Guest in the House ~ 1944 -BW

QUICKIE: PDMR rule: Some women are just bad.

PLOT: A young woman (Anne Baxter), who is emotionally unstable, stays at the home of her physician where she ends up meeting his brother (Ralph Bellamy). The woman becomes obsessed with the man, in spite of the fact that he is happily married (to Ann played by Ruth Warrick), and decides to do everything in her power to win him over and prove her love. The dangerous actions of the young woman leads to some tragic consequences for those involved. Aline MacMahon plays Aunt Martha, Marie McDonald as Miriam the model, and Margaret Hamilton has a small role as Hilda the Maid.

SUMMARY: Not having seen All About Eve I found this movie to be absolutely wonderful. Having read a review of All About Eve on IMDB.com I can understand why critics downplayed Ann Baxters' portrayal of Evelyn as "preparation for Eve" in All About Eve. Hence the futility of reading "critics". I am not a critical person, preferring to focus my time on good things, and skipping over the losers.

I found this movie to be completely engrossing. It sucked me in and carried me along and in the end made me thrilled with the whole ride. Ann Baxter was great, I didn't think she over acted at all. I especially enjoyed how the whole movie got darker and the lighting more dramatic as the emotions progressed. Some have said the characters' gullibility was too hard to believe, and I did agree with that a little, but pushed it away with the rational that times were indeed different then. Also, if one has never interacted with a sick individual, one has no way of knowing what they're capable of. So, their naivety was believable for me.

If I rated movies around here, I'd give this 10 out of 10 stars, I liked it that much. It is a really good film start to finish. And boy, what a finish!

Mystery Collection: Disc 14 -side A

I can't find it online yet.

The Villian Still Pursued Her ~ 1940 -BW

QUICKIE: A villain, a maiden, the hero ... and then ... gasp! ... alcohol!

PLOT: The widow Wilson (Margaret Hamilton) and her daughter Mary (Anita Louise) have just learned that old Mr. Middleton, who held the mortgage on their home, has passed away. They are now visited by Middleton's lawyer, Cribbs (Alan Mowbray), who informs them that Middleton's son and heir Edward (Richard Cromwell) plans to foreclose and take possession of their home. When Mary goes to plead with Edward, she soon discovers that it is really the unscrupulous Cribbs who wants to drive them out of their home. When Mary and Edward become engaged to be married, it looks as if all is well. But the calculating Cribbs has a new plan, which begins with luring young Edward into a lifestyle of drinking and dissipation. Buster Keaton plays William Dalton, the friend to Edward who turns him around in the end.

SUMMARY:
Villain: "You must pay the rent!"
Maiden: "I can't pay the rent!"
Hero: "I'll pay the rent!"
Maiden: "My hero!"
Villain: "Curses! Foiled again."

The rest of the story:
Maiden & Hero marry.
Maiden: "Lips that touch liquor shall never touch mine."
Villain: "Here, Mr. Hero, have a drink."
Hero drinks for 20 years straight.
Maiden: "Oh, my poor husband."

Watch this movie and laugh. Hiss at the villain, clap for the hero. Make some popcorn to throw at the screen. It's a silly melodramatic romp of ridiculous over-acting and predictable plots. Twice they stop the movie to post notes to the theater customers. Shakespeare is vomiting. We're laughing at the camp. Great fun for all... except Bill. wink.

The Sin of Harold Diddlebock ~ 1947 -BW

QUICKIE: Two men dangle out the window of the 5th floor suspended only by a lion, and other amazing feats brought to you by Mr. Diddlebock's bender.

PLOT: Twenty years after his triumphs as a freshman on the football field, Harold is a mild-mannered clerk who dreams about marrying the girl at the desk down the aisle. But losing his job destroys that dream, and when he finds a particularly potent drink at his local bar, he goes on a very strange and funny rampage (with a lion in tow).

SUMMARY: This movie stressed me out to no end. Diddlebock gets fired because he's a lame-O, boring bookkeeper. He gets over 2 grand from his retirement fund and a gold watch. Out he goes onto the street, and as a drifter talks him into having his very first drink, we cringe knowing the loss of his life savings is imminent. But we're pleasantly surprised as Diddlebock's enthusiasm explodes out of 20 years of suppressed genius and joy. He runs around screaming and over reacting to everything for the rest of the film.

Diddlebock manages to make $15,000 betting on horses, buys a ridiculous checkered suit, a month's of service from a horse and carriage, and a circus. Once he sobers up he discovers the circus is in huge financial trouble. So Diddlebock schemes up a plan to interest bankers to buy the circus off him by taking the lion to the banks, drumming up attention. There's real stupid slapstick humor here and when they hang off the side of the building suspended only by the lion, I was squirming with uncomfortableness the whole time.

There's the great cliche happy ending as Diddlebock discovers that during his bender he married his true love, and Barnum & Bailey buy the circus for $175,000. Rich, famous and married, Awww.

Margaret Hamilton (Wizard of Oz) has a small part as Diddlebock's sister and Rudy Vallee makes an appearance as well. But I was mostly captivated by the lion. And the constant yelling. Still, a good film with many funny bits and very daring stunts.