mlevans

I was personally a bit disappointed in Cimarron. I'm a big fan of 1930s movies, yet Cimarron doesn't seem to have aged as well as many. The Universal horror classics, Dracula, Frankenstein and The Mummy, as well as the Spanish Dracula, all came out that same year and were sharp and entertaining - although Browning's Dracula dragged a tad in spots. The very next year, enduring classics like Duck Soup, Grand Hotel, Dinner at Eight and the Old Dark House came out. All remain extremely entertaining.

Somehow, Cimarron reminded me of Coquette, Mary Pickford's depressing (and, for her career, disastrous) "talkie" debut. It may have been the lilting, fake accents and laconic deliveries that made me think of Pickford in Coquette and made the dialogue a bit tedious.

It was made in a different era and the stereotypical treatment of the African-American characters will rub many Generation Y & Z viewers the wrong way - especially those who cannot grasp that social mores change over time. I guess the same could be said with Native Americans, although I would counter that Irene Dunn's character is the only one who considers them "savages," and that she shows personal growth during the film, proudly claiming her full-blooded Cherokee daughter-in-law at the end. (The stuttering character is annoying, too.)

To me, though, it seems to be the dialogue and acting of Dunn & Richard Dix that make it hard to get into. That, and the early "talkies" sound still wasn't up to par on this one. Some great films were made in the early 1930s, which are still very entertaining and enjoyable. Despite its Academy Award, I cannot really put Cimarron in that category.

When I noticed this show on Betty White's IMDb filmography, I had to see it. Even though I've never been a huge Betty White fan, I've always had to admire her range. I was surprised to find Life With Elizabeth available from Netflix, so I watched three episodes on a DVD. While those three were plenty – at least for one setting, I did get some enjoyment out of the show. Everyone seemed to be eager to follow the I Love Lucy formula for success in the 1950s: A kooky, mildly attractive housewife, her buddy next door and an ever-suffering husband to shake his head knowingly when the wife's schemes inevitably backfired. It worked for Lucille Ball and Desi Arnez and for George Burns and Gracie Allen. Joan Davis and Jim Backus also had some success with the formula in I Married Joan. Here, too, it proved effective. Like Burns and Allen, the narrator (Jack Narz) stepped through the "fourth wall" and discussed the "plot" with the characters. While this may seem very disconcerting to modern audiences, it was not at all unusual for the 1950s. White, who turned 30 the show's first season, was a lovable enough young wife, who sometimes used her devilish sense of humor to jab husband Del Moore. Moore and White made a believable and likable young couple, grappling with ordinary everyday situations like whether to plant a tree on the patio, going to a drive-in movie, buying a new vacuum, entertaining an old college friend, etc. I see that she also starred in another, similar sitcom, Date With the Angels, a few years later. I'll have to see if I can find it, too. For anyone interested in the history of the American sitcom or for any big Betty White fans, Life With Elizabeth is a must-see. Just don't expect I Love Lucy.