Nothing Sacred (1937)

Before His Girl Friday (1940) came this other screwball comedy about journalism, the perfect scoop and disception. After getting on the bad side of his boss, newsman Wally Cook (Frederic March) is demoted from the living and forced to write obituaries. It's quite the awful set up and Cook desperately looks for another story to get him in the good graces of the Morning Star's editor.

The perfect new flash has just come up in the form of a woman who is soon going to die of radium poisoning and so Wally Cook goes to meet her. Heading up from New York he ends in the one horse town in Vermont. He meets a lot of unoblidging people whose vocabulary is limited to Yup and Nope. He finally comes across the crying girl who has just left an appointment with a doctor. He comforts the girl cheering her up by promising a trip to the big city where she will be treated like royalty (And he'll get his story). So Hazel Flagg soon becomes the sweetheart of New York with public appearances at Madison Square Gurden, parades, poems, articles and special honors. It's all going according to Cook's plan, the only thing is that Hazel is not actually ill.

That's a wrench in the plan and soon it becomes evident that Cook will look like a cad. To make matters worse he's falling for her and his editor Oliver Stone is all over him. Now he must take part in Hazel's charade despite his annoyance. She too is annoyed and ends the game so the two lovebirds can elope. Still the story of Hazel is given a romanticized ending that the public deserves. Frederic March is decent as the desperate and long suffering journalist. Carole Lombard is her typical light headed, whimsy, high strung, scatterbrained, sniveling self. It proves to be a volatile combination partnered with Ben Hecht's script. The news industry loses a lot of its self-respect for the sake of laughs, because nothing's sacred. Some might be interested to know that it was shot in glorious technicolor and it was the only time Lombard would appear in a technicolor film. She would of course die in a tragic plane crash in 1942.

This film was quite short so the story moved quickly and there were definitely some screwy moments. I am however partial to His Girl Friday and some of the other more well known screwballs.

3.5/5 Stars

The Best Years of Our Lives (1946) - Updated

Who in their right mind would make a film like this today? I mean it's nearly three hours of incessant talking and character development. There are no explosions or special effects. There are not even any war scenes! And yet it is pure gold from William Wyler. He forces us to get to know these characters, all the details about them, and it is a pleasure.

In a year that boasted the likes of It's a Wonderful Life, it is not simply a testament to the post war sentiment but also the power of this film that led it to garner so much praise including a Best Picture Oscar.

Like Capra's film, WWII plays a role here without actually focusing on the fighting. The effects of such a cataclysmic event was enough on its own.  The Best Years of Our Lives chooses to focus on the point of view of three returning servicemen. However, it would be selling the film short to suggest that is all the film is about. It revolves around deeper issues such as family, camaraderie, patriotism, and of course romance. Over the course of the film each man must navigate his own path and much of those pathways have to do with their romantic relationships.

Al (Fredric March) has been married 20 years and yet he returns to a home with a wife and kids who seem more foreign than the battlefronts he fought on. His loving wife Milly (Myrna Loy) patiently allows him to become acclimated and stands beside him as he stands up for his convictions at his bank.

Then there is Homer (Harold Russell), the double amputee, who is bracing for the worst as he returns to his family and the girl next door named Wilma. His way of dealing with the situation is to avoid those he loves, because by not letting them get close he thinks he will allow them to move forward with their lives. However, Homer completely misjudges just how much his girl loves him. Wilma is the real deal and she is prepared to remain faithful to Homer no matter the circumstances.

The final relationship is perhaps the most complicated of the lot. Fred Derry is the complete antithesis of Al. He has little work experience and he was a young man who knew his wife for only a handful of days before he went off to war. Now it is all coming back to bite him, because Marie (Virginia Mayo) is not ready to patiently wait around while the former soda jerk tries to find a job. She wants money, nights on the town and good times. Sparks fly and Fred finds himself drawn more and more to Al's daughter Peggy (Teresa Wright) since his marriage is a loveless one. This relationship is perhaps the most agonizing to watch as Fred is torn apart, but he ultimately gets the girl who will accept him for who he is.

The Best Years of Our Lives may have been during the war for some, but that really does not matter, because with the right attitude humanity is able to move forward to make the best of the future. That is one of merits of this film, it exudes hopefulness and despite their different lots each character is able to find a little slice of joy.

No one personality outshines any of the others but instead all the players add up to the perfect combination. I will shamelessly acknowledge that Teresa Wright is one of my favorite actresses and over the last few years I have come to really appreciate Dana Andrews. They really do deserve more credit and I hope this film continues to get the praise it deserves. It is a delectable slice of Americana and cinema.

5/5 Stars

The Best Years of Our Lives (1946)

Directed by William Wyler, the film chronicles the lives of three men as they return from World War II. They feel joy and then angst trying to integrate back into society  with lives that are strangely different from when they left. They face various struggles like finding a job, holding a marriage together, to just trying to get used to a disability. Although they each have their own lives which we get to see first hand, they are still intertwined. Together these three men find it within themselves to make these the best years possible. Full of both highs and lows, this movie is extremely touching and leaves you with a smile. The cast is superb including Dana Andrews, Fredric March, Harold Russell (real life amputee), Myrna Loy, Teresa Wright, Virginia Mayo, and of course Hoagy Carmichael. This film is great because it does not try to glamorize and it stands the test of time in my mind.

5/5 Stars

Inherit the Wind (1960)

Starring two battling greats in Spencer Tracy and Frederic March, with Gene Kelly as well, the film chronicles a fictitious version of the controversial Scopes Monkey Trial which acted as an allegory for the McCarthy era. March is the prestigious prosecutor on the side of Creationism and Tracy is the famed defense attorney fighting for a young schoolteacher (Dick York). The two spar back and forth on the touchy subject while staying friends outside the courtroom. The whole town backs Brady, condemning Cates and Drummond as evil. However, despite all that is against them, Drumond saves the case by bringing Brady to the stand. The two stars have commendable performances if not their best. Gene Kelly proves he can be a serious actor, playing the cynical newspaper man. The cast is rounded out nicely by Harry Morgan and Claude Akins. Here Stanley Kramer puts together a respectable movie version of the stage play.

4/5 Stars