Story and You

Today, remakes face a lot of backlash. Hollywood has churned out so many poor ones in recent years that the very idea of trying to update a classic film causes many cinephiles to bristle; however, the truth is that remakes have always been a major part of Hollywood, and there are actually many original-remake pairings out there that are well-worth a watch. A perfect example is Lon Chaney's The Unholy Three , originally released in 1925 and remade in 1930 as a talkie. For the most part, it's a shot-for-shot remake, but the small differences between the two films offer some pretty interesting commentary on the changes in Hollywood in the transition from silence to sound--and on top of that, they're both just really great films.

One of the joys of watching classic films is discovering these beautiful, talented people who have been entirely forgotten except by the most ardent film buffs. Of course uncovering the wonder of a Bette Davis or a Cary Grant is exciting, but falling for an actor or actress who most of the world doesn't even remember ever existed? That's really something, and that's exactly the case for the star of today's film, a lovely young woman named Marian Marsh who was in a string of successful films in Hollywood's Pre-Code era--including Beauty and the Boss --and then sadly faded into obscurity.

Sometimes drama gets a little old, and laughter is truly the best medicine. That was my thinking as I was selecting a film from the Gable pre-Code binge I've been on this week: there were so many good ones to choose from, but the one that stood out most of all was an underrated, under-seen, truly hilarious little diamond in the rough called Forsaking All Others (1934).

   It's Clark Gable month on TCM, and my recent classic film viewing has been dominated by his pre-code filmography--24 of his 25 pre-code films are airing this month! He starred in some really excellent films during this period, but when it came time to pick one to highlight, the flawed masterpiece Strange Interlude was my first choice. 

As part of the resurgence of this blog, I thought it was important to have a regular spotlight on the classics, as they make up such a large portion of my film viewing these days. And so here begins my new continuing series, classic film of the week, in which I will be posting a weekly review of a classic (pre-1960, any country) film I watched or re-watched that week. I thought it was only fitting to start with a pre-code film, as these are what initially got me into classic Hollywood. Luckily, I watched a really great one this week, so here it is: A Farewell to Arms from 1932, starring Gary Cooper, Helen Hayes, and Adolphe Menjou. A Farewell to Arms concerns the love affair between the characters of Frederic (Gary Cooper), a lieutenant in the Italian army in WWI, and Catherine (Helen Hayes), a nurse. Major Renaldi (Adolphe Menjou), best friend of Frederic, is smitten with Catherine and makes the mistake of introducing the pair, sparking a whirlwind romance that ends in the ...