jayraskin1
Joined Dec 2004
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jayraskin1's rating
Frank Borzage is a great and unique director. He always uniquely mixes radical social politics and Christian mysticism. Films like "Seventh Heaven" (1929), "Lilliom" 1930, "A Farewell to Arms" 1932, and many others hook you with socialist realism and then raises you to heaven (sometimes quite literally) with spirituality.
Even if his strange combination of ideas leaves you cold or confused, you will have to admit he brings out great performances in actors and actresses. Here, Akim Tamiroff and Dorothy Lamour give outstanding performances. I believe this is the only serious performance that the great singer and comedian Lamour ever gave. It is a shame that she never got another chance to play a character with such depth.
It was also the only time I ever saw Gordon Jones in a serious role. I remember him mostly from his hilarious work with Abbott and Costello.
This is also one of the few films that presents the pre-WWII Japanese war against China. As that terrible war was erased from common memory after WWII and the Japanese became good guys and the Chinese the bad guys in Hollywood myth/propaganda, this has important historical value.
Even if his strange combination of ideas leaves you cold or confused, you will have to admit he brings out great performances in actors and actresses. Here, Akim Tamiroff and Dorothy Lamour give outstanding performances. I believe this is the only serious performance that the great singer and comedian Lamour ever gave. It is a shame that she never got another chance to play a character with such depth.
It was also the only time I ever saw Gordon Jones in a serious role. I remember him mostly from his hilarious work with Abbott and Costello.
This is also one of the few films that presents the pre-WWII Japanese war against China. As that terrible war was erased from common memory after WWII and the Japanese became good guys and the Chinese the bad guys in Hollywood myth/propaganda, this has important historical value.
This is a great movie for old time baseball fans as we get to see a dozen or so famous baseball players from the 1920s, 30s and 40s. Nice to find out how successful the Cleveland Indians were in 1948 when they won the World Series and broke attendance records.
However the movie also tries to be a hard edge social drama dealing with juvenile criminality. Here the light-hearted baseball story breaks up and presents us with a seriously disturbed teenage criminal in Rusty Tamblyn ("Seven Brides for Seven Brothers," 1954, "West Side Story," 1961). He loves baseball, but he's attracted to the criminal life for the freedom and easy money. Unfortunately Tamblyn always looks like a sweet and innocent kid even when he's robbing people and threatening their lives.
He was 15 years old when he filmed the movie, but he looks younger, maybe 13 years old.
Again, I gave it 5 stars because the delightful baseball story and the serious juvenile delinquency story undercut each other. However baseball fans can add 2 stars and Russ Tamblyn fans can add 2 stars. Its a must see if you're a baseball and Russ Tamblyn fan.
However the movie also tries to be a hard edge social drama dealing with juvenile criminality. Here the light-hearted baseball story breaks up and presents us with a seriously disturbed teenage criminal in Rusty Tamblyn ("Seven Brides for Seven Brothers," 1954, "West Side Story," 1961). He loves baseball, but he's attracted to the criminal life for the freedom and easy money. Unfortunately Tamblyn always looks like a sweet and innocent kid even when he's robbing people and threatening their lives.
He was 15 years old when he filmed the movie, but he looks younger, maybe 13 years old.
Again, I gave it 5 stars because the delightful baseball story and the serious juvenile delinquency story undercut each other. However baseball fans can add 2 stars and Russ Tamblyn fans can add 2 stars. Its a must see if you're a baseball and Russ Tamblyn fan.