The Wolf Man

The Wolf Man

Universal

December 12, 1941

Romcom/ Horror

DVD
C-

A man returns to the family estate, spies on a young woman, and harasses her into a date.  George Waggner directed.

The Clairvoyant

The Clairvoyant

Gaumont British

15 July 1935

Drama

DVD
B-

This was better than I expected, helped by Claude Rains in the title role.  I also like the way that the "triangle" plays out with more nuance and sophistication than it could've.  This is based on Ernest Lothar's novel and directed by Maurice Elvey.

Mr. Smith Goes to Washington

Mr. Smith Goes to Washington

Columbia

October 19, 1939

Dramedy?

DVD
C-

Surprisingly flat, and it doesn't help that Jimmy S doesn't show up until a dozen minutes in.  (And I didn't even get to Jean Arthur this time.)  Capra's Mr. Deeds wasn't great but at least it had real momentum.

Mr. Skeffington

Mr. Skeffington
Warner Bros.

August 12, 1944

Historical Drama

DVD
C+

This is based on the novel by Elizabeth von Arnim, but definitely not on the level of the '90s Enchanted April.  It starts out promisingly, with some spritely comedic elements as well as a serious subtext about anti-Semitism.  But the melodrama gets stronger as it goes on.  And it's one of those movies where turning 50 might as well be turning 90.  The title is somewhat misleading, especially in the second half, where Rains is hardly onscreen and it is very much Davis's showcase as Mrs. Skeffington.  I haven't read the novel, but I felt like her characterization was wildly inconsistent, and towards the end I wanted her earlier self to snap, "How can you say I never loved anyone but myself when I was distraught when my brother ran off to the Great War and later when he died in battle?"  Still, for a two-and-a-half-hour movie, it held my attention well enough to marginally recommend.

Vincent Sherman directed, six years before The Damned Don't Cry with Joan Crawford.

The Lost World (1960)

The Lost World (1960)

20th Century Fox

July 13, 1960
Sci-Fi

DVD
C

I liked this about equally with the silent version, although I only watched a quarter hour of this one and about forty minutes of the '20s movie.  And Jill St. John was the best thing about this version.  Director Irwin Allen helped adapt the book by Doyle.

The Adventures of Robin Hood

Hale on the right

The Adventures of Robin Hood
Warner Bros
May 14, 1938
Historical Drama, Action
DVD
C+

Yes, we've got to again go back to Warner Brothers in the '30s for a movie I can sit through, although I didn't think of this as "classic."  To be honest, I find Flynn a little bland, and it's Claude Rains who steals the movie, as Prince John.  The movie is not exactly historically accurate but it works, and I will say that I like how the action scenes are meant to be spectacle, rather than "shocking violence," like in many modern action movies.

Michael Curtiz and William Keighley both directed.