Hotchka Movies by the Decade feature #89 :: April 6•12

United Artists

There were three decades this week that did not produce any new films, while several decades gave us films that have gone on to be true classics, including one beloved MGM musical that, like The Wizard of Oz, was not well-received upon its initial theatrical release, over-shadowed by another musical with the same star that was regarded as far superior (winning the Best Picture Oscar to boot). 1932 gave us a classic gangster film that was remade in the 1980s, and in addition to the musical 1952 gave us Abbott & Costello in color. 1992 produced an animated film focusing on the environment, with Robin Williams given his first animated character to voice, and the same year saw a Disney box office bomb that has gained a cult following, mainly because of its then young star, and gone on to become a hit stage musical. In 2002, a film about football/soccer became a global hit, and in 2012 a popular film series came to an end … and then it didn’t. Read on to see if any of this week’s films are on your favorites list!

1922

• No new films were released this week in 1922.

1932

April 9 – Scarface

• Cast: Paul Muni, Ann Dvorak, Karen Morle, Osgood Perkins, C. Henry Gordon, George Raft, Vince Barnett, Boris Karloff, Purnell Pratt, Tully Marshall, Inez Palange, Edwin Maxwell
• Director: Howard Hawks
• Production Company: The Caddo Company, distributed by United Artists
• Trivia: Based loosely on the 1929 novel by Armitage Trail which was inspired by Al Capone. The film premiered in New Orleans on March 31, 1932. It was released in Canada on April 29, London on June 24, and in the UK on November 28. Also known as Scarface: The Shame of the Nation and The Shame of a Nation. Produced before the Production Code was introduced, but the Hays Office still insisted on several changes including a clearer ending to reprehend the gangster Camonte. The changes delayed the film’s release by a year. Modern video versions of the film contain the original ending with the amended ending as a bonus feature. The film was added to the National Film Registry in 1994. First major film credit for George Raft. The film was banned in Chicago until 1941. Boris Karloff attempted an American accent and a different tone of voice but by his third scene his English accent is back, and the accent goes back and forth as different characters address him.

1942

• No new films were released this week in 1942.

1952

April 8 – My Son John

• Cast: Helen Hayes, Van Heflin, Dean Jagger, Robert Walker, Minor Watson, Frank McHugh, Richard Jaeckel, James Young
• Director: Leo McCarey
• Production Company: Rainbow Productions, distributed by Paramount Pictures
• Trivia: The film was released in the UK on June 1, 1953. The film was strongly anti-communist and received an Oscar nomination for Best Writing, Motion Picture Story, which some believed was a signal of Hollywood’s loyalty to the ongoing anticommunist campaign. The film is now seen as a propaganda film. Helen Hayes’ return to film after 17 years away. Robert Walker was to deliver the film’s final speech, but he died several hours after recording the the audio for the scene. The script was rewritten to have his character killed before the speech, using footage from Strangers on a Train for his death scene. The recording of the speech was played over a shot of an empty lectern. Filmed in Hollywood, and on location in Washington DC and Manassass, Virginia.

April 10 – Two Cents Worth of Hope

• Cast: Maria Fiore, Vincenzo Musolino, Filomena Russo, Luigi Astarita, Luigi Barone
• Director: Renato Castellani
• Distributor: Les Films Marceau (France), Times Film Corporation (United States)
• Trivia: The film was released in Italy on April 10, 1952. It opened in London in June and in the US on December 15. The third part of Renato Castellani’s ‘Young Love’ trilogy, following Sotto il sole di Roma (1948) and È primavera…(1950). It shared the Grand Prix prize with Othello at the 1952 Cannes Film Festival.

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer

April 10 – Singin’ in the Rain

• Cast: Gene Kelly, Debbie Reynolds, Donald O’Connor, Jean Hagen, Millard Mitchell, Cyd Charisse, Douglas Fowley, Rita Moreno
• Director: Gene Kelly, Stanley Donen
• Production Company: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, distributed by Loew’s Inc.
• Trivia: Premieres for the film were held in Miami on March 27, 1952 and in New York City on March 27. The film first opened in London on April 10, with Canada and the US following on April 11. The film was only a modest hit upon its release. Donald O’Connor won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy. Jean Hagen was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. The film was entered into the National Film Registry in 1989. Betty Noyes was the singing voice of Debbie Reynolds on ‘Would You’ and ‘You Are My Lucky Star’. While Debbie Reynolds’ character is meant to be dubbing a line of dialogue for Jean Hagen’s character, it is actually Hagen’s natural voice that is used, which had a more rich tone than Reynolds’ thin, youthful voice. King Donovan, Madge Blake, Kathleen Freeman and Mae Clark made uncredited appearances. Howard Keel was originally considered for the lead and the story was going to center around a silent cowboy star making the transition to a singing cowboy in talkies. Gene Kelly was unavailable as the script was being fashioned, tied up with An American in Paris. That film completed production as the script was being completed and he was given the script to read, responding enthusiastically. Kelly, director Stanley Donen, and writers Betty Comden and Adolph Green were all friends and re-writes went smoothly. Kelly was sick with a 103 °F during the filming of the ‘Singin’ in the Rain’ number. Legend has it he filmed it in one take with the use of multiple cameras, but it actually took three days to film. Kelly’s wool suit shrunk from the rain used in the scene. Reynolds was not a dancer at the time, and Kelly was hard on her for that. Fred Astaire offered to help her, and after the ‘Good Morning’ number, which filmed in one day from 8 AM to 11 PM, Reynolds’ feet were bleeding. She said making the film and experiencing child birth were the two hardest things she’d ever done. Donald O’Connor, who smoked four packs of cigarettes a day at the time, had to stay in bed in the hospital for several days after filming the physically demanding ‘Make ‘Em Laugh’ sequence. An accident ruined all of the footage and O’Connor agreed to do the number again. Reynolds and O’Connor described Kelly as a perfectionist and a tyrant, with O’Connor fearful of making any mistakes. The film’s original negative was destroyed in a fire. The ‘Broadway Ballet’ number was conceived for Kelly and O’Connor but O’Connor had to leave for a previous TV commitment. The number was reconceived with Cyd Charisse, a former ballet dancer who had never danced in heels so she had to adjust her style to mesh with Kelly’s. Kelly choreographed his dance numbers with Charisse to hide the fact that she’s taller than him. Charisse also had to be taught how to smoke a cigarette for the ballet number. She never smoked again. Rita Moreno is the last surviving credited star of the movie. Jean Hagen based Lina Lamont’s voice on Judy Holliday’s performance in Born Yesterday. The ‘Singin’ in the Rain’ number was shot during the day on an outdoor set which had to be blacked out with tarpaulins with the rain painstakingly backlit so it would show up on film. The same set was later used for the street scenes on Seinfeld.

April 12 – Jack and the Beanstalk

• Cast: Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, Dorothy Ford, Buddy Baer, Shaye Cogan, David Stollery, James Alexander, Barbara Brown, William Farnum, Arthur Shields
• Director: Jean Yarbrough
• Production Company: Exclusive Productions, distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures
• Trivia: The film premiered in Paterson, New Jersey on April 4, 1952, and had an early release in New York City on April 7 before its general US release a week later. The film did not open in the UK until January 5, 1953. Since Universal would not spend the money to make an Abbott & Costello film in color, the team exercised a clause in their contract that allowed them to make one independent film a year. The movie was shot on sets from 1948’s Joan of Arc. The film’s original opening and closing scenes were sepia-toned but some home video versions present them in black-and-white. The film was sold to RKO in the late 1950s, but fell into public domain in 1979. A newly restored version of the film is scheduled for Blu-ray release in the Spring of 2022. The first appearance of Bud Abbott’s pencil mustache on film. Final film of William Farnum.

1962

April 11 – Cléo from 5 to 7

• Cast: Corinne Marchand, José Luis de Vilallonga, Loye Payen, Dominique Davray, Serge Korber, Dorothée Blanck, Raymond Cauchetier, Michel Legrand, Antoine Bourseiller, Robert Postec, Jean Champion
• Director: Agnès Varda
• Production Company: Ciné-tamaris, Rome Paris Films
• Trivia: The film opened in France on April 11, 1962 and was screened at Cannes on May 10. The film opened in New York City on September 4, and in the UK on November 1. The film includes cameos by Jean-Luc Godard, Anna Karina, Eddie Constantine and Jean-Claude Brialy as characters in the silent film.

April 11 – Follow That Dream

• Cast: Elvis Presley, Anne Helm, Arthur O’Connell, Joanna Moore, Jack Kruschen, Simon Oakland, Roland Winters, Alan Hewitt, Howard McNear, Frank DeKova, Herbert Rudley, Gavin Koon, Robin Koon, Mickey Rooney, Richard Bakalyan, Barry Russo
• Director: Gordon Douglas
• Production Company: Mirisch Company, distributed by United Artists
• Trivia: Based on the 1959 novel Pioneer, Go Home! by Richard P. Powell. The film was released in the UK on July 29, 1962. Shot in several Florida counties during July of 1961. During filming, Presley met a 10-year-old Tom Petty, whose uncle was involved in the film’s production. A rare Elvis film that was aimed at the family audience. One of two color films in which Elvis does not dye his hair black.

April 11 – House of Women

• Cast: Shirley Knight, Andrew Duggan, Constance Ford, Barbara Nichols, Margaret Hayes, Jeanne Cooper, Virginia Gregg, Patricia Huston, Jason Evers, Jennifer Howard
• Director: Walter Doniger
• Production Company: Bryan Foy Productions, distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures
• Trivia: Director Walter Doniger was fired ten days into production, replaced with Crane Wilbur. Wilbur was denied a sole directing credit and refused to be co-credited. A loose remake of the 1950 film Caged. Debut of Virginia Capers.

April 11 – Samar

• Cast: George Montgomery, Gilbert Roland, Ziva Rodann, Joan O’Brien, Nico Minardos, Mario Barri, Rita Moreno
• Director: George Montgomery
• Production Company: MAM, Winchester, distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures
• Trivia: Director and star George Montgomery also wrote the film. Rita Moreno was in the Philippines when she was Oscar nominated for West Side Story. She made the 15 hour flight back to Los Angeles, expecting to not win but she did, and then had to fly back the next day, missing interview opportunities and congratulatory calls.

April 11 – The Witch’s Curse

• Cast: Kirk Morris, Hélène Chanel, Vira Silenti, Andrea Bosic, Charles Fernley Fawcett, Remo De Angelis, John Karlsen
• Director: Riccardo Freda
• Production Company: Panda Cinematografica, distributed by Regional
• Trivia: The film opened in Italy on April 11, 1962 but did not get a US release until November 1963. The Castellana caves which still serve as a tourist attraction, were used for the underground scenes. The lead character Maciste was turned into an almost mute character as director Riccardo Freda was unhappy with Kirk Morris’ acting skills.

April 12 – A Kind of Loving

• Cast: Alan Bates, Thora Hird, June Ritchie, Bert Palmer, Pat Keen, James Bolam, Jack Smethurst as Conroy, Gwen Nelson, John Ronane, David Mahlowe, Patsy Rowlands, Michael Deacon, Annette Robertson, Fred Ferris, Leonard Rossiter
• Director: John Schlesinger
• Distributor: Anglo-Amalgamated, Governor Films
• Trivia: Based on the 1960 novel of the same name by Stan Barstow. The film opened in the UK on April 12, 1962. It was screened at the Vancouver International Film Festival on July 18, and was released in the US on October 1 and in Canada on October 13. The film won the Golden Bear award at the 12th Berlin International Film Festival in 1962.

April 12 – Waltz of the Toreadors

• Cast: Peter Sellers, Dany Robin, Margaret Leighton, John Fraser, Cyril Cusack, Prunella Scales, Denise Coffey, Jean Anderson, Raymond Huntley, Cardew Robinson, John Glyn-Jones, John Le Mesurier, Vanda Godsell
• Director: John Guillermin
• Production Company: Independent Artists, distributed by Rank Film Distributors (UK), Continental Distributing (US)
• Trivia: Based on the play of the same name by Jean Anouilh with the location changed from France to England. The film opened in the UK on April 12, 1962, followed by a US release on August 13. Also known as The Amorous General.

1972

April 9 – Tomorrow

• Cast: Robert Duvall, Olga Bellin, Sudie Bond, Peter Masterson, Johnny Mask, William Hawley, James Franks
• Director: Joseph Anthony
• Distributor: Filmgroup Productions
• Trivia: The film was screened at the USA Film Festival on March 19, 1972. Adapted from a Playhouse 90 program that was based on a 1940 short story by William Faulkner in the short story collection Knight’s Gambit. The sawmill building, where much of the film was shot, was built just for the film. Robert Duvall is the only known actor from the film still living. The last film directed by Jospeh Anthony.

1982

• No new films were released this week in 1982.

1992

20th Century Fox

April 10 – FernGully: The Last Rainforest

• Voice Cast: Samantha Mathis, Jonathan Ward, Tim Curry, Christian Slater, Robin Williams, Grace Zabriskie, Geoffrey Blake, Robert Pastorelli, Cheech Marin, Tommy Chong, Tone Loc, Pamela Adlon, Townsend Coleman, Brian Cummings, Kathleen Freeman
• Director: Bill Kroyer
• Production Company: Kroyer Films, Inc., Youngheart Productions, FAI Films, distributed by 20th Century Fox (United States), Hoyts-Fox-Columbia TriStar Films (Australia)[
• Trivia: Adapted from the book of the same name by Diana Young. The film was released in the UK on July 31, 1992. It did not open in Canada until December 15, 1993. The film was being developed 15 years before its release but was only made possible after the success of Disney’s The Little Mermaid, which brought traditional animation back in vogue. The film included a combination of hand-drawn animation and computer animation. This was Robin Williams’ first animation role with the character of Batty Coda created for him. Williams provided 14 hours of ad-libbed voice tracks for an 8-minute role. Director Bill Kroyer was so impressed he tripled the character’s screen time. Williams voiced Aladdin’s Genie the same year, and Disney’s Jeffrey Katzenberg tried to get Williams to withdraw from FernGully which he had signed on to first. Williams refused. Disney allegedly tried to interfere with production, taking over previously rented spaces and attempting to buy a warehouse where production eventually set up. Katzenberg has refused to address the allegations. The film marked the first time Cheech & Chong had worked together in six years. Elton John’s first involvement in an animated film, composing and performing ‘Some Other World’. The film’s rainforest is in Australia but none of the characters have Australian accents.

April 10 – Newsies

• Cast: Christian Bale, David Moscow, Dominic Lucero, Luke Edwards, Bill Pullman, Robert Duvall, Ann-Margret, Ele Keats, Aaron Lohr, Max Casella, Trey Parker, Michael A. Goorjian, Gabriel Damon, Marty Belafsky, Jeffrey DeMunn, Deborra-Lee Furness, Kevin Tighe, Michael Lerner, Shon Greenblatt, David Sheinkopf, Charles Cioffi, William Boyett, Marc Lawrence, Arvie Lowe Jr., Scott Caudill
• Director: Kenny Ortega
• Production Company: Walt Disney Pictures, distributed by Buena Vista Pictures Distribution (United States), Warner Bros. (International)
• Trivia: The film premiered in New York City on April 8, 1992. It also opened in Canada on April 10, and in the UK on August 14 as The News Boys. Loosely based on the New York City Newsboys’ Strike of 1899. The film was a box office bomb at the time of its release, but gained a cult following on video and was adapted into a hit Tony Award-winning Broadway musical. In a close up where Christian Bale is riding a horse, he’s actually on the shoulders of his stunt master.

April 10 – Sleepwalkers

• Cast: Brian Krause, Alice Krige, Mädchen Amick, Lyman Ward, Cindy Pickett, Ron Perlman, Jim Haynie, Dan Martin, Lucy Boryer, Glenn Shadix, Sparks, Stephen King, John Landis, Joe Dante, Clive Barker, Tobe Hooper
• Director: Mick Garris
• Production Company: Ion Pictures, Victor & Grais Productions, distributed by Columbia Pictures
• Trivia: The film was also released in Canada on April 10, 1992. It opened in the UK on July 3. Mark Hamill appears uncredited as Sheriff Jenkins. Also known as Stephen King’s Sleepwalkers. This was Stephen King’s first original screenplay not based on a previously published work.

2002

April 12 – Bend It Like Beckham

• Cast: Parminder Nagra, Keira Knightley, Archie Panjabi, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Shaznay Lewis, Anupam Kher, Shaheen Khan, Frank Harper, Juliet Stevenson, Ameet Chana, Kulvinder Ghir, Ash Varrez, Pooja Shah, Preeya Kalidas, Trey Farley, Zohra Sehgal, Saraj Chaudhry, Paven Virk, Emma Daly, Nina Wadia, Ace Bhatti, Gary Lineker, Alan Hansen, John Barnes
• Director: Gurinder Chadha
• Production Company: Kintop Pictures, Bend It Films, Roc Media, Road Movies Filmproduktion, distributed by Helkon SK (United Kingdom), Highlight Film (Germany), Fox Searchlight Pictures (United States)
• Trivia: The film’s UK premiere was held on April 11, 2002, with the film opening in the UK and Ireland on April 12. The film was screened at TIFF on September 10, 2002, and at Sundance on January 18, 2003. The film opened in limited release in the US on March 12 and limited release in Canada on March 28. The film expanded to a wide release in the US on August 1, 2003. Also known as Kick It Like Beckham. Parminder Nagra was worried that the scar on her leg would prevent her from getting the role of Jess. Instead, the scar, and the story behind it, were worked into the script. Many of the wedding guests in the movie were relatives of director Gurinder Chadha, and they added realism by throwing themselves wholeheartedly into the scenes, treating the shoot as if it were a real wedding. The Hounslow Harriers team does not exist in real life, but almost all the players in the movie are professional footballers. The chauffeur driver of the Rolls Royce in the wedding scene was not an actor, but an actual chauffeur, and was unaware he was in a film. He believed instead that it was simply a wedding with a lot of cameras. Melanie C wanted her song ‘Independence Day’ to be used in the film, but the lyrics did not work so she rewrote them in order for the song to be used. Fox marketing execs in the US thought the term ‘bend’ would be unfamiliar to American audiences and suggested changing the title to Move It Like Mia, referring to soccer star Mia Hamm. Chadha objected and the original title was kept. The film was adapted into a West End musical which ran for nine months.

April 12 – New Best Friend

• Cast: Mia Kirshner, Meredith Monroe, Dominique Swain, Rachel True, Eric Michael Cole, Scott Bairstow, Taye Diggs, Oliver Hudson, Joanna Canton, Dean James, Glynnis O’Connor
• Director: Zoe Clarke-Williams
• Distributor: TriStar Pictures
• Trivia: MGM originally owned the film, but let the rights go to TriStar Pictures, mainly for video distribution but with a limited theatrical release in the US. Sheriff Bonner was initially written as a white southern hick, but Producer Frank Mancuso, Jr. suggested making the character black.

April 12 – The Best Day of My Life

• Cast: Virna Lisi, Margherita Buy, Sandra Ceccarelli, Luigi Lo Cascio, Marco Baliani, Jean-Hugues Anglade, Ricky Tognazzi, Francesco Scianna, Maria Luisa De Crescenzo
• Director: Cristina Comencini
• Distributor: 01 Distribuzione
• Trivia: The film opened in Italy on April 12, 2002. In the US, it was screened at the Palm Springs International Film Festival on January 11, 2003, and at the Philadelphia International Film Festival on April 7. The film won the Grand Prix des Amériques at the Montréal World Film Festival.

2012

April 6 – American Reunion

• Cast: Jason Biggs, Alyson Hannigan, Chris Klein, Thomas Ian Nicholas, Seann William Scott, Tara Reid, Mena Suvari, Eddie Kaye Thomas, John Cho, Jennifer Coolidge, Eugene Levy, Natasha Lyonne, Dania Ramirez, Katrina Bowden, Jay Harrington, Ali Cobrin, Chuck Hittinger, Shannon Elizabeth, Chris Owen, Justin Isfeld, Charlene Amoia, Vik Sahay, Molly Cheek
• Director: Jon Hurwitz, Hayden Schlossberg
• Production Company: Relativity Media, Zide/Perry Productions, distributed by Universal Pictures
• Trivia: The film opened in several international territories on April 5, 2012, then in Canada and the US on April 6. The UK release was on May 2. Also known as American Pie 4: Reunion or American Pie: Reunion in certain countries. Rebecca De Mornay appears uncredited as Rachel Finch. National Football League wide receiver Chad Ochocinco and actor Neil Patrick Harris have cameo roles. The fourth film in the American Pie series of nine films to date. It was intended to be the last film of the series. Eugene Levy has appeared in the first eight films, the only actor from the films with that achievement. Eddie Kaye Thomas is the only cast member who is actually Class of 1999. This is the only film in which Stiffler and his mother communicate directly. This film marks the first in which Jennifer Coolidge and Eugene Levy share screen time.

April 6 – Damsels in Distress

• Cast: Greta Gerwig, Adam Brody, Analeigh Tipton, Carrie MacLemore, Megalyn Echikunwoke, Hugo Becker, Ryan Metcalf, Billy Magnussen, Caitlin FitzGerald, Jermaine Crawford, Zach Woods, Alia Shawkat, Aubrey Plaza, Nick Blaemire, Aja Naomi King, Taylor Nichols, Carolyn Farina, Meredith Hagner
• Director: Whit Stillman
• Distributor: Sony Pictures Classics
• Trivia: The film was first screened at the Mostra Internazionale d’Arte Cinematografica on September 10, 2011, then at TIFF on September 13. After additional festival screenings, the film opened in limited release in the US on April 6, 2012. The film was released in Canada and the UK on April 27. This was Whit Stillman’s first film in thirteen years.

Entertainment One

April 6 – Keyhole

• Cast: Jason Patric, Isabella Rossellini, Udo Kier, Louis Negin, Brooke Palsson, Kevin McDonald
• Director: Guy Maddin
• Production Company: Entertainment One, Buffalo Gal Pictures, distributed by monterey media inc. (US)
• Trivia: The film screened at TIFF on September 9, 2011, the Berlin International Film Festival on February 13, 2012 and the South by Southwest Film Festival on March 11 before beginning its limited US release on April 6. It then opened in limited release in Canada on April 13, and was released in the UK on September 14. Guy Maddin shot the film digitally instead of his preferred method of 16mm or Super-8mm film. The film draws inspiration from Homer’s Odyssey.

April 6 – Surviving Progress

• Cast: Ronald Wright, Mark D. Levine, Robert Wright, Marina Silva, Vaclav Smil, Colin Beavan, Michael Hudson, Jane Goodall, Craig Venter, Raquel Taitson-Queiroz, Gary Marcus, Margaret Atwood, Simon Johnson, David Suzuki
• Director: Mathieu Roy, Harold Crooks
• Distributor: First Run Features
• Trivia: Loosely based on A Short History of Progress, a book and a 2004 Massey Lecture series by Ronald Wright about societal collapse. The film was screened at TIFF on September 11, 2011, and the Vancouver International Film Festival on September 30.