A Hole in the Head

Adaptation of Arnold Schulman's play by the playwright concerns feckless Miami Beach widower with a young son who needs a fast loan to save his ramshackle hotel, considering the idea of marrying into money with a shy (but beautiful) young widow. Slick but not very moving comedy-drama won an Oscar for Jimmy Van Heusen and Sammy Cahn's memorable tune "High Hopes", but--with Frank Sinatra, Edward G. Robinson, Eleanor Parker, Carolyn Jones, and Thelma Ritter in the cast--it should have been much better. The youngster is played by Hollywood-smart Eddie Hodges, who is decent with the kind of lines concocted for him. Frank Capra directed, weakly. Some good scenes, but it runs too long at 120mns and has too few jokes. Capra received a DGHA nomination for his direction, while Schulman was a WGA nominee for Best Written America Comedy. **1/2 from ****

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I received A Hole in the Head for my birthday in a Frank Sinatra double pack with the original Manchurian Candidate. I had put off watching it because it did not seem like a movie I would particularly enjoy. But in my quest to watch and review all of my movies, I had no choice but to put it in the player. Of course the fact that my wife wanted to watch it prompted me a little further even to the point of watching it out of alphabetical order.

Frank Capra is the great godfather of sentimental movies. Many of these are deservedly hailed by fans and critics. From Mr Smith Goes to Washington to It's a Wonderful Life Capra made movies about the little guys fighting the system and coming out on top. These movies are sentimental enough to be dubbed "Capracorn" by the system, but are handled with masterful hands that rise above the schmaltz created by so many others. Besides little guys he also flooded his movies with eccentric characters standing out in a world full or normal folk. Arsenic and Old Lace and You Can't Take it With You are standouts of this form. Sadly, A Hole in the Head tries to mix both of these Capra types and fails on both accounts.

The film is the second to last picture ever made by Capra and was the beginning of an attempted comeback from a few years break from making Hollywood pictures. But instead of a comeback this film serves only to remind us of what Capra used to be. Frank Sinatra plays a down on his luck big dreamer who is about to be evicted from his hotel business in Miami, Florida. He calls up his brother, Edward G Robinson and sister-in-law Thelma Ritter for help pretending his son is sick. Robinson and wife quickly head down from New York to see what's going on. Hilarity and sentimentality ensue. Swinging Sinatra butts heads with button down Robinson until a quick ending and easy solution are found.

The performances of the stars are fine. At this point in their careers Sinatra and Robinson are essentially playing themselves. Although Sinatra is more up and coming to the declining Robinson. There are some good jokes and the simple story is fair enough as it is. Capra fills Sinatra's hotel with an odd collection of eccentrics that seem to have no other purpose but to fill up some time and tell a few jokes. The ending of the movie seems tied on and creates changes to some characters without any real provocation. The cheese factor is high even for a Capra film and it's not subdued by any superb performances. The drama is not elevated above the schlock you would see in a made for TV movie.

The stand out of the film is Sinatra and son singing the classic "High Hopes." Being a fan of Sinatra more as a singer than actor this amusing break in the middle of the picture helped keep my hopes up for a decent picture. Those hopes were not shattered, nor were they completely fulfilled. For beginners of "Capracorn" you should pick out some of his earlier, superior films. But for a lonely night in need of some corny sentiment, this is some fluffy candy that just might fill.

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The 1950s had a number of strong films, and this is one of them. It's not what most people would call a black comedy, but I do. I agree with the previous poster who called this an under-rated gem.

First of all, I like Sinatra better as an actor than as a singer; he's also really strong in the original version of the Manchurian Candidate and in The Man With the Golden Arm.

This film reminds me a bit of the much more recent "Full Monty," with a middle-aged father who acts like a young adolescent who is essentially being parented by a pre-teen son who has had to grow up too fast. That's what I mean by black comedy; it's a situation that is so sad (and, alas, so common) that you have to laugh to keep from crying. (Another comparison, but not quite as apt, is to "A Thousand Clowns.") Sinatra's character is matched by that of his girlfriend, who says, without a trace of irony to the idea of having a baby, "I'm a baby myself."

It wasn't until I came here just now that I realized this was directed by Frank Capra; I should have been able to guess it.

Everyone mentions "High Hopes," and rightly so, as a terrific (and award-winning) song. But you gotta love any movie that has a tune about how "The monkeys have no tails in Zamboanga."

I keep saying that Hollywood can't go wrong when it picks a PLAY as the basis for movies. This film is one more illustration of the correctness of this thesis. It's full of charm, humor, warmth, relevance and STRUCTURE. It doesn't seek to impress, just to please. And pleasing is no mean accomplishment.

The subject is taboo in most movies: economic dependence on relatives. In most movies money is no object, a purely tangential issue, when in fact it plays a huge role in real life. Sinatra plays a "loser", and to make him less despicable, he is adorned with a lovely young son. I find that a bit too manipulative, as if the writer weren't sure that a childless "loser" would be likable enough. Sinatra is very good in the role, but I would have picked an unknown actor, to make the role more believable. And, wonderful as Eddie Hodges always is, I think a childless "loser" would have been more poignant.

I liked the ending very much. It is happy, but not in the trite and trivial way. The main character does NOT overcome his limitations! This film is in the wonderful tradition of "Harvey", which also deals with an embarrassing family member. I can't recommend both films highly enough.

This is film is a rare commodity as a Hollywood product - a wonderful "little" film. By little, I mean unpretentious. Perhaps this is because Frank Capra had a talent for telling inspirational, uplifting or "message" stories without seeming to preach. We all know the Ralph Cramden character - the botched hero with "high hopes". This is Frank Sinatra's Tony Maneta. Unlike Jimmy Stewart's George Bailey in Capra's "It's a Wonderful Life," Tony Maneta isn't beset by problems circumstantial so much as personal. Yet, whether the antagonist is an ungrateful world or a character flaw, Capra and playwright/screenwriter Arnold Schulman recognize the abiding nobility of the human spirit's determination to overcome the odds.

I love the setting in "Hole in the Head". It's a treat to see South Miami Beach during a period when formerly glamorous hotels had gone to seed, knowing that they would one day rise again. I don't think anyone would have given them a chance at the time of the story, just like Tony Maneta's prospects. But "Hole in the Head" makes us want to believe, that just by surviving, like South Beach, Tony will one day triumph.

By the way, there's a wonderful performance by the underappreciated Eddie Hodges, whose minor billing is unjustified, considering his character's major part in the story.