Jun. 22, 2002 - 6:17 pm
this is another film that was recommended by my professors as being one of the best films you've probably never seen on the National Film Registry. it's also ranked number 13 today on the IMDb's top 50 rated comedies (not just the general film category). so i had heard the name a couple of times recently and decided to watch it.
where else have you heard the title of this film? well this movie is where the Coen brothers got their title for O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000).
Sullivan is played by Joen McCrea who apparently starred in tons of American westerns. this film is not a western however. it's the story of a Hollywood director in 1941 who decides he wants to make a film (called O Brother, Where Art Thou?) which displays all the strife that homeless and poor Americans go through every day. he's tired of making comedies and wants to do something "real" that educates the public. the problem is that he's had it easy all his life and doesn't know a thing about being poor. so he decides that he needs to go out and life the bad life for a while with only a dime in his pocket. along the way, he's helped out by the beautiful Veronica Lake (whose character has no name). she and he decide to travel together as tramps and he begins to find out what living in poverty is really like.
this movie does have some really comedic scenes in it, but they're rather few and far between. it also tries to have quite a bit of drama, but the comedy makes that kind of mediocre. it's very difficult to mix those two genres. i have to give it a 6/10. i think i'll always remember this film because it provided me with a face for the timeless name of Veronica Lake (a decent, and extremely beautiful actress), and also because it originated the title for O Brother, Where Art Thou?.