Re: Best Original Story 1941
Posted: Fri Oct 14, 2016 1:59 pm
I’ve been laboring over this for a week or two, and now find that BJ’s already said half the stuff I’ve written. But I’ll post anyway.
This year’s Original Story category is better by several orders of magnitude than its 1942 counterpart -- once again citing off-the-main-track entries rather than best picture hopefuls. And, by the way, offering a stellar tribute to Barbara Stanwyck, three of whose films show up here.
Meet John Doe is one of my least favorite Capras. Perhaps by then I was just tired of the nice-guy-almost-done-in-by-slick-cynics formula (It’s a Wonderful Life is refreshing not least because it broke new narrative territory for Capra). The film goes on way too long, and doesn’t have near the impact of the earlier “Mr.” movies.
It’s been a while since I saw Night Train (called Night Train to Munich on my copy), but I don’t recall it matching Magilla’s “all over the place” description. I found it a gripping enough piece of wartime suspense. It’s not enough to win over the remaining witty efforts, but recommendable enough.
Here Comes Mr. Jordan didn’t deserve its double-wins here, but it’s a very cleverly conceived and witty fantasy – with, I’d say, the best plot of any movie involving an angel (how’s that for a category?), and snappy dialogue delivered beautifully by Montgomery and company. I could have voted for it in many years, but not in this stellar crew.
Ball of Fire is one of the funnier non-Preston Sturges comedies of the era. As BJ notes, its structure has been widely copied (by Sister Act, for openers) -- and it itself was of course modelled on Snow White. But we can still appreciate it for its cleverness of both plot and dialogue.
But The Lady Eve is Preston Sturges – all right, a Preston Sturges film, with the story credited to one Monckton Hoffe (such a Sturges-like name I assumed it was a pseudonym till I ran it through the IMDB). Like many Sturges efforts, the film has a nifty, surprising narrative structure – taking us down one road, then veering in a new direction for the final reel that takes the film to a new level. And it offers laughs galore, some so off-beat you marvel (a personal favorite, when Eric Blore says “Know them? I positively swill in their ale” – I have no idea why that line makes me laugh as hard as it does). Among numerous stellar choices the writers offered this year, The Lady Eve stands out as the best.
This year’s Original Story category is better by several orders of magnitude than its 1942 counterpart -- once again citing off-the-main-track entries rather than best picture hopefuls. And, by the way, offering a stellar tribute to Barbara Stanwyck, three of whose films show up here.
Meet John Doe is one of my least favorite Capras. Perhaps by then I was just tired of the nice-guy-almost-done-in-by-slick-cynics formula (It’s a Wonderful Life is refreshing not least because it broke new narrative territory for Capra). The film goes on way too long, and doesn’t have near the impact of the earlier “Mr.” movies.
It’s been a while since I saw Night Train (called Night Train to Munich on my copy), but I don’t recall it matching Magilla’s “all over the place” description. I found it a gripping enough piece of wartime suspense. It’s not enough to win over the remaining witty efforts, but recommendable enough.
Here Comes Mr. Jordan didn’t deserve its double-wins here, but it’s a very cleverly conceived and witty fantasy – with, I’d say, the best plot of any movie involving an angel (how’s that for a category?), and snappy dialogue delivered beautifully by Montgomery and company. I could have voted for it in many years, but not in this stellar crew.
Ball of Fire is one of the funnier non-Preston Sturges comedies of the era. As BJ notes, its structure has been widely copied (by Sister Act, for openers) -- and it itself was of course modelled on Snow White. But we can still appreciate it for its cleverness of both plot and dialogue.
But The Lady Eve is Preston Sturges – all right, a Preston Sturges film, with the story credited to one Monckton Hoffe (such a Sturges-like name I assumed it was a pseudonym till I ran it through the IMDB). Like many Sturges efforts, the film has a nifty, surprising narrative structure – taking us down one road, then veering in a new direction for the final reel that takes the film to a new level. And it offers laughs galore, some so off-beat you marvel (a personal favorite, when Eric Blore says “Know them? I positively swill in their ale” – I have no idea why that line makes me laugh as hard as it does). Among numerous stellar choices the writers offered this year, The Lady Eve stands out as the best.