Maggie Smith took home the Best Actress Oscar for her portrayal of Jean Brodie, a charismatic school teacher who dedicates herself to a class of impressionable young women. The film may sound like an all-girl precursor to Dead Poets Society, but it’s a far more nuanced and provocative take on the ‘inspirational teacher’ story. Brodie may begin as the hero of the story, but her tenacious influence and overly-romanticized world view end up having a devastating effect on some of her students. In her (subconscious?) attempt to live vicariously through her “girls,” she ends up creating a monster in her own image.
Director Chris Columbus hacks his own Harry Potter films with this knockoff that substitutes wizards with Greek Gods, Quidditch with swordplay, and Hogwarts for a corny renaissance festival in the woods. Young star Logan Lerman, the illegitimate son of Justin Bieber and Zac Efron, strikes a nice pose but lacks charisma. The only actors who leave an impression are Brandon T. Jackson as Percy’s half-goat sidekick and Uma Thurman as a Gloria Swanson-esque Medusa. The script moves at a punishing pace, attempting (and failing) to short-shrift its first act and opting to steer clear of any and all grace notes, even when Percy’s mother is seemingly killed before his eyes. The second act is stuck in an episodic quest for magic pearls, and the third act spirals into a cloying, emotionally hollow father/son moment.
Director John Huston unites Marlon Brando and Elizabeth Taylor for their only screen pairing in this adaptation of the perverse Carson McCullers novel. Brando plays a sexually repressed Army major who turns a blind eye to his wife’s (Taylor) extramarital affair while simultaneously finding himself drawn to a mysterious young cadet who spends his days running naked through the woods and his nights as a peeping tom. The provocative subject matter is well handled by Huston, whose only missteps are bathing the entire film in a piss-yellow hue and whiplash-inducing camera movement in the film’s final, climactic shot. Good performances from Brando, Taylor, and supporting stars Julie Harris and Robert Forster.
Errol Flynn plays a banker who takes up boxing and makes it all the way to a climactic match against the heavyweight champion of the world. Gentleman Jim is more entertaining than I imagined, thanks to Flynn’s persistent charm and healthy doses of wit and humor. Alan Hale returns to Flynn’s side, this time playing his proud papa, while Alexis Smith takes over the leading lady duties. She’s no De Havilland, but she holds her own in a romantic subplot that is unusually tolerable for the time.
