Marjorie Riordan Movies
The Hoodlum is tailor-made for the roughneck talents of actor Lawrence Tierney. The film details the rise and fall of a habitual criminal, and the havoc he wreaks on the lives of his loved ones. Things really go downhill when the "hero" (Tierney) seduces and abandons his brother's sweetheart (Allene Roberts), whereupon the girl commits suicide. Lawrence Tierney's "reel" brother is played by his real brother Edward; presumably, Tierney's more famous sibling Scott Brady was occupied elsewhere. The best performance is delivered by Lisa Golm as the Hoodlum's long-suffering mother. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lawrence Tierney, Allene Roberts, (more)
- 1947
An average "Cisco Kid" Western-adventure, South of Monterey features ace villain Harry Woods as Bennett, a nasty tax collector foreclosing on the poor to benefit himself. Young rancher Carlos Mandreno (George J. Lewis) refuses to give in and is supported by Maria Morales (Marjorie Riordan), the sister of the chief of police, who promises her brother, Arturo (Martin Garralaga), that she will marry Bennett if he will leave Carlos alone. Carlos' cattle, meanwhile, is rustled by a mystery villain known only as "The Silver Bandit" and Arturo arrests the Cisco Kid (Gilbert Roland). The latter, however, escapes with the aid of a fiery saloon singer (Iris Flores) and manages not only to hunt down the evil Bennett, but also unmask the real "Silver Bandit." Iris Flores sings "Tacos de Amor" and "Anoche Hable con la Luna," both by Gladys Flores and Monogram house composer Edward Kay. South of Monterey was the second of six "Cisco Kid" Westerns Gilbert Roland would do for the little Poverty Row studio. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
- 1946
- NR
On the eve of the Chinese New Year, three strangers make a pact before a small statue of the Chinese goddess of Destiny. The strangers are Crystal Shackleford (Geraldine Fitzgerald), married to a wealthy philanderer; Jerome Artbutny (Sidney Greenstreet), an outwardly respectable judge; and Johnny West (Peter Lorre), a seedy sneak thief. The threesome agree to purchase a sweepstakes ticket and share whatever winnings might accrue. Alas, the pact brings little more than misfortune for all concerned. Jerome steals funds from a client, then kills Crystal (with the goddess statue!) when she refuses to hand over her sweepstakes winnings. Johnny and his girlfriend Icy (Joan Lorring) decide to abandon their life of crime, but when it is revealed that the ticket is a winner, he sets fire to it to avoid having his name tied to the crime. If it seems strange that Peter Lorre ends up the romantic lead in Three Strangers, remember that the film's director, Jean Negulesco, thought Lorre was the finest actor who ever lived--and as a result, he fought tooth and nail with Warner Bros. to cast Lorre in this film. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sydney Greenstreet, Peter Lorre, (more)
Taking place almost exclusively on a transatlantic ocean liner, this easygoing Sherlock Holmes entry finds Holmes (Basil Rathbone) and Watson (Nigel Bruce) escorting Far Eastern regent Nikolas (Leslie Vincent) on a diplomatic mission. A group of assassins have targeted Nikolas for extermination, and they're not averse to knocking off Holmes and Watson to achieve their goals. In the end, it seems as though the villains have gained the upper hand -- but that's before the cagey Holmes reveals the film's biggest surprise (which, for a change, really is a surprise). Throughout Pursuit to Algiers, it's fun to watch bad guys Martin Kosleck and Rex Evans making like a road-company version of Peter Lorre and Sydney Greenstreet. The film's only disappointment is Watson's recital of the case of the Giant Rat of Sumatra, which we never get to hear in its entirety! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Basil Rathbone
From a novel of the same name by "Elizabeth", the film begins in 1914, with Bette Davis cast as vain, flighty society woman Fanny Trellis. Informed by Jewish-American financier Job Skeffington (Claude Rains) that her brother Trippy (Richard Waring) has stolen money to pay his gambling debts, Fanny marries Job, securing his promise that he won't prosecute her thieving sibling. Angered by Fanny's agreeing to this loveless union, Trippy runs off to join the army, and is killed during World War I. Fanny holds Skeffington responsible for her brother's death, and demands a divorce with a generous cash settlement. Despite Job's oft-repeated belief that "a woman is only beautiful when she is loved," Fanny uses her coquettish beauty to flit indiscriminately from man to man. While on a sailing trip with her latest beau, Fanny comes down with diphtheria. The disease destroys her facial beauty, and before long the shallow Fanny is left completely alone. Her self-centered efforts to reunite all of her old boyfriends for a party is a failure due to her pathetic middle-aged efforts to be kittenish, and the grotesqueness of the mounds of facial makeup she apples. Meanwhile, Skeffington, who has resettled in Europe with his daughter, is captured by the Nazis and placed in a concentration camp. He manages to escape, returning to the US totally blind and utterly penniless. A chastened Fanny comes back to her husband, promising to care for him for the rest of his life. Most TV prints of Mr. Skeffington run 127 minutes; the videocassette and cable TV versions have been restored to the original length. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bette Davis, Claude Rains, (more)
This star-studded musical drama was largely financed by Theatre Guild, with all proceeds going to various wartime fundraising concerns. Most of the story takes place at the Stage Door Canteen, a Manhattan-based home away from home for soldiers, sailors and marines (the real-life Canteen on 44th street was too busy to lend itself to filming, thus the interiors were recreated in Hollywood). Within the walls of this non-profit establishment, servicemen are entertained by top musical, comedy and dramatic acts, and waited on by such Broadway luminaries as Lunt and Fontanne, Katharine Hepburn, Jane Cowl, Katherine Cornell, Tallulah Bankhead, Helen Hayes, Cornelia Otis Skinner, Sam Jaffe and Paul Muni. Though the plotline-one of the Canteen servers, a girl named Eileen (Cheryl Walker) falls in love with one of the visiting soldiers (William Terry), despite the establishment's strict "no dating" rules-is merely an excuse to link together a series of specialty acts, it is superbly and touchingly directed by Frank Borzage. Not all of the film has weathered the years too well: particularly hard to take is Gracie Fields' cheery ditty about "killing Japs!" For the most part, however, the film works, and the guest performers-including comedians Ray Bolger, Harpo Marx, George Jessel and Ed Wynn, and singers Ethel Waters and Kenny Baker-are in fine fettle. If nothing else, Stage Door Canteen offers the only appearance on film of the great Katherine Cornell, who offers a vignette of the balcony scene from Romeo and Juliet. Incidentally, the actor playing "Texas", Michael Harrison, later gained fame as cowboy star Sunset Carson. Originally released at 132 minutes, Stage Door Canteen is now generally available in the 93-minute TV version. The six big bands that appear and perform in the film are those of Kay Kyser, Count Basie, Xavier Cugat, Guy Lombardo, Benny Goodman and Freddie Martin. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Cheryl Walker, William Terry, (more)
