Play Girl

 

People are harsh on Kay Francis on the internet. Whenever there's a list of the ugliest old actresses, she's included. I think she looked all right but she had a lot of charisma, charm, and class. This movie was pretty fun. Kay Francis stars as a gold digger, and she takes a young girl Mildred Coles under her wing. The girl plays along as a gold digger, but her heart is set on a simple man she met earlier in the movie. When she finds out that he's really a rich rancher she's disappointed. I guess she wanted him to be different or something. It takes a while for things to be sorted out. I recommend this for Kay Francis fans.  

Thrill of a Romance

 

This was a pretty mediocre Esther Williams movie. She looked pretty in this though. Esther marries this boring workaholic. When he leaves their honeymoon for business matters, she takes up with Van Johnson. I didn't like the laidback attitude the movie has that adultery is ok. I couldn't look pass this. The main highlight of the movie was when an African American teenager sang. That guy could really sing. Tommy Dorsey's numbers were probably the second best thing in this movie. This movie did apparently well at the box office that year.   

Hangover Square

 This was a pretty good movies about a composer who commits murder during blackouts. He's enamored by singer Linda Darnell and when he suspects her of infidelity, he finds himself in one of these blackouts. Linda Darnell is very good in this role. She uses him for songs himself but even he sees through her lies in the end. The actor Laird Cregar died before his performance could be acclaimed. He died out of tragic circumstances, a crash diet. It's sad because he's pretty good in this. 

Gold Diggers of 1935

 

The small plot in this movie concerns Dick Powell who has his eye on Gloria Stuart, but her mother wants to marry a millionaire. This movie is more about the dancing. The last half hour is dedicated to "Lullaby of Broadway" which is sung by Winifred Shaw. It's worth watching the movie just to get to that last number. However, I've seen better Busby Berkeley movies. 

Winter Meeting

 

This was a pretty mediocre Bette Davis movie. Bette Davis plays a poet, and she has a romance with a war hero. The guy isn't all that great. Frankly he's kind of a jerk. Bette Davis does a good job, but this isn't essential watching.

The Lost World

 

This silent movie was just ok. Leonard Maltin said it was a precursor to King Kong and I can see that. It's just not as good. The special effects are pretty cool though. The little plot is about a mad anthropologist who says there is a place in the Amazon with dinosaurs. Some people travel with him and see he is right. There is also a love plot that I didn't care much for. 

The Ten Commandments

 

Cecil B. DeMille made both versions. I like the 50's version more. It is more entertaining and pretty hammy This was all right. The first hour of this silent movie deals with telling the story of the scriptures. The second is more of a modern take showing a man's descent into sin as he breaks the commandments and finally kills. I miss silents. I need to watch them more often.