Pocketful of Miracles
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Movie Reviews of Pocketful of Miracles
Movie Review: Charming fairy tale with a mid-century American setting - not just for Christmas viewing!
Summary: 4 Stars
Pocketful of Miracles is a charming urban fairy from 1961. It was the last movie directed by Frank Capra, who specialized in mid-century American fairy tales ( It Happened One Night, It's A Wonderful Life (Two-Disc Collector's Set) (B/W & Color), Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, Arsenic and Old Lace).
The movie is based on a story by Damon Runyon and features his usual cadre of well intentioned gangsters and ladies with dubious reputation (Little Miss Marker, Guys and Dolls). Capra himself told this same story almost thirty years earlier (Lady for a Day).
The plot centers around Dave "the Dude" (Glenn Ford), a very superstitious gangster who can't make a move until he buys a lucky apple from his favorite bag lady, Apple Annie (Bette Davis). Dave is in the middle of negotiating a big deal that will leave him Boss of the New York territory, but he can't go into the meeting without his lucky apple. However, Annie's secret past has caught up with her and she is nowhere to be found.
Apparently peddling apples on the sidewalks of NYC is more lucrative than we imagined. Years earlier Annie had a baby girl, Louise (Ann-Margaret), who she promptly packed off to a European boarding school to protect her from her shady origins. For years Louise and her mother have been exchanging letters. But now Annie has received a letter, in care of the posh hotel where she has her mail sent, letting her know that her daughter is finally coming home. Louise wants to introduce her aristocratic boyfriend to her mother. Annie is horrified that her daughter will learn the truth about her, and that she will be the cause of ruining her daughter's happiness.
Annie is in despair and going on the mother of all benders. Dave is in a panic because he can't make a move without his lucky apples. The rest of the underworld community is united in their efforts to devise a solution to their friends' dilemas.
There is a terrific supporting cast in this movie. Peter Falk is Dave's right hand man, "Joy Boy"; Hope Lange is Dave's girlfriend, "Queenie". Ann-Margaret is Annie's daughter, "Louise."
The DVD has an original theatrical trailer. You can watch the film with either an English or Spanish spoken track, and subtitles are available in Spanish or French. Too bad there aren't more features. A commentary track would have been a nice bonus, but the movie is delightful on it's own and really doesn't require explanation. Five star movie, but I'm deducting one star because of the bare bones DVD package and the less than stellar quality if the print. This classic deserves better treatment.
The film has been marketed as a seasonal movie at Christmas, but it's not as holiday centered as something like Miracle on 34th Street (Special Edition). You can watch "Pocketful of Miracles" in July and it's still fun!
If you like Damon Runyon characters and/or Frank Capra fairy tales, this is a terrific movie. Highly recommended!
Movie Review: Miracle team of Damon Runyon and Frank Capra
Summary: 4 Stars
The mixture of Frank Capra and Damon Runyon in one movie is wonderful. Although not spiked with the usual multitude of colorful Runyan gangster names such as Nicely Nicely Johnson, Angie the Ox or Liverlips Louie; this is none the less Runyon/Capra-esque through and through. They're all here, the hoods and dolls and someone who is down on their luck or at their ropes end ala "It's a wonderful Life".
Betty Davis' turn as Apple Annie is a joy to watch as she holds her meager, hopeless life together by selling apples and sending that money that she doesn't buy booze with (along with money collected from her various vagrant "Godparents" on the street ) to her illegitimate daughter in Europe who thinks her mother is well-off.
Glenn Ford (not one of my favorite people, but I give credit where it's due) does a great job as "Dave the Dude" Annie's number one customer who believe her apples bring him luck in his shady dealings. Annie literally falls apart on the streets when her daughter announces in a letter that she is on her way to visit her with her fiancee and his father the Count in tow. What starts for Dave as one little favor by putting Annie up in a Ritzy hotel to keep his lucky apple supply going snowballs into a full time care taking job for "The Dude". Peter Falk (Best actor in a supporting role Oscar winner for this movie) is a true riot in this as Dave's second in command who wants no part of this fairy tale and wants Dave to stick to the business of being a mob boss.
Although Ann Margaret in her first role is a bit too exuberant for me in some scenes, her freshness overshadows that little flaw and seems appropriate for the most part. However, it's Bette Davis' transformation that I got a kick out of from her usually composed, strong and stately portrayals to down and dirty street hag that showed a different dimension of Ms. Davis that I had not seen from her before. (Not being an expert on her films I'm not sure if she's done that character type before).
For some reason I always include this in my Christmas films when I'm decorating. I think it's The Nutcracker score playing when Annie is transformed or it might just be the fairytale/miracle making/"Cinderella"/"It's a Wonderful Life" all rolled into one thing...I don't know. But, if you want to cry like a big ol' baby just like at the end of "It's a wonderful life" then buy it.
Movie Review: Where is Peter Mann?
Summary: 4 Stars
This is the film that Bette Davis talks about in her autobiography. She felt that Glenn Ford was throwing his weight around and had arranged an enormous "star" trailer for Hope Lange, who was playing his girlfriend and whom, Davis suspected, actually was his girlfriend in real life. By giving Hope Lange a bigger trailer than he gave Bette Davis, Glenn Ford was telling Davis what she had always known to be true, that in Hollywood, talent takes a back seat to youth and beauty. And also that Hollywood was run by men whose brains are all between their legs. Animosity sprung forth on the set like a geyser which when once tapped cannot be contained. For Ann-Margret, whose first movie this was, it was all pretty much above her head, and her performance is honest and true, filled with her trademark effervescence and joie de vivre.
Indeed Hope Lange, an underrated actress who lacked the necessary oomph to fulfill the studio's vision of her as the "new Grace Kelly" still manages to give a very funny account of herself as Queenie, the sort of part they used to give to Jean Harlow or Mae West. For Glenn Ford on the other hand, this is not his finest hour.
They should have a special edition of this DVD with a commentary track. Why not? Ann-Margret alone would have plenty of tales to tell about the making of this movie, and how about adding Peter Falk and Glenn Ford to the commentary as well. Still alive at age 89, Glenn Ford would be a splendid addition to the mix. Plus, Frank Capra Jr is always amusing when it comes to delivering anecdotes about his father's illustrious career. And maybe they could dig up Peter Mann, who plays Carlos, Ann-Margret's love interest in this film. If they could only find him, it would produce a shock wave in the video world unequalled since Tom Weaver located Donnie Dunegan and interviewed him for VIDEO WATCHDOG.
Movie Review: Capra revists his "Lady"
Summary: 4 Stars
POCKETFUL OF MIRACLES is a perfectly-acceptable update of LADY FOR A DAY. Frank Capra revisits the material with an amazing cast headed by Glenn Ford and Bette Davis (playing against her usual screen persona) as `Apple Annie' herself.
The story concerns the colourful apple-seller Annie, who has managed to send her daughter Louise (Ann-Margret in her movie debut) to an expensive overseas boarding school. Now the time has come that Louise is to be married (to a member of the Spanish nobility, no less) so Annie turns to her oldest customer `Dave the Dude' (Glenn Ford) to help her out. Dave turns Annie into the worldly and rich Mrs Worthington-Manville, so that Louise will not be ashamed of the poor apple-seller that her mother really is.
Bette Davis and Glenn Ford are marvellous as Annie and Dave. The entire cavalcade of Damon Runyon characters is perfectly-realised: Hope Lange as Queenie Martin, Peter Falk as Joy Boy and Mickey Shaughnessy as Junior all add great dimensions to their well-defined characters. Also featuring Arthur O'Connell, Thomas Mitchell, Sheldon Leonard and Peter Mann.
The DVD presents the film in 4:3 ratio letterbox.
Movie Review: Sinatra, Oh Sinatra, where art thou???
Summary: 4 Stars
I have no doubt that this would have been a better (and more enduringly popular) remake had Frank Sinatra agreed to play the role of Dave the Dude. Dean Martin was another of Capra's early choices. While I've never been a Martin fan, it could have been interesting watching him and Davis.
Glenn Ford tries VERY hard, but IMO he's hopelessly miscast here; I find Ford stiff and utterly charmless in the role of Dave, the soft hearted gangster.
Happily, Davis saves the day and runs away with this movie, all while delivering what may be the most low-key performance of her career. The rest of the cast is terrific--Edward Everett Horton's butler is a tiny gem and a touching farewell performance.
While this is not among Capra's best, it's essential viewing for any film fan. And hey, even if he didn't star in the film, at least Sinatra recorded the theme song.