The Shining Hour (1938)

MGM films are easily distinguished by their production values, which were top in the industry. If you turn the TV on midway through an MGM movie, you are likely to know it is an MGM movie just by the quality of the set design, the music, the costumes, the cinematography, and of course the "big name" actors. 

The Shining Hour had all of the above - except for a quality script. Unfortunately, this brought the whole film down to a Columbia "B" movie status. As entertaining as the film was, the plot seemed so absurd mid-way through that it turned into a comedy - at least for the two of us watching it. We had a grand laugh! But I doubt this was the intention of Keith Winter's original stage play. 

The story around The Shining Hour is a simple love triangle turned into a rectangle. Henry Linden (Melyn Douglas) comes from a socially prominent Wisconsin farming family. On a trip to New York City, he falls in love with dancer Olivia Riley (Joan Crawford) and asks her to marry him. Henry's brother David (Robert Young) reads about their engagement in the newspaper and flies to New York City hoping to stop the "impossible" marriage. He hadn't met Olivia yet, but he already knew she didn't belong in the Linden family. Hrumph! David questions her integrity so she slaps him in the face and marries Henry. 

When the newlyweds arrive at the grand Linden estate, they are greeted by David and his wife Judy (Margaret Sullavan) but not by Hannah (Fay Bainter), Henry and David's sister, because she, too, was against the "impossible" marriage. These Lindens are making a bad impression as wealthy country snobs. 

Judy takes to Olivia instantly and the two become fast friends and Olivia tries her best to become one of the proud Lindens.... in fact, she fits like a glove. Hannah begins to tolerate her and all seems to be going well until David suddenly has a change of heart and falls in love with Olivia! She tries to resist his charm but he continues to pursue her, even during the party when Henry and Olivia are celebrating the completion of their big new beautiful house. Judy suspects as much but Henry is blissfully unaware of any complications until Olivia begs him to take her away on a long honeymoon - that very night.

This seems to be the crutch of the problem with the Lindens. They greet one another during the day like they never slept together the night before. All of their romantic entanglements seem like they are being played out at a college campus and not one of them is really married. Throughout the second half of the film, Olivia repeatedly says she is "no good" and does not deserve the love of Henry since she never really loved him when she married him, however, it is Olivia that is making the only effort to being a loving spouse. Henry continually leaves her alone as though he were a travelling salesman... as a gentleman farmer what could he possibly be doing on a farm so late at night? David is even more aloof towards Judy. He wears dinner whites in the evening and riding clothes during the day so, unlike Henry, I doubt he works on the farm and yet he barely talks to Judy. 

Sadly, Hannah is the worst of the lot. Towards the end of the film, she goes into a jealous rage and burns Henry's new house down. Director Frank Borzage captures this scene well and we see Fay Bainter dressed in black, her hair all tussled, and laughing like a mad woman. The next scene, Henry and David still have ash on their face from putting out the fire and Hannah is back to being primly dressed and calmly serving them a cup of coffee. It is these abrupt transitions that no doubt led critic Bosley Crowther to calling the film "a hackneyed story of a definitely inferior grade."

The hackneyed transitions could have been fixed if the runtime was just a bit longer. The Shining Hour is only 76 minutes long and that seems much too short for such a dramatic script - even the Andy Hardy films ran over 80 minutes! Audiences thought little of the film as well and MGM ended up swallowing a loss of over $137,000. Joan Crawford had suggested the play as a property worth buying so Louis B. Mayer was probably cross with her. 

After reading this review you may be thinking "Is this film even worth watching?" and the answer to that is, yes, definitely! Joan Crawford and Melvyn Douglas are wonderful in the movie, it's a top-notch production (except for the preposterous story), the Cedric Gibbons sets are gorgeous, the setting is scenic, you'll get to see Joan Crawford dance, and the ending is amusing, so why not watch it? 

Paradise for Three ( 1938 )

MGM had a knack for making great comedies and, during the 1930s especially, the studio was churning them out a dime a dozen. Paradise for Three aka Romance for Three was a particularly fun MGM comedy that featured the always delightful duo of Robert Young and Florence Rice. Its Alpine setting and the presence of no less than seven great character actors make it stand out among all the other top features MGM released in 1938. 

The sparkling George Oppenheimer-Harry Ruskin script ( based upon Erich Kastner's novel "Three Men in the Snow" ) follows the escapades of a wealthy industrialist named Tobar ( Frank Morgan ) who decides to go slumming by taking a vacation in the Alps in the guise of a poor villager. While on holiday he becomes smitten with a gold-digging divorcee ( Mary Astor ) and befriends a poor but intelligent young man ( Robert Young ) who just so happens to be in love with his daughter ( Florence Rice ). Ah yes, romance has a way of blossoming even in the snowdrifts. 

"Yodeling around with that hussy!"

Every decade gave birth to its own unique style of films and Paradise for Three is certainly a product of its time. Like the music of the era, it is bouncy bubbly entertainment that leaves you with a marvelous carefree feeling. 

Young and Rice received top-billing on the credits but Frank Morgan is the true star of the picture. Morgan was excellent in just about every film he made, but none showcases his fine comedic flair as well as Paradise for Three. Tobar is the perfect role for Morgan, a bumbling and sometimes silly, but lovable and respectable businessman. 

This was the fifth film that united Young and Rice, who made a lovely screen-couple. Supporting them were Edna May Oliver ( always a hoot ), Sig Rumann, Reginald Owen, Herman Bing, and Henry Hull. 

Devilry and Magic in Miracles for Sale ( 1939 )

Mike Morgan ( Robert Young ) is a skeptic. He was a former magician who now makes his living selling his magic tricks to other New York City magicians. "Miracles for Sale" is his tagline, and creating illusions is his racket. So, when he comes across a real-life mystery he naturally attempts to pick it apart to discover just what the "trick" is behind what he is seeing. 

Judy Barclay ( Florence Rice ) seeks Morgan's aid in unmasking a fraudulent medium and invites him to attend a seance at the apartment of Dr. Sabbatt ( Frederick Warlock ), a renowned magician. When the body of Dr. Sabbatt turns up dead in his own apartment and then disappears just minutes after being examined by the coroner, Morgan tries to unveil the trickery behind the disappearance but finds himself truly stumped. 

"Don't kid yourself....For several thousand years the human race has attempted to cross the threshold into the darkness of the unknown - call it the other world, if you like - because there is something there. And once in awhile, somebody gets pretty close to it."

Director Tod Browning, who made a name for himself with the pre-Code horror classics Dracula ( 1931 ) and Freaks ( 1932 ), directed this taut and tantalizing mystery that cleverly mixes devilry and witchcraft with modern-day magic acts. 

Miracles for Sale unites Young and Rice in the last of seven feature films they made together in the 1930s and boasts a wonderful supporting cast which includes Henry Hull, Lee Bowman, Cliff Clark, Gloria Holden, and William Demarest. Frank Craven also stars as Morgan's dad, a well-grounded man from the country who detests the hustle and bustle of New York City. 

While the gimmicks behind Miracles for Sale are quite clever ( especially the self-typing typewriter and the ghostly apparition next to Madame Rapport ), the real killer is easy to guess if you keep your eyes open wide. Diana, who has a knack for recognizing voices and faces, solved this caper within 20-minutes. 

Still, if you're looking to watch a good old-fashioned spine-tingling mystery for Halloween, you can do no better than Miracles for Sale. Tauro's snake-like eyes alone will give you the willies! 

Happy Halloween! 

Nugget Reviews - 23

Johannisnacht ( 1956 )  14k 

An opera singer divorces her husband shortly after an extended performing tour in America. Years later, she returns to Germany to see her daughter whom her husband hid away in a chalet in the valley. Willy Birgel, Hertha Feiler, Erik Schumann, Sonja Sutter, Wolfgang Grunner. MGM Pictures. Directed by Harald Reinl.

A sweet romance from Delos-Film studios. Austrian-born Hertha Feiler, who often starred in comedies with her husband Heinz Ruhmann, is given a decent dramatic part here and the location filming of this "Heimatfilm" is beautiful. There is also a nice sub-romance going on between Erik Schumann and Sonja Sutter. 

___________________________________________________________

A Royal Scandal ( 1945 ) Elect.

A young idealistic lieutenant warns Catherine the Great of treachery within her court. She finds his loyalty and good looks very appealing and makes him her boy-toy, much to the chagrin of his true love, Queen Catherine's lady-in-waiting, Anna. Tallulah Bankhead, Charles Coburn, Anne Baxter, William Eythe, Vincent Price, Mischa Auer. 20th Century Fox Pictures. Directed by Otto Preminger and Ernst Lubitsch.

Ernst Lubitsch was a master at creating frothy comedies. He reached his prime in the early 1930s with such classics as Monte Carlo, The Smiling Lieutenant, One Hour with You and Ninotchka, but even he couldn't save this film from Preminger's heavy-handed direction. While there were a few amusing sequences in A Royal Scandal, overall the comedy seemed force. Tallulah Bankhead gave a grand performance as Catherine the Great, with some excellent support from character actors Charles Coburn and Sig Ruman, in spite of the circumstances.

         ___________________________________________________________

King Richard and the Crusaders ( 1954 ) 14k.

While encamped in the Holy Land, two noblemen plot to murder Richard the Lionheart and make his death appear to be from a Saracen attack, but his loyal knight Sir Kenneth discovers the plan. Rex Harrison, Laurence Harvey, George Sanders, Virginia Mayo, Robert Douglas. Warner Brothers. Directed by David Butler. 

Rex Harrison and Laurence Harvey give engrossing performances in this otherwise run-of-the-mill Crusades adventure, based upon Sir Walter Scott's novel "The Talisman". George Sanders makes an unconvincing King Richard, and Virginia Mayo's presence serves merely as eye-candy, but the Technicolor is beautiful and it's fun watching Rex Harrison tackle an Arab role.

___________________________________________________________

Scaramouche ( 1923 ) Elect.

A quiet French lawyer becomes a revolutionary after a nobleman kills his friend in a duel. Ramon Navarro, Alice Terry, Lewis Stone, Julia Swayne Gordon. Metro Pictures. Directed by Rex Ingram.

Production standards were high in this Rex Ingram silent classic, but the film fails to capture the excitement of Rafael Sabatini's novel and lingers on a bit too long. The zest that Stewart Granger brought to the part of Andre Moreau in the 1952 remake was non-existent in Novarro's portrayal. Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford would have been ideal casting choices instead. However, the French Revolution sequences at the climax were truly hair-raising.

___________________________________________________________

The Toy Wife ( 1938 ) 14k

A flirtatious and frivolous Southern belle marries her sister's serious-minded fiancee. He later comes to regret not having found himself a more sensible wife. Luise Rainer, Melvyn Douglas, Barbara O'Neil, Robert Young, Alma Kruger. MGM Pictures. Directed by Richard Thorpe.

Luise Rainer was fresh from her Oscar-winning performance in The Good Earth when she starred in The Toy Wife, MGM's consolation project after losing the book rights to Margaret Mitchell's "Gone with the Wind". This southern belle story put the spotlight on Rainer, allowing her - as "Frou-Frou" - to swoosh her hoop skirts around New Orleans and playfully toy with the heart-strings of not one, but two, gentlemen. It makes for engrossing soap. Barbara O'Neil earned the role of Ellen ( Scarlett's mother ) in Gone with the Wind, thanks to her performance in this film as Frou-Frou's sister. 

Secret of the Incas ( 1954 )

Before Indiana Jones, there was Harry Steele, a rugged, charismatic, and fast-quipping treasure hunter with a thick strain of thievery in him. Charlton Heston stars as this handsome ne'er-do-well in Secret of the Incas ( 1954 ), Paramount's contribution to the jungle bonanza that swept Hollywood in the early 1950s. 

Harry Steele has just one thing on his mind - getting his hands on the golden Sunburst, an Incan treasure. He works part-time as a tour guide in a small village in Peru, biding his time till a plane arrives en route anywhere out of that village. 

That day comes when Elena Antonescu ( Nicole Maurey ) sets foot in town. Elena left Romania illegally and currently has two immigration officials on her tail....they happen to arrive with a small plane. Along with the curvaceous red-head, Harry steals the plane and then sets off for Machu Pichu to search for the legendary Sunburst, a huge golden disc long thought to have been stolen by ancient grave robbers.  

Secret of the Incas was the direct inspiration for George Lucas' Indiana Jones trilogy, and it's no wonder, the film combines all of the elements of an ideal adventure flick : a tough-talking hero, a witty script, and loads of exotic atmosphere....in this case, Incan atmosphere. Lucas even borrowed Harry's signature weathered leather jacket and wrinkled hat. 

The film also boasts a strong cast which includes Robert Young as a compassionate archaeologist, Glenda Farrell as a married hussy, and Yma Sumac, the Amazonian songbird. Sumac toured throughout the world during the 1940s and 1950s but rarely appeared in films. In her debut, she demonstrates her remarkable five-octave vocal range in three native-inspired numbers. Thomas Mitchell is also marvelous ( when is he not? ) as shyster Morgan. 

Like most jungle films of the 1950s, Secret of the Incas has its fair share of corny dialogue and cheap sets, but, nevertheless, it is high in entertainment value. Charlton Heston is especially appealing as the unscrupulous fortune hunter, a role that only he could play so well. It's a pity that another Harry Steele adventure did not follow. 

The Enchanted Cottage ( 1945 )

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder

The enchanted cottage...a harborage to a legend of eternal romance. A beautiful cottage left to live in contented independence of the centuries old structure it once belonged to; standing solid amidst the passages of time to cast its romantic spell on the strangers who pass through its portals. Ah! but not anyone can sense its enchantment...only chosen ones.

Our story begins on a cold wintry morning in a small New England town by the sea. Walking among the rustling leaves outside of this cottage is John Hillgrove ( Herbert Marshall )...a blind man. And yet, a man who can truly see, for he possesses the gift of inner sight; the ability to sense the true nature of a being, and to sense the magical aura an "enchanted" cottage, like the one before him, can cast. Being a composer, he seeks inspiration for his musical skill, and on this beautiful December morning Fate brings him to meet Miss Pennington ( Dorothy McGuire ), a young woman who will one day kindle his imagination with the musical strains of an emotion waiting to be set to music.

Miss Laura Pennington is our rather plain-looking heroine. A lost soul seeking a Home; a place of rest; a place where she can feel she belongs. She hopes to find it in her hometown. Returning after an absence of a few years she comes to the cottage to obtain the position of a maid.

Known locally as "The Witch", Mrs. Abigail Minnett ( Mildred Natwick ) runs the place, and having recently rented it to a soon-to-be-married couple, she's looking for a level-headed woman to help with the housework. Miss Pennington says she does not believe the rumor of the cottage being haunted and is readily given the job. It is not so much her superstitious disbelief that makes Mrs. Minnett hire her, but rather her confession to being lonely....a feeling Mrs. Minnett can sadly relate to.

That afternoon Mr.Oliver Bradford ( Robert Young ) and his fiancee ( Hillary Brooke ) arrive to look over the cottage. They are a young society couple and Oliver is obviously taken by the charm of the place and convinces his fiancee that it is the ideal location in which to spend their honeymoon. Within a week they plan on getting married, but that blissful day will never come, for War is declared soon after and being an Army pilot, Mr.Bradford is swiftly given his overseas departure orders.

Over a year later he returns to the cottage a changed man - a disfigured man. This time it is not a honeymoon oasis he is seeking but rather a place of retreat from his family, his fiancee and the society that brands him an outcast and tries to comfort him with pity. A broken man, he is searching for a new foothold on life. It is not only peace that he shall find at the enchanted cottage, but something even more wonderful.....lasting love.

Originally a stage play written by Sir Arthur Wing Pinero in 1923, The Enchanted Cottage was first brought to the screen in 1924 in a silent film production by First National starring Richard Barthelmess and May McAvoy. RKO released this film adaption in 1945, and Lux used the same cast in a radio play that year as well. Robert Young and Dorothy McGuire were a perfect team ( they had starred together two years earlier in another stage adaption, Claudia ) for this "enchanting" tale and each brings a unique quality to their roles - Dorothy, with her look of inner sadness and breathless timidness, and Robert with his kind and honest appearance that not even a facial scar can alter. Mildred Natwick is marvelous as usual, as the lonely widow with whom time has stood still. And best of all is the magnificent Herbert Marshall. This man is always a pleasure to behold. 

"Through the eyes of Love, one can see everlasting Beauty " is the theme of The Enchanted Cottage, and yet, lying just beneath the surface the film tells other tales. It's a story of kindness: a lonely woman welcoming a stranger into her home, befriending her, and sharing in her happiness and sorrow; a young woman reaching out to a man in need of compassion and sympathetic understanding. It's a story of acceptance: accepting your situation in life and wanting to see it in a brighter perspective; accepting others for who they are and loving them for it. Its a story of Time: the Past frozen on a calender for a widow to remember, the Present being days of war and personal hardship, the Future being the only bright star of hope and happiness. And most importantly, it's a story of truth: eyes that see the true, the real, in a blind world. John Hillgrove tells Oliver that his blindness has opened up new worlds for him allowing him to use senses that show things as they really are, making nature and human beings all the more beautiful to him.....

" Sometimes I feel that before I was blind, and only now I can see "

The Enchanted Cottage is an atmospheric romantic fantasy with lovely music by Roy Webb ( nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Score ) and beautiful cinematography. It leaves a memorable impression on the viewer, and you will want to see it many times over.