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A Not To Be Missed Film
I first saw this movie years ago on AMC - I'd never heard of it but there wasn't anything else on, so I settled in to watch. After all, with the cast of stars including Rita Hayworth, Ginger Rogers, Henry Fonda, Charles Laughton and Edward G. Robinson, I figured it couldn't be too bad. I was wrong - it was GREAT! The story involves a tailcoat which is passed from one story to the next and affects the lives of each person who receives it. Some of the stories were pure 40's fluff and that's okay - I like fluff. But two of the "tales" especially touched my heart - so much so that here I sit, years later, writing a review that I hope will inspire someone else to watch this hidden gem. You'll see other people talk about the vignette with the great Edward G. and I agree - it's absolutely one of the best stories and the performance he gives is one for the ages. However, my personal favorite is the piece with Charles Laughton - a truly gifted and underrated actor. He plays a man of little means whose love of music leads him to a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to conduct a symphony orchestra performing his own composition. I don't want to give away too much but suffice it to say that there is a single moment in this story that will cause tears to form in your eyes - much in the way that I cry everytime I watch Harry Carey as the Vice President looks at Jimmy Stewart's Mr. Smith (Goes To Washington) at the very end of the film when it looks as if all hope is lost (that little smile he gives gets me everytime!) Tales of Manhatten is a wonderful film to watch again and again - it doesn't feel dated at all - because the glory of the human spirit is the same now as it has always been....enjoy!
[Wednesday, November 21, 2007]
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fields
The studio apparently agreed with the previous reviewer, since the W.C. Fields segment was cut from the movie when it was initially released in theaters.
[Sunday, June 04, 2006]
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That mythical place where everyone gets what he/she deserves
Other reviewers have given plenty of information regarding the general shape of this film--stars, cast, vignettes. A wonderful collaboration of ten different writers who together with a cast of stars, character actors, the Hall Johnson Choir (one of the gems of the Harlem Renaissance), and probably every extra then available in Southern California trace the path of a tailcoat cursed by it's tailor. This film was released in September 1942, the same month the German 6th Army began it's advance on Stalingrad; it was, and should be, considered light entertainment. Not Frank Capra-ish, each vignette weaves into the next with the final feeling of the film leading the viewer to believe that people, good and bad, somehow get what they deserve. A gentle gem with a particularly wonderful performance by Edward G. Robinson. Watch it with an open mind.
[Tuesday, March 07, 2006]
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