tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3166297507174717122.post7406234877076487016..comments2024-03-27T21:42:56.131-05:00Comments on 1001plus: Lady for a DaySJHoneywellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13550007053995112090noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3166297507174717122.post-60818286094075898992017-10-27T22:27:00.350-05:002017-10-27T22:27:00.350-05:00Man, I sure didn't. It was nothing more than p...Man, I sure didn't. It was nothing more than people standing around in a room talking about major events.SJHoneywellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13550007053995112090noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3166297507174717122.post-91303582403523322052017-10-27T17:08:37.623-05:002017-10-27T17:08:37.623-05:00When I was trying to see all the Best Picture winn...When I was trying to see all the Best Picture winners, I got it down to one - Cavalcade. (This was about five or six years ago.) It wasn't available from Netflix and it wasn't on YouTube. But it finally showed on cable (probably TCM, but there's a few other channels that surprise me from time to time). I liked it OK. I was never bored with it. It's not King Kong or Duck Soup or The Bitter Tea of General Yen. I liked Cavalcade quite a bit more than I though I would, though.Tonyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17921029597363212734noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3166297507174717122.post-29640353880919823812017-10-24T17:15:03.390-05:002017-10-24T17:15:03.390-05:00I'm an unabashed fan of I am a Fugitive from a...I'm an unabashed fan of <i>I am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang</i> in no small part because I love Paul Muni. I think he was capable of just about anything. He was sort of the Kevin Spacey of his day--completely flexible and versatile.<br /><br />I'll get to Best Picture 32/33 one of these days. I think it's safe to say that I won't be putting winner <i>Cavalcade</i> at the top. SJHoneywellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13550007053995112090noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3166297507174717122.post-35773776238997766892017-10-21T20:04:03.855-05:002017-10-21T20:04:03.855-05:00I've been a Damon Runyon fan since I read a fe...I've been a Damon Runyon fan since I read a few of his short stories when I was about 20. (Around 1985.) I still can't believe they never made a movie of "Butch Minds the Baby."<br /><br />The source for "Lady for a Day" is the story "Madame La Gimp," which I read just a few months ago. (I found it online.)<br /><br />"Lady for a Day" - which I watched this afternoon - is a movie I've been wanting to see for a while because 1933 is my favorite year for the movies and I've been going through the list of Best Picture nominees for 1933 for some time now. Now that I've seen "Lady for a Day," I've seen all the 1933 Best Picture nominees.<br /><br />The source is not one of my favorite Damon Runyon stories. I saw the other movie version, "Pocketful of Miracles" (1962), a few years ago, and it has its moment. How could it not with a cast like that? - Bette Davis, Glenn Ford, Hope Lange, E. Everett Horton, Thomas Mitchell, Jerome Cowan, even Angelo Rossitto!<br /><br />"Lady for a Day" is quite a bit better than "Pocketful of Miracles" and it's also better than the source material.<br /><br />There's a lot to like in "Lady for a Day," but it has a lot more to do with an excellent cast making the most of the material than with the story or the script. in addition to the wonderful Warren William, Flora Robson and the amazing Guy Kibbee, we also get Glenda Farrell, Nat Pendleton, Ned Sparks and a bunch of other old-timey Hollywood stalwarts.<br /><br />I have to say I really enjoyed "Lady for a Day." As great as 1933 was, it's weird that so few of the really great movies from 1933 (notably King Kong and Duck Soup) weren't nominated! <br /><br />Out of the nominees, I'd say 42nd Street is the clear winner. (I love 42nd Street!) And "Lady for a Day" may not quite stack up with I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang. But I'd put it in the next group with a couple of films I've always liked - Henry VIII and Little Women.<br /><br />My favorite film based on a Runyon story is Little Miss Marker with Shirley Temple. It's not really very faithful to the story ... and there are good reasons for that!Tonyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17921029597363212734noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3166297507174717122.post-65369263223408215752015-12-17T08:38:22.415-06:002015-12-17T08:38:22.415-06:00Warren William was, for me, the best thing in the ...Warren William was, for me, the best thing in the film. I don't specifically dislike May Robson, but I don't really understand her in this. The film itself is a comedy, but she isn't comedic at all--she's like the film's straight man and all of this comedic stuff happens around her, pretty much without her even knowing that it's going on. <br /><br />I get the point about Apple Annie not so much abandoning her daughter as making the decision that will give her daughter the best life possible. But that still goes back to the same point I made earlier--that the ultimate message of the film is that the ends justify the means. Sure there isn't a "moral" in the sense of a purpose--that message seems to be a byproduct of the film. But it's still there--cheating, lying, etc. is all fine if your intentions are good.SJHoneywellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13550007053995112090noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3166297507174717122.post-8968593178256795192015-12-16T09:57:42.056-06:002015-12-16T09:57:42.056-06:00I don't know if the film was really meant to h...I don't know if the film was really meant to have a moral since it pretty much encapsulates the whole Damon Runyon/Capra Corn ethos of a lovable bunch of gangsters who are really just softies at heart. Being a pre-code crime didn't yet have to be shown to pay in a negative light. The characters are shady but really just a bunch of the fellows. It not perfect, and I prefer Capra's '61 remake Pocketful of Miracles, but I can see how it would appeal to depression weary audiences. <br /><br />A nomination for Warren William would have made more sense for this particular film. I love May Robson and she was an excellent comedienne, a nomination wouldn't have been out of bounds for her brilliant turn in Bringing Up Baby, but you're right that Apple Annie requires more damp sentiment than anything else. One interesting tidbit that resulted from her nomination, though she hailed from Australia she's the only person ever nominated for an Oscar that was born during this country's Civil War!<br /><br />I don't see Annie so much abandoning her daughter as trying to do the best she could for her considering her circumstances. After all it's made clear that Louise is illegitimate, a fact that would be a huge stigma at the time and one that Annie makes sure no one knows. It's also made clear that aside from drinking everything Annie does she does for Louise's future. She invents an entire history of quality, makes sure Louise has the best education her ill gotten gains can provide and keeps her far enough away that the subterfuge isn't exposed while staying in touch explaining her absence as ill health. <br /><br />I really like Warren William in this and most of his films. He's pretty much forgotten today and that's a shame, he could slide easily from hero to villain owing to his somewhat hawkish appearance and be believable in both. He was a smooth actor rarely resorting to the overblown theatrics of many early performers opting for underplaying. Perhaps that's why he isn't better known, he wasn't flashy and while he had a certain charisma he was no Gable. From what I've read he was a shy, retiring man off-screen who did little publicity and died relatively young, all of which factors into his lack of long term recognition but I've liked him in everything I've seen him in.joel65913https://www.blogger.com/profile/14526657073681774683noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3166297507174717122.post-73014160904239368262014-02-21T18:58:45.823-06:002014-02-21T18:58:45.823-06:00We'll disagree on that. There are parts of the...We'll disagree on that. There are parts of the back half I enjoy, but I dislike the heart of it.SJHoneywellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13550007053995112090noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3166297507174717122.post-8585867376156517252014-02-21T18:16:16.156-06:002014-02-21T18:16:16.156-06:00I liked this far more than you did. Is it predict...I liked this far more than you did. Is it predictable? Absolutely. But it's also a really fun movie.Chip Laryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00787403805554027107noreply@blogger.com