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Reviews
The Strawberry Blonde (1941)
A Wonderful Cast and a Wonderful Movie
The movie opens with Biff Grimes And his friend playing horseshoes in the turn of the century NY
Biff played by Cagney is an obstreperous but likable mug who is struggling in his new Dentist practice.
Flashbacks to his early life show Biff was always getting the short end of the stick from his "pal" Hugo Barnstead.
Hugo sticks Biff with the Strawberry Blondes girlfriend, paying the stable for a horse rental, Playing Using Biff for a fall guy in his company which results in the death of Biffs father.
Biff goes to jail. Gets a dental license and eventually is released
The one good thing in Biffs life is the strawberry blondes friend Amy.
Played by The wonderful Olivia De Haviland. Except for "The Heiress". I thought this was her best role ever. It's also when I fell in love with Olivia DeHaviland
Biff marries Amy and they have a wonderful life with some struggles.
In that same Sunday as the opening, who walks in to his office needing a tooth pulled but Hugo Barnstead?
Biff contemplates finishing Hugo off with some gas but decides to take revenge by extracting Hugo's tooth with the venom he so rightly earned.
Biff does the right thing and sees that his life with Amy is the most important thing in his life.
The chemistry in this movie is hard to match than in any other movie I've seen Perhaps with the exception of "His Girl Friday. "
Cagney, DeHaviland, Rita Hayworth, Jack Carson George Tobias who was fantastic as always, Alan Hale, Una O'Connor, George Reeves and 2 of my favorites Pat Flaherty and James Flavin and some wonderful music all add to a delightful period piece.
As "it's a Wonderfull Life " reached status as an underrated film , this is simply one of the best.
A must see as a good film and some great actors acting flawlessly.
Three Live Ghosts (1936)
Good story. Terribly miscast
Story centers on 3 British vets believed dead returning from the war.
The mother of one of them tries to get a reward on her sons best friend.
The story coming about near the end of WWI has a lot of the actors terribly miscast.
Although the weepy and somewhat dense Beryl Mercer is tolerable in small doses the added vitriol and greed of her character in this particular movie is at times unbearable.
Arlen playing a returning vet at age 39 is somewhat believable if you really stretch it, but the actor playing Mercers son is almost as old as her.
A couple of regulars like Grieg and Digges make this movie some what watchable but not much..