Mauvaise graine "Curvas peligrosas" (1934)

Director: Billy Wilder, Alexander Esway

Pierre Mingand, Danielle Darrieux, Raymond Galle, Paul Escoffier, Jean Wall, Michel Duran, Marcel Maupi, Paul Velsa.

When you watch this film ("Bad Seed"), you need to cut it a little slack. After all, the film lacks the polish you'd see in films from Hollywood from this same time period--mostly because French films weren't all that polished! The sound wasn't all that sophisticated and the camera-work left a bit to be desired--but the scripts were often quite clever. In fact, the French made some wonderful films in the 1930s--such as "Le Million", "Le Femme du Boulanger" and "Drôle de Drame ou L'étrange Aventure du Docteur Molyneux"--some of the best films ever, in fact. So don't let the look of "Mauvaise Graine" discourage you--despite being a bit rough, it's an amazingly clever film. The film begins with an incredibly worthless young man (Henri) driving about town--enjoying the fruits of his father's labor. He is obviously very spoiled and is tough to like. When the father has finally had enough, he sells his son's beloved car and tells him to get a job! Way to go Dad! But Henri IS a jerk, so he follows the men who bought the car--and on impulse, steals it from them! This leads Henri in a direction he certainly never intended, as a real honest-to-goodness gang of car thieves spots him and decides to offer him a job! Where all this goes next, see for yourself. The film has some definite comedic aspects, such as the one guy in the gang who is always bringing in the most bizarre cars (and buses). But the film isn't necessarily a comedy. It also has elements of romance and even drama--all of which work together well to create a film like you've probably never seen before! This originality of the script is what I really admired--even if the film does seem to glamorize evil...a bit!  A few final notes. First, this is the first film directed by Billy Wilder (he actually co-directed) and soon after this he came to America and became one of the top directors in history. Despite not being among the very, very famous names today, his string of film credits is tough to beat and the only director I can think of that had even more hits during his time was William Wyler. Even the ultra-famous Hitchcock would have probably killed to have achieved the success Wilder achieved during his very long and distinguished career. You don't see the best direction in "Mauvaise Graine"--but you have to start somewhere! Second, perhaps it's just me, but I sure felt strong gay vibes from the necktie lover towards Henri--perhaps it wasn't intended. Third, the way the film ended sure was different and I can't see Hollywood doing it this way....and I like that about the film. Well worth seeing and a lot of fun.

The Major and the Minor "El mayor y la menor" (1942)

Director: Billy Wilder

Ginger Rogers, Ray Milland, Rita Johnson, Robert Blenchley, Diana Lynn, Norma Varden, Frankie Thomas, Edward Fielding, Raymond Roe, Charles Smith.

The enjoyable performances do a lot to help this film rise above average, and they are what initially made me love this movie. And even though the basic plot seemed to be mere fluff to me when I first saw it, I'm now persuaded that this movie definitely runs deeper. After reading other comments here that delved into the themes, I thought of a particular scene that struck me as odd when I first watched this. At the station, when Ginger first gets the idea to pose as a child, a mother is looking at magazines with her two children- a boy and a girl. The young daughter insists on buying a movie magazine and reads aloud from the cover, "Why I hit women, by Charles Boyer." The way the child says this and the very fact that this particular line is included just stayed in my mind as I watched this film. Others commented on how Ginger's character is always suffering predatory advances- both as an adult and as an eleven year old. Now I see it differently when I think of the scene where Ray Milland is looking at her with one eye closed and telling her what a knock-out he can tell she'll be in a few years. Well of course, he's really looking at a 30 year old, but he believes she's a child and I think this really brings up issues of how sexualized (and maybe preyed upon ?)women are at any age, whether they are adults or children. Well, that really makes this an odd and interesting movie, mixing some risqué topics with highly enjoyable, light-hearted fluff!