The somber men bringing a box to Paul Orman's apartment, as the story begins, are tailors that want to assure their client the tails coat suit they are delivering will fit him perfectly. Alas, the suit serves as a sort of a link that holds together the history of a suit, and the people that wear it. Each of the five narratives are different from one another. With the exception of the last one, Julien Duvivier's excellent American film is a joy to watch.
The film boasts a galaxy of collaborators. Twentieth Century Fox produced the film during the period of WWII, as it gathered talent from the film industry that came together in a movie that should be seen by serious fans. Julien Duvivier, a distinguished French director, came to Hollywood during the years of the conflict in Europe. He had a natural talent for getting the best out of his cast and crew, as he proves in here.
Some of the best figures working in movies during those years came together in what appears to be a coup of casting. Charles Boyer, Rita Hayworth, Thomas Mitchell and Eugene Palette are featured in the initial sequence. Cesar Romero, Ginger Rogers, Henry Fonda, Gail Patrick and Roland Young are seen in the second story. Charles Laughton, Elsa Lanchester and Victor Francen appear in the third installment. The great Edgar G. Robinson, James Gleason, George Sanders, and Henry Davenport, make their segment one of the best ones in the picture. The last one is not too shabby either, it showed performers of the stature of Ethel Waters, Paul Robeson and Eddie 'Rochester' Anderson in the last tale, which is a bit too mawkish to end the film. All the players assembled for this project do wonders under Mr. Duvivier's guidance.
The writing was not too bad either. Distinguished writers of the stature of Donald Ogden Stewart, Ben Hecht, Ferenc Molnar, and even an uncredited Buster Keaton enhanced the stories for the viewer's enjoyment. Joseph Walker's cinematography worked wonders, as did the art direction by Richard Day and Boris Leven. One of the highlights of the film is the hunting lodge of the first story full of antlers. The musical score is credited to Sol Kaplan.
Fans of Julien Duvivier should not miss his fantastic vision in "Tales of Manhattan".
The film boasts a galaxy of collaborators. Twentieth Century Fox produced the film during the period of WWII, as it gathered talent from the film industry that came together in a movie that should be seen by serious fans. Julien Duvivier, a distinguished French director, came to Hollywood during the years of the conflict in Europe. He had a natural talent for getting the best out of his cast and crew, as he proves in here.
Some of the best figures working in movies during those years came together in what appears to be a coup of casting. Charles Boyer, Rita Hayworth, Thomas Mitchell and Eugene Palette are featured in the initial sequence. Cesar Romero, Ginger Rogers, Henry Fonda, Gail Patrick and Roland Young are seen in the second story. Charles Laughton, Elsa Lanchester and Victor Francen appear in the third installment. The great Edgar G. Robinson, James Gleason, George Sanders, and Henry Davenport, make their segment one of the best ones in the picture. The last one is not too shabby either, it showed performers of the stature of Ethel Waters, Paul Robeson and Eddie 'Rochester' Anderson in the last tale, which is a bit too mawkish to end the film. All the players assembled for this project do wonders under Mr. Duvivier's guidance.
The writing was not too bad either. Distinguished writers of the stature of Donald Ogden Stewart, Ben Hecht, Ferenc Molnar, and even an uncredited Buster Keaton enhanced the stories for the viewer's enjoyment. Joseph Walker's cinematography worked wonders, as did the art direction by Richard Day and Boris Leven. One of the highlights of the film is the hunting lodge of the first story full of antlers. The musical score is credited to Sol Kaplan.
Fans of Julien Duvivier should not miss his fantastic vision in "Tales of Manhattan".