Motion Picture Reviews (1941)

MOTION PICTURE REVIEWS Fit* THE BIG STORE O O Groucho Marx, Chico Marx. Harpo Marx, Tony Martin, Virginia Grey, Margaret Dumont, Douglass Dumbrille, Six Hits and a Miss. Screen play by Sid Kuller, Hal Fimberg and Ray Golden. Original story by Nat Perrin. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Since the Marx Brothers are always the Marx Brothers, whether at the opera, on a ranch, or in a department store, there is nothing new left to say about them. In this picture they dive down elevator shafts, ride bicycles on showcases, and perform their various acrobatic and musical specialties with their customary zest and skill. The plot is a nightmarish sort of thing about certain people chasing others through a store and trying to murder them. There are some extremely funny sequences and good musical numbers, but the film as a whole is not particularly clever. Adolescents, 12 to 16 Children, 8 to 12 Matter of taste Probably harmlos6 ❖ THE BRIDE CAME C.O.D O O Bette Davis, James Cagney, Stuart Erwin, Eugene Pallette, Jack Carson, George Tobais, Harry Davenport, William Frawley, Edward Brophy. Screen play by Julius J. and Philip G. Epstein from a story by Kenneth Earl and M. M. Mullselman. Direction by William Keighley. Music by Max Steiner. Warner Bros. It is good to find Bette Davis and James Cagney in comedy for a change. Miss Davis as Joan Winfield is the spoiled, thrill-seeking daughter of a tycoon, who upon short acquaintance has agreed to marry a popular band leader. A gossip columnist in search of exciting copy persuades them to elope and the fun begins, as “ Pater ” gives the job of stopping the elopement to an impecunious aviator (James Cagney), who agrees to kidnap the heiress and deliver her C.O.D. at the usual freight rates. The aviator’s plan is interrupted. They make a forced landing and their adventures in a ghost town on the desert are comically contrived. It is all light and diverting, a relaxing hour of nonsense in which Miss Davis and Mr. Cagney show aptitude for comedy. The musical score is cleverly appropriate. Adolescents, 12 to 16 Children, 8 to 12 Yes Yes ♦ CAUGHT IN THE DRAFT O O Bob Hope, Dorothy Lamour, Lynne Overman, Eddie Bracken, Clarence Kolb, Paul Hurst, Ferike Boros, Phyllis Ruth, Irving Bacon, Arthur Loft. Original story ana screen play by Harry Tugend. Directed by David Butler. Paramount. While this is not one of the best of Bob Hope’s vehicles, it will provide a lot of laughs for civilians and selectees alike, for it makes good-natured fun of blundering rookies and uses situations which, though possibly exaggerated, will recall many a real happening to all who have experienced camp life or been told about it. The cast is good, and the action swings along at a fast pace. Bob Hope plays the part of a movie star trying to evade the draft. After a number of silly exploits, he wins the Colonel’s daughter and becomes a hero. Adolescents, 12 to 16 Children, 8 to 12 Entertaining Harmless ❖ DANCE HALL O O Carole Landis, Cesar Romero, William Henry, June Storey, Edward J. Romberg. Screen play by Stanley Rauh and Ethel Hill based on novel by W. R. Burnett. Direction by Irving Pichel. 20th Century-Fox. This comedy drama is a “Grand Hotel” cross-section of events in the lives and loves of those connected with a dance hall. It has little plot, no suspense and no climax and is of interest only because the generally unadmirable characters are presented by a capable cast. The atmosphere and setting are typical, and the dialogue is suitable, if rather cheap. Adolescents, 12 to 16 Children, 8 to 12 Poor ethics No ❖ FORCED LANDING O O Richard Arlen, Eva Gabor, J. Carrol Naish, Nils Asther, Evelyn Brent, Mikhail Rasumny, Victor Varconi, John Miljan, Bobby Dillon. Screen play by Maxwell Shane and Edward Churchill. Direction by Gordon Wells. Paramount. Set in a mythical country with a South American atmosphere, this romantic action melodrama is brought up to the minute by an entertaining plot concerned with a revolutionary party conspiring against Fifth Columnists in the Government. Richard Arlen plays an American aviator who has been grounded in his own country and who joins the army flying service in this small country, only to discover that insidious danger is associated with the job. Romance is included in his perlious adventure and the final scenes are full of action in the air. Dialogue somewhat hampers continuity, and America is played up as the haven for ice cream cones and football games, but after an hour of intrigue and danger, it is relaxing to remember that there is at least one country left where these diversions may seem important. Adolescents, 12 to 16 Children, 8 to 12 Fair Exciting ❖ HURRY. CHARLIE. HURRY O O Leon Errol, Mildred Coles, Kenneth Howell, Cecil Cunningham, George Watts, Eddie Conrad, Nobel Johnson, Douglas Walton, Renee Haal, Georgia Caine, Lalo Encinas. Screen play by Paul Gerard Smith. Direction by Charles E. Roberts. R. K. O. Leon Errol announces to the audience that "Charlie” is not in the plot, thus setting the pace for nonsensical slapstick comedy which