The past two nights, we watched two more Hal Roach "Streamliner" comedies, both set in an Army camp and featuring a character named "Sgt. 'Dodo' Doubleday", played by actor William Tracy. Roach also produced "Miss Polly" (seen and reviewed the other night); we learned about the Doubleday films, and the "Streamliner" name for the sub-60 minute format, by reading Roach's bio on Wiki. This led us to seek more of these films, because we love short running times, and when the scripts are good, our motto is The Shorter, The Better, i.e. all the way down to 45 minutes. "Miss Polly" clocked in at 44 and change and the Doubleday films are only slightly longer. In "Tanks a Million"(1941), seen last night, Dodo Doubleday is introduced as a civilian. It's the first film in the series, and as it opens he appears on a radio show where the host interviews "unusual" guests. Dodo is unusual for his voluminous photographic memory. He reads a lot, remembers every word and can repeat it all verbatim, which comes in handy when he's drafted by the Army. He feels it's his duty to serve, and doesn't try to get out of it as his acquaintance "Charlie Cobb" (Noah Beery Jr.) is doing. On induction day, he gets off the bus at camp and, having memorized the training manual, is already barking orders at his fellow newbies, much to the chagrin of "Sgt. Ames" (Joe Sawyer), the drill sergeant who will become his nemesis. Sgt. Ames is highly annoyed that this smart guy in civvies is trying to act like he's Uncle Sam's favorite nephew. Dodo explains that he's only trying to help. "I just wanted to get them in line for you, sir." But it does no good. Ames is a 20 year veteran for whom it took ten years of "hard work" to earn his Sergeant's stripes. Dodo gets his the first week when he's sent to non-com school because of his brain.
He gets in good with the visiting "Colonel 'Spitfire' Barkley" (James Gleason) when Barkley, who's averse to public speaking, is called upon to address the troops. Dodo subs for him, wearing his uniform, thinking he's doing the Colonel a favor. But "Capt. Rossmead" (Douglas Fowley, Kim's Dad) finds out about it and reports him to Barkley, who is initially outraged and demotes Dodo to private, which puts him under the thumb of Sgt. Ames, who's licking his chops to grind Dodo into the ground. Dodo is great at regulations or in drill, but he's a disaster on the gun range, where Ames expects his troops to excel. Hijinx of course ensue, until the base commander reports to Colonel Barkley that he very much enjoyed his speech, "and would you be willing to repeat it, for inspirational purposes, at the Staff Officers Club?" On the one hand, Barkley is thrilled that the commander liked his speech; on the other, he didn't give it - Dodo Doubleday did. He chewed Dodo out and tore off his stripes, because he'd assumed the speech was a disaster (and unapproved). But now, if he's to give it himself to the Officer's Club, he's going to need Dodo back, to serve as a human teleprompter, otherwise he'll never remember the words. William Tracy is perfect in the title role, with the right combination of nerdiness and self-assurance. Joe Sawyer, who trained at Pasadena Playhouse according to Wiki, is a highly talented comic actor who plays Sgt. Ames as a buffoon, but not a stupid one, and the script lets Ames win sometimes, when Dodo gets too cocky or smug in his "book knowledge".
"Tanks a Million" is a lot of fun and gets Two Big Thumbs up (the picture is soft but watchable), but even better is "Hay Foot"(1942), the second picture in the Doubleday series, which we saw first, two nights ago.
This time, Dodo is back with Col. Barkley as his secretary, and the Colonel needs another speech to motivate the newly arriving troops. He has Dodo write it, since the speech in the first movie worked so well, and Dodo writes him a gem, but it burns up when Col. Barkley sets it over an ashtray with a smoldering cigarette. "That's no problem, sir" says Dodo. "As you know, I remember every word I type." This serves as a refresher for his character trait, and to inform those who didn't see the first movie.
As in "Tanks a Million", the Colonel has him stand close during the speech, once again acting as his human teleprompter. Sgt. Ames is back, along with Dodo's pal Charlie Cobb (see above), who got inducted after all but has been made a drill sergeant like Ames. Charlie takes Ames's side in all disputes with Dodo, who has his stripes back and is thus of equal rank, because he too resents Dodo's "easy duty" as Col. Barkley's attache. Cobb and Ames don't think he's a real soldier, and as they watch him giving the Colonel crib notes during his speech, they make a point to expose him as a phony. His weak spot, as we know, is that he can't shoot. But then love comes calling in the form of the Colonel's daughter "Betty" (Elyse Knox), who likes Dodo for his brain, but also because - Army shenanigans aside - he's a good guy. In a side thread, after Dodo flunks his pistol range exam, Capt. Rossmead sends him to the woods to shoot, "so you don't kill anybody". Out there, he unknowingly locates himself just beneath the bluff of Col. Barkley's backyard. While practicing his (ahem) "marksmanship", he accidentally kills a pesky hawk and an annoying rabbit on the Colonel's property. This happens only because he can't shoot straight, but the Colonel takes this as evidence that Dodo is in fact a crack shot, and he issues an order to the Sergeants Ames and Cobb, that they're to face Dodo in a shooting contest.
When Betty Barkley finds this out, she sends sends a dinner invitation to Dodo to encourage him, knowing he's really not a good shooter. Ames and Cobb read the invite, too, each thinking it's intended for him, and all three show up at the Barkley residence. Mayhem ensues, involving Dodo Doubleday's dog, and the Sergeants end up throwing the Colonel out the second story windum. Man, this is great stuff. You have to be a total pro to write a script this tight, and you have to have actors who can pull it off, but Hal Roach has both, which is why "Hay Foot" also gets Two Big Thumbs Up, and an even higher recommendation than it's predecessor "Tanks a Million". But do yourself a favor and watch them both. The picture on "Hay Foot" is razor sharp. ////
I'm also watching "Get Back" (The Beatles doc), in hour long increments, and - throwing all publicity and reviews aside and just watching it with no preconceptions - I must say, as a lifelong Beatle fan, it's a weird experience watching the guys interact. I'm only through the first two hours, but so far, it looks like Lennon doesn't want to be there. He barely says a word when he isn't singing one of his songs. He only interacts when he absolutely has to, while Paul runs the entire show with George as his foil. Sometimes they're friendly, sometimes at odds. Paul and George do all the talking, and John never says a word to George and barely acknowledges his presence. Ringo acts like a hired hand. This is not to say that he wasn't a full fledged Beatle and blood brother to the other three, but we must remember that everything we knew about the Fab Four was from public relations. Ringo, while certainly close to the guys from a professional standpoint, and even on a personal level, was not one of the original three friends that formed the band. The boys are only in their mid to late 20s here, and the dynamics of young friendships still hold, despite their fame. We must remember that the first dynamic is that Paul befriended George before he ever met John, and this plays out huge in the movie. Their's was the first friendship, it happened when they were adolescents, and so, as close as Paul and John became, George is still like Paul's little brother, and you feel for him as he tries to introduce his new songs: "All Things Must Pass", and especially "I Me Mine" which he is very enthusiastic about. As George plays and sings them, Paul tries to pay attention while John Lennon basically looks bored to tears, and it's well known that the two of them felt George's compositions weren't up to par with theirs. George tries so hard, and its difficult to watch the indifference he is shown. Besides that, he's a damn good songwriter, as he proved when the album "All Things Must Pass" went to #1.
As for Paul, it's clear that he is a force of nature both musically and in his energy. He's by far the best musician in The Beatles (he plays every instrument), and none of their albums after "Revolver" would've happened without Paul as the driving force. In the early days, it was John's band because he formed it, and was the genius behind so many of the early songs, which to me are the most Beatle-y. But then he had a hard time with fame, and the struggles of his childhood were always with him. Then he got heavily into LSD which wasn't good, and when Brian Epstein died it almost finished him off (they call him "Mr. Epstein" in the movie). Paul, who didn't have John's issues, took over the ship, and John always knew Paul was mega-talented anyway, so he acquiesced and Paul became the Alpha Dog. You see all of this on their faces as they rehearse in that sound stage. Keep in mind that they are only ten years removed from being schoolboys in Liverpool, and beset by having literally changed the world. That kind of fame will do a job on you, of course. We can see that Paul wants to keep things going, but John couldn't care less and poor George just wants to be heard. They are all content to carry through with their contract to produce a show, and they all remain professional, but you can also see that John is already outta there, so to speak. He wanted to be with Yoko and that was that. What a huge bummer. The main thing I get from "Get Back" is that, while everyone contributed, Paul basically was The Beatles from 1967-1970. It's a real eye-opener.
And that's all I know for tonight. I'm listening to Egg, their first album and "Civil Surface". Egg freaking rules! My late night listening is "Rienzi" by Wagner, I'm reading Elvis, and I send you Tons of Love as always.
xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
No comments:
Post a Comment