Change Your Image
dlbroome01
Reviews
The Fat Spy (1966)
What's good about this film? Some of the songs, actually.
Not much. BUT, for a low (low, low, low) budget "beach party" film (set in Florida, for a change) there are *just* enough special moments to satisfy the truly curious. Those moments are all found in the musical numbers: Frank E Leonard croons to his long-lost love, cosmetics mogul Phyllis Diller, an amusing "love" song regarding Diller's supposed ugliness in "You Haven't Changed a Bit"....with lines like "the paper said that Peeping Tom was pulling down your shade.." Ironic, as Phyllis Diller looks quite good here. Jayne Mansfield portrays a chubby daddy's girl/bush pilot who is sent by her father (Brian Donlevy) to see what 'those kids' are up to, and in doing so meets up with her beloved (Frank E Leonard, in a second role). Jayne gets to sing one song, the charming "I'd Like To Be a Rose in Your Garden (But I'm Just a Thorn in Your Side)." In real life, Jayne is obviously pregnant (with her youngest child); in some scenes there was no attempt to conceal her growing belly. Maybe the intention was for her character to be plump? Other numbers include cast member Lauree Berger (a very appealing short-haired brunette who could easily have given Annette Funicello a run for her money) singing the weirdly upbeat but submissive ditty "You Put Me Down the Nicest Way You Can." Jordan Christopher and the Wild Ones appear as "the boys" and perform "The Turtle", a slow-moving dance -which is like nothing you'll ever see in the big-budget "beach" movies. However, none of these musical moments belong in the same film with the Jordan Christopher-Lauree Berger duet "Nanette", a dreamily beautiful melody that could have been a hit if it wasn't lost in this film. "The Fat Spy" succeeds in a few fragments -if not as a whole- and for that its worth a look.
Tillie's Punctured Romance (1914)
Recommended for fans of Marie Dressler; less so for fans of Chaplin
The very notion of Marie Dressler in the role of a winsome country girl is enough to induce chuckles (for those familiar with her later films, that is). The actress was in her mid-40s at the time this film was made, and a 'robust'(ahem) 40-something at that. Chaplin, then 25 years old portrays her gold-digging suitor. In the role of Tillie it is easy to see why Marie's character was so popular with live theater audiences; with her trademark facial expressions and kinetic energy she has our attention from the moment we see her -even without dialogue.
**Spoiler Alert...if anyone is concerned** Tillie's inheritance via the unexpected demise of her rich uncle catapults her into high society, and her notion of how wealthy ladies should dress and behave provide the most memorable moments. Tillie's introduction to high-society in the ballroom of her late uncle's (now her own) mansion include some funky dance moves (on her part) that seem surprisingly fresh after nearly a century...and, in a few fleeting scenes, one party guest who may provide the earliest portrayal of an obviously gay (and quite flamboyant) character in a mainstream film. Anyone willing to sit through a silent film made in 1914 has certainly seen other silent films- but this one is rougher than most; there are some jumpy cuts and some scenes in which the surviving footage is badly degraded. That, and an over-abundance of incredibly juvenile slapping/kicking/poking/falling down -which must have passed for comedy at the time- become tiresome early on. Still, the storyline holds together, and anyone who has seen Marie Dressler in 'Dinner at Eight', 'Anna Christie', or 'Min and Bill' and wished for more will want to see 'Tillie's Punctured Romance'.