Monkey Business (1952)

I always was under the assumption that the screwball comedy died off in the 1940s with homages coming out years later. Is there such a thing as neo-screwball comedies? Anyways after watching Monkey Business I feel it is necessary to reevaluate that general conclusion. Here is a film from Howard Hawks that channels a great deal of the mad cap craziness that you see if his earlier works like Bringing up Baby (1938). For lack of a better term it is very screwy indeed. Right from the opening credits you have the voice of God (Hawks himself) breaking the fourth wall and calling Cary Grant by his real name.

Then the film actually opens and we meet the quintessential absent-minded genius Barnaby (Grant) and his loving wife Edwina (Ginger Rogers). They are meant to go to a social gathering and yet he is so caught up in his work that they stay behind. You see he is trying to develop an elixir of youth so to speak. His experiments are of interest to the business minded and much older Oliver Oxly (Charles Coburn), who only sees the positives of such a discovery. Barnaby tries to explain to him that it's not so cut and dry. In fact, his work could have dire effects if careful precautions are not taken.

Little does Dr. Fulton know that one of his lab chimps got lose in his lab and tampered with some chemicals, dumping them in a water cooler. After this absurd moment, Barnaby unknowingly consumes the rejuvenating concoction and his whole demeanor takes a turn.

Soon he's out buying flashy clothes, getting a flamboyant car, ice skating, and driving like a speed demon down the thoroughfares with an astonished secretary Ms. Laurel (Marilyn Monroe). Cary Gran even shows of his impressive acrobatic skills performing a cart wheel and a few other tricks.

Only when the concoction does he figure out what happens and he resolves to be more careful next time. Except next time turns out to come sooner than he was expecting when Edwina willingly drinks some of the substance so Barnaby can observe her. Just like that she is a prank pulling schoolgirl with insatiable energy.

Once more Barnaby takes the elixir while Edwina is sleeping off the effect. However, when she wakes up a misunderstand leads to more mayhem as she tries to get help from Mr. Oxly. What develops is a spiral into more hilarity. Barnaby and Edwina are reunited, Edwina's old flame is incensed, Ms. Laurel is petrified, and chimps and man alike are taking part in some Monkey Business.

3.5/5 Stars

The Best Films of Marilyn Monroe

1. Some Like it Hot
2. Gentlemen Prefer Blondes
3. The Seven Year Itch
4. All About Eve
5. The Asphalt Jungle
6. The Misfits
7. Bus Stop
8. How to Marry a Millionaire
9. Clash by Night
10. Don't Bother to Knock
11. Niagara
12. Something's Got to Give

Something's Got to Give (1962)

Well, this is a first for me, if my memory serves me right. I have yet to do a write up for a film without having a rating to go with it. Something's Got to Give eventually and now it has.

I honestly was surprised that this "film" even existed. I knew about Marilyn Monroe's last film project which ultimately was unfinished thanks to her tragic death. I assumed the project was ditched and never thought about again. I certainly did not give it a second thought then. Then, quite by accident I came upon it in all its 37 minutes of glory. Apparently others had given it a second glance and we have them to thank for this unfinished addition to Montroe's filmography.

It looks like production quality with a few missing parts and quite the cliffhanger ending. We do not even quite know the extent of the cliff yet.
However, it was an interesting look at Marilyn Monroe in her final days. You also had a fun cast of handpicked players including Dean Martin, Cyd Charisse, Phil Silvers and Wally Cox. Not to mention one of Hollywood's prominent directors in George Cukor. It seems likes all the makings for a light '60s romantic comedy.

This certainly was not going to be a masterpiece (It was actually a remake of My Favorite Wife (1940) and was given a face lift for Move Over Darling). That's okay. It is a interesting piece of history in its own way.

Rating: N/A

Some Like it Hot (1959)

Often considered one of the greatest comedies of all time, this film is certainly hilarious and special. This was one of Marilyn Monroe’s best performances and her costars were absolutely brilliant. As far as humor goes it cannot get much zanier and crazier than this.

*May Contain Spoilers

In this Billy Wilder directed comedy, Tony Curtis, Jack Lemmon, and of course Marilyn Monroe teamed up in making a great movie. In the era of Chicago gangsters, two male musicians witness a shooting that they wish they had not. In order to escape they join a traveling band. The only catch is that it's an all women group and so they get dressed up to win the job. The rest of the film follows their crazy cross-dressing antics with the band as they spend their time at a beach resort in Florida. It includes two tremendous love stories on completely different ends of the spectrum! One involving a wealthy young yacht owner and Sugar. The other involving Daphne and well...The movie was filmed in black and white to camouflage all the makeup but as you will find out no movie's perfect! The script from Billy Wilder as well as Lemmon's performance are the real attraction to keep an eye out for. 

Watching this film certainly gave me tremendous respect for the writing. The double talk between Josephine and Daphne is great, there is tremendous comedic irony, and some of the sequences are downright hilarious. First and foremost I think Jack Lemmon is a wonderfully funny man, but he plays so well off of Tony Curtis, Marilyn Monroe, and Joe E. Brown. The basic concept as male musicians masquerading as women was a good idea but I think these actors with Wilder's directing really made it work well. The juxtaposition of the two love stories is important too because you could call Some Like it Hot a romance or even a crime-drama initially but above all it is unabashedly a comedy. All you need to see is Jack Lemmon with maracas or hear the last line of the film and that remains completely evident. 

It was fun to finally see the  Hotel Del Coronado as I thought to myself that this is where some of the film was shot. Tony Curtis even spoke those four eponymous words on the same beach over 50 years ago now. It may be over 50 years later, but in my mind this film is timeless. I could not help but think of Jack Lemmon's line as I reclined on the beach, "I'm a boy. I'm a boy. I wish I were dead. I'm a boy. Boy, oh boy, am I a boy." Hopefully I never run into the same problems they did. 

"Syncopators. Does that mean you play that very fast music...jazz?"
"Yeah. Real hot."
"I guess some like it hot. I personally prefer classical music."
~Tony Curtis to Marilyn Monroe

5/5 Stars 

The Misfits (1961)

The Misfits is a film directed by John Huston and starring the likes of Clark Gable, Marilyn Monroe, Montgomery Clift, Thelma Ritter, and Eli Wallach. The story opens in Texas where a young woman is getting a divorce in Texas with the support of another divorced woman. After she goes through with the proceedings she feels bad but her spirits are lifted by a mechanic and then an aging cowboy who both find her extraordinary. She and the cowboy move into the half-finished home of the widowed handy man on his urging. Rosalyn and Gay slowly become closer and then he resolves to rope some wild mustang for money. Later, they go to a rodeo and meet Gay’s friend Perce who takes part in the dangerous proceedings. After a night on the town, he eventually joins the other two men in their endeavor. However, when they actually begin Rosalyn is horrified by the whole thing. In the end, Gay is back with Rosalyn but not without a great deal of strife over the horses. In many ways this film can be seen as prophetic and it certainly is historically important because it was the last film of both Marilyn Monroe and Clark Gable. Gable looks haggard and Monroe seems highly emotional, possibly hinting at their imminent deaths. Both the acting and the Arthur Miller script were commendable, and I think a good deal of credit has to be given to Eli Wallach and Thelma Ritter for their performances as well.

4/5 Stars

The Asphalt Jungle (1950) - Film-Noir

* May contain spoilers
Directed by John Huston and starring an ensemble cast headed by Sam Jaffe and Sterling Hayden, this was the first great noir heist film. Jaffe has just recently been released from prison and he has contrived an intricate jewel robbery. He teams with a multi-talented safe cracker, a small time thug with dreams of owning a farm, and an invalid driver. The whole operation is to be backed by an attorney who is in a difficult situation. Initially the procedure begins well enough but soon things go haywire with alarms, misfired guns, and then police. Now Jaffe is wanted again, Hayden is slowly dying, a bookie loses his nerve, and the attorney tries to pull a fast one. The perfect conception turns out to be far from it in the end. This film reminded me strikingly of The Killing which I saw earlier. Both are heist films starring Hayden and they end disastrously. For her part Marilyn Monroe steals the screen in her first prominent role which was a foretaste of what was to come.


                                                          4/5 Stars

All About Eve (1950)

Eve Harrington (Anne Baxter) is a seemingly modest and conscientious girl who gets the chance of a lifetime. She is able to meet a great Broadway star (Bette Davis) as well as her close circle of friends. Soon she is helping this Margot Channing by taking care of errands and odd jobs. This ambitious girl finally convinces one of Margot's friends Karen (Celeste Holm), to let her be an understudy. And so when Margot is detained the night of a show, Eve gets her chance at the big time. However, Eve soon shows a different side of herself; one of back-stabbing and blackmail. Through her manipulation, she meets a famous critic (George Sanders) and wins an award. However, he has her pegged and the truth becomes evident. By the end of the film, Eve seems to have fallen for the same trap that Margot had. This film was pretty good and featured a good cast including Thelma Ritter and a young Marilyn Monroe. As Davis exclaims, "fasten your seat belts!"

                                                         4.5/5 Stars