Lou Marcelle
- 1950
The Ben Hecht-Charles MacArthur Broadway comedy Ladies and Gentlemen formed the basis of the Warner Bros. laughspinner Perfect Strangers. The title characters are Terry Scott and David Campbell, played by Ginger Rogers and Dennis Morgan. She's a divorcee, he's a husband and father. Terry and David are thrown together by fate -- or rather, the LA judicial system. While serving as jurors on a murder trial, the two fall in love. Ironically, the woman on trial allegedly killed her husband because he'd asked for a divorce. The seriocomic tension develops on two levels: will juror Isobel Bradford (Margolo Gillmore) be able to sway the others to vote for the death penalty, and will Terry and David continue to pursue their romance at the expense of the happiness of others? ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ginger Rogers, Dennis Morgan, (more)
- 1948
A Cornell Woolrich novel was the source for the variable Monogram melodrama I Wouldn't Be in Your Shoes. The plot refers to the dancing shoes of young terpsichorean Tom (Don Castle). A print from one of those shoes is found at the scene of a murder, and the police don't buy Tom's story that his footwear was stolen. The only person who believes in Tom's innocence is his wife and dancing partner Ann (Elyse Knox), and it is she who follows the trail of clues to the genuine killer. Without revealing the ending, it can be noted here that the actual miscreant has remained in very close proximity of both Tom and Ann all along -- and has been encouraged to do so by the police! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jimmy Aubrey, Stanley Blystone, (more)
- 1946
Romantic comedy was never Errol Flynn's forte, but he occasionally gave it the old college try in such films as Never Say Goodbye. Flynn plays Phil Gayley, a Petty-like magazine illustrator, whose close proximity with gorgeous female models ruins his marriage to the lovely Ellen (Eleanor Parker). When the Gayleys divorce, their precocious 7-year-old daughter Flip (Patti Brady) contrives to bring them back together. She does, of course, but not before several by-the-number comic complications, not least of which finds Phil and his romantic rival Rex DeVallon (Donald Woods) dressed in lookalike Santa Claus suits. The film's biggest laughs are garnered whenever Errol Flynn lampoons his established "swashbuckler" image, which he does with apparent relish. At one point, Flynn even imitates Humphrey Bogart-an effect accomplished by dubbing in the voice of the real Bogart! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Errol Flynn, Eleanor Parker, (more)
- 1944
The wartime housing shortage in Washington DC is the basis for this comedy. Several attractive young ladies rent a single DC apartment, causing no end of complications to their various professional and private lives. Also moving in (due to a misunderstanding) is a young newlywed (Jane Wyman), whose flustered husband (Jack Carson) is denied access to the apartment. The funniest of the female roommates is a visiting Russian sniper, played con brio by Eve Arden. The Doughgirls is based on the popular Broadway play by Joseph A. Fields (with uncredited assistance by George S. Kaufman). Three Stooges fans are advised to keep an eye out for Curly Joe DeRita as an unhappy schlemiel who can't find a place to sleep. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ann Sheridan, Alexis Smith, (more)
- 1943
Eric Ambler's intriguing novel Uncommon Danger is brought down to a Republic serial level in Warner Bros.' Background to Danger. George Raft, who always seems miscast, plays an American undercover intelligence agent operating in Turkey. Sultry Osa Massen passes on some valuable secret papers to Raft just before she is killed. Our Hero then finds himself at the mercy of enemy agent Sidney Greenstreet, who knows that the papers contain Nazi plans to invade Turkey. Despite several brutal beatings, Raft and his cohorts Peter Lorre (a good guy for a change) and Brenda Marshall turn the tables on Greenstreet. Background to Danger was the first of many Warner Bros. follow-ups to the studio's megahit Casablanca; it's also the film wherein the prankish Peter Lorre stole George Raft's hat between takes--an affront that rankled the touchy Raft to his dying day. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- George Raft, Brenda Marshall, (more)
- 1943
Practically everybody on the Warner Bros. lot shows up in the wartime morale-boosting musical extravaganza Thank Your Lucky Stars. Believe it or not, this one has a wisp of a plot. A pair of enterprising producers, played by S.Z. Sakall and Edward Everett Horton, want to hire singer Dinah Shore for their upcoming Cavalcade of Stars. Unfortunately, this means they must deal with Shore's boss, radio comedian Eddie Cantor. The egotistical Cantor insists upon joining the show himself, driving everyone crazy with his take-charge attitude. Meanwhile, singer Dennis Morgan, hoodwinked by a crooked agent into thinking he's signed a contract with Cantor, shows up backstage at Sakall and Horton's rehearsal, only to be given the boot. While all this is going on, aspiring actress Joan Leslie has befriended a bus driver named Joe Simpson--who happens to be a dead ringer for Eddie Cantor (and why not? Ol' "Banjo Eyes" plays both parts). Turns out that Joe is another showbiz wannabe, but he has been denied a break because he looks too much like Cantor. You see what's comin' now, right, folks? Morgan and Leslie will get their big breaks when Joe Simpson impersonates Eddie Cantor, who's been kidnapped by Indians (bet you didn't see that one coming!) All of this expository nonsense is merely an excuse to show off Warners' talent roster in a series of engaging specialty numbers: John Garfield talk-sings Blues in the Night, Jack Carson and Alan Hale do a buck-and-wing, a jitterbug number is performed by Ida Lupino, Olivia de Havilland and George Tobias, Hattie McDaniel and Willie Best strut their stuff in Ice Cold Katie, and so on. Highlights include Errol Flynn's That's What You Jolly Well Get, an English music hall-style sendup of Flynn's movie heroics, and Bette Davis' peerless (and endearingly off-key) rendition of They're Either too Young or Too Old. As a bonus, Humphrey Bogart shows up long enough to be browbeaten and intimidated by S.Z. Sakall ("Gee, I hope none of my movie fans see this!" moans Bogart as the soundtrack plays a mocking rendition of Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?) Subtle and sophisticated it isn't, but Thank Your Lucky Stars is so entertaining that you'll forget all about its multitude of flaws. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Eddie Cantor, Dinah Shore, (more)
Though its purely propagandastic aspects are never far from surface, Destination Tokyo must rank as one of the most intelligent and objective of wartime thrillers. Cary Grant is a tower of strength as Captain Cassidy, skipper of an American submarine bound for Tokyo harbor. Its mission: to allow a Navy meterologist to survey Japanese weather conditions, in preparation for a major Allied assault. Many of the individual incidents in Delmar Daves' script are based on fact, notably an episode in which a pharmacist's mate is called upon to perform an emergency appendectomy. Admittedly, some of the secondary characters are WWII stereotypes, but they're never played that way. Particularly good isDane Clark, in his first important screen role; also registering well as a radio man is John Forsythe, in his first screen role ever. From the sub's embarkation in San Francisco to its climactic retreat from Japan, there's not a single solitary dull moment in the 135 minutes of Destination Tokyo. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Cary Grant, John Garfield, (more)
One of the most beloved American films, this captivating wartime adventure of romance and intrigue from director Michael Curtiz defies standard categorization. Simply put, it is the story of Rick Blaine (Humphrey Bogart), a world-weary ex-freedom fighter who runs a nightclub in Casablanca during the early part of WWII. Despite pressure from the local authorities, notably the crafty Capt. Renault (Claude Rains), Rick's café has become a haven for refugees looking to purchase illicit letters of transit which will allow them to escape to America. One day, to Rick's great surprise, he is approached by the famed rebel Victor Laszlo (Paul Henreid) and his wife, Ilsa (Ingrid Bergman), Rick's true love who deserted him when the Nazis invaded Paris. She still wants Victor to escape to America, but now that she's renewed her love for Rick, she wants to stay behind in Casablanca. "You must do the thinking for both of us," she says to Rick. He does, and his plan brings the story to its satisfyingly logical, if not entirely happy, conclusion. ~ Robert Firsching, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman, (more)
