Lágrimas y risas

One of the only times you'll get to see Steinbeck on film. The stories are all Unique and each comes with its set of twists and lessons learned. Of course I have my favorite and also my least favorite. I love that these stories are so full of detail, even the scenery and costuming. It's a true classic with an all star cast. Don't pass it up if it comes on. It's not perfect but what is?

Although known for his surprise endings, the endings of the five tales told here are not all that surprising. The "The Cop and the Anthem" (Rating 6 of 10) is a bit heavy-handed and contrived. In "The Clarion Call" (Rating 7), Widmark not only reunites with "Kiss of Death" director Hathaway but seems to be (over)playing his role from the earlier film. "The Last Leaf" (Rating 8) is touching and well-acted, particularly by Peters. The much-maligned "The Ransom of the Red Chief" (Rating 8) is the only comedy here and is quite amusing. O. Henry's most famous story, "The Gift of the Magi" (Rating 6), is rather unsatisfying. All in all, a mixed bag but well worth watching.

I first saw this movie on TV as a child in the 1960s, and never watched it again until now (2005), but it's strange how many characters and even specific shots lingered in my mind all those years. This is a gem that has something for everyone: sentimentality, humor, pathos, and loads of good performances. "The Cop and the Anthem" is probably the most tightly written of them all, with subtle touches of humor throughout (besides the most obvious gags). If I had to single out one performer who delighted me the most it would be David Wayne, doing a twitchy down-and-outer playing off of Laughton's haughty tramp (especially just having seen him play a totally different character in ADAM'S RIB just a week ago).

As an old thespian friend of mine would say, "The Last Leaf" could bring a tear to a glass eye. And in "Red Chief," Fred Allen and Oscar Levant make a strange but fun team.

Not having seen Richard Widmark in the other movie mentioned in reviewer's comments, I could only think how much he reminded me of Frank Gorshin in various roles he played in the 60s. Watch this segment again and think "Frank."

Your whole family will like this movie. Why doesn't someone bring it out nice and crispy clean on DVD?

An homage to O. Henry, featuring five of his short stories, an interesting collection of actors and directors, and narrated by John Steinbeck. It starts strong, with the first story featuring Charles Laughton in the role of an erudite tramp and a brief appearance from Marilyn Monroe, the second with a fantastic performance from Richard Widmark, and some nice visuals in the third, which was directed by Jean Negulesco. O. Henry's stories have bits of irony, humor, and little twists at the end, and are entertaining in a gentle, quaint kind of way. There is an unevenness to how well they translated to the screen, especially in the fourth story, directed by Howard Hawks, but I was entertained, and touched by O. Henry's humanism. I also loved seeing Steinbeck in his only film appearance.

I'm amazed this film has never been put on video or DVD. If the people in the video department at Fox were smart they would release it every Christmas, since one of the short stories it includes is The Gift of the Magi. Another is the Cop and the Anthem, where Charles Laughton plays a tramp trying unsuccessfully to get himself arrested at Christmas so he can get a warm cell to sleep in. (Red Skelton used that story every Christmas for his Freddy the Freeloader character). As a kid I was a Warner Brothers fan, but this is the one Fox movie I never missed when it came on TV. O. Henry wrote great short stories with twist endings that influenced such TV anthology series as Twilight Zone and Alfred Hitchcock presents. Included here is The Clarion Call, a nice tight little film noir with Richard Widmark virtually repeating his role from Kiss of Death. The Last Leaf is nice life affirming tearjerker. The Ransom of Red Chief has Fred Allen and Oscar Levant in a hilarious tale of two luckless kidnappers in a tale worthy of Mark Twain. Fox is sitting on a gold mine. Put it out on video.