Vehicle used a lot by a main character or for a long time. Mar 03, 1991 the preston sturges film sullivans travels was an inspiration in that regard, because the character had a bit more depth than the typical hollywood producerdirector. This is one of the most moving scenes i have seen in a moving picture for a long time. A film is just a projection of light, completed only when it crosses the gaze of the audience.
Numerous and frequentlyupdated resource results are available from this search. Deserving of eternal veneration as the first screenwriter to decisively break through as a director, sturges paved the way for the likes of john. Sullivan joel mccrea is an idealist filmmaker who decides to make a serious, socially responsible movie instead of his typical comedic fare. I married a witch is a 1942 american fantasy romantic comedy film, directed by rene clair, and starring veronica lake as a witch whose plan for revenge goes comically awry, with fredric march as her foil. In the midst of the brutality and despair, the young director makes a valuable discovery that what the downtrodden need most is laughter. Joel mccrea veronica lake robert warwick 1942 a hollywood directors desire to produce a film about real people and human suffering leads. It is a richly comic movie interspersed with some surprising passages of deeply moving drama.
The 8 essential films of preston sturges indiewire. August 29, 1898 august 6, 1959 was an american playwright, screenwriter, and film director. Sullivans travels is an old film, but the themes still feel current. Oclcs webjunction has pulled together information and resources to assist library staff as they consider how to handle coronavirus. Sullivans travels dvd columbus metropolitan library. Sullivans travels 1941 letterboxd your life in film. If sullivans travels needs explaining, read no more and seek out a copy by whatever means possible. It seems that the film is at such great pains to deny the validity of sullivans initial premise that it misses opportunities to actually examine the premise. But sullivan s studio transforms his odyssey into a publicity stunt, providing the wouldbe nomad with a luxury van, complete with butler robert greig and valet eric blore. His bosses arent convinced and want him to continue making his popular light comedies. The coen brothers got the title for their film o brother, where art thou. Much to the chagrin of his producers, he sets off in tramps clothing with a single dime in his pocket to experience poverty firsthand, and gets some reality shock.
Meanwhile, the dazed sullivan, dressed like a bum with no identification on his person, is arrested and put to work on a brutal southern chain gang. Sullivans travels is a gem, an almost serious comedy not taken entirely seriously, with wonderful dialogue, eccentric characterisations, and superlative performances throughout. The lady eve starring henry fonda and barbara stanwyck, and this film, sullivan s travels. Sullivans travels study guide contains a biography of director preston sturges, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. Apr 21, 2015 the 8 essential films of preston sturges. Sullivans travels has the reputation as sturges best film, which is a shame, because it is the formal changes of tone that impresses more than much of the content. Sullivan s travels is a gem, an almost serious comedy not taken entirely seriously, with wonderful dialogue, eccentric characterisations, and superlative performances throughout. Neither film had a suitable ending, as if capra, having confronted good and evil so convincingly, couldnt decide who should win. Jan 01, 2012 when sullivans travels was completed, the new executives at paramount liked it, but realized with its tonal shifts it would be a difficult film to sell.
Like i said sullivans travels is a satire on how the other half lives whether its the poor half or about hollywoods money making movie moguls making a movie. It is a satire about hollywoods top director of comedies, played by joel mccrea, who longs to make a socially relevant drama, but eventually learns that creating laughter is his greatest contribution to society. Sullivans travels 1941 a newly available from the criterion collection see product notes sdg original source. With its almost shakespearean combination of uproarious comedy and grim tragedy, sullivan s travels is sturges masterpiece and one of the finest movies about movies ever made. Hailed by critics as preston sturges masterpiece, sullivans travels reveals the wonderful insight and artistry of one of hollywoods finest directors. If youve seen the film, youll probably remember them. Dec 19, 2010 screwball comedy, film noir, the detective film, the western, the comedy of remarriage. Sullivans travels 19 movie clip with a little sex in. A hollywood director, john l sullivan, sets out to experience life as a poor, homeless person in order to gain relevant life experience for his next movie. Sullivan s travels 1941 cast and crew credits, including actors, actresses, directors, writers and more. What starts out like another madcap comedy becomes a distant cousin to john fords the grapes of wrath and william wellmans wild boys of the road. Sullivans travels is a 1941 american comedy film written and directed by preston sturges.
North adams planners approve greylock works condos. Get the best deals on travel dvds and movie laserdisc when you shop the largest online selection at. Sullivans travels, american dramedy film, released in 1941, considered by many to be director preston sturgess finest film. Sullivans travels is a gem, an almost serious comedy not taken entirely. It is written and directed by preston sturges, who. Sullivans travels is a comedy film with a social message, made in 1941, written and directed by preston sturges and starring joel mccrea and veronica lake. Sullivans travels is a curious but effective mixture of grim tragedy, slapstick of the key stone brand and smart, triggerfast comedy. Although the movie was not immediately successful at the boxoffice and received a mixed. Sullivans travels 1941, directed by preston sturges. Jan 09, 2015 currently, sullivans travels has a 100% rating on rotten tomatoes. W ith a firecracker wit and brio utterly undimmed after nearly 60 years, preston sturges sullivans travels has irresistible charm and energy, following the. A hollywood directors desire to produce a film about real people and human suffering leads him on an odyssey as a hobo. He spends the rest of the film trying to get away from the suits worried about losing their golden goose, and striving to find realism. A cult favorite among filmmakers and cineastes alike, the envisioned movie within a movie in preston sturges sullivan s travels 1940, about a famous director of comedies hellbent to make a.
A successful hollywood director disguises himself as a bum and sets off to see america from the bottom up. Sullivans travels, starring joel mccrea and veronica lake is the story of a hollywood director whos tired of making feel good films and decides to travel america as a hobo so that he can truly understand the tragic situation of the poor lower classes so that he can make a powerful drama. However, formatting rules can vary widely between applications and fields of interest or study. The first half of the film combines a merciless satire of the movie industry with a depiction of the prickly romance between a selfimportant director joel mccrea who is determined to make a film of great social significance about the downtrodden and the struggling actress veronica lake. Sullivans travels bluray disc vaughan public libraries.
In the 1942 preston sturges classic sullivans travels, lightfare filmdirector john l. Sullivans travelsjoel mccrea and veronica lake in sullivans. Sullivans travels where to stream and watch decider. Sullivans travels is a celebration of this thing we call comedy, dedicated to the chaplins and marxes and bennys, to the memory of those who made us laughwhose efforts have lightened our burden a little. Paramount, the studio she was under contract with, then assigned her to two more films that year, hold back the dawn 1941 and sullivan s travels 1941.
The venerable citizen kane won out in my competition for that year, but sullivans travels was a close second. I want to congratulate and thank you for the church sequence in sullivans travels. For those not familiar with sullivans travels, it will give you a taste of sturges incredible style. I love all the films he wrote and directed, especially lady eve, sullivan s travels, hail the conquering hero and the miracle of morgan s creek. I first saw the film, and wrote about it, four years about while i was in the midst of a completely different project to see 366 movies that were new to me, and it stood out as one of the best movies i saw that year. In 1934 yellow coach hired a talented designer and engineer named dwight austin, who had been vicepresident for design of the old pickwick manufacturing operation and who had later acquired the former pickwick factory to build nite coaches and small utility coaches on his own. Sullivans travels 79 movie clip sully laughs again. I also really love his original screenplay for remember the night. As a director, he often collaborated with the cinematographer john alton.
Find out where sullivans travels is streaming, if sullivans travels is on netflix, and get news and updates, on decider. The sweetest, most generoushearted satire of the hollywood film industry the town has ever produced, sullivans travels was the fourth of the eight films preston sturges made during his astonishingly prolific streak between 1940 and 1944. Sturges shows great empathy for the poor of america with this semiautobiographical film, and makes progress in a quest to understand the deeper meaning of the movies. Im going to close with a couple of passages from the film. With its almost shakespearean combination of uproarious comedy and grim tragedy, sullivans travels is sturges masterpiece and one of the finest movies about movies ever made. According to kurosawa, welles, renoir, fellini, and many of the others, the answer was john ford. This mini series is very reminiscent of the classic hollywood screwball comedies of the thirties and forties. The lady eve starring henry fonda and barbara stanwyck, and this film, sullivans travels. When sullivans travels was completed, the new executives at paramount liked it, but realized with its tonal shifts it would be a difficult film to sell. In order to feed his creative flame, he travels onto the street disguised as a hobo in order to endure real hardship.
Over each of the last twenty days, a different blog has written about a movie that must somehow connect to the previous days film. Sullivans travels is a film that successfully mixes the genres of comedy and melodrama. So the poster consisted of a drawing of veronica lake with her bynowfamous peekaboo hairdo, which never really appears in the film. In the midst of the brutality and despair, he makes a valuable discovery that what the downtrodden need most is laughter. In preston sturges classic comedy of depressionera america.
Irresistible tale of a hollywood director, tired of making comedies and bent on branching out with an arthouse epic called brother. Anthony mann june 30, 1906 april 29, 1967 was an american actor and film director, best remembered for his work in the film noir and westerns genres. Yet despite his success, sullivan longs to make a movie thats more socially relevant, reflecting the poverty and despair. Released january 22nd, 1941, sullivans travels stars joel mccrea, veronica lake, robert warwick, william demarest the movie has a runtime of about 1 hr 31 min, and received a score of out of. It is not a mistake essays are written about the importance of sullivans travels as well as becoming a film school viewing staple. Files are available under licenses specified on their description page. Her father was of half german and half irish descent, and her mother was of irish ancestry. Preston sturges 1941 comedy with a conscience, sullivans travels stars joel mccrea as movie director john lloyd sullivan, whose films such as ants in your plants of 1939 are among the most popular in the country. She was the daughter of constance charlotta trimble and harry eugene ockelman, who worked for an oil company as a ship employee. Sullivan s travels is a 1941 american comedy film written and directed by preston sturges.
Joel mccrea and sultry veronica lake star in this starkly realistic yet highly humorous satire from oscar winning writerdirector preston sturges. Eleven joel mccrea movies received at least one oscar nomination in any categoryor 16. His first attempt at directing was a success with a string of two popularly and critically acclaimed films in each of the years 1940 and 1941, the great mcginty, christmas in july. Sullivans travels veronica lake joel mccrea part 1 video. This criterion collection of the preston sturges movie sullivans. The screenplay was finally completed in 2015, and the comingofage romantic drama has been heralded as an erotic triumph. Even though grounded in 1930s depressionera anxieties, hobo camps and issues, the film still charms today maybe even more so, considering how much range of emotion writerdirector preston sturges evokes, from hilarity to horror. Two joel mccrea movies won at least one oscar in any categoryor 3.
Sullivans travels was an instant hit when it opened, despite or maybe because of the infamous japanese sneak attack on pearl harbor dominating headlines. I first watched preston sturges sullivan s travels a few years ago, after reading that it was one of the favorite movies of joel and ethan coen. Preston sturges was a writerdirector the like of which we havent seen since. That s a very special film, in my opinion as most of his films are. Sullivans travels is a 19421 american comedy film written and directed by preston sturges. Sullivans travels 1941 stream and watch online moviefone. Sullivans travels dvd hillsborough county public library. Preston s sturges sullivan s travels comes to mind. It seems that the film is at such great pains to deny the validity of sullivan s initial premise that it misses opportunities to actually examine the premise. At first he doesnt succeed, accidentally ending up back in hollywood time and again, but eventually sullivan gets a little more realism than he had intended. The film shifts moods as its main character discovers the real world and begins to understand his place.
Sully wont be swayed, and sets out on a research trip dressed as a tramp to experience real. Although social mobility is not impossible in sullivans travelssullivans butler robert greig appears to have made a personal study of poverty, quite unwillingly, before permanently donning his ample flesh and formal attirethere is a sense of finality to the class arrangements in the film. Catholic digest the comic genius preston sturges believed that laughter is the best medicine, and that what people in hard times want is to forget their troubles and escape for 90 minutes or so into a world of lighthearted comedy, snappy repartee and slapstick silliness. Sullivan dreams of making what will be his first serious film, o brother, where art thou. They are not overly glamorous but yet very attractive people you would not mind spending time with. In 1941, he won the oscar for best original screenplay for the film the great mcginty, his first of three nominations in the category. Sullivans travels the current the criterion collection. This picture works whether youre alone or in a theater with 1,000 laughing people. Sullivan, an ambitious bigshot director known for his successful feelgood comedies, insists he must make a more important film exploring real issues, namely the grinding poverty that many americans still face even though the great depression is supposedly over. The film was a success and the public loved this bright newcomer. A hollywood director wants to abandon comedies and make serious films. Sturges never possessed such ambitions, yet he approaches, in sullivans travels, the very territory that would ultimately undo the capra ethic. In response to the film sturges received a letter from walter white, the secretary of the naacp, saying.
I like old cartoons, having a certain affection for the likes of betty boop and such, but the laughter of the church audience just seems forced. Sullivan s travels an amateur s adventure into adversity with a little sex by patrick ivers, film critic 1941, bw there s a lot to be said for making some people laugh. Hail the conquering hero, miracle of morgans creek and also the palm beach story and christmas in july, on the other hand, are sturges at the top of his game in the wit and. Mar 15, 2020 the venerable citizen kane won out in my competition for that year, but sullivans travels was a close second. Oscars best picture winners best picture winners golden globes emmys san diego comiccon new york comiccon sundance film festival toronto intl film festival awards central festival. Sullivans travels 1941 is his highest rated movie while cry blood, apache 1970 is his lowest rated movie. He was a wellconnected anarchist in a system that frowned on such tendencies unless they made money. The beauty of sullivan s travels is the combination in genre. In order to feed his creative flame, he disguises himself as a hobo in order to endure real hardship. Sullivan is a successful, spoiled, and naive director of fluff films, with a heartogold, who decides he wants to make a film about the troubles of the downtrodden poor. False starts and hollywood hangerson bog him down, but after meeting an aspiring actress veronica lake in an allnight diner, sullivans travels begin to take shape and meaning.
Not only did it underwhelm me in that context, but i promptly forgot everything about it, so it went back on my watchlist to be revisited with adjusted expectations and the hope of discovering whatever magic i missed the first time around. Currently, sullivans travels has a 100% rating on rotten tomatoes. Griffith, many of the best film directors were asked who among them was the greatest living director. Sullivans travels dvd skokie public library bibliocommons. Jun 04, 1995 the subject might be a favorite star jean gabin, rita hayworth, the eiffel tower or the uplifting power of gospel music in films as different as sullivan s travels, elmer gantry and jezebel. Reliable information about the coronavirus covid19 is available from the world health organization current situation, international travel. The beauty of sullivans travels is the combination in genre. The title is taken from jonathan swifts classic tale of selfdiscovery, gullivers travels 1726. The director is a cook who merely offers different dishes to them and has no right to insist they react in a particular way. Many film historians consider sturgess next film, sullivans travels 1941, to be his masterpiece.
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