Rome Adventure (1962)

Rome Adventure (1962) is a little treasure. It's a wonderful escapist romance filmed on location in Italy. No really! In Italy. Not painted backdrops or spliced in documentary footage, but real locations. Watching this film felt like I was just took a vacation in 1960's Italy.

This film is Suzanne Pleshette's first major film role. She plays Prudence Bell, a sheltered New England librarian who is about to be fired for letting a student read a controversial novel Lovers Must Learn. She decides to quit instead and to escape to Italy to find romance. The film is based on the novel Lovers Must Learn and the book itself is a catalyst for the plot in the movie. I would not consider this a sex comedy or a full-on drama. It's a romantic movie with both comedic and dramatic moments.

Prudence sets sail on a cruise liner to Italy (oh how I wish I could do that!). On the boat she meets boring and love-lorn etruscologist Albert (Hampton Fancher) and suave debonnair Italian man Roberto (Rossano Brazzi). Neither of the two men are able to win over her heart, like American art student Don (Troy Donahue) who wines and dines her and whisks her off for a romantic vacation to Lake Maggiore. Yet Don is tangled up with Lydia (Angie Dickinson), a rich brat who abandoned him for another man, only to come back to Don when she needs his help. The people in Lydia's life are all pawns in her game and she sets out to destroy Prudence's innocent love for Don.

Angie Dickinson mere presence is the best part of this movie. She is the sexpot who is the complete opposite of Prudence. Her character serves to show the fundamental differences between a good girlfriend and a bad one. Plus they give her a beautiful apartment and an awesome wardrobe!

Like Palm Springs Weekend (1963), the music in this film is notable. The musical score is by Max Steiner. The main theme is the Italian song Al Di La and famous Italian vocalist Emilio Pericolo sings it in one of the romantic scenes. Variations of the theme song follow the two lovebirds throughout the movie.

Famous jazz trumpeter Al Hirt (aka "The King of the Trumpet") has a small role in the film. He plays a jazz trumpeter (no kidding!) who has a beautiful yet dangerous girlfriend. My favorite scene in this movie is when he introduces his girlfriend to Don and Prudence. In his introduction, he has her reveal the knife she carries strapped to her thigh. He says that he doesn't know whether she'll leave him or kill him. Prudence is horrified and Don is both fascinated and confused. The whole scene just made me laugh.

Palm Springs Weekend (1963)

Palm Springs Weekend (1963) is a follow-up to the classic Where the Boys Are (1960). Both explore the antics of college students on spring break. The tag line for Palm Springs Weekend pays homage to the original when it declares, It's Where the Boys Are, and the Girls Are. A college basketball team heads to Palm Springs, Nevada and much to their dismay, their grumpy coach has followed them. The captain of the team Jim (Troy Donahue) is reluctant to go on the trip at all while buddy Biff (Jerry van Dyke) is ready for the ladies! On her way to Palm Springs too is Gail Lewis (Connie Stevens) a beautiful teenager trying to pass for a wealthy 21-year-old Hawaiian student. She has two romantic rivals. First is cowboy/Hollywood stunt-man Stretch (Ty Hardin) who has a kind heart. Then there is jaded, rich boy Eric (Robert Conrad) who is on the path of self-destruction, all to get the attention of his negligent father. Meanwhile Jim is romancing townie Bunny (Stefanie Powers) whose father just happens to be the Sheriff (yikes!). The standout of the movie is Amanda (Zeme North), the plain Jane, tomboy who is just plain boy crazy. She's got her eyes set on Biff, who is both scared and intrigued by this petite little fireball. She finally snags him when she gets a full make-over (of course!).

By definition, this film is a sex comedy. It pitches girls against guys and deals primarily with sex, although there is no actual sex in the story. The differences between how men and women perceive romance and commitment are explored in a light-hearted, screwball comedy kind of way. For more information on sex comedies, I highly suggest reading the excellent three-part series on the history of this subgenre found on the blog A Shroud of Thoughts.

This is by far my favorite of the four films in the Warner Bros. Romance Classics Boxed Set. I wanted to watch it again almost immediately after first viewing. I can understand this kind of film may not be to everyone's taste, but give it a try if you can. It's supposed to be fun and silly! Once you understand that, you can open yourself up to enjoy it.

Music and it's effect on youth culture is at the center of this story. My favorite scene in the film takes place at the record store where Bunny and Jim meet. All the kids break out into dance right in the middle of the store. I wish this could happen in real life. I dream of the day that I walk into a Borders and head to the music section only to see a bunch of teenagers rockin' out to their favorite tunes. I dream of that day!

This film is not a musical, but the music in this film is notable. The title song Live Young is sung by star Troy Donahue over the opening credits. It's a fun, light catchy tune that sets the tone for the rest of the movie. Also, The Modern Folk Quartet performs Ox Driver in the scene at "Jack's Casino". Both songs are excellent and worth watching... err... listening for.

Boxed Set Review: Warner Bros. Romance Classics Collection

The Warner Bros. Romance Classic Collection is a true delight. It's a time machine that transports you to a bygone era and fills you with nostalgia. If you expect a gourmet meal you'll be disappointed, but if you expect delicious candy, you will be thrilled. This boxed set captures the youthfulness of the early '60s with films that spoke to the youth of that generation. It's the living end! Also, the films have been digitally remastered giving them a visual vibrancy that age had once taken away. I just spent a lovely weekend watching the movies in the set.

It contains 4 films starring '60s heartthrob Troy Donahue. First there is Palm Springs Weekend (1963), a hilarious madcap sex comedy geared towards the college-bound. Then it is followed by three coming-of-age stories marking the 2nd, 3rd and 4th time writer/director Delmer Daves teamed up with actor Troy Donahue, the first being A Summer Place (1959). There is Parrish (1961), a soap about a young man torn between three women in Connecticut's Million-Dollar-Mile. Then there is Rome Adventure (1962), a fun escapist movie about a young New England librarian who flees to Italy to find love. Finally there is Susan Slade (1960), a soap about an unmarried young woman who holds a secret that could destroy her romantic and social life. Posts on each of the films are to come.

I find that a lot of classic film fans don't like the movies from the '60s, which in my opinion is an utter shame. Such wonderful movies have came out of this era. It is important to regard these films within the context of the time they came from. Sex comedies and coming-of-age soap operas were escapist vehicles for teenagers and young adults in the '60s. They spoke directly to young audiences in ways that films from previous decades hadn't been able to.

I would recommend this boxed set to anyone who has an open mind and is willing to give films from the 1960s a try. They are all fun and enjoyable to watch. My only complaint about this boxed set is that all the films star Troy Donahue, someone who I've always thought was just bleh. But it is made up for with the likes of such fine personalities as Angie Dickinson, Connie Stevens, Suzanne Pleshette and Stefanie Powers.

Purchasing Links (Support the economy! Buy!)

Barnes & Noble - Borders - TCM Store - Warner Bros. Home Video Store - Amazon

Good Heavens: Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison (1957)

John Huston's Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison (1957) stars Robert Mitchum and Deborah Kerr. And that's it. It's just Mitchum and Kerr through the whole movie, with the exception of some "Japanese" and American extras. Mitchum plays Mr. Allison, a marine who finds himself on a deserted island. He's spent days at sea and is exhausted but happy to be on land. He comes across Sister Angela (Deborah Kerr), a nun left behind by others and the sole inhabitant of the island. They stick together and battle to survive. So much time alone together leads to romantic feelings which Sister Angela must supress as she is about to take her vows. They contemplate whether they will be saved by the Americans, killed by the Japanese who keep returning to and abandoning the island, or if they will live for years and years, alone on the island.

The movie is filmed on location and not in a studio. Both actors are really in the elements and had to be very physical in their roles, especially Robert Mitchum. It doesn't surprise me that Mitchum and Kerr were chosen for this movie. I have always had the impression that neither of them were scared to get their hands dirty; no matter how elegant they might have appeared otherwise.

Lee Server's biography Robert Mitchum: "Baby, I Don't Care" has some really interesting behind-the-scenes information on this movie. Mitchum had been filming in Tobago for four months on the set of Fire Down Below (1957). He was relieved to be back home in America when his agent told him he had that he had to go back to Tobago to film Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison with John Huston. Initially he was thrilled to get such a good part, until he found out he was second pick after Marlon Brando, who had turned it down. Things weren't off to a good start.

The opening scene of the movie shows Mitchum in a raft. He's dirty, exhausted and sunburnt. The morning they shot that scene Mitchum had gotten drunk and din't want to come out of his tent. Director John Huston was not having it and to get back at Mitchum he put him on that raft for nearly 2 hours in the harsh sun. So any delirium you see on Mitchum's part in that scene, is authentic. Despite the initial feud, Huston and Mitchum got along very well after that.

Mitchum and Kerr hit it off too, although not romantically. Mitchum had much respect for Kerr, who could hold her own on set. Both had gotten sick with dengue and Mitchum had gotten hurt numerous times, putting his life in danger. Kerr was put in horrid conditions but never complained. Nothing like mutual suffering to bring two people closer together.

Also, because there was a Catholic nun in the story, the Legion of Decency had sent an inspector to Tobago to monitor shooting and to approve or disapprove of anything that went on with the storyline. At one point, Huston, Kerr and Mitchum had gotten so fed up with the inspector that they decided to pull a prank on him. They set up a fake scene in which Kerr and Mitchum grope each other and kiss passionately, all the while Kerr dressed in a nun's habit. Of course the inspector had a fit, much to everyone's amusement.