Review: 1940 "Pride and Prejudice" is Bubbly (Remembering Jane Austen)

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 243 (of 2006) by Leroy Douresseaux

Pride and Prejudice (1940) – B&W
Running time:  118 minutes (1 hour, 58 minutes)
DIRECTOR:  Robert Z. Leonard
WRITERS:  Aldous Huxley and Jane Murfin (based upon Helen Jerome’s dramatization of Jane Austen’s novel)
PRODUCER:  Hunt Stromberg
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Karl Freund
EDITOR:  Robert Kern
COMPOSER:  Herbert Stothart
Academy Award winner

COMEDY/DRAMA/ROMANCE

Starring:  Greer Garson, Laurence Olivier, Mary Boland, Edna May Oliver, Maureen O’Sullivan, Ann Rutherford, Frieda Inescort, Edmund Gwenn, Karen Morely, Heather Angel, Marsha Hunt, Bruce Lester, Edward Ashley, and Melville Cooper

The subject of this movie review is Pride and Prejudice, a 1940 comedy, drama, and romance from director Robert Z. Leonard (The Great Ziegfeld).  The film is based on Pride and Prejudice, the novel by Jane Austen that was first published in 1813.

However, the screenplay is adapted from Pride and Prejudice: A Sentimental Comedy Written in Three Acts.  This was a stage adaptation of Austen’s novel that was written by Helen Jerome and was played on Broadway in 1935.  Aldous Huxley, the English writer who is best known for his novel, Brave New World (1932), is one of this film’s two screenwriters.  The 1940 film also deviates from the novel, including a change in the time period in which the story takes place.

Status-conscious Mrs. Bennet (Mary Boland) is eager to marry her five daughters, while Mr. Bennet (Edmund Gwenn) would just love a peaceful home.  The Bennets however are middle class and “penniless,” so when two upper class men become interested in her eldest daughters, Elizabeth (Greer Garson) and Jane (Maureen O’Sullivan), a furious class war begins.

The strong-willed Elizabeth or Lizzy runs up against the proud and arrogant Mr. Darcy (Laurence Olivier), a man with a large fortune.  Jane falls for Charles Bingley (Bruce Lester), whose sister, Caroline (Frieda Inescort), holds the Bennets in disdain.  Although she continuously rebuffs her suitor, Lizzy can’t help but be attracted to the smoldering Darcy, even if she is prejudiced against his prideful ways.

Warner Bros.’s DVD box set of MGM literary adaptation, Motion Picture Masterpieces, offers many delights, and I’ve been waiting a long time for one in particular: Pride and Prejudice, MGM’s adaptation of Jane Austen’s much-loved (and much filmed) novel.  This version is largely unfaithful to Austen’s book (being as the movie is adapted from an adaptation of the original novel), but this is still highly entertaining.  The film is a comic romance and light drama, with Austen’s biting insults turned into witty banter fit for a comedy and romance.  Mannered melodrama also passes as dramatic turmoil and conflict.  Still, this lively movie almost makes one forget literary accuracies.  I found myself thrilling to the amusing twists, childish feuds, and slight class warfare, as I waited for the inevitable happy ending.

Greer Garson plays Lizzy Bennet as a strong and independent woman who can give both severe and playful rebukes.  Initially, Laurence Olivier’s Mr. Darcy comes across as supremely aloof.  That is before he turns the character more benign than petty, and Darcy’s off-putting aloofness becomes delightfully aloof.  Until the 1990’s, Olivier can be considered the supreme cinematic interpreter of an Austen male character.

Surprisingly, MGM, in a bid to keep Pride and Prejudice’s budget modest, reused many of the costumes Walter Plunkett designed for Gone with the Wind, so some of women of Pride and Prejudice look like Southern belles.  However, famed MGM designer Adrian created gowns for the film’s principals, and Gile Steele designed handsome and lavish suits for the men.  Pride and Prejudice won an Oscar for its art direction (for a black and white film), and the movie’s setting and backdrops represent the best of what MGM’s 1930’s-40’s dream factory could do when it came to production values.

So when such gorgeous production values are added to witty repartee, lovable characters, and bubbly comic romance, the viewer usually gets a winner and that is what Pride and Prejudice is – a winner and a personal favorite of mine.

7 of 10
A-

Tuesday, November 28, 2006

Updated:  Friday, July 18, 2014

NOTES:
1941 Academy Awards, USA:  1 win: “Best Art Direction, Black-and-White” (Cedric Gibbons and Paul Groesse)

The text is copyright © 2014 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site for syndication rights and fees.

Malcolm McDowell’s Documentary “Never Apologize” on DVD May 31

Malcolm McDowell’s Never Apologize will also be released on May 31 for the first time on DVD in the U.S. This spirited documentary pays tribute to British director Lindsay Anderson, who directed the actor in his films If and O Lucky Man and is based on his entertaining London and Edinburgh one-man stage shows. The film weaves McDowell’s experience of working with Anderson as well as tales of Sir Alan Bates, Sir John Gielgud, Sir Laurence Olivier, Bette Davis, Princess Diana, John Ford and Lillian Gish. Never Apologize will sell for $19.97 SRP.

McDowell stars in the upcoming film Vamps, directed by Amy Heckerling, opening later this year. And Franklin & Bash, the new TNT comedy-drama TV series debuting this summer features McDowell as the head of a buttoned-down law firm joined by two young, fly-by-the-seat-of-their-pants street lawyers who cause a seismic culture clash within the firm. He will also be featured in the upcoming film Silent Hill Revelation, the sequel to the 2006 hit Silent Hill.

Never Apologize (DVD)
Street Date: May 31, 2011
$19.97 SRP
UPC # 883929166565


Never Apologize

Original "Clash of the Titans" B-Movie Fun

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 98 (of 2003) by Leroy Douresseaux

Clash of the Titans (1981)
Running time: 118 minutes (1 hour, 58 minutes)
DIRECTOR: Desmond Davis
WRITER: Beverley Cross
PRODUCERS: Ray Harryhausen and Charles H. Schneer
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Ted Moore (D.o.P.)
EDITOR: Timothy Gee

FANTASY/ACTION/ADVENTURE/FAMILY/ROMANCE

Starring: Harry Hamlin, Judi Bowker, Burgess Meredith, Laurence Olivier, Clair Bloom, Maggie Smith, Ursula Andress, Sian Phillips and Neil McCarthy

Since the original, classic, black and white film, King Kong, special effects wizard Ray Harryhausen was known for his meticulous use of stop-motion photography. This was the method of photographing models one frame at a time, from 25 to 35 frames for every one second of film that gave the models the illusion of life. Before computer-generated imagery (CGI), this was how fantastic creatures were given life in films. The special effects crew of The Empire Strikes Back made extensive use of the method for several scenes on the ice planet of Hoth. Harryhausen’s most famous and best example of his use of the technique is the famous skeleton fighters from Jason and the Argonauts.

Clash of the Titans, a big-budget spectacular back from the early 80’s, was Harryhausen’s last film before his retirement from filmmaking. The tale borrowed liberally from Greek mythology, and the master Harryhausen brought many wonderful creations to life for the film, my favorite being the gorgon, Medusa.

Perseus (Harry Hamlin) must find a way to defeat the Kraken (another Harryhausen creation) before his betrothed Andromeda (Judi Bowker) is sacrificed to the creature for the appeasement of a jealous goddess. With his trusty winged steed, Pegasus (more Harryhausen), Perseus sets off to obtain the head of Medusa, whose face turns men who gaze upon it to stone. It is the only thing that will stop the Kraken from snacking on his virginal bride-to-be.

Though the effects look dated, Clash of the Titans is fun, family-oriented fantasy. It’s exciting and adventuresome in a quaint sort of way, and it has never lost its charm. The combination of Greek myth, a cast that includes revered British actors, fantasy and fantastic creatures, with a B-movie pace makes this a delightful film treat for the young at heart.

6 of 10
B

Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow a Fluffy Fantasia

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 186 (of 2004) by Leroy Douresseaux


Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow (2004)
Running time: 107 minutes (1 hour, 47 minutes)
MPAA – PG for sequences of stylized sci-fi violence and brief mild language
WRITER/DIRECTOR: Kerry Conran
PRODUCERS: Jon Avnet, Marsha Oglesby, Sadie Frost, and Jude Law
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Eric Adkins
EDITOR: Sabrina Plisco, A.C.E.

SCI-FI/ACTION/ADVENTURE with elements of a mystery

Starring: Gwyneth Paltrow, Jude Law, Giovanni Ribisi, Michael Gambon, Bai Ling, Omid Djalili, and Angelina Jolie

Writer/director Kerry Conran’s Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow is the first feature film released to theatres in which the live action photography was shot entirely against a blue screen. After the completion of principal photography, the filmmakers filled in every frame-detail digitally. The film has virtually no real sets and no actual locations. Digital technology and CGI (computer generated imagery or computer graphic imagery) created the sets: from the skyscraper mountains of 1930’s New York City (an NYC that never quite existed) to the lush primordial jungle of a lost island; from the art deco offices of the Chronicle newspaper offices in New York to the streamlined sci-fi fortress of the mad villain.

In the story, Chronicle newspaper reporter Polly Perkins (Gwyneth Paltrow) is investigating the disappearances of several famous scientists when she meets Dr. Walter Jennings (Trevor Baxter) who believes that he will be the next scientific genius to be kidnapped. The doomed man whispers one word into her ear, the name of the man hunting him, Totenkopf. Polly enlists the help of her old flame, Captain H. Joseph Sullivan (Jude Law) – aka – Sky Captain, an ace aviator with daredevil flying skills, a heroic pilot who is part Buck Rogers and part Indiana Jones, who is also hunting Totenkopf. Meanwhile, the mysterious Dr. Totenkopf sends his giant robots and other diabolical machines around the world to steal machines and building supplies. Polly and Sky Captain travel to the Himalayan Alps and beyond in search of the evil mastermind behind a plot to destroy the world. With the help of Sky Captain’s old friend, Franky Cook (Angelina Jolie), the captain of an amphibious squadron, and Sky Captain’s technical super genius Dex Dearborn (Giovanni Ribisi), Polly and Sky Captain are the planet’s only hope against Totenkopf’s plot.

Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow certainly wears its influences on its sleeves. The film borrows (current PC term is homage) from films like King Kong, Lost Horizon, and 40’s aerial flicks like the Buck Rogers and Flash Gordon serials. The film also borrows heavily from Max Fleischer’s Superman cartoons, film noir, and the old sci-fi, fantasy, and adventure stories found in pulp fiction magazines like Weird Tales. The late Sir Laurence Olivier even makes a surprise cameo via archival black and white film footage.

The acting is pretty good, good enough for a film that is just a fluffy piece of adventure entertainment. There is, however, something great about Gwyneth Paltrow as reporter Polly Perkins. She plays the part with the sass and self-assuredness of the great “girl reporters” of the screen. It’s a shame her character was lost in a film in which the effects and explosions dominated the tale.

But is the movie good? Sky Captain is a rollicking adventure like Raiders of the Lost Ark, itself an homage to old Saturday matinee adventure serials, but Sky Captain isn’t as good as Raiders. In fact, sometimes, the film is quite dry, and for all its visual aplomb, the film has nothing to say. The wonderful digital visual images often come across as plastic fantastic. The film has one truly great sequence, Sky Captain’s duel with Totenkopf’s flying machines through the concrete canyons of New York City is as good as any other aerial duel every put on film. A later underwater duel is quite good, but not as great as NYC throw down, but still good.

Early on, I found the film’s retro-look and its hazy, quasi color photography that was made to look black and white annoying. The story and plot is light, tightly wound, although the villain’s motivation and plot are ridiculous. The film stumbles drunkenly through the last act to the end, and the resolution with Totenkopf is a miscalculation. It’s a good time at the movies, and Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow actually isn’t as forgettable as a lot of other summer popcorn fluff. I wouldn’t mind visiting the scenario again on DVD, and a sequel would be sweet treat on the level of a Hershey’s Kiss.

6 of 10
B