Lured (1948) and On Our Merry Way (1948)

[MissGoddess]

Btw, I really loved the ease with which Stewart and Fonda played comedy together in On Our Merry Way. I do wish they'd appeared in more movies in tandem. How did you like Henry Fonda's stutter?

Hmmm...a thought passed my mind as I watched and listened to them, especially at the start.
They seemed very, shall we say, relaxed?? I have to admit that I thought at
first they were bombed. Or, a little "high", as musicians on the road, then and now, often were.
I just thought the "rythm" of their speech seemed really kind of offbeat; you
know, like wild, man! Ha!

[molo]

I was looking forward to seeing Lured and, on first viewing, I thought it was pretty good. This was my second Lucille Ball drama in three days. The other being The Dark Corner. I thought she was fine in dramatic roles. She's kind of hard boiled and sarcastic but there is something else there too. A vulnerability waiting to be exploited. I'm not familiar with her complete filmography so I'm not sure if it ever was. I don't think The Big Street provides an example but it may have its moments. It's been a long time since I've seen that one. I have a tendency to seek out sympathetic qualities hiding beneath outwardly obnoxious characters.

Getting back to Lured,

My quibble with the film is that it seemed too loosely constructed, a bit too leisurely in pace, and for this reason, I can't really think of it as a noir, which for my tastes must be forward-moving and cohesive. I found the tempo very uneven in what I saw.

I would basically agree with that. I thought it meandered a bit with the red herring turn into the whole Moryani story. I haven't seen all that much of Sirk's work but I did like Shockproof which was another film that took some interesting turns.

I thought the cast was great and an interesting mix of acting personalities. Karloff's scene was wonderful. Saunders was very good as well. I liked how he handled the interrogation scenes. Not a bad film at all.

(((I had actually written quite the little write up on this film but it took me so long that when I went to post it I was logged out for some reason and lost the whole post. I learned a valuable lesson today. Use the save button. So sorry for this abbreviated version )))

[MissGoddess]

I have a tendency to seek out sympathetic qualities hiding beneath outwardly obnoxious characters.

Hi Larry!

I do the same thing with characters like that! I think that's what won me over to Robert Ryan. Before
I became more familiar with his output, I only saw him as a straight villain and mean through and through.
Then I watched On Dangerous Ground and others and saw the cracks in that rugged facade.

And I do like it when Lucy can play what I call the "Ann Sheridan" role; i.e., a tough cookie who "knows
what time it is", but who has a heart and is honest.

Getting back to Lured,

I thought the cast was great and an interesting mix of acting personalities. Karloff's scene was wonderful. Saunders was very good as well. I liked how he handled the interrogation scenes. Not a bad film at all.

I enjoyed it much more this time than when I first saw it.

(((I had actually written quite the little write up on this film but it took me so long that when I went to post it I was logged out for some reason and lost the whole post. I learned a valuable lesson today. Use the save button. So sorry for this abbreviated version )))

This happened to me, too, the other day. I wrote a detailed reply to Birdy about Ava Gardner biographies,
and when it was lost I was too tired to bother rewriting it. I noticed someone else mentioned having this
occur with their posting, so there may be a little "bug". It might be a good idea to "save" or "copy" your
stuff periodically, if it's a long post.

[Mr. Arkadin]

Not to drag everything off topic again, but yes Stewart played piano. He and Duke Ellington did so much late night jamming on Anatomy of a Murder (1959) that Preminger had to impose a curfew.

Now back to the featured film.

[molo]

Hi April,

I do the same thing with characters like that! I think that's what won me over to Robert Ryan. Before
I became more familiar with his output, I only saw him as a straight villain and mean through and through.
Then I watched On Dangerous Ground and others and saw the cracks in that rugged facade.

Robert Ryan is a great example. He was so good at playing those types of roles and giving them depth. He became a favorite of mine very quickly.

And I do like it when Lucy can play what I call the "Ann Sheridan" role; i.e., a tough cookie who "knows
what time it is", but who has a heart and is honest.

Lucy did play those type of roles during her RKO tenure. The film Five Came Back comes to mind. I don't know if she was ever given those chances during her MGM period except when she was loaned out to another studio.

I enjoyed it much more this time than when I first saw it.

I liked it alright on first viewing. It just lost it's momentum a bit for me about the halfway point. I really liked the casting. Chales Coburn, George Saunders, Boris Karloff, Cedricke Hardwicke, George Zucco, Alan Mowbrey and Lucy. When you think about it that has the makings for an interesting "lifeboat" or "marooned on a deserted island" type of scenario.

I haven't got around to watching Our Merry Way yet. It sounds like something of a novelty.

This happened to me, too, the other day. I wrote a detailed reply to Birdy about Ava Gardner biographies,
and when it was lost I was too tired to bother rewriting it. I noticed someone else mentioned having this
occur with their posting, so there may be a little "bug". It might be a good idea to "save" or "copy" your
stuff periodically, if it's a long post.

That was frustrating! That never could have happened with my old Remington typewriter! Ha! Another great film treatise lost to the perils of cyberspace!
Well I've learned my lesson. It actually happened again just on this little post. I went to preview it and I was logged out and when I logged back in the post was gone. I guess you get timed out around here pretty quickly even if you are working within the site. I was ready this time though. Always copy or save!!

[MikeBSG]

What really stood out for me from "Lured" was Boris Karloff. What a performance here. I loved how he moved from being terrifying to pathetic and back again within an instant. Even if he wasn't the killer, the viewer felt that Ball's character was in danger with him.

George Zucco was also good as the comic relief policeman stumped by the crossword puzzles.

However, I think "Scandal in Paris" is a far better Douglas Sirk movie from this era.

[MissGoddess]

Hi Mike---I love A Scandal in Paris, it's a fantastic movie and one of George Sanders' best roles.