Visit our movie past as Fritzi of Movies Silently, Ruth of Silver Screenings and Aurora of Once Upon a Screen host the Classic Movie History Project Blogathon on January 12 - 14, 2014.
The liberation of Auschwitz. The Yalta Conference. The Battle of Iwo Jima. Nineteen-year-old Princess Elizabeth joins the Women's Auxililary Service as a mechanic. Franklin D. Roosevelt dies and Harry S. Truman becomes President of the United States. Mussolini is executed. Hitler kills himself. Canadian and British troops liberate the Netherlands. MacKenzie King is elected Prime Minister of Canada for the third time. The United Nations Charter is signed. Hiroshima bombed. Nagasaki bombed. Japan surrenders.
1945 was the year the world had been striving toward, the year that
would mark the end of World War 2, the global conflict which focused so
much of humanity's energy, spirit, flesh and blood. Europe, Africa, the
Pacific and Asia would be freed and enslaved. Political expediency and political gain would change the map of the world in the rush for a return to a normalcy that didn't exist. Science would forever place the burden of annihilation on mankind's shoulders.
The tumult that was the war years also heightened the creativity of those who dealt with entertainment. People can only be bowed down by troubles for so long before they bounce back. The sun still shines every day and music must be played, jokes must be laughed at and we must reach out to each other through our stories.
Number one on The New York Times Best Selling Novels of 1945 list was Earth and High Heaven by Gwethalyn Graham, the first by a Canadian author to reach that coveted spot. Readers were talking about George Orwell's Animal Farm. Reverand W. Awdry published The Railway Series featuring the adventures of Thomas the Tank Engine.
Byron Nelson was the PGA's top money earner. Jackie Robinson signed with the Brooklyn Dodgers farm team, the Montreal Royals of the International League. The Detroit Tigers beat the Chicago Cubs in the World Series. The Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Detroit Red Wings for the Stanley Cup.
Bing Crosby was the top male vocalist among fans of popular music with hit songs You Belong to My Heart from The Three Caballeros, It's Been a Long, Long Time and I Can't Begin to Tell You from The Dolly Sisters. Perry Como sang Dig You Later, Temptation and Did You Ever Get That Feeling. Frank Sinatra wowed 'em with Oh! What it Seemed to Be and If I Loved You from Carousel. Woody Herman, Benny Goodman, Stan Kenton and Harry James kept toes tapping and Les Brown's girl singer Doris Day let the world know she was here with Sentimental Journey. Songs from Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein's Broadway show Carousel and movie State Fair were popular on record and in sheet music sales. The Academy Award for Best Song at the 1945 ceremony went to Swinging on a Star from Going My Way.
Radio programs included variety programs such as the Kraft Music Hall with Bing Crosby and shows featuring singer Kate Smith, bandleader Benny Goodman, and the Boston Symphony. Popular comedies included The Jack Benny Program, The Abbott and Costello Show and The Edgar Bergen/Charlie McCarthy Show. Death Valley Days and The Lone Ranger vied with Lux Radio Theater and Eleanor Roosevelt for audiences. The Academy Awards presentations were broadcast for the first time with awards going to Going My Way for Best Picture, Bing Crosby for Going My Way and Ingrid Bergman for Gaslight.
The Hollywood machine was working overtime in the 1940s. In addition to propaganda and morale boosting films, there was money to be made from the cathartic laugh or tear and the Technicolor fantasy. There was a market for every type of story and every type of filmmaker to provide it in that improbable land where creativity and commerce flourished.
Gary Cooper produced and starred in Along Came Jones, spoofing his laconic image. Upon completion of Lady on a Train, beloved star Deanna Durbin married that film's director Charles David and retired from the screen. Billy Wilder took his cameras to NYC to film an unflinching look at alcoholism in The Lost Weekend. The beauty of leading lady Gene Tierney was matched by the sets and locations of the crime melodrama Leave Her to Heaven. The inspired Val Lewton unit at RKO gave Boris Karloff one of his greatest screen roles as John Gray, The Body Snatcher. Double the Danny Kaye enlivened Wonder Man. Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce starred in three Sherlock Holmes movies for the fans, The House of Fear, The Woman in Green and Pursuit to Algiers. Roberto Rossellini's neorealistic Rome, Open City won the Grand Prize prize at Cannes.
Let's take a closer look at some of the output of 1945 that found their contemporary audience and are worth the viewer's time and affection to this day.
Gary Cooper produced and starred in Along Came Jones, spoofing his laconic image. Upon completion of Lady on a Train, beloved star Deanna Durbin married that film's director Charles David and retired from the screen. Billy Wilder took his cameras to NYC to film an unflinching look at alcoholism in The Lost Weekend. The beauty of leading lady Gene Tierney was matched by the sets and locations of the crime melodrama Leave Her to Heaven. The inspired Val Lewton unit at RKO gave Boris Karloff one of his greatest screen roles as John Gray, The Body Snatcher. Double the Danny Kaye enlivened Wonder Man. Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce starred in three Sherlock Holmes movies for the fans, The House of Fear, The Woman in Green and Pursuit to Algiers. Roberto Rossellini's neorealistic Rome, Open City won the Grand Prize prize at Cannes.
Let's take a closer look at some of the output of 1945 that found their contemporary audience and are worth the viewer's time and affection to this day.
THE BATTLEFIELD
The Story of G.I. Joe
Robert Mitchum, Burgess Meredith
When director William Wellman was approached by independent producer Lester Cowan about the possibility of taking on a project based on Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Ernie Pyle's Here Is Your War, "Wild Bill" declined the honour in no uncertain terms. A flyer in WW1, Wellman wanted no part in glorifying the infantry. It was after spending time with Pyle that the director relented and created a film that he was immensely proud of and that he could never watch. As related in his 1974 autobiography A Short Time for Insanity, Wellman's goal was to make The Story of G.I. Joe "... the goddamndest most honest picture that has ever been made about the doughfoot." He wanted to show everyday bravery from everyday kids; the horror and the tedium. Kids, "old kids" from the 18th infantry, back from Europe, about to be deployed in the Pacific were in the film. None of them came home, and that's why Wellman could never watch the picture. Burgess Meredith played Ernie Pyle and Robert Mitchum received his only Academy Award nomination in the supporting role of Walker.
Naval Reserve officer John Ford directed Navy veteran Robert Montgomery, along with Donna Reed and John Wayne, in They Were Expendable. The story of a PT boat squadron in the Philippines in the early days of the war with Japan. Montgomery's Lt. John Brickley is the counterpoint of Medal of Honor holder Vice Admiral John Bulkeley. A story of perseverance in the face of overwhelming opposition, the film is beautifully photographed by Joseph August, Oscar nominee for Portrait of Jennie and Gunga Din.
Naval Reserve officer John Ford directed Navy veteran Robert Montgomery, along with Donna Reed and John Wayne, in They Were Expendable. The story of a PT boat squadron in the Philippines in the early days of the war with Japan. Montgomery's Lt. John Brickley is the counterpoint of Medal of Honor holder Vice Admiral John Bulkeley. A story of perseverance in the face of overwhelming opposition, the film is beautifully photographed by Joseph August, Oscar nominee for Portrait of Jennie and Gunga Din.
A Walk in the Sun is directed by Lewis Milestone, who won an Oscar as director of All Quiet on the Western Front. A fine ensemble cast including Dana Andrews, Richard Conte, Norman Lloyd, Lloyd Bridges, John Ireland, Sterling Holloway, Herbert Rudley and Steve Brodie. During landing in Italy a platoon's leader is killed, leaving Sgt. Tyne (Andrews) in charge of the men and their objective. Artistic touches include the inner thoughts of these characters as they deal with the tension of the situation, and a narrative ballad performed by bass baritone Kenneth Spencer. A thoroughly involving and moving film.
HEART AND HOME
It has been four years since audiences spent time with Nick and Nora Charles. In Shadow of the Thin Man the couple was mixed up with race track types. Now it was time to relax, to get back to basics we never could have imagined upon first meeting the couple. Had we ever really given a thought to Nick Charles' parents? Here they were in the forms of Harry Davenport and Lucile Watson in The Thin Man Goes Home. Sycamore Springs is a smallish, idyllic city were old Doc Charles learns to overcome his disapproval of Nick's lifestyle. As per usual, no one in town believes Nick is there to relax. He must be on a case. Of course he is, and long held secrets come to light. There's some very good work from MGMs stable of character actors, Ann Revere, Leon Ames, Donald Meek, Lloyd Corrigan and young Gloria de Haven. Wait until you see Nora jitterbug and Nick help her grapple with a collapsible lawn chair. It's a treat.
The 20th Century Fox release of A Tree Grows in Brooklyn from Betty Smith's best seller was the first feature film for director Elia Kazan. The sensitively told tale of a family's struggles at the turn of the twentieth century highlights the director's way with actors as pitch perfect performances come from young Peggy Ann Garner as Francie Nolan and Ted Donaldson as Neely. Joan Blondell steals our hearts as Aunt Cissy and Dorothy McGuire gives us Katie's battered soul. James Dunn was an Oscar winner in the supporting category as the character who means so much to so many, especially to his imaginative daughter.
A series of vignettes through the changing seasons in a Wisconsin farming community form the basis of Our Vines Have Tender Grapes directed by Roy Rowland from a script by Dalton Trumbo. Selma Jacobsen played by Margaret O'Brien is a bright and curious seven-year-old beloved by her parents, Edward G. Robinson and Agnes Moorehead. Young Selma and her cousin Arnold, played by Butch Jenkins, observe life in their town and the adults that surround them. The life they observe is not always kind, not always easy to understand. It is the bonds of family in which strength is found. Favourite quote: "When you are asking for tolerance how much are you willing to give?"
HANDS ACROSS THE SEA
The Brits always know how to tell a story. The Archers, Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, gave us the love story of Joan Webster and Torquil MacNeil. Joan, played by the incomparable Wendy Hiller, is an unapologetic golddigger who has snagged her millionaire. She is on her way to a remote Scottish Island to marry the bank account of her dreams. On leave from the Service is Torquil, played by the altogether too intriguing Roger Livesey. Call it Fate or Kismet or chemistry, Joan is discovering she has a heart and it doesn't belong to a multinational corporation. It's not that easy to turn your back on a lifetime's aspiration. It's not that easy to turn your back on Torquil MacNeil. Location filming in Scotland, the grand faces of locals, the music of ages and a script as sharp as a tack culminating with the greatest punchline of all time make I Know Where I'm Going! a movie that inspires and feels like a living breathing thing.
Vacation from Marriage sometimes known as Perfect Strangers is from Alexander Korda's London Films. Deborah Kerr and Robert Donat star as Catherine and Robert Wilson, a rather dull and unassuming London couple whose lives are turned upside down and inside out by wartime duty. Away from each other and forced to take what life throws at them, both Catherine and Robert become different people. They are brighter, happier, more confident individuals, but what will that do to them as a couple? The story is an always timely one of relationships and the performances are timeless.
Noel Coward's play Still Life is directed by David Lean as Brief Encounter. It is a quiet and desperate story of love, longing, loss and renewal anchored by the beautiful performance of Celia Johnson as Laura Jesson, an everyday housewife whose emotional life is enlivened and confused by her attraction to a married doctor, Alec Harvey played by Trevor Howard. That her feelings are ardently returned makes this brief encounter achingly bittersweet.
SHADOWLAND
Scarlet Street
Tom Dillon, Edward G. Robinson, Joan Bennett
In the 1940s crime dramas became moodier and darker in tone and in look in a style that has become known as film noir. One great exponent of the approach was German born Fritz Lang (M, The Big Heat, House by the River). In Scarlet Street we are involved in the life of one of life's losers, Christopher Cross played by Edward G. Robinson. The unhappily married wage slave finds his only outlet in painting. A series of circumstances bring Chris into the orbit of Kitty March played by Joan Bennett. Kitty and her snake of a boyfriend Johnny, played by Dan Duryea, know how to use people. They find a way to use Chris and his art. It's a recipe for murder. The body and the soul are destroyed in different ways, as you will find when you walk down Scarlet Street.
It is always impressive to see what can be done with nothing. Some people can look in an almost empty pantry and make a gourmet meal. Director Edgar G. Ulmer's pantry was Producer's Releasing Corporation and the pickings were lean on "Poverty Row". Yet Ulmer managed to create a dour and compelling little noir in Detour that has reached the pantheon of cult status. Former MGM contractee Tom Neal is Al Roberts, a musician who plans to hitchhike cross country to join his gal Sue, played by Claudia Drake, in Hollywood. The noir gods place in Al's way a dead bookie and the femme fatale to end all femme fatales. Ann Savage plays Vera, as tough a broad who ever stepped out of the shadows and from there on, in less than 67 miniutes, Al's life is a nightmare.
One of the great noir directors is Anthony Mann and in 1945 he was beginning his string of great crime pictures (T-Men, Raw Deal, Border Incident). The Great Flamarion is a showman, an expert marksman played by Eric Von Stroheim. The egotistic Flamarion is at the top of his game and the top of his world, but he's about to topple from his throne because of a woman. His assistant Connie played by Mary Beth Hughes would just as soon be rid of her drunken hubby Al, played by Dan Duryea. Life would be peachy and creamy for Flamarion and Connie if only Al were out of the way. Flamarion loses it all when Connie throws him over for another man. Flamarion thought he was so great. He was just another schnook.
LAUGHTER AND SONG
State Fair
Dana Andrews, Jeanne Crain
Composer Richard Rodgers and lyricist Oscar Hammerstein II reinvented Broadway in 1943 with Oklahoma! and the 1945 release State Fair was their first musical written originally for the screen. An adaption of Phil Strong's popular 1932 novel which was first filmed in 1933 starring Will Rogers, State Fair is the story of the Frake family of Iowa and their life changing visit to the State Fair. Directed by Walter Lang (The Little Princess, Desk Set, Moon Over Miami), the movie is gloriously filmed in Technicolor by cinematographer Leon Shamroy (Leave Her to Heaven, The Black Swan, The King and I). Charles Winninger and Fay Bainter are delightful as the parents, as excited by their young adult children at the prospect of the trip to the fair. Jeanne Crain glows as girl-next-door Margy. Crowd pleasing vocalist Dick Haymes is her brother Wayne. Both youngsters are eager for romance. They will find it in newspaper man Pat Gilbert played by Dana Andrews and singer Emily Edwards played by Vivian Blaine. Highlights of the heartwarming and enjoyable film include the songs It's a Grand Night for Singing, It Might As Well Be Spring, Isn't It Kind of Fun, That's For Me, and a priceless turn by Donald Meek as the judge of the mince meat competition.
The most popular comedy team of the era was Bud Abbot and Lou Costello, starting with their movie debut in 1940s One Night in the Tropics through to their 1950s run-ins with Universals acclaimed monsters. In The Naughty Nineties we go back to a time before either world war, a time of show boats and vaudeville turns, and songs everyone used to know such as My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean and Take Me Out to the Ballgame. Speaking of ballgames, in this picture Bud and Lou give perhaps the finest performance of their classic routine Who's On First?. Plenty of laughs and the show boat is saved from nefarious nasties. What's not to like?
MGM had themselves a Best Picture nominee in Anchors Aweigh, a splashy Technicolor musical that follows two sailors on leave in a backlot Los Angeles. Gene Kelly was given free reign to display his considerable talents, young Frank Sinatra to sing his way into willing hearts and Kathryn Grayson to look lovely and sing the same. This is the movie where Gene first combined his dancing ability with the world of animation, performing in tandem with Jerry, the mouse of Tom and Jerry fame. Pamela Britton, later of TVs My Favorite Martian, is a doll as the gal waiting for Sinatra when Grayson ends up in Kelly's arms. Dean Stockwell charms as Grayson's kid brother. The movie engenders a lot of good will through the exuberant talent and likability of the cast. It's only detriments being a rather meandering script and a running time of 143 minutes.
GOTTA HAVE MY TOONS
One of the delights of attending the movies in an earlier era must have been the fun of watching classic cartoon shorts before they became classic. Disney Studio's Duck Pimples is a personal favourite of mine. Donald Duck was put through many surreal adventures in the feature release of The Three Caballeros and the Oscar nominated Donald's Crime, but they pale in comparison to Duck Pimples. It is a dark and stormy night when spooky radio programs plus a lurid mystery novel put The Duck's nerves on edge. A visit from a door-to-door salesman sends him into a frenzy of imaginative adventures populated by off-the-wall characters. A must-see.
Spike is a "noivous wreck" in MGMs Oscar winning Tom and Jerry short Quiet Please!. If he doesn't get his beauty sleep Spike threatens Tom with a thorough pulverization. Jerry sees to it that no matter how much effort Tom puts into silence, noise will be the order of the day. From the Golden Age of Hanna-Barbera's Tom and Jerry series with the resources of MGM behind their vision and the glorious musical highlights from Scott Bradley.
From Warner Bros. Merrie Melodies comes another Oscar nominee, Life With Feathers. A love-lorn parakeet tries to commit suicide by Sylvester in that cat's film debut. Unlike many of our well-known toons, Sylvester in his debut is pretty much Sylvester as we have always known him. He's sneaky, one step behind the rest of the world, slightly on the cowardly side and very funny.
In 1945 the public seemed to have an insatiable appetite for the movies. What would the post-war years bring?
Winner: Best Classic Movie Article
I love how you grouped these, because you can read so much of where the public's head is through the movies that are popular, and the genres that emerge. And of course enjoyed the Canadian details and news you included in this history lesson, well done.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Kristina. There seemed to be so much worth writing about that categorizing the genres/styles seemed the best way for me to get a handle on the incredible output.
DeleteCW,
ReplyDeleteA lot of polarizing history in that first paragraph. Also the year my mother was born. (Look out Charlie Chan) Also another big year for musicals. EEECK!
Thank You, Disney Studios and Donald Duck for saving the day. : )
This is a fun Blogathon and an interesting walk through history. Ridding the world of tyrants and monsters was a good start.
All the best!
Page
Page, the big events are sometimes overwhelming - whether it's for us today or for the folks in 1945. No matter what was happening abroad, I'll bet the birth of your mom was the biggest deal for your family that year. What sort of world did they envision for that little girl? What movies did they see when they got a night out and away from the baby?
DeleteWe're with Trevor Howard in "Brief Encounter" when he says: "The stars can change their courses, the universe can go up in flames and the world crash around us, but there will always be Donald Duck."
Great review of this historic year. I'd love to have heard all the swing bands of the time.
ReplyDelete4 films you mentioned highlight the year for me - LEAVE HER TO HEAVEN,OUR VINES HAVE TENDER GRAPES,SCARLET STREET and DETOUR.
Vienna's Classic Hollywood
Vienna, I see you're someone who likes to walk down those dark, rainy streets. Wouldn't it be a treat to introduce someone to Edward G. Robinson with a double bill of "Scarlet Street" and "Our Vines Have Tender Grapes"? What a year for that supremely talented actor.
ReplyDeleteThis is such a neat way to look at a slice of life from a particular year, juxtaposing the big historical events with popular culture. I like the way you touched on the different genres too.
ReplyDeleteI just saw They Were Expendable for the first time in December, and it's stuck with me ever since. It's the kind of movie that grows on you and makes you think more about it after it's over. I'd probably call it my second-favorite Ford film now, after Rio Grande.
Thanks, Elizabeth.
DeleteI know what you mean about "They Were Expendable". There are moments of the plot and some visuals that make an impact that last long after the film ends. "Rio Grande" already lives in my heart.
What a great overview of 1945! This is really bing's shining year.
ReplyDeleteThe two noirs with the trio Lang-Robinson-Bennett are spectacular. And so are the musicals. I watched State Fair recently, and you found a picture in which Jeanne Crain is stunning.
Thanks for the kind comment!
Kisses!
"State Fair" is a lot of fun. The original novel has a darker ending, but I love the sunny happy ending of the movies. We'll save the dark stuff for Eddie G.
Delete'A Tree Grows in Brooklyn' is a great movie, though I saw it before I knew who Joan Blondell was. Now that I know, I appreciate it a little bit more. Was she always a supporting character? I don't know of a movie where she was a lead.
ReplyDeleteThe supporting roles gave Joan Blondell's career great longevity. Her leading roles would include "Blonde Crazy", "Union Depot", "The Famous Ferguson Case" (a fave), "Make Me a Star" (adorable), "Golddiggers of 1933", "Goodbye Again", "Footlight Parade", "I've Got Your Number", "Dames", "Three Men on a Horse", "Stand-In" (http://caftanwoman.blogspot.ca/2012/07/caftan-womans-choice-one-for-july-on.html), "East Side of Heaven" and "The Amazing Mr. Williams". The studio really kept Joanie busy when they signed her in the 30s.
DeleteI always thought of 'Gold Diggers' as an ensemble, myself, but I've never seen any of those others. Now I know what to look for!
DeleteI hesitated about "Golddiggers" with that great ensemble cast, but I think of her as the lead because it is one of about a half dozen times she was paired with Warren William and I think of them as a leading couple. Also, they're the couple I cared the most about in the film. A personal prejudice on my part.
DeleteLove 1945 in the year of filmdom! You've done an amazing job highlighting some of the most enjoyable movies that the year had to offer.
ReplyDeleteReally liked the inclusion of Powell and Pressburger's "I Know Where I'm Going" and Alex Korda's "Vacation From Marriage'.
And Gene Kelly in "Anchors Aweigh!" Wow!!! Take away Jose Iturbi and its a near-perfect musical! Frankie is good, but Gene steals the show! :-) I remember reading that Gene recieved an Academy Award nomination for his performance! Ray Milland deservedly won for "The Lost Weekend", but hey, what a great honour for our Mr Kelly!
Thanks so much. It was fun to explore those movies.
DeleteIt's rare that the Academy would show such admiration for a musical performance, but Gene Kelly's talent is impossible to ignore. Just like it's impossible for me to ignore British films, especially The Archers at their best.
Seeing how film developed during the war years has been one of my favourite parts of this blogathon. Each of the 'categories' are so intertwined with the broader events that were occurring and its interesting to see the different reactions to it. I can only wonder how the film industry would've panned out it WW2 hadn't intervened. More Donald Duck perhaps?!
ReplyDeleteThat's an interesting thought. Where would film have gone without the upheaval of the war? The influence of German expressionism in the proliferation of film-noir might still have been felt, but not as pervasively if directors/writers hadn't fled Europe. Humour would most likely have lost some of the sophisticated edge. Would location filming have become more common creating a worldwide Hollywood? So many things to ponder.
DeleteCW - what a well done, well thought out and wonderful post. You captured the essence of the era perfectly. Loved it.
DeleteThanks so much. I'm so pleased you enjoyed the article.
DeleteIsn't it amazing that so much was produced in film and in turn, influenced the world in one year? Glad you included the Brit aspect. "I Know Where I'm Going" is a favorite. So much of our perception of the era is based on the films, for better or worse. Well done.
ReplyDeleteThanks.
DeleteSome of the films I wrote about (Brief Encounter, Scarlet Street) feel later emotionally to me than 1945. It was certainly a year of a crossroads.
Confession: You've referenced a lot of films that I've never seen! Clearly, I'm lacking in my education of 1945 Hollywood History. But, thanks to your post, I'm quickly catching up!
ReplyDeleteGreat job. Fabulous overview of the year "everyone was striving for", as you so eloquently put it.
Thank you, Ruth. I don't know if I should apologize for adding to your must-see list. The more blogs I read the longer my own list becomes and I don't think I'll ever catch up!
DeleteFantastic overview of 1945, The noir, Joan Blondell and all the rest of it. Really well put together piece. I thoroughly enjoyed this. Cheers Joey
ReplyDeleteI appreciate the kind words, Joey.
DeleteNice selection and organization, Caftan Woman. Whenever I see The Thin Man Goes Home, I laugh about Nick's parents because in the book he explains that his father was from Greece and was named Charalambides until he arrived at Ellis Island. I have read through about 30 years of posts and you are the first person to mention the results of the World Series. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteHey, Joe. We've got our priorities right - first baseball, then movies.
DeleteGreat review of 1945 Caftan Woman. I think The Story of G.I Joe and Scarlet Street set the look of the movies for the next several years as the reaities of WWII fully sank in. As for film attendance, it was a steady slide from there. Thank for this beautiful slice of Americana.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you stopped by, Christian. In looking at 1945 it was brought home to me how sudden the changes were that affected so many - in both real and reel life.
DeleteWonderful overview of the year! "I Know Where I'm Going" is truly a magical film, I was absolutely hypnotized by it and I was delighted to see it included. Also enjoyed your insights into laughter and song. "State Fair" is such a gem. Thanks so much for the wonderful contribution!
ReplyDeleteIt was my pleasure to participate in the blogathon. The whole experience was fun and enlightening.
DeleteYou've convinced me that 1945 was an awesome year for films! It's interesting to think how different Hollywood would become shortly thereafter. The optimism of pre-World War II would give way to the darker melodramas of the 1940s and 1950s (LEAVE HER TO HEAVEN was a good precursor). The studio system would start to unravel. And European influences would soon play a larger role (e.g., on-location filming in pics such as CALL NORTHSIDE 777).
ReplyDeleteThe more I dug into the releases that year, the more I was impressed at how many have come to mean so much to me. A fascinating and challenging time for the industry.
ReplyDeleteCaftan Woman, you had me at WONDER MAN -- I just LOOOOVE Danny Kaye, in case I've foolishly neglected to mention it! :-) What a delightful time capsule you've dished up! I was especially pleased you mentioned THE THIN MAN GOES HOME, since I've never had a chance to catch up with it, but I will ASAP! And who doesn't love Donald Duck and The Story of G.I. So glad you gave Deanna Durbin's LADY ON A TRAIN a little love, too! Thanks for the blast from the past, taking us along !
ReplyDeleteDorian, so happy to see you here. The 40s is possibly my favourite decade for films, but until I started looking into 1945 I didn't realize how many films I cherished from that one particular year.
DeleteDonald Duck rules!
Duck Pimples!? Gotta' get my hands on that one, C.W.
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful and well-researched post. Well-reasoned too. 1945 was an especially great year for films - most of the ones you include in your post, I've seen, though ask me to tell you about them and I'll flubbadub. Bad memory blues. At any rate, there are a couple listed that I want to see again when I have the chance. Thanks for the reminder.
I've just recently watched I KNOW WHERE I'M GOING and agree wholeheartedly with your assessment. VACATION FROM MARRIAGE is a film I am not at all familiar with, so I'm adding it to my must see list. Robert Donat. That's all that needs be said. And I've been meaning to watch THE THIN MAN films yet again. THE THIN MAN GOES HOME is one that is absolutely blank-mange in my memory. Must see it yet again. For sure.
Thanks for your hard work and a fabulous, post, C.W.
1945 was also a good year for my family since it is the birth date of my younger brother. So lots to celebrate.
Memories are funny things, Yvette. Long after plot details have faded I still can recall snatches of a score or sets and decorations from movies not seen in ages.
DeleteNice of your folks to give you that younger brother to tease!