Holiday Inn

It's that time of the year, the holiday season. Everyone has their favorite Christmas movies, right? I grew up in a house that always watched It's a Wonderful Life and White Christmas. Oh, and Jingle All the Way, Home Alone and many others are frequent watches come December. Then there's 1942's Holiday Inn, one my Dad and his siblings grew up on, one I hadn't seen all the way through since I was a kid. Thanks to a film series at Orland Marcus, I was able to watch it on the big screen.

A successful singer, songwriter and entertainer, Jim Hardy (Bing Crosby) is ready to walk away from his busy entertainment lifestyle. He's bought a farm in the Connecticut countryside and is going to move there with Lila (Virginia Dale), his singing/dancing partner, after one last show. Well, that's the plan at least. Lila instead chooses to go with Jim's rival and quasi-partner, Ted Hanover (Fred Astaire), leaving Jim to move to his spacious farm and country inn by himself. The country life doesn't seem to agree with him, forcing the talented entertainer to come up with a new plan. Looking to provide a new sort of entertainment outlet, Jim decides to open the inn as Holiday Inn, a club/restaurant that's only open on the major holidays. With some help from a young, talented singer/dancer, Linda Mason (Marjorie Reynolds), he puts his plan into action that works immediately....until Ted shows up on his doorstep.

My parents have said over the years I was born in the wrong generation. Case in point? Old movies, almost all of my favorite movies released before 1970. So when chances come along to see some of these old classics in theaters, I've gotta jump at the chance. This musical comedy from director Mark Sandrich doesn't scream 'BIG SCREEN!' like say, Lawrence of Arabia, but in its original black and white format, it looks great 71 years since its original release. It isn't a prototypical Christmas movie -- covering a whole lot of holidays -- but there is a certain holiday charm to it, an old school charm that plays well now in 2013. It's funny with a talented cast, has some good musical numbers and deserves its place with the rest of the frequent watches come December and the holiday season.

For me, it's hard not to compare 'Holiday' to 1954's White Christmas, one of my all-time favorites. Both films rely on the chemistry (and quasi-rivalry) with its two male leads, Crosby and Astaire here, Crosby and Danny Kaye in 'White.' Here between Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire, it ain't so much of a friendship, leaning far more to the rivalry-side. It plays like two high school students trying to one-up each other, Crosby's Jim falling for Reynolds' Linda, Astaire's Ted also falling for her as a dancer partner, wanting to take her to the big time as an entertainer. So friendship is out the window, but the rivalry does provide some fireworks, the rivalry nonetheless showing off that chemistry between the duo. It's always fun too when the two rivals get to fight over the ladies in their lives, notably the angelic Linda and the conniving, man-eating Lila. Also look for Walter Abel as Danny, Ted's conniving manager with dollar signs for eyes.

Enough with acting and story, onto the songs!!! Yeah, I know, pretty manly intro. When the music is from composer Irving Berlin, it doesn't matter the movie. I'm going to be on board. 'Holiday' is probably most famous for really putting one of the best Christmas songs ever, White Christmas, out there for audiences to appreciate. For the four people who haven't heard the song, listen to it HERE. With Bing Crosby singing, we're talking about one classic Christmas carol. 'Holiday' even won an Oscar for the song while picking up nominations for best writing and best original story. It deserves its status as a worthwhile, classic holiday movie for that song alone.

More than just one song though, 'Holiday' has 12 different songs written expressly for the script/screenplay. The story more than anything is simply an excuse to string the songs together into something coherent more than just a stage/entertainment show. That's where the style comes in, Jim's Holiday Inn only opening for the major holidays, stylish calendar inserts introducing one number after another. Without posting a boatload of links, check a series of them out HERE. There is most definitely a variety to choose from. Some give Bing a chance to sing, others a chance for Fred to dance and with crossovers featuring both, not to mention Linda and Lila getting into the action. Never a dull moment, and musical numbers that are entertaining without being awkwardly embarrassing and find new ways to get those numbers into a story.

There is one other thing worth mentioning. A musical number for Lincoln's birthday, Abraham, has Bing and Marjorie, the band and the waitstaff in blackface. All sorts of politically incorrect in this very politically correct era. Naturally, it doesn't age well to the point its laughable in its execution. Decent enough song, but it's hard not to chuckle at it now. Watch it HERE. I didn't find it particularly offensive, but be forewarned, some people are offended far easier than I am. Also in the cringe-worthy department is Jim's cook/maid/housekeeper, Mamie (Louise Beavers). Not bad stuff, just a little dated. Still, the movie itself is a gem, well worth checking out for the holiday seasons.

Holiday Inn (1942): ***/****

Pal Joey

There aren't too many actors-performers-entertainers cooler than Frank Sinatra. A movie star since the 1940s, Sinatra hit his groove as a dramatic actor in the mid 1950s in films like From Here to Eternity. How about 1957's Pal Joey? Based off a novel turned stage play, it allows Sinatra to show off that dramatic side while also playing a role that ain't so far removed from his real-life persona. 

Kicked out of one town after another, second-rate singer and performer Joey Evans (Sinatra) arrives in San Francisco on the train with a few bucks in his pockets and the clothes on his back. A performer and singer, Joey wants nothing more than to have his own club, his name in lights outside, but his own troubles with women always derail those plans. He does manage to get a job at a small club where he meets Linda (Kim Novak), a naive, young dancer who still manages to see Joey's act. Undeterred, Joey still has his eyes set on her when he meets Vera Prentice-Simpson (Rita Hayworth), a former stripper turned lonely widow looking for a project. Getting along with Vera and more, Joey has a chance to hit the big time if he plays his cards right, but his old ways are just waiting to make an appearance, ruining everything.

A book turned highly successful musical turned highly successful movie, 'Pal' has quite the history. By the time it reached theaters in director George Sidney's film, it had undergone quite the transformation. Characters have been completely removed, some plot lines thrown by the wayside, other characters tweaked and turned to help make a pretty involved stage play more manageable. Sidney's film version picked up four Oscar nominations (but didn't win any) and two Golden Globe nominations, Sinatra winning for Best Actor. It is a fine example of a time and era in Hollywood long since past, stylish and cool without ever really trying too hard.

Here we are though, an issue I think I will have with every musical ever made. The singing, and more importantly, the out of left field, random, unexplained singing where everyone knows the words spontaneously (including the dance numbers). How does 'Pal' solve that issue? All the songs are naturally in the film's story, Joey, Linda and Vera all singing because the story requires it. Novel concept, huh? Sinatra gets his chance to sing, showing off that natural, easy-going stage ability, including The Lady Is a Tramp (HERE) and I Could Write a Book (HERE) among others, with Novak also getting a chance to sing/perform, Hayworth as well (performing but lip-synched). The best thing going though is simple. The songs are catchy, whistle-worthy songs that will be in your head for days. That's not necessarily a good thing, but it works here.

The Wikipedia entry for this flick is spot-on, many critics pointing to it as the definitive Sinatra flick. Sinatra does a fine job making a pretty despicable character at least mildly tolerable and even likable at times. Is it a stretch for him to play a smooth-talking, extremely talented, schmoozing entertainer? Um.....no, but he brings it to life. There are times you just want to slap the character, but that would be too perfect. It's Sinatra playing Sinatra with a slight twist. With several characters completely wiped from the play, the focus remains on Sinatra, Novak and Hayworth. Novak as Linda is in sex kitten mode, singing with that sultry voice and dancing with.....well, not much on (watch HERE). Hayworth as the slightly older, very smart and been there, seen that Vera is a scene-stealer as well, manipulating and twisting things as she sees necessary. A fine trio to lead the movie's smallish cast.

Also look for Barbara Nichols as Gladys, the conniving dancer/performer Joey bristles at, Bobby Sherwood as Ned, the bandleader who knows Joey's past and typical transgressions, and Hank Henry as Mike Miggins, the club owner who not so willingly gives Joey a shot at his club when he makes a high-reaching promise.

Having seen the play on the North Side of Chicago with the girlfriend in April, I was surprised to see how much was in fact snipped, cut up and prodded along to turn it into the film version. A lot has been changed. Most of the changes were wise choices in hopes of keeping the movie doable in a 109-minute final product. It is a 1957 movie, and the ending is basically the complete polar opposite of the play. For any sort of reality, it's dumb, basically washing away any character study we've developed up to this point with the Joey character. For the sake of a happy ending though, it works....I suppose. It drags a little in the second half, but the talents of the cast make up for some of the slow going. Long story short, it's Frank Sinatra being as cool as he ever was.

Pal Joey (1957): ***/****

Let's Make Love

Oh, no, here I go again doing another musical review. Okay, that's not entirely true. A comedy with musical numbers, but I'm definitely leaning more toward the musical department with this one. Drawn in by a talented cast, I nonetheless came away unimpressed with 1960's Let's Make Love. Scandalous title? I suppose people had sex in the 1950s/1960s, but do they have to rub it in our face like this?

A billionaire who has everything in the world he could ever want, Jean-Marc Clement (Yves Montand) is internationally known as quite the ladies man. He's approached by one of his PR men, Alexander Coffman (Tony Randall), with news of an off-Broadway play that's going to poke some serious fun at him. Jean-Marc wants to go check out a rehearsal, see what it's all about, but there's a hiccup. Arriving at rehearsal, two things happen. First, he is immediately struck by Amanda (Marilyn Monroe), one of the actresses, and second, he's mistaken for an impressionist of....himself. He's hired and in hopes of getting the girl, goes along with the plan to play himself. And let the hijinks and shenanigans begin!

Far more for the cast aspect than the musical, I dove headfirst into this George Cukor-directed quasi-musical. The potential early-on was certainly there, but over the course of a 119-minute movie that potential never actually left the landing pad. It has a somewhat checkered past as everyone from Gregory Peck to Yul Bynner turned down the part (find the full list HERE at Wikipedia), an uncredited Arthur Miller revised the script to give more screentime to Mrs. Arthur Miller -- Marilyn for those keeping track at home -- and oh, by the way, Monroe and Montand had on-set affair. Awkward much?

My revised stance on musicals is that if there is a worthwhile cast I should at least give it a try. Of the three names listed above though, Monroe is the only one who ends up being even remotely memorable. She sings, she dances, and once again shows that she is not just eye candy. Side note: She looks beautiful. End of side note. Monroe could act too, and not just a ditzy blonde. Montand is a little stiff for the part, and while I've liked him in everything else I've seen him in, he just isn't very likable here. Chemistry off-screen with Monroe maybe, but on-screen, I never bought their possibly budding relationship. As for Randall, it's just not his fault. He provides some laughs early on, but the script basically has his character written out in the second half. He sits and watches other people act/dance/sing. Literally. He sits there off stage and has to smile. What a waste of a very funny comedic actor.

So that potential I was talking about, huh? I thought I'd stumbled upon a hidden gem early on. The opening montage, a history of the rich but always ill-fated Clement family, is hysterical in its dark humor. Montand's face is super-imposed on images throughout the Clement history, a succession of his ancestors earning their millions and dying in some tragically funny way. The laughs sort of dry up after that opening three minutes. That's a good sign of a movie if there ever was. Also look for three cameos that make the draggy middle portions almost watchable. As Jean-Marc tries to impress Monroe's Amanda, he hires coaches in the form of Milton Berle (comedy), Bing Crosby (singing) and Gene Kelly (dancing). Playing themselves, the trio provides some much needed laughs.

Mostly though, things never click. Clocking in at just under two hours, this is a painfully slow movie. There are eight different musical numbers that aren't that bad in themselves, but when they slow up an already slow-moving story, we're in for a long ride. I'll recommend it for Monroe, Randall and the cameos -- too short though they are -- but I was bored almost from the start with this one, and it never gets better.

Let's Make Love <---trailer (1960): **/****

Rock of Ages

If there is a time more ripe for the picking in terms of a musical spoof extravaganza, I can't think of a better one than the late 1980s. Glam rock and hair bands ruled the world with their huge power ballads, filling arenas and venues wherever they went with their screaming, adoring fans. Over 20 years later, it's easy to see how cliched, stereotypical and easy to pick on this time was, but treading that fine line down the middle is 2012's Rock of Ages. It's struggling in theaters so if you want to see it, don't wait too long.

Having left small-town Oklahoma behind, Sherrie Christian (Julianne Hough) gets off a bus in Los Angeles on the Sunset Strip and gets a job as a waitress at the famous rock club, The Bourbon Room. She has dreams of hitting it big as a singer, and hits it off immediately with a bar-back at Bourbon, Drew (Diego Boneta), who has similar dreams of becoming a star. The Bourbon Room is in trouble though as a crusading mayor and his wife (Catherine Zeta-Jones) want to shut down the rock scene for the "sake of the kids." The club looks like it's got one shot at saving itself, and that's the first show of rock god Stacee Jaxx (Tom Cruise) and his band Arsenal's farewell tour.

Oh, did I mention this is a musical? No? Okay, well more on that later. From director Adam Shankman comes an odd but interesting, off-beat but funny and in the end, entertaining movie. Considering the source material, 'Rock' thankfully doesn't take itself too seriously, having some fun with the general extravagances of the music industry in the late 1980s. It's all pretty ridiculous with a pretty thin script, but it's fun just the same. With so many (we're talking lots of songs) musical numbers, there just isn't enough time to actually develop much of a story other than 1. Girl falls for boy. 2. Club must save itself. 3. Huge star begins to question himself. 4. Parents' groups try to ruin rock. Nothing particularly new there in other words.

Maybe it was just the commercials (or lack of) I saw, but not all of them painted this as a musical. Thankfully before seeing it, I did figure that out, but it was clear when Hough's Sherrie bursts into song 6 seconds into the movie that....hey, I think this is a musical. Brace yourself, but here's a list of the bands featured here, the cast doing their own covers. And away we go with....Night Ranger, David Lee Roth, Poison, Foreigner, Joan Jett, Pat Benatar, Extreme, Warrant, Bon Jovi, Twisted Sister, Def Leppard, Quarterflash, Whitesnake, REO Speedwagon, Journey, Starship, Guns N' Roses, and Scorpions. Disappointed in that listing? That's just the songs that get the full treatment. There's another handful or so that are sampled at different point. Some songs fit better than others, some are more entertaining than others. Certain songs seem jammed into the sake of the story for the sake of having it there, but I guess that's what happens with a rock opera featuring that many different songs.

I'll get into the cast more in a minute, but Tom Cruise as Stacee Jaxx is getting his own paragraph here. Nearing his 50th birthday, Cruise has found ways to stay fresh with his film roles, and this is a prime example of that. Lead singer of Arsenal, Stacee is planning to go solo and is everything good and bad about the industry at the times. A diva who guzzles liquor, has countless groupies with him at all times, and has a baboon as a servant named 'Hey Man.' In one great scene with a Rolling Stone reporter (Malin Akerman, surprisingly funny), he goes on this rant about who and what he is, getting more out there with each passing word. A one-on-one with club owner Alec Baldwin is hysterical, neither man sure if the other one understands what's being said, symbolism and metaphors flying, Cruise questioning "Can you house a rising phoenix?" Cruise alone -- committing full force to the exaggerated portrayal -- is worth the price of admission.

The rest of the ensemble is more hit or miss unfortunately. Hough is a stunner to look at, and a very talented singer/dancer, but as an actress she's just not there yet. The same for Boneta as Drew, neither lead character producing much interest for the viewer (for me at least). Baldwin and club partner Lonny (Russell Brand, who I'm typically not a fan of) are a match made in heaven, Baldwin's Dennis Dupress desperate to keep his club open, Lonny a diehard rock fan at his side. Some of the funniest scenes -- including one priceless duet -- comes from them seemingly working on the fly. Zeta-Jones and husband Bryan Cranston are tolerable but nothing more. Paul Giamatti is an appropriately slimy manager for Stacee, and ends up being a suitable villain. The very talented Mary J. Blige is given little to do but belt out some songs as Justice, owner of a high-class strip club.

My objection here has little to do with the fact I'm reviewing a musical (brace for lightning strike) but more the actual music. Your enjoyment/hatred will no doubt come from your background with the music. Do you love big 1980s music? You'll love the movie. Using the songs though as the script though comes across as lazy to me. In certain places, it feels like a square peg into a round slot, getting a song into the story for the sake of it being there. And at a sometimes slow 123 minutes, there's a lot of singing. It gets to be like celebrity karaoke at a certain point. Good songs? Yes, you bet. Too much of a good thing? Yes, you bet. Still, the movie is genuinely funny, and some members of the cast -- Cruise, Baldwin, Brand, Giamatti -- make it worthwhile. Just know what you're getting into.

Rock of Ages <---trailer (2012): ** 1/2 /****

The French Line

In a time where everyone and everything has to be politically correct, it can be funny to look back on other times and see what was then considered censurable-material.  Where better to start than the 1950s where TV shows like Leave it to Beaver and Happy Days have helped convince the world that the decade was flawless with no imperfections?  The movie is 1953's The French Line, a musical -- a logical place to censor -- that now over 50 years later seems tame.

Who knows though, those 50s censors must have been pretty fast with the old trigger finger.  The main issue here by the censors and the Catholic Legion of Decency was star Jane Russell and the outfits -- or lack of -- she wore in the movie originally released in 3-D format.  The flick's tagline even said 'Jane Russell will knock both your eyes out!'  Pretty subtle if you ask me.  From the time she was introduced in The Outlaw, studios wanted to flaunt what God gave her, especially mega-millionaire and film producer/director Howard Hughes, and her roles typically had her in the skimpiest/tightest outfits around.  But now watching this in 2010, it seems tame to say the least.

With oil fields and millions of dollars to her name, Mary Carson (Russell) can't seem to find a husband.  All the men she meets are intimidated by her piles of money, including the latest fiance who bails days before the wedding.  She goes to New York to visit a friend, Annie(Mary McCarty) and thinks up a scheme to meet a man who will like her for her, not her money.  Mary's going to pose as a model while a model will pose as May. Her protector and ranch foreman, Waco Mosby (Arthur Hunnicutt), is worried somebody will take advantage of her and hires a Spanish/French playboy Pierre DuQuesne (Gilbert Roland) to tag along and keep an eye on her. But uh-oh, that crafty plan has an impact when Pierre confuses model for millionaire.

I typically avoid musicals like the plague unless they're holiday-themed or involve Bing Crosby in some way, but I liked the cast here so I gave it a try.  It plays like any number of 1950s comedies with plots so thin yet so ridiculous that they come across like extended episodes of I Love Lucy with Mary and Annie filling in nicely for Lucy and Ethel.  The 'find me a husband' story also feels very dated, very 50s, with feminists ripping their hair out at the very thought.  There's also one sticking point.  A rich woman who looks like Jane Russell can't find a husband?  I'll believe that when I see it.

Now whether I liked the cast or not, I always have an issue with musicals.  I know they're supposed to sing and do extravagant numbers every 10 or 15 minutes, but it never fails to make me laugh how they transition from conversation to a song and dance number.  Then, what do they do afterward. "Oh, so the song's over? What should we do now? Wanna get some dinner?"  That said, the numbers here aren't bad.  Russell was a pretty decent singer and even released several songs on top of her acting career.  Roland, not so much, who is an odd choice and a little old to play Russell's romantic interest.

As for the censors who were worried about Russell revealing too much, it's just funny.  Here's the non-edited version of this offensive scene.  The TCM version moves the camera back about 20 feet, and you can barely make Russell out.  I guess the censors didn't want Russell to actually knock people's eyes out in theaters across the country, but who knows for sure?  Check out the edited cut of that scene HERE. There's also this scandalous scene where she *gasp* takes a bath with plenty of split-second timing to actually avoid seeing anything you shouldn't see.  Pretty sneaky, movie editors and censors!

Extremely tame by today's standards, The French Line is still a mess of a movie.  Watch Roland make women swoon and get them drunk at the same time -- classy, huh? -- and Hunnicutt overact and scream to the point where you just want him to shut up.  A reviewer said this movie was made so moviegoers could check out Russell's anatomy, and that's about as dead-on a description as I can think of.  Russell is beautiful and not a bad actress/singer to boot.  Other than that, this one is a bomb.

The French Line <----trailer (1953): **/****