Magic Town

Dir: William A. Wellman

1947

***

William A. Wellman's 1947 Magic Town was a flop at the box office and lost a record amount of money for RKO Radio Pictures, not because it's bad, but more so because of its content. 1947 was a big year for noir thrillers, directors such as Delmer Daves, Bincent Sherman and Elia Kazan were churning out two films a year and it had strong competition from films such as The Secret Life of Walter Mitty and The Bachelor and the Bobby Soxer. Films were about crimes of passion, there were fantasy dramas and screwball comedies were doing well. A film about public opinion polling, based on the Middletown studies (sociological case studies of the City of Muncie in Indiana) of the late 20s, just didn't appeal to the majority of the country (if only it had been a question during the Middletown studies!). The fact of the matter is, it was seen as a bit boring, which is very unfair, if anything you could say the film sounded far too interesting, as the audience were after a bit of escapism on an evening out to the pictures. Magic Town is clever and beautifully written, with a script to die for. It's quick-witted, intelligently ironic and stacked full of charm. I would argue that it was one of James Stewart's better and most underrated performances and Ned Sparks is brilliant as his dead-pan, deep voices side-kick Ike who somehow manages to keep a giant cigar in his mouth and speak clearly for the duration of the film. Stewart plays an ex-basketball player who now owns a consumer survey company and thinks he has found a winning formula to perform the perfect survey. Thanks to an old buddy, he finds a small town that is almost a complete miniature of the country in terms of demographic, however, a rival company are due to release what they suggest is a definitive study, so it is a race against time to publish their findings. They arrive in the town of Grandview and pose as insurance salesmen. They slowly manage to gain the townsfolk's trust and they integrate themselves into town life. When Stewart's character falls for a newspaper writer Mary (Jane Wyman) he loses focus on his main objective and lets it slip what his intentions are and soon who he really is and what he's up to is revealed to the town and is front page news. Mary, believing she has got revenge, suddenly realizes that both have lost out, as the townsfolk look to profit from the revelation of their town and soon the data collected is next to useless. However, the couple soon realize that their love for each other is worth more and Stewart comes to the conclusion that town life is the life for him. It's sweet and innocent but the reaction of the town following the revelation that they are "the public opinion capital of the US" is quite revealing of the era. In the story, the media eventually lose interest in the town when the data published suggests the majority of its inhabitants would like to see a female President, which is seen as so utterly ridiculous the whole situation is laughed off. It may be true, I don't know, but it is a sad reflection of the film, if not the time, which makes the whole thing slightly less attractive than it had been up to that point. Overall all though, it's an overlooked film, full of charm and worth much more credit than it has been given.

Miracle on 34th Street

Dir: George Seaton

1947

*****

It's a Wonderful Life is often regarded as the greatest Christmas film of all time but it isn't. Not in my humble opinion anyway, because for me the original 1947 Miracle on 34th Street just beats it to the finish line. The great Edmund Gwenn (who won an Oscar for his performance) is the perfect Santa and the young Natalie Wood was perfectly cast. Maureen O'Hara and John Payne are both very good too in what are essentially supporting main roles. O'Hara had recently moved back to Ireland and declared she wouldn't be returning to America but immediately changed her mind on reading Seaton's brilliant script. It's not stupid or schmaltzy either, unlike many Christmas films and including It's a Wonderful Life (the way is rather casually deals with suicide has always bothered me). It takes a great swipe at the commercialization of Christmas and delivers a message that everyone can understand and learn from, unlike the 1994 remake that completely misses the point. Forget the remake ever happened and enjoy. George Seaton's festive classic is not just my favourite Christmas film of all time but is one of my overall favourite films of all time too.

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty
Dir: Norman Z. McLeod
1947
***
Danny Kaye is a childhood favorite of mine. I don't quite love his films as much as I did when I was younger I'm afraid to say but there is a certain unique something about him that I still cherish. The Secret Life of Walter Mitty has actually turned me into something of a Walter Mitty myself and while watching it as a child (repeatedly) I would slip into daydream and think up other directions I would have had the film go, had I been in charge (I'm guessing Ben Stiller felt the same way as he remade the film in 2013 - see The Secret Life of Walter Mitty 2013). In many respects I have a lot the film to thank for. However, I just didn't like much of the physical comedy. Danny Kaye was an all round entertainer. He could play it straight, goof off, sing beautifully, dance, tell jokes...the works. I just felt that he often tried to do too much in one go and never really excelled at any one thing. The daydreams are far too long in some cases that it is hard to remember what was going on before they happened. At times it feels like a three hour film but the heart of the plot probably only lasts for ten minutes. I wonder if this is why I watched it so many times as a child. I don't like to knock the great Danny Kaye as I love him very much, his performance in Hans Christian Anderson is one of my favorite of all time, I just don't understand why this is what he is remembered for over that. It's an amazing idea, it's just not explored as well as it could have been. In that sense, the 2013 really is an improvement.

Brighton Rock
Dir: John Boulting
1947
*****
John Boulting's adaptation of Graham Greene's classic is the best of British film noir. Visuals aside, I think the reason the film works so well is because Greene wrote the screenplay himself, making sure it never deviated from the novel's greatness. Richard Attenborough's performance as the infamous Pinkie, a psychopathic teen-aged hoodlum, is one of the greatest of his career and is one of the most thrilling villains in cinema's history. The direction is probably the best of the Boulting twins career's and indeed cinematographer Harry Waxman's (although The Wicker Man comes close). I'm not sure a thriller that had the villain as main character had ever worked or had been as compelling before. There is is something uniquely chilling about the audiences relationship with Pinkie, his unpredictability being quite compelling as well as repellent. It is a great film but I've always had issues with it's conclusion. I've always thought that the audience shouldn't hear what Pinkie says in the voice recording booth but should instead find out at the end when the record is playing. Still, that aside, the film is fantastic as are the rest of the cast, Attenborough steals the show but Carol Marsh is utterly convincing in what would be one of her few roles and Hermione Baddeley, William Hartnell, Harcourt Williams, Wylie Watson and the great Nigel Stock provide brilliant supporting performances.

Record of a Tenement Gentleman
Dir: Yasujirô Ozu
1947
*****
Regarded by most as Yasujirô Ozu's most sentimental work, it's often dismissed and overlooked. It is as heart warming as it is heartbreaking, but it's certainly not as gratuitous as say a Frank Capra film, it is far more subtle. Filmed at a time when Japan was still feeling the effect of the second world war and was getting back on its feet. People had become anxious and frightened but also, as Ozu suggests, selfish and unthoughtful. It could have been mistaken for Japanese propaganda, as the west was being introduced to Asian cinema around this time but for those of you who know Yasujirô Ozu's work, you'll know that this was never the case, this was for the people of Japan, a much needed lesson in unity and also a timeless story of hope, kindness and doing what was right. I know I've made it sound like an excruciatingly wet film, it isn't, it still has plenty of humour and intelligence for it not to be too potent. It's actually a rather special film and hugely underrated. I can't recommend it enough, it's an absolute classic.

Dreams That Money Can Buy
Dir: Hans Richter
1947
****
I couldn't believe it when I saw that Dreams That Money Can Buy was filmed in 1947. I can think of loads of films that this must have influenced, everything from Frenzy to James Bond (Intros, Man with the Golden Gun) and everything peculiar between. It's funny, this film makes more sense than you'd expect from Hans Richter, it's certainly not Dada. It starts off strong, slumps in the middle a little with its experimental style but then finishes brilliantly. My favourite section is by far the section dreamt up by Alexander Calder, an artist who I was already a big fan of. Anyone with an interest in film (and art) should put this on their priority list.

Monsieur Verdoux
Dir: Charles Chaplin
1947
*****
Monsieur Verdoux I suppose was a risk for Chaplin back in 1947, unfortunately it didn't pay off for him at the time as the mainstream audiences wanted only 'The Tramp' from him which was very unfair. It seems some people still don't appreciate it today which I don't quite understand. The British were making black comedies to great success at the time, I guess the American audiences just weren't ready for it and refused to let Chaplin move on from silent film into 'Talkies'. Personally I thought it was brilliant. It was a dark comedy, which I like, and it is very funny. People are wrong to say the 'Talkies' ruined Chaplin's career. He was more than capable in a talking role, in fact he excelled! As always, ahead of his time and a victim of his own success.

The Bachelor and the Bobby-Soxer (AKA Bachelor Knight)
Dir: Irving Reis
1947
****
As situation comedies go this story feels uncomfortably unfortunate in this day and age but then it just highlights the beauty of innocence of a bygone era. I love the subtle special effects of Cary Grant turning into a sparkling Knight whenever we saw him through Shirley Temple's eyes, modern film makers should take note of these subtleties. The relationships never really convincing but the performances are, Temple and Grant play off each other brilliantly and I particularly enjoyed Rudy Vallee's (Lord Marmaduke Ffogg Batfans) part of Tommy, a fellow student who tries to compete for Temples affection. I have to confess I had to look up the work Bobby-Soxer on the internet. It's a little misleading but a great film deserves a catchy name I guess!

Hue and Cry
Dir: Charles Crichton
1947
****
Hue & Cry is much like the adventure books for boys that were popular at the time, with a part Enid Blyton and part comic book (obviously) post war theme. I have many older relatives who say that post war London was great fun and many adventures were had in old bombed out building. This film captures that very well but also appeals to the older viewer thanks to Alastair Sim's character/performance. It's an Ealing comedy but apart from Sim's performance, it's pretty serious and is a rather compelling thriller/mystery/espionage film. Directed by the often overlooked and under-appreciated Charles Crichton whose TV and film work I can't recommend enough.