Mister Roberts (1955)

Why it's here:
Henry Fonda, William Powell, James Cagney (who we've seen and enjoyed separately) and a chance to introduce the kids to Jack Lemmon. What an impressive cast!

Specs:
About 2 hours, black and white. Available on dvd.

Our family's average rating:
8.13

More about the film and our reaction to it:
My family's reaction to the film was that this wasn't exactly full-on comedy, nor was it really war drama, but it was a perfect mix of the two. We laughed a lot throughout, but the film is much deeper than it is silly. We gained incredible insight into the emotions and conditions of men on a boat in WWII.

The film resonated a good deal with us because the boys' grandfather had been at Pearl Harbor and must have lived the experiences of the navy in the era as portrayed in this film.

The performances by all the leads are incredible. As always, we adore William Powell. He is my favorite character here as a dignified, clever, but basically warm-hearted doctor. James Cagney is wonderful as the horrible (and still hilarious) captain Morton. Henry Fonda has to be at the very top of the list of all the actors we've seen during our festival in terms of sheer acting skill. We saw this film weeks ago, and as I sit writing this, I still feel attached to the man he played here. Fonda makes Mr. Roberts incredibly real.

Finally, this was our introduction to Jack Lemmon and a great one at that. Lemmon plays a slightly inept, but extremely energetic and randy young man.  A parent's note: a few of the scenes, especially those involving Lemmon's character, are a bit risque in theme. One scene in the beginning has the sailors using binoculars to watch when they discover that a nurses barracks and shower is viewable from where they are anchored. Although that scene may make the film objectionable for some families, the sexuality doesn't get any more involved than that. There is a fair amount of suggestive innuendo about Lemmon's pursuit of a particular nurse, but overall, this makes a small part of the film, is not too lascivious, and simply adds to the light humor.

The film is exceptionally well-made and does a magnificent job of setting a mood and creating memorable characters. We absolutely loved it.

Iconic image:

Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942)

Why it's here:
Recommended by a friend, this highly acclaimed film was in production when the bombing of Pearl Harbor took place. Already patriotic in its themes, telling the life story of George M. Cohen, author of the WWI anthem Over There, the film's patriotism took on massive new heights with the energized crowds at the start of WWII. It hit a major chord with audiences and enjoyed a riveting profoundly good performance from James Cagney in the lead role.

Specs:
Just over 2 hours; black and white. Available on dvd.
Set over a range of years beginning in 1878 and leading up to "modern" times.

Our family's average rating:
6.83

More about the film and our reaction to it:
My kids were less impressed with the film this than I was, and my husband refused to even watch it - as he has some strange deep-seated abhorance of James Cagney. But I found Cagney absolutely amazing. He is an actor with astonishing range. I haven't seen much of his work, but associate him mostly with dark, violent, gangster pictures. Here he is a singing dancing dynamo with incredible musical talent.

He has an intensity that shines out of him and you can see how someone with so much personality became a great tough-guy icon. His performance as George M. Cohan is nothing short of brilliant and I was blown away by it. That said, I can't say I loved the film as much of critics of the day did. But then, I am not on the treshhold of a new world war as they were when this deeply patriotic and touching film was released. According to one of the actresses in the film, the patriotic mood "permeated the set almost every day."

Cohan was THE Broadway songwriter of his time, and the film, as a biopic of his life, is less of a story than a series of vignettes from his musicals. There wasn't a great deal of plot to follow, but what was there, was interesting. Like many other stars of his time, he virtually grew-up on stage, in Vaudeville and other venues. His family's act (The Four Cohan's) toured and performed constantly. As a result, Cohan became deeply familiar with the ins and out of showbiz and ultimately penned some amazingly catchy and clever tunes. The film showcases many, but the ones most viewers are likely to be familiar with are "You're a Grand Old Flag," "Give My Regards to Broadway", the major WWI war anthem "Over There", and of course the title tune "Yankee Doodle Dandy" (you know the  one: I'm a yankee doodle dandy; yankee doodle do or die; a real live nephew of my Uncle Sam, born on the 4th of July. . .")

Iconic shot: