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Brother Orchid – 1940 Bacon
- A moderately successful comedy brought to life by an inspired
lead performance by Edward G. Robinson and Bogart waiting in the wings ready to
break out in 1940.
- Certainly a factory product- Warners Bros was cranking them out
- One of five collaborations between Edward G and Bogart
- Like Larceny Inc. (made two years after with
Lloyd Bacon) Edward G. comically riffs upon his popular gangster role in Little Caesar (made a decade before)—his
name here is “Little John”- this is decades before De Niro would do this is in
a number of films (including Analyze This)
and Brando in The Freshman (1990)
- Fast-moving- wipe
edits
- Edward G. Robinson is
the standout— he has such command of the screen even at the diminutive size—and
that voice.
- The ensemble is great
too. Donald Crisp in a small role, Cecil Kellaway – Ralph Bellamy rifts on his
role as a rich brainless southerner in The
Awful Truth just three years prior. I think the film asks too much of Ann
Sothern who isn’t up to snuff—should have lent more on Bogart (who is superb)-
she’s clearly the second lead here after Edward G and the film is worse for it.
- The direction is
mostly pragmatic but there is one nice tracking shot and camera tilt up when he
finds himself at the monastery at 47 minutes
- The rest of the film
is essentially a fish out of water comedy- and it is funny
- Recommend but not near
the top 10 of 1940
Drake2020-05-18T14:16:40+00:00
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