"BOMBSHELL" (1933) ReviewIn one of Hollywood’s ironic twists, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer released "BOMBSHELL", a 1933 comedy about the trials and tribulations of a movie starlet. To this day, many believe that the movie was supposed to be a satire on the life of silent film goddess, Clara Bow. But looking at the movie today, it could have easily been a take on the life of the film’s leading lady, Jean Harlow.
Based upon an unproduced play by Caroline Francke and Mack Crane, and directed by Victor Fleming; "BOMBSHELL" begins with movie star Lola Burns being fed up with the machinations of her studio’s publicity chief, E.J. "Space" Hanlon, who continuously feeds the press with endless fake scandals about her. Lola also has to put up with her drunken father who tries to manager her career, and an obnoxious brother; who both sponge from her. She also has to deal with a private secretary that takes advantage of her at every opportunity. Unaware of Space’s feelings for her, Lola is also torn between a fortune hunting European nobleman and gigolo and a brash Hollywood director. Lola decides to put her life in order by adopting a baby. But when Space and her family sabotages her efforts, Lola turns her back on Hollywood and flees to a desert resort.
What can I say? Not only is "BOMBSHELL" one of my favorite movies from the old Hollywood studio system, but one of my favorite comedies of all time. Screenwriters John Lee Mahin, Jules Furthman and Norman Krasna created a hilarious tale about the chaotic and surreal life of a Hollywood starlet. "BOMBSHELL" featured a rather funny interview between Lola and a writer from a Hollywood gossip rag. While Lola and her father provide the journalist with pretentious tidbits about their lives, the camera gives a view of the journalist’s more realistic take on their answers. Another hilarious scene featured a fist fight between Lola’s sponging Maquis boyfriend, Marquis Di Pisa Di Pisa and the volatile director, Jim Brogan. During the movie’s last half hour, Lola meets and becomes romantically involved with an East Coast blue blood named Gifford Middleton and his family. This relationship allowed Gifford to quote one of the most cringe-worthy and hilarious lines in film history:
"Your hair is like a field of silver daisies. I’d like to run barefoot through your hair!"
However, Space’s response to Gifford’s uh . . . compliment, had me on the floor laughing:
"He looks like an athlete. I wouldn’t want him puttin’ his foot through my scalp."
But not only is "BOMBSHELL" funny, it also gave moviegoers a glimpse (and I mean that literally) into life as an actress during Hollywood's studio era. The movie’s first twenty minutes revealed Lola being prepared for a day of shooting and the type of people that worked at a studio. The only unrealistic moment during this sequence was a scene featuring the studio’s boss, who was portrayed as a benign leader concerned for both his studio and the well-being of performers like Lola Burns under contract. But the egoism, back-stabbing and borderline insanity is all there.
I have always been a fan of Jean Harlow as an actress for as long as I can remember. But I believe that Lola Burns was one of the best roles in her career. Her comedic talent seemed to be at its height in this movie. She conveyed all of the best . . . and worst of Lola Burns. Harlow made it obvious that Lola is a victim of the studio system and her bloodsucking family. But she also skillfully conveyed Lola’s egotism, temper and penchant for illusions. Someone once commented that Lola's character and situation never changed for the better or worst by the film’s last reel. I cannot quite agree with this assessment. I got the feeling that Harlow’s Lola spent most of the movie indulging in illusions of a possible "normal life". These illusions led her to pursue relationships with men like the Marquis Di Pisa Di Pisa and Gifford Middleton and make an attempt to adopt a baby. While proclaiming that she had enough of Hollywood, Lola expressed signs of jealousy when Space informed her that another contract player might get a role that she had previously coveted. It is not that surprising that when faced with the end of her illusions, Lola returned to Hollywood.
Lee Tracy was equally funny as studio publicist E.J. "Space" Hanlon. His Space was sardonic, manipulative and quick with his tongue. Best of all, Tracy had a great screen chemistry with Harlow. It is a pity that they never worked with each other – before or after. Both had appeared in "DINNER AT EIGHT", but did not share any scenes together. Pity. The movie also benefited from other supporting performers such as Frank Morgan, who radiated both bluster and charm as Lola’s deadbeat father; Pat O'Brien, who was very sexy as Lola’s former beau, director Jim Grogan; Franchot Tone, as Lola’s new beau, who gave one of the most memorable lines in the movie; and a sharp-tongued Una Merkel as Lola’s bloodsucking secretary, Mac. Louise Beavers, who portrayed Lola’s maid Loretta, had two delicious moments in the movie, despite being saddled with a racially cliched role. I especially love the scene featuring her clash with Merkel’s Mac, when the latter threatened to have her fired. It gave her the opportunity to speak another one of the movie's more memorable lines. The only cast member I had a problem with was Ted Healey. His Junior Burns seemed like a mindless thug that lacked the charm of Lola and Mr. Burns. I found it hard to believe that he came from the same family.
If you want a peek into life at a Hollywood studio during the early 1930s, then "BOMBSHELL" is your movie. If you want a hilarious movie that starred Jean Harlow in one of her best roles, then "BOMBSHELL" is definitely your movie. Not only did the benefitted from the talents of Harlow and co-star Lee Tracy; but also from the directorial skills of Victor Fleming and a first-rate script written by John Lee Mahin, Jules Furthman and Norman Krasna.
"THE THREE MUSKETEERS" (1948) ReviewThere are times when I find myself amazed at the longevity of Alexandre Dumas' 1844 novel, "The Three Musketeers". The novel has been in circulation for nearly 170 years. Hollywood and other film industries have been adapting the novel for the movies or television for nearly a century. One adaptation I recently viewed was the Hollywood movie produced and released by MGM Studios in 1948. We all know the story. A young Frenchman from Gascon sets out for Paris in the early 17th century to join the King's Musketeers. During this journey, he meets a beautiful, mysterious woman and picks a fight with one of the lady's escorts. Upon his arrival in Paris, d'Artagnan presents himself to Commander de Treville of the Musketeers and successfully joins the unit, despite losing his father's letter of introduction. D'Artagnan also manages to annoy three of the most skillful Musketeers - Athos, Aramis and Porthos - and schedule a duel with all three of them. His duel with Athos ends when members of Cardinal Richelieu's men tries to arrest the Musketeers. And d'Artagnan assists the Musketeers in their fight against the Cardinal's men. The young Gascon befriends his fellow Musketeers, acquires a valet named Planchet and falls in love with the goddaughter of his new landlord, Constance Bonacieux. However, Constance also happens to be Queen Anne's dressmaker. Thanks to her romance with d'Artagnan, the latter becomes involved in royal and political intrigue as he helps Constance prevent Cardinal Richelieu from exposing the Queen's romance with England's Duke of Buckingham; and becomes the target of one of the Cardinal's top agents - the beautiful and deadly Milady de Winter, who happened to be the mysterious woman he had briefly encountered on the road to Paris.Directed by George Sidney and written by Robert Ardrey, "THE THREE MUSKETEERS" turned out to be the second most faithful adaptation of Dumas' novel. Mind you, there were differences. Due to Code restrictions, Constance Bonacieux was the goddaughter of d'Artagnan's landlord, not the wife. Therefore, this version avoided any adulterous taint in the relationship between the hero and his lady love. The war conducted between France and Spain featured in Dumas' novel was transformed into a private military campaign conducted behind King Louis XIII's back, between Richelieu and Buckingham. And Milady de Winter's prison guard in England turned out to be Constance (in hiding from Richelieu), instead of John Felton, one of the Duke's officers. Which meant that Constance's death occurred at Buckingham's castle, instead of inside a monastery in France. Fortunately, these changes barely made any negative impact on my viewing pleasure. But there were some aspects of the movie that did not sit well with me.Mind you, Gene Kelly's overall performance as d'Artagnan struck me as well done, despite the actor being over a decade older than the actual character. But there were times in the movie's first half when I found his performance a little hammy and strident - especially in his effort to convey the image of a passionate and impetuous youth. A good example of this hamminess was his reaction to his first sight of Constance Bonacieux. Screenwriter Robert Ardrey did very little to showcase the Comte de Rochefort character in the film and ended up wasting the presence of actor Ian Keith, who portrayed the character in this film and in the 1935 adaptation. I liked Frank Morgan's portrayal of King Louis XIII, but I must admit that he seemed to old for the role. And the Queen Anne character, portrayed wonderfully by Angela Landsbury, practically disappeared in the movie's second half, despite the major roles played by Constance and the Duke of Buckingham during that period.Despite these quibbles, I must admit that "THE THREE MUSKETEERS" is probably my second favorite adaptation of Dumas' novel. One thing, the Technicolor featured in this film is absolutely beautiful. The color, combined with Robert H. Planck's photography of the movie's locations really took my breath away . . . especially in scenes that featured some of the characters' travels across France and England. Herbert Stothart, who had won an Oscar for his work on 1939's "THE WIZARD OF OZ", did an admirable job of blending the movie's score with the on-screen drama and action. Speaking of action, this movie featured some of the best sword fighting choreography I have ever seen on screen. The fight scenes definitely benefited from Kelly's dancing skills and athleticism. But Kelly was not the only one who looked good in the action scenes. So did Van Heflin, Robert Coote and especially Gig Young. Even Keenan Wynn, who portrayed d'Artagnan's valet Planchet, looked good in one or two scenes. I must admit that Walter Plunkett's costume designs looked absolutely beautiful - for both the male and female characters. However, a part of me suspected they were not an accurate reflection of early 17th century France.Ardrey's adaptation of Dumas' novel may not have been perfect. But I cannot deny that the screenwriter still fashioned a first-rate script. He did an excellent job in meshing the two major plotlines of the novels - the theft of Queen Anne's diamonds and Milady de Winter's activities against d'Artagnan and the Duke of Buckingham in the movie's second half. George Sidney's energetic direction and excellent performances from the cast elevated the script even higher. Not only did the sword fighting sequences impressed me, I especially enjoyed the long sequence that featured d'Artagnan's journey to England to fetch Queen Anne's diamonds. The movie also featured some fine dramatic scenes. One of them featured superb performances from Lana Turner and Vincent Price, in which the two villainous characters discuss the fates of both the Duke of Buckingham and d'Artagnan. Another turned out to be a showcase for Van Heflin in which the drunken Athos revealed the details of his failed marriage. But my favorite featured Athos' revelation of Milady as his estranged wife in a conversation with d'Artagnan. This scene revealed some outstanding performances from both Heflin and Kelly.No movie is perfect. I can honestly say that the 1948 movie, "THE THREE MUSKETEERS" is no bastion of perfection. It has its flaws. But it also possesses virtues that outweigh its flaws - including an excellent cast, beautiful photography, and a well-written adaptation of Alexandre Dumas' novel. Most of all, all the movie's virtues were increased tenfold from a well-paced and energetic direction from George Sidney. It is a pity that MGM Studios failed to profit from "THE THREE MUSKETEERS". The studio certainly deserved to.
Below are images from "THE THREE MUSKETEERS", the 1948 adaptation of Alexandre Dumas, père's 1844 novel. Directed by George Sidney, the movie starred Lana Turner, Gene Kelly, June Allyson and Van Heflin:
"THE THREE MUSKETEERS" (1948) Photo Gallery
