Lovyss Bradley Movies
- 1968
Uptight is an updated remake of John Ford's The Informer (35). The Irish Republican rebels of the original are replaced by black activists, Dublin becomes the Cleveland ghetto, and "the troubles" of 1921 are transformed into the days just following the assassination of Martin Luther King. Julian Mayfield plays an itinerant street sweeper who betrays his militant friends to the fuzz, resulting in an underground all-points bulletin to exact vengeance on the squealer. Ruby Dee portrays a prostitute who befriends the snitch as he eludes his revolutionary ex-buddies. Jules Dassin's unrelenting directorial pace is complemented by the driving jazz score of Booker T. Jones. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Raymond St. Jacques, Ruby Dee, (more)
- 1967
Buffy (Anissa Jones) wants to join a club made up of neighborhood youngsters that have an aversion to "fancy" kids. To help Buffy along, Bill (Brian Keith) allows her to dress in ratty old clothes, and--much to the dismay of Mr. French (Sebastian Cabot)--also dons "hobo" duds himself. This gets Bill in dutch with blue-collar worker Tim Callahan, the father of two of the club members, who is offended because he thinks the Davises are making fun of poor folks. Cast as Mr. and Mrs. Callahan are two former child stars,Jackie Coogan (fresh from his "Uncle Fester" duties on The Addams Family) and Marcia Mae Jones. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1960
Anne Francis and Christopher Dark guest star as armored-car bandits Doreen Maney and Sheik Humphries in this thinly disguised retelling of the "Bonnie and Clyde" legend. Designed by the newspapers as "The Lovebirds", Doreen and Sheik have masterminded four major heists, the last of which netted the gate receipts from Yankee Stadium. This time, however, blood has been spilled, and Elliot Ness (Robert Stack) is determined to avenge the deaths of the four armored guards mowed down by the Lovebirds' gang. Managing to capture Doreen, Ness hopes that she will reveal Sheik's whereabouts while being extradited to New York, but Doreen says nothing, confident that her boyfriend will help her escape--little imagining that she is being double-crossed not only by Sheik, but also by her own kid sister Maybelle (played by a pre-Mister Ed Connie Hines). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1956
Ginger Rogers ended her 23-year association with RKO Radio with the indifferent musical comedy western The First Travelling Saleslady. Ginger and Broadway favorite Carol Channing (whose only starring film this was) play a pair of corset salespersons who head westward in 1897 to hawk their wares. Finding a limited market for corsets, the ladies switch to selling barbed wire, which rests not at all well with cattle baron James Arness. Rescuing Ginger and Carol from Arness' hired guns are horseless-carriage inventor Barry Nelson and callow young cowpoke Clint Eastwood. Whenever asked about First Travelling Saleslady in later years, Carol Channing would blithely refer to it as "the picture that killed RKO"; she wasn't too far wrong in this assessment. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ginger Rogers, Barry Nelson, (more)
- 1953
After several years of supporting roles, Edward Arnold once again enjoys top billing in the independently produced Man of Conflict. Arnold plays powerful industrialist J. R. Compton, who tries to force his son Ray (John Agar) to become as ruthless and hard-hearted as his dad. But Ray is cut from a different cloth; he treats the employees like human beings, rather than automatons. The father-son conflict rages on until the elder Compton finally realizes that his way is not always the best way. Well cast with some of the best character actors in the business, Man of Conflict makes up in good intentions and good acting what it lacks in production values. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Edward Arnold, John Agar, (more)
- 1951
Golden Girl is the life story (sort of) of legendary 19th-century American entertainer Lotta Crabtree. The daughter of a luckless gambler (James Barton), young Lotta (Mitzi Gaynor) supports herself and her dad by singing and dancing in mining camps during the California Gold Rush of 1849. She carries on her activities into Indian territory, where she saves her scalp by winning over her Native American audiences. During the Civil War, Lotta falls in love with a dashing Confederate spy (Dale Robertson), with whom she is briefly reunited in San Francisco before his inevitable demise. The finale is one of those "smiling through the tears" contrivances that always worked so well in musical films. Golden Girl was produced for 20th Century-Fox by entertainer George Jessel. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mitzi Gaynor, Dale Robertson, (more)
- 1951
Delilah and Jeff (Betty Grable and MacDonald Carey) are a successful show-business team, but less successful as husband and wife. Finding that her producer hubby is unfaithful, musical-comedy star Delilah walks out on him, heading for Miami, where she got her start. In the process, Delilah feigns amnesia, then inaugurates a romance with a Miami playboy (Rory Calhoun). His jealousy aroused, Jeff heads to Miami to reclaim his wife, but she leads him on quite a merry chase until she finally allows herself to get caught. One of several 20th Century-Fox musicals produced by comedian George Jessel, Meet Me After the Show is a standard-issue Betty Grable vehicle, highlighted by several sprightly musical numbers, including a captivating routine with Grable and an uncredited Jack Cole and Gwen Verdon. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Betty Grable, MacDonald Carey, (more)
Caged, considered the best woman's prison film ever made, represents a union between realistic socially conscious drama and the more stylized world of film noir. Marie, (Eleanor Parker), is sentenced to prison for helping her husband in a small robbery. The prison is run by the sadistic matron Evelyn (Hope Emerson) who is secure in her position due to corrupt political influence. The film shows Marie's slow disillusionment with society and her eventual decision to become a prostitute in order to gain parole after observing her friend and fellow inmate Kitty (Betty Garde) lose her sanity and murder their oppressor Evelyn. With this uncompromisingly pessimistic statement on human nature, John Cromwell reaches his peak as a director. Under his expert direction, Eleanor Parker gives the best performance of her career and creates a convincing metamorphosis from a innocent young girl to a hardened criminal. Her performance is nuanced, low-keyed and emotionally charged. Equally impressive is Cromwell's visual realization of the claustrophobia of prison life, aided by the high-contrast photography of Carl Guthrie. This excellent, grim drama is uncompromising in its refusal to sentimentalize the plight of Marie as a victim or to absolve her of her role in her fate, nor does it absolve society as it shows the results of desperation and brutalization on human dignity. ~ Linda Rasmussen, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Eleanor Parker, Agnes Moorehead, (more)
- 1950
In terms of content, Outrage was well-ahead of its time. Mala Powers, who'd previously starred opposite Jose Ferrer in Cyrano de Bergerac, plays Ann Walton, a naïve young girl who is attacked and raped while walking home from work. As if the horror and humiliation of the sexual assault wasn't enough, Ann must endure the scrutiny of her neighbors, some of whom are convinced that she "asked for it." Unable to stand any more, she runs away from her hometown and her fiancé Jim Owens (Robert Clarke), hoping to start life anew in another town. With the help of compassionate clergyman Ferguson (Tod Andrews), Ann slowly regains her faith in humanity, as well as her own self-esteem. Oddly, director Ida Lupino chooses to tackle her material with a complete lack of subtlety. The subject matter of Outrage deserves far more sensitive treatment than it received from the usually reliable Lupino. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mala Powers, Tod Andrews, (more)
- 1947
- NR
Irving Pichel's They Won't Believe Me is the flashback unfolding of Larry Ballentine's (Robert Young) witness-stand testimony in his trial for the murder of girlfriend Verna Carlson (Susan Hayward). Larry is the first to admit he's a parasitic heel, cheating on his rich wife Gretta (Rita Johnson) first with magazine writer Janice Bell (Jane Greer) and then with Verna. Though aware of Larry's affairs, Gretta cannot manage to leave him; rather, she uses her money to keep him in tow. She foils his attempt to run off with Janice by buying him a partnership in a brokerage firm. When she discovers his plan to flee with Verna, she sells her interest, leaving Larry unemployed and penniless. The lovers run off nonetheless, but Verna is killed when a truck crashes into their car. When the authorities assume the charred victim is his wife, Larry gets a sinister idea. He returns home to kill Gretta, but she is already dead, so all he has to do is hide the body. Unfortunately for him, the police come looking for the missing Verna, who they suspect was blackmailing him. They find Gretta's unrecognizable corpse, think it's Verna's, and arrest Larry. The flashback structure of this suspenseful film noir effectively creates a foreboding tension that mounts to a powerful final scene. ~ Steve Press, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Young, Susan Hayward, (more)
