THE NARROW MARGIN (1952) Movie Review

When a mobster’s widow decides to testify and provide names of others involved in evil deeds, she goes undercover to avoid being killed. Onboard a train going cross-country, she is escorted by a detective who agrees to keep her in hiding long enough to reach their cross-country destination in order to testify. But when he discovers the mob is on their trail, and have boarded the train, attempting to make sure she never reaches her destination, he also discovers his job is complicated by a few passengers on the train.

 

Filmed in 1950, this movie was not released until 1952. According to director Richard Fleischer, when the film was finished, RKO Pictures owner Howard Hughes heard good things about it and ordered that a copy of it be delivered to him so he could screen it in his private projection room. The film stayed in the projection room for more than a year, apparently because the eccentric Hughes forgot about it.

 

Ironically, this movie turned out to be RKO’s biggest money-maker of 1952.

 

The film was shot in 13 days and the only part filmed on board a train was a few seconds of the arrival in Los Angeles. In preference to removing various walls from the sets, the director decided to make extensive use of a handheld camera that could be brought into rooms; this was one of the first films to do so. To save money, the train sets were rigidly fixed to the floor and the camera was moved to simulate the train rocking. The effect works beautifully for the cinematography, thus covering every aspect that defines film noir.

 

Charles McGraw and Marie Windsor

This was also Marie Windsor’s breakout part. She had been hyped as “the new Joan Crawford” but had not been noticed much until this movie was released theatrically. Also, the film does not have a music score in the usual meaning of the term: the director substituted actual train sounds in places where music would ordinarily be heard for dramatic effect.

 

Whenever someone wants to watch film noir for the first time, this is the movie I recommend they start out with. A perfect example of the genre, an enjoyable 70 minutes, and the film that usually turns cinephiles into film nori addicts. If you are going to watch only one old classic this year, this is the movie to seek out.

P.S. Avoid the 1990 remake with Gene Hackman. 

 

 

Vertigo: The Making of a Hitchcock Classic

Vertigo is undeniably Alfred Hitchcock's masterpiece (if not one of them) and perhaps his best film. To view it once is to be devastated. With each subsequent screening, most viewers notice bits of business, depths of thought, and stunning ironies that had previously eluded them. The first time I watched the film I was about nine years old and thought the movie was boring. But I have seen the film twice since and come to appreciate the film greatly. Vertigo is a riveting experience, haunting its fans in the same way that Scottie Ferguson (James Stewart) is haunted by the mysterious Madeleine Elster (Kim Novak). 

Upon researching the film, author Dan Auiler found that "this odd, obsessional, very un-matter-of-fact film was created" under "systematic, businesslike, matter-of-fact circumstances." His book gives us the opportunity to witness the construction of a film that seems at once amazing complex and absolutely seamless. He discusses the painstaking development of the screenplay (including its controversial explication of the mystery only two-thirds of the way through the film), the decision to cast Novak instead of Vera Miles opposite Stewart, the typically meticulous Hitchcock shoot, the film's amazing special effects and extraordinary credit and dream sequences, and the legendary musical score composed by Bernard Herrmann. 

The book also includes a forward by Vertigo enthusiast Martin Scorsese, and hundreds of production photos, reproductions of memos, storyboard sketches, and posters. Vertigo: The Making of a Hitchcock Classic is available in paperback and hardcover. If you are a fan of the movie, this book is a must-have.

 

LASSIE: The Radio Series (Re-Discovered)

Good news for fans of Lassie! A complete set of the radio scripts were found and presently being scanned into digital format. And this is a major discovery...

The fictional female collie made her debut in a 1938 short story by Eric Knight, which would later be expended into a 1940 full-length novel, Lassie Come Home. In 1943, MGM Studios released a theatrical version of the novel. This led to six additional feature-length movies with the same collie as the hero.

The dog playing the role in those movies was Pal. His owner and trainer, Rudd Weatherwax, then acquired the trademark name of "Lassie" from MGM and began taking the dog on the road for public paid appearances at circuses, rodeos and county fairs. From 1947 to 1950, the character of Lassie was the star subject of a weekly adventure series, sponsored by Red Heart Dog Food. (No surprise as to the sponsor.) To date, very few of the radio broadcasts exist in recorded form but now that we have the complete run of radio scripts, an episode guide can be created. 

The radio version has been relatively unexplored and barely documented except in brief entries in encyclopedias. With luck, much more will be documented in the near future.

I have always said that magazine articles first began as slide show presentations. Books first began as magazine articles. And thanks to books, archival materials get scanned digitally for preservation. So in the coming year or two I suspect there will be a slide show presentation about the history of the radio program. Something equally to cheer for on top of this major discovery.

Funko Pops presents The Twilight Zone

This was a big announcement a week ago... especially trending among the Twilight Zone fandom. The company known for creating inexpensive Funko Pops figurines, licensed, will be offering The Twilight Zone among their offerings later this year. Among them is "The Narrator" (more than likely because Rod Serling's name could not be licensed). Fans of the TV series take note: grab them while you can since this is available as a pre-order, for an October release.

Link enclosed:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CND1GH5R?psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&ref_=chk_typ_imgToDp