As a special treat (I deserve it!) I watched two of my favourite films this afternoon and will share my happiness with you. The first of these was "The Sun Shines Bright" from 1953, a little-known John Ford beauty. It is a remake of one of his Will Rogers movies from the 1930s and he always said that it was his own favourite amongst his films. I would be hard-pressed to choose one champion from the Ford features that I love, but this movie is certainly among them. It's a small tale of a series of incidents in the daily life of Judge Priest in a small Southern town, and as played by the lovely character actor Charles Winninger it is positively irresistible, despite the jarring Negro stereotypes on view. If you don't know who Stepin Fetchit was, it is probably just as well. Anyhow, I defy any viewer to stay dry-eyed during the last fifteen minutes or so. Ford is a master of emotion and I find myself more moved watching his films than I do with any other director.
The second movie was "Ruggles of Red Gap" from 1935 which has the advantage of starring one of my all-time favourite screen actors, Charles Laughton. He is out of fashion nowadays and not as well-known as he deserves, but along with Spencer Tracy, he was one of the most consummate actors to grace movies, never ever less than immensely watchable even in some of his late rubbishy roles. Here he plays a gentleman's gentleman who is gambled away by his employer in Paris and taken to a hick American Western town by the social-climbing wife of a rough-and-ready Yank. He finds ultimately that America really is the "Land of the Free" and the home of opportunity (at least it was back then!). To watch him reciting the Gettysberg Address to the patrons of a rough saloon is an unforgettable experience. Bliss!!
1 comment:
Where do you manage to get hold of really old movies like this?
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