Worthwhile Movie #23 - The Quiet Man (1952)

BBC period dramas and classic black-and-white films are my entertainment of choice, but it has taken me a few years to learn to appreciate John Wayne. I thought he was good in The Searchers and okay in 3 Godfathers. The first hint that I had of his charisma and charm was in Stagecoach, but the other Wayne movies I’ve watched seemed like run-of-the-mill westerns.

When Anthony Esolen featured The Quiet Man as his film-of-the-week (Substack newsletter), I decided to give Wayne another try. I had seen the movie many years ago and thought it a pleasant bit of romantic fluff, but Esolen gave me eyes to look at it in a new way. He said that the movie is actually about quietness. 

He writes, Prizefighter Sean Thornton, an Irish-American living in Pittsburgh, has killed his opponent in the ring. It’s an accident, but Sean can’t accept that. So Sean will never fight again, but instead moves back to the old family homestead in a village in Ireland, to farm and pick up the rest of his life, as a peaceful man. He’s made a vow never to throw a punch again. That’s what he intends, but sometimes a man has to fight, regardless of what he’d like, especially if he is fighting for something — or someone — he loves.

In addition to the excellent acting by both Wayne (playing Sean Thornton), Maureen O’Hara (playing Mary Kate Danaher) and the rest of the cast, the scenery is gorgeous and John Ford’s filming is stunning. Mary Kate and Sean fall in love, but his refusal to fight for something that she believes to be her right, gets their relationship off to a rocky start.

Esolen concludes his essay, In many ways, The Quiet Man is a film for those who believe in marriage and who know that what men and women do is that staggering and monumental thing, so closely related to tending the soil with love and care: they make children. The dialogue is priceless, yet it all seems perfectly natural, not stylized. We like everybody in The Quiet Man, even granite-jawed old Will Danaher, and there are gestures in the film that are unforgettable for a kind of down-to-earth nobility that I can’t find so well expressed in any other film except for John Ford’s own How Green Was My Valley. Ford was a poet of scene and dialogue and music, and of silences that are more filled with meaning than any words can be. But above all, when you watch this film, have fun! And thank God for the two great sexes that animate the world, because if it weren’t for them, where would we be? 

The only free version of the film is a video tape transfer at Internet Archive. If you watch the movie, you will greatly appreciate reading this article about the film AFTER you view it. I loved it, but I'm glad I didn't read it first because of all the spoilers.

Blessings,

What I Read and Watched in October 2023

Our rented apartment has no television so I continue to get a remarkable amount of reading done. The books I read in order of most-to-least appealing were 1) The Bridge on San Luis Rey by Thornton Wilder (simply astonishing in its breadth of understanding of the human condition), 2) The King's Equal by Katherine Paterson (a delightful fairy tale with a strong, yet feminine heroine), 3) Miracles on Maple Hill by Virginia Sorenson (1957 Newbery winner), 4) Reading for the Love of God by Jessica Hooten Wilson, 5) When the English Fall by David Williams (dystopia in an Amish community), 6) On Asking God Why by Elisabeth Elliot (collected essays), 7) Out of a Far Country (non-fiction redemption story), 8) The Gabriel Hounds by Mary Stewart (I love her suspense novels, but this one droned on for 150 pages before my heart rate even mildly accelerated.)

The movies that I watched on my computer were: The African Queen (via Hoopla), which was a fun classic that my husband and I both enjoyed. On YouTube I started to watch a Hallmark mystery called The Curious Caterer, but turned it off after 5 painful minutes of poor acting, banal script and odd situations. The Carrot Cake Murder is a sequel of sorts to the Murder, She Baked movies that I've raved about, but was so badly done that I barely hung on until the end. Finally, I watched another Hallmark mystery (via Frndly TV), The Dancing Detective. The male character was over-the-top ridiculous, but he kept me laughing. Plus, the footage of Malta was breathtaking. 

I linked to the books so you could read more about them, but I read all of them from library, thrift store or loaned copies. Hopefully, so can you. 

Blessings,

What I Read and Watched in April 2023

Does anyone iron anymore? Since dryers are a rarity here in Brazil, I set up my ironing board every few weeks to spruce up my husband's dress shirts, and my task is often lightened by the viewing of an old movie. This month I found a little comedy gem called The Peterville Diamond (1943), which though not Oscar-worthy, had some fun one-liners and a clever little plot. Later in the month my husband and I watched the classic Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, (1939). Jimmy Stewart and Jean Arthur are two of my favorites and they were in rare form in this film. My library has started carrying some Hallmark Hall of Fame movies (precursors to the cheesy present-day Hallmark films), and I enjoyed Remember Sunday about a man whose aneurysm causes him to wake up each morning with no short term memory. The acting was excellent, and despite the fact that it is a love story with comedic elements, it is definitely not a romantic comedy. 

I had an amazing reading month beginning with King Arthur and His Knights of the Round Table by Roger Lancelyn Green, which started me on a huge Arthurian legend rabbit trail. I followed this up with James Knowles' Legends of King Arthur and His Knights, which I enjoyed even more. I have been an avid reader of classic literature all my life. How am I so late to this party?????

Uncle Tom's Cabin was my audiobook of the month. Not a perfect book, but much better than I was expecting.(review forthcoming) The other books I read were Out to Canaan, A New Song and A Common Life by Jan Karon (books 4-6 in the Mitford series). I also finished the excellent Prayers in the Night by Tish Warren, Preparing for Easter (readings based on C.S. Lewis' writings), and Lord, Teach Me to Pray in 28 Days by Kay Arthur. 

It seems like I read a lot, but I had been reading three of the books for some time and happened to finally finish them up in April. 

Any King Arthur fans out there? Any other thoughts on this film/book list? 

Blessings,

The Four Feathers by A.E.W. Mason

A good name is more desirable than great riches; 

to be esteemed is better than silver or gold. 

Proverbs 22:1

What is honor? Once lost, can it be regained? At what cost? Is Pacifism equal to

cowardice? A.E.W. Mason's 1902 novel The Four Feathers seeks to answer these questions.

It took me a while to become invested in this novel, but I'm glad I stuck with it. The story

begins in 1870 with veterans of the Crimean war seated around a table together. As they discuss their past battles, a young, sensitive boy listens to their stories and wonders if he can successfully join in the tradition of his military ancestors.

Although Harry Feversham follows in their footsteps, he has no taste for military life. When he leaves the army, he is branded as a coward and must regain his honor in the eyes of those he loves. Since it takes him six years to do that, you won't find a lot of fast-moving action in this book. But if you enjoy better-than-average writing and some good ideas to chew on, you'll appreciate this book, which has been the source of at least four movie adaptations. 

My one quibble with the book is that in order to exonerate Harry Feversham, Mason depicts career military men as less than human. Early in the book a group of them is described as men of one stamp; no distinction of uniform could obscure their relationship—lean-faced men, hard as iron, rugged in feature, thin-lipped, with firm chins and straight, level mouths, narrow foreheads, and the steel-blue inexpressive eyes; men of courage and resolution, no doubt, but without subtleties, or nerves, or that burdensome gift of imagination;

Still, I enjoyed the book a great deal, especially because of the excellent narration done by Ralph Cosham. 


Blessings,

A Rose for Mrs. Miniver by Michael Troyan

Regular readers of this blog know that I sometimes digress from books to talk about classic films. This week I read the bio of one of my favorite actresses from the 40's, Greer Garson. She was a class act and her biography, A Rose for Mrs. Miniver, accentuated that. I have nothing profound to say about the book, but the paragraphs below show some of the reasons why I admire her:

But there were fewer opportunities in the 1970’s for her. Filmmakers rarely made the sophisticated, romantic comedies or dramas that she preferred, and she refused to join her Hollywood peers like Joan Crawford, Olivia de Havilland, and Bette Davis who were making horror films like Whatever Happened to Baby Jane, Lady in a Cage, and Hush Hush Sweet Charlotte. “I’ve been offered nymphomaniacs, kleptomaniacs, pyromaniacs, homicidal maniacs and just plain maniacs,” she reported. “I think producers felt that after playing a long series of noble and admirable characters there would be quite a lot of shock value in seeing me play something altogether different. But I prefer upbeat stories that send people out of the theater feeling better than they did coming in.”

During interviews, she frequently and sharply criticized current films and filmmakers. “I’m no a keyhole peeper in real life, so why should I go to the cinema to be a keyhole peeper?” she said. “Producers should have more courage. People will respond to stories with love and courage and happy endings instead of shockers. I think the mirror should be tilted slightly upward when it’s reflecting life - toward the cheerful, the tender, the compassionate, the brave, the funny, the encouraging..." (p. 327)

The Best Old Movies for Families - Part Two

Last week I told you what I didn’t like about The Best Old Movies for Families. This time I’m taking a different view because I strongly agreed with two of Burr’s main points. On page seven he writes,

Entertainment for children is mostly awful. Where’s the antidote to the Disneyfied pap and computer generated overstimulation that passes for children’s entertainment these days? Wouldn’t it be pleasant to sit down and watch a movie with your kids that wasn’t presold on sequels and Happy Meals? Or take them to an action movie that didn’t either freak them out or weigh down their little bones with premature irony? I guess you could lock them in the attic. A better solution might be to vary their media diet, and one way to do that is with old movies.

Secondly, Classic films give children a broader understanding of what it means to be an adult:

Consider the ways that various types of human beings are portrayed in kiddie media. I’m talking about their staple diet, as purveyed by such keepers of the corporate castle as Nickelodeon, The Disney Channel, etc. How are people presented? Parents are either yammering, well-intentioned fools or thin-lipped martinets who come around in the last act. And other grown-ups? They barely exist as two-dimensional objects of fear, ridicule, or blank incomprehension. A cranky next-door neighbor, a dithery old lady, a suspicious shop owner, a sexless teacher, a cretinous middle school janitor – that’s about it.

Why such paltry options? Why are kids’ movies and TV shows uninterested in adults who are interesting? Because they need to flatter the children who are watching the ads and buying the tie-in toys… The upshot is that your kids get a super-empowering media reality that revolves around them the way the ancients used to think the universe spun around the earth. (p. 30)

He then goes on to suggest a viewing of The African Queen where two adult caricatures (town drunk and prudish missionary) evolve into living, breathing human beings full of emotions, dignity and courage.

Burr may be somewhat out of touch with Christian values when it comes to film choices (as I mentioned last week). But he’s right on target when he encourages parents (1) to dig around for family-friendly films that portray men and women as thinking, feeling adults, and (2) to consider classic films as great alternatives to the overly scary, or overly child-centered present-day options.

For Classic Film Fans - Jean Arthur

I first saw Jean Arthur in a WWII era film called “The More the Merrier”. I was charmed by her comedic talents, her beauty, and her on-screen vulnerability and wondered how such an appealing star could be virtually unknown. (Was she outshone by her fabulous male co-stars?) Since my first exposure to Arthur I’ve hunted down about a dozen of her other films. Most are so engaging that I’ve watched them several times. Recently I enjoyed viewing her opposite Cary Grant and Ronald Coleman in “The Talk of the Town" (1942). When a charming fugitive, a beautiful teacher, and a stuffy lawyer are forced to become roommates, their unconventional relationship is suddenly The Talk of the Town in this madcap romantic comedy… The zaniness never stops as the three of them dodge the cops, try to snag the real crooks and discover along the way that both men have fallen for Nora. (from the VHS cover)

Imagine my surprise when I looked up a photo for this post and saw Miss Arthur portrayed as a pin-up girl. This was not the Jean Arthur I knew and loved – the beautiful, wacky young woman you’d be proud to take home to your mother. On the other hand, the eleven Arthur movies I’ve seen were some of the last she ever made. Maybe she was a femme fatale in the other eighty-one. I’ll probably never know since many were silent films.

If you like good, clean fun in a movie, you may enjoy these romantic comedies. A list of my five favorites:
1) A Lady Takes a Chance – with John Wayne
2) A Foreign Affair – with John Lund and Marlene Dietrich
3) The More the Merrier – with Joel McCrea
4) The Talk of the Town – with Cary Grant and Ronald Coleman
5) Only Angels Have Wings – with Cary Grant

Worthwhile Movie #2 - Dear Heart

Dear Heart (1963) is one of my absolute favorite movies for its good writing, excellent acting and insights into human character. From the first minutes of the movie, you know the heroine is a busy-body. It’s only as the movie unfolds that you see her behavior not as nosiness, but as a frank interest in people’s lives. She really cares about them. Evie Jackson is quirky with a capital “Q."  Though not your typical love story, this is nevertheless a deeply satisfying movie. The hero and heroine are not drop-dead gorgeous (which increases their appeal to me). Even the hero’s name, Harry Mork, implies a totally non-Hollywood-ized character.

I think it is amazing that this film was made at the height of the sexual revolution and yet its main message is that sex and love are not the same thing. When a man propositions Evie at the Postmaster’s Convention, she tells him, "Sex is just one page in the book.” No one else in the film seems to agrees with her. Until she meets Harry. Though both of them have made their share of sinful mistakes, they have the decency to regret it and the guts to try over.

When Harry's fiancée (Angela Lansbury!) breezes into town and doesn’t even question the fact that he is spending time with Evie, he confronts her. She responds, “Harry, you’re a man and you’ll continue to be one. All I ask is that you don’t tell me about it. Happily, this laissez faire attitude is what brings Harry to his senses.

I have so many favorite quotes from this movie that I can’t list them all. At one point all the significant people in Harry’s life show their selfishness by going into their rooms and slamming the doors. He stands in the hall and yells, “You’ve got to come out and get mixed up with me. We’ve got to talk and we’ve got to fight and we’ve got to meddle in each other’s business until we forget about our own.” (Evie’s philosophy exactly!)

I wouldn’t call this a “family” movie because one of its central themes is sexuality, BUT it’s one of the best pro-marriage movies I’ve ever seen. I find it charming, funny and heart-breaking all at the same time.