Virginia City (1940)

Bogie? As a Mexican Bandito? What the heck was Warner Bros. thinking?

It's interesting that a 24-movie boxed set devoted to Humphrey Bogart showcases various films in which Bogie is overlooked or misused. Case in point, Virginia City (1940) a Michael Curtiz movie that would have been another Errolivia (Errol Flynn & Olivia de Havilland) vehicle were it not for de Havilland being fed up with Errolivia pictures altogether. Curtiz wasn't an actor's kind of director. He didn't care for them and they didn't care for him. And Jack Warner, one of the heads of Warner Bros. studio, wasn't an actor's kind of guy either. Jack Warner was particularly notorious for making actor's lives miserable by "guiding" their careers with a heavy hand. Olivia de Havilland had quite a difficult time with him and she had to fight tooth and nail to be lent out to play Melanie in Gone with the Wind (1939). And Bette Davis's career was put on hold when she went into an all out battle against Warner Bros. and what she deemed were the pathetic roles they were giving her (I actually prefer the blonde and spunky Bette Davis to the older more cynical brunette Bette). Humphrey Bogart didn't have the greatest time with Warner Bros. either. They didn't know what to do with him and tossed him around from picture to picture giving him a variety of small roles. Eventually the movie-going public caught on to the wonder that is Bogie and his fame exploded. But before then, he was stuck in roles like Mexican bandito John Murrell in Virginia City (1940). Paul, over at Art, Movies, Wood and Whatnot... loves this movie and recommended it to me after I watched Dodge City (1939). Dodge City is a Curtiz-Errolivia picture which in my opinion is better than Virginia City. Both films are very similar and seeing as they are 1 year apart, I felt like Virginia City was a follow up to Dodge City. Each film is named after a city although Dodge City spends more time in the actual city whereas Virginia City has more wanderlust. Both films feature the save-the-day hero Errol Flynn who has an appropriate (if not fiesty) love interest. Both also feature a young boy being hurt (the death of innocence out in the West?) and a bandit or troublemaker who takes the law into his own hands. But it's only in Virginia City in which you will see see Bogie, with a Spanish-style mustache trying to talk in a Mexican accent but failing miserable as his iconic New York accent breaks through.

The Amazing Dr. Clitterhouse (1938)

It's the movie that Humphrey Bogart dubbed "The Amazing Doctor Clitoris" so would it be appropriate to say that this film tickled me pink? Perhaps not.  All joking aside, this is probably one of my top favorite films. Edward G. Robinson plays Dr. Clitterhouse, a well-dressed and highly-intelligent doctor who services the society crowd of New York City. He's developed a scientific fascination with crime that starts with him robbing wealthy ladies of their jewelry why they are distracted by champagne (or other drinks) and conversation during lavish parties. Then he takes it another step further, joining a group of criminals, including Rocks Valentine (Humphrey Bogart). He takes their temperature, draws their blood, checks their blood pressure and monitors their physical reaction to their criminal activity. But he gets in too deep and Rocks (Bogie) is about to make things really difficult for him. Robinson is exquisitely dressed with fine suits, scarves, cuff links, pocket squares, starched collars, white bow-ties, the works. Even Bogie, as a less well-off racketeer, is dressed very well. In fact, I stopped and asked Carlos (who works in the men's clothing industry)  what exactly Bogie was wearing on his collar and tie. Turns out he wore a Tie Pin and a Collar Pin, both are practical items but in this case they have an added dose of bling. Here you have a two-bit criminal who likes to show off his success in stealing jewels and furs by displaying a bit of sparkle on his person. I hadn't noticed all the accoutrement until this viewing which just goes to show you that all viewings are not created equal.

The Brothers Warner (2008) Documentary

The Brothers Warner - documentary
The Brothers Warner - book

This documentary follows the history of the Warner Bros. studio through the lives of the 4 brothers who founded it: Harry, Sam, Albert and Jack. It's written and directed by Cass Warner Sperling, granddaughter of Harry Warner and daughter of writer/producer Milton Sperling, and features interviews (some previously recorded) by various family members and industry people, including Dennis Hopper, who had worked with or were familiar with the brothers. Because this documentary is presented by someone from the Warner family, produced by Warner Sisters Productions and distributed by Warner Bros., there is going to be a little bias about the studio and the brothers. However, I think this documentary is very enlightening and informative and you'll walk away from it with a greater knowledge of film history and the great contributions Warner Bros. made to said history. The documentary is kind of choppy. At certain points it doesn't flow very well, I think mostly during the interviews. However, overall it felt cohesive and structured.

Something I learned about the original Warner Bros. studio that I didn't know before is that they would make socially conscious pictures even at the cost of profit. That's pretty much unheard of these days and it went against the notion of profitability in those days as well. The brothers took risks to provide audiences with movies that would "entertain, educate and enlighten". Their investment in Vitaphone and in the production of The Jazz Singer was mocked even by big studio heads like Irving Thalberg. Their attempt to enlighten the public about Nazi activity with films like Confessions of a Nazi Spy brought them severe criticism and even death threats. They took risks that paid out big. They put their money in many pots rather than all in one pot which saved them during difficult times. Now the documentary didn't say much about Warner Bros. treated their actors. Bette Davis, Humphrey Bogart, Olivia de Havilland were among numerous actors who fought against Warner Bros. However, it did reveal a lot about Jack Warner and how show business and wealth turned his heart to stone over the years. I highly recommend watching this if you are a serious classic movie buff and want to know more about the studio system!

Make sure you stop by the excellent blog Dear Old Hollywood and check out Robby's post "An Evening with Cass Warner."