Danny
Kaye was not only a brilliant triple-threat (actor/singer/dancer), but he was a
stand-up comic, an expert chef, a writer, a pilot, a baseball enthusiast (and,
for a short time, co-owner of a team—the Seattle Mariners), a notable
philanthropist, a UNICEF ambassador, and an honorary member of the American
College of Surgeons and American Academy of Pediatrics (!). His decades-long
career on stage, in film, and on television speaks for itself, but one of his
most beloved screen vehicles was The Court Jester, a 1956 picture that
was shockingly ignored at the Oscars that year (Kaye, who never won an Academy
Award, was nominated for a Golden Globe for his performance).
Even
more disturbing is the fact that it was allegedly the most expensive comedy
film ever produced up to that time and was a box office failure (perhaps that’s
the reason there was no Oscar love). Nevertheless, time has been extremely kind
to the movie through revivals and television broadcasts. Now it’s perhaps the
movie one thinks of when considering Danny Kaye starring vehicles.
The
Court Jester was
written, produced, and directed by the team of Melvin Frank and Norman Panama,
who carved out a comedy-niche in Hollywood beginning in the 1940s by penning
some of Bob Hope’s early classics together. Their White Christmas (1954,
directed by Michael Curtiz) was a massive hit, and it paired Danny Kaye with
Bing Crosby. They had directed Kaye that same year in Knock on Wood… so
they were a good match for the actor on a musical-comedy send-up of The
Adventures of Robin Hood.
Hubert
Hawkins (Kaye) is the affablebut non-heroic member of a band of Merry
Men-like rebels led by Robin Hood-like “The Black Fox†(Edward Ashley). King
Roderick (Cecil Parker) has usurped the throne from its rightful heir—the only
survivor of the royal family, a baby with a peculiar birthmark of a “purple
pimpernel†on his tuchus. The Black Fox’s band of brigands are keeping
the child safe from the king’s men, led by chief antagonist Lord Ravenhurst
(Basil Rathbone). Hawkins is in love with Maid Jean (Glynis Johns), a “captainâ€
in the group, and she reluctantly admits she has affection for him as well.
When the opportunity arises to plant a mole inside the castle to steal keys to
an underground passage that will allow the Black Fox and his men to take
control of the palace and restore the land to its true monarch, Hawkins is
apparently the right man for the job—to impersonate Giacomo the Jester (John
Carradine), who is on his way from Italy to receive employment. Once Hawkins is
ensconced in the castle, the king’s daughter, Gwendolyn (Angela Lansbury) is
told by her confidante and “witch,†Griselda (Mildred Natwick) that “Giacomoâ€
is to be her true beloved and not the king’s ally Sir Griswold (Robert
Middleton). Needless to say, complications arise.
Yes,
it’s a twisty-turny plot with many instances of mistaken identity and
characters intentionally posing as people they are not. There’s romance,
slapstick, clever wordplay, swashbuckling swordplay and action sequences—and
there are song-and-dance musical numbers written by Sammy Cahn and Sylvia Fine
(Kaye’s wife).
The
dialogue is especially witty and fun—what movie buffs have not attempted
to memorize the classic tongue-twister, “The pellet with the poison’s in the
vessel with the pestle; the chalice from the palace has the brew that is true�
(Or the follow-up which replaces the chalice from the palace with the “flagon
with the dragonâ€).
Kaye
is marvelous throughout the picture, of course, and his supporting cast are all
splendid, too. Rathbone, at this point in his mid-60s, still manages to swashbuckle
with skill. Johns and Lansbury, as the dual love interests, are both fetching
and charismatic.
The
new ParamountMovies/Paramount Presents Blu-ray release beautifully shows off the
VistaVision widescreen Technicolor cinematography by Ray June. The images are
absolutely gorgeous. For this alone, the new release is worth the upgrade from
the older DVD edition. The only supplements are a short featurette of critic
Leonard Maltin talking a bit about the movie’s history and influence and the
theatrical trailer.
The
Court Jester is
still funny, still thrilling, and still entertaining today. Is it one of the
best comedies of the 1950s? The answer to that is a resounding YES.
The
Thin Man,
released in 1934, was such a success (and Oscar nominee) that Hollywood decided
to make a sequel (and, in fact, several of them). After the Thin Man,
released in 1936, reunited stars William Powell and Myrna Loy as Nick and Nora
Charles, the Wire Fox Terrier-actor Skippy as “Asta,†director W. S. Van Dyke,
writer Dashiell Hammett (who wrote the original novel and supplied story ideas
for the sequels), and screenwriters Albert Hackett and Frances Goodrich. The
result is a thoroughly enjoyable follow-up, if not quite as brilliant as the
original (sequels seldom are).
One
of the more striking elements of After the Thin Man is the presence of a
young James Stewart in a supporting role. It is one of his earliest screen
appearances, and he displays the charisma that would suit him well for the next
several decades.
The
picture brings back all the trappings of the first movie—the chemistry between
husband-and-wife Nick and Nora, their penchant for cocktails (especially his
penchant), their precocious dog, and the couple’s ability to outsmart the
cops and effortlessly solve a crime. The plot is complex, has many twists and
turns, and keeps an audience guessing (the screenplay received an Oscar
nomination). The big reveal of who the murderer really is may come as a
surprise to most.
Nora
has some troublesome relatives. Her Aunt Katherine (Jessie Ralph) has to be the
most annoying shrew on the planet. However, her daughter, and Nora’s cousin,
Selma (Elissa Landi), is pleasant enough but is married to a scoundrel, Robert
(Alan Marshal). Robert has run off, infatuated with a nightclub singer/dancer,
Polly (Penny Singleton, credited here as Dorothy McNulty). Friend of the family
David (James Stewart) provides support for Selma and wants to pay off Robert
$25,000 (!) to grant Selma a divorce and leave for good. David, perhaps, has a good
reason to do so—he has always carried a torch for Selma. The co-owner of the nightclub,
a guy named Dancer (Joseph Calleia), is shady and schemes with Polly to steal
David’s money from Robert. Added to the mix is Polly’s brother?/boyfriend?/husband?
Phil (Paul Fix), who wants money from Polly, too. When Robert is shot to death
on the street in San Francisco, Selma is arrested and blamed for the murder.
Enter Nick and Nora. Aunt Katherine reluctantly asks the Charles couple to
investigate and clear Selma’s name.
What
follows is the kind of intrigue with laughs that one would expect from a Thin
Man sequel (note: there is no “thin man†character in this one). Also
amusing is the subplot involving Asta and “Mrs. Asta,†another Wire Fox Terrier
who has had Asta’s puppies. There’s a problem, though—one of the pups is all
black, and Asta discovers an all-black Scot Terrier sneaking into the yard and
visiting Mrs. Asta! Uh oh! Asta must continually send the interloper on his way
and chastise the missus. What isn’t explained is why Nick and Nora allow Asta
inside their house all the time and take him around town with them, and yet
Mrs. Asta and the puppies must remain outside in a pen and a doghouse. Doesn’t
seem right, does it?
Powell
and Loy are marvelous in reprising their roles. Stewart is engaging, and Ralph
is hilariously exasperating. The writing is brisk and full of terrific
one-liners. Van Dyke’s direction is breezy, and he handles the complicated
mystery with aplomb. Perhaps the picture is ten or fifteen minutes too long,
but that’s a quibble.
Warner
Archive’s new Blu-ray restoration of an earlier DVD release looks superb.
Supplements include a vintage MGM cartoon short by Hugh Harman and Rudolf
Ising, “The Early Bird and the Worm,†and a 1936 comedy short, “How to Be a
Detective,†starring Robert Benchley. Also included is the LUX Radio adaptation
starring Powell and Loy, an MGM radio promo, and the theatrical trailer. All
good stuff.
After
the Thin Man is
a welcome high-definition addition to sit on the shelf with the earlier release
of The Thin Man. Here’s hoping Warner will issue the remaining titles in
the series on Blu-ray. So, grab your martini shaker, put on your pajamas, settle
back, and have a good time at the movies!
When
Silent Running was released in 1972 as a somewhat “experimental†venture
from Universal Pictures, a studio that had decided to give a handful of new
filmmakers a million dollars each to make whatever they wanted, it flew under
the radar of most folks who weren’t into science fiction. After all, it was a
tough challenge to come up with anything to compete with 2001: A Space
Odyssey (1968), which was still playing on second and third runs around the
world. Silent Running did okay at the box office, but it wasn’t a
runaway hit.
Nevertheless,
Running, which was directed by one of 2001’s visual effects
supervisors, Douglas Trumbull (it was his debut as a director), became a cult
movie that has played revival houses and did good business on home video years
later in multiple formats.
Now,
the excellent outfit Arrow Video has released an outstanding Blu-ray
presentation of the film, and it is cause to re-examine this unique, oddball
little gem. In retrospect, after 48 years, Silent Running has many
positive elements that warrant it as a “must-see,†and yet there are indeed
flaws that perhaps stand out more today than they ever did in the past.
The
screenplay is credited to three men. Deric Washburn (who later penned The
Deer Hunter) and Michael Cimino (!) (who later directed The Deer Hunter,
here credited as “Mike†Cimino) wrote the first few drafts of the script. Then
Steven Bochco (who later was a huge success in television with shows like Hill
Street Blues and NYPD Blue, here credited as “Steve†Bochco), came
in to polish/re-write. Thus, there is some excellent pedigree in the
screenplay, and yet this is perhaps where Silent Running has the most
problems.
Sometime
in the future, plant life is extinct on earth, so American Airlines (American
Airlines??) has outfitted several spaceships to carry domes of “forestsâ€
into space to cultivate them with the intention that one day they will return
and repopulate the planet with vegetation and the wildlife that goes with it.
These spacecrafts are orbiting near Saturn and are manned by a small crew of
four. On one ship, the Valley Forge, Freeman Lowell (Bruce Dern in an
early starring role) takes the job seriously. He is a conservationist, loves
taking care of the plants and animals, and wants to protect them at all costs.
His three crew members (played by Cliff Potts, Ron Rifkin, and Jesse Vint) are
jerks who could care less about the domed forests—they just want to go home. When
the orders come through for the crews to destroy the domes and return to earth,
Lowell, well, becomes incensed and sabotages this plan to save at least one
dome. Assisting Lowell are three “drones†(robots) named Huey, Dewey, and
Louie. What happens next would be a spoiler—let’s just say things don’t work
out quite how Lowell envisions.
The
three drones are portrayed by four bilateral amputee actors—Mark Persons,
Cheryl Sparks, Steven Brown, and Larry Whisenhunt—and they absolutely steal the
movie. Even inside the small, R2D2-like enclosures, they manage to convey
emotions and feelings. They communicate with Lowell, and much of the wonder
of the film is centered around the three drones.
The
visual effects are marvelous. After all, Trumbull is at the helm, and he oversaw
the effects with none other than John Dykstra and Richard Yuricich, who went on
to oversee the visual effects of the likes of Star Wars, Close
Encounters of the Third Kind, Blade Runner, etc. While the budget
didn’t allow for the Grade-A perfect effects of 2001, Running’s
effects are darned good, certainly the landmark of science fiction that
appeared between the releases of 2001 and Star Wars.
The
drawbacks include the decidedly weak story and its logic. Why are the ships all
the way out at Saturn? Couldn’t they be orbiting earth, allowing for a quick
return? What wiped out the plant life on earth? Why does American Airlines
decide to scrap the mission? Who made the boneheaded decision not to
re-cultivate the earth? Isn’t that, well, essential, to sustain all
life?
The
casting of Bruce Dern is also unfortunate. He’s a terrific actor, but his
character and the manic intensity in which he plays it ultimately makes him
unsympathetic. His actions in the story—especially regarding his fellow
crewmembers—do him no favors with the audience. In the end, it’s difficult to
be on his side, even though he is perhaps “doing the right thing.†Alas, the
way he goes about it is simply the wrong thing.
Finally,
the early-70s conservation theme coupled with songs sung by folk artist Joan
Baez in the movie infuse it with something of a “hippie†vibe. Does it seem out
of place today? Perhaps.
Arrow’s
Blu-ray, however, is top-notch. The new 2K restoration is approved by Trumbull for
the release and comes with two audio commentary tracks—one new one with critics
Kim Newman and Barry Forshaw, and an earlier one by Douglas Trumbull and Bruce
Dern. There is an isolated music and effects track, which is welcome because of
the marvelous score by Peter Schickele (the man behind P.D.Q. Bach!) and the
Baez songs. There are also optional English subtitles for the hard of hearing.
Supplements
abound. New to the disk is an interview with film music historian Jeff Bond on
the score, and a superb visual essay by writer/filmmaker Jon Spira that
explores the evolution of the screenplay. Archival supplements from previous
home video releases include a 1972 on-set documentary on the making of the
movie, two archival features on Trumbull and the film, an interview with Dern,
and the theatrical trailer. The first pressing of the release comes with a
beautifully illustrated collectors’ booklet with text by Barry Forshaw and
Peter Tonguette. The jewel case features a reversible sleeve with original
poster and newly commissioned artwork by Arik Roper.
Despite
its flaws, Silent Running is a fascinating look at what Hollywood was
doing in the early 1970s regarding the little-touched genre of science fiction,
and Arrow’s release is an aficionado’s dream.