Reviews of movies with William Powell.
Grade: D+
Synopsis: A lawyer (William Powell) and a socialite (Ginger Rogers) solve the mystery of a dancer’s disappearance.
Star of Midnight is yet another attempt by a rival studio to duplicate the success of MGM’s The Thin Man (1934). For this entry, RKO got the genuine article in William Powell for the lead, cast Ginger Rogers in Myrna Loy’s spot, and found a script with a lot of twists and turns. Unfortunately, the result isn’t equal to the sum of its parts. MORE »
Grade: D-
Synopsis: A film studio hires a washed-up, egotistical actor (William Powell) to recruit the daughter of his former partner, but he picks an unknown (Betsy Drake) instead.
Dancing in the Dark is a casting disaster. First, you’ve got lead William Powell playing against type as a conceited, egotistical film star. While this may have been enjoyable for Powell, and given him a chance to stretch his acting chops, he’s simply not very good. At all. Powell’s strength is in his urbane charm and deadpan wit, none of which is present here. MORE »
Grade: D-
Synopsis: Unbeknownst to each other, a Polish agent (William Powell) and a Russian spy (Luise Rainer) both smuggle documents into Russia using a pair of trick candlesticks.
The Emperor’s Candlesticks is a tepid, convoluted melodrama that’s wrong on just about every level.
For starters, there’s the casting. You’ve got William Powell playing a Polish agent with no trace of an accent, opposite Luise Rainer, playing a Russian agent, with a very noticable German accent. Not to mention the very American Robert Young playing a Russian Duke, again with no trace of accent, and the Wizard of Oz himself, Frank Morgan as his handler. Confused yet? MORE »
Grade: B
Synopsis: An officer (Henry Fonda) aboard a World War II cargo ship longs for a transfer to the front, something his tyrannical captain (James Cagney) won’t allow.
Considering all the drama involved behind the scenes, it’s amazing Mister Roberts is even watchable, let alone that it’s as good as it is. For starters, to studio wanted a younger lead, looking to Marlon Brando, William Holden, and Tyrone Power instead of Henry Fonda, who won a Tony Award in the original Broadway play. Fonda only got the part after director John Ford insisted, only to later come to blows with the director during production over how the role should be played. This, combined with an emergency gall-bladder operation led to Ford being replaced by Mervyn LeRoy, who finished the film. As if that wasn’t enough, the studio then brought in Joshua Logan, who’d directed and co-wrote the Broadway production to reshoot some sequences. Yet, despite no less than three directors, the film still works. MORE »
Grade: C
Synopsis: A con-man (William Powell) and his two associates (Bette Davis and Frank McHugh) find themselves legitimate players in the Paris fashion world after a scam goes over too well.
Fashions of 1934 is an enjoyable enough comedy, thanks in large part to short running time and a breezy script that plays to the strengths of its solid cast. MORE »
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