jakebe | Entries tagged with james stewart

Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)

Starring James Stewart, Jean Arthur and Claude Rains

Written by Sidney Buchman (screenplay) and Lewis R. Foster (story)

Directed by Frank Capra

The big surprise with Mr. Smith Goes to Washington is how relevant it seems today. This is a movie that's nearly 75 years old, and it's talking about government corruption, graft, and how far politicians are willing to go to discredit and punish whistle-blowers. It's a little shocking to see how deeply ingrained corruption was in our political process even back then, and it definitely puts our current crop of representatives in perspective. The machinery of Washington has been more firmly entrenched than most of us realize.

But I'll try not to delve too deeply into the politics of this deeply-political movie. Instead, I'll talk about its merits. James Stewart gives an incredible performance as Jefferson Smith, a small-town leader of a local Boy Scout analog. He's appointed as the junior senator of his state by the governor on a whim, more-or-less. The governor (Guy Kibbee) is pushed into a minor act of rebellion against the shadowy businessman really pulling the strings -- Jim Taylor (Edward Arnold).

Though Taylor isn't particularly pleased by this wrench thrown into his plans, he expects them to go forward regardless. Basically, he wants the government to buy land he purchased cheaply for a works project. That would make him a ton of money while bringing in a flood of business to the state. This same patch of land, as luck would have it, is targeted by Jefferson Smith as a nature preserve for kids to appreciate the splendor of the American wilderness.

Once Jefferson finds out what the land has been earmarked for and just how the process has worked so far, he vows to fight Taylor's corrupting influence. The resulting stand-off leaves Jefferson's childhood hero (and senior senator of his state) Joseph Paine in the middle, along with his secretary, the hard-boiled Clarissa Saunders (Arthur). They have to look at the system they've been a part of for most of their lives, and decide whether or not it's something they still believe in.

This movie marks something of a transition for its star and famous director. Capra is best known for It's A Wonderful Life, of course, but later on started making pictures that looked towards America with a slightly more cynical eye. Stewart, on the other hand, still maintains the wide-eyed small-town innocence that he was known for at the time. He manages to carry a weight with him, though, that we don't see until later. It's interesting to note the beginnings of the seriousness he had during his work with Hitchcock, on display right here.

The supporting cast is actually pretty wonderful, too. Edward Arnold is fantastic as the villainous Jim Taylor, the no-nonsense businessman who has an incredible amount of power and knows how to wield it. He tries to charm his way into getting what he wants first, but is pretty quick with the overt threat when he senses that someone won't be glad-handed into rolling over. Claude Rains has just the right amount of troubled conscience etched across his face as Joseph Paine; he knows that what's happening here isn't right, that he's made compromises he shouldn't have, but you can also see why he would make them and why he might continue to make them. Washington is a place that seduces you away from idealism quite well, it turns out.

Capra does a great job creating the mood of the nation's capital as both a shrine to the ideals of what our nation can be and the echo chamber of back-room deals that it really is. Jefferson's enthusiasm and awe is infectious when he first arrives, and you get a real sense of patriotism during the scenes where he immediately goes out on a tour of national landmarks. It makes the slow realization of how far we've come from those ideals surprisingly bleak; you feel the disillusionment he does when he sees how the Senate really works. Capra doesn't distract from the point he's making by mentioning the party system once; he makes the corruption that runs rampant a human issue rather than a political one.

Yet, politics really is only the way we agree to act towards ourselves as a group of people. It's an oversimplification, of course, but I also believe it's true. If we let the people with a thirst for power create a system that rewards the "might at all cost" mentality, this is what we get. And that's as true now as it was in 1940. I love that Mr. Smith Goes to Washington offers us a glimpse of this truth filtered through the lens of pre-war America. It tells us that some of our country's faults -- as well as our strengths -- are things that we need to be constantly in mind of.

Rating: 7/10.

Rear Window (1954)

Starring James Stewart and Grace Kelly

Directed by Alfred Hitchcock

Written by John Michael Hayes (screenplay) and Cornell Woolrich (short story)

There is so much that impressed me about this movie that it's difficult to know where to begin. This was the second of four collaborations between director Alfred Hitchcock and star James Stewart, and if they're all this good I definitely can't wait to see the others. Hitchcock directs the movie with a wonderfully deft hand, effortlessly gliding between the inner lives of photographer L.B. Jeffries (Stewart), his girlfriend Lisa (Kelly) and the half-dozen subplots woven amongst the neighbors that Jeffries is spying on. The main plot that intersects Jeffries, Lisa and one of the neighbors is tense in all the right places, and shows off a great skill in building tension, subverting expectations and keeping the audience guessing. Still, while it's technically impressive from a storytelling standpoint, emotionally it's actually the least engrossing.

Jeffries is a globe-trotting news reporter who's been confined to his apartment with an injury sustained from one of his assignments. Hitchcock spends the first minute or so of the film pausing at significant portions of his apartment, giving us a quick and efficient character study in seconds. The pictures that are lingered on tell us who Jeffries is and how he got the injury; then we see that he has a girlfriend, a high-society girl that he met on a photo shoot. I don't think I've ever seen a movie get to the heart of its main characters so quickly; it's simply masterful.

To pass the time while he's nursing his broken leg, Jeffries spies on his neighbors with one of his cameras. He has names for just about all of them -- there's Miss Torso, a dancer who entertains a few men in her apartment every night; Miss Lonelyhearts, a middle-aged woman whose solitude radiates through her entire apartment; Miss Hearing Aid, an older woman whose meddling in the affairs of others is often thwarted by her inability to hear. There's a newlywed couple, a songwriter prone to fits of depression, a strange couple obviously comfortable with each other who sleeps out on the fire escape. The people who gains most of Jeffries' attention is a man and his invalid wife -- they're clearly unhappy, and it's quite possible that the husband is involved in an affair.

A few friends visit to break up these bouts of spying. There's Lisa, who brings him dinner and argues with him about their very different lifestyles. There's Detective Doyle (Wendell Corey), a good friend of Jeffries who provides him with affectionate, breezily mean banter. And there's Stella (Thelma Ritter), his nurse, a wisely crude woman who provides him advice whether he wants it or not. Jeffries' relationship and conversations with each of these people are remarkably distinct, bringing out different aspects of his personality and demanding different tones in his mood. The character work here is exquisite, each exchange revealing something significant about their moods, their reaction to the plot, the way they think or feel about each other.

The story of the husband and his invalid wife takes a turn after the basic premise is establish, and Hitchcock manages to juggle five or six different subplots while letting that take up the bulk of the time. At just under two hours, the film has a lot to do in a short amount of time, and both John Hayes (the writer) and Hitchcock keep things moving along without sacrificing space to let moments breathe when they need to.

The set is just as impressive, and vital to making the whole thing work. The entire movie is shot within the confines of Jeffries' apartment, so all of the subplots and moving pieces we see through the course of the film have to be seen from a rather limited view. Hitchcock works well within these confines, having his actors use those windows and the spaces between them to tell their stories as efficiently as possible. He uses the voyeur's angle to ratchet up wonderfully thick tension, like when something huge goes down in the apartment of Miss Lonelyhearts and the unfaithful husband at the same time. And he gets a wonderfully creepy effect out of simply having the adulterer turn off the light and smoke a cigar alone in the dark.

Stewart, Kelly, the main supporting actors and all of the neighbors do quite well. Raymond Burr plays the adulterer in a role that flies right in the face of our image of him, and Ross Bagdasarian (the creator of Alvin and the Chipmunks) does surprisingly well as our bipolar songwriter. The scenes run like clockwork, all guided by the hand of a master watchmaker.

The character arcs mostly intersect through the main story, and a brief epilogue touches on what's happening to the residents of the apartment complex once order is restored. A lot of things have changed, so many things remain the same, and in many cases it's a genuine surprise what's stuck and what hasn't. When we last see Jeffries and Lisa, they've come to a much better understanding of each other and have grown closer as a result, but of course there's still just enough tension in the relationship to keep things interesting.

Rear Window is a simply great movie. If you're a fan of great character studies, superbly efficient use of space and time, and a mystery that may keep you guessing for a little bit, you simply can't miss it.

Rating: 4.5/5

The Philadelphia Story (1940)

Starring Katherine Hepburn, Cary Grant and James Stewart

Directed by George Cukor

Written by Donald Ogden Stewart (screenplay) and Phillip Barry (original play)

In the very first scene of The Philadelphia Story, we see wealthy socialite CK Dexter Haven (Grant) packing his bags into his trunk angrily. His wife Tracy Lord (Hepburn) follows him out, carrying his golf clubs. She rips out his driver and breaks it over her knee. In retaliation, he puts his hand on her face and shoves her right back through the doorway. It's shocking, but the chemistry and comic timing of Grant and Hepburn are so good that it comes off funny instead of violent. And it wonderfully sets the tone for the relationship of the divorced couple as well as the movie based around them.

Two years later, Lord is preparing to marry an ambitious businessman (John Howard) even though not everyone's sure it's such a good match. Haven has his doubts about it, so he hires two journalists to cover the event -- and hopefully ruin the wedding. Just to make things even more awkward, he arrives as a third unannounced guest. What follows is a carefully structured unravelling of the nuptials and everyone's relationships, so that by the end of the movie even though some things are completely destroyed you have the feeling that everything's been set right.

This isn't an easy thing to do. So many things could have gone wrong here. Lord is a severe woman who could have easily come off as cold and mean if not for the wonderfully manic energy, warmth and vulnerability Hepburn brings to the role. Grant plays 'old money' down to a T, and even though he spends most of the movie sniping with Hepburn he comes across as affable and smooth. Stewart is the biggest risk here, as one of the hired journalists. I've only seen him in noble, nice-guy roles and here he plays someone who can only be described as a jaded asshole. Totally different dressing, but he wears it well

All of the characters have deep flaws that aren't only exposed for all to see, but dissected in detail. Hepburn's socialite Lord gets the worst of it, and it's no small feat that she comes away as well-regarded as she does. Despite the sniping and constant jockeying for social position, there's a clear love that shines through between the characters, and I'd like to think this is because of the easy camaraderie between the principal actors. Hepburn, Grant and Stewart apparently never needed another take of their scenes, despite ad-libbing quite a bit. That's even more impressive to think about when you watch the middle of the film, the alcohol-soaked party and after-party in which the flinty shells everyone's wearing starts to dissolve. The revelation of character and the easy, organic comedy that's given equal measure is truly a sight to behold.

The energy ramps down towards the end, once Lord has learned her lesson and the villain (as much as there is one) is dispatched. People start pairing off happily, and I have to say this is the weakest part of the movie. Lord's character arc is strongest here, and it wraps up well enough, but there's not much left for the other characters to suggest they've made the movements they need to take towards the film's resolution. So a lot of the emotional notes ring false right when they're supposed to be truest, which is a bit of a let-down considering how great things were chugging along before.

Even still, Lord's arc is a really good one. In order to love someone properly, you must be aware of and accepting of their flaws. She wasn't even aware of how harsh she could be until it was brought to her attention (granted, in a really terrible way by her absentee father) and she learned how to face the consequences of a terrible mistake she never actually made. Having someone leading her by the hand to show her a bit of grace was the very thing she needed to learn how to be graceful herself

I tend to have a hot-and-cold relationship with the screwball comedies of old; sometimes the frenzied energy just leaves me behind and I simply can't connect with anything on the screen. The Philadelphia Story is certainly quick, but it slows down to breathe when it needs to and some of the best scenes are when two people take a break to really get to know each other's point of view. Everyone involved really knows what they're about, and for the most part it gives the movie a breezy, effortless energy that carries it through quite well. Any fan of Hepburn, Grant or Stewart should definitely give this a look.

Rating: 7/10.