Back in the Saddle (1941)

Intro.
Although it's Monday, this review is a tad bit late for "Fridays with the Flying A."  Nevertheless, Back in the Saddle proved to be another fine Gene Autry film.  I had seen a clip of the film on Encore Westerns during an interview with (I think) Douglas Green.  He talked about the man who wrote "Back in the Saddle" - apparently Ray Whitley was the guy, and as they worked on the film he said he needed one last song.  Somehow he said he was getting "back in the saddle" to go to work and a song (and a legend) was born.

Overview
The song, "Back in the Saddle," opens up the film as we see Gene backstage after a rodeo at Madison Square Gardens.  His character is literally going back to his work saddle by leaving the tour and going back to work out West.  While in New York, however, his job is to find Tom Bennet, the man who just inherited Gene's boss's ranch.  Gene and Frog Millhouse find Tom alright and make their way West.  But once they hit town, they find that the copper mine has had a strike and their humble cow town has exploded into a huge mining town.  And at its head is E. G. Blaine, who has the whole town in his pocket.  When Gene and his men discover that Blaine's mine is dumping their runoff into the main river, which is killing their cattle, he tries to put an end to it - first by way of the law.  As Gene tries to get an impartial judge out of town, Tom takes action, resulting in a shootout between the cattlemen and the miners.  In the crossfire, Tom shoots a miner in self-defense.  He is arrested and held with the understanding that as long as Gene doesn't try to stop the mining company, they won't hang Tom.  What results is a battle of wills, which involves two lovely ladies (Julie Bishop and Mary Lee), a gambler who switches to Gene's side, a stampede of cattle and a firey shootout to the end. 

Highlights
I just can't resist Mary Lee and Gene Autry.  They sing so well together, and in this film they are paired for "I'm an Old Cowhand."  Apart from their singing, this film is a pretty standard Western - that is, right up until the last part.  As soon as Tom is taken into custody and Gene is given the ultimatum, the film started to remind me more and more of Rio Bravo (which, ironically enough, stars Dean Martin as a singing cowboy).  That's when the film really starts to turn from a lighthearted oater to a more serious film.  The scene where Gene rides into town to serve the papers to get Tom transferred to another town is breathtaking.  You can feel the tension as he slowly makes his way to the jailhouse at the end of the street.  There's literally no escape.  You know it and Gene knows it.  And that's all I'll say for fear of spoiling it!

Review and Recommendation
While not one of my all time favorite Gene Autry films, Back in the Saddle still deserves a good rating.  It's fun, enjoyable, suspenseful and action-packed.  Plus a few classic songs (I mean, at least watch the first 5 minutes to see where Gene's theme song began!)  It's a well-rounded film with Gene at the top of his game.  Oh yeah, and Mary Lee saves the day - how great is that??         

Suspicion (1941)

Intro.
I didn't plan to watch a lot of Hitchcock films, but the more I've watched Cary Grant in Hitch's films, the more I love them.  Suspicion was definitely my favorite so far.  I had read a lot about it previously in a few film classes, mainly because it is a prime example of everything Hitchcock did - the camera work is phenomenal, the story is filled with complexity and the characters are deep and well developed.  The special effects are wonderful too, especially the "glowing" glass of milk. 

Overview
Shy intellectual Lina (Joan Fontaine) mingles with the elite crowds of England, going on fox hunts and to balls, but she is afraid of turning into an old maid, a fear her parents have accepted as fact.  So when the charming, gorgeous Johnnie swoops into her life, she falls for him.  In less than two weeks they are married and off to an elaborate honeymoon all over Europe.  When they return to their new mansion, Lina is shocked to find that Johnnie hasn't a cent to his name and abhors the idea of working for a living.  He would rather gamble and take his chances.  The rest of the film focuses on the strain this financial trouble takes on their relationship.  Johnnie, who is obsessed with murder mysteries, starts to become fascinated by poison.  After Johnnie's close friend (and financial business partner) dies, Lina begins to fear that she too will become a victim.  Every move Johnnie then makes she suspects as a possible move to murder her.  It all ends with an incredibly terrifying drive along a cliff and well, let's just say the ending will leave you shocked.

Highlights
As I wrote above, the cinematography is incredible.  The interior of Johnnie and Lina's mansion is shot with lights flooding in through "windows" - we can see the outlines of windowpanes.  In the main foyer, the round window above makes Lina look as though she's trapped in a web, very appropriate for her growing suspicion.  And that famous glass of warm milk that Johnnie brings her (which may be poisoned) glows.  I saw on a documentary once that they had to light the milk from beneath in order to get it just the right glow.  Hitchcock has it beautifully framed too, as Cary Grant switches off the hall light and all you see is that glass of milk.  Even if it was harmless, we as an audience are just as freaked out as Lina. 

Joan Fontaine won an Oscar for this role, and she definitely deserved it.  Her character remains shy throughout the film, but where we initially saw her as completely given over to Johnnie, she quickly grows wary of his gambling and then his interest in murder.  Most impressively, we see just how hard it is for her to put on good face when interacting with the other townspeople.  She must pretend to be the gracious, grateful wife no matter what.  Hitchcock also does a great deal to really build the suspense so that as Lina's suspicion grows, ours does too - the entire film is from her point of view, so we see and hear what she does. 

Cary Grant needs recognition too.  Even though he wasn't nominated, he should have been.  I had my doubts going into this film that anyone could ever believe he could commit murder.  But boy did I believe it!  The traits Lina (and we as the audience) initially found charming grow into annoying and then almost mean.  His tone becomes more sharp and his actions more mysterious.  There's one shot where he stands in Lina's doorway as she's in bed and he looks like, well, he looks like a murderer.  A lot can be contributed to Hitchcock, but I know that any other actor would've had a harder time (trying to picture Jimmy Stewart in this role is ridiculous).  He pulls it off.  Best of all, when the ending is explained (and we realize the truth along with Lina) you can't help but feel your heart wrench.  I got so into the film that I said, "I can't believe I didn't see that!"  Of course I didn't see it, because I was watching from Lina's view point and she didn't see it either.  I won't say any more because I don't want to ruin it, but the end is truly amazing.

Recommendation
I could write a 20 page paper on why this movie deserves the title of "classic."  It's a rich experience and I highly recommend it.  It's one of the best mystery/suspense films I've seen, and definitely one of the best of Hitchcock.  It's a very close second to my favorite Hitch film, Rear Window.  I even want to watch it again, something I rarely think about when I see murder mysteries.  There's so much to see and consider that it has to be on your must-see list (if it isn't already!)