Lloyd BaconBesprekingen

Per resistere alla concorrenza del cinema dopo l'avvento del sonoro, Chester Kent, direttore artistico di spettacoli teatrali, si specializza nel produrre brevi prologhi musicali per le sale di proiezione. Tra l'urgenza di idee sempre nuove, per soddisfare una domanda crescente, lo spionaggio artistico della concorrenza, un produttore che, con trucchi contabili gli sottrae la quota di profitti che gli spetterebbe per contratto, un responsabile legale, fratello della moglie del produttore, che gli mette sempre i bastoni tra le ruote con problemi di censura, una moglie che, dopo averlo mollato ai tempi delle vacche magre, si ripresenta accampando pretese esorbitanti per lasciarlo libero, Kent è sul punto di lasciare tutto per non impazzire. Ma, con l'aiuto dell'immancabile fedele segretaria Nan e del nevrotico capo balletto Francis, riesce a conquistare il successo. (fonte: Retro del dvd)

An American tanker is sunk by a German U-boat, and the survivors spend 11 days at sea on a raft. Their next assignment - bound for Murmansk through the sub-stalked N. Atlantic. (fonte: Imdb)

During World War II, Navy Lt. Cmdr. John Lawrence (Richard Widmark), a strict disciplinarian, is put in charge of Underwater Demolition Team 4 after its former leader, Lt. Cmdr. Jack Cassidy, is killed in action. The unit's men are distrustful of the professionally aloof Lawrence, and the relationship immediately takes a turn for the worse when they brawl with sailors aboard their transport ship. The ship's captain, Lt. Cmdr. Pete Vincent (Gary Merrill), understands the natural resentment the elite UDT men feel over the death of Cassidy, which they have transferred to Lawrence, and offers to go easy on the team at captain's mast. The "by-the-book" Lawrence, however, elects to hold his own mast and disciplines the entire team just before a dangerous reconnaissance mission to ascertain the safest landing beach during an upcoming invasion of a Japanese-held island. Lawrence is scornfully perceived as afraid when he splits up the platoon and puts team executive officer Lt. Klinger in charge of a diversion to the more dangerous beach, where the main landing is scheduled. (fonte: Wikipedia)

L’amatissimo comandante di una squadra subacquea della marina militare, muore annegato durante una missione. A sostituirlo è chiamato il soldato John Lawrence, uomo tutto d’un pezzo che non perdona nulla agli altri e sé stesso. Pagherà cara un suo sbaglio in azione. (fonte: retro del dvd)

2023 movie #143. 1939. Bogart is a gangster taking over the produce truckers in NYC until 1 guy, with the help of the DA, brings him down. I learned that having Bogart in a movie doesn't necessarily make it good, or even entertaining.

Marion Davies is the poster child for people who prostitute themselves into careers, and this movie unmasks her for the triple threat she really is: She can’t sing. She can’t dance. And she sure as hell can’t act.
The rest of the cast just seems nonplussed that they are stuck in a movie with such a glaring hunk of no talent, and they don’t even bother to try...everyone just seems to be hanging about, praying that their own careers and reputations won’t be damaged by association.
It really is agonizingly painful to watch.
Those film buffs with a morbid sense of curiosity who don’t mind watching a colossal train wreck unfold before their very eyes might be willing to give this a view, but most sane movie aficionados will want to avoid this like the plague.½

A film starring Warner Baxter (Warner Bros., 1933).

A stage musical is rehearsed.

C (Indifferent).

Wait, that was the whole movie? I feel like we came in (and left) in the middle, and maybe a lot of scenes were cut, too. Not that I wanted there to be more of this movie. Honestly, the not having to wait around while they establish and resolve all their boring character and story arcs is one of the best things about this movie.

(Jan. 2023)½

2022 movie #156. When a woman's (Davis) sister is murdered by her clip-joint gangster boss, she turns to a crusading DA (Bogart). Based loosely on famous gangster Lucky Luciano, brought down by Thomas E. Dewey (who did not beat Truman).

A 1930's gangster movie set during the Oklahoma Land Rush. Cagney, looking like a hobo cowboy is the bad boy of the Kincaid family. Cagney. dressed in black and a sneer is the even worse bad boy of the McCord family.

2022 movie #108. 1943. Captain (Massey) and 1st mate (Bogart) pilot a Liberty Ship across the Atlantic dodging Nazi subs. Meant as propaganda on the home front, but it's still an exciting and well made movie. Dedicated to the many merchant seamen who lost their lives in WWII.

C'est l'histoire d'une rencontre improbable entre une artiste ratée qui se morfond dans son métier de serveuse (mais qui parvient à la célébrité qu'on lui fabrique) et un champion de boxe (excellent Clark Gable, dans un rôle de jeunesse).
La recette bien connue du screwball fonctionne : de la dinguerie, de la légèreté, des dialogues assez étincelants, des ressorts de comédie.
Un bémol toutefois : la scène interminable de cabaret, au beau milieu du film, qui jure singulièrement avec la légèreté du reste.
Le film Cain and Mabel n'en demeure pas moins un divertissement de qualité, typique du cinéma américain des années 30.½

Pretty bad script, plot and acting. It does have on e of the first :The making of..." behind the scenes shorts. Musical numbers stink - nothing interesting going on. A couple of boxing matches are boring as well. Nothing to give it any verve.

The lives of a close-knit group of brothers growing up in Iowa during the days of the Great Depression and of World War II and their eventual deaths in action in the Pacific theater are chronicled in this film based on a true story. (fonte: Imdb)

Cinque fratelli dell'Iowa crescono in una famiglia inseparabile. Con l'arrivo della Seconda Guerra Mondiale, i ragazzi entrano in Marina e chiedono di combattere sulla stessa nave, ma la decisione si rivela devastante. (fonte: Wikipedia)

John Lawrence, nuovo comandante di un Navy Underwater Demolition Team (un corpo speciale della marina americana creato durante la Seconda guerra mondiale), cerca di guadagnarsi il rispetto degli uomini della sua unità (soprannominati "frogmen", letteralmente "uomini rana"). Gli uomini sono ancora abbattuti per la morte del precedente comandante e non accettano di buon grado l'arrivo di Lawrence.

A WWII convoy crosses the Atlantic.

2/4 (Indifferent).

The first ~25 minutes are great (despite some awful propaganda dialog). The rest of the movie has its moments, but is mostly boring.½

I Sullivan: tipica famiglia felice e piena di soldi della America tutta solidarietà e gioia, con ben sei figli, dei quali cinque maschi. Al momento dello scoppio del secondo conflitto mondiale, i ragazzi si arruoleranno tutti volontari. Rimarranno uniti fino all'estremo sacrificio... il capolavoro, tratto da una storia vera, che ha ispirato "salvate il soldato Ryan".

Una petroliera americana viene affondata da un U-boat tedesco e i sopravvissuti trascorrono undici giorni in mare su una zattera. Successivamente vengono assegnati alla nave liberty "Sea Witch" diretta a Murmansk attraverso il Nord Atlantico substaccata.