Saturday, October 12, 2019
Friday, October 11, 2019
'The Misses Stooge' has a few mild laughs
The Misses Stooge (1935)
Starring: Thelma Todd, Patsy Kelly, Herman Bing, Rafael Storm, and Esther Howard
Director: James Parrott
Rating: Five of Ten Stars
Patsy and Thelma (Kelly and Todd) are hired by a magician (Bing), with Patsy being his on-stage assistant and Thelma being his plant in the audience, for a private performance at a high society party
It's commonly stated that the Thelma Todd-starring series of comedies was one of producer's Hal Roach's attempts to recreate the commercial success of the Laurel & Hardy films with a female comedy team. Todd fronted the longest-running of these efforts, and out of the 19 I've watched of them so far, this is first one where I clearly saw the spectre that the ladies and their box office receipts were being measured against; there are several lines spoken by Thelma Todd in this film that sounded exactly like ones that would have been uttered by Oliver Hardy, and Patsy Kelly's distressed fidgeting in a couple of scenes put me in mind of Stan Laurel. Some of the close-ups of Todd making an exasperated face while looking into the camera in some of the other Todd/Kelly pairings have previously reminded me of the reaction close-up shots of Hardy to Laurel's antics in their films, but nothing has felt as Laurel & Hardy-esque as this "The Misses Stooge".
But speaking of close-ups of Todd making exasperated faces, those are, sadly, where she is at her funniest in this picture. I think this may be the first film where I've felt like she was "phoning it in". While there's a set-up that plays to her strengths in portraying elegant women with a sophisticated air or snobbish attitude about them, little ultimately comes of it. She really has very little to do in this film, and, although this has been the case in other pieces, it's always seemed like she was trying to make the most of that very little, that does not seem to be the case here. Except for some reaction shots; those are comedy gold.
While Todd doesn't have much to do in this film, that is not the case with Patsy Kelly. Kelly not only gets to do some funny gags, she also gets to be the more competent of the duo, for the first time in any of the films I've seen in this series. Although she is clearly doing a Stan Laurel impersonation to Todd's Oliver Hardy, her character is clearly a skilled vaudevillian who is trying to support her friend Thelma who has good looks and a high opinion of herself that is not backed up by skill or talent. It's a nice switch from several previous films where it seems like it's Todd carrying her dimwitted friend. Kelly is actually so good in this film that I ended up awarding the film Five Stars as opposed to the Four Stars I almost gave it... because, in the final analysis, "The Misses Stooge" is just not a very good film.
The problem is one that is common to this series: The script isn't very good. While there are strong ideas here, the execution is haphazard and unfocused, and the jokes just aren't all that funny. The cast, aside from Thelma Todd, all try their mightiest to make the best of the weak material, but they can't overcome the unfulfilled potential (a high society setting where no pretentiousness is brought low), inconsistent tone (the magic show moves randomly from actual magic to standard illusions), and that, once again, we've got a story that doesn't get resolved so much as it just ends (admittedly with a very literal bang, but it's still an unsatisfactory one).
Aside from Kelly's strong performance, "The Misses Stooge" is at its best during a sequence when Thelma Todd is floating away like a balloon after the magician loses control of a magic trick, with Patsy chasing after her; and during an ongoing gag about the guest of honor at the party (played by Rafael Storm) being so horny for Thelma, and so stupid that he threatens to ruin the magic show. This "best" is enough to keep you entertained as you watch the film unfold, but only just.
"The Misses Stooge" is included with all of the films Thelma Todd and Patsy Kelly made together in a single three-DVD collection.
Starring: Thelma Todd, Patsy Kelly, Herman Bing, Rafael Storm, and Esther Howard
Director: James Parrott
Rating: Five of Ten Stars
Patsy and Thelma (Kelly and Todd) are hired by a magician (Bing), with Patsy being his on-stage assistant and Thelma being his plant in the audience, for a private performance at a high society party
It's commonly stated that the Thelma Todd-starring series of comedies was one of producer's Hal Roach's attempts to recreate the commercial success of the Laurel & Hardy films with a female comedy team. Todd fronted the longest-running of these efforts, and out of the 19 I've watched of them so far, this is first one where I clearly saw the spectre that the ladies and their box office receipts were being measured against; there are several lines spoken by Thelma Todd in this film that sounded exactly like ones that would have been uttered by Oliver Hardy, and Patsy Kelly's distressed fidgeting in a couple of scenes put me in mind of Stan Laurel. Some of the close-ups of Todd making an exasperated face while looking into the camera in some of the other Todd/Kelly pairings have previously reminded me of the reaction close-up shots of Hardy to Laurel's antics in their films, but nothing has felt as Laurel & Hardy-esque as this "The Misses Stooge".
But speaking of close-ups of Todd making exasperated faces, those are, sadly, where she is at her funniest in this picture. I think this may be the first film where I've felt like she was "phoning it in". While there's a set-up that plays to her strengths in portraying elegant women with a sophisticated air or snobbish attitude about them, little ultimately comes of it. She really has very little to do in this film, and, although this has been the case in other pieces, it's always seemed like she was trying to make the most of that very little, that does not seem to be the case here. Except for some reaction shots; those are comedy gold.
While Todd doesn't have much to do in this film, that is not the case with Patsy Kelly. Kelly not only gets to do some funny gags, she also gets to be the more competent of the duo, for the first time in any of the films I've seen in this series. Although she is clearly doing a Stan Laurel impersonation to Todd's Oliver Hardy, her character is clearly a skilled vaudevillian who is trying to support her friend Thelma who has good looks and a high opinion of herself that is not backed up by skill or talent. It's a nice switch from several previous films where it seems like it's Todd carrying her dimwitted friend. Kelly is actually so good in this film that I ended up awarding the film Five Stars as opposed to the Four Stars I almost gave it... because, in the final analysis, "The Misses Stooge" is just not a very good film.
The problem is one that is common to this series: The script isn't very good. While there are strong ideas here, the execution is haphazard and unfocused, and the jokes just aren't all that funny. The cast, aside from Thelma Todd, all try their mightiest to make the best of the weak material, but they can't overcome the unfulfilled potential (a high society setting where no pretentiousness is brought low), inconsistent tone (the magic show moves randomly from actual magic to standard illusions), and that, once again, we've got a story that doesn't get resolved so much as it just ends (admittedly with a very literal bang, but it's still an unsatisfactory one).
Aside from Kelly's strong performance, "The Misses Stooge" is at its best during a sequence when Thelma Todd is floating away like a balloon after the magician loses control of a magic trick, with Patsy chasing after her; and during an ongoing gag about the guest of honor at the party (played by Rafael Storm) being so horny for Thelma, and so stupid that he threatens to ruin the magic show. This "best" is enough to keep you entertained as you watch the film unfold, but only just.
"The Misses Stooge" is included with all of the films Thelma Todd and Patsy Kelly made together in a single three-DVD collection.
Wednesday, October 9, 2019
Halloween is coming...
... and Ann Rutherford is doing her part to spread some Halloween Spirit! How about you?
'The Sealed Room' is a great horror flick from the dawn of cinema
The Sealed Room (1909)
Starring:Arthur V. Johnson, Marion Leonard, Henry B. Walthall, and Mary Pickford
Director: D.W. Griffith
Rating: Seven of Ten Stars
When the king (Johnson) discovers his queen (Leonard) is using the room he had built for their private enjoyment to carry on with a bard (Walthall), he vents his hurt and anger in an extreme way.
"The Sealed Room" is a short film loosely based on (or, perhaps more accurately, inspired by) Edgar Allan Poe's "The Cask of Amontillado". It's a nicely done chiller, with the story being told almost entirely through miming and action, with intertitles only being used to establish context. There are a couple points that are are pounded home with heavy hammer blows where a tap would have been sufficient, but, overall, we've got just the right amount of emoting going on here to get the message across.
One thing I found particularly entertaining about this film was that there were bits of business going on, aside from the main action in a scene, that were crucial in setting up things that followed. (The queens affair with the bard, for example, is established almost immediately... as well as how brazenly they carry it on. But it happens quickly, and it's in a scene where the viewer's main focus is on the king.) I also appreciated the comedic elements in the film, since they were also very subtle.
And I absolutely adore the way the scenes are framed. They feel very much like they are Flemish paintings brought to life.
Director D.W. Griffith was one of the pioneers of cinema, and he is best known for his feature length works. However, I am finding that I like his short films far better. I've embedded "The Sealed Room" in this post, so you can check it out for yourself... whether you want to put on your Film Snob Hat, or just get in a Halloween sort of mood. I think this film serves either purpose equally!
dafa
Starring:Arthur V. Johnson, Marion Leonard, Henry B. Walthall, and Mary Pickford
Director: D.W. Griffith
Rating: Seven of Ten Stars
When the king (Johnson) discovers his queen (Leonard) is using the room he had built for their private enjoyment to carry on with a bard (Walthall), he vents his hurt and anger in an extreme way.
"The Sealed Room" is a short film loosely based on (or, perhaps more accurately, inspired by) Edgar Allan Poe's "The Cask of Amontillado". It's a nicely done chiller, with the story being told almost entirely through miming and action, with intertitles only being used to establish context. There are a couple points that are are pounded home with heavy hammer blows where a tap would have been sufficient, but, overall, we've got just the right amount of emoting going on here to get the message across.
One thing I found particularly entertaining about this film was that there were bits of business going on, aside from the main action in a scene, that were crucial in setting up things that followed. (The queens affair with the bard, for example, is established almost immediately... as well as how brazenly they carry it on. But it happens quickly, and it's in a scene where the viewer's main focus is on the king.) I also appreciated the comedic elements in the film, since they were also very subtle.
And I absolutely adore the way the scenes are framed. They feel very much like they are Flemish paintings brought to life.
Director D.W. Griffith was one of the pioneers of cinema, and he is best known for his feature length works. However, I am finding that I like his short films far better. I've embedded "The Sealed Room" in this post, so you can check it out for yourself... whether you want to put on your Film Snob Hat, or just get in a Halloween sort of mood. I think this film serves either purpose equally!
dafa
Picture Perfect Vampirella
Halloween is coming, and Vampirella wants to remind you to have plenty of candy in case she and her little friend stop by on the Big Night!
Tuesday, October 8, 2019
Monday, October 7, 2019
Musical Monday: The Skeleton Dance
This may be one of the nuttiest things you'll see the Holloween Season. It may 90 years old, but this early Disney cartoon is just as fun and crazy and many things being made today. It's a little slow in the wind-up, but your patience will be amply rewarded with lots of macabre mirth once it gets going. Enjoy--and may you be filled with the Spirit of Halloween!
Silly Symphony: The Skeleton Dance (1929)
Animation: Ub Iwerks (Walt Disney)
Music (and Original Idea): Carl Stalling
Rating: Eight of Ten Stars
Trivia: This was the first in a string of "Silly Symphony" animated short films from Walt Disney.
Silly Symphony: The Skeleton Dance (1929)
Animation: Ub Iwerks (Walt Disney)
Music (and Original Idea): Carl Stalling
Rating: Eight of Ten Stars
Trivia: This was the first in a string of "Silly Symphony" animated short films from Walt Disney.
Saturday, October 5, 2019
'The Tin Man' is a so-so comedy that ends strong
The Tin Man (1935)
Starring: Thelma Todd, Patsy Kelly, Clarence Wilson, and Matthew Betz
Director: James Parrott
Rating: Six of Ten Stars
After getting lost on their to a party, Thelma and Patsy (Todd and Kelly) stop to ask for direction at a creepy old mansion. Unfortunately for them, it's home to a woman-hating mad scientist (Wilson) who decides to sic his robot on them. To complicate matters, a killer who escaped police custody (Betz) also sneaks into the house.
If "The Tin Man" shows us anything, it's that the who notion of making fun of "InCels" has existed for many, many years... even if some cute term hadn't been invented for it. Eighty-five years ago, they were poking fun at bitter, socially maladjusted men who lived alone and blamed women for their inability to get dates rather than their own failings, so this is a comedy that has stood the passage of time. It might even be one that both your Social Justice Warrior types and Right Wing whackadoodles can both find entertaining and amusing.
But that's about all they'll be--amused and entertained. While the script is a workmanlike send-up of the Old Dark House and Mad Scientist subgenres of horror films, there aren't a whole lot of jokes and gags will have viewers laughing out loud. For me, the film is at its funniest when the escaped killer (Matthew Betz) is repeatedly subjected to unintentional abuse because he is caught in the crossfire between the girls and the robot sent to menace them. It's not that any of the jokes weren't amusing... they just weren't spectacular. (The funniest bits come toward the end, after the robot goes bezerk due to rash actions by Patsy, meaning the film closes at its best. It's worth your while to stick with it.)
I think this film succeeds primarily on the tightly written story and the strong performances of its cast members. Despite the weak jokes, all four actors are in top form. Additionally, there isn't the sense that Thelma Todd's character looks down upon or otherwise views Patsy Kelly's character with contempt, as it has seemed in some of their other pairings. In "The Tin Man", while Todd is visibly frustrated with Kelly's dimwittedness at times, it seems perfectly believable that they're friends who would want to go to a party together.
"The Tin Man" is one of the short films included in Complete Hal Roach Thelma Todd & Patsy Kelly three-disc DVD collection. It's also one of the films that will make you feel the set is worth your time and money.
Starring: Thelma Todd, Patsy Kelly, Clarence Wilson, and Matthew Betz
Director: James Parrott
Rating: Six of Ten Stars
After getting lost on their to a party, Thelma and Patsy (Todd and Kelly) stop to ask for direction at a creepy old mansion. Unfortunately for them, it's home to a woman-hating mad scientist (Wilson) who decides to sic his robot on them. To complicate matters, a killer who escaped police custody (Betz) also sneaks into the house.
If "The Tin Man" shows us anything, it's that the who notion of making fun of "InCels" has existed for many, many years... even if some cute term hadn't been invented for it. Eighty-five years ago, they were poking fun at bitter, socially maladjusted men who lived alone and blamed women for their inability to get dates rather than their own failings, so this is a comedy that has stood the passage of time. It might even be one that both your Social Justice Warrior types and Right Wing whackadoodles can both find entertaining and amusing.
But that's about all they'll be--amused and entertained. While the script is a workmanlike send-up of the Old Dark House and Mad Scientist subgenres of horror films, there aren't a whole lot of jokes and gags will have viewers laughing out loud. For me, the film is at its funniest when the escaped killer (Matthew Betz) is repeatedly subjected to unintentional abuse because he is caught in the crossfire between the girls and the robot sent to menace them. It's not that any of the jokes weren't amusing... they just weren't spectacular. (The funniest bits come toward the end, after the robot goes bezerk due to rash actions by Patsy, meaning the film closes at its best. It's worth your while to stick with it.)
I think this film succeeds primarily on the tightly written story and the strong performances of its cast members. Despite the weak jokes, all four actors are in top form. Additionally, there isn't the sense that Thelma Todd's character looks down upon or otherwise views Patsy Kelly's character with contempt, as it has seemed in some of their other pairings. In "The Tin Man", while Todd is visibly frustrated with Kelly's dimwittedness at times, it seems perfectly believable that they're friends who would want to go to a party together.
"The Tin Man" is one of the short films included in Complete Hal Roach Thelma Todd & Patsy Kelly three-disc DVD collection. It's also one of the films that will make you feel the set is worth your time and money.
Friday, October 4, 2019
Plain White T's do 'Pet Sematary'
The month-long Halloween celebration is in full-swing over at my Terror Titans blog. In addition to daily short films, I'm posting a different band's interpretation of the immortal song "Pet Sematary" by the Ramones every few days.
This particular cover by the White T's seemed to fit in better here, however. I hope you enjoy it (even if the connection with "Frankenweenie" doesn't make much sense to me), that it will stir the Halloween spirit within you, and that it might inspire you to check out this year's 31 Nights of Halloween at Terror Titans!
Wednesday, October 2, 2019
Halloween is coming...
... and Dorothy Sebastian is getting the decorations ready and trying out costume ideas. How about you?
(And don't miss the 31 Nights of Halloween film and music festival, currently unfolding at our sister blog, Terror Titans!)
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