Richard Donner interviewed on Leonard Maltin's podcast

A few weeks ago on Leonard Maltin's podcast, Richard Donner was the guest, and he talked with Leonard about his career. For about half of the podcast, they talk about Richard's TV career before he got started with films in the 1970s. Then they talked a little about The Omen, Superman, and then The Goonies. Lethal Weapon was discussed for a bit, too.

There was also a discussion about Inside Moves, which features some characters with disabilities. Donner talks about casting Harold Russell in that film because he was a fan of his performance in Best Years of Our Lives. Donner tells the story that Russell wouldn't do the film unless they changed his character's name from "Hooks" to "Wings". I haven't seen this film yet but am putting it on my list.

Here's a link to the podcast if interested:

https://nerdist.com/maltin-on-movies-164-richard-donner/

Johnny Belinda (1948)

<--- Jane Wyman won the Best Actress Oscar for her role.

Based on a play by Elmer Blaney Harris (which was based on real life events).

Jane Wyman is a deaf and mute young woman named Belinda, who lives on a farm with her father (Charles Bickford) and aunt (Agnes Moorehead). Sadly, they both call her "the dummy" and sadly, she is disliked by almost everyone in the village.

She's befriended by a young doctor (Lew Ayres), who sees her potential, and he decides to tutor her and teach her sign language.

Eventually, the two begin to fall in love.

One day, Johnny is raped by a local fisherman, and becomes pregnant, which affects every one of the characters in the film, including the rapist, who marries the doctor's secretary (Jan Sterling) and at one point decides he wants custody over the child.

The doctor's life begins to crumble when he finds himself involved in a scandal, which leads to a climactic courtroom scene with all parties.

Some great performances. The tone of the film is serious for the most part (little comic relief).

Nominated for 12 Academy Awards. Jane Wyman won the Best Actress Oscar. Directed by Jean Negulesco.  I first watched this in 1990, about twenty years ago.

The Best Years of Our Lives (1946)

Three servicemen return to America from WWII and try to resume their lives. The movie aims to focus on each of their stories equally.

Frederic March is the family man (married to Myrna Loy) and Dana Andrews is a tough pilot. Especially memorable is the performance of Harold Russell as the returning sailor who lost his hands in the war.

Russell, who in fact was a double amputee, was awarded an honorary Academy Award for "bringing hope and courage to his fellow veterans." He's really good, I would never have known he was not a professional actor.

Hugo Friedhofer's score for this picture is memorable and features specific themes associated with various characters and situations (also known as a leitmotif).

It is remembered as a film event that spoke to a generation; it was one of the Top 5 grossing films of that year.

I like Frederic March in the movie, but I always feel that James Stewart should have won the Oscar for Best Actor for It's a Wonderful Life that year.

Dana Andrews is in the film just as much as March is, and he's good as well. One scene I will always remember is when Andrews comes face to face with a conscientious objector at a coffee shop and almost fights with him.

With Teresa Wright, Virginia Mayo, Cathy O'Donnell, and Hoagy Carmichael. I first watched this movie in 1994.




Read Dawn's review here Virtual Virago's review here Sittin On A Backyard Fence

The First Legion (1951) with Charles Boyer and Barbara Rush

With a title like The First Legion, I was expecting either a war or horror film. Remember William Peter Blatty's "Exorcist" sequel novel, "Legion"? And opening this Friday in theaters, a new Dennis Quaid sci-fi/horror movie: The title? "Legion". Thankfully, this independently produced 1951 film is not a macabre film; it's a reverent, thought-provoking domestic drama about Catholic priests - directed by none other than Douglas Sirk and starring none other than Charles Boyer.

So what exactly is "The First Legion"? I may have missed any exposition in the film about this. As I understand, "First" in this context means "original" and "Legion" is referring to "legionary", or, the society of Jesuits founded by Loyola. Honestly, I don't know why the film wasn't just called "The Jesuits" or something a little more catchier. According to the TCM website, an alternate title was "Deep in Your Heart", but that sounds like a romance, and probably wouldn't have been a good choice either.

The title, in fact, comes directly from the original depression-era play by Emmet Lavery, which ran on Broadway at both the 46th Street Theater (now Richard Rogers) and Biltmore (now the Friedman) for 3 months in 1934 (Tom Ewell and Charles Coburn were among the actors in the original production).

The play was staged numerous times after the Broadway closing, as the the 1937 poster to the left shows. This particular stage production shown in the poster was part of the New Deal WPA Federal Theater Project. And notice how it was subtitled: "A Jesuit Play", a good clue to theater-goers of what to expect. I don't know enough about playwright Emmet Lavery - who also wrote the screenplay - to know if he had a Catholic or Jesuit background; the story suggests to me that he had some experience in or a good deal of knowledge of the priesthood or Catholicism. Among his film credits are just a handful of movies, including some lesser known war-themed gems, including 1943's Hitler's Children starring underrated actor Tim Holt (not to be confused with the Disney animated short of the same name) and Forever and a Day. He was nominated for an Oscar for writing one of Gary Cooper's last films, The Court Martial of Billy Mitchell (1955)

In my research I discovered some interesting differences between Lavery's play and film treatments. The original play featured an an all-male cast; the film adaptation has one character rewritten as a girl, the character of Terry, played by Barbara Rush. The ads and posters showcase her for good reason: she was an up-and-coming star, and generating buzz for yet another summer '51 flick, the sci-fi classic When Worlds Collide. In First Legion, (released just a few months before Collide), Rush plays the character of Terry as a fiesty high school girl, unable to walk due to a horse riding accident. Her bedroom is decorated with her own artwork (featuring dancers), and she dreams of walking and dancing one day.

Before her character is introduced, we meet an interesting group of Jesuit priests. Many spend most of their time in the seminary where they teach, in a small California town, the same town where Terry lives. We first meet one priest who loves classical music, and sneaks out whenever he can to catch a performance. Some get the opportunity to travel, including one who returns from India with some neat home movie footage. Another outgoing and fun-loving priest is played by the ever-reliable William Demarest; he and his fluffy pooch steal just about every scene they are in. And when some of the priests experience burnout, Boyer's character of the wise, French-born Father Arnoux encourages them to remain faithful and committed.

Boyer and Demarest are probably the most likable screen priests since Father O'Mally and Co. of Going My Way; you could almost imagine all of them as friends.

One day, a "miracle" occurs - one of the elder, bed-ridden priests (HB Warner, AKA "Mr. Gower" from my favorite movie, It's A Wonderful Life) suddenly walks, believed by some to be a miracle granted by the deceased Bishop Joseph Martin, who founded the seminary. Word spreads and a media circus erupts, not unlike the one in Ace in the Hole from the same year, ironically. Though there's no Ferris wheel nor rides (like in Ace), there are flocks of pilgrims, and merchants, selling fake holy water and statues of Bishop Joseph for $1. People with terminal illnesses and disabilities flock to the seminary gates for some sort of inspiration - including Terry. But Terry's doctor (Lyle Bettger) advises her against going there.

Uninterested in media hype and exploitation, the priests keep the chapel doors closed, but at the same time work on ordaining Bishop Joseph a saint, which lead to some interesting sequences that portray the inner workings of the hierarchy often questioned in this story, a theme of other Sirk films.

Boyer's wise Father Arnoux character (not French in the play) was a lawyer in his past career, and he does a little investigation into the medical history of the "revived" priest. Boyer is great in this role; he really brings to this movie what it needs, and you'll be convinced he is this priest. There is a sequence in the film where he is confronted with a chain-smoking, seminary-dropout doctor. After the doctor confesses a diabolical scheme, Father Arnoux begins to pray for him in a moving scene which I thought showed the depth of this priest's compassion for other people's souls, even the malicious.

A visually appealing (some very impressive composite shots) and thought-provoking film.

The Miracle Worker (1962)

Based on both a play of the same name and real life events, this inspiring film (one of the most inspiring I've ever seen) tells the story of Helen Keller and Annie Sullivan. Young Helen Keller (Patty Duke), blind and deaf since infancy, is frustrated by her inability to communicate and subject to frequent violent and uncontrollable outbursts as a result. Unable to deal with the child, her terrified and helpless parents contact the Perkins School for the Blind for assistance. In response they send Annie Sullivan (Anne Bancroft), a former student, to the Keller home to tutor the child. What ensues is a battle of wills as Annie breaks down Helen's walls of silence and darkness through persistence, love, and sheer stubbornness. Ms. Bancroft and Ms. Duke both won well deserved Academy Awards for their acting performances. See this movie if you have not. Directed by Arthur Penn.

Dark Victory (1939)

First watched in 2006. Bette Davis plays a young socialite with a passion for living life to the fullest. (The trailer declares: "She's everything a woman can dare to be!")

Her main passion is horse riding, and there are some great stallion riding sequences. Some of her friends include Ronald Reagan, Humphrey Bogart, and her best friend Geraldine Fitzgerald, who encourages her to see a doctor after she experiences a series of headaches.

Her vision also begins to deteriorate gradually. Bette Davis's performance is great, and emotional. It's a demanding role.

She's supported by her friends and the brain specialist who treats her, played by George Brent, who becomes her lover, though Humphrey Bogart later reveals he's loved her for years. This is definitely Bette Davis at her best. Directed by Edmund Goulding.

This is a favorite movie of blogger KC of A Classic Movie Blog.