The Shop Around the Corner (1940)

Here it is, folks: my final DVD from Netflix. I made a point to pick a reputed classic and also to wait until after October, but perhaps I should have waited for late December, because my hunch that the story would take place around Christmas was correct. Perhaps I dimly remembered something similar from She Loves Me, a musical adapted from it. I know it wasn't the case in the modernized remake, You've Got Mail.

In keeping with the source material, Miklós László's play Parfumerie, the setting is Budapest, albeit with mostly American-accented English. Despite long being the best salesman at a gift shop, Alfred Kralik (James Stewart) has begun to lock horns with boss Hugo Matuschek (Frank Morgan), for reasons not immediately clear. He locks horns considerably more with new hire Klara Novak (Margaret Sullavan). But he and a pseudonymous pen pal he discovered through a newspaper ad have become smitten with each other. Less than halfway through the picture, he realizes that Klara is that pen pal. Of course, this wouldn't be much of a comedy if he told her right away....

Destry Rides Again (1939)

Just as I thought, this is the earliest western I've reviewed on this blog. I thought wrong about it being a sequel, tho.

In an unspecified state and decade, the fictitious town of Bottleneck is a regular Dodge City, where men frequently fire guns in the air when celebrating -- and at each other when slightly provoked. It's an open secret that Mayor Slade (Samuel S. Hinds) is in the pocket of Kent (Brian Donlevy), who's been gathering land thru swindles and force; and Frenchy (Marlene Dietrich), whose wiles help beau Kent with crimes. When Bottleneck abruptly needs a new sheriff, Slade appoints former deputy turned town drunkard Washington Dimsdale (Charles Winninger). But Dimsdale, nostalgic for the late Sheriff Thomas Jefferson Destry, summons Tom Destry Jr. (James Stewart, playing a Jefferson twice in the same year) to be his deputy, hoping to turn things around.

Call Northside 777 (1948)

It had been a month and a half since my last B&W film, so I decided to watch one of the few such entries on my Netflix streaming list. All I could recall about this one offhand was that it starred James Stewart and had a noirish look to it. The next big thing I learned, after the opening credits, was that it's a true story (albeit with a few identifying details changed for legal reasons) shot in the actual locations whenever possible. Reportedly, it's the first Hollywood movie shot entirely in Chicago.

P.J. McNeal (Stewart) of the Chicago Times is assigned to interview an old woman who advertises a $5,000 reward for any information that could exonerate her son, Frank Wiecek (Richard Conte), convicted of murdering a policeman back in the Prohibition Era. The resulting article makes waves. At first McNeal is rather sour about it, because he still believes Wiecek to be guilty, but his attempt to acquire info that would put an end to the media love affair only casts doubt on the verdict. Soon he's digging up anything he can to get a definite answer, which he hopes is innocence. But since it took 11 years for Mrs. Wiecek to save up the 5K, it's not easy to find what he wants.

The Naked Spur (1953)

My first western viewing in half a year seems to have one of the most generic titles, but I assure you that the spur does serve an unusually important purpose eventually. I'll spare you that spoiler, even if it's hardly the biggest surprise.

For me, the biggest surprise (but not really a spoiler) came about 15 minutes in, as the Netflix description didn't do the plot much justice. We're told that Howard (James Stewart), on a long manhunt for Ben (Robert Ryan), meets and receives help from old prospector Jesse (Millard Mitchell) and Yankee ex-soldier Roy (Ralph Meeker). What Netflix omits is how quickly they round up Ben, accompanied by his not-girlfriend Lina (Janet Leigh). The rest of the movie is about their journey from Colorado toward Kansas to collect a reward. Ben has his hands tied, but he's not gagged and knows well how to sow discord among the party while hatching a plan with Lina. No wonder he frequently wears a charismatic little smile.

After the Thin Man (1936)

I remember very little from my viewing of The Thin Man (1934) years ago. I'm pretty sure it didn't do much for me. So why watch the immediate sequel? Partly as a refresher course for the iconic characters of Nick Charles (William Powell) and his wife Nora (Myrna Loy). Besides, perhaps they're an acquired taste like the alcohol Nick constantly consumes. Or for another drink analogy, perhaps my taste gets better with age.

From the looks of it, this story begins almost immediately after the events of the previous. The detective duo is receiving lots of positive attention from the media, tho Nick finds himself getting more from the riffraff types on the street. It serves to highlight the difference in background between him and aristocratic Nora. Nick would like never to take another case, but this time it's a family matter, and Nora's haughty aunt would rather call on a despised in-law than let the police handle it.