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Ok, so I've listed two films from the 70s and two from the 80s, so now I'll rewind a bit and write about a couple of older films from my top 100.
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top 100 films
Fifth film
It’s a Gift (1934, Norman Z. McLeod)
Thoughts: W.C. Fields is at his most domestic and hen-pecked best (Rip Van Winkle may consider himself lucky when compared) in this film, which takes place and was made during the Great Depression. In its own charming way it’s the short madcap comedy version of The Grapes of Wrath, only – dare I say, more enjoyable to watch. It’s as they say, when you want to cry – laugh and by turning the plight of Americans during this contemporary crises and their trek to the promised land of California into light hilarity, W.C. Fields connects to the viewer and leaves us with his most substantial film. It’s less surreal than Million Dollar Legs, less extravagant than International House, and not as well known as The Bank Dick, but for my money it’s his best film.
Quite a few of the routines – like most slapstick comedies of this brand, run their full length, but W.C. Fields’ charm holds the sequence together. For example there’s an overly long bit where Fields is trying to get a bit of shut-eye on the porch, but gets interrupted by children, salesmen, neighbors, and poor carpentry. The scene goes on longer than it really should, but Fields makes it so incredibly watchable it doesn’t matter. Anyone who’s ever tried to get sleep only to be interrupted – all of us – can appreciate the scene. Of the great comedians of the early talkie/Depression era – Laurel and Hardy, the Marx Brothers, Abbot and Costello, etc, I’ve always preferred Fields. I, in my cynical viewpoints, identify more with his irritable sarcasm and sly muttering wit than I do with the other comedians mentioned. Who else but Fields could make a dislike of dogs, kicking babies, and alcoholism funny and charming?
It’s a Gift contains many of his staples. Fields smokes cigars, tips the bottle, sleeps on his right side – naturally, and agrees with you in the open, while uttering scathing insults below his breath, “I’ll tell ya where you can go.” The movie begins with a typical day in his character’s life as a unsuccessful and strung out grocery shop owner and husband to a nagging wife, and father to ungrateful children. It quickly turns into a road movie, of which The Grapes of Wrath seems indebted to with the campground scenes, overloaded truck, and orange groves. Fields may not be as well known or even appreciated as his contemporaries, but he does have a very strong following and this movie is a great showcase for him.
Best scene: Fields battles it out with a blind man who's hard of hearing wanting some chewing gum in which he sells about a nickel worth of merchandise for God knows how much worth of damage to his store. All the while he puts up with a demanding customer wanting cumquats (sp? - get the joke?) anyway. The blind man proceeds to leave the store dodging traffic, much to Fields’ relief.
next...
top 100 films
Fifth film
It’s a Gift (1934, Norman Z. McLeod)
Thoughts: W.C. Fields is at his most domestic and hen-pecked best (Rip Van Winkle may consider himself lucky when compared) in this film, which takes place and was made during the Great Depression. In its own charming way it’s the short madcap comedy version of The Grapes of Wrath, only – dare I say, more enjoyable to watch. It’s as they say, when you want to cry – laugh and by turning the plight of Americans during this contemporary crises and their trek to the promised land of California into light hilarity, W.C. Fields connects to the viewer and leaves us with his most substantial film. It’s less surreal than Million Dollar Legs, less extravagant than International House, and not as well known as The Bank Dick, but for my money it’s his best film.
Quite a few of the routines – like most slapstick comedies of this brand, run their full length, but W.C. Fields’ charm holds the sequence together. For example there’s an overly long bit where Fields is trying to get a bit of shut-eye on the porch, but gets interrupted by children, salesmen, neighbors, and poor carpentry. The scene goes on longer than it really should, but Fields makes it so incredibly watchable it doesn’t matter. Anyone who’s ever tried to get sleep only to be interrupted – all of us – can appreciate the scene. Of the great comedians of the early talkie/Depression era – Laurel and Hardy, the Marx Brothers, Abbot and Costello, etc, I’ve always preferred Fields. I, in my cynical viewpoints, identify more with his irritable sarcasm and sly muttering wit than I do with the other comedians mentioned. Who else but Fields could make a dislike of dogs, kicking babies, and alcoholism funny and charming?
It’s a Gift contains many of his staples. Fields smokes cigars, tips the bottle, sleeps on his right side – naturally, and agrees with you in the open, while uttering scathing insults below his breath, “I’ll tell ya where you can go.” The movie begins with a typical day in his character’s life as a unsuccessful and strung out grocery shop owner and husband to a nagging wife, and father to ungrateful children. It quickly turns into a road movie, of which The Grapes of Wrath seems indebted to with the campground scenes, overloaded truck, and orange groves. Fields may not be as well known or even appreciated as his contemporaries, but he does have a very strong following and this movie is a great showcase for him.
Best scene: Fields battles it out with a blind man who's hard of hearing wanting some chewing gum in which he sells about a nickel worth of merchandise for God knows how much worth of damage to his store. All the while he puts up with a demanding customer wanting cumquats (sp? - get the joke?) anyway. The blind man proceeds to leave the store dodging traffic, much to Fields’ relief.