Alexander's Ragtime Band (1938)

Period pieces can be a funny thing when they're from a different period themselves. I didn't realize until about halfway through this one that it begins in 1915. I was clued in after World War I broke out and one of the characters went to fight (well, play in the army band) in Europe.

The story starts simple enough here that I really wasn't expecting much. An up-and-coming band and new-to-town female singer are forced to work together when a club owner insists they are a package deal or no one gets the job. The initial bitter sparks fly, but it then evolves into a more nuanced love triangle between the girl, the band director, and his right-hand man (well, slightly more nuanced - it is still from the 30's). All three have to juggle loyalty, love, and their own personal ambitions.

The band leader is played by Tyrone Power, a very big star at the time who isn't as well known today. His best friend is played by Don Ameche, Oscar winner decades later for Cocoon, and maybe best known (to me at least) as Mortimer Duke from Trading Places.

Overall a pretty good show. The musical numbers don't overstay their welcome and, more often than not, continue to serve the story.

62 to go...

A Star is Born (1937)

This is the original version of the movie that has been twice remade in the U.S. with another on the way. The story is a cliche now and has been used even by stories that aren't exactly this one: starry-eyed girl moves to Hollywood, becomes a big star, and learns about life and love. The paparazzi were also apparently just as infuriating then as they are now.

I enjoyed this one primarily because it's innocence seems to fit that of the era in Hollywood (the Production Code was just a few years old). The writers won an Oscar for original story and it also earned an honorary Oscar for basically what sounds like being the first really good movie filmed in color.

63 to go...

Stage Door (1937)

Going through all these old movies, it's easy for the titles to blend together and I struggle keeping them straight sometimes afterward. Most of them are enjoyable and entertaining, but very few stand out. Stage Door is definitely one of the stand-outs.

The primary setting is a boarding house for women struggling to become actors in New York City. They talk throughout the movie with the speed and wit of the Gilmore Girls, but instead of two of them, it's a houseful. It's a fantastic blend of hilarious one-liners and heartfelt emotional drama starring Katharine Hepburn and Ginger Rogers (sorry, no Fred Astaire here).

64 to go...

John Ford

One of the great, early American film makers, John Ford was referred by Frank Capra as the "king of directors" and Orson Welles said his three favorite directors were "John Ford, John Ford, and John Ford." Ford won a still record holding four Academy Awards for Best Director.

The first of these was for The Informer (1935) which I just watched. Unfortunately, this is not one that stands up as well against time as most of Ford's other work. The protagonist is Gypo, a dim-witted thug who turns in a fellow criminal to collect the reward money, then blows it all during a night on the town. Gypo is played larger than life by Victor McLaglen, to the point that he is comically overacting. It was a performance that earned him the Oscar back then but would easily land him the Razzie today.

Ford's other Oscar wins were for The Grapes of Wrath (1940), How Green Was My Valley (1941), and The Quiet Man (1952). He was additionally nominated for Stagecoach (1939) and directed many other classics including The Man Who Shot Liberty Valence (1962) and My Darling Clementine (1946).

65 to go...

Les Miserables (1935)

I was excited to watch this after hearing it was one of the more faithful adaptations of the book (one of my all-time favorites), though when I saw the run-time was a mere 1:48 I knew everything would have to be insanely rushed.

It started off well enough, but then they seemed to realize they weren't going to have the time necessary and just ended the story suddenly. Marius (Cosette's love) isn't introduced until nearly the end of the entire movie.

The film is well cast and well acted, but anything shy of a mini-series will always be inherently incapable of doing justice to Hugo's masterpiece.

READ THE BOOK!

66 to go...

Top Hat (1935)

Though the formula for romantic comedies is the same today as it's been since movies began (boy meets girl, some misunderstanding causes boy to lose girl, misunderstanding is resolved and boy gets girl back), they just don't seem to work as well as they used to. It may be as simple as they didn't have to try as hard in the past and that ease shows on screen.

Top Hat isn't great, but it's very enjoyable and a far better choice than whatever the latest Adam Sandler and/or Jennifer Aniston picture is. It is also, incidentally, the movie that they show to John Coffey in The Green Mile.

67 to go...

The Champ (1931)

Maybe a bit hokey by today's standards, but I thought the sentiment here held up better than I would have expected. The champ is a washed-up former world boxing champion. He's a gambler and a drunk and a father. His 8-year-old son Dink idolizes him and doesn't even call him "dad" but "champ."

Wallace Beery won an Oscar for his portrayal of the down-and-out fighter, but the kid deserved it more in my opinion. He's the real heart of the story, played by Jackie Cooper, who grew up to play Clark Kent's boss in the Christopher Reeve Superman man movies.

68 to go...