want to talk about other things now.

I think the person who really helps sell this film is Kitty Carlisle. In every Marx brother movie there are the boys, there is Margaret Dumont as the foil, and then there are the young boy and girl who sing their way into your hearts. Carlisle and Jones (the only boy singer to appear in more than one Marx Brothers movie) are clearly the best pair to ever take on these thankless roles. The boys clearly like her and take her seriously, which she does in return, giving "A Night at the Opera" a sense of heart. This does not happen in Marx Brothers movies (compare it to the campy efforts of the young lovers in "Animal Crackers"). On top of all this, Carlisle and Jones can sing and their duet from the end of Il Travatore is much better than all the sappy songs that the lovers usually sing in these films.

"A Night at the Opera" is directed by Sam Wood (who would later spend some time directing scenes on that "Gone With the Wind" film you hear so much about). James Kevin McGuineess receives story credit but the key thing is that George S. Kaufman had a major hand in the script (until it ended up in the hands of the actors of course).

Notes: Look for the father of the Marx brothers on the pier when the ship sets sail and please remember that it Leonard's stage name is pronounced "Chick-o" not "Chico." Put an end to this Marxist reinterpretation nonsense.

The beginning of the decline
Many think this film the best or one of the best the Brothers Marx ever did. It's probably a matter of taste (well, it's certainly a matter of taste), but I think the first MGM comedy by the Marx Brothers is scattershot. Groucho, Chico and Harpo are in top form, and when they're on -- and allowed to dominate a scene -- the film is terrific. The stateroom scene is still funny after 70 years, and the finale at the opera is Marxist anarchy at its finest.

But when they're off screen (at least a third of the movie), you're left with an embarrassing melodrama I'm sure the movegoing audiences of 1935 found as sappy as I did. Bad enough the young Italian lovers sound like they're from New England section of Italy; worse are the musical interludes, which bring the film to a halt and destroy any comedic momentum the Marxes have created. A scene where Chico, Harpo and Jones show off their musical prowess goes on far too long and completely stops the film. Their earlier comedies had musical interludes, but they were woven into the films better. The opening number in Duck Soup, for example, is a lengthy set-up to the first joke; ditto the "We're Going to War" number. When the young lovers in A Night at the Opera sing "Alone," there's nothing but the youngsters staring moonily at each other. Their voices are fine, but the studios of the time were never short of movies with beautiful youngsters singing to each other. It's unnecessary here, and it reminds you the Marx Brothers aren't on screen.

"A Night at the Opera" was the Marxes' most successful comedy at the box office, and probably the most popular film they ever did. But time has been kinder to their earlier Paramount productions. Those films are stagebound, but they have a madcap energy the MGM films never recovered.

If you're a real fan of the Marx Brothers, you've probably already seen this; the rest of you should start with Duck Soup or Horse Feathers. A Night at the Opera was, unfortunately, the beginning of the end for this legendary team.

"No need of you reading that, because these are duplicates."
Many have argued that A NIGHT AT THE OPERA is the Marx Brother's finest film, pointing out that it combined the best of the Brother's comedy with the biggest and boldest in MGM production values. Personally, while I really like the film, I wouldn't quite put it in the top slot. Any of the sequences containing the Marx Brothers themselves are gold, but I find that I'm not as enamored with the romantic subplot and singing as other reviewers have been (notably Leonard Maltin in this DVD's commentary). Still, arguing about which one of the fine films is actually the best is a little pointless. This is a great movie, regardless with how it compares to the others.

The biggest thing this film has going for it (outside of the wonderful Marx Brothers themselves, of course) is the big production values that MGM splashed out on. I have mixed feelings about this. On the one hand, it's nice to have some great big sets for the Brothers to clown around in (Harpo's stunt double swinging through the rafters is great), but all things considered, I think I prefer the tongue-in-cheek send-up of the big dance numbers (as done in DUCK SOUP) to the production dances which are played straight here.

Margaret Dumont is underused, which is a shame since her dignified outrage usually accounted for big laughs. She gets a good scene at the beginning, and a handful of opportunities to look indignant later in the film, but she isn't the constant presence that she had been in other films.

Still, while I can pick out a few flaws here and there, this is overall a hilarious and fun movie. Much of what is considered classic Marx Brothers material is from this film: the too-many-people-in-the-stateroom scene, the Marxian deconstruction of a legal contract (if anyone thinks that "'The party of the first part' shall be known in this contract as 'the party of the first part'" isn't realistic, then I can show you fine print I've received from credit card companies that are even more tautological than that), and, of course, the grand finale wherein the three brothers completely destroy an opera-in-progress.

The DVD also contains an all-new documentary, which features (among other people) co-star Kitty Carlisle, who is amazingly sharp for being in her 90s, and Dom DeLuise, who talks a lot about food and appears to have been interviewed in the middle of making breakfast (no, I'm not sure why he's here). This is mostly a talking heads interview documentary and there's not a whole lot of brand new material or trivia, but it is nice to see some differing perspectives on things. The story of how Groucho got his name contradicts the anecdote given on the commentary track, and Carlisle refutes the conventional wisdom that states that Margaret Dumont didn't get any of the jokes Groucho was bouncing off her.

A short except from a 1961 broadcast of "The Hy Gardner Show" (who?) reveals Groucho recounting the story of he and his brothers stripping naked and roasting potatoes in the office of Irving Thalberg after the famed producer kept them waiting once too long. I trust you will enjoy the anecdote, because it's told a whopping three times during the course of these DVD extras. Shockingly, none of the tellings blatantly contradict each other.

Two shorts have been included as extras, though I'm not sure I understand their relevance. Robert Benchley's HOW TO SLEEP won the Academy Award in 1935 for Best Short Subject/Comedy, and it's certainly entertaining enough. As for the other short, SUNDAY NIGHT AT THE TROCADERO, well, I'm baffled. I can't make heads or tails of it. Set in a nightclub, a Hollywood talent scout is visiting this ritzy affair. Numerous song and dance people are attempting auditions, while the club's doorman is trying to impress by doing very bad celebrity impersonations (it didn't help that half the time I didn't recognize the name of the person he was impersonating or the name of the person people actually thought he was doing). Cameos by stars of the day abound by having the camera cut to different tables and a voice over shouting, "Hey, look! It's Bob Has-been!" (or whoever). It isn't helped by the fact that most of the careers of these minor celebrities ended soon after the shoot, so for me I was watching cattle call of anonymous hotshots. I couldn't figure out why these people were appearing as themselves. Was the audience supposed to believe that these people really hang out at this fictional locale? Groucho Marx (out of character and costume) has a three-second cameo where he looks as confused as I felt.

I'm wary of commentaries performed by people who weren't actually born when the film they're talking about was made, but Leonard Maltin does a fine job here. He relates a lot of anecdotes about the Marx Brothers, points out how the script is layering the subplots, and relates a lot of trivia that I had never heard before (for example, the only surviving print is actually an edited version made during WWII when all references to Italy have been removed, which explains why the film bizarrely never tells you were the first scenes are set). He even gets into the fun, shouting "What a twit!" when the evil opera singer refuses to sing on the cruise-liner for free.

Although the DVD of A NIGHT AT THE OPERA is included in "The Marx Brothers Collection" box set, it is also available for individual sale. Although I slightly prefer A DAY AT THE RACES (also out on DVD now), I couldn't recommend anyone not pick up this film. For Marx novices, there's a great movie. For Marx aficionados, there's informational material that may be enjoyed. In any event, the powers that be have given a great film an excellent treatment on the DVD format.

Tiresome
Almost everything I write about stuff for Amazon gets either ignored or negative responses. I hardly expect this to fare any better. My original intent was to buy the 7 disc set of the Marx Bros (also just released), I grew faint-hearted near the deadline and canceled it and ordered the only 3 I wanted: Opera, Races and Casablanca. I think the first 5 "lost" Marx Bros movies (I have them on DVD and treasure them, all but Duck Soup, with a screenplay by one of their song-writing teams) are (so far) their funniest. Chaos, pandemonium, idiosyncrasies, personality. Either I was despondent when I watched this flick or else the Marx Bros' antics had worn thin for me. (I remember loving all their movies 30 years ago.) I was bored, saw what was supposed to be funny and didn't think it was. There were a few witty remarks, but those came from either Kaufman or Ryskind, not the Marx Bros. And on that subject, I never (at least not before The Solid Gold Cadillac) thought I'd ever watch or read a Kaufman play and not think it was hilarious. I did not think this was hilarious. The opera they featured at the end was Verdi's Il Trovatore, I don't like that opera anyway, particularly the mezzo gypsy song, particularly all of it. I thought the whole movie was watery, thin, dull and not the best of the Marxes, and not particularly funny. I just opened Casablanca. Tomorrow morning I'll take a crack at it, though I remember much of it now. I remember (and make the connection between that movie and this) that Harpo had gone from being an innocent who chases girls to a character who gets knocked around a lot by the heavies. I don't like the change. The characters, the (well, I said it already) idiosyncrasies and personalities of the brothers just weren't there in this movie. Sigh. I have 2 more to go. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Tyrone `Apollo`, what a great movie!
I was really impressed by this flick! I couldn't imagine how marvelous it was when I bought it at Amazon...It's one of the best gangster movies I've ever seen.Tyrone is brilliant as usual
and I really enjoyed Lamour's singing too...Go for it!

A great prewar gangster flick
A dazzling proto-noir gangster film, featuring Tyrone Power in one of his best roles, as "Johnny Apollo," a wealthy man's son who changes his name and turns to a life of crime after his father is exposed as an embezzler and sent to prison. Power effectively sheds his pretty-boy image as a romantic leading man, and does an excellent turn as a cynical tough guy -- even more astonishing is Dorothy Lamour's performace as Lucky, a hard-bitten gun moll who takes Johnny under her wing. Snarling out her lines in a thick urban accent, Lamour is about as far away from her Polynesian and exotic hottie typecasting as possible; she also gives one of the most convincing gangster gal portrayals I've ever seen. Better still, is Lloyd Nolan's turn as crime boss Mickey Dwyer, whose grinning, boyish enthusiasm and charismatic charm belies his violence yet completely explains Apollo's devotion to him. Nolan plays a cheerful psychopath -- the kind of role that Robert Deniro and Joe Pesci have so artlessly beaten to death -- with such naturalness and ease that his performance may actually be the heart of this film. Look for his scene with the icebox lock, and you'll see what I mean. I really enjoyed this film: if you're looking for a good gangster flick, or a Hollywood classic, check this one out!

Tyrone Power and Dorothy Lamour shine
This gangster film marked a distinct change of pace for both Tyrone Power and Dorothy Lamour. Indeed the shift really shows both performers in a very favourable light and reveals other sides to their performing abilities.

Tyrone Power by 1940 was at the peak of his popularity and had been named Box Office King of Hollywood the year before. He was however unsatisfied with being regarded solely as the glamour boy of Hollywwod and was eager to stretch himself as a performer in more serious roles. "Johnny Apollo" provided him with such a vechicle and he portrays an interesting multi dimensional character who is at times a likeable innocent but who develops into a hardened criminial because of circumstances beyond his control.

Dorothy Lamour was borrowed from Paramount for this role and in her Autobiography "My Side of the Road" she states how excited she was to find herself teamed with the number one heartthrob of Hollywood. Like all his co stars she found Tyrone to be a total joy to work with and someone who lacked any ego normally associated with alot of leading men. Dorothy had already enjoyed stardom at Paramount in such notable films as "The Hurricane" where she usually played a native girl in a sarong. In "Johnny Apollo" she has a complete change of pace playing Mabel 'Lucky' DuBarry the girl friend of gangster Lloyd Nolan who develops an interest in Tyrone's character. She is excellent portraying the world weary singer and gangsters mole with the heart of gold . Edward Arnold also is a stand out in the role of Tyrone's father Robert Cain Sr. His initial arrest on corruption charges is the catalyst which sends Johnny's life crashing down around him and while he reforms and learns the errors of his ways it has the opposite effect on Johnny who moves into a life of crime and corruption. Arnold, a superb character actor in many diverse performances has never been better than in this role and his great chemistry with Tyrone is obvious from their interactions and really gives the film an electricity and dramatic build up.

Twentieth Century Fox went all out with this production showing the seamy side of the gangsters world and included one very violent and brutal scene when Tyrone apprehends a gang member and has a fight with him in the street involving smashing his head into the pavement. Brutal stuff which gives the scenerio a raw edge which seems very realistic. Even Tyrone's very famous goodlooks have a more mature, darker look about them as if anticipating a more mature outlook in his screen presence for the future.

"Johnny Apollo" may lack a little of the gritty quality so evident in the classic Warner Bros gangster movies of the early thirties but it shows an interesting variation on the crime theme by displaying White Collar crime and in displaying prison as a possible place of rehabilitation that can have a positive influence.

Being a big Tyrone Power fan I do tend to enjoy him in his famous swashbuckling roles but "Johnny Apollo" is a particular favourite of mine as it combines a gripping story with great characterisations by Power, Lamour, Arnold and Nolan. These four really set the sparks flying in the story and all reveal pleasing aspects of their screen personas not greatly utilised before. If you like well written gritty dramas combined with just that touch of exciting melodrama you can't go past "Johnny Apollo" .

Captivating Drama
"Johnny Apollo" is one of those films that seem merely interesting at first, yet by the end, you're waiting breathlessly for the final word, your heart clenched with anticipation over what will befall the characters you've learned to care for.

Dorothy Lamour is excellent in this movie, fully convincing as the gangster's girl with a soft heart. Edward Arnold is simply wonderful as the title character's father, stubborn and standing by his morals no matter what the cost. Lloyd Nolan's performance is top notch, as well, the hard-hearted gangster whose ability to care for someone else is overwhelmed by his self-serving nature.

Tyrone Power gives the performance of his life (up to this point) as the son of a convicted criminal who is soon in over his head but too blind to see it. He lacks the light-hearted charm that is so much appreciated in many of his other films, but that kind of attitude would be out of place in a gangster movie such as this. His is a dark, brooding performance, excellently mature and moving, restrained yet honest. Such is his performance that his looks, strange as it may sound, are noticed only as an afterthought.

This is a taut, gripping human drama with nothing seeming out of place. Witty dialogue, surprising moments, wonderful cast, and little enough predictability to spoil anything. Certain things you know will happen, and it's the execution that counts. And here it's superb. ... Read more

Reviews (5)

What is Charlie Chan's Secret?
The movie opens up with Charlie on a boat at see searching for Allen Colby's body. Allen is the recent heir to a fortune. Because he could not be found the family has been using his money.
In a last resort effort to contact Allen they hold a séance in a spooky old structure. Will Allen show?

This is one of Warner Oland's best.

Keye Luke Is Sorely Missed
CHARLIE CHAN's SECRET is the first Chan film produced by 20th Century-Fox. Charlie is in San Francisco trying to find a missing heir who unfortunately is murdered after he reappears. The movie is hurt by the absence of Keye Luke leaving Warner Oland to solve the case without the usual blundering antics of his number one son.

CHARLIE CHAN TO THE RESCUE...
This is an entertaining Charlie Chan mystery with Warren Oland in the lead role. It seems that seven years ago, Alan Colby, the heir to an immense fortune, disappeared while at sea. His body was never found. He suddenly reappears with a plausible explanation for his seeming disappearance, ready to claim his inheritance. No sooner does he return, however, he is murdered.

It appears that members of the Lowell family have been living off his inheritance for the past seven years, thinking Alan Colby dead. They have been using his fortune to fund psychic research. It is they who stand to lose the most from his return. They stand only to gain by his death. Or is the murderer the crooked family lawyer? Could it be the creepy family caretaker? Who killed Alan Colby? Watch the film and find out. If you are not a fan of Charlie Chan, deduct one star from my rating.

Underrated Chan Mystery
This is one of the Chans that is somehow overlooked by critics as one of the best entries in the series. The mystery is incredibly complex, and Chan's solution to the mystery is both surprising and logical. This film also marks the last film where a Chan offspring was not featured. It is also a very spooky, including scenes with a seance taking place, similar to "Meeting At Midnight". Of course, Warner Oland is very good as usual. A noteworthy entry in the series.

Old-fashioned but atmospheric
This episode of the Charlie Chan series from the thirties starring Warner Oland as Chan has a very atmospheric mood. And it is old-fashioned in a charming way. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Hard to get used to ...
seeing Gladys George start off in this movie as the wife of a wealthy French lawyer, since the only other two times I'd seen her, she was far less lofty: she's the Woman Who REALLY Loves James Cagney's Eddie Bartlett in "The Roaring Twenties" and has a much smaller role as Dana Andrews' broken down stepmother in "The Best Years of Our Lives" . So here, she's the unfaithful wife who must leave her home never to return in order to protect her husband's career and her son's place in society. Warren Williams turns in an appropriately starchy performance as her unsympathetic husband, but it's Henry Daniell who really steals the show as a dastardly fellow blackmailing Madame X about her real identity. Not bad at all.

Gorgeous George
LA FEMME X, that glorious old potboiler of thwarted mother love, served as a triumphant vehicle for everyone from Sarah Bernhardt to Tuesday Weld (!!!), but no version plucks at the heartstrings more effectively than the Gladys George starrer. Remembered by many moviegoers for her nightclub moll in THE ROARING TWENTIES, George had rare leading roles in this film and her Oscar-nominated VALIANT IS THE WORD FOR CARRIE, and she really brings home the bacon here. Perhaps a trifle world-weary for the straying matron and dispossessed wife at the picture's beginning, she's perfect for the gin-soaked wandering years mid-film, and incredibly moving in her final scenes. A rock would shed tears at Madame X's fate; Gladys George embraces and transcends the melodrama inherent in this role and makes it something human and real and aching. If you like weepers, lay in a big supply of Kleenex before you pop this one in the VCR. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Jane Wyman won a Best Actress Oscar for her strong performance in this touching drama of a deaf-mute girl (Wyman) and a doctor (Lew Ayres) who works closely with her. The story (based on Elmer Harris's play) seems intent on dumping one grievance after another onto the poor character, from rape to community pressure to give up the resultant baby, plus a terrible loss sustained somewhere in there as well. But Wyman and director Jean Negulesco manage to make the film more than the sum of its perils, and the texture and atmosphere of the town is particularly effective. --Tom Keogh ... Read more

Reviews (12)

A sensitive and brilliant film
Jane Wyman deservedly won the Best Actress Oscar for her portrayal of Belinda, the deaf-mute who becomes a mother after being raped. It is such a wonderful performance, as Belinda grows in knowledge and life experiences, helped along by Lew Ayres as a kind-hearted doctor who comes to Cape Breton Island after some problems in his own personal life. The two of them grow together, and overcome some severe obstacles before they can find happiness. Charles Bickford as Belinda's father and Agnes Moorhead as Belinda's aunt also give stellar performances.

Ahead of its time in terms of subject matter (treatment of the handicapped and the stigma of rape), this film holds up well after all of these years. One of my long-time favorites, and a true classic.

Silence is Golden
Johnny Belinda must have been a groundbreaking film for its time. The subject matter of the film surprised me for a movie made in the 1940s. Three aspects of the story impressed me. For one thing, the movie clearly demonstrates the way that a deaf-mute person can communicate and that they are not stupid (a "dummy"), as people used to assume. The viewer can learn a lot about sign language, and this must have been new to audiences of the forties. Another fascinating thing is the fairly straightforward handling of the rape and its after effects. There's nothing graphic about it, but the movie doesn't attempt to really skirt around the sensitive subject matter the way older movies used to due to censorship and moral codes. I was also impressed by the realistic depiction of the small town where Belinda lives. Their attitudes and feelings of superiority ring very true. As the central character, Jane Wyman gives a very good performance, communicating Belinda's confusion, fears, and growing maturity without the benefit of words. Lew Ayres is good as the doctor, and Charles Bickford and Agnes Moorehead give terrific supporting performance (which they usually did) as Belinda's tough but loving father and aunt. Johnny Belinda is an adult, honest, and well-made movie.

An understated, yet magnificent film
I hadn't seen this film in 30 years, but watched it again last evening. I was mesmerized by several aspects of this classic (and ahead of its time) 1948 movie. Jane Wyman won the Oscar in this role where she makes not a single sound, not even in the throes of pregnancy. She is a deaf mute and never speaks, but imbues her character with a poignant tenderness and yearning which is extremely moving. There is no doubt that Wyman is an extremely underrated actress, because the pathos in this performance is moving indeed.

Lew Ayres gives possibly his best performance here. For other reviewers who say he's the weakest part of the movie, I don't agree; perhaps they need to see him in the classic 1930 offering, "All Quiet on the Western Front." In that film, Lew was gorgeous to look at it, but couldn't act his way out of a paper bag. Here, he's vastly improved and deliberately underplays a character who is caring, decent, but essentially stoic and very still. I admit there isn't a lot of chemistry between Wyman and Ayres, but he projects a dignity and decency which shines through.

Agnes Moorehead and Charles Bickford deliver outstanding supporting performances. Their interplay and dialogue is interesting and they contribute to the flowing plot.

Aside from Wyman's stellar performance, the most interesting aspect of the film is that it is not dated in the least. The subjects of rape, an illegitimate baby and pre-marital sex were hardly common themes in movies of that era, and this film handles it with aplomb and class. The weakness of the film is that Belinda is assailed from all sides constantly; her lot in life is hard enough to begin with, but she is thrown one vicious curve after another. But not to worry, all comes out all right in the end.

This movie is worth watching solely for Wyman's outstanding performance. Watch her eyes and how she conveys such beautiful emotion in them. I have renewed respect for Jane Wyman after watching this moving drama.

An All-Time AWESOME Film!
Johnny Belinda has been my absolute FAVORITE film for at least 40 years! Jane Wyman's performance is one not to be missed. Other reviewers on this forum have noted her expressive face, body language, growth; the ground-breaking subject matter (sexual assault and dignity in the face of bigotry); and the outstanding supporting cast. All come together to create a timeless story, told in an amazing performance.

The ONE possible flaw may be with the "Perry Mason-style" theatrics in the courtroom. However, it's so minor as (and so VERY 40's!) that it detracts nothing from this outstanding film.

Jane Wyman's Great Triumph
I hadn't seen "Johnny Belinda" for many years when I took it out of the library a few weeks ago. What a shame I waited so long! Jane Wyman turns in an incredibly appealing performance as the deaf-mute Belinda, daughter of a Cape Breton miller (Charles Bickford) who resents the daughter as his wife died in childbirth. Also on hand is his gruff sister, played by Agnes Moorehead in what I honestly think is the best acting job I've ever seen her do, and I've seen her a lot. Belinda has been long neglected--not even called by her name, but just "dummy"--until the new town doctor happens on the scene and takes an interest in teaching her sign language and how to read lips. The doctor is played by Lew Ayres, and I must admit, he's the weakest part of the picture. I thought he was passionless--he reminded me of Alex Trebek! Well, almost as soon as Belinda blossoms as a result of her newfound ability to communicate her ideas, she is raped by a townsperson and bears the illegitimate namesake of the movie, Johnny. The rest of the movie concerns the stigma her family and she endure as a result of the rape and birth, and some shocking tragedies before Belinda finally is acknowleged to be a person of intelligence and feeling by her whole community.

Jane Wyman does a wonderful job portraying Belinda and imbuing her character with a quiet dignity. Seeing her here makes me curious to see other movies starring her. If you want to see a movie that treats sensitive issues with honesty, I advise you to pick up a copy of "Johnny Belinda" today. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Flynn's Disillusionment
Errol Flynn stars as an unfairly disgraced Union officer who decides to look out for number one in post-Civil War America. He quickly builds a financial empire, methodically taking over Silver City, a town dependant on its silver mines. Of course, a lot of people have to pay for his ambition and ruthlessness, and in the end, so must he.

Flynn's performance is better than usual throughout most of the film, his own personal sense of disillusionment no doubt contributing. Ann Sheridan, as the feisty woman he loves, is stronger in the first half of the film. Thomas Mitchell, as the sermonizing lawyer, gets some great speeches which he plays for what they are worth.

Unfortunately, the movie's moral message is laid on a bit heavy. A little less talk and a little more action would have been an improvement. Director Raoul Walsh is usually very good at mixing character development with action, but it doesn't come together here. The actors and the director seem "tired" with this film, and the results show on the screen. It's an average Western that probably could have been much more.

David and Bathseba in the Wild West
Near the end of the civil war courageous cavalry officer Mike McComb (Errol Flynn) burns one million dollars, so that the confederates won't get them. His reward: dishonorable discharge. His promising career as owner of a gambling saloon is thwarted, and so he decides to go west.

He steals the horses and covered wagons from Mrs. Georgia Moore (Ann Sheridan) who needed them to bring machinery to her husbands silver mine. Inexorable and not choosy in his doings, McComb bullies his way to power: The workers in the silver mines lose their money in his saloons, so he decides to become a banker as well. He gives them credit, so that they can lose more money in his saloons and apply for even more credit etc...

Now this western gets the biblical treatment: King David sent Uriah to die in battle because he lusted for his wife Bathseba. McComb sends Mr. Moore to explore a silver mine despite his knowledge that belligerent indians are near...The result is the same: David got Bathseba and McComb gets widow Moore. Well, he loves her, that's at least his excuse when his drunken buddy John Plato Beck (Thomas Mitchell) confronts him. He builds a gigantic castle in the desert. White marbles, imported from Europe, chandeliers from french chateaus, his own private Camelot (Greetings from "Citizen Kane"). But the golden days of die-hard american capitalism are numbered - at least in this film...

Some years ago the author of a Flynn biography wrote that McComb was perhaps Flynn's finest role, so when this film was shown a few days ago I watched with great curiosity, of course. Unfortunately it was rather disappointing. Flynn was certainly one of the slyest and most entertaining stars ever to come out of Hollywood. His autobiography was appropriately titled "My wicked wicked ways" and in the early sixties the famous gossip colummist Hedda Hopper complained jokingly:"Hollywood has become so boring. There has not been one interesting rape or murder case since Errol Flynn died". Sadly, not much of his colorful persona survives on screen. In this film he has moments of dullness, especially in the first half. Sometimes he seems not here at all. He does some wisecracking, but mostly at the expense of honest and straightforward Ann Sheridan, so the fun-factor is low.

He was, no question, slightly past his prime, but the glimplse of despair that appears in his eyes now and then serves the second half of this film (McCombs decline) well. There are some touching scenes when he realizes how much his world has changed. Creditors clear his house, his wife has left him to become the campaign manager of his former best friend and now embittered adversary. Flynn has a great moment when he is surprised with the news, that Thomas Mitchell, whom he knew only as hapless alcoholic, is now to become a mighty senator, able and willing to crush him.

With Ann Sheridan he has a strong leading lady (She was even better in "I was a male war bride" with Cary Grant), but it's Thomas Mitchell who steals the film despite (or because) of his overacting. "Silver River" is a good film, a watchable film, especially when compared with most of the sterile products today's Hollywood has to offer, but it could have been much better.

SILVER RIVER
Hang on to your Stetson. This is Errol Flynn in one of his best post World War 2 nuanced roles. From the riproaring opening on the Civil War battlefield of Gettysburg, where Flynn destroys a million dollars in Union greenbacks,the way west to Silver City is paved with action,blind ambition,lust and redemption. Mike McComb (Flynn) is a complex character. He is a charming rogue and a ruthless competitor. McComb will traverse any length to have what he wants when he wants it, be it a money making enterprise or another man's wife. Flynn's character is a marvel to watch as he climbs to the summit of power and finally pays the price for his ambition. Supporting Errol in this entertaining morality tale are some Warner Brothers' stock company pros. The lovely Ann Sheridan is both elegant and earthy. Miss Sheridan matches Flynn's on screen charisma frame for frame as the object of desire. Tom D'Andrea as Errol's friend and bodyguard is affable in a solid performance. Thomas Mitchell returns from an alcoholic fog and pulls off a credible performance as McCombs' conscience. And how can Barton MacLane be anything but perfect as the thuggish villian in this unusual western.

Here is a fifty-plus year old movie with some very 1990's character sensibilities. ... Read more

Reviews (82)

EXCELLENT!!
Excellent suspense movie about innocent-looking tennis player Guy Haines (Farley Granger), involved in a murder against his own will, by an eccentric, over-the-top character played masterfully by great american actor (by then, Jennifer Jones' ex-husband) Robert Walker.

Hitchcock builds the film into a great final climax, holding your complete attention from the very start of the story, at the train station.

Good acting by the leading couple, Farley Granger and Ruth Roman (playing his sweetheart and bride-to-be, after the divorce from his obnoxious wife). Excellent performances by the aforementioned Walker as Bruno Antony, Patricia Hitchcok (as Roman's sister, who has a liking for criminal stories), Kasey Rogers (as Granger's wife) and Marion Lorne (as Bruno Antony's mother).

The fact that the DVD contains the original US and UK versions, the latter two minutes longer, is a must. Especially noticing the trimming that underwent the initial scenes between Walker and Granger in the american version, and the final "happy ending" scene added for the same version.

Fans of '60s TV series "Bewitched", will have a field day watching "Aunt Clara" (Marion Lorne) as the over-indulging mother of spoiled and egotistical Bruno Antony and "Louise Tate" (Kasey Rogers, billed as Laura Elliott) who plays over-sexed and amoral Miriam, Guy Haines' wife.

Don't talk to strangers!
Farley Granger appeared in only two Hitchcock films. He was the nerve racked killer in Rope who ended up not being able to handle the reality of his crime and gave up in the end, and he is the ill-fated tennis star who happens upon a total stranger during a train ride in this film, Strangers on a Train. Too bad. Granger is talented in this role, evoking sympathy from the audience even when he was guilty as sin in Rope. In this movie, it's hard to really blame him for the events that transpire.

Two men meet and strike up a conversation based on Bruno's (Robert Walker in a chilling performance) ability to recognize Guy Haines (Granger) from the tennis court. During the conversation, it is discovered that Bruno hates his father and wants him dead, and that Guy has a wife who is causing trouble for him. Guy wants to marry the daughter of a senator, but needs his current wife out of the picture.

Bruno has the answer. We swap murders, and then there is no motive. Guy laughs it off, but he stops laughing quick when Bruno actually kills Guy's wife and expects him to murder his father in return. By the way, the murder of the wife is some of Hitch's best camera work ever, as he shows the choking in the reflection of the woman's eyeglasses.

Guy has no credible alibi, so he is suspect number one. Bruno keeps on him the whole time, threatening to frame him (Bruno has Guy's lighter that he can plant at the scene), so it becomes a race for Guy to prove his innocence. The scene on the merry go round is a classic, even if a bit unrealistic.

The characters are great, the story strong and the direction superb. You simply can't go wrong with this one. The great suspense films of today owe a debt of gratitude to Strangers on a Train.

Misinformed
I recently purchased, yet , another copy of STRANGERS ON A TRAIN because the description of this edition read WIDESCREEN. Lured by that promise, I again spent the money, because the copy I already owned was not widescreen. To my great disappointment, I have learned (by watching my newly purchased DVD) that my new copy is, in fact, the exact same edition I already owned: STANDARD format and NOT WIDESCREEN. Beware the description for this issue: it misinforms. If it is WIDESCREEN you want, this is not it!

Crisscross
After the spectacular successes of "Notorious" and "Spellbound" Alfred Hitchcock went into a five year box-office slump that had him seriously rattled. He broke out again in 1951 with "Strangers," a fable about a tennis player (Farley Granger) whose murderous private thoughts are brought horrifically to life through his chance encounter with a maniac (Robert Walker). Be careful what your wish for, you may get it, is Hitchcock's theme, and he never did a better job of exploring the border between our civilized and barbaric impulses than in this project. This is usually the performance for which Walker is best remembered, completed shortly before he drank himself to death. The murder of Granger's wife is still shocking even today and there are numerous other scenes just as riveting which Hitchcock tossed off with such ease when his visual imagination was stimulated. Novelist Raymond Chandler got a script credit, but according to Hitchcock biographer Donald Spoto none of Chandler's material was used.

I will be strong.....maybe (fingers crossed)
First I will say this is a classic film that doesn't contain one wasted minute. It's always been one of my favorites and have always shown it to friends as an introduction to these films due to their lack of Hitchcock experience. But what I will say here and now is I WILL NOT BUY THIS SPECIAL EDITION!!! I have the original release and it has served me well these past years. I could have lived my whole life without the knowledge of a special edition with all sorts of those goodies and I would have been fine... It will probably have commentary, interviews, ohh that sounds enchanting...I DON"T CARE. I MUST be strong and resist the temptation of re-buying it. I know I've made this pledge on several hundred occasions with... oh you know, Planet of the apes, Casablanca, Blazing Saddles etc,etc. Yes I caved on those countless occasions but NOT THIS TIME!! But for anyone who doesn't own this dvd at all, I would recommend you do. But don't talk to me about it because I'm perfectly happy with my one disc copy OK!! Warner brothers among others have been pulling these scams for years with these re-issues, and you know who the victoms are. Yes... Yes.. that would be me. But not this time because my family have received enough free bare bones dvd's from me and it ends today. Forget it Amazon! No preorders from this sucker... HA HA!! ... Read more

Amazon.com essential video

Tough stuff from director Fritz Lang(M), making his first American film with this 1936 story of an innocent man (Spencer Tracy) who escapes a lynch mob and then orchestrates his apparent murder at their hands. Tracy is superb, and the film is uncompromising, until studio interference takes some of the wind out of Lang's sails right at the end. But as the portrait of a character who comes to reflect the destiny he is trying to avoid, this is still essential Lang and a pre-noir classic.--Tom Keogh ... Read more

Reviews (8)

That good old American sport...Lynching.
This movie is an indictment of it of course. Quite common in the 30's. This is the first film of Fritz's Lang's American period & it seems like he's got the lingo down pretty good.
Briefly, Tracy plays a good guy, wrongly accused of a terrible crime by the residents of a small town. The evidence is highly circumstancial but the townsfolk want to lynch him & burn down the jail to get at him. He escapes & is presumed dead.
The townsfolk are broadly drawn as xenophobic, intolerant & quick to judge the world outside their little orbit.
Tracy's acting goes over the top, his character changing 180 degrees. One of his better efforts, however & that's saying a lot.

Tracy at his best
This is easily my favourite Spencer Tracy movie. Altough quite a different story line to his Dr Jekyl and Mr Hyde, Tracy uses a similar technique when he changes his personality in Fury from the young easy going loving man on a journey to visit his fiance, to a bitter twisted vengence seeking man.
Although you could not blame him for this

FRITZ LANG & SPENCER TRACY: WHAT A TEAM!
A very unusual M-G-M film from 1936: because of its theme of social consciousness, it seems much more a likely candidate for Warner Brothers. It's a dilly with an outstanding performance by Tracy as the wrong man: En route to see his fiancee, Katherine (Sylvia Sidney) Joe Wheeler (Spencer Tracy) is arrested as a suspected kidnapper and is jailed pending trial. The evidence against him is strickly circumstantial: he possess a bill from a ransom statement. Then a mob forms around the jail, but Sheriff Ellis (Walter Brennan) manages to disband them & send them home... And that's all I'm going to give out plot-wise. Obviously, there is a whole lot more to this famous film in which Fritz Lang made is American directorial debut. This was Lang's favourite American film - and rightfully so: it demonstrates his directorial genius in wasting NOT A FRAME of film, telling his story with sharp cross-cutting between victims and tormentors, while unravelling the mindless and murderous passion of a mob out of control. Sylvia Sidney is excellent as usual as Katherine: this was her sole role for M-G-M. The film awakened America to what the reality of mob violence means. The original working titles for the film were THE MOB & MOB RULE. For a great companion piece, view the excellent Lang production YOU ONLY LIVE ONCE with Henry Fonda and Sylvia Sidney made the next year, in 1937: it's available on video.

A real thriller
Fritz Lang's first Hollywood film features Spencer Tracy as a man falsely accused of a crime and attacked by a lynch mob. He survives and comes back, seeking revenge. Pretty heavy stuff, and a pretty thrilling film.

Spencer Tracy stars in Fritz Lang's first American film
Director Fritz Lang's first American film is the disturbing tale of a good man, played by Spencer Tracy, turned into a haunting figure of vengeance because of the ferocity of mob rule. Joe Wilson (Tracy) is on his way to see Katherine Grant (Sylvia Sydney), the girl he wants to marry. Passing through the small town of Strand, Joe is picked up by the Sheriff (Edward Ellis) and arrested as a suspect in a kidnapping case. It seems his fondness for peanuts proves his downfall. The citizens form a lynch mob and attack the jail. When they discover Joe has been locked away where they cannot get at him, the mob burns down the jail. Katherine arrives in time to see Joe screaming for help from his cell before she faints. However, Joe has escaped but swears his brothers Tom (George Walcott) and Charlie (Frank Albertson) to secrecy, demanding that the mob be tried for his murder. As Joe sees it, the fact he did not really die does not make them any less guilty. Besides, they did kill Rainbow, the mutt that Joe had taken a shine to. The District Attorney (Walter Abel) tries twenty-two citizens of Strand for Joe's death, all of whom protest their innocence and attack the trial for besmirching the good name of their fair town right up until the moment the D.A. runs the newsreel footage of them gleefully committing the crime. Meanwhile, in trying to nail the case shut for the D.A., Joe makes an error that lets Katharine know he is still alive.

Tracy's performance as the tragic figure of Joe Wilson, a good man who did not die in the fire but who surely lost his humanity, anchors this film and balances the grotesque citizens of Strand. What is upsetting is not the fact that the mob tried to kill Joe, but that they insist on their collective innocence and gloat about being able to get away with their crime. The fact Joe was innocent only makes a couple of them feel bad, but only for a moment. Ironically, while watching the film you can get just as caught up in the idea of vengeance as Joe and perhaps the most remarkable thing about the film is that it does come down on the side of law and order rather than revenge. Then again, remember that Lang had just fled Nazi Germany. Lang and Bartlet Cormack wrote the screenplay for this 1936 film, based on a original story by Norman Krasna. "Fury" is a much more brutal film than "The Ox-Bow Incident," the other recognized classic attacking the idea of a lynch mob, and some will find the ending unsatisfying. But overall "Fury" is quite a powerful film. ... Read more

Reviews (13)

PRIME TRACY PERFORMANCE.
Father Flanagan takes in abandoned boys between the ages of 12 to 18, regardless of race or creed, and fights to raise money, to feed and teach and mother his friendless charges. Mickey Rooney - bless him - runs the gamut of emotions from the tough, poker-playing gangster kid, through the tear-choked, made over youngster, to the final noble youth who becomes mayor of Boys Town. The film manages - in spite of its embarrassing sentimentality of its closing scenes - to be a consistently interesting and frequently touching movie. A burning desire to help his fellowmen and a belief that there is no such thing as a "bad boy" inspired and assisted the Reverend Edward J. Flanagan to found "Boy's Town". Spencer Tracy's sincere portrayal of the role of the priest Father Flanagan was truly an outstanding performance in his career, it even ranks above his Father Tim in SAN FRANCISCO; Tracy simply IS Father Flanagan! As a footnote, in real life, Tracy donated the Oscar he won for his portrayal as Father Flanagan TO Father Flanagan himself; Tracy had it inscribed thusly: "To Father Edward J. Flanagan, whose great human qualities, kindly simplicity and inspiring courage were strong enough to shine through my humble efforts. S/Spencer Tracy".

great movie
This is a movie that is still good even after all these years. Spencer Tracy and Mickey Rooney give two of the greatest performances of their career. It should have one best picture for 1938, It was far better than "You cant take it with you". "Boys Town" is one of the best fims of all time.

Good Movie
I don't like Spencer Tracey all that much, but he is wonderful in
this movie. Mickey Rooney is excellent too. Very heart warming, good movie to watch around Christmastime.

An inspiration
I had watched this movie on TV a few years ago and was moved especially as it was based on the true story of Fr. Flanagan.
Movies like these uphold human values and dignity and give hope in a world were these values are getting blurred and ambiguous as is reflected in today's 'sensational' hollywood movies most of which promote superflous and artificial lifestyles and senseless action which please the senses but leave a vacuum in the soul. Of course, movies like Men of Honor and Jerry McGuire are an exception. Also it is commendable that there also exist producers like Mel Gibson who has the courage to produce "The Passion" in Aramaic (the language spoken by Christ) though it does not make much commercial sense.
All of this makes me think, is Hollywood reflecting contemporary life or is life reflecting Hollywood.
Wonder why no movie is made on the life of Fr.Maximilian Kolbe who resisted the Nazis in Poland and ultimately sacrificed his life in the Gas Chamber in exchange for another inmate in the Nazi Auchwitz camp in WWII. It could make a real good drama movie.
Hope the DVD that comes out on Boystown will have a special feature on the life and times of Fr. Flanagan.

My Favorite show
Boys town and sequael(Men in Boys Town) are the by far my most favorite films. I watch them on an old VHS copied from TV in Holland in the PAL format. I had to buy a special muti-system TV and VCR just to watch them. I hope when the DVD comes out they will come together as a 2 disk packet. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Deanna Durbin in a movie that has it all!
This is, in my opinion, one of Deanna Durbin's most underrated screen vehicles (the other being "Something in the Wind"). "The Amazing Mrs. Holliday" is a film that has it all - action, suspense, drama, comedy, romance and (with Deanna on board) music! This was Deanna's most dramatic film to date. As a young woman forced to flee China with eight young war orphans, Deanna shows what a talented actress she actually is. She also sings some beautiful songs (including "Mighty Lak' a Rose"). Throw in Barry Fitzgerald for some comedy, and Edmond O'Brien for romance and you have a wonderful little film that is sure to brighten your view of the world! Overall, one of Deanna's greatest pictures.

Deanna tries to find a way to care for eight war orphans.
This is a most unusual Deanna Durbin film. In this movie, Deanna is a missionary returning from China with eight war orphans. The movie is partially nararrated by Deanna herself as she recounts the story of how she found the orphans and brought them to America. It is very touching although it has a few comic twists. Barry Fitzgerald is his delightful self and causes her no end of trouble. In the end she is the proud mama of NINE war orphans and has found them a very charming daddy. We really enjoyed this film even though it wasn't Deanna's usual style. It showed us that she was certainly capable of playing a more serious role. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Forget the sad history; it's a sparkling star vehicle
The gloom of Jean Harlow's tragic early death has cast a pall over SARATOGA for over 65 years. It's time for that veil to be lifted. Taken as it stands, SARATOGA is a gem of a romantic comedy with great performances from both Harlow and Clark Gable. Even the infamous doubling for Harlow in the last third doesn't mar the film, as it's handled in such a straightforward and perfunctory manner. What the film might have been had Harlow lived to complete it is debatable; even a notorious critic like Graham Greene thought the film played better downplaying the leading lady's role towards the end. What has always struck me is how some Harlow fans bemoan the doubling, and even the fact the film was completed. Would they have preferred MGM to scrap the over forty minutes of footage that Harlow did leave prior to her death? If the studio had done that, I tend to think that they would be the one's crying over the loss now. I, for one, would much prefer having the prime Harlow footage that appears here, more then any of her other, rather awful work in films like HELL'S ANGELS, PLATINUM BLONDE, and PUBLIC ENEMY. As for the 3 and ½ minutes that Mary Dees spends in the film with her back to the camera, or wearing that ridiculous floppy hat (in the one scene I think could have been omitted), how many remember Harlow's early appearance in the Clara Bow film THE SATURDAY NIGHT KID, where she spent nearly twice that amount of time with her own back to the camera. Even in Harlow's previous film, PERSONAL PROPERTY, the back of her head ended up facing the camera more than a few times. The bottom line is that people only complain about the doubling in SARATOGA because their attention is drawn to it, unfortunately due to the sad circumstances regarding the film's production. However, once the film is separated from it's tragic history, it becomes the grand entertainment it was intended to be. The script by Anita Loos and Robert Hopkins is exemplary, and the performances all around hit just the right, lighthearted, note (again, all the more impressive given the history). For me, SARATOGA has become a test case. I've shown it to over two dozen people over the years, and all of them, having no idea of it's history, thought it was marvelous. Nor did they pick up on the Mary Dees doubling, or even have any idea there was anything wrong with Jean Harlow. All were shocked when I revealed she had died before completing the film. After all these years, it's time for the mourning to end. In 1937 Time magazine boldly declared that SARATOGA was "Jean Harlow's best film, as well as her last." I won't go that far. But among the Gable/Harlow films, I will say it ranks second only to RED DUST. Hopefully, when the film makes it's way to DVD it will get the deluxe treatment it deserves - both for its unique history, and as a memorial to its wonderful leading lady.

A bittersweet viewing experience
I really think it is hard to talk about "Saratoga" divorced from all the sadness of what occured during the making of the film. Whatever artistic merits the film possesses, the dark cloud of Jean Harlow's tragic death a little while before production was completed hangs over this film. Forever viewers will be looking to see which scenes actress Mary Dees filled in for Jean under a large floppy hat or behind a set of binoculars. I know even without thinking I still do now even after a few viewings of my copy of the film.In a way I still find myself hoping that Jean Harlow will somehow complete all her scenes and thus finish the film.

Although I find the film a very pleasing comedy romance with a fine performance from Clark Gable and two of my favorite character people in the great Hattie McDaniel and George Zucco I still find it disturbing as Harlow is obviously very unwell from the first scene in the movie. Despite this she delivers a spirited performance which I think is among her best, not of course up to "Bombshell" or "Dinner at Eight" standards but nevertheless a good one.
The film runs for about 63 minutes before Jeans first replacement scene with Mary Dees takes place which proves that production was almost complete when she fell ill. Jean looks puffy and very tired in most of the scenes she appears in and it is easy to see that something was terribly wrong.
Jean Harlow's death from Urinic poisoning at age 26 shocked the whole of Hollywood and her fans as she was far from being the brassy strumpet she so often played on screen but was a decent and caring individual who was greatly loved by the MGM production crews and her frequent co stars like Clark Gable and Myrna Loy.
Despite its morbid quality it is a greatly enjoyable story to watch. Lionel Barrymore playing Jean's relative delivers his usual amusingly crusty performance as the aging horse trainer and Jack Conway's rapid direction keeps the production moving at lighting pace.

The film has all the usual MGM attention to detail with great care going into sets, costumnes and choice of performers.

I really think "Saratoga" is a fine film on its own merits but it can't be watched without the focus being on the tragic death of its leading lady. Most of the occasions in the last 20 minutes of the film where Jean has been replaced are done tastefully and with great care so the end production is a fitting tribute to one of the greatest MGM performers of the 1930"s. Enjoy "Saratoga" as I always do

Harlow's Swan Song
The other reviewer goes into a great deal of detail about this movie, so there's no need to recap all of that. "Saratoga" is indeed famous because it was the movie that Jean Harlow was making at the time she was striken with nephritis and died, leaving her own part in the show unfinished. Curious to see how that was handled, I rented the movie myself. As comedies from the 30s go, it's okay; not the best work I've seen, but not the worst either. Jean is noticeably fuller figured here than in anything else I'd ever seen her in ("Red Dust", "Wife vs. Secretary"); I suppose it sounds vapid to say, but I think she looked better bodywise than when she was thinner--vapid, because it was her kidney failure that was causing her to retain fluid in her tissues. It's disturbing afterwards to think that here's actual footage of someone dying right before our eyes, and that nobody could pick up on it at the time. As the movie began to move towards its end, I noticed that there were no more shots of Jean's face, that her back was to the camera the whole time. Obviously, these are the shots filmed after her death, when they had to have a body double stand in for her so that the other stars had SOMEBODY to say their lines too, and act around.

If you too are curious to see how MGM dealt with such a serious production problem, then check out "Saratoga", but personally, I find it too sad to see again, regardless of its being a comedy.

A romantic comedy with behind-the-scenes trauma
For anyone who's aware of SARATOGA's history, it's really hard to watch it as the romantic comedy it's supposed to be, especially when its troubles are so visible on screen. Sadly, it was Jean Harlow's last movie--she died while it was still being filmed. It is remembered for that more than any creative contribution it made.

Carol Clayton (Jean Harlow), recently engaged to wealthy Hartley Madison (Walter Pidgeon), returns home from a long visit in England when she is told her father, Frank (Jonathan Hale), who owns a ranch for breeding racehorses, has serious health problems. When Frank dies shortly thereafter, she learns he has given the deed to his horse farm to a bookie and good friend, Duke Bradley (Clark Gable), as a marker to compensate for all of the gambling debts Frank had unwisely amassed. When Bradley accuses Carol of golddigging, she determines to earn the money herself to pay off the marker before she marries Madison. In the meantime, Bradley wants to build a big enough nest egg for a more scrupulous occupation and marry Carol himself. Carol is enraged when she learns Bradley intends to use Madison as his "chump," but finds herself returning Bradley's affection.

It's always amusing to watch these depression-era movies. The only credits women received for this one were in acting, writing, and wardrobe. Although it hardly portrays a lifestyle that was realistic to the average audience member, it does give an idea of the technology and social mores of the time. The cars are "a gas" and the old rotary phones with the receiver horn in their bases are fun to see. Something you wouldn't hear in today's sensitive climate is when Carol's maid, Rosetta (Hattie McDaniels), says she'd marry Bradley in a flash if he were the right color. That crack and the amount of smoking may not be politically correct, but it accurately portrays the attitudes of the times. By today's standards, some of the fashions worn would be considered grossly inappropriate for their settings. The logic of Harlow maintaining so many pretty dresses when her character is hard pressed for money was another deliberate Hollywood oversight. This reviewer knows too little of the horse racing business to be aware of what flaws may be in that aspect of the script.

Anita Loos, who also wrote SAN FRANCISCO and the original GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDES, and Robert Hopkins were responsible for the screenplay. It is downright amusing when Carol is examined by Madison's doctor (George Zucco). Doctor can't find anything wrong with her and the story uses "not feeling well" as a euphemism for Carol "needing to get laid." (This is just another outside influence intruding on the on-screen efforts. In order to avoid the harshness of the Hayes office, Carol would have to marry the man before she makes love with him. However, this was an attitude that was much more widespread in Western society than just this movie.)

Gable and Harlow were considered fine comedians in the 1930s, but today their performances in this vehicle don't hold up as well as their vibrant personalities. For example, the scene where Gable takes the glass of bicarbonate soda from Harlow's hand and sets it on the counter was certainly written well, yet the grief either show fails to be convincing.

The better performances come from Lionel Barrymore, who plays Grandpa Clayton, and Walter Pidgeon. Barrymore's queries of Madison's intentions regarding Moonray, a horse he successfully bid on in an auction, do an excellent job of showing Grandpa's motivation. Likewise, when Pidgeon notices the brand of cigars Bradley smokes. Both Barrymore and Pidgeon look as if some thought processes are going on behind their dialogue.

At age 36, Gable was at his prime during the filming of this movie. Harlow at 26, on the other hand, was literally dying of nephritis and it is evident in her appearance. Although she struggled with her weight during the last several years of her life, the bloating shows in both her face and body in all of her scenes. There is a