Madison Avenue

I am not going to disagree with anything the other reviewers have said, however, if I had read these reviews first I may not have watched this movie. And this movie is worth watching. Not because there is anything special here, but merely because it is interesting and moves along at a pleasant pace. Dana Andrews is typical Dana Andrews and he is always a solid actor. Most of his movies are well-made. Jeanne Crain, although about 37 is a doll as always and therefore always worth seeing. This may not be the type of movie to schedule your evening around or set the recorder for, but it is a satisfying movie for an afternoon when you need something to entertain you.

Well, I must admit that I watched this movie, only because it is the last one directed by the bland and lame director Bruce Humberstone, who was far more inspired by this CHARLIE CHAN movies, back in the thirties, and some other features in the meantime: FURY AT FURNACE CREEK. His only and unique masterpiece was I WAKE UP SCREAMING, of course, and I have a bit tenderness for SOUTH SEA SINNER and the several Tarzan adventures he also made in the late fifties. So, I am totally amazed that he was involved in such a sophisticated drama speaking of business, business and business, where glamor shines by its superb absence.... What the f....happened to him, regarding to his filmography? Imagine John Ford finishing his career with a musical...But Henry Hathaway ended his with a lousy Blaxploitation movie.

Based on a novel titled "The Build Up Boys," this lavishly produced widescreen movie was an unknown quantity for me until I discovered it on the Fox Movie Channel. The opening montage of colossal skyscrapers and city denizens rushing to work is very promising. Perhaps that is why what transpires next is so stupefyingly dull. Nothing really works here. David White, Larry on "Bewitched", utters a scary bit of dialogue: "Milk is actually a solid and should be sipped and chewed." Confused? So am I. There is more of that snappy banter between the sexes. It doesn't work here, either. Unfortunately, there is also a good deal of uncomfortable leering and lecherous behavior going on in a professional environment. The type of behavior which would get you fired or slapped with a lawsuit ASAP. Dana Andrews has always been a favorite actor of mine. But I longed to see his real-life brother, Steve Forest, show up with his "S.W.A.T." buddies just to stir things up a little. Jean Crain, another favorite of mine, plays a gossip columnist and "rock hound!" Go figure that one out. The opening musical theme has a simple piano melody over a lush background orchestration. I liked it.

I really wanted to like this sophisticated flick so I viewed it again. Same response. Maybe I will watch it a third time. I don't give up easily.

This obscure (at least until the Fox Movie Network unearthed it recently) drama revolving around the advertising world pales in comparison to other movies featuring corporate intrigue like "Executive Suite" and "Patterns". Andrews plays a hot shot ad exec who's too bright for his own good, which gets him canned by his employer. Seeking revenge, he decides to use every trick he can think of to climb to the top and steal away his former employer's biggest account. Along the way he uses and sometimes abuses a variety of people. The film is not quite as exciting as this description may lead one to believe. Andrews (never the most expressive of actors) gives a pretty straightforward performance with little creativity or style. Crain plays an on-again/off-again squeeze of Andrews. She is in just slightly over her head as the calculating and worldly character, but comes out fairly well. Parker has, perhaps, the showiest role as a partner to Andrews. She goes from glum and drab to ultra-sophisticated and gorgeous in just a day or so under his tutelage. (Oddly, there is no credited costume designer even though she sports one particular stunning ensemble and the film has an array of suits and dresses throughout that SOMEONE had to have worked on!) Albert effectively plays a child-like dunderhead who is built up by Andrews as a tool for greater power. The great Daniell is shamelessly wasted in a tiny part as a curmudgeonly executive, but manages to impress despite this. The inimitable Freeman has a nice little part as a secretary. The film is as slick as the sort of ads it purports to ruminate about. Unusual for a movie about advertising, there is never so much as a glimpse of any artwork or campaign designs. Instead, there's a horrid little ditty called the Milk Song sung in harmony by three ladies dressed in what appear to be Crain's old costumes from 1945's "State Fair". These chickadees chirp their sweet little song as a row of ad execs glow with appreciation. Yeah.....It's a real jungle out there! Though watchable, the film doesn't really catch fire and the various names of the businessmen become confusing at times since the script is so pedestrian. Attempts at shorthand, snappy dialogue often just leave the viewer wondering what the characters are even talking about. (A plot like this shouldn't be so hard to follow!) "Bewitched" viewers may get a lift out of seeing White ("Mr. Tate") in a straight role.

As far as I know this 1962 drama is unavailable on video but thanks to the Fox Movie Channel it is back in circulation. The always dependable Dana Andrews plays a big time "build-up man" who appears to be at the pinnacle of his ad man career when his boss double crosses him and he is forced to seek revenge by going to a rival agency. The story involves almost an excessive amount of crosses and double crosses but those who have spent time in corporate America should find these antics interesting if not thoroughly engrossing.

Visually, the film has the look of contemporary Billy Wilder widescreen B&W classics like "The Apartment" and "One, Two, Three" and while it is not in that pedigree it nevertheless keeps things brimming along for its running time. Many have suggested that its sexual politics (using sex to get what you want) are out of date. My view is that while some of the overt strategies of 1962 have evolved the basic premise still prevails.