fantasticdoug

I found "Exiled to Shanghai" hiding on a book shelf among my collection of old B&W films on DVD so I thought I would watch it. I found it an interesting movie because it delves into the early days of television broadcasting way back in 1937. There are a number of character actors in the movie who were popular back in the day including Wallace Ford, Dean Jagger, Arthur Lake, and Jonathan Hale. And the very pretty June Travis is there for as the spirited Nancy Jones that Wallace Ford,as Ted Young, falls completely for. One of the highlights of the movie is when Ted Young has to tell a client how a TV signal will be able to travel from Los Angeles to New York City. The curvature of the Earth and mountains pose a big problem. However, Ted comes up with a fascinating spur of the moment solution that the network decides to use. Even though the movie is not rated, I say it is worthy of a "PG" theatrical rating. I am giving the movie 9 out of 10 stars which is thumbs way up!

This is one of those films made during the 1930's that have been called a screwball comedy. It is lighthearted and funny guaranteed to keep you in stitches and is suitable for the entire family. On the introduction given by Robert Osborne for the DVD release,he states that John Barrymore refused to learn his lines and read everything off cue cards but the audience was never aware of it. Barrymore also had a habit of stealing every scene he was in. That is the mark of a true professional! Don Ameche and Claudette Colbert make this movie so enjoyable and the acting of John Barrymore,Francis Lederer,Mary Astor,Elaine Barrie,Monty Woolley,and Heda Hopper provides 95 minutes of great entertainment! The movie was filmed by Paramount then later sold to Universal Studios who has it available now on DVD in their Cinema Classics collection. I recommend "Midnight" for anyone who has a serious interest in old classic movies!

A lot of reviews have been written about this movie called "Nailed". The approval ratings have been varied. I looked it up in Leonard Maltin's Movie Guide and he never bothered to review it. That sent up a red flag immediately. Anyway,I found myself with a morning to kill and discovered this movie on TV while I was channel surfing. So I propped my feet up and decided to watch it. That was one bad mistake. This film is about a family so mixed up they don't know what they are doing. Not only do I not recommend it, I will never ever see it again. It is beyond terrible! I gave it one star approval and I was very generous with that rating. Next time I am in a mood for a really good movie, I will watch "Casablanca" starring Humphrey Bogart. Now that's entertainment!