Reviews

Besides the great (dubbed)singing, it is one of George Hamilton's best efforts. A great little film that is sure to entertain one and all. The location shots in Spain are fabulous and Joe and Danny round out the superb cast. Hilariously funny as good as any French farce!!

Gorgeous scenery, and breath-taking views. Probably filmed in or around the Sierras - possibly Lake Tahoe. Boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl in the end. Sound familar? Well, this is still better than most of the Mountie films of the period.

Comin' Round the Mountain - 1940 Version. This early Paramount feature doesn't hold up to the test of time. Unfortunately, it didn't fare any better when it was first released in 1940 when critics laid into it: "not very inspiring"; "Colonna's patter not up to radio persona"; "story is only an excuse -a poor one- for the hillbilly setting!" But it was filmed in the beautiful San Bernardino Mountains and at Lake Arrowhead, so from a historical perspective - I enjoyed it. Bob 'Bazooka' Burns was a famous radio personality of the day, as were many other members of the cast - but his stilted performance can't carry the lame story about a hillbilly who made good in the big city returning to his roots. Una Merkel is about the only believable person in the bunch. Harold Peary makes his film debut as the Great Gildersleeve, a personality he created in a 1935 Fibber McGee & Molly radio play. Only highlight of the day - a hot air balloon rising over Lake Arrowhead. I wonder where it landed? This film is on 4 nitrate reels at the UCLA archives, so you won't be seeing it on TV anytime soon. One of the local residents remembers it being filmed near Twin Peaks, in the San Bernardino Mountains, and also remembers that the community was asked to participate in the crowd scenes. One and half checks out of 5 would be overly generous.

Magnificent Obsession - 1935 I've probably watched Universal's 1954 version of Magnificent Obsession 25 times while researching the movies made in the San Bernardino mountains. This is one of those films where there can be no doubt about its location, Lake Arrowhead. But I have always had my doubt about the original 1935 version as ever having been made in the mountains, even though one of the Captain's of the Arrowhead Queen unequivocally stated that he had heard it had been filmed at Lake Arrowhead. In my research over the years, I had never been able to ascertain one way or the other until August, 2000 at the U.C.L.A. Film Archives. The most pleasant surprise is that there is at least one identifiable scene with Lake Arrowhead in the background - including a speedboat cruising across the lake. It is a very brief scene and by far and away, the majority of the film is shot in a studio. Another equally pleasant surprise is a very young (23) Robert Taylor playing a sophisticated playboy (#1) and then an older doctor (#2) and pulling it off believably. His maturity and acting ability are evident from the first frame. Irene Dunne, who was 7 years older, is an accomplished and polished actress with only a few groans to show for her effort. (Her groping blind scenes leave you exasperated.) Comic relief is supplied by an aged Charles Butterworth, as an unlikely suitor to a very young Betty Furness, the step-daughter of Ms. Dunne. This is not the soapy Universal version done later by Rock Hudson and Jane Wyman, but a thoughtful, intelligent script that is closer to the original Lloyd C. Douglas novel, who just happened to be the screenwriter on this version. The print of the 1935 version is very dark and will probably never be shown again in public unless a restoration effort is made. Unfortunately, there are too many films to restore and only so much money available.

Will James' Sand: I recently reviewed this film at the UCLA archives and found it to be charming and well photographed. This could be man finds horse, man loses horse, man finds horse and the girl. Mark Stevens as Jeff Keane is typical of the handsome 'older' leading men of the forties and fifties, who are always attracting younger, in this case 20ish Coleen Gray, to their cause. Case in point: Jeff's expensive saddle-bred stallion, Jubilee, has escape his fire-burning train in the middle of gorgeous Colorado and needs retrieving. Horses are not supposed to be the most intelligent of animals but Jubilee is an exception and becomes adept at living in the wild. Coleen just happens to own 26,000 acres on which Jubilee has staked a claim and agrees to accompany Mark on a quest to 'rescue' Jubilee, after Mark's unsuccessful bid the first time netted him one lost mare - to Jubilee of course. A very young Rory Calhoun as her (not-so-straight shooting) foreman, Chick Palmer keeps his rifle handy as well as his fists. Of course, all's well in the end when Mark faces down the 'killer' Jubilee and smooth talks him into returning to civilization. Look for Iron Eyes Cody and old cowboy star, Tom London in bit roles. Filmed in the San Juan Mountains of Colorado and Lake Arrowhead, California. On a scale of ten - a dated 5.5

I recently reviewed this film. It is similar to many college films of the era that carry the theme: Dimwitted athletics vs nerdy academics. The twist is that this is Billings U., with a rowing team that lacks any punch. Enter the President's daughter, Joan (played by silver-white haired Patricia Ellis), who takes on the job of recruiting two of the best rowers in the nation, who just happen to be JC transfers - how else can you explain that the entire class of freshmen look like their slightly over 40! There is, of course, the love triangle of Joan, Tony Foster (played by Walter Johnson) and Bob Smith nee Wilson, (played by Warren Hull). Comic relief is supplied by the inept coach, "Speed" Hammond, (played by Frank McHugh) and Squirmy (Mary Treen), his college secretary. Trouble brews when the boys can't cut it academically and of course the big game -er-race is on Saturday, and they all have to pass a special test. You guessed it, the girls all pitch in to tutor our errant boys who would rather sing and dance than hit the books. The day is saved when it's discovered that the "boys" respond better to music than to the call of the coxswain, who also happens to be the college band leader (George E. Stone) - and the refrains of a hot "Dixie" wins the tournament. There are some great scenes of L.A. Harbor, the Rose Gardens across from USC, and woody boats at Lake Arrowhead as well as some catchy musical numbers well sung by Patricia Ellis -what ever happened to...? Look for a bit part by a very, very young Lloyd Bridges. All in all, good nostalgic fun - 6 out of 10 stars!