Have you ever seen a film that contained several aspects that reminded you of similar ones recalled from your earlier movie going experience? This happened to me when I first saw Son of fury (SOF)--one of Tyrone Power's best (and less well-known) historical adventure films from his pre-WWII career period.
When the opening scenes of SOF unfolded, I was immediately struck by their resemblance to those of Wuthering Heights (1939). Heathcliff and Benjamin Blake are certainly two very different characters, but the plot development in the early portion of these movies does seem somewhat alike.
I was also struck by the fact that SOF almost cried out for Technicolor rather than black and white photography,--and remembered feeling the same way after seeing a later Power epic (Prince of Foxes (1949)). Both movies had great sets, costumes and location scenery that would have probably been more spectacular if shot in color. Why they were not is unknown to me.
Other reviewers have noted the casting in SOF of frequent Power co-stars George Sanders and John Carradine. These two supporting actors were among the most versatile who worked during The Golden Age of Hollywood. Compare Sanders' menacing role in SOF with his strong sympathetic performance two years earlier in Alfred Hitchcock's Foreign Correspondent (1940). And similarly compare Carradine's likable part in SOF with his repulsive cowardly character of Bob Ford opposite Power in Jesse James (1939). You would be hard pressed to find any better evidence of great acting range and talent than those just cited for Sanders and Carradine. It is quite astonishing!
Frances Farmer's rise and fall are now firmly embedded among Hollywood's most tragic legends. I can vividly recall the first time I ever saw her on the screen. It was in the little known and seldom seen South of Pago Pago (1940). Her talent and beauty in this south seas adventure film were obvious for all to behold. What a loss!
The Humphrey Bogart classic The Maltese Falcon (1941) was made just one year before SOF. The most memorable supporting role in Falcon was that of Kasper Gutman---the "Fat Man" memorably played by Sydney Greenstreet in his film debut. The Bogart version was the third one. The first was also titled The Maltese Falcon (1931). In that first version, Gutman was played by veteran character actor Dudley Digges---who was also cast in the crucial part of Benjamin Blake's attorney in SOF!
In the south seas island sequences in SOF, Benjamin Blake creates the name "Eve" for the character played by Gene Tierney. In My Favorite Wife (1940) released just two years before SOF, Randolph Scott and Irene Dunne share a tropical island for some time while awaiting rescue. Scott nick-named the Dunne character "Eve" while they are on the island!
In its own right, SOF is a fine film and rousing entertainment. It deserves a wider audience that is sure to appreciate its many charms.
When the opening scenes of SOF unfolded, I was immediately struck by their resemblance to those of Wuthering Heights (1939). Heathcliff and Benjamin Blake are certainly two very different characters, but the plot development in the early portion of these movies does seem somewhat alike.
I was also struck by the fact that SOF almost cried out for Technicolor rather than black and white photography,--and remembered feeling the same way after seeing a later Power epic (Prince of Foxes (1949)). Both movies had great sets, costumes and location scenery that would have probably been more spectacular if shot in color. Why they were not is unknown to me.
Other reviewers have noted the casting in SOF of frequent Power co-stars George Sanders and John Carradine. These two supporting actors were among the most versatile who worked during The Golden Age of Hollywood. Compare Sanders' menacing role in SOF with his strong sympathetic performance two years earlier in Alfred Hitchcock's Foreign Correspondent (1940). And similarly compare Carradine's likable part in SOF with his repulsive cowardly character of Bob Ford opposite Power in Jesse James (1939). You would be hard pressed to find any better evidence of great acting range and talent than those just cited for Sanders and Carradine. It is quite astonishing!
Frances Farmer's rise and fall are now firmly embedded among Hollywood's most tragic legends. I can vividly recall the first time I ever saw her on the screen. It was in the little known and seldom seen South of Pago Pago (1940). Her talent and beauty in this south seas adventure film were obvious for all to behold. What a loss!
The Humphrey Bogart classic The Maltese Falcon (1941) was made just one year before SOF. The most memorable supporting role in Falcon was that of Kasper Gutman---the "Fat Man" memorably played by Sydney Greenstreet in his film debut. The Bogart version was the third one. The first was also titled The Maltese Falcon (1931). In that first version, Gutman was played by veteran character actor Dudley Digges---who was also cast in the crucial part of Benjamin Blake's attorney in SOF!
In the south seas island sequences in SOF, Benjamin Blake creates the name "Eve" for the character played by Gene Tierney. In My Favorite Wife (1940) released just two years before SOF, Randolph Scott and Irene Dunne share a tropical island for some time while awaiting rescue. Scott nick-named the Dunne character "Eve" while they are on the island!
In its own right, SOF is a fine film and rousing entertainment. It deserves a wider audience that is sure to appreciate its many charms.
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