Cary Grant: The Complete Filmography - Watching All Of His Movies (4 Viewers)

[bujaki]

The underscore of the Butterfly film uses the opera's music. It is lovely.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

#63 None But The Lonely Heart (1944)
Viewed on September 12th, 2016
Viewing Format: DVD-R (Warner Archive)

Released in 1944, None But The Lonely Heart is a drama starring Cary Grant in a role that's closer to his roots than anything else he ever did onscreen. Because of that closeness to his own past, I was looking forward to seeing it, but I was not overwhelmed by the movie for itself. Grant is very good, and was nominated for a Best Actor Oscar for his role; but on the downside, the movie itself felt very much like "Oscar bait" to me. There were parts that I appreciated, but on the whole, I didn't find it to be a very enjoyable picture.

Grant stars as Ernie, a down-on-his-luck Cockney drifter returning home after a long absence. When he gets there, we see that there's little love lost between himself and his mother (well played by Ethel Barrymore, who did win an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for her efforts here). If Barrymore's character could be characterized as withholding and distant, Grant's could be characterized as carefree, unmotivated and yet strangely entitled. Though their initial fight threatens to send Grant back on the road, when he discovers that she's been hiding a cancer diagnoses, he realizes he can't leave, and instead helps her run her thrift store. Meanwhile, Grant pursues an ill-advised relationship with the married June Duprez, turning down the affections of the available and lovely Jane Wyatt. Some action happens midway through the film when Grant partners with Duprez's husband, a gangster, in order to try to raise some money for the poorer residents of his London neighborhood. Things don't work out as planned, though, and both Grant and his mother in separate incidents find themselves in trouble with the law. Suspense is low, melodrama is high, and how much you enjoy the proceedings will depend on your tolerance for that sort of thing. The film was adapted for the screen and directed by Clifford Odets, making his directorial debut. I have to confess that I'm not a big fan of Odets' work. When I was in college, his plays were very popular among the people I went to school with, and I was exposed to a bit of his work, and while I appreciated the points he was trying to make, I found them to be dramatically inert. Those same feelings cropped up watching this movie.

As far as presentation goes, this MOD DVD-R from Warner Archive was quite possibly the best looking WA DVD-R I've seen. The package carried a "Remastered" banner and it certainly lived up to that. The picture quality was great, and while it wasn't spotless, it came pretty close. The audio was clean and clear. Subtitles were not provided, but a trailer was. There are far better Grant films in the Warner Archive receiving far lesser treatment, but there's nothing to complain about with the quality here.

This role was clearly important to Grant, and he is good in the film. Using his natural Cockney accent, Grant slips into the role easily and its a believable vision (in mannerisms, if not character) of what might have been if Archie Leach had never become Cary Grant. Grant had a difficult childhood, and was led to believe by his father that his mother had abandoned him, only discovering in the late 1930s that she had, in fact, been shipped off to a mental institution. Discovering this, Grant did his best to provide for her and to make up for the lost time, but their relationship was apparently difficult despite best intentions. It's easy to see how all of those factors could have led Grant to believe this was a role he had to play, and he fully commits to it. But he's underserved by the script, and if the set design evoking London is fantastic, the story that plays out on those sets doesn't live up to it.

More than any other Grant film I've seen recently, I look forward to hearing everyone else's take on this one. I wonder if I'm being too hard on a film that was clearly important to its star, but yet, as much as I tried I just found it a hard movie to really like or get into. For me, this film was a chore to sit through in a way that very few of his post-contract films were.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

My apologies for the late update - I watched the movie last week, went to bed thinking I'd write up the next day (I generally like to sleep on a movie before I talk about it), and woke up with either a very bad cold or a mild flu. Back to bed I went, and that was the end of my writing and TV watching for the week.

I had originally hoped to finish all of the movies before my wedding (October 21st), but with just nine movies to go, I know I could finish before then but I'm not sure that I want to. So I think I'm going to shift the goal to finishing before the end of the calendar year. I wouldn't mind having a couple left to enjoy in November/December. I figure it can't hurt to save The Bishop's Wife until Christmas season. (And I'll confess that the 50th anniversary of Star Trek this month has kept me a little preoccupied too.)

This thread gets a little dormant at times when I neglect it too long, but I'm always amazed, impressed and humbled that the conversation always resumes whenever I watch something new. It has been a pleasure sharing this journey with everyone here.

 

[davidmatychuk]

My apologies for the late update - I watched the movie last week, went to bed thinking I'd write up the next day (I generally like to sleep on a movie before I talk about it), and woke up with either a very bad cold or a mild flu. Back to bed I went, and that was the end of my writing and TV watching for the week.

I had originally hoped to finish all of the movies before my wedding (October 21st), but with just nine movies to go, I know I could finish before then but I'm not sure that I want to. So I think I'm going to shift the goal to finishing before the end of the calendar year. I wouldn't mind having a couple left to enjoy in November/December. I figure it can't hurt to save The Bishop's Wife until Christmas season. (And I'll confess that the 50th anniversary of Star Trek this month has kept me a little preoccupied too.)

This thread gets a little dormant at times when I neglect it too long, but I'm always amazed, impressed and humbled that the conversation always resumes whenever I watch something new. It has been a pleasure sharing this journey with everyone here.

Take your time, pal. Life first, Cary Grant second (maybe third or fourth).

 

[Josh Steinberg]

Take your time, pal. Life first, Cary Grant second (maybe third or fourth).

But his life -- at least his persona's life -- is so much more fun than mine! Which begs the question, if you could live the rest of your life as any one Cary Grant character, who would you pick? Father Goose is still one of my very favorites, but I'm not sure that's the life I'd want longterm. Mr. Blandings is a great character, but he often shoots himself in the foot; do I want to live my life as my own worst enemy? His character in That Touch Of Mink wouldn't be a terrible choice; he's rich and successful, not a bad guy, gets the girl in the end, and generally comes off as easygoing and fun. Minus the murder but keeping the insanity, Arsenic And Old Lace isn't too far removed from a trip to visit my own family; I'm not sure that would be much of a difference one way or the other.

 

[FanCollector]

Brian Cruikshank, for sure.

 

[davidmatychuk]

But his life -- at least his persona's life -- is so much more fun than mine! Which begs the question, if you could live the rest of your life as any one Cary Grant character, who would you pick? Father Goose is still one of my very favorites, but I'm not sure that's the life I'd want longterm. Mr. Blandings is a great character, but he often shoots himself in the foot; do I want to live my life as my own worst enemy? His character in That Touch Of Mink wouldn't be a terrible choice; he's rich and successful, not a bad guy, gets the girl in the end, and generally comes off as easygoing and fun. Minus the murder but keeping the insanity, Arsenic And Old Lace isn't too far removed from a trip to visit my own family; I'm not sure that would be much of a difference one way or the other.

My life as Roger O. Thornhill transitioned into Jerry Warriner, then eased back into my default setting: David Huxley.

 

[Matt Hough]

Brian Cruikshank, for sure.

Yep, me, too.

 

[davidmatychuk]

Brian Cruikshank, for sure.

Yep, me, too.

Can't I trust any of you guys?

 

[FanCollector]

Can't I trust any of you guys?

Of course you can. We'll just have to have a lot of boys, so you can name them all after us.

 

[davidmatychuk]

Of course you can. We'll just have to have a lot of boys, so you can name them all after us.

Okay, now that I know I'm definitely on the right thread.

 

[Nelson Au]

Very witty dialogue there in Charade.

While I liked George Kaplan, I might rather be Mr. Devlin or John Robie, the Cat.

I just viewed Lifeboat not having seen it in ages. I think my next Grant film just might have to be Devil and the Deep.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

I watched Lifeboat after Devil and the Deep...TCM just happened to be showing it. Hadn't seen it in years, still great. If you want to complete the triple bill, watch Gable's Mutiny On The Bounty to finish it off. (Saw that earlier in the year and loved it.)

 

[Nelson Au]

Josh, I gather the connection with Mutiny on the Bounty would be Charles Laughton? I was aiming for Bankhead. But I haven't really watched Bounty ever, only a few scenes. I'll have to follow that up Josh.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

Laughton and that it takes place at sea...no real connection, just a neat pairing as it turned out. I've been enjoying watching movies by theme or star more this year than I have in a long time. My movie viewing was like this as a kid, but for many years it's been a bit more random.

 

[Dick]

I love The Awful Truth. If you ever get a chance to see it in a theater, don't hesitate. The movie really plays well to a crowd.

Absolutely hilarious! Damn, Ralph Bellamy was a great (and very dim) foil back then, like a male Margaret Dumont. And the sequence that features the wonderful terrier Asta (who appear in the THIN MAN series) had me on the floor. I don't hold out a lot of hope for its restoration and Blu-ray release. It wasn't directed by Frank Capra, but by the less-remembered Leo McCarey (who made a lot of great films, including DUCK SOUP and MAKE WAY FOR TOMORROW). It's a really early (pre- BRINGING UP BABY) Cary Grant performance, and isn't recalled by too many of us anymore, more's the pity. But I cross my fingers for it. The DVD is mediocre at best.

 

[Robin9]

Absolutely hilarious! Damn, Ralph Bellamy was a great (and very dim) foil back then, like a male Margaret Dumont. And the sequence that features the wonderful terrier Asta (who appear in the THIN MAN series) had me on the floor. I don't hold out a lot of hope for its restoration and Blu-ray release. It wasn't directed by Frank Capra, but by the less-remembered Leo McCarey (who made a lot of great films, including DUCK SOUP and MAKE WAY FOR TOMORROW). It's a really early (pre- BRINGING UP BABY) Cary Grant performance, and isn't recalled by too many of us anymore, more's the pity. But I cross my fingers for it. The DVD is mediocre at best.

In his acceptance speech for his honorary Oscar, Cary Grant mentioned the directors to whom he owed a great debt. Leo McCarey was one of them. I think Leo McCarey's status has suffered due to political revisionism. He directed both My Son John and Satan Never Sleeps, two virulently anti-Red movies.

 

[David Weicker]

I wouldn't consider McCarey less remembered.

He also directed Grant in Once Upon A Honeymoon.

And one of the 'biggest' Grant films - An Affair To Remember (as well as the original Love Affair).

And Best Picture Going My Way (along with its follow-up The Bells Of St. Mary)

He won two Best Director Oscars, and another Oscar for Writing

 

[Dick]

I wouldn't consider McCarey less remembered.

He also directed Grant in Once Upon A Honeymoon.

And one of the 'biggest' Grant films - An Affair To Remember (as well as the original Love Affair).

And Best Picture Going My Way (along with its follow-up The Bells Of St. Mary)

He won two Best Director Oscars, and another Oscar for Writing

I understand, but by 'well-remembered,' I mean: ask people of even our older generation, "Do you know who Frank Capra was?" (probably, yes). Do you know who Leo McCarey was?" (Probably, no). It's not that he isn't as deserving of equal recognition (I prefer many of his films to Capra's), just that, except with deep-classic film aficionados, you will see blank stares when you mention his name. And I think Sony is less likely to pay attention to a largely forgotten director's work than they are to completing their Blu-ray Frank Capra titles. I don't see GOING MY WAY on Blu yet (odd that BELLS came out first). Anyway, not to belabor an arguable point, but how likely do you think it is that THE AWFUL TRUTH will see a Blu-ray release, as opposed to, say LOST HORIZON or MR. DEEDS GOES TO TOWN?

 

[Osato]

Very witty dialogue there in Charade.

While I liked George Kaplan, I might rather be Mr. Devlin or John Robie, the Cat.

I just viewed Lifeboat not having seen it in ages. I think my next Grant film just might have to be Devil and the Deep.

Charade looks great on blu Ray!
Monkey business is in HD streaming on prime. Where is the blu Ray??
Studio??