Errol Escapes

When their bomber crashes in Nazi Germany, a group of Allied airmen make a Desperate Journey (1942) to get out of the country with information that may help the war effort. 

Let's begin by admitting that this is very much a wartime propaganda film.  According to this movie, five Allied officers can take down the entire Nazi war machine and defeat it without breaking into much of a sweat.  Regardless, it's an interesting adventure, with snappy (albeit somewhat jingoistic) dialog and a good rapport among the lead and supporting actors.

Errol Flynn gets top billing as Flight Lt Terrence Forbes, an Australian working with the Allied command in Europe.  This is one of the few times in which Flynn gets to play someone from his native land, and he's quite good as the cocky, but competent Forbes. Errol Flynn was examined by the draft board, but physicians discovered that he had tuberculosis.  Knowing that he would be unable to work (and would not be entitled to any money during his recuperation), Mr. Flynn declined to let the studio know of his illness, nor accept any of the treatments available to him (TCM article). As a result, he lost  a tremendous amount of weight (forcing wardrobe adjustments). Frequently late for work, he was difficult to work with during the shoot.

Ronald Reagan (Flying Officer Johnny Hammond) was just off his rousing success in King's Row (1942), and gets second billing above the title with Errol Flynn.  He's good as the devil-may-care American, and got to be the hero of the piece, knocking out Major Otto Baumeister (Raymond Massey), albeit off-camera.  Errol Flynn wanted to the the one to do that particular deed, but he was told no.  Mr. Reagan was called up for military service while shooting the picture - they allowed him a week to finish up the production.  His three years of service did not help his career; he was never able to regain the momentum following King's Row. However, he eventually had other career goals.

The role of Kaethe Brahms was originally intended for Kaaren Verne, but she was replaced by Nancy Coleman (AFI Catalog). It's not a big part, but Ms. Coleman does her best to make Kaethe heroic and appealing.  If there is one fault in the film, it is the scene where the escaping flyers share a meal with Kaethe's parents. Relaxing for the first time in awhile, the men talk liberally - something no soldier would do in these circumstances.  

Raymond Massey has the most thankless part. Major Otto Baumeister is downright stupid, and his Nazi soldiers resemble nothing more than the Keystone Kops.  Massey is a good actor, but you wouldn't know it here.  He's really given nothing with which to work.

We have a number of other good actors in the film - Alan Hale as Flight Sergeant Kirk Edwards gets to do some of the comic relief. Arthur Kennedy (Flying Officer Jed Forrest) is the conscience of the group - trying to keep them on task towards getting home with the information they've obtained.  This would be Ronald Sinclair (Flight Sergeant Lloyd Hollis) last acting role (he'd been a child actor) -  he became a film editor, working with Roger Corman.

Bosley Crowther, in his The New York Times review, was unimpressed with the movie - "an invasion of Nazi Germany which would put the Commandos to shame." It was nominated for an Oscar for Special Effects (it lost to Reap the Wild Wind). While this is not the best movie ever made, it's fun, with an enjoyable cast.  We'll leave you with this trailer:

Peter Visits Arabia

Lieutenant T.E. Lawrence (Peter O'Toole) is working in the map division in the Arab Bureau in Cairo, when he was assigned by Mr. Dryden (Claude Rains) to evaluate Prince Faisal's (Alec Guinness) war against the Turks. Lawrence's interest in Arab culture and his eagerness to form a united Arabia impresses Faisal; when Lawrence comes up with a plan to cross the Nefud Desert with 50 men and attack the Turks in Aqaba, Faisal supports it. Lawrence's daring impresses his troops who make him one of their own -  Lawrence of Arabia (1962).

The recent TCM Presents: Fathom Events presentation of this film was a must-see. Jon Stewart was right - you have to see this movie wide-screen (and not on a cellphone!). The heat of the desert and the glare of the sun are visceral in the film - even in an air-conditioned theatre, you are hot and thirsty. With commentary by Ben Mankiewicz, this was an exceptional TCM Presents.

Albert Finney was originally approached for the lead role of T.E. Lawrence; he was even given an extensive, expensive screen test (costing £100,000), but Mr. Finney balked at a five-year contract with Sam Spiegel. (TCM article). At some point, Spiegel tried to interest Marlon Brando, but that raised a row in the U.K., and Brando pulled himself out of consideration (AFI Catalog). Anthony Perkins was also considered (but his appearance in Psycho made him less appealing to Spiegel).  Director David Lean was more interested in an unknown actor, and had seen Mr. O'Toole in The Day They Robbed the Bank of England (1960). Halfway through O'Toole's screen test, Mr. Lean stopped the cameras - "No use shooting another foot of film. The boy is Lawrence."

It is hard to imagine anyone but Peter O'Toole in the part. He embodies Lawrence, even resembling him a bit, as you can see from the photos below (though at 6'2", Mr. O'Toole would tower over the 5'5" Lawrence). Mr. O'Toole captures the whimsy as well as Lawrence's personal and emotional conflicts. Lawrence was born to unmarried parents (though his father was not an absentee one); he was well educated and lived fairly well, but he was also teased and tormented about his bastardy. In his book Hero: The Life & Legend of Lawrence of Arabia, Michael Korda states that Lawrence was tortured by the pleasure he found in pain. That he also took pleasure in killing is not discussed in this book - in fact, he was a vegetarian (PBS) who professed his gladness that "nothing had to be killed to feed us." His death on a motorbike was the result of his need for speed - he was probably going nearly 100 miles per hour. Mr. O'Toole did an interview for TCM about his work on the film here. His tale on the filming of the scene where Lawrence is given his white robes is fascinating.

Alain Delon was originally cast as Sherif Ali iben el Karish, but David Lean wanted Ali to have brown eyes, and Mr. Delon was unable to wear the contact lenses required to turn his blue eyes brown. So, they hired Maurice Ronet for the part - but his eyes were green. Director Lean, already in Jordan, asked to see photos of Arab actors - he was sent a photo of Omar Sharif, resulting in a collaboration that would result in Mr. Sharif getting the lead in Dr. Zhivago (1965). Mr. Sharif and Mr. O'Toole became great friends on the shoot, learning to do The Twist together; as a result of their dancing prowess,  Mr. O'Toole called Mr. Sharif "Cairo Fred" because "No one in the world is called Omar Sharif." Mr. Sharif won the Golden Globe for Supporting Actor for his work in this film.

The list of actors who almost appeared in the film is breathtaking - Cary Grant, David Niven, Gene Kelly, Kirk Douglas, Horst Buchholz were all considered or approached at one time or another. Even so, the list of actors in the cast is spectacular: Anthony Quinn (Auda Abu Tayi) is strong as a desert chiefan; Jack Hawkins (General Allenby) is both tough and sly as a British officer looking out for the best interests of his country; Alec Guinness is a cagey prince looking for the best deal for his nation; Anthony Quayle (Col. Harry Brighton) portrays an officer who cannot comprehend the man that is Lawrence; Jose Ferrer (Turkish bey) gives us a fiendish enemy to the Arab nation - and to Lawrence. Last, but by no means least, is the wonderful Claude Rains (Mr. Dryden), initially Lawrence's benefactor, but in the end, a pragmatic official using the best man at hand for the job.

Jackson Bentley (Arthur Kennedy) was to have been played by Edmund O'Brien, but he left three days into the shoot. Kennedy is excellent as an opportunistic reporter who builds his reputation - and Lawrence's - with the articles he publishes about the conflict. The character of Bentley is based on Lowell Thomas; the name of the character was changed because Mr. Thomas did not wish any association with the film (Beyond the Epic: The Life and Films of David Lean by Gene Phillips). Mr. Thomas would later state that "the only true things in it [the film] are the sand and the camels." Though initially friends, Lawrence became disillusioned with Thomas when Thomas toured with film footage he had shot of Lawrence in Arabia (PBS); Lawrence felt himself exploited, while Thomas claimed "[Lawrence] had a genius for backing into the limelight."

To say that you should see this film if you have not already done so is redundant. Though Bosley Crowther's New York Times review was unenthusiastic, it has since garnered much praise. Janet Maslin discussed the beauty of the movie when it was restored in 1989 (New York Times). It won 7 Oscars (Picture, Director, Cinematography, Art/Set Direction, Sound, Film Editing, and Score), and was nominated for 3 other (Actor: Peter O'Toole; Supporting Actor: Omar Sharif; Writing: Robert Bolt & Michael Wilson - Mr. Wilson's contributions were finally acknowledged in 1995). It also won best film awards from the Golden Globes and BAFTA, with David Lean taking the Director's Guild Award and Sam Spiegel winning the Producer's Guild Award.  It was added to the National Film Registry in 1991. It's also on five American Film Institute lists: #1 in the Ten Top Ten for Epic; #7 in the 100 Years, 100 Movies Anniversary Edition (#5 in the Original List); #3 in Film Scores; #23 in Thrills; #10 in Heroes.

Even if you can't see it on a big screen, do seek this remarkable film out. We'll leave you with the trailer to this amazing work of cinema:

Interlude: WWII Erupts

On December 6, 1941, a group of B-17 Flying Fortress bombers leave San Francisco on a routine run to Hawaii.  As they arrive, they discover that Pearl Harbor and Hickam Field have been virtually destroyed by the Japanese attack of December 7th.  In that instant, the lives of the crew of the Mary Ann change as they attempt to get their plane first to Wake Island, then to the Philippines, to fight in the newly declared war in the Pacific.  This is Air Force, a Howard Hawks film from 1943. 

We had the opportunity to see this interesting film on a big screen at the AFI Silver Theatre, as part of a Howard Hawks retrospective.  Hawks, a member of the U.S. Army Air Service during the first World War, had already demonstrated his interest in aviation with his prior films, Ceiling Zero (1935) and Only Angels Have Wings (1939). Here, as the war rages on in Europe and Asia, with no end in sight, Hawks looks at an event that would have been very much in the memory of his audience.  The film is careful in sticking to the facts, with only a few liberties taken.  In fact, a group of Fortresses was en route to Hawaii just prior to the Pearl Harbor attack, and one of the ships was, in fact, the Mary Ann. 

My companion, who is quite familiar with the history of World War II, pointed out to me some of the liberties taken in the film.  For example, were a ship like the Mary Ann to be sent from Hawaii to the Philippines, it would have flown via Midway, not Wake Island. It's apparent that Hawks wants to reference the events that occurred on Wake Island, as it was attacked and captured by the Japanese (and perhaps tip his hat to the film Wake Island, that had been released the previous year). Towards the end of the film, we see the Mary Ann's crew involved in a battle - it appears to be the Battle of the Coral Sea, but that didn't happen until 5 months AFTER Pearl Harbor (not a few days as portrayed here).  And there is no way a B-17 could hover over a convoy of battleships to mark the way for oncoming planes. It just would not work!

You'll be treated to some fine performances here: a young John Garfield as tail gunner Joe Winocki; George Tobias as New Yorker and gunner Weinberg, Harry Carey - always wonderful - as crew chief Robbie White, Arthur Kennedy as Bombardier Tommy McMartin. and Gig Young as co-pilot Bill Williams.  We even have a cameo by Ann Doran as pilot Irish Quincannon (John Ridgely)'s wife.

Though I'm not usually a fan of war movies, this one was certainly worth seeing, and I hope to view it again. It had a sympathy for the men and an understanding of what they were facing that is not always apparent in World War II propaganda films.  Is it propaganda? Of course, but propaganda of the best kind.

For your enjoyment, the trailer from the film is below:

Our next Constance Bennett movie will be up in a few days.

Olivia Writes a Novel

This week, we were able to watch Devotion, wherein Olivia plays Charlotte Bronte, and gets to write the novel Jane Eyre. Again, Ms. De Havilland plays second lead, this time to Ida Lupino, who is playing her sister Emily. Ms. Lupino has the meatier role, as the tortured, dying Charlotte, but Ms. De Havilland ends up with more screen time (and more to do than just be tortured).  Her Charlotte harkens back to some of the earlier teen roles we've seen, such as Call it a Day and It's Love I'm After, where she gets to fall in love with a man who is already taken (and be a tad silly about it). However, this is no screwball story.  Because in the end, both sisters end up in love with the same man - Paul Henreid as the Reverend Arthur Nicholls. And he is oblivious to one of them.

As history, this film rather plays fast and loose.  Yes, Bramwell (Arthur Kennedy) was an alcoholic, and yes, Emily did die of TB.  But so did Anne Bronte (played by Nancy Coleman) and you wouldn't know it from this movie. In fact, Anne died about 6 months after Emily.  Charlotte did go to London, but after Emily's and Anne's deaths.  And Charlotte's marriage to Arthur Nicholls was no happy ending.  Her father was totally against the marriage, because he feared that marriage would kill his only surviving child (of the 6 born to him). He was right. Charlotte became pregnant; she and the baby died, probably the result of hyperemesis gravidarum, or excessive morning sickness resulting in malnutrition.  Another point, the sisters were all very small and probably slender - at an exhibit of their books and item at the Morgan Library in New York City, I saw one of Emily's gloves. It was TINY. I have VERY small hands - the glove would not have fit me. None of these ladies is in the least bit tiny or frail-looking!! A couple of items that they did get right though, were rather fun. The sisters three books (Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights and Agnes Grey) did come out together (in fact Wuthering Heights and Agnes Grey were published in the same three volume set). The other little piece that we enjoyed was that, when Charlotte visits Arthur Nicholls to give him a copy of her novel, she is holding three books. Indeed, Jane Eyre was published (as many novels were at the time - to accommodate lending libraries) in a three-volume set!

Like many historical films that play a little to fast and loose, this can be a problematic movie, but the acting is wonderful. We have some lovely character pieces here, especially Sydney Greenstreet as William Makepeace Thackeray, who manages to portray Thackeray as an adorable egoist!  Also fun to watch is Odette Myrtil as Mme Heger, who reminded us very much of Peggy Wood as the patient wife of the artist in Call it a Day.

We hope to see you again next week.  In the meantime, here's a trailer from the film: