Beggars of Life (1928)

1928 is one of the most fascinating years in film history. Hollywood was in a state of transition, quickly trying to learn how to match visuals with sounds to deliver talking pictures to an eager public. The industry had already mastered the silent film making process and were churning out good quality movies. Many projects in the works were put on hold until talkie versions could be created. Other completed works were retrofitted with talking and singing sequences and synchronized sound to create part-talkies. Beggars of Life (1928) was one of those movies.

With all the other studios racing to create talkies, Paramount presented their first ever contribution with Beggars of Life. Synchronized sound of music, gun shots, moving trains, etc. added to the silent picture. A singing sequence filmed with Wallace Beery was added to the movie after it was completed. The retrofitted scene was used to market the movie. Advertisements proclaimed "come hear Wallace Beery sing!"

Louise Brooks, Richard Arlen and Wallace Beery in Beggars of Life (1928)

 "Even them people in feather beds ain't satisfied -- we're all beggars of life." - Jim, as played by Richard Arlen

Inspired by the popular memoir by Jim Tully, Beggars of Life follows the story of Jim and Nancy, two hoboes on the move. Nancy (Louise Brooks) is an orphan who killed her adoptive father when he tried to rape her. She encounters hobo Jim (Richard Arlen) and the two set off. They don't intend to stick together. It's only when Jim learns that Nancy is wanted for murder and there's a $1,000 reward for her capture that he feels protective of Nancy. They plan to train hop their way to Alberta, Canada to escape the police and find a better life for themselves. On the road, they meet a band of hoboes and Oklahoma Red (Wallace Beery), a booze-loving member of the crew who takes a particular interest in Nancy who is dressed like a man but later revealed to the others to be a woman. With the cops on their tail, Nancy, Jim, Oklahoma Red and the rest of the hoboes set off on a train-hopping adventure complete with a spectacular crash.

Beggars of Life was directed by William Wellman for the then Paramount Famous Lasky Corporation. Wellman once called the film " the best silent picture I ever made." Beggars of Life was considered lost until Kevin Brownlow discovered 16mm print in London during the 1960s. The original soundtrack for the film is still considered lost so while we see Wallace Beery singing and title cards with lyrics help us out, we can't hear him.

Richard Arlen and Louise Brooks in Beggars of Life (1928)

Beggars of Life displays the sophistication of silent filmmaking that was possible in that era. The quality would significantly change while studios were getting over the learning curve of making talking pictures. Beggars of Life teamed up Louise Brooks and Wallace Beery for a second time. They appeared in the 1927 film Now We're In the Air. Louise Brooks was reaching the peak of her fame and sports her trademark Lulu haircut in the film. I enjoyed her performance and that of Richard Arlen who plays her love interest Jim, based on the real life Jim Tully. The film suffers from some antiquated notions especially with Edgar Washington's stereotyped African-American character. This sort of thing is unfortunately part and parcel with movies of the era. Real life hoboes were hired to play themselves in the film and overall the film is given a very gritty realistic feel even with the glossiness of it's high production value.

Kino Lorber recently released the DVD and Blu-Ray as part of their line of Kino Classics. Their home video releaseis a digital reproduction of George Eastman Museum's 35mm restoration. The preservation was funded by The Film Foundation and the DVD and Blu-Ray release features a new score by The MontAlto Motion Picture Orchestra. The Blu-Ray includes audio commentary by William Wellman Jr. and Thomas Gladysz of the Louise Brooks Society. The Blu-Ray edition is of spectacular quality. I can only imagine what we have access to now looks even better than what was screened in 1928.

Many thanks to Kino Lorber for sending me this movie to review!




Sources:
Wild Bill Wellman: Hollywood Rebel by William Wellman Jr.
Beggars of Life Huffington Post article by Thomas Gladysz
Today's Sounds for Yesterday's Films: Making Music for Silent Cinema by K.J. Donnelly and Ann-Kristin Wallengren

Hotel (1967)

"I'm an old-fashioned innkeeper. I take care of my employees and they take care of my guests. That's the way I want it to be. I don't want it to change." - Melvyn Douglas as Warren Trent

Hotel (1967) follows the story of the fictitious New Orleans hotel the St. Gregory. Pete McDermott (Rod Taylor) is at the heart of the business. As the hotel manager he oversees all staff, attends to any urgent needs of the hotel guests and conducts business with the owner Warren Trent (Melvyn Douglas). Although the St. Gregory is the destination for many illustrious guests, it's in serious financial trouble. Pete convinces Mr. Trent to entertain an offer by wealthy hotelier Curtis O'Keefe (Kevin McCarthy). However, O'Keefe threatens to transform the place into a cold moneymaker rather than an inviting hotel with hospitality as it's main focus. O'Keefe brings with him his girl of the moment, a young Parisian beauty Jeanne Rochefort (Catherine Spaak). Jeanne is tired of O'Keefe and soon falls for the charming hotel manager. O'Keefe uses Jeanne and his co-horts to try to seal the deal for the hotel while Pete and Mr. Trent quickly try to find another buyer.

Rod Taylor as Pete McDermott

Melvyn Douglas as Warren Trent in Hotel (1967)

Kevin McCarthy as Curtis O'Keefe

Catherine Spaak as Jeanne Rochefort

Then there are the hotel guests who prove to be an interesting bunch of characters, each with their own agenda. Merle Oberon plays Duchess Caroline whose husband Duke Geoffrey (Michael Rennie) killed a child in a drunken hit-and-run accident. The Duchess tries to cover it up but the hotel detective Dupere (Richard Conte) is on to them and tries to extort them. Then there is Karl Malden as Keycase Milne, the resident hotel thief with an impressive collection of room keys. He has his eye on the Duke and Duchess's room and the possible treasures inside. When a black couple book a stay at the hotel and Pete is not around, the hotel turns them away causing a scandal that's splashed across the newspapers. A business deal gone sour, an extortion, theft, a civil rights dilemma, a forbidden romance and an elevator on the fritz, everything comes to a crashing climax. The ending is one that I didn't expect but one that left me immensely satisfied and feeling good about the story's overall message: stay true to yourself.

Michael Rennie and Merle Oberon as the Duke and Duchess

Karl Malden as Keycase Milne

Richard Conte as Detective Dupere

Hotel (1967) is a gratifying film to watch on a rainy day. If you don't have any high expectations you'll be pleasantly surprised. It has it's flaws. It's terribly old-fashioned but that's what I liked about it. Taylor and Spaak lacked chemistry and Spaak quite one note to me. Another actresses would have livened up the film. I found everyone to be delightful to watch including Taylor, Melvyn Douglas, Karl Malden, Richard Conte and even Merle Oberon who I don't particularly care for. Jazz singer Carmen MacRae has a small role as the hotel lounge singer. Clinton Sundberg, a regular in 1940s collegiate movies, plays hotelier O'Keefe's personal assistant.

One could see Hotel (1967) as the 1960s answer to Grand Hotel (1932). The film was directed by Richard Quine, someone I have a keen interest in. Some exteriors and interiors were shot in New Orleans most notably in the French Quarter and in the New Orleans International Airport. Everything else was shot on the Warner Bros. lot in Burbank, California. Gowns were designed by Edith Head and Merle Oberon wore her own jewelry including a piece that once belonged to Marie Antoinette. The story was based on the best-selling novel by Canadian writer Arthur Hailey. He's also known for his novel Airport which was adapted in 1970 and spawned a series and a spoof. Hotel became a TV series in the 1980s starring Anne Baxter and James Brolin.

I enjoyed Hotel (1967) for it's motley cast of characters, interesting plot lines and for that glorious ending. It also serves as a time capsule of the goings on of a 1960s era hotel. The movie makes me long for a time when morals and personal truths trump greed. I'm drawn to movies about workplaces and this one did not disappoint.

Hotel (1967) is available on DVD-MOD from the Warner Archive Collection. You can purchase the DVD from the WB Shop.

Warner Archive Wednesday - On (random) Wednesdays, I review one title from the Warner Archive Collection. Thank you to Warner Archive for sending me a copy of Hotel (1967) to review!

Rod Taylor: Pulling No Punches (2016)

"He's a man's man. He's a woman's man. He's an ideal man." - Angela Lansbury

Australian actor Rod Taylor burst upon the Hollywood scene in the late 1950s but it wasn't until his seminal film The Time Machine came out in 1960 that he became a major movie star.  Good looks coupled with a talent for comedy and drama, Taylor was a force to be reckoned with. He had an artistic soul beneath a rugged Aussie exterior. He was a born adventurer and up for anything. Taylor did his own stunts, was an expert at accents and had a charisma that translated well on screen. As one of the top leading men of the 1960s, Taylor paved the way for Australian movie stars to come.

Born in a suburb of Sydney, Rod Taylor was raised by a very Aussie father and a very British mother who both had a profound influence on his creative pursuits. At a young age he pursued drawing, painting and pottery as his artistic trade. It wasn't until he heard a radio program that he realized he could be an actor. He worked on radio and on some movies in his homeland and was quickly scooped up by American filmmakers and lured to Hollywood. His early work consisted of small parts in big pictures. He worked alongside many greats including Elizabeth Taylor, Rock Hudson, Montgomery Clift, Ernest Borgnine, Debbie Reynolds, Bette Davis and more. When The Time Machine came out in 1960, Taylor was already dabbling in TV work with his series Hong Kong. Both made an impact on audiences and Taylor's life as a major movie star began. He continued to work throughout the 1960s and 1970s in some great parts with some of the best in the business. Even parts he didn't particularly care for helped him in one way or another. Taylor was driven by the love of his art, his adventurous spirit and as he liked to say "a bit of ego thrown in."

Rod Taylor: Pulling No Punches, a new documentary by Robert de Young and Stephan Wellink, sets out to not only to tell the story of Taylor's acting career but to capture the essence of the man. Told through interviews, photographs and movie clips, we see the span of his work and talent. It benefits from having the man himself, Rod Taylor, as the main interview subject. The filmmakers interviewed him over two days at Taylor's home in Beverly Hills. Taylor passed away in early 2015 making this documentary a timely treasure. (We even get to hear a bit about Taylor's former love interest Anita Ekberg who passed away only a few days after he did.) Several other talking heads in the documentary, all of whom were important figures in Taylor's life, include Angela Lansbury, Tippi Hedren, Maggie Smith, Baz Luhrmann, Stephan Elliott, screenwriter Peter Yeldham, Susie Porter, Keitch Michell and others like Taylor's biographer, manager, lawyer, etc.

Films discussed at length include: The Catered Affair (1956), Raintree Country (1957), The Time Machine (1960), Colossus and the Amazon Queen (1960), 101 Dalmations (1961), Seven Seas to Calais (1962), The Birds (1963), The V.I.P.s (1963), Sunday in New York (1963), The Liquidator (1965), Young Cassidy (1965), The Glass Bottom Boat (1966), Dark of the Sun (1968), The Man Who Had Power Over Women (1970), The Train Robbers (1973), Welcome to Woop Woop (1997) and his final film Inglorious Basterds (2009). You'll hear Rod Taylor himself tell you stories about working on each of these. Taylor seemed to be a fun-loving guy who really enjoyed his work and looked back fondly on his career. He was a colorful character and that definitely shows through.

Rod Taylor: Pulling No Punches reinvigorated my interest in Rod Taylor. I was instantly hooked. Taylor was an immensely captivating figure and it doesn't hurt that his blue eyes, with just a hint green in them, are simply mesmerizing. I've always been drawn to Rod Taylor films. I thought I had seen quite a lot of them until I watched this doc and realized I had to dive further into his filmography. I enjoyed the graphic design elements of the documentary and how it was sectioned by theme in a sort of chronological order. It was aesthetically pleasing and a lot of fun to watch.

Rod Taylor Pulling No Punches is a thoroughly enjoyable documentary that captures the essence of the Australian movie star who charmed audiences around the world. Highly recommended.

Check out the official Facebook page for more details about the film. I hope a DVD and Blu-Ray release will be in the near future. It recently won Best Feature Documentary at the Burbank International Film Festival.

My good friend Jessica reviewed the documentary and interviewed the director and producer on her blog Comet Over Hollywood. I recommend you read it. She introduced me to the film!

Many thanks to the filmmakers for the opportunity to review the screener.