Remember the Night (1940)

I may not see any more movies directed by Preston Sturges, but writing is another matter. I had seen this title many times, perhaps especially in connection with some of its actors, so it seemed time to look further. Yes, I usually save holiday pictures for when they're timely, but Netflix disc service won't last that long.

Shortly before Christmas, an inveterate New York City thief who goes by Lee Leander (Barbara Stanwyck), among other names, gets caught. Her preacher-like attorney (Francis X. O'Leary) posits a form of temporary insanity, but prosecutor Jack Sargent (Fred MacMurray) demands the testimony of an expert psychologist who won't be available until January 3, so the court will adjourn until then. Out of pity, he bails her out. The depraved bondsman (Tom Kennedy) misreads his intentions and sends her to Jack's apartment. Jack tells Lee to leave, but upon learning she's homeless, he takes her on his vacation to Indiana.

Titanic (1953)

You may wonder why I bothered watching this a few years after another '50s British account of the event, A Night to Remember (which I do remember). Between that and the '97 blockbuster, hadn't I had my fill of the general history? Well, given the extremes of praise and backlash for the James Cameron epic, I remained curious how else it could have gone. Besides, unlike ANtR, this predecessor won a writing Oscar and stars Barbara Stanwyck.

Also in contrast with ANtR, it takes a more personal approach to the story. There is in fact a budding romance between a teen girl in first class and a teen boy from a lower deck, but they're not Jack and Rose; nobody regards their relationship as scandalous. Nor do they get the lion's share of the focus, which goes to a more troubled relationship between two parents. The ritzy, spoiling dad (Clifton Webb) seems to be a bad influence on both kids, so Mom (Stanwyck) wants to take them from Paris back to Michigan. Dad's not ready to part from them, so he buys a ticket just in time.

The Strange Love of Martha Ivers (1946)

Looking for a heartwarming romance? Be warned: This is very much film noir, a genre in which "strange" typically doesn't work out for the better. Even examples with relatively happy endings will probably not raise your opinion of humanity.

Most of the movie takes place in its year of release, but the opening events of 1928 do a lot to put the rest in perspective. Early teen Martha has been suffocating under a strict aunt. Her efforts to run off with the help of Huckleberry Finn type Sam have failed repeatedly. On the night that Sam plans to leave town forever with or without Martha, her aunt provokes her into a mortal blow. (It's not clear to me -- maybe not even to Martha -- whether she meant to kill or just hurt.) Her tutor-turned-guardian, Mr. O'Neil, and his timid son, Walter, join her in perjuring against an uninvolved criminal to defend her. But this is no pseudo-familial kindness: Mr. O'Neil covets the Ivers fortune (they live in Iverstown, for crying out loud) and wants Martha and Walter to marry even if neither likes it. Nothing like a secret scandal to make them more receptive to the idea.

The Bitter Tea of General Yen (1933)

There's a Frank Capra festival going on, so I decided to check out an earlier work of his than any I'd seen before. It's also his only non-comedy besides Lost Horizon that I've seen. Historically, it's most significant for advancing Barbara Stanwyck's career, along with Capra's The Miracle Woman in 1931.

Of course, the title and year should tell you something about values herein. In fact, it kept reminding me of Broken Blossoms: A Chinese man played by a white man develops feelings for a white woman, they don't really have my idea of a romance, and it doesn't end well. But unlike the saintly other man, Yen is domineering, cynical, and coldly pragmatic in matters of violence. This contrasts as well with Stanwyck's Megan, a missionary who was about to marry another missionary before the chaos of the Chinese Civil War ushered her into Yen's ostensibly protective clutches. Their irrational on-and-off chemistry has a Beauty and the Beast vibe in a bad sense. I was actually relieved to see that they wouldn't end up together, which would carry the ultimate "Nice guys finish last" message.