Show Boat

The 50's version of this isn't as good as the Irene Dunne one.  (I'll have to watch the old one again.)  This was all right.  Lena Horne tried out for the Julie role which dealt with a mixed woman.  It would have been a more interesting choice than Ava.  Now I liked Ava Gardner in One Touch of Venus and The Night of the Iguana but she couldn't sing.  She was dubbed here by Annette Warren, who recorded an album in the '50s.  Imagine what Lena could have done.  Howard Keel plays the love interest for Kathryn Grayson.  Unfortunately, his gambling deteriorates their relationship.  There are many classic songs like Bill which show the musical's longevity. 

East Side Story

This is the third time that I've watched this documentary in the past sixteen years.  It's a documentary about Communist musicals from the '60s and before featuring interviews from some stars of the genre.  There are also interviews from moviegoers from that time.  I immediately watched Hot Summer afterward and it all right.  The thing is that some of these movies look good particularly My Wife wants to Sing and Beloved White Mouse.  It's a shame that most of these musicals aren't released.  There seems to be some false picture that America was the only one doing musicals and it's just not true. 

Late Spring

You can tell an Ozu movie sometimes by their plot.  He liked to do a number of movies about single daughters wanting to stay with their families.  This is no exception but it is a great movie.  This seemed to be a character role for the excellent Japanese actress Setsuko Hara.  I've been watching a number of Asian movies lately and I find them rewarding.

Too Late for Love

When I was a teenager I watched this bad movie called "The Hole."  In the movie, they played some Grace Chang music.  I learned that Grace Chang was a famous actress of the Asian musical genre of the '60s.  She was probably the best actress from that period.  It's a genre I like that not that many Americans know about.  You can't find their movies on Amazon.  I buy my musicals from yesasia.com.  Many of the musicals are subtitled in English although I had to buy a specific DVD player.  Too Late for Love stars Ivy Ling Po, another actress of the genre.  This movie is a downer though.  It's about a newly wedded couple.  The husband goes off to war and the wife has to deal with his mean mother who wants her out of there.  Ivy becomes sick though and the husband gets an injury with the war as well.  There are only three musical numbers in the movie.  The acting was weak at times.  I've seen better movies from Ivy Ling Po and the Shaw Brothers.  Still, it was ok.   

The Cyclops

This is a movie about giant bugs, lizards, and a cyclops - a one-eyed monster.   It's only around an hour.  My sister and I agreed it would have been better if Mystery Science Theatre 3000 covered it.  

The Life of Oharu

This is a good Mizoguchi film.  It's about a girl who is treated like cattle.  At first, she's a concubine but gradually descends to a prostitute.  The makeup is believable as the beautiful woman becomes a hag.  Lately, I've been watching Japanese cinema from the past.  There's a reason why most of Ozu and Mizoguchi's movies make it to the Criterion Collection.  

The Girl Downstairs

This movie was just adorable.  It's about Franchot Tone who uses Franciska Gaal, a foreign maid, to get into the house of a rich girl he is interested in.  He plays the chauffeur to try to appeal to Gaal's social position.  However, he finds himself falling for Gaal. But what will she think of his lies and the fact he is really wealthy?  I've ought to investigate Franciska Gaal.  She was so cute in this. 

Goldie Gets Along

This movie was just bad.  It's obvious that the people making the movie want Lili Damita to be the next Marlene Dietrich or Greta Garbo, another foreign actress on the market.  Only she doesn't have the charisma they did.  The main problem with the movie is that you don't really root for Goldie.  She goes to Hollywood to try to make it but you don't care if she does become a star.  Her boyfriend isn't all that great either. He's a stale character.