Movie Makers (Jan-Dec 1953)

151 Saki story), or the photographic possibilities of a readymade location and period building (such as those used in Caesar and Macbeth) often influenced Bradley in his choice of material. By 1946 he had reeled up provocative film adaptations of classics like Oliver Twist, Peer Gynt, Shredni Vashtar and a polished Macbeth. He recalls even now that the inclusion of Peer Gynt (1941) and Macbeth (1947) among ACL's Ten Best was a special encouragement during that period. Although an,Army service stint overseas between these two dates halted Bradley Productions for several years, it did not halt Bradley. Long-range correspondence kept him in touch with the scattered servicemen with whom he was planning to film Macbeth. While other GI's scoured the mails for homemade treats and mash notes, the displaced film maker's letters bulged with script changes and details of medieval Scottish dress. BACK IN BUSINESS Within a few months after his return to the homefront, Bradley was back in business. For Macbeth, as with his earlier films, the production costs were next to nil : thanks to his own canny corner-cutting and the allegiance of his friends, the only major outlays were for film and costumes. Bradley is proud of his economic shrewdness and was highly indignant when the theatrical daily Variety referred to his "$60,000 version" of Julius Caesar. Though $15,000 has been spent on the film to date, he is quick to inform you that the actual production expense was a scant $10,000; the $5000 difference was thrown into haphazard distribution. As a result of this exercise in parsimony, Bradley says he still thinks like a producer and boss, with one eye on the cash register and one eye on the camera. The multiple demands of being his own scriptwriter, cameraman and cutter have made him a master of all the trades that contribute to finished filming. His facility in the many tributary fields of picture making enables him to express the artistry of his own ideas with the artisanship of his own hands. Few old-guard directors realize the resources of their medium so well. CAESAR OPENS DOOR Screenings of Julius Caesar — which opened last year at New York's Baronet Theatre — have prompted flattering comments from both the press and fellow craftsmen in key cities throughout the country. The big town dailies were exceptionally liberal in their use of adjectives like "fresh, intense, ambitious" (New York Herald Tribune), "smooth, ingenious, tasteful" (New York Times), "imaginative, earnest" (New York Post) , "amazing ... at times inspired" (New York Daily Mirror). The trade journals have compared Bradley favorably with Eisenstein and other trailblazers. And what was to have been a modest screening of the film at the Coronet Theatre in Hollywood attracted such curious nabobs as Dore Schary, Fritz Lang, Fred Zinneman, Norman Corwin and the late John Garfield, all of whom expressed their heartiest approbation of the movie. How thoroughly Bradley had learned his trade was apparent to Dore Schary by the time "the noblest Roman of them all" had fallen on his sword. The Metro mogul lost no time in signing the young director to a crisp contract; but, true to film capital tradition, it was nearly two years before he was assigned to anything more stimulating than "cadeting" with the established directors and assisting on the stages where Go for [Continued on page 161] IN FIRST FULL JOB as an MGM director, Bradley checks a camera setup for Talk About a Stranger with John Alton, head cameraman. SHREDNI VASHTAR by Saki (above) and Macbeth, with Bradley in the title role, were his pre and post-war productions as an amateur. For Bradley's own story on Macbeth, see MM April-May 1947.