Minstrel Show

Film: The Jolson Story; Jolson Sings Again
Format: DVD from Netflix (Story) and internet video (Again) on laptop.

Allegedlly, back in the day, Al Jolson was considered the commensurate performer. That being the case, it’s hardly surprising that a movie was made based on his life. It’s perhaps a little surprising that two movies were made based on his life and that both wound up on my Oscars lists. Still, if ever there was an opportunity for a double feature, two movies about Al Jolson with an almost identical cast list would clearly be it.

Before jumping into the movies, it’s worth talking for a moment about Larry Parks, who plays Jolson in both films. This is a guy for whom I feel very sorry. The Jolson Story was his coming out party and it made him a star. That stardom lasted only a couple of years, because Parks was indicted in the blacklist scandal, admitted to having once belonged to a communist cell, and his career was destroyed. And, the movie for which Parks is best remembered is one in which he performs a great deal in blackface. Here’s someone who clearly never caught a break.

What Color is Your God?

Film: The Green Goddess
Format: Turner Classic Movies on rockin’ flatscreen.

I’m always happy when a rarity pops up on Turner Classic Movies because it’s just that little bit closer to seeing everything on my various lists. There are a few awards in a few years that are particularly difficult in locating films including Best Actor 1929-1930. This made The Green Goddess doubly important for me. It’s also a good reminder of what I go through for this project because this is not a film that anyone else really needs to see. Oh, it’s not terrible or disturbing or offensive (at least not very). It’s just not very good.

In fact, the main thrill of The Green Goddess is that it’s in sound. It was apparently George Arliss’s first talkie, but he convinced the studio to hold it back until Disraeli debuted, thinking that would serve him better as his first released talkie. The Green Goddess is a remake of an earlier silent that also starred Arliss, so at least in terms of the part he was treading on familiar territory.

Statesman

Film: Disraeli
Format: Turner Classic Movies on rockin’ flatscreen.

Sometimes, the movies that I watch on a given day are ones I look forward to and sometimes they are just a box to check off. It’s what happens when you watch films off a master list. With Disraeli, it was very much the second type, at least until I got a little way into it. While nominated for awards in the third Oscars ceremony, Disraeli was released in 1929, making it one of the early talkies. It’s also the debut of George Arliss in talkie films and it’s a good enough debut that he won the Best Actor Oscar for this role.

This is an odd film in that it doesn’t follow the man’s whole life and it focuses on a piece of history that is unusual for the subject of a film to say the least. Benjamin Disraeli (George Arliss) is the Prime Minister of Great Britain when the film opens, and he faces a great deal of opposition for a number of reasons. Disraeli was descended from immigrants and was born a Jew (although he eventually converted to the Anglican faith), not necessarily a recipe for success in mid-late nineteenth century British politics. He was also a man of big ideas focused on not simply his own political career but on the image of his country and the state of the greater empire.

Dangerous

Format: Turner Classic Movies on rockin’ flatscreen.

Superstition is an odd thing. I don’t cotton to many of them; essentially, I’m not a believer in the idea that wearing a particular color is lucky or that certain events mean ill favor. Athletes (and many fans) are prone to superstition. So are actors. You’re not supposed to say “MacBeth” inside a theater, since the play is allegedly cursed. Telling an actor to break a leg is a long established traditional belief that wishing an actor good luck is the surest way to curse them. (Incidentally, you should never tell a dancer to break a leg, since it’s a possibility and career-threatening.) Dangerous, which features Bette Davis’s first Oscar-winning performance, explores this phenomenon and lends it a great deal of credibility.

Don Bellows (Franchot Tone) is a promising architect with the world in front of him. He’s mortgaged himself to the hilt to create a set of new estates for the wealthy and he has a pending marriage to Gail Armitage (Margaret Lindsay) to look forward to. Gail is supportive of everything Don does, making her the perfect patsy for the turn at the end of the first act.