JOLSON SINGS AGAIN (1949)

JOLSON SINGS AGAIN (1949) Directed by Henry Levin.***

Pure hagiography again in Columbia's inevitable follow-up to their earlier hit, THE JOLSON STORY.  As before facts are rearranged or wilfully ignored (in this Jolson's mother finally dies in the 1940's whereas she had, in reality died back in the 1980's!) and the names of two of his wives are changed (the previous film had conveniently forgotten to mention his first to marriages. Notably missing from this film is any mention of his adopted children. Having said that this is, if like me, you are a Jolson fan, this is a very entertaining piece of Hollywood schmaltz. Interestingly the film covers the making of THE JOLSON STORY and we get scenes where Jolson (played by Larry Parks) meets Larry Parks (played by Larry Parks) and we even get to see Larry as himself performing a Jolson number to convince Jolson that he should play him in the film - dubbed, of course by Jolson, whose singing voice is used throughout. Magic.

BY THE WAY.....

 

I Assumed it was self evident but perhaps not. Two people have asked me why in my posts about my DVD collection some of the titles are in bold type. These are my personal favourites (and therefore recommendations) amongst the films I own by the particular artist under discussion.

MY DVD COLLECTION 3

Ingmar Bergman (1918-2007)

 

Ingmar Bergman is, for me, one of the greatest film directors of all time. I find his films hypnotic, moving and disturbing in equal measures. Son of a Lutheran minister, Bergman claims to have lost his faith at the age of eight but only come to terms with it while making WINTER LIGHT. Yet his religious upbringing infuse his films and he once wrote : "I devoted my interest to the church's mysterious world of low arches, thick walls, the smell of eternity, the coloured sunlight quivering above the strangest vegetation of medieval paintings and carved figures on ceilings and walls. There was everything that one's imagination could desire — angels, saints, dragons, prophets, devils, humans". This is why many of his films contain shock scenes of gothic horror. Like fellow atheist, Luis Bunel, his religiously themed films are among the most honest and moving. His films, of course, contain a series of wonderful performances by performers such as Gunnar Bjornstrand, Max von Sydow, Ingrid Thulin and Liv Ullman amongst others. Ingmar Bergman films in my collection are : MUSIC IN DARKNESS (1948) TO JOY (1950)  SUMMER INTERLUDE (1951) SUMMER WITH MONIKA (1953) SAWDUST AND TINSEL (1953) SMILES OF A SUMMER NIGHT (1955) THE SEVENTH SEAL (1957) WILD STRAWBERRIES (1957) THE MAGICIAN (1958) THE VIRGIN SPRING (1960) THE DEVIL'S EYE (1960) THROUGH A GLASS DARKLY ((1961) WINTER LIGHT (1963) THE SILENCE (1963) ALL THESE WOMEN (1966) PERSONA (1966) HOUR OF THE WOLF (1968) SHAME (1968) THE RITE (1969) CRIES AND WHISPERS (1972) AUTUMN SONATA (1978) FROM THE LIFE OF MARIONETTES (1980) FANNY AND ALEXANDER (1983)

THE FOUR SIDED TRIANGLE (1952)





 

THE FOUR SIDED TRIANGLE (1952) Directed by Terence Fisher ***

Generally acknowledged as a  forerunner of Hammer's Frankenstein series with some specific parallels to the 1957 CURSE OF FRANKENSTEIN, albeit without the gore. Stephen Murray is particularly good as the obsessed scientist who sets out to duplicate the woman he loves with disastrous results. Notable among the cast is John Van Eyssen, later to be seen as Jonathan Harker in Hammer's classic 1958 DRACULA. The film is a nice example of that very English sub-genre (other examples being Hammer's Quatermass films) where great scientific discoveries are made in a shed at the bottom of the garden.





MY DVD COLLECTION 2

Terence Fisher (1904 - 1980)

Describing his own films, Terence Fisher said "I think an audience has to find what it sees in the cinema absolutely convincing for the ninety minutes of the film. I don't really care what they think when they get out of the cinema, but unless they have believed in your film, you have not achieved your purpose. You have to aim for a suspension of disbelief. Visually speaking, I think my films are good and believable, because I have a good visual sense within the frame. I hate what I call "tricky shooting" - which makes a film look like a long TV commercial."

            I don't think anybody except the most ardent fan of Hammer Films would describe Terence Fisher as one of the cinema's great directors. I was lucky enough to meet Fisher in the mid-70's and found him to be a charming man who was prepared to discuss his films realistically. He knew there were a few duds in there. Having said that he did make the very best of the Hammer gothics and I can't believe that there is a horror film enthusiast who grew up in the 50's and 60's who doesn't have a great affection for Fisher's films. Terence Fisher's films in my collection are : THE STOLEN FACE (1951) THE FOUR SIDED TRIANGLE (1952) SPACEWAYS (1952) THE CURSE OF FRANKENSTEIN (1957) DRACULA (1958) REVENGE OF FRANKENSTEIN (1958) HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES (1959) THE MUMMY (1959) BRIDES OF DRACULA (1960) THE  TWO FACES OF DR.JEKYLL (1960) CURSE OF THE WEREWOLF (1961) PHANTOM OF THE OPERA (1962) THE HORROR OF IT ALL (1963)THE GORGON (1966) ISLAND OF TERROR (1966) NIGHT OF THE BIG HEAT (1966) FRANKENSTEIN CREATED WOMAN (1967) THE DEVIL RIDES OUT (1968) FRANKENSTEIN MUST BE DESTROYED (1969) FRANKENSTEIN AND THE MONSTER FROM HELL (1974)

MY DVD COLLECTION 1

Akira Kurosawa (1910-1998)



I have been asked several times what sort of films I collect. I usually refer to my collection as a mixture of the sacred and the profane. The great masterpieces of the cinema share the shelves with low-budget exploitation horror movies and action epics. I am interested in the whole range of movies from films that are considered high art to those that crawl out from the underbelly of the film industry. So I thought I'd use this blog to list some of the directors, stars and themes I admire and the films of theirs that form part of my collection. First of is Akira Kurosawa who I regard as one of the greatest directors of all time. Describing his art, Kurosawa once said "A film must be made with the heart, not the mind. I think today's young filmmakers have forgotten this and instead they make films through their calculations. That is why Japanese films no longer have an audience. In all honesty, films must be made to target the hearts. During the time of Ozu, my mentor, and also in my time, no filmmaker made films based on theory and calculation, and that was why Japan's cinema was capable of shaping its golden years. Young filmmakers use techniques to humiliate the audience. This is wrong. We must serve cinema and make a film that would stimulate the audience. Ultimately, the aim should be to make an artistic film. That's simple, isn't it?"

Kurosawa films in my collection are : SANSHIRO SUGATA (1943) MOST BEAUTIFUL (1944) HE WHO TREADS ON THE TIGER'S TAIL (1945) ZUKO SUGATA (1945) ONE WONDERFUL SUNDAY (1947) DRUNKEN ANGEL (1948) SILENT DUEL (1949) STRAY DOG (1949) SCANDAL (1950) RASHOMON (1950) IKIRU (1952) SEVEN SAMURAI (1954) I LIVE IN FEAR (1955) THRONE OF BLOOD (1957) HIDDEN FORTRESS (1958) THE BAD SLEEP WELL (1958) YOJIMBO (1960) SANJURO (1961) HIGH AND LOW (1964) RED BEARD (1965) DERSU UZALA (1975) KAGEMUSHA (1980) RAN (1985) MADADAYO (1990)