We're No Angels (1955)

Whenever a movie star dies during their prime in a tragedy, they immediately become immortalized in our culture. Jean Harlow, James Dean, Marilyn Monroe, Carole Lombard - these amazing talents stopped sparkling on earth but continued to sparkle in the heavens, brighter than they were before.

There are also the stars that died not long after their prime had passed, not yet old enough to retire, but not so young that it sent the world into shock. Many of these are still well-loved, but without the intensity of those who's life was snatched away from them.

Humphrey Bogart died in 1957, less than a month after his 57th birthday, after a year long fight against esophageal cancer. He had been married to Lauren Bacall for just a little under 12 years and had two children with her: Steve age 8 and Leslie age 4½. He had two Oscar nominations - Casablanca (1945) and The Caine Mutiny (1955) - and one win - The African Queen (1951) - out of his 85 credit career. The 5'8" star weighed a shocking 80 pounds when he left this earth in his sleep on January 14th.

After Bogart's death, a strange phenomenon took place. On college campuses everywhere Bogart was considered the epitome of cool, with students showing up to showings of Casablanca wearing trench coats and snap-brim hats, dangling cigarettes from their mouths, and reciting the dialogue (War on the Silver Screen). His name even became a slang word in the 70s meaning "to steal, take an unfair share" (Slang and Sociability). And it wasn't just the male students that liked Bogart. The female population had their own reasons for liking him:

In 1964 Time sent a reporter to the Brattle, where the Bogart festival was now a hallowed tradition. A Blue Parrot room, named for Sydney Greenstret's cafe in Casablanca, had been set up in the theater. Nearby a jukebox kept playing 'As Time Goes By.' 'When Bogart lights a cigarette on the screen,' the article stated, 'girls respond with big, sexy sighs.' Asked about the object of their affection, a Radcliffe student lamented the Age of Analysis: 'Bogie is everything we wish Harvard men were,' she said. 'Bogie's direct and honest. He gets involved with his women but he doesn't go through an identity crisis every five minutes' (source).

Bogart's film career can be divided into two phases. From 1930 to 1934 he played supporting roles, usually gangsters. Then, in 1936, he got the film part he originated on Broadway, that of Duke Mantee in The Petrified Forest. The role was good and Bogart took advantage of it. However, it still seemed that his film career was over as he was still stuck in the gangster roll.

In 1941 he again played a gangster, but this time it was one with a heart. The film was High Sierra and it set Bogart on the path to super-stardom. The films that followed were hits that are still popular to this day: The Maltese Falcon (1941), Casablanca (1942), and To Have and Have Not (1944) - the first of four films with Lauren Bacall, whom he married in 1945.

In 1955, Bogart was near the end of his career, though he didn't know it at the time. He made three films that year, one of them being We're No Angels, an unlikely Christmas comedy (he would make only one more film the following year). We're No Angels, though set at Christmas, 1895, was released on July 7, 1955. Directed by Michael Curtiz, the film has a stellar cast including Bogart, Peter Ustinov, Aldo Ray, Leo G. Carroll, Joan Bennett, Basil Rathbone, and Gloria Talbott. It follows three escaped criminals from Devil's Island who stop at a small shop with intentions of swindling the family, only to help the proprietor with his financial problems instead as well as spend the holidays with him, his wife and daughter.

Joseph (Bogart), Albert (Ray), and Jules (Ustinov) have managed to escape from nearby Devil's Island and plan on stealing some money and clothes so they can board a ship in the harbor heading for Paris. They steal a letter addressed to a Felix Ducotel (Carroll) and deliver it hoping for compensation. The kind-hearted man thinks they are convict laborers and even though his store barely makes any money - everyone seems to buy on credit - he hires them to repair the roof. While on the roof, the three men eavesdrop and, aside from noticing what a handsome wife Ducotel has, find out that Ducotel's store is not doing well and that he is under pressure from his cousin, Andre Trochard (Rathbone), to either do better or lose his job. They also learn that Ducotel's daughter Isabelle is in love with cousin Andre's nephew, Paul (John Baer).

The letter the three escapees delivered turns out to be from cousin Andre, who is stuck on the ship in quarantine. He wants Ducotel to come get him and Paul out. When Isabelle reads the letter (it also says that Paul is to be married to someone else) she faints, leading to my favorite part of the movie:

While Ducotel is trying to get his cousin off the boat, Joseph, who is good with finances - or rather moving numbers around, decides to help out Ducotel for fun. He starts out by selling a brush set to a bald man (you can watch that scene here), a small sized coat to a fat man, and getting a female customer to pay part of her bill. Touched by their help, Mrs. Ducotel (Bennett) invites the men to spend Christmas with them. Joseph, Albert, and Jules get into the spirit: stealing a turkey, getting flowers from the governor's garden, preparing the Christmas Eve meal and decorating the house - even finding a tree.

After a lovely dinner, and a cash gift from Ducotel, the men begin to reconsider their plan of robbing and killing the family (despite their crimes, one never suspects the three to actually do any harm to the family - it is a comedy after all). Just as Joseph has finished telling the other two they will go through with their plan, cousin Andre and Paul show up. They wake up the family, take the best rooms, and are a general pain.

We came here to rob them and that's what we're gonna do - beat their heads in,

gouge their eyes out, slash their throats. Soon as we wash the dishes.

In the end, the three "angels" help Isabelle see that Paul is not right for her and get rid of Ducotel's problems - with the help of a certain pet named Adolfe. They then decide that maybe they shouldn't try to escape after all and head back to prison.

We're No Angels was based on French play La Cuisine des Anges by Albert Husson. It was departure for Bogart, as well as director Curtiz, both who were known for more hardened pictures. It was also their fourth and final collaboration together.

Bennett and Bogart playing chess on the set.

As well as having comedic lines on-screen, Bogart also had fun off-screen, pulling such pranks as putting raw liver in his co-stars shoes and fake poop in Curtiz's trailer. And while they may not have appreciated those pranks, the camaraderie they had is apparent in the film, making it a delightful film to watch and one of my favorite films of Bogart. It is a performance any Bogart fan will not want to miss (or the occasional non-Bogart fan).

Foreign posters

This post is part of The Humphrey Bogart 117th Birthday Blogathon hosted by Sleepwalking in Hollywood and Musings of a Classic Film Addict.

Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid (1982)

The Parody film, or spoof - a "humorous imitation of something in which its characteristic features are exaggerated for comic effect," are nothing new. They have been around since the dawn of film. In recent decades, the output of parody films has risen, with some of the best made in the 1980s and 90s. The films of Mel Brooks immediately spring to mind: Blazing Saddles (Westerns), Young Frankenstein (Horror), Robin Hood: Men in Tights (Swashbucklers & Action), and several of his other films. Brooks of course isn't the first one to spoof those genre's and he certainly isn't the last.

One of my favorite spoofs is Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid (1982), a spoof of the Film Noir genre and directed by television's great Carl Reiner (The Dick Van Dyke Show). Not only is it hilarious, but it's full of familiar Film Noir faces: Humphrey Bogart, Edward G. Robinson, Barbara Stanwyck, Fred MacMurrey, Ava Gardner, Burt Lancaster and several more. And yes, this movie is from 1982.

The film stars Steve Martin (whose birthday was Sunday). Filmed in black and white, the movie uses clips of Classic Films Noir and intersperses them with new footage of Steve Martin, to make an entirely new film. The editing (by Bud Molin) is fantastic in this film as the old and the new blend seamlessly. The idea came to Martin, Reiner, and George Gipe during a lunch meeting where they were discussing a script that Martin had written. "What if we used a clip from an old movie in this thing?" quickly became "What if we did a whole movie using old clips?" It was an idea liked by all. Reiner and Gipe sifted through hours of film to find singles and over-the-shoulder shots that they could easily incorporate Martin into. They also listened for dialogue that could be worked into an original story. They ended up using clips from 19 different films and 18 different Noir actors. "We came up with a plot that certainly wasn't any more confusing than The Big Sleep."

According to Alan Ladd's #1 fan, Hamlette, he was actually 5'6" or 5'7"

I knew it was a one-in-a-million idea.

To do the costumes for the film, Edith Head came on board. "When Edith Head said she'd take the assignment, I knew we had a good movie," Reiner remembered. Martin said, "I felt a sense of history working with her and I wanted to live up to what she presented." Head made over 20 suits for Martin alone, injecting classic 40s style suits with a little bit of the 80s. She was also called upon to recreate costumes she had designed over 40 years ago. In one scene, Martin dresses like Barbara Stanwyck in Double Indemnity. She had come full circle in her career. Two weeks after production wrapped, Head passed away.

The over 85 sets used in the film were created by Production Designer John De Cuir. He recreated sets to match the clips used in the film as well as original sets in the style of Classic Film Noir, like the quintessential cluttered detectives office. The Director of Photography watched Noir films to study the lighting and camera angles so that the old and new would match.

Martin with Cary Grant (Hitchcock's Suspicion)

The only person who didn't watch a lot of Noir films during preparation was it's star. His reason? "Simply because I didn't want to act like Humphrey Bogart. It is very easy to pick up his style. I consciously stayed away from them because I didn't want to be influenced." The result was one of the most unique films ever made, with Martin bringing the perfect amount of humor that the film called for.

Your typical Noir detective

In the film, Martin is a detective named Reardon hired by the beautiful Juliet Forrest (Rachel Ward) to investigate the murder of her father, who was a prominent scientist and cheesemaker. In Dr. Forrest's office, Reardon finds two lists: Friends of Carlotta and Enemies of Carlotta. He also finds a signed photo of Kitty Collins (Ava Gardner). The lists are stolen from him by Alan Ladd, who shoots Reardon in the arm (he gets shots in the same arm multiple times throughout the film). After Juliet removes the bullet, he begins to look up the people that were on the lists. The investigation eventually leads to South America (where his pajamas get dirty). He also falls in love with Juliet, despite the warnings of his partner Marlowe (Bogart).

I won't tell you how it ends (it involves cheese and Nazis). You'll have to watch the movie yourself (or look up the synopsis), but if you love Film Noir, you will love guessing what film all the clips come from (or you can scroll to the bottom of this post). Carl Reiner and Reni Santoni also star in the film.

The beautiful Juliet Forrest (Rachel Ward)

Note: Unfortunately this film is not appropriate for children - unless you're good with the mute button - as there are several references to female body parts.

         

         

This post is part of The Film Noir Blogathon hosted by The Midnite Drive-In. Be sure to read all of the other posts! Also, check out my other post, Not Your Typical Noir: Nobody Lives Forever (1946).

Sources:

• DVD Production Notes
• Edith Head's Hollywood. Edith Head and Paddy Calistro.
• Pull-out Poster Promotion

 

Scroll down to see all the actors and films used (or don't and just watch Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid and test your knowledge of Noir films)

 

Three Times Barbara Stanwyck was Terrified

Stanwyck, NOT terrified

Barbara Stanwyck has always seemed to be a pretty brave woman. She exudes self-confidence (especially when it comes to men), always keeps a cool head, and is definitely NOT just another pretty face - she has brains too. But even someone as self-assured and sturdy as Barbara Stanwyck can become terrified from time to time. You would be too if you experienced what she did these three times:

Terrifying Experience #1: The Two Mrs. Carrolls (1945/47)

The first time Barbara was terrified, was when she became the second Mrs. Carroll to Humphrey Bogart. His first wife had been slowly poisoned and it became soon apparent that she was being poisoned too. While many reviews of this film say that both Bogart and Stanwyck were miscast I disagree. To me Bogart was very convincing as a crazy painter and Stanwyck's performance is magnificent. I highly recommend it. It was actually filmed in 1945 but not released until 1947.

 

The Two Mrs. Carrolls will be airing on TCM March 21 at 8pm EST.

Terrifying Experience #2: Cry Wolf (1947)

The second time was when she married Errol Flynn's crazy brother and, when he died, went to the ancestral home that emanated queer sounds and screeches. And while Barbara wasn't completely terrified (in fact, she was quite brave under the circumstances), there were some heart-stopping moments she could have lived without. You can read my previous post on Cry Wolf here.

 

Terrifying Experience #3: Sorry, Wrong Number (1948)

The third time was when she overheard some men plotting the murder of a bedridden woman who just happens to be her, and can't get anyone to believe her. It took Stanwyck 12 days to films those terrifying scenes and she had to keep up that energy the entire time.

Conclusion

Barbara wasn't always lucky with her choice of husband and the moral here is to not get married unless absolutely sure of your husbands mental health and that of his family. Also, never drink the glass of milk your husband brings you when you are ill ;)

 

This post is part of the Remembering Barbara Stanwyck Blogathon hosted by In the Good Old Days of Classic Hollywood. Be sure to read all of the other posts about this legendary woman.