Pat Williams Movies
- 1952
Sound Off stars Mickey Rooney as Mike Donnelly, a brash, obnoxious nightclub entertainer who is taken down a peg or two when he's drafted into the army. When not crossing swords with tough sergeant Crockett (Gordon Jones), Mike has to contend with the poison-pen vitriol of columnist Barney Fisher (Arthur Space). Out of love for pretty WAC lieutenant Colleen Rafferty (Anne James), Mike tries to straighten himself out and adhere to army protocol, but not before a riotous climactic tank chase. Though Sound Off covers familiar comic territory, star Mickey Rooney delivers the laughs with freshness and gusto. The most appealing aspect of the film is the characterization of the clichéd drill sergeant: Gordon Jones is almost lovable as he struggles manfully to get the recalcitrant Rooney to cooperate with Uncle Sam. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mickey Rooney, Anne James, (more)
- 1951
William Holden plays Boots Malone, a dishonest--and impoverished--jockey's agent. Malone sees a chance to crack the big time through the talents of young jockey John Stewart. Stewart's wealthy mother wants to remove the boy from the rarefied world of the race track, but it is Malone himself who destroys his friendship with Stewart by ordering the boy to throw the race, or else they'll be put on the spot by gangsters. Malone's last-minute regeneration restores Stewart's faith in him. Filmed on location, Boots Malone is a satisfying horse-race drama, though one might expect a little something extra from star William Holden and director William Dieterle. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William Holden, John Stewart, (more)
MGM's Three Little Words is a "twin" musical biopic, covering the lives and careers of songwriters Bert Kalmar and Harry Ruby. Fred Astaire plays Kalmar, a frustrated magician, while Red Skelton is cast as Ruby, a wannabe baseball player. After "meeting cute" during a disastrous vaudeville show, the oil-and-water Bert and Harry become a popular songwriting team, dashing off such favorites as Who's Sorry Now?, Nevertheless, So Long Oo-Long, I Wanna be Loved by You, All Alone Monday and the title song (the film unfortunately skimps on Kalmar and Ruby's Gilbert-and-Sullivan style novelty ditties, with the exception of Hooray for Captain Spaulding, Groucho Marx' signature tune in Animal Crackers). Adhering more to MGM formula than the facts, the script contrives to have Kalmar and Ruby split up over a trivial misunderstanding, only to be reunited by their wives for an "all is forgiven" radio broadcast hosted by bandleader Phil Regan. Vera-Ellen co-stars as Kalmar's vaudevillian wife Jessie Brown, while Arlene Dahl portrays Ruby's movie-star spouse Eileen Percy. Gloria DeHaven is seen as her own mother, Mrs. Carter DeHaven; and Debbie Reynolds plays "boop-a-doop" girl Helen Kane, her singing voice dubbed in by Ms. Kane herself. Though not quite as humorous as the subject matter would seem to dictate (Red Skelton gets his biggest laughs in the scenes wherein he, as Harry Ruby, participates in spring training with his favorite baseball club) Three Little Words is an excellent example of MGM's musical unit at the height of its powers. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Fred Astaire, Red Skelton, (more)
- 1950
In their never-ending efforts to create a movie series to match the success of "The Thin Man," MGM came up with the fast-paced programmer Mrs. O'Malley and Mr. Malone. Based on characters created by Craig Rice, the film stars James Whitmore as lawyer and part-time sleuth John J. Malone (this character had previously appeared in several other films, as well as the radio series The Amazing Mr. Malone). In his efforts to track down an embezzler, Mr. Malone boards a train heading for New York. Meanwhile, Mrs. Hattie O'Malley (Marjorie Main), a raucous widow from Montana, is also travelling to New York to claim her prize money from a radio contest. During the journey eastward, the man whom Malone is seeking ends up dead. Thanks to Mrs. O'Malley's well-intentioned interference, Malone ends up being accused of murder. How this mismatched pair manages to solve the mystery and save their own hides is good for several laughs. Mrs. O'Malley and Mr. Malone didn't result in a series, though James Whitmore and Marjorie Main make a surprisingly copacetic screen team. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Marjorie Main, James Whitmore, (more)
- 1940
Based on a play by Barre Lyndon, They Came by Night stars beloved Scottish actor Will Fyffe as jeweler James Fothergill. When a valuable ruby is stolen right from under his nose, Fothergill offers to help Scotland Yard capture the crooks. To do this, he pretends to go crooked himself, the better to join the gang. For a while, it seems as though Fothergill really has gone over to the "other side", but this illusion is dispelled in the pulse-pounding bank-robbery finale. They Came by Night was released in the US by 20th Century-Fox, and directed by one of that studio's most talented contractees, Harry Lachman. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Phyllis Calvert, Anthony Hulme, (more)
- 1940
In this drama, the owner of a newsreel company and his son decide to make a documentary that pays tribute to human accomplishment. Then Hitler conquers Czechoslovakia. After that, the father decides to make a movie about the terrible Nazis. The son refuses to assist and instead escapes to Uruguay. There he films the sabotage and sinking of the German battleship Graf Spee at Montevideo. The movie includes actual war footage. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1936
The Queen of Hearts stars Lancashire's own Gracie Fields as Gracie Perkins, a seamstress who is mistaken for a wealthy patroness of the arts. The fun begins when Gracie is approached to back a new stage show. Hoping to crash society -- or at least land a part in the show herself -- she keeps up her masquerade. To absolutely no one's surprise, she's the hit of the show and as icing on the cake ends up winning the heart of leading man Derek Cooper (John Loder). Queen of Hearts was directed by comedian Monty Banks, who happened to be Gracie Fields' brand-new husband. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Loder, Enid Stamp Taylor, (more)
