Star Rating- 2Length of Film- 115 minutes
Director- Frank Capra
Cast- Gary Cooper, Jean Arthur, George Bancroft, Lionel Stander, Douglass Dumbrille, Raymond Walburn, HB Warner, Ruth Donnelly, Walter Catlett, & John Wray
Oscar- Frank Capra (director)
Oscar Nominations- Frank Capra (best picture), Robert Riskin (screenplay), Gary Cooper (actor), & John P. Livadary (sound)
Before I go bashing this film, let me fill you in on the photography of this film that I found in my "Understanding Movies" textbook by Louis Giannetti.
"Classic cinema avoids the extremes of realism and formalism in favor of a slightly stylized presentation that has at least a surface plausibility. Movies in this form are often handsomely mounted, but the style rarely calls attention to itself. The images are determined by their relevance to the story and characters, rather than a desire for authenticity or formal beauty alone. The implicit ideal is a functional, invisible style: the pictorial elements are subordinated to the presentation of characters in action. Classical cinema is story oriented. The narrative line is seldom allowed to wander, nor is it broken up by authorial intrusions. A high premium is placed on the entertainment value of the story which is often shaped to conform to the conventions of a popular genre. Often the characters are played by stars rather than unknown players, and their roles are sometimes tailored to showcase their personal charms. The human materials are paramount in the classical cinema. The characters are generally appealing and slightly romanticized. The audience is encouraged to identify with their values and goals".
Mr. Deeds Goes to Town is supposed to be a "screwball comedy". I am sorry... it is not! The movie SUCKED. If you're going to categorize your film as a comedy, make it funny! The only three scenes that I thought were humorous (keep in mind I didn't laugh out loud) were the following:
*Longfellow Deed (Gary Cooper) was out to dinner with Babe Bennett (Jean Arthur) and a famous writer was at the restaurant. They were invited to sit with them and insults flew. He got up and threatened to punch them in the face, and then he did it.
*Longfellow Deeds called his staff to the front entry way of his house and they all yelled and cat called listening to their echoes.
*Longfellow Deeds went to the park and fed horses donuts.
The film was just so sporadic. It started out as a "rags to riches" story, to "romance" to "courtroom drama". It was stupid...the plot sucked! What they should have done is focused on Deeds transition to living the life of riches and pursuing Babe Bennett. That would've been a good film...
I do not believe this film should've been on the list. It needs to be removed and replaced.
