Jack L. Warner: The Last Mogul

The old Technicolor home movies are nice to watch, but this shallow biography of Warner Brothers chief Jack Warner offers scant insight into what made him tick, and disappointingly little history of the Warner Brothers studio. Written, directed, and produced by Warner's grandson, the overall message of the documentary seems to be that Warner (who was widely hated in Hollywood) may have had a few faults, but was mostly a great old guy.

After reading a previous glowing comment, I was hoping for something "unique...enchanted...marvelous...fresh...delightful...". But only my strong interest in film history kept me watching. Others may want to pass on this one.

Of the two bio/docs made in 2006-7 by Warner grand kids about the two principal brothers this is clearly the superior work. Whereas Cass Warner's love letter to her grandfather, Harry Warner, is fun to watch, especially when it is dealing with the extremely vitriolic relationship between Harry and Jack, it is an exercise in angel versus devil. In Gregory Orr's more balanced, nuanced and ultimately more convincing portrait of his grandfather, Jack Warner, good guy and bad guy are combined, as they are with most of us, into one highly imperfect human package. The result is a fascinating study in venality, deceit and cruelty, to be sure, but also indomitability, brashness and, most vividly of all, joi de vivre. My only quibbles with it are that Efrem Zimbalest is not the most compelling of narrators and I would have liked more detail about key WB films under Jack's tutelage like "Treasure", "The Letter", and "My Fair Lady", to mention nothing of "Baby Jane", which is barely mentioned. A minus.

PS...For the record I disagree with the film's title. Last mogul was Wasserman, down the road at Universal.

This is one of my favourite Hollywood documentaries, and the family connection with filmmaker Gregory Orr (Jack L Warner's grandson), gives the account immediacy and a real human touch.

Gregory approaches his subject with a degree of sympathy, understandably, but allows sufficient time to address Jack Warner's shortcomings and often appalling behaviour. As a result, Jack L Warner - The Last Mogul, is a balanced and thorough account of a remarkable, but not always admirable, life.

It's too easy to like Jack Warner, and chuckle indulgently when you hear accounts of his buffoonery and the way he would disrupt dignified occasions; as one contributor said, "He would rather tell a bad joke than make a good movie." His complete lack of self-awareness should be refreshing in someone so powerful, but there is a cruel and sinister side. You listen to moving accounts by Jack Warner Junior, hurt and bewildered by the terrible treatment inflicted on him by his father, feelings still evidently raw years after Jack Warner's death. And the final betrayal of the brothers in 1956, as Jack connived with corporate raiders to move Abe and Harry out and then head up the new company. Harry Warner, a thoroughly admirable man by all accounts, suffered a stroke soon afterwards and was dead within a couple of years. Jack did not attend the funeral.

Gregory Orr's film manages to confront these complexities very skillfully, and the recollections of his very high quality list of contributors bring a huge amount of first-had knowledge. It can't have been an easy journey for Gregory Orr, and he deserves all the more credit for achieving the result that he did.

While there has been a lot of press around Jack Warner, there has never been such an insider's look at the Warner family. Warner grandson and filmmaker Gregory Orr takes us on an enchanted and marvelous journey of the Warner empire. The film includes never-before-seen home movie footage and exclusive details of the Warners. The result is a fresh and delightful look at the rise and fall of one of the most powerful movie industry families. Orr is an accomplished storyteller and the editing is particularly good. Highly recommended.

Wow....it's interesting to have watched this after I'd already seen "The Brothers Warner" (2008). "The Brothers Warner" was a very long, thorough and no holds barred biography on all four of the Warners--with a strong emphasis on Jack. And, because it was made with the help and cooperation of the families of the other three brothers, it was VERY uncomplimentary and described him as practically an incarnation of the Devil! But, with "Jack L. Warner: The Last Mogul", the film was made with significant help of his grandson, son-in-law and son--and you hear fewer of the accounts of what a jerk Jack was--and history has well established that he was an awful person. Still, the film is interesting...but also VERY, VERY short. The biggest problem is that the history of the studio itself seemed an afterthought at best and the context for the things he did seemed to be missing. As a result, it just felt sketchy and superficial.

My advice is to skip this film unless you have already watched "The Brothers Warner" and just want more....otherwise, just see "The Brothers Warner"--it's better in every possible way.