April 2017 – Page 3 – The Horse's Head

#38) The Ox-Bow Incident (1943)

#38) The Ox-Bow Incident (1943)

OR “Not Quite Fonda This One”

Directed by William A. Wellman

Written by Lamar Trotti. Based on the novel by Walter Van Tilburg Clark.

Class of 1998

The Plot: In 1885 Nevada, drifters Gil & Art (Henry Fonda & Harry Morgan) ride in to town and learn of some recent cattle rustling. When word spreads that a local rancher has been murdered, the townsmen form a posse comitatus with the intent of hanging the killers. Gil & Art tag along and eventually find three men (Dana Andrews, Anthony Quinn & Francis Ford) with the rancher’s cattle and gun. The men claim innocence and the town’s hasty sense of justice is called into question.

Why It Matters: The NFR calls the film “a quiet yet intense study of the mentality and interpersonal dynamics of mobs.” Boy, that makes you want to go out and grab some popcorn, don’t it?

But Does It Really?: This is one of those films that I’ve always heard of but couldn’t tell you why it’s a classic. After watching it…I still can’t tell you. Not that it’s awful (there’s some impressive cinematography from Arthur C. Miller throughout), but it never goes to that next level you want from a classic film. Its scope is almost too small for film, it feels like a short story adapted for television. Fonda has given us films about society’s moral compass before and after this one (“The Grapes of Wrath”, “12 Angry Men” etc.). He’s even got better westerns on the list – “My Darling Clementine” and “Once Upon a Time in the West” come to mind. “The Ox-Bow Incident” is a story that needs to be told, but it has been, and by much more memorable movies.

Everybody Gets One: Due to everyone being a contract player during the Golden Age of Hollywood, pretty much everybody in this film has at least one more NFR entry on their resume. I’m sure I’ll even see some of the horses in another film. But I’ll give special mention to Frank Orth as Larry Kinkaid (aka “the vic”).

Wow, That’s Dated: For his performance as Poncho, Chrispin Martin gets to speak broken English in what I can only describe as a “Speedy Gonzales accent”.

Seriously, Oscars?: The film was nominated for Best Picture and…that’s it. In fact, it’s the most recent film to only receive a Best Picture nomination. It lost to “Casablanca”, because duh.

Other notes

The novel is over 300 pages? How?
San Francisco is the name of a saint. Don’t call it “Frisco”.
Umm, Fonda just punched a guy and then stomped on his face.
Nope, definitely not a fake backdrop behind the saloon set. Definitely didn’t start rustling when the actors walked past it. Nothing to see here.
Surprise uncredited appearance by Margaret Hamilton as the judge’s housekeeper! I guess the “Wizard of Oz” residuals hadn’t started coming in yet.
Jane Darwell is playing the role that today would go to Kathy Bates. Surprisingly, despite spending a lot of time in the film, Darwell does not directly interact with her former film son Henry Fonda.
As a MSTie I feel it should be noted that Rose and her new husband (Mary Beth Hughes & George Meeker) would reunite a year later to film “I Accuse My Parents”.
He’s played Greek, Italian, Arabian and even French, but this is one of the rare films where Mexican-born Anthony Quinn actually plays a Mexican!
“This is only slightly any of your business” has got to be one of the least effective threats in film history.
And of course, buy your War Bonds in this theatre!

Legacy

Sure I didn’t go for it, but “The Ox-Bow Incident” is one of the favorite films of Clint Eastwood and even Henry Fonda himself. So what do I know?
The film is referenced by Hawkeye on an episode of “M*A*S*H”. One wonders what Colonel Potter made of Art in this film.

Further Viewing: Now’s as good a time as any to showcase one of those Henry Fonda clip retrospectives. This one comes from TCM and features tributes from his children Jane and Peter.

#37) The Hustler (1961)

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#37) The Hustler (1961)

OR “Harold Hill was Right”

Directed by Robert Rossen

Written by Rossen and Sidney Carroll. Based on the novel by Walter S. Tevis.

Class of 1997

The Plot: “Fast” Eddie Felson (Paul Newman) is a small-town pool hustler looking for his big break. He challenges champion Minnesota Fats (Jackie Gleason) to a match. Eddie starts off strong, but his cockiness gets the better of him and he loses everything. While on the streets he starts a relationship with Sarah (Piper Laurie) an alcoholic with dashed dreams of her own. Eddie starts hustling again and attracts the eye of high-roller Bert Gordon (George C. Scott) who tries to craft the “born loser” into a true champ. Eddie’s hunger for winning fuels him, but at a personal cost.

Why It Matters: The NFR calls it a “moody, deliberately-paced morality play” and singles out the film’s direction, writing, cinematography and performers, specifically George C. Scott.

But Does It Really?: It could have been just a little shorter, but the film is definitely worth it as a character study of people’s competitive natures. The film’s strength is the emphasis on character rather than on the game of pool itself, which I feel a lesser director would have done. Performances by the four leads are solid (if maybe a little too “Actors Studio” for my taste) and the pool games are riveting. While the film’s impact may have worn off over the years, I’d still chalk this one up to a “minor classic”.

Everybody Gets One: Amazingly this is the only appearance for stars Jackie Gleason and Piper Laurie. Also noteworthy are appearances by Vincent “Old Italian Stereotype” Gardenia and Michael “Old Greek Stereotype” Constantine. Plus that’s boxer Jake LaMotta as the bartender when Eddie and Sarah meet up again. Hey, someone should make a movie about him!

Wow, That’s Dated: Mainly the fact that modern professional pool players are not as cool or classy as Paul Newman or Jackie Gleason.

Seriously, Oscars?: “The Hustler” received nine Oscar nominations, including Best Picture. Almost completely shut out by “West Side Story” and “Judgment at Nuremberg”, the film won two technical awards; Art Direction and Cinematography. Most noteworthy is George C. Scott’s Supporting Actor nomination. After losing for “Anatomy of a Murder” two years earlier, Scott decided he no longer believed in competition among actors and asked that the Academy remove his nomination. The Academy declined his request. Scott split the vote with Gleason and lost to George Chakiris for “West Side Story”.

Other notes

Speaking of Oscars, I’m disappointed that Dede Allen didn’t get a nomination for her editing. It took a while for Hollywood’s Old Home Guard to accept that faster New York style of editing. And kudos to Fox’s Oscar campaign for putting Piper Laurie in the lead category. They could have easily put her in supporting and committed category fraud, but Fox made the right choice.
I’m a sucker for films that are shot in Black & White with a 2.35:1 aspect ratio. They always look so artful. This is the brief era of film where this combination was more frequent.
We’re still in the Hays Code era, so characters aren’t allowed to swear. Instead we get substitutes like “up the flagpole”, “crum”, and “kiss off”. The film, however, is edgy enough to let Sarah call Bert a “bastard”.
Holy hell those trick shots are amazing! Gleason was a seasoned pool player and did all his own shots. Newman picked up the game quickly and only needed assistance on one shot by pool champ (and the film’s technical advisor) Willie Mosconi.
This film has one of my favorite types of scenes; montages that have several images superimposed over each other.

I’m convinced that Gleason actually misses one of his shots, but they cut away before you see where the ball ends up. You win this round, Rossen.
Why is Piper Laurie dubbed so much? Like, almost every scene she’s in. It’s especially noticeable in her big scene towards the end where the sync is way off.
That’s character actor Murray Hamilton as Kentucky pool champ Findley. For those of you keeping score, he’s in movies about pool sharks and actual sharks.
George C. Scott is good, but he only gets to do his famous “Turn It Off!” line reading once, saved towards the end for, “You owe me MONEY!” This was only Scott’s third film, yet the transition from stage actor to film actor is already seamless.

Legacy

25 years later Paul Newman reprised Fast Eddie in the Scorsese-helmed semi-sequel “The Color of Money”. Reviews were mixed, but Newman’s performance finally won him his first and only Academy Award.

“The Hustler” is credited with helping to revive interest in pool. So…that’s cool I guess.
Shortly after the film came out, pool player Rudolf Wanderone started calling himself “Minnesota Fats” and claimed that Gleason’s character was based on him. The story didn’t stick, but the nickname did.

Further Viewing: The 1978 showdown between aforementioned pool champions Minnesota Fats and Willie Mosconi. Because it’s a ‘70s sports match, Howard Cosell provides commentary.

Listen to This: The Class of 2016

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The NFR’s sister organization The National Recording Registry recently announced their 25 selections for 2016. Congratulations to all artists involved! Here’s a run-down of all 25, with links where applicable.

1. The 1888 London cylinder recordings of Col. George Gouraud (1888)

2. “Lift Every Voice and Sing” (singles), Manhattan Harmony Four (1923); Melba Moore and Friends (1990)

3. “Puttin’ on the Ritz” (single), Harry Richman (1929)

4. “Over the Rainbow” (single), Judy Garland (1939)

5. “I’ll Fly Away” (single), The Chuck Wagon Gang (1948)

6. “Hound Dog” (single), Big Mama Thornton (1953)

7. “Saxophone Colossus,” Sonny Rollins (1956)

8. The Brooklyn Dodgers and the New York Giants at the Polo Grounds, announced by Vin Scully (September 8, 1957) [No link available, so here he is talking about Lucky Strike]