Wonderland Burlesque's
Let's All Go To The Movies
She's A Lady!
Part XLI
Yes, sometimes? It takes a lady.
Or so these films would have us believe.
They promise lots of drama, the occasional comedy or musical, and a little bit of dirt!
Let's take a walk down Hollywood Blvd. and shine a light on these magnificent classic films.
This way, if you please. But remember...
Ladies first!
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The Little 'Fraid Lady
(1920)
Cecelia Carne, dubbed "the little 'fraid lady" because she shuns society, seeks the solitude of the forest in order to perfect her talents as a painter. By chance one day, Cecelia wanders into the estate of Judge Peter Carteret where she meets Saxton Graves, who is assisting the judge in decorating his house. Recognizing her talent, Saxton hires Cecelia and soon falls in love with the artist. While working at the judge's, Cecelia learns that he is about to try a case in which Giron, a notorious bootlegger, is implicated. This information disconcerts Cecelia because Giron is her father. Complications follow when Giron appears and attempts to blackmail Carteret with a bribery charge, but Cecelia testifies against her father when he makes accusations of improper relations between her and the judge. Giron, realizing that he is to be convicted, shoots himself, clearing the path for his daughter's happiness with Saxton.
Based on the novel The Little Girl Who Lived In The Woods by Marjorie Benton Cooke, this American silent drama was directed by John G. Adolfi and stars Mae Marsh.
Advertising ballyhooed: "This marks the long-awaited and much heralded return of Miss Marsh to the screen in all her whimsical brilliance." Much was made of this as a "return" for Mae Marsh, who in 1918 made eight movies and three in 1919. This would be her only film for 1920 and in 1921 she would make only one picture. After that, she would make two films a year until talkies took over, at which point she became a character actor.
This is considered a lost picture.
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The Divorce Of Lady X
(1938)
Divorce lawyer Everard Logan thinks the woman who spent the night in his hotel room is the erring wife of his new client. Laurence Olivier plays Logan, a barrister who falls in love with Leslie (played by Merle Oberon), the woman he thinks his client will soon be divorcing.
Adapted from the play Counsel's Opinion by Gilbert Wakefield, this British Technicolor http://romantic comedy film produced by London Films; it was directed by Tim Whelan and produced by Alexander Korda and stars Merle Oberon, Laurence Olivier, Ralph Richardson and Binnie Barnes.
Originally, Robert Donat was slated for the male lead.
This movie is an adaptation of the same play as Counsel's Opinion (1933). Both movies were produced by Alexander Korda, and Binnie Barnes appeared in both of them, as Leslie (the Merle Oberon role) in the earlier movie, and as Lady Mere in this one.
The Technicolor color director is listed as Natalie Kalmus. She is the wife of Herbert T. Kalmus, the co-founder and president of Technicolor Motion Picture Corp. Natalie was the color coordinator for nearly every live-action Technicolor feature film from 1934 to 1949. Studios often criticized her for insisting on too many neutral or muted colors.
Merle Oberon and Alexander Korda started a beautiful friendship on this movie, which often meant starting to rehearse by 12:30 p.m., followed quickly by lunch, which lasted until 3:30 p.m., which meant filming finished by 10 or 11 p.m.
A reviewer for Variety wrote: "Alexander Korda's Technicolored comedy is rich, smart entertainment", and also praised the acting: "Oberon impresses. Olivier does his role pretty well, retarded somewhat by an annoying bit of pouting business. Two key performances which sparkle are those of Ralph Richardson and Morton Selten".
This film can be viewed in its entirety for free on YouTube.
The Miracle Of Our Lady Of Fatima
(1952)
In 1917, three shepherd children living just outside Fatima, Portugal, have visions of a lovely lady in a cloud. The anticlerical government wishes to squelch the Church; reports of religious experiences are cause for serious concern. Yet the children stand by their story and the message of peace and hope the Lady brings. In the last vision, attended by thousands of people, the Lady proves her reality with a spectacular miracle that is seen by everyone present. Based on actual events at Fatima in the summer of 1917.
This Warner Color feature film was directed by John Brahm and stars Susan Whitney Sherry Jackson, Sammy Ogg with Gilbert Roland as a fictional character named Hugo.
Rather than letting Susan Whitney speak her own lines in the final scene, when she appears with stage makeup to age her appearance so as to appear as Lucia did at age 47, the filmmakers dubbed in the very recognizable voice of Angela Clarke who also dubs the Virgin Mary.
The principal character in the movie aside from the children, Hugo da Silva, their agnostic, fortune-hunting but lovable friend played by Gilbert Roland, was actually a fictitious person, introduced to soften the impact of a sectarian movie on the wider public.
Max Steiner (who was Jewish), composed the film's Oscar-nominated musical score. He accomplished this in part by researching Catholic hymns to the Blessed Virgin Mary and discovering a similar musical construct in some of them, which he then employed in the theme music.
Filmed in Fatima, Portugal.
In 1952, the real Lúcia, the last surviving Fátima visionary, saw the movie and said that she did not like it.
The Lady Of Monza
(1969)
AKA: La monaca di Monza, The Awful Story of the Nun of Monza, The Nun of Monza
A film loosely based on real life events of Marianna De Leyva, better known as 'The Nun of Monza', a 17th century nun accused of and tried by the church for breaking celibacy and plotting murder.
Luchino Visconti had tried to make this with Sophia Loren, but it never materialized.
The musical score is by Ennio Morricone.
This film can be viewed in its entirety for free on YouTube.
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Our Lady Of Lust
(1972
AKA: Cristiana monaca indemoniata, Cristiana The Devil Nun, Loves Of The Nympho
During a plane trip from Athens to Rome, the young Cristiana, daughter of a prostitute, and her friend Luca, join in for wagering in the eyes of other passengers. Continuing their flight, the plane meets a storm and is about to crash . Terrorized, Christian make a promise: If God comes to her rescue, she will dedicate her life to being a nun. She struggles to contain her urges in the convent, and ends up engaging in sexual relations, before leaving the nunnery and falling into a life of sin.
This Italian nun-sexploitation flick was directed by Sergio Bergonzelli and stars Toti Achilli, Magda Konopka and Vassili Karis.
Thought to "be the most insane of the many insane offerings of Italian director Sergio Bergonzelli", who made "plenty of irredeemable sleaze in the early 70's". The film opens with the title character having sex on a mid-flight airplane... but not in the bathroom. No, right out there in coach, cheered on by her friends and witnessed by a pair of embarrassed nuns. But the most outrageous scene involves a trippy scene scene during which Cristiana has sex with a psychedelic-painted Jesus.
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And that's all for now, folks.
Tune in next time...
Same place, same channel.
The Lady Of Monza - Movie Trailer
(1969)
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