The Poseidon Adventure (1972)

In today's headlines, a disaster aboard a cruise ship is as simple as a norovirus making the entire ship's passengers and crew sick with diarrhea and vomiting (notwithstanding the recent Italian cruise ship Costa Concordia accident). Back in the day, it was passenger ship disasters like the Titanic or the RMS Lusitania that captured the world's attention. But for an impressionable 8 year old kid (who would grow up to become CrazyFilmGuy), it was the fictional passenger ship christened the S.S. Poseidon that introduced me to a different kind of catastrophe -- disaster films.

For whatever reason, THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE (1972) touched a nerve for me when I was a youngster.  It was one of the first adult (i.e. PG rated )film I ever saw in a movie theater. And bless my grandmother Armella. She was the kind soul that took her grandson to see the disaster/adventure epic. Why my parents allowed me to see POSEIDON ADVENTURE yet wouldn't let me see producer Irwin Allen's next disaster blockbuster THE TOWERING INFERNO (1974) two years later I will never know?

My grandmother and I saw THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE at the now defunct Eastgate Theater in east Portland. I believe it was the top bill of a double feature (the other film was 1973's THE NEPTUNE FACTOR which believe it or not also had POSEIDON actor Ernest Borgnine in it). I faintly recall we caught the end of NEPTUNE as we arrived in the theater but the Canadian knock-off that looked like it was shot in some one's fishbowl was forgettable compared to the incredible fictional story of the Poseidon.

Producer Irwin Allen (who apparently also directed some of the action scenes uncredited in POSEIDON ADVENTURE) first hit it big with the feature film (1961) and subsequent television show (1964 to 1968) VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA about a nuclear-powered submarine. But it was THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE that is Allen's finest moment, even more so than his next production THE TOWERING INFERNO. After INFERNO, Allen would produce and/or direct several more disaster films like THE SWARM (1977) about those pesky killer bees and BEYOND THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE (1979) but they pale next to THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE. Based on the novel by Paul Gallico, Academy Award winning screenwriter Stirling Silliphant (IN THE HEAT OF THE NIGHT) adapted the book with Wendell Mayes and weaves several compelling human stories throughout the special effects laden movie.

The S.S. Poseidon is on its final journey from New York to Athens, Greece, headed for the scrapyard. It's New Year's Eve. The Captain (Leslie Nielsen) is being pushed by Mr. Linarcos (Fred Sadoff), a representative for the ship's owners, to get the Poseidon to Athens quicker. Director Ronald Neame introduces us to the main characters and their back stories. Reverend Frank Scott (Gene Hackman) is an idealistic, rebellious minister shipped off to Africa by his diocese.  Mike Rogo (Ernest Borgnine) is a New York cop vacationing with his wife Linda (Stella Stevens), a former prostitute who Rogo wooed off the streets.  Comedian Red Buttons plays Martin, a lonely bachelor. Belle and Manny Rosen (Shelly Winters and Jack Albertson) are a Jewish couple headed to Israel to see their grandson for the first time. Rounding out the cast are big sister Susan (Pamela Sue Martin) and her little brother Robin (Eric Shea) traveling by themselves and the ship's entertainment, singer Nonnie (Carol Lynley).

The Poseidon's New Year Eve's Party is ruined as a 7.8 sub-sea earthquake near Crete sends a gigantic wall of water at the Poseidon flipping the ocean liner upside down. As the survivors try to make sense of their topsy turvy new world, a band of passengers led by Reverend Scott decide to make their way upward toward the hull of the ship to be rescued. But obstacles await their every move. Acres (Roddy McDowall), a waiter, is the group's best guide through the ship's labyrinth but he makes an early watery exit. The constant threat of rising water, raging fires, and explosions within the ship keep the survivors on their heels.  And Reverend Scott and Rogo grapple as the alpha males, yelling and fighting with each other as to which one can lead the rest to safety.

To reach the propeller shaft, the survivors must swim through a watery maze that will test the endurance and bravery of every man, woman, and child. Each member will get to show their worth or overcome a fear. Mrs. Rosen proves to be a good swimmer and rescues Reverend Scott when he's trapped underwater. Young Robin's knowledge of the layout of the ship from earlier visits to the Captain and Purser prove handy. And the singer Nonnie, the weakest link of the group, overcomes her fear of heights and swimming with the assistance of perpetual bachelor Mr. Martin. But in a disaster film not all the passengers will survive and it is surprising in the end who dies and who lives.

I think the enduring success of THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE is because of the special effects, sets, and stunts in the film. All the exterior shots of the Poseidon cruising through the ocean are real, a large miniature model used in an enormous water tank on the 20th Century Fox back lot (a few on deck exterior shots with some of the actors were done on the actual Queen Mary in Long Beach, CA). For the most part, all of the establishing shots and even the tidal wave striking the ship are realistically done. It is incredible to imagine that these effects are all pre-CGI (computer generated images). The sequence when the ship begins to capsize and the guests begin flying all over the set is memorable and well-staged. Passengers hanging onto upside down tables, hundreds of feet in the air before falling to their deaths is unforgettable. There's even a bit of humor in the survivors grim escape when young Robin has to use the rest room and stumbles upon the toilets and urinals all upside down.

Director Wolfgang Petersen (DAS BOOT) would direct a remake called simply POSEIDON (2006) but even with advances in special effects technology, THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE'S special effects seem more impressive than POSEIDON'S CGI effects. Petersen chose a younger cast (Kurt Russell, Josh Lucas, Emily Rossum, and Richard Dreyfus in the Red Buttons/Lonelyhearts role). It treats the original with respect but like many recent remakes, it won't make you forget the original.

For a disaster film, THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE has a plenty of religious themes and metaphors which I missed as a young boy. The Reverend Scott character is unique among disaster films and played with great style by Gene Hackman who had just won the Academy Award for Best Actor in THE FRENCH CONNECTION (1971). Hackman gives the preacher much more depth and layers than a disaster film lead deserves. Scott is a Jesus Christ like figure.  He's an outcast, banished to Africa by his church leaders for his outspokenness.  He wrestles with his faith. The passengers who join him to try and escape become his flock. At one point, Rogo admits he almost was a believer in Scott's crazy plan to escape. Scott pleads to his father (God) to stop taking his flock's lives when one of his group dies. Ultimately, Scott will sacrifice his life as Jesus did to save the others. But am I going too far to imply that Linda Rogo, the hooker turned wife of a policeman, is Mary Magdalene.  Probably. But Linda pays for her sins in the end as well.

Obviously, novelist Paul Gallico borrows some similarities between the Poseidon and the real life passenger ship the Titanic that sank in 1912 which director James Cameron would turn into the blockbuster hit TITANIC in 1997. But THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE takes us into TITANIC territory with a twist. Whereas the Titanic hit an iceberg, the Poseidon is struck by an enormous tidal wave caused by a sea earthquake (we would call it a tsunami today). Both films have company men pressuring the captains of each ship to make faster time, pushing the ships to their breaking points before forces of nature block the way.

THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE would be the prototype for how to cast future disaster films like EARTHQUAKE (1974) or AVALANCHE (1977). Mix in one hot star (Gene Hackman), throw in a few middle-aged actors (Ernest Borgnine and Stella Stevens), add a few movie icons in their golden years (Shelly Winters, Jack Albertson, and Red Buttons), and finish it up with young, fresh faces (Pamela Sue Martin, Carol Lynley, and Eric Shea) and producer Irwin Allen had his recipe for a hit. I don't think it's any coincidence that POSEIDON ADVENTURE has 5 Academy Award winners in its cast (Hackman, Borgnine, Winters, Buttons, and Albertson) bringing some cache and class to this disaster film. Producer Allen would top himself with THE TOWERING INFERNO bringing together two of the biggest stars at the time with Paul Newman and Steve McQueen (in their only film together) as well as Faye Dunaway, William Holden, and Fred Astaire.

Performing in a disaster film like THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE requires the actors to deal with water, fire, heat, cold, gas, and a set that rotates 45 degrees.  The actors have to crawl, swim, and climb.  It's a tough, physical film. Kudos to Shelly Winters. She's the heaviest of the principles in the film yet she climbs up ladders and swims through a flooded section of the ship like she's a teenager. And Stella Stevens, Carol Lynley, and Pamela Sue Martin spend much of their time in their underwear, wet shirts, or tight shorts, soaking wet for a good part of the film. Director Neame and his editor Harold F. Kress have the tough (or fun depending on how you look at it) task of limiting the number of butt shots on these poor actresses forced to leap and clamber up all kinds of ladders, stairs, and scaffolding as they try to survive. Hats off to elder statesmen Jack Albertson and Red Buttons as well. They handle the elements as well as the younger performers.

As usual, the memories from watching the film in early 1973 change upon recent viewing. As a kid, I remember a scene where Reverend Scott and Susan are passing through the kitchen galley and we see the burnt face of one of the dead crew. I could swear his white eyes were popping out from his blackened face and I recoiled. But watching it as an adult, the eyes were not protruding out from his skull, just open, a vacant stare. It's a pretty tame shot. How the mind plays tricks on our recollections. I also became a huge Roddy McDowell fan after watching THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE. I don't know if it was his Scottish accent or because he was so helpful yet he was the first to die. I would track Roddy down afterward and began watching him in THE PLANET OF THE APES movie series.

Director Ronald Neame would not be the first person that comes to mind to direct a disaster/adventure film. Neame started out as a cinematographer before becoming a director and his filmography up to THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE was more subtle with character oriented films like THE HORSE'S MOUTH (1958) and THE PRIME OF MISS JEAN BRODIE (1969). Neame was brought in to work on non-action scenes for POSEIDON ADVENTURE and he had a great cast to work with. Neame would end up directing the thriller THE ODESSA FILE (1974) with Jon Voight and another disaster film METEOR (1979) with Sean Connery so POSEIDON'S success sent his career in a different direction. THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE is also notable as another early music score for the great John Williams (STAR WARS, E.T.). Williams score is used sparingly but effectively.

It's hard to believe that THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE cost just $5 million dollars and made over $90 million dollars. Producer Irwin Allen would try to rekindle the magic with a sequel BEYOND THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE (1979) starring Michael Caine and Sally Field among others but it never captured the magic of the first one. I mentioned the Wolfgang Petersen remake POSEIDON (2006) that proved state of the art special effects still can't improve an already superior film. There would even be a television version of THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE (2005), with a slightly altered plot as terrorists take over the ship before it capsizes. Adam Baldwin, Rutger Hauer, and Steve Guttenberg sailed on this forgettable version.

You never forget your first love, your first bike, or your first PG rated film. THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE was the film that started me off on my infatuation with movies. Many thanks to a silver haired former elementary teacher who happened to be my grandmother for making her grandson the happiest boy in Oregon for a few hours back in 1973.

The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974 and 2009)

Back in the day (in this case the 1970's), newspapers use to have print ads for upcoming and current films playing in movie theaters.  During the week, it was just one page and the black and white posters were pretty small. But on Sunday, the Entertainment section would have big advertisements for movies coming to town and what theater they would be playing in. Besides the Sports page, it was my favorite part of the newspaper. Since I couldn't see most of the films because I was too young, I lived vicariously through the print ads. Two ads that stand out in my memory were of all things two Walter Matthau detective movies: THE LAUGHING POLICEMAN (1973) and something called THE TAKING OF PELHAM ONE TWO THREE (1974).  I could never figure out what that title meant until I watched it recently. The title refers to a hijacking of a New York subway train. Pelham is the final stop on the line. One two three is the time the train departs: 1:23PM.

The original PELHAM ONE TWO THREE is a gritty, realistic thriller directed by Joseph Sargent that goes out of its way to cast unattractive actors to make it more authentic. Stars Walter Matthau, Jerry Stiller, and Robert Shaw, all good actors, would not be considered sex symbols. The more jowls and wrinkles on these actor's faces, the better. PELHAM ONE TWO THREE is the predecessor to TV Producer Dick Wolf's LAW & ORDER shows that also cast shaggy dog actors like Jerry Orbach or Richard Belzer as protagonists.  So when Columbia Studio decided to remake the film in 2009, slightly changing the title to THE TAKING OF PELHAM 1 2 3 (numbers instead of words) who better to jazz up the story and visuals then the king of over the top action films Tony Scott (Ridley Scott's brother) who gave us TOP GUN (1986) and DAYS OF THUNDER (1990). I bet you most filmgoers have no idea that Tony Scott's film is a remake.

Sargent's THE TAKING OF PELHAM ONE TWO THREE could be a companion piece to those other gritty films shot in real New York locations like THE FRENCH CONNECTION (1971) or DOG DAY AFTERNOON (1975).  Based on the novel by John Godey, the screenplay is by Peter Stone who also wrote the clever Hitchockian thriller CHARADE (1963). The film kicks off with a great jazzy musical score by David Shire.  PELHAM ONE TWO THREE is about four criminals: Mr. Blue aka Bernard Grier (Robert Shaw); Mr. Green aka Harold Longman (Martin Balsam); Mr. Grey aka Giuseppe Benvenuto (Hector Elizondo); and Mr. Brown aka George Steever (Earl Hindman) who hijack a New York City subway train and demand one million dollars in ransom or they will start killing one hostage at a time. The leader is Grier, a former mercenary who has the plan meticulously worked out. Each man wears a disguise. They board at different stations. They call each other color code names.

Negotiating with the hijackers and trying to catch them at the same time is Transit Police Lieutenant Zachary Garber (Walter Matthau) and his partner Lieutenant Rico Patrone (Jerry Stiller).  It's a game of cat and mouse between Garber and Grier. Grier demands one million dollars. Al, the Mayor of New York (Lee Wallace who resembles former New York Mayor Ed Koch) and his advisers including Deputy Mayor Warren LaSalle (Tony Roberts) debate whether they can drum up a million dollars from their broke city but the Mayor gives in, deciding he doesn't want 18 dead bodies hurting his reelection. Meanwhile, the New York SWAT team creeps toward the one subway train and a brief firefight ensues. As the New York police rush to deliver the money, Grier executes the Train Conductor (James Broderick) in retaliation for Mr. Brown suffering a gun shot wound.

Once the hijackers have the money, their escape plan begins.  They change out of their clothes and remove their disguises. Longman, a former subway conductor, sets the subway train to move without a driver, sending the subway car and its passengers speeding down the tunnel. They split up the money equally and prepare to head to street level. But like most movie heists, the best laid plans begin to unravel. Grier and the hot tempered, trigger happy Mr. Grey have a fatal disagreement.  Mr. Brown is shot by a plainclothes cop who was on the train and has crept down the tracks. Garber stumbles onto Grier still down in the subway. Grier, a man of principle and discipline, touches the third rail on the track, electrocuting himself rather than going to prison.

All that's left for Garber and Patrone to hunt down is the fourth hijacker, the former subway conductor Longman. Instead of a big finale chase scene or shootout, screenwriter Stone comes up with an anti-climactic but satisfying conclusion that consistently stays with Garber's calm, police procedural approach to capturing the criminals. Interestingly, PELHAM ONE TWO THREE is one of the few theatrical films that director Joseph Sargent made.  He primarily worked in television. His only other feature films of note are WHITE LIGHTNING (1973) starring Burt Reynolds and the forgettable JAWS: THE REVENGE (1987).

PELHAM ONE TWO THREE is many things. It's a heist film with four hijackers who have little in common except greed. Longman aka Mr. Green (Balsam) is the only one with a beef with the Transit Authority. He was fired for a trumped up charge (which when he explains it sounds plausible). Mr. Blue (Shaw) is the most mysterious of the four. He's a mercenary with military experience (which explains the precision of the heist) who has turned to robbery as the mercenary business has dried up. Director Quentin Tarantino's RESERVOIR DOGS (1992), another robbery film gone bad, pays homage to PELHAM ONE TWO THREE as the robbers in Tarantino's film also have color names like Mr.Pink, Mr. White, and Mr. Orange.

At the same time, disaster films like AIRPORT (1970) and THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE (1972) were stirring up big numbers at the box office. If catastrophes could happen to planes and ships, why not a subway train. PELHAM ONE TWO THREE tries to capitalize on the disaster film element in the last act as the hijackers send the hijacked subway car racing through the tunnel with no conductor and at high speeds to throw off the authorities. Screenwriter Stone fills the subway car like a Noah's Ark of stereotypes (and the credits even acknowledge the parts). Included in the subway car are Hispanic, Black, Jewish, Homosexual, Hooker, and Pimp. Young and old, men and women are all represented as well.

Director Sargent goes for authenticity over glamour in this PELHAM ONE TWO THREE. All of the cast especially the Transit employees, police officers, and city politicians all look like real people.  There is no gorgeous blonde nuclear physicist or dazzling redheaded biochemical engineer to be found. Wrinkles on the face, saggy stomachs, thick sideburns and moustaches, heavyset actresses, there are no beautiful people to be found. PELHAM ONE TWO THREE also examines how a city works under crisis. As portrayed in this film, the answer is not very well. Different agencies don't cooperate with each other. City officials like the Mayor are portrayed as idiots, more concerned about the political fallout than innocent lives.

Rising above it all is Walter Matthau's Lt. Garber. He's the calm in the maelstrom of disbelief and tension in the Transit Center control center as the hijacking occurs and the subway schedules break down. Matthau has a few wisecracking moments but he plays it mostly straight. He's part negotiator, part detective. Robert Shaw as the leader Grier is also calm, methodical, and in control. Grier is Garber's doppleganger in a sense.  Grier seems ruthless but tiny, seemingly insignificant miscues lead to their heist unraveling. Martin Balsam as Longman is the most sympathetic of the hijackers. Movie fans who are used to seeing Hector Elizondo play warm characters in Gerry Marshall films like THE FLAMINGO KID (1984) or PRETTY WOMAN (1990)  will be surprised by his turn as the lewd, sociopath Mr. Grey.

Other familiar faces to look for include Woody Allen's favorite movie buddy Tony Roberts as the Mayor's adviser, EVERYBODY LOVES RAYMOND'S mother Doris Roberts as the Mayor's wife, and great character actor Kenneth McMillan (RAGTIME, DUNE) as a Borough police commander.

Flash forward 35 years and the subways still play a vital part in transporting New Yorkers all over the Big Apple and its boroughs. Tony Scott's THE TAKING OF PELHAM 1,2,3 crackles with virtuoso. Scott shoots the film in his usual MTV video style with fast edits and slow motion, swirling and twirling camera moves around the actors, a palette of colors blinking and reflecting off glass partitions and windows. The subway control center where Garber (now played by Denzel Washington) works is a sophisticated, computerized hub. The hijackers are now called terrorists (although they are still hijacking the train). Writer Brian Helgeland (LA CONFIDENTIAL, A KNIGHT'S TALE) stays with the original storyline to a degree but infuses today's headlines and technology (Wall Street corruption, terrorism, GPS, and laptop computers) into the film.

This PELHAM 1,2,3 begins as the original does with four hijackers taking over the Pelham subway train and demanding $10 million dollars (not the $1 million that Shaw and his gang requested. Blame it on inflation) or hostages will be killed. The leader goes by the name of Ryder (John Travolta), a scary looking dude with a neck tattoo and Fu Manchu moustache. Ryder looks like a neo-Nazi but his background will surprise you. The filmmakers discard with the color code names from the original. Ryder's main accomplice is Phil Ramos (Luis Guzman) the inside man, having operated subway trains until he crashed one, killing some passengers and sending him to prison for ten years. Rounding out the gang are machine gun toting heavies Bashkim (Victor Gojcaj) and Emri (Robert Vataj).

When Ryder radios in that Pelham 1,2,3 is under his control, Walter Garber (Denzel Washington) takes the call at the control center. This Garber is not a police lieutenant like Matthau, just a dispatcher. Garber is under investigation for possibly taking a bribe. Ryder makes his demands to Garber.  The Transit Authority dispatches a negotiator Camonetti (John Turturro) to assist with Ryder. Garber's boss John Johnson (Michael Rispoli) sends Garber home but Ryder only wants to deal with Garber and kills the conductor, demanding Garber be his conduit for his demands.

The Mayor (James Gandolfini) and Deputy Mayor LaSalle (John Benjamin Hickey) give the approval for the $10 million dollar ransom. The Mayor also has his own problems with a well-publicized affair which has hurt his approval ratings.  As the police race with the money to the designated drop off spot, SWAT teams close in on the terrorists.  A rat plays a part in igniting a gun battle with the crooks and Ramos is shot dead.  Ryder kills another passenger and then demands Garber bring the $10 million to the train. Ramos was the only one who knew how to drive the train but Garber also knows how to operate it, having worked his way up the ladder with the Transit Authority.

PELHAM 1,2,3 goes off the rails so to speak in the last act as Garber turns into Superman, leading the crooks out of the subway before separating from them.  Garber goes superhero as he confiscates a car and chases the taxi carrying Ryder. A traffic jam forces Ryder to get out of the taxi and Garber and Ryder have their final confrontation on the Manhattan Bridge as police helicopters and officers converge on them.

In this newer PELHAM, the three main characters all have secrets and seek redemption.  Garber has been accused of taking a bribe from the Japanese while consulting on which subway trains they should buy.  Garber sees apprehending Ryder and his cohorts as a way to regain his integrity and his good standing with his co-workers, even if it means risking his life.  The mastermind Ryder's redemption is a bit more twisted.  Ryder feels the city of New York owes him after sending him to prison. He's been slighted (although his earlier crime deserved incarceration) and he's looking for financial redemption from the political movers and shakers of Manhattan. I won't reveal his secret but it's a nice twist and makes the hijacking more plausible. The last character who finds redemption in PELHAM 1,2,3 is the Mayor. Beaten down by the media and his own staff for an infidelity (his secret) that's shaken City Hall, the Mayor is the one who figures out Ryder's past life and who his real identity is. How many films do you see the Mayor turn detective?

Director Scott and writer Helgeland obviously hold the original PELHAM in high regard and keep many of the same plot points and scenes from the original in their remake but Scott goes overboard in some of his choices. One scene where a police car with police escort races though the streets of New York to make Ryder's deadline gets multiplied by ten as the car is struck not once but twice by other vehicles and propelled insanely into the air (the two police officers miraculously surviving). Whereas the original had a non-action ending and just good police work, director Scott pulls a TRUE ROMANCE shoot-out for the two lesser known hijackers Bashkim and Emri complete with slow motion blood spurting that just doesn't belong in this film. The filmmakers also try to humanize Garber by giving him a wife (Aunjanue Ellis) and a couple of kids. I preferred not knowing Garber's family history. This new PELHAM does end on a great note as Garber turns down the Mayor's offer for a fancy escort, choosing to take (what else?) the subway home to see his family.

Garber and Ryder are both mirror images of each other, basically good men who succumbed to greed. Garber's greed is not as great as Ryder's or as intense but they are connected by their ethical failures. Actor Denzel Washington enjoys either playing the top dog in films like MALCOLM X (1992) or AMERICAN GANGSTER (2007) or the common man in JOHN Q (2002) or as Garber in PELHAM 1,2,3.  John Travolta as the ringleader Ryder has started to become stereotyped as the heavy that Quentin Tarantino resurrected with him brilliantly in PULP FICTION (1994). Travolta's too hyper as Ryder. This PELHAM has too much dialogue between Garber and Ryder on the radio. Yes, they're able to disperse plenty of plot information and each gives away some background about each other but I found their conversations contrived at times.

A nice surprise is James Gandolfini's performance as the Mayor. Known as the tough Tony Soprano from HBO's THE SOPRANOS, Gandolfini softens his voice and wears a nice suit (projecting former New York mayor Michael Bloomberg). His mayor is not a buffoon like in the original but a smart, flawed human being who has the wits to figure out who Ryder really is. John Turturro also plays against type as the calm negotiator Camonetti, assessing and analyzing the situation unfolding.

In the end, I would have to recommend the original THE TAKING OF PELHAM ONE TWO THREE over the newer 1,2,3.  As slick as the newer Tony Scott version looks and sounds, the original has an almost documentary feel to it with actors who look like real life New Yorkers and subway employees. 

Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1969)

I celebrated my birthday a few months ago by taking the day off and spending the morning watching LAWRENCE OF ARABIA (1962). It had been 24 years since I had last watched it. As I marveled at Peter O'Toole in the lead role as Lawrence, I remembered that O'Toole was one of my favorite actors and he was still alive.  Sadly, four days later, Peter O'Toole would pass away at the age of 81. I became a huge fan of Peter O'Toole beginning with MY FAVORITE YEAR (1982) an enjoyable romantic comedy where he spoofed his playboy actor image. I've watched a few of O'Toole's films over the years but not as many as someone who calls himself an O'Toole fan should.

Early in his career, O'Toole played either big historical figures like T.E. Lawrence in LAWRENCE OF ARABIA or Henry II in both BECKET (1964) and THE LION IN WINTER (1968) or in big literary adaptations like Richard Brooks LORD JIM (1965) based on the Joseph Conrad novel. But O'Toole did star in modern films as well like WHAT'S NEW PUSSYCAT? (1965), HOW TO STEAL A MILLION (1966), and THE STUNT MAN (1984).

GOODBYE, MR. CHIPS (1969) is a remake of the 1939 film starring Robert Donat and Greer Garson. It's a period film, taking place mostly between 1924 and 1945. Normally, CrazyFilmGuy would review both films (both of which I've never seen) but I want to concentrate on this newer CHIPS with O'Toole.  I'll review the older CHIPS in the future. The one obvious difference between the two versions is the newer one is a musical, directed by Herbert Ross (PENNIES FROM HEAVEN, FOOTLOOSE) in his directorial debut. GOODBYE, MR. CHIPS is based on the novel by James Hilton. Playwright Terence Rattigan (THE PRINCE AND THE SHOWGIRL) scripted. Instead of playing a larger than life character, O'Toole is a lonely, introverted teacher, nicknamed "Ditchy" because "he's dull as ditchwater." O'Toole may have gravitated toward the role as it's opposite the big, bold characters he had been portraying previously.

Arthur Chipping aka Mr. Chips (Peter O'Toole) is an English school teacher at Brookfield, an all boys school. It's 1924, the end of another school year. Chips is a decent but stern taskmaster, not a favorite of students. As he prepares to go on holiday, Chips reflects about his past (yes O'Toole even sings a little), at a crossroads between his youth and what his future holds. His friend Johnny Longbridge (Michael Culver) tries to cheer Chips up by taking him to London to see a musical. Johnny is in love with a showgirl in the show named Katherine Bridges (Petula Clark). Chips and Johnny meet Katherine afterward at the Savoy but Katherine is with another man Bill Calbury (Clinton Greyn). Chips first encounter with Katherine is a disaster.

Chips travels to Italy for a summer holiday. While having lunch by himself in a Roman amphitheater in Pompeii, he meets Katherine again. Her cruise ship has stopped in Naples and she's touring the sights. Katherine has quit the theater. She's on vacation.  She asks Chips to be her tour guide and a romance begins to blossom between the prude English school teacher and the West End show girl. Chips returns to Brookfield, still thinking about Katherine.  Chips receives an invitation to a London party, thrown by Katherine. Mr. Chips and Katherine fall in love. Chips surprises his peers and students by marrying Katherine.

She moves to Brookfield with Chips. Although the school's Headmaster (Michael Redgrave) and Chips best friend Max Staefel (Michael Bryant) are happy to see Chips with a wife, one of the school's patrons Lord Sutterwick (George Baker) doesn't appreciate Katherine's bohemian past and refuses to donate money for a new sports field unless Katherine's gone. Katherine retreats back to London, feeling she's unsuitable for Chips but he follows her and convinces her to return. One of Katherine's actress friends Ursula Mossbank (Sian Phillips), who had a previous relationship with Sutterwick, shows up at Parents Day. Sutterwick caves in and donates the money, wishing to avoid scandal with his old flame.

Chips marriage to Katherine changes him as World War II looms for England.  Chips softens up, begins to enjoy life . He begins taking a greater interest in his students. The students begin to like Chips more.  Katherine endears herself to the student body and teachers, performing in the school's talent show with the boys, becoming a sort of mother to all the boys as she and Chips do not have children of their own. When the Headmaster decides to retire, everyone thinks Chips will be chosen next. But Sutterwick interferes again and William Baxter (Jack Hedley) is elected instead. Chips hands in his resignation.

But the Headmaster asks Chips to reconsider. The school board doesn't want  Chips to leave.  The war nears its end but Germany continues to lob bombs at London and the surrounding area, forcing the teachers and students to occasionally duck for cover in the classroom. Baxter is offered a job with the English government, clearing the path for Mr. Chips to be offered the Head Master position. Thrilled by the news, Chips runs to catch Katherine who's off to sing to some nearby troops but she can't hear him calling to her as her jeep drives off.  But the war has one last terrible irony in store and Chips' happiness turns to tragedy.

I don't know if I've ever seen a sweeter ode to romantic love than GOODBYE, MR. CHIPS except for maybe A ROOM WITH A VIEW (1984). Katherine appears to be loved by men who only love her because she's an actress. Chips hasn't been in love since he was a young man and he may have had his heart broken, retreating beneath his cap and gown ever since. Chips is tall and educated. Katherine is short and seemingly low class. Once again, Italy symbolizes where romance may flourish and Chips and Katherine begin their courtship at Pompeii and the Greek ruins at Paestum.

At first, I wasn't crazy about Petula Clark as Katherine but she really grew on me as the film went on. Katherine's love and adoration for Chips is so pure and genuine. O'Toole is masterful as the stiff, awkward academic who comes out of his shell when Katherine shows him what life and a relationship have to offer. It's never made clear if Katherine can't have children but the boys of Brookfield School, all 283 students, become her adopted children each year. One would think O'Toole and Clark might have fallen in love making this film their chemistry seems so real but Sian Phillips who plays the naughty Ursula Mossbank was actually married to O'Toole at the time. O'Toole and Phillips acted together in a few more films. More a singer than an actress, Clark did more television than films but her performance in GOODBYE, MR. CHIPS is surprising and she's not intimidated by O'Toole.

Usually in a film about a teacher, one or several students have prominent supporting roles. GOODBYE, MR. CHIPS is not one of those films.  Except for a brief school boy crush toward Katherine by one student and Chips not letting young Sutterwick (John Gugolka) leave class early to play in a tennis final, no other students are really showcased. CHIPS is all about Chipping and Katie's romantic journey. With all the boys dressed in blue jackets and wearing straw hats, I couldn't help but think these boys are the precursor to the boys and girls from Hogwarts in the HARRY POTTER series, all wearing the same school uniforms.

GOODBYE, MR. CHIPS is at the end of the Golden Era of Musicals.  Like the western, the musical was beginning to fade away into the sunset by the late 1960's.  FUNNY GIRL (1968), HELLO DOLLY! (1969), and GOODBYE, MR. CHIPS were swan songs to that golden age, a melancholy goodbye to one of the staples of cinema.  CHIPS is a funny kind of musical. Although both Petula Clark and yes, even O'Toole sing at times on camera, many of the songs are sung over montages like their courtship in Italy with the actors just walking around as singing plays over the soundtrack.  Only FUNNY LADY (1975) was director Herbert Ross's true musical but several of his films had musical backgrounds like 1977's THE TURNING POINT (music and ballet) or 1984's FOOTLOOSE (dance and 80's music). Ross started out as a choreographer which may explain why he directed many musical/dance themed films. Ross would also direct several Neil Simon comedies such as THE GOODBYE GIRL (1977) and CALIFORNIA SUITE (1978).

Director Ross and his cinematographer Oswald Morris (THE GUNS OF NAVARONE and OLIVER!) incorporate the camera techniques of the late 60's with plenty of long zoom in and outs that were all the rage.  They also make good use of helicopter shots, opening up CHIPS during some of the musical sequences with aerial shots of the English countryside, the school's grounds, and even the Greek temples in Italy. Director Ross may have wanted to prove he was more than just a choreographer with how he used the camera for his first feature film.

Screenwriter Terence Rattigan had some experience with showgirls getting mixed up with polar opposite male characters beginning with THE PRINCE AND THE SHOWGIRL (1957) which he wrote based on his play. In that film, Rattigan had the amazing combination of Marilyn Monroe and Laurence Olivier. But I think GOODBYE, MR. CHIPS is a better screenplay and the relationship between Chips and Katherine more believable. If GOODBYE, MR. CHIPS was made today, the showgirl would probably now be a stripper and Adam Sandler would be the male lead. But this CHIPS is just an old-fashioned love story. Petula Clark is no Marilyn Monroe who oozed sexiness. But Clark is just so darn sweet and bubbly. Her Katherine is still a strong enough character to play off Chippings prudish, dour soul. I've always loved stories where polar opposites attract and CHIPS succeeds with this pairing.

A year and a half ago I had traveled to Italy and visited both Pompeii and Paestum. I had never seen either location ever used in a film before.  So imagine my delight when I watched GOODBYE, MR. CHIPS and those temples and amphitheaters and streets that I got to walk around had been traversed before by O'Toole and Clark. Screenwriter Rattigan even incorporates the God Apollo into the love story. Chips and Katie fall in love at the Temple of Apollo at Paestum. Besides being the Sun God, Apollo is also the God of Prophecy. Katie makes a wish to Apollo which comes true. Later at Brookfield, Katie gives Chips an expensive Apollo figurine which Chips treasures. It's a nice touch by Rattigan.

GOODBYE, MR. CHIPS is a different kind of Peter O'Toole film.  Not as flashy or epic as some of his previous work but a challenging, subtle performance where he gets to age throughout the course of the film and experience both love and loss. The big loss for us is that Peter O'Toole has left the theater but we will always have a multitude of his films and performances to enjoy over and over again.

The Robe (1953)

When Ridley Scott's GLADIATOR came out in 2000, audiences and critics alike raved about the action drama set in the glory days of the Roman Age as if we had never seen a film before about ancient Rome or gladiators. We had forgotten that films about the Roman Empire were abundant beginning in the 1950's, especially with 20th Century Fox's introduction of Cinemascope, a wide screen format to bring audiences back to the theaters from their living rooms (and new television sets) with big colorful epic stories. Titles like DEMETRIUS AND THE GLADIATORS (1954), BEN HUR (1959), and SPARTACUS (1960) were some of the best of the Roman themed epic films also known as Sandal and Sand or epics.

I have had the good fortune to visit the Roman Colosseum twice in my life. Once in 1987 after I graduated college and most recently, in 2012 with my wife. I fell in love all over again with everything that was ancient Roman -- the temples and roads and aqueducts and buried cities and of course, the Colosseum. But this time, as a more mature adult standing in the Colosseum again, it was not lost on me that people died in this arena at the hands of the Romans. Christians and slaves and other Romans shed blood, died in battle, or were fed to the lions and other wild animals for the enjoyment of the Roman masses. As innovative and cultured as the Romans were, they were also bloodthirsty and decadent and ruined their grand empire in a collapse of excess.

Which brings me back to those Roman themed films of the 50' and 60's. The Romans were usually the bad guys in these movies, persecuting Jews and Christians and other races. THE ROBE (1953), the first movie by 20th Century Fox to be released in Cinemascope, has a nice twist as young Richard Burton plays a Roman soldier who starts out selfish and arrogant but after participating in the crucifixion of Jesus, becomes a different, more caring man. THE ROBE is directed by Henry Koster, based on the novel by Lloyd C. Douglas with a screenplay by Albert Maltz and Philip Dunne, adapted by Gina Kaus. Writer Dunne as well as actors Victor Mature, Michael Rennie, and Jay Robinson would return to participate in the sequel DEMETRIUS AND THE GLADIATORS.

THE ROBE begins in Rome during the reign of Emperor Tiberius (Ernest Thesiger). We meet Roman Tribune Marcellus Gallio (Richard Burton) as he prepares to bid on some slaves at an open market. Marcellus runs into his childhood love Diana (Jean Simmons).Tiberius's nephew Caligula (Jay Robinson) arrives to bid on some gladiators.  Cocky and arrogant, Marcellus outbids Caligula for a Greek slave named Demetrius (Victor Mature), infuriating Caligula. As Marcellus brings Demetrius back to his home to meet his father Senator Gallio (Torin Thatcher), word arrives that Caligula has ordered Marcellus to go to Jerusalem to deal with the Christians and a young messiah named Jesus Christ. Diana bids farewell to Marcellus on the docks as he boards a galley for the Middle East, the slave Demetrius by his side.

Marcellus arrives in Jerusalem. He's not a religious man as he witnesses the masses flock to hear the teachings of Jesus.  Demetrius tries to warn Jesus that the Romans have come to arrest him but a disciple Judas (Michael Ansara) has already betrayed the carpenter. Pontius Pilate (Richard Boone) asks Marcellus and his men to execute Jesus by crucifixion. Marcellus and his men take Jesus, bearing the cross he will be nailed to, up to a hill. Demetrius tries to help Jesus but he's beaten up. After Jesus dies on the cross, a storm rages. A drunken Marcellus and his Roman soldiers gamble beneath the cross.  Marcellus wins a wager for Jesus's robe.  He tries on the robe and something comes over Marcellus. Demetrius grabs the robe and runs away. Word arrives that Caligula requests Marcellus return to Rome and to visit Tiberius on the island of Capri, just off the coast of Italy.

During his journey back, Marcellus suffers seizures and nightmares. On Capri, Marcellus is reunited with Diana. Marcellus is a changed man. He tells Tiberius all that has transpired. Tiberius sends Marcellus back to Jerusalem to destroy the robe. The Emperor fears that this new religion Christianity will be the demise of Rome. Back in the Galilean town of Cana, Marcellus searches for Demetrius who kept the robe.  He befriends the local weaver Justus (Dean Jagger) and begins to learn more about Jesus and his followers who preach to love all and one another. Marcellus is introduced to Peter (Michael Rennie) who has taken up Jesus's cause. Marcellus confronts Demetrius to burn the robe but realizes it has no magic to it. When the local centurion Paulus (Jeff Morrow) and his soldiers appear, ready to attack the locals, Marcellus challenges Paulus to a fight, wagering that the soldiers leave if he prevails. When Marcellus wins, Paulus honors their bet and the army leaves. Marcellus pledges to support Peter and his sect.

Marcellus secretly returns to Rome, now an enemy of the Empire. Demetrius has been captured by Caligula and soldiers torture him in the armory. Caligula, the new emperor now that Tiberius has died, seeks to capture Marcellus and put him on trial. Diana secretly visits Marcellus and his Christian friends in some catacombs just outside of town. Marcellus and his new Christian friends sneak into the armory and (with Robin Hood action and music) rescue Demetrius from his captors. Demetrius is dying and Peter comes to visit him, healing the big Greek.   Marcellus and Demetrius try to escape Rome by horse drawn carriage. The Roman Guard give chase and Marcellus sacrifices himself, jumping off the carriage as Demetrius and the others escape. Caligula does put Marcellus and Diana on trial. They are sentenced to death and become martyrs, walking hand in hand toward the afterlife.

THE ROBE puts Marcellus right in the middle of many famous and infamous biblical moments but director Koster keeps the major biblical players on the periphery. We never see Jesus close up. Koster films him at a distance, surrounded and blocked by his followers or from the shoulders down like on the cross. This is a Hollywood epic after all not Sunday mass. There are no big special effects in THE ROBE but Koster stages some key moments very dramatically. A big thunderstorm rages as Jesus dies on the cross. The power or magic of Jesus's robe is conveyed only by Marcellus's face and some nice music cues by composer Alfred Newman. The scene when Demetrius searches to warn Jesus the Romans are coming to arrest him and he encounters a stranger who admits to betraying Jesus already is eerily effective when the stranger reveals his name just before staggering away: Judas (yes even with my limited Sunday school and church visits I knew who Judas is). Even Pontius Pilate makes a cameo, almost in a trance-like state, knowing Jesus needs to executed but aware his disciples will only increase tenfold. Only the disciple Peter is given a more visible role in THE ROBE, befriending Marcellus and traveling with Demetrius through the Middle East to Rome.

I referenced the more modern GLADIATOR at the beginning. That film's lead character Maximus (Russell Crowe) has much in common with THE ROBE'S Marcellus.  Both are Roman soldiers (Marcellus a Tribune; Maximus a general) who fight loyally for their Emperor and Rome. Both run afoul of an Emperor's younger relative (Marcellus clashes with Tiberius's nephew Caligula; Maximus with Marcus Aurelius's son Commodus). Both become enemies of the state or in this case, Rome. Marcellus joins up with Peter and the Christians. Maximus becomes a slave and then is forced into joining a gladiator school. Both men will become martyrs as they lead revolts against the tyrants that rule over them. GLADIATOR might seem like an original story but it has its roots in earlier films like THE ROBE.

THE ROBE boasts two actors with wonderfully unique voices perfect for a Roman epic.  With his Shakespearean training, there's no mistaking young Richard Burton's commanding voice as Marcellus. It's an early starring role for Burton but he handles it well. Burton was still fairly new when cast in THE ROBE, having acted in only a handful of prior films including THE DESERT RATS (also 1953). Like Brando, there's something about Burton's acting that sets him apart from his contemporaries. Burton would be one of the faces of the British New Wave and would reach his peak in the 1960's.  Burton would don toga and sandals again to play Marc Antony alongside Elizabeth Taylor's Cleopatra in CLEOPATRA (1963), a film more famous for igniting Burton and Taylor's love affair as well as it's overblown budget rather than the romance between Roman general and Egyptian princess.

The other amazing voice is Jay Robinson as the deliciously evil and cunning Emperor Caligula. Robinson had a laser like voice that smoothly oozes venom. Combine that with a hawk like nose, arched eyebrows, and beady eyes and Robinson was born to play the ruthless Caligula. Robinson appears in the beginning of THE ROBE and then toward the end but he's so good you wish he had a bigger part. Robinson would appear in the sequel DEMETRIUS AND THE GLADIATORS (which I haven't seen yet) so I hope they utilize his talent more. He was only 22 years old when he made THE ROBE but I remembered Robinson and his unmistakable voice from a Saturday morning kid's TV show called DR. SHRINKER (1976) where he played a mad scientist who uses a shrinking ray to make people miniature. When you look at Robinson's filmography there is a huge gap between 1957 and 1965.  Robinson got involved in drugs in the late 50's and spent almost two years in jail, almost destroying his profession. He would not work in film or television for eight years before resurrecting his career.

Also appearing in THE ROBE is the beautiful Jean Simmons as Diana, Marcellus's childhood sweetheart. Like Burton, Simmons was a rising star, appearing in a host of big films in the 50's including GUYS AND DOLLS (1955) and THE BIG COUNTRY (1958). Simmons would also appear in another Roman epic SPARTACUS (1960) as Varinia. I have to admit I've never been a big fan of Victor Mature who plays the Greek slave Demetrius. Although his big size is perfect, I first thought Mature was miscast in the role but he grew on me as Marcellus gives Demetrius his freedom and he joins Jesus's cause. Check out Mature in John Ford's MY DARLING CLEMENTINE (1946) and see if you think he's right or miscast as Doc Holliday.

Rounding out the cast of THE ROBE is Michael Rennie (THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL) as Peter, an unrecognizable Dean Jagger (TWELVE O'CLOCK HIGH) as Justus, my old favorite Ernest Thesiger (THE BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN, A CHRISTMAS CAROL) as Tiberius, and Jeff Morrow (THE CREATURE WALKS AMONG US) as the centurion Paulus. Paulus is an underrated character, envious of the visiting Marcellus's status while he's stuck in the remote outpost of Jerusalem. Paulus helps Marcellus arrest and murder Jesus, getting drunk with him afterward on the mount. Later, he will be asked to arrest or even kill Marcellus but loses to him in hand to hand combat.

One of the downsides of THE ROBE or any film shot in Cinemascope is that watching it on television never captures the grandeur of viewing it in a theater with an enormous wide screen. Even today's large television screens can't duplicate what it must have been like to really view it in Cinemascope. The moviegoer also misses out on some of 20th Century Fox's impressive matte paintings, the predecessors to CGI (Computer Generated Images). Matte painting were backgrounds that were painted on glass. Whether it be Camelot in PRINCE VALIANT (1954), English castles and Kubla Khan's court in THE BLACK ROSE (1950) or Roman temples, cliff-side villas, and ancient Jerusalem in THE ROBE, Cinemascope brought these fantasy landscapes to life.

Don't expect THE ROBE to get all the facts correct historically. Caligula wasn't the Emperor when Jesus died nor had Christianity reached Rome yet (it would the Emperor Nero who would really persecute them). But THE ROBE does its best to give us a big costumed drama with impressive acting, some great writing and dialogue, and some of history and the Bible's key players interacting in the first Cinemascope production.

A Christmas Carol (1951)

My fondness for Charles Dickens A Christmas Carol hearkens back to 4th grade when my class performed A Christmas Carol as a play and I played the role of the Ghost of Christmas Future. I wore my father's blue terrycloth robe which hung loosely on me and I had no lines of dialogue. All I had to do was point as my classmate who played Scrooge had all the dialogue.  Since I was a fan of horror films, playing the part of a ghost was right up my alley. I remember I liked the story so much that I asked my aunt for the book for Christmas.

As much as I love Dickens story, the film and television versions of his tale have never quite satisfied me. I've seen the television version A CHRISTMAS CAROL (1984) with George C. Scott.  Albert Finney starred in a musical version called SCROOGE in 1970.  Cartoon characters Mr. Magoo and Donald Duck have done animated versions and even the Muppets took a stab at it in THE MUPPETS CHRISTMAS CAROL (1992).  Director Richard Donner made a modern take on the story with SCROOGED (1988) starring Bill Murray and Karen Allen. Most recently, director Robert Zemeckis tried to strike gold for a second time with his animated A CHRISTMAS CAROL (2009) with Jim Carrey as Scrooge using the same animation style as his more successful THE POLAR EXPRESS (2004). I don't know if I haven't liked some of these CHRISTMAS CAROL versions because they've been in color or because the actors playing Scrooge haven't won me over.  But I think I just found the version that I like the best.

Most critics and movie goers alike seem to agree that the 1951 A CHRISTMAS CAROL (originally titled SCROOGE), shot in black and white, made in England with an English cast is the most well acclaimed version.  Having just watched it before Christmas, I would agree. What makes this CHRISTMAS CAROL a winner is the performance of Alistair Sim as the pivotal Ebenezer Scrooge. Tall and thin with expressive eyes and wild white hair, Sim is excellent as the Christmas hating miser. His voice, his mannerisms, and his transformation from grumpy, frugal curmudgeon to likable, good-hearted uncle and employer is magnificent.

This A CHRISTMAS CAROL, directed by Brian Desmond-Hurst and adapted by Noel Langley from Charles Dickens 1843 novella, moves at a very fast clip. We are introduced to Ebenezer Scrooge (Alistair Sim) who we very quickly learn is not in the holiday spirit. Scrooge won't extend a loan to a customer. He 'Bah Humbugs' his underpaid employee Bob Cratchit (Mervyn Johns) who wishes him a Merry Christmas. He rebuffs solicitors collecting for the poor and destitute. And Scrooge sends away some kids singing Christmas carols on a street corner near his home.

Scrooge wants nothing to do with Christmas and all its warmth and kindness and family. But as he prepares for bed on Christmas Eve, Scrooge has a terrifying nightmare. He is visited by the ghost of his deceased business partner Jacob Marley (Michael Hordern). Marley is a wailing, noisy spirit who warns Scrooge that he will be visited by three ghostly apparitions this night. The first to arrive is the Spirit of  Christmas Past (Michael Dolan). He takes Scrooge on a journey to visit his past life. We see Young Ebenezer Scrooge (George Cole) at college, full of life. Scrooge's sister Fan (Carol Marsh) arrives to bring him home for the holidays. Young Scrooge is even in love with a pretty young woman named Alice (Rona Anderson).  But Scrooge's happiness unravels as Fay, while giving birth to a son Fred, dies during childbirth. Scrooge begins working for a man named Fezziwig (Roddy Hughes) as a clerk. Another employer Mr. Jorkin (Jack Warner) later steals Scrooge away from Fezziwig. His co-worker is a young accountant named Jacob Marley (Patrick MacNee from THE AVENGERS television show).

Next, Scrooge is visited by the Spirit of Christmas Present (Francis de Wolff), looking like Henry the VIII in robes, thick beard, and a crown. He shows Scrooge the Cratchit family, gathered together for Christmas, their young lame son Tiny Tim (Glyn Dearman) ailing. Bob Cratchit defends Scrooge even as Mrs. Cratchit (Hermionne Baddeley) vilifies her husband's penny pinching boss. Scrooge and the Spirit of Christmas Present move on to the home of Scrooge's nephew Fred (Brian Worth).  Hosting a Christmas Eve party, Fred also defends his cynical uncle who he had invited to Christmas dinner earlier in the day but was turned down. Scrooge blames Fred for the death of his mother during childbirth and has cut himself off emotionally from his relatives.

The last ghost to visit Scrooge is the terrifying Spirit of Christmas Future, a variation of the grim reaper, hooded and faceless. This spectre reveals that Tiny Tim will die, his crutch alone in the corner of the Cratchit home. Scrooge witnesses his own funeral. The few mourners that attend lament that because Scrooge was so stingy, he had no one to leave his fortune to. "I'm not the man I was," Scrooge says as he awakens on Christmas Day a changed man. He dances and sings with his maid Mrs. Dilber (Kathleen Harrison), scaring the daylights out of her. Scrooge pays a young boy to buy the biggest turkey in the shop for the Cratchit family and pledges to help support Cratchit's children in the future.  Scrooge arrives at  his nephew Fred's home for dinner, becoming a part of his family again. Because of the previous nights events, Scrooge will make a difference in the community and families close to him.

A CHRISTMAS CAROL'S story of Scrooge's redemption is always a powerful tale during the holiday season and this version does it in such an entertaining way. The film shows us Scrooge's nasty side but doesn't overdo it like some versions have and moves quickly into the fantasy section (my favorite part of the story). Interestingly, this film version adds some background to Scrooge's back story that isn't in the Dickens book. Flashbacks showing Scrooge's sister's death and young Scrooge's first meeting with young Marley aren't in the book. The character of Mr. Jorkin is created just for the film. These scenes as well as other in the Christmas Past sequence paint a sympathetic picture of Scrooge and make us care for him a little earlier in the story as we discover how he went from idealistic young man to grumpy, lonely businessman.

Author Charles Dickens lived and wrote in the bleak Victorian Era of the 19th Century and his stories dealt with dark subjects like poverty and social injustice so it's only appropriate that this 1951 version of A CHRISTMAS CAROL (as well as the 1938 version) is shot in black and white. It adds to Scrooge's melancholy mood and the grim times many of the citizens London dealt with. Black and white conveys the two moods of the story.  Black for Scrooge's dark period, his foul mood, and the supernatural journey he takes to discover the joys of not just Christmas but helping mankind.  White as daylight breaks on Christmas morning, a new beginning. Scrooge discovers he's not dead but alive and that he can make a difference in the lives of not just one person (Mrs. Dilber, Tiny Tim) but a community. As much as we love color, Dickens stories belong in black and white.

The key to this A CHRISTMAS CAROL'S success is actor Alistair Sim who plays Scrooge. Sim is not a household name, a famous celebrity. Although Sim would have a successful career as an actor (he worked with Alfred Hitchcock in the 1950 film STAGE FRIGHT), Scrooge would become Sim's signature performance. He would perform as Scrooge a few other times in his career, even provide his voice for Scrooge for a 1971 animated short A CHRISTMAS CAROL.

All the acting in A CHRISTMAS CAROL is uniformly good. The actors all get the story and play their parts, whether large or small, splendidly. Dickens stories always have plenty of characters. In many filmed versions, Bob Cratchit is often the handsome supporting character but in this one, Scrooge's nephew Fred played by Brian Worth has that distinction. Cratchit played by Mervyn Johns is a more doting, parental figure. The Tiny Tim character can often be a bit excessively sweet or over the top but in this film he's just a normal kid struggling with a handicap as best as he can as played by Glyn Dearman. This British version just feels like an authentic Dickens adaption as it was filmed in Britain with English actors.

Although most of the cast is unknown to me in this A CHRISTMAS CAROL, a few familiar faces pop up. I spotted Ernest Thesiger (Dr. Pretorious in THE BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN) as the Undertaker, Peter Bull (the Russian ambassador in DR. STRANGELOVE) as a Businessman, and Patrick MacNee (TV's Jonathan Steed in THE AVENGERS) as the young Jacob Marley.

One character I learned more about watching this version was Scrooge's business partner Jacob Marley. As young men, they are similar in their ambitions to become businessmen, taking over Scrooge's former employer Fezziwig's business, renaming it Scrooge & Marley, Enquirers. But both will be consumed with the all mighty pound and lose sight of giving back to the community or seeing the good will in men. They will also lose sight of their friendship. As Marley lies on his deathbed, Scrooge refuses to visit his partner until the day's work is done. Scrooge takes over Marley's estate but hoards it. When Marley returns as a ghost, he warns his old friend to take a different path than he did.

Another important piece to A CHRISTMAS CAROL are the fantasy elements. In this version, the special effects are understated yet effective. Computer Generated Images (CGI) are still decades away. The most important effect is the first one involving the ghost of Jacob Marley. We need to be able to see through him and the filmmakers achieve it. It's not fancy or spectacular but Marley's ghost is ethereal, floating around the room or his face appearing on a door knocker. Some of the effects are just old fashioned slight of hand. The Spirit of Christmas Future using his cloak to cover up the screen and transition us from one scene to another. Or The Spirit of Christmas Present's dramatic reveal when he lifts his robes and two children - Want and Ignorance - clutch at his feet works because of a powerful music cue. But the special effects and tricks never take away from the story.

Throw in a few actual Christmas carols sung throughout the film and this A CHRISTMAS CAROL is a perfect movie for children and adults alike to watch again and again during the holidays.  I dare anyone to 'Bah Humbug' me for making such a declaration.

Key Largo (1948)

KEY LARGO (1948) is a great example of a catchy plot and a bunch of fine actors lifting up a film that is decent but not scintillating.  Humphrey Bogart comes to Key West to visit a dead war buddy's father and widow and gets tangled up with a hotel full of mobsters led by Edward G. Robinson as a hurricane bears down on the Florida Keys and the hotel.

I first became interested in KEY LARGO (directed by the great John Huston) during college. What sparked my interest at the time wasn't Huston's film (which I knew nothing about) but a story I read in the Hollywood trade papers that up and coming Finnish uber director Rennie Harlin (CLIFFHANGER, DIE HARD II) was planning on directing a film about gangsters caught in a hurricane which echoed the plot of KEY LARGO. It was never made (maybe a good sign as Harlin's career has faded as much as that script idea). The combination of  gangsters and hurricane intrigued me so I caught KEY LARGO one night on television.  I was disappointed by it.  Yes, it stars Humphrey Bogart, Edward G. Robinson, and Lauren Bacall but the hurricane element was barely noticeable.  Having grown up in the Spielberg/Lucas era of big effects, I was expecting gangsters trying to shoot one another as houses and cars flew around and tidal waves crashed through the hotel.  But it was mostly talking and very little action.

Watching it now, that would make sense as KEY LARGO is based on a play by Maxwell Anderson adapted by Richard Brooks and John Huston (although apparently the movie resembles little of the play). But director Huston does play up the hurricane elements more than I recalled with wind sound effects, footage of huge waves crashing onto the shore, and a climactic palm tree that crashes through the lobby window to end the second act of the film. The hurricane is just a metaphor for the turbulent, swirling drama going on inside the hotel as innocent people are terrorized by dirty crooks. The main focus of the film are the actors and the dialogue and not the storm.

Humphrey Bogart stars as disillusioned WWII veteran Frank McCloud, on a bus to Key Largo to visit wheelchair bound James Temple (Lionel Barrymore) and Nora Temple (Lauren Bacall), the father and widow of Frank's war buddy George, who was killed in action at San Pietro in Italy. Mr. Temple runs the Largo Hotel. When Frank arrives, he discovers the hotel is temporarily closed, rented out for a month by a group of shady characters supposedly from Wisconsin on a fishing trip. As a hurricane looms in the distance, Frank helps Nora tie up their boat and board up the windows before the storm hits.

The leader of these unsavory guests is Johnny Rocco (Edward G. Robinson), an Al Capone like mob kingpin who was deported by the Feds from the U.S. and fled to Cuba. Rocco has snook back into the United States but is hiding out at the hotel with his crew Curly (Thomas Gomez), Toots (Harry Lewis), Angel (Dan Seymour), and Rocco's old flame, the alcoholic, ex nightclub singer Gaye Dawn (Claire Trevor). We first meet Rocco sitting naked in a bathtub, smoking a cigar, a small fan blowing air to keep him cool from the Florida humidity. Everyone is cool and collect until one of the local sheriff's men Deputy Clyde Sawyer (John Rodney), while looking for a couple of escaped Seminole Indian convicts, recognizes Rocco. Rocco's men jump Sawyer and have him locked up in one of the hotel's rooms.

The hurricane hits landfall and the tensions inside the hotel ratchet up as Frank and Rocco begin to psychologically slug it out. Frank trying to protect the Temple's from Rocco's murderous impulses. Rocco terrorizing his hostages, trying to prove he's back in charge. Rocco doesn't like the storm and wants to leave for Miami where he's trying to sell a shipment of counterfeit cash to the Miami syndicate. Sawyer grabs a gun but it's empty and Rocco kills him. Rocco's men take Sawyer's body out in the turbulent bay and toss him into the water.

Rocco and his men discover the boat that brought them to Key Largo has left. Sheriff Ben Wade (Monte Blue) shows up looking for deputy Sawyer. He discovers Sawyer's body washed back in by the hurricane. Rocco lies, telling the Sheriff it was the Seminole Indian brothers who killed Sawyer. The Miami syndicate led by their leader Ziggy (Marc Lawrence) arrive and pick up Rocco's shipment. Rocco forces Frank to take him and his men back to Cuba. Gaye slips Frank a gun. Frank gets the gangsters away from the hotel, headed for Cuba when he decides to battle it out with Rocco and his men on the high seas.

The hurricane as a metaphor for the psychological storm brewing inside the Largo Hotel is constant throughout KEY LARGO. Rocco is a one man hurricane, mowing down human psyches and even taking lives. Rocco antagonizes the invalid Mr. Temple, inciting Mr. Temple to get out of his wheelchair to fight Rocco, with disastrous results. Rocco tortures Gaye Dawn mentally, keeping liquor from her, forcing her to sing a song when she can no longer carry a tune. Rocco flirts with Nora, calling her a "wildcat", making Gaye jealous. Rocco kills Sawyer and sets in motion a lie that will cause Sheriff Wade to kill the two Seminole Indian brothers for a crime they didn't commit.

But the eye of the hurricane, the calm before the Rocco tempest is Frank McCloud. He arrives at the hotel with emotional baggage, his best friend killed in the war, his faith in the freedom he fought for shaken. Frank has seen plenty of death and when Rocco challenges Frank to shoot him (with an empty gun that Rocco gives him), Frank backs down. Rocco calls Frank a coward and the film implies that Frank may have been a coward in Italy while his best friend George was the hero, winning medals.  But later, Nora hints that Frank is in denial, that it was Frank and not her husband who fought off the Italians, who showed bravery in the face of insurmountable odds. George had told her about the real Frank McCloud.

Frank McCloud is a prototype Bogart character, very similar to his Rick Blaine in CASABLANCA who states, "I stick my neck out for no one." Frank echoes similar words in KEY LARGO when he says, "I fight nobody's battles but my own." But Frank will battle with his lone wolf persona.  He tries to stay out of Rocco's affairs. But a spark has come back into Frank's life when he sets eyes on Nora. He doesn't want to see Nora or her father hurt. They've already lost a husband/son. Frank will get his confidence back when he observes Rocco becoming unglued during the storm, pacing like a caged tiger, unable to control things as Mother Nature takes over. "Show it your gun," Frank tells Rocco. "If it doesn't stop, shoot it."

Although Bogart is the star of KEY LARGO, it's really an ensemble film with everyone getting their turn to shine. At times, Edward G. Robinson seems like the main character as he takes over the middle section of the film, Bogart staying in the background. It's fun to see Bogart and Robinson squaring off against one another. In the early 30's, Robinson was the top dog playing gangsters and tough guys in films like LITTLE CAESAR (1931). Bogart would later take the mantle from Robinson as his career would start to flourish beginning with his role as a bank robber in THE PETRIFIED FOREST (1935). Bogart and  Robinson even worked together previously in the boxing melodrama KID GALAHAD (1937).

Edward G. Robinson is truly menacing as Johnny Rocco, sadistic, violent, a sociopath. Rocco is a one man cyclone, causing destruction and misery in his brief stay at the Largo Hotel. But Robinson could play any role and as vicious as he is as Rocco in KEY LARGO, he could also play timid and meek in Fritz Lang's SCARLETT STREET (1945) or a moral, dogged insurance investigator in Billy Wilder's DOUBLE INDEMNITY (1944). Bogart is his usual steady, cool self as Frank McCloud but I wouldn't say it's one of his flashier performances. But he gets to act with his wife Lauren Bacall. KEY LARGO would be their fourth and last film together (1942's TO HAVE AN HAVE NOT and 1944's THE BIG SLEEP two of their earlier pairings). Bacall as Nora doesn't have to be sexy in KEY LARGO but she's fantastic at conveying what's going on in her head with just a stare or glance from her perfect face.  Director Huston does an amazing job of cutting to reaction shots by Bogart, Bacall, and Claire Trevor as Gaye that give so much information about what they're thinking or noticing as events unfold.

If you recognize actor Lionel Barrymore's voice as James Temple, it's because Barrymore's most famous role was as the mean Mr. Henry Potter in IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE (1946). But Temple is a good character although he suffers plenty of misery in KEY LARGO. Lionel Barrymore, along with his siblings John and Ethel, are considered Hollywood royalty (actress Drew Barrymore is related to them). Surprisingly, out of all the great actors in KEY LARGO, only actress Claire Trevor would win a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her performance as the over the hill, alcoholic moll Gaye Dawn. Director Huston rounds out Rocco's gang with some colorful characters. Thomas Gomez as the gum chewing heavy Curly Hoff and Harry Lewis as the giggling enforcer Toots Bass stand out with Curly my favorite.

All of director John Huston's films are adapted either from novels or plays with Huston writing or co-writing many of the screenplays.  His superb career includes classics like THE MALTESE FALCON (1941), THE TREASURE OF SIERRA MADRE (1948), THE AFRICAN QUEEN (1951), and THE MAN WHO WOULD BE KING (1975) all based on classic books.  Huston and Bogart would work together on six films.  I never realized it but co-writer Richard Brooks would become a protégé of Huston's, turning to writing and directing his own movies, many of them also based on novels and plays.  Some of Brooks more well known films adapted from plays or novels include CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF (1958), ELMER GANTRY (1960), and IN COLD BLOOD (1967).

As great as the acting and dialogue is in KEY LARGO, there's something about the film that holds it back from being better. The film's climactic shoot out on the boat is staged poorly and doesn't have the dramatic effect expected. I would have liked to have seen Bogart and Robinson battle it out mano a mano at the end but their final confrontation is less than compelling. A few more scenes outdoors during the ferocious storm with the key players might have been interesting. And the subplot with the two escaped Seminole Indian brothers, who trust Mr. Temple and get killed because of Rocco's deception to Sheriff Wade, leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

But my petty criticisms should not be enough to dissuade movie fans from viewing KEY LARGO. Any film with Bogart, Robinson, Bacall, and Barrymore is worth catching. They just don't make movies anymore where women are called "dames", gangsters are called "wise guys", and tough guys threaten to give someone a "sock in the kisser."

Werewolf of London (1935)

WEREWOLF OF LONDON (1935) has the distinction as the first werewolf film ever made. Yes even before Lon Chaney Jr and THE WOLF MAN (1941) came along, there was this minor gem that does not always get the recognition it deserves. Just its title exudes coolness and we've seen both a Warren Zevon song Werewolves of London and a more modern werewolf film, John Landis's AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON (1981), borrow the British capital's name to good effect. WEREWOLF OF LONDON is unique as it borrows the FRANKENSTEIN story of an obsessed scientist, married to a beautiful woman that he forever ignores in the name of science, and even gives us not one but two werewolves (although it misses the chance to have the two werewolves battle each other in full werewolf make up), rivals for the same Tibetan flower that can stop their lycan condition.

WEREWOLF OF LONDON'S make up is done by famed make up artist Jack Pierce who would perfect his werewolf look with the later THE WOLF MAN. But WEREWOLF OF LONDON'S werewolf make up is cool as Pierce gives actor Henry Hull a different werewolf look than Lon Chaney Jr. Hull sports a widow's peak and less hair around the face. Actor Michael Landon would borrow a similar werewolf look for his teenage werewolf film I WAS A TEENAGE WEREWOLF (1957).

Instead of opening in a Transylvanian castle or Frankenstein's village or the moors of Scotland, WEREWOLF OF LONDON begins in the mountains of Tibet as Dr. Wilfred Glendon (Henry Hull) and his associate Hugh Renwick (Clark Williams) are searching for a rare Himalayan flower known as Mariphasa lumina lupina i.e. the phosphorescent Wolf flower that only blooms in moonlight. Just as Glendon discovers the elusive flower, he's attacked by a werewolf (looking a bit like the Cowardly Lion) and bitten on the arm. Glendon fights off the creature and brings the flower back to his laboratory in London.

Director Stuart Walker introduces us to the rest of the characters at a huge party thrown by the London Botanist Society including Glendon's wife Lisa (Valerie Hobson), Lisa's aunt Miss Ettie Coombes (Spring Byington), Lisa's childhood boyfriend Paul Ames (Lester Matthews), and the mysterious Dr. Yogami (Warner Oland), another botanist who's very interested in the moon flower that Glendon has brought back. Yogami, noticing Glendon's bite marks on his arm, tells the botanist that the flower is an antidote to lycanthrophobia or werewolfery. But not a cure. "The werewolf instinctively seeks to kill the thing it loves best," Yogami warns Glendon. The first full moon of the month, Glendon turns into a werewolf and tries to sneak into his house to attack Lisa but he's thwarted by Miss Ettie's screams. The werewolf ends up killing another woman along Goose Lane.

Glendon, with the help of his lab assistant Hawkins (J.M. Kerrigan) try to trick the Mariphasa into sprouting more blossoms but to no avail. Glendon turns down Lisa's wishes to go out, afraid he might harm his wife. Lisa begins to turn to Paul for comfort, making Glendon jealous.  Glendon rents a room above a pub the next night, trying to isolate himself from his loved ones. But the full moon transforms him again and the werewolf strikes at the London Zoological Gardens, murdering a streetwalker visiting her policeman boyfriend. Yogami goes to Scotland Yard, warning Sir Thomas Forsythe (Lawrence Grant) that a werewolf hunts in London. Yogami also sneaks into Glendon's laboratory and snips two blossoms from the plant. Yogami is the other werewolf who bit Glendon in Nepal.

The next day, Glendon hides out in his laboratory, catching Yogami lurking again to steal more blossoms. Glendon and Yogami struggle and Glendon kills Yogami. Glendon flees to Faldon Estate and barricades himself in the secluded Monk's Rest (a tower) as he awaits the next full moon. Lisa and Paul show up at the home to do some horse riding. Glendon transforms into the werewolf yet again and breaks out of the Monk's Rest, his blood lust to kill Lisa overpowering him. Paul battles Glendon until Forsythe arrives with Scotland Yard and shoots Glendon the werewolf just in the nick of time.

WEREWOLF OF LONDON'S screenwriter John Colton does things differently with cinema's first werewolf. This werewolf has a fashion sense, throwing on a hat and scarf before venturing out into the foggy London night. This werewolf doesn't want to be recognized although it would be hard not to notice a howling, snarling hairy botanist. This werewolf even speaks at the end of the film as a hirsute Glendon apologizes to Lisa for his carnivorous behavior before dying. I can't recall another werewolf film where a werewolf has the sense to dress himself or talk.  Colton messes up on how many full moons there are in a month (1 not 4) but it helps with his storyline. The godfather of werewolf mythology screenwriter Curt Siodmak would take different liberties with his lycanthropy lore when he writes THE WOLF MAN six years later.

Director Stuart Walker's direction of WEREWOLF OF LONDON has its hits and misses. Walker does an amicable job moving the action from Nepal to the foggy streets of London to Faldon Estate. Glendon's transformation from man to wolf is nicely rendered. Glendon's first metamorphosis is a moving shot as he changes each time he passes a wall.  Later, Walker uses time lapse photography for the transformation which THE WOLF MAN would adapt for Chaney Jr's changes as well. But Walker is less assured in some of the fight scenes particularly the pivotal struggle between werewolf Glendon and Paul that is staged clumsily and loses the dramatic effect needed. And how Walker could pass up the opportunity to have werewolf Glendon and werewolf Yogami battle each other in full make up is a monsterous mistake.

Although WERWOLF OF LONDON is obviously a werewolf movie, WEREWOLF has connections to another different 1935 horror film (also from Universal) James Whale's THE BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN. The relationship and rivalry between Dr. Glendon and Dr. Yogami in WEREWOLF OF LONDON reminds me of a similar relationship between Dr. Frankenstein (Colin Clive) and Dr. Pretorius (Ernest Thesiger) in BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN. However in BRIDE, Frankenstein ends up working with Pretorius to provide the Frankenstein's monster a mate. Glendon and Yogami never do collaborate. Both men are egocentric. Yogami tries to warn Glendon about the curse yet Yogami's selfish enough to know he needs the flower to prevent him from killing as well.  BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN and WEREWOLF OF LONDON also share the same leading lady Valerie Hobson. Hobson plays Lisa Glendon in WEREWOLF and she's quite attractive and spunky in the role. She would play Dr. Frankenstein's fiancee in BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN.

WEREWOLF OF LONDON would be actor Henry Hull's only horror film. Hull had mostly done stage work before beginning in silent films and then talkies. Hull's portrayal of Dr. Glendon is a bit stagey at first but his performance grew on me. Glendon's efforts to distance himself from Lisa so he won't kill her when he's a werewolf is noble and makes him very sympathetic. Pierce's werewolf make up allows Hull to be much more expressive when he becomes the beast. Hull would have a good long career in film, appearing in Westerns, Film Noirs, and even Alfred Hitchcock's LIFEBOAT (1944).

A great choice as Glendon's adversary is actor Warner Oland as Dr. Yogami. Oland is best known in film as Charlie Chan, a Chinese-American detective. Oland played Charlie Chan in 16 films (including one called CHARLIE CHAN IN LONDON) all made between 1931 and 1937. Dr. Yogami is another Asian character for Oland who ironically, was Swedish but looked Asian (thanks to a Mongolian grandmother). Yogami is a complex, conflicted character. He brought about Glendon's fate and tries to warn him of the dangers when the moon comes out. But Yogami is greedy and selfish, desiring the plant for himself, so he doesn't become a werewolf again. The Yogami role was originally going to be played by Bela Lugosi but Lugosi was committed to MARK OF THE VAMPIRE (1935). Oland proved to be a worthy alternative.

Rounding out the cast are Spring Byington who's amusing as Lisa's Auntie Ettie Coombes. Ettie likes to gossip and when Lisa's ex Paul shows up, Ettie is quick to remind Glendon that her niece and Paul are life long friends, causing issues for Glendon and Lisa. Lester Matthews who plays Paul Ames is saddled with the least interesting role in the film. Paul only gets to protect Lisa at the end and he doesn't even kill the werewolf. Actor J.M. Kerrigan who plays Glendon's owlish lab assistant Hawkins has the distinction of appearing in both WEREWOLF OF LONDON and THE WOLF MAN. And in a nod to the comedic English villagers in THE INVISIBLE MAN (1933), actresses Ethel Griffies and Zeffie Tilbury provide the humor as the liquor loving Mrs. Whack and Mrs. Moncaster (where is actress Una O'Connor when you need her).

If the name Stuart Walker doesn't ring a bell, it's because the director did not make another film after 1935 and would pass away from a heart attack in 1941. Besides WEREWOLF OF LONDON, Walker directed THE MYSTERY OF EDWIN DROOD and MANHATTAN MOON also in 1935. Walker's most noteworthy film was THE EAGLE AND THE HAWK (1933) starting Frederic March and Cary Grant. But Walker's contribution to the horror genre is cemented with his directing the first werewolf film in cinema.

For total werewolf geeks, check out the WEREWOLF OF LONDON trailer on the DVD which shows a quick shot (pictured above in a publicity still) of Glendon the werewolf clawing Yogami's face and drawing blood. This sequence is not in the actual film, perhaps a casualty of censors who found it too gruesome.  WEREWOLF OF LONDON will surprise the avid werewolf fan who holds THE WOLF MAN as the gospel. Good acting by Hull, Hobson, and Oland along with make up artist Jack Pierce's first attempt at werewolf make up and the London locale make WEREWOLF OF LONDON one of Universal's underrated horror hits.