What I Watched in March

An overview of what I watched in March, which seems like it was months ago:

Fifth Avenue Girl (1939)



The more bonkers the premise, the more I seem to love a Ginger Rogers movie. It was true for The Major and the Minor and it's true for Fifth Avenue Girl. Ginger plays a poor, down-on-her-luck, regular woman who happens to befriend a rich older gentleman who has been underappreciated by his family. They strike up a friendship and he pays her to pretend to be his mistress so that his family will shape up.

Without giving it away, it's a charming story and one that I'm looking forward to re-watching soon.

Tender Comrade (1943)


As patriotic a World War II film as anything, though sometimes it felt like the women in the house were arguing just for the sake of giving grandstanding speeches. And, as always, a dash of Ginger Rogers makes every movie better. Especially the last 15 minutes or so.

Lucky Partners (1940)


As kooky a premise as any Ginger Rogers flick—the plot of which involves Ginger Rogers and Ronald Colman splitting the winnings of a horse race (or something, it's kinda convoluted)—though it seemed dry on the first watch. I'd have to see it again to make any sort of ruling. Also, that dress in the gif was amazing.

Thirteen Women (1932)


I mean, look. Myrna Loy is obviously not a "half Javanese-Eurasian woman" with clairvoyant powers, like the premise of the movie indicates. It's always hard to get past the overt racism in old movies, so I'm glad Myrna later broke free of this typecasting and began to play brassier, more independent women.

In terms of plot, this film is often credited as the first slasher film. The story's quite thin, in my opinion, and there aren't even thirteen women for Myrna Loy to try to murder - there are only eleven. Probably one of the most interesting things about this film happened off screen: Peg Entwistle, who played a bit part as one of the 'thirteen' women, committed suicide by jumping off the Hollywood(land) sign a month before its premiere.

Summer Wishes, Winter Dreams (1973)


I continue to be endlessly fascinated by Joanne Woodward. I want a memoir. I want a mini-series based on her marriage to Paul Newman. I want to watch every movie she ever made. 

In Summer Wishes, Winter Dreams, she plays a cold, domineering mother to perfection, and I think she probably could've reasonably won an Oscar for it (but why honour this performance when you can honour a dumb comedy...)

Blondes at Work (1938)


I keep tricking myself into watching these Torchy Blane movies and I really need to knock it off...

Where the Boys Are (1960)

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I kept waiting for an Annette Funicello-style dance scene on the beach, or like, cheesy-looking greasers to pop out but they never came, which was great. Outdated stereotypes and offensive content about women aside, I think what I liked most about this movie were the actors. The lead actress later became a nun. A nun!

And Yvette Mimieux and Paula Prentiss were fun to watch. They're in two of my favourite movies: Yvette in Light in the Piazza and Paula in Man's Favorite Sport?

ALSO WATCHED:

The Circus Clown (1934)
Cain and Mabel (1936)

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