Cary Grant The Early Years

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Gagman 66
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Cary Grant The Early Years

Post by Gagman 66 »

:o TCM Vault (not the same as Warner Archive?) just released CARY GRANT "THE EARLY YEARS". What does everyone feel about this set? Three movies for $34.95? Is that a good deal? Not sure if they are true pressed DVD's, or just burned DVD-R's? The titles don't exactly ring allot of bells."Devil and the Deep" (1932), "The Eagle and the Hawk" (1933), and "The Last Outpost" (1935) Anybody seen these before? At least they do contain Robert Osborne opening intro's and closing comments.

I was thinking this is probably how THE BIG PARADE will be released. Something a little more up-scale than a plain bare-bones Warner Archive disc, but not marketed to stores either. Only orderable from TCM. Definitely better than Nothing, which is all we have had so far. Hopefully, they will at least use Dual-Layer media.
Last edited by Gagman 66 on February 2nd, 2010, 12:13 am, edited 1 time in total.
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charliechaplinfan
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Re: Cary Grant The Early Years

Post by charliechaplinfan »

The price is a little expensive but I'm glad the films have been released, Cary Grant has quite a wide appeal, I've collected his other earlier films and have been pleasantly surprised as to how much I've enjoyed them. I hope companies are successful in releasing in the DVD-r format because it will encourage companies to put out more of their back catalogue.
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srowley75
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Re: Cary Grant The Early Years

Post by srowley75 »

Devil and the Deep is worth seeing if only for Charles Laughton's enjoyable performance, though the film itself is forgettable.
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Re: Cary Grant The Early Years

Post by moira finnie »

The Eagle and the Hawk is a really effective WWI aviator film, but not really for Cary Grant, who had yet to find his way and came across as rather peevishly bland instead of tragic, which was the route that Fredric March took in that film. March is shattering as a flier whose POV changes from callow to haunted as time goes on. If you don't have a weakness for Fredric March, you may want to give this a pass, but it is one of his better, relatively early performances on screen. I tend to like Fred, even when he goes off the deep end theatrically.

Jack Oakie (bless 'im) made a better impression than CG in this film. I suppose it makes it sort of fascinating to see an icon like Cary when he was just a guy trying to make a living. While Carole Lombard is heavily promoted as a "co-star" in this movie's advertising, she barely appears in a brief sequence as a London girl who comforts Fred. I suspect that there was some censorship creeping into the script that led to her scenes being truncated.

Though I've been told that The Last Outpost stinks by a few people, (and the reviews at the time of the film's release seemed to think it reeked too), I would still like to see this movie very much, since it is one of Claude Rains', as well as Cary Grant's more obscure films.
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charliechaplinfan
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Re: Cary Grant The Early Years

Post by charliechaplinfan »

Count me in as a big Frederic March fan, especially in his earlier years. So that makes two good reasons to buy this set.
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Re: Cary Grant The Early Years

Post by srowley75 »

I'm of the opinion that most of Grant's early 1930s Paramount features are forgettable. I think the popcorn movie Devil may be the only title I can say for certain that I've liked, and even that one features Grant in a very minor role - the real star of that film (besides Laughton) is Gary Cooper, and as such I question including this film in a set purported to be a collection of Grant films (it'd have been better off in a Cooper or- perish the thought, Universal - Laughton set).

Laughton's role is that of a submarine captain whose jealousy toward his wife causes him to go bonkers. Though he succumbs to (an albeit delightful) hamminess throughout much of the film (especially the latter half - he has a marvelous final scene that's worth the time you spend with the movie), Laughton fans will still nevertheless find his character sympathetic, especially during a scene when, overcome with jealousy toward handsome Cooper, Laughton laments his own ugliness and mentions how he'd love to know what it feels like to be found desirable by women. Anyone who knows anything about Laughton's personal life will probably find that scene to be the one moment of truth in the entire movie.
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Re: Cary Grant The Early Years

Post by Ollie »

I'm looking forward to these because I've never seen them AND for Laughton's inclusion as well. I have a hard time believing the name "Cary Grant" can't find a purchasing audience, along with about 100 other names.
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Re: Cary Grant The Early Years

Post by movieman1957 »

Moira, here we are four years later and I wonder if you have seen "The Last Outpost"?

I got it in a collection of war films that includes the Grant feature "The Eagle and The Hawk" among others. While "The Last Outpost" may not reek it is not all that good either. (There are four directors listed.) It starts out well enough. Rains and Grant team up to notify a local village that trouble is coming. Good location and some action footage help the early part along. Then Grant breaks his leg and is sent to a hospital to recover. Here, the film almost comes to a grinding halt while Grant falls for his nurse during his recovery. It is nearly the middle third of the film.

Grant recovers and is sent back out. He meets up with Rains again and they fight off the locals as they try to wipe out the British forces. It picks up here some but seems a rather typical ending of the picture.

Grant is is decent form and you can see some of the things that will serve him well later. Nothing much going for Raines in my opinion. The film comes in about 72 minutes. Overall, I would suggest you aren't missing a lot but if you come across it you might check it out as curiosity. It's as much love story as it is war movie. That may be most of the problem.
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Lomm
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Re: Cary Grant The Early Years

Post by Lomm »

These are among the handful of Grant films I haven't seen. I've enjoyed his other early work pre-stardom, including The Amazing Adventure, Big Brown Eyes, Sylvia Scarlett, Wings in the Dark, and the Mae West films he was in. Pretty much, although lacking his later polish, I find anything he's in watchable simply by virtue of his presence. I'll have to check these out.
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Re: Cary Grant The Early Years

Post by movieman1957 »

Grant is certainly the best thing about "The Last Outpost." "The Eagle and The Hawk" has a good reputation. I saw it years ago but don't remember enough to really tell you anything about it.
Chris

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Re: Cary Grant The Early Years

Post by RedRiver »

I saw "Outpost" a long time ago. I don't remember much, but I don't think I hated it. Just a movie to watch and forget! Of all things, I recall thinking it unusual for MICHAEL to be a last name. It's my first! Yet, the nurse was played by Ms. Getrude Michael.
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Re: Cary Grant The Early Years

Post by movieman1957 »

I watched "Wings In The Dark" and I am sorry to say it is pretty weak stuff. Costarring Myrna Loy the plot revolves around a pilot (Grant) who loses his sight in a lab accident. Loy, also a pilot, spends the rest of the movie making it up to him by flying at events to fund his research project.

A slight melodrama not helped by the performances. It is all pretty wooden and and routine. I'd pass unless you want to see everything by either of the stars.

DVD from Netflix.
Chris

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Re: Cary Grant The Early Years

Post by RedRiver »

I haven't seen it, but given the chance, I probably will. I do like these actors!
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Re: Cary Grant The Early Years

Post by movieman1957 »

I understand. That is why I got it.

It is coupled with "Big Brown Eyes." Grant stars with Joan Bennett and a very young looking Walter Pidgeon. I started it and didn't get very far but it seems like it is going to be more interesting. It is a comedy. Grant seems much freer so far.

Both come in at only about 77 minutes.
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movieman1957
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Re: Cary Grant The Early Years

Post by movieman1957 »

I was right. "Big Brown Eyes" was better. Except for one silly (bordering on stupid) plot point it was a lot more relaxed in the performances and the script seemed more natural. As I mentioned it plays mostly as a comedy but it does have a serious undertone in some places.

We get to see Lloyd Nolan being slimy along with Walter Pidgeon's debonair turn as a leader of a criminal gang. Raoul Walsh directed.
Chris

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