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DVD Blood on the Sun
Cagney is a crusading newspaper editor in 1930s Japan who's come into possession of the "Tanaka Plan" for world domination. Amidst political intrigue and crossed loyalties, Cagney must now find a way to warn the outside world. A fine, entertaining melodrama that's based in fact, with Cagney as good as ever, but this time with judo chops. If only the Japanese knew some kind of hand-to-hand combat, they might be able to stand a chance against Cagney. Dated only by its condescension toward the Japanese, Blood on the Sun never slacks its pace, providing quick-witted patter all along in the mark of the classic Hollywood style. It seems peculiarly American (in an inadvertent way, of course) that in the film's final moments the day should be saved by none other than Ward Cleaver (Hugh Beaumont). Curiously, this is one DVD from Master Movies that does not contain optional Japanese subtitles. It does, however, have copious bios of the stars and filmmakers, and a crystal-clear picture. --Jim Gay
Blood on the Sun is a rousing post war film, a true product of its time. One minor fault with the movie is that it takes place in the 1930's, and everyone is wearing post war fashions. The supporting cast has a few surprises, Hugh Beaumont(Ward Cleaver) and Robert Armstrong (King Kong) as Col. Tojo. Sylvia Sydney is very alluring as Ms. Hilliard, she brings a sophistication to the movie that is usually absent in a Cagney thriller. The climactic battle with Oshima has been described in other reviews here as corny and outdated, but I think they have missed the mark. Judo is a sport, and is not Jujitsu, Judo is mostly throws and locks which the combatants in this movie do quite well. It may not be flashy like todays martial arts, but that is the stuff that I think is corny, defying gravity, impossible moves, and so on. when the battles seem believable, then it is more exciting, Bruce Lee for instance, I think there is no doubt that he could have executed all the moves in his movies in a street fight. That is one of the reasons he will always be the remembered as the best. Another interesting point, the actor who plays Oshima (Jack Halloran) was a LA cop and a master of Judo, Cagney was his student and became a black belt, hollywood's first! Cagney would go on to showcase more martial arts in the movies 13 Rue Madelaine, and White Heat, where he uses a forward choke on Virginia Mayo.
Frank Lloyd Strikes Out
Maybe if Alfred Hitchcock had directed Blood On the Sun the film wouldn't be strangled by the phlegmatic pace and the sluggish acting. Based loosely on a true story involving Japanese plans for a world invasion, Blood On the Sun failed to convince this viewer of any suspenseful legitimacy. Although director Frank Lloyd uses Japanese actors for some of the roles, the evil characters do not possess depth or individuality. The Japanese spys, police officers, and government officials all talk, walk, look, and act similarly. In addition the Japanese characters become muddled in murders, inquistions, and counter intelligence which fail to define their contributions to the plot. James Cagney as the American reporter who has obtained a copy of the invasion plans seems to be sleepwalking through his part. Cagney does spark in the judo fight scenes in which he purportedly trained for with a master judo expert. Why Warner Brothers would release this film in 1945 when Japan had already been devastated by the horrors of Atomic warfare is a mystery. The film rankles with American jingoism and takes a condescending stance against Japanese culture. The film is tiresome and bogged down by poor editing, plot structure, and dismal camera work. One highlight of the film is the appearance of Sylvia Sydney who has never looked more radiant on the screen. Her face shines like an angel and her wardrobe accentuates her petite body. Even for Cagney fans, Blood On the Sun is a pass. I took two twenty minute naps during the film's 90+ minute running time.
America will be crushed, never to rise again
Based on a true story, BLOOD ON THE SUN is an entertaining little stewpot of a movie. James Cagney plays Nick Condon, managing editor of the Tokyo Chronicle. It's 1920-something and the United States and Japan share an uneasy peace. That peace threatens to be broken violently when the "Tanaka Plan," a Japanese government document outlining a blueprint for world domination, falls into Condon's possession. Condon has to get the document out of Japan and announce its contents to the world, the Japanese have to stop him. When I first saw BLOOD ON THE SUN I shrugged it off as a piece of late-war propaganda. There ARE a lot of stereotypical portrayals and attitudes coursing through this one- the Japanese are portrayed for the most part as buck toothed, diabolical schemers. Cagney is attacked from behind twice in this movie. The officials present trumped up charges in their attempt to stop his muck-raking ways. The outrageousness of a foreign correspondent stealing and threatening to publish a secret state paper seems lost on this movie. Then I did a computer search of "Tanaka Memorial" and had a chance to read the document in question. If it's not a forgery (the Japanese government claimed it was), it dwarfs the movie's presumptions. As a side note, the web site I visited informs us that the Chinese, and not a crusading American editor, originally released the document. As usual, Cagney is a bundle of energy and is great fun to watch. I've read that he took judo classes in preparation for this part, and it seems he's doing a lot of his own stunt work. Sylvia Sydney plays Iris Hilliard, Cagney's love interest and someone interested in the document as well. Soon after her character is introduced we learn she is half-Chinese, which should alert us to the fact that she isn't quite as sinister as she appears. The Chinese were our allies during to the war. They were the good Asians. Another fun character in this one is Capt. Oshima (John Halloran), one of many Caucasian actors partially hidden behind false teeth and taped eyelids. Oshima is a menacing, murderous, towering brute of a cop. Symbolically he's the first to attack the American Cagney with a karate chop from behind, a blow that knocks Cagney out. Later, when the gloves are off and the two square off against each other in a fair fight the results are decidedly different. Wiard Ihnen & A. Roland Fields won a little statuette for Best Art Direction for their work on BLOOD ON THE SUN. The sets do look pretty good. BLOOD ON THE SUN is in the public domain, so anyone can copy and sell it. If you get the Delta version be warned that their logo will appear periodically in the lower-right hand corner. They've included a short documentary (still photos with a voice over narration- yawn) and an intro and outro by Tony Curtis. Unforgivably, Curtis tells us in the intro that Cagney plays a newspaperman "right after World War Two." It may seem a minor point, but couldn't somebody on the set have reminded him that the movie took place after World War One?
A neat World War II thriller, 13 Rue Madeleine benefits from the postwar craze for shooting outside the studio. With Quebec doubling for occupied France, this is a spy movie with a sense of open air. James Cagney plays an OSS agent, training his recruits for an important pre-D-Day mission. When one of them turns out to be a Nazi spy, Cagney must parachute into France himself and straighten things out. Director Henry Hathaway and producer Louis de Rochemont pioneered the docu-drama approach with The House on 92nd Street, and they again use newsreel footage and stentorian narrator here, blended into the fictional story. The script is slightly muddled, but there are a fistful of suspenseful situations and a gangbusters ending--as well as the typically wired-up Cagney, who is... More Info about this DVD Actor(s): James Cagney Director(s): Henry Hathaway DVD Release Date: Released the 20 May 2003 Usually ships in 24 hours
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James Cagney thrills in a rare (and limber) song-and-dance performance as composer-entertainer George M. Cohan. This nostalgic biography is told in flashbacks, covering Cohan's formative years becoming Broadway's brightest star and touching upon his loves, musicals, and artistic triumphs. Director Michael Curtiz (The Adventures of Robin Hood) offers Cagney ample opportunities to invent an utterly charming performance in what is practically a one-man show. If you've never seen Cagney as a hoofer, you're in for a treat: his dancing is as dynamic as anything else he's ever done on screen. --Tom KeoghMore Info about this DVD Actor(s): James Cagney - Joan Leslie - Walter Huston Director(s): Michael Curtiz DVD Release Date: Released the 30 September 2003 Usually ships in 24 hours
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Yes, it's true: you can virtually see Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall falling for each other in this Howard Hawks variation on Casablanca but adapted from--as legend has it--Ernest Hemingway's self-declared "worst novel." (The story goes that Hawks told Hemingway he could make a movie of the author's least work, and Hemingway gave him the rights to this story.) The script by William Faulkner and Jules Furthman actually makes this one of Hawks's and Bogart's most interesting and often exciting films. Bogart plays a boat captain who reluctantly agrees to help the French Resistance while wooing chanteuse Bacall. Hoagy Carmichael, wry at the piano, adds a delicious accent to an already wonderful mood. --Tom KeoghMore Info about this DVD Actor(s): Humphrey Bogart - Lauren Bacall Director(s): Howard Hawks DVD Release Date: Released the 04 November 2003 Usually ships in 24 hours
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This gimmicky film noir stars Humphrey Bogart as an escaped criminal who undergoes plastic surgery and holes up at the home of Lauren Bacall's character while healing and preparing to prove his innocence. If you can last through the first half-hour of this thing--which is shot entirely from the subjective view of Bogart's bandaged face, which we don't see until later--you might find ample reason in the stars' performances to stick around for the conclusion. But director Delmer Daves (A Summer Place) tests a viewer's endurance with such an obvious, attention-getting ploy. The least of the Bogart-Bacall vehicles (The Big Sleep,To Have and Have Not, Key Largo). --Tom KeoghMore Info about this DVD Actor(s): Humphrey Bogart - Lauren Bacall Director(s): Delmer Daves DVD Release Date: Released the 04 November 2003 Usually ships in 24 hours
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(Please note that the DVD edition I am reviewing is the bare-bones Laserlight release that features the film and precious little else.)
GREAT GUY is a fun film. It's not especially complicated or insightful; it won't give you a new perception into the depths of the human experience. But for a film that barely lasts for over an hour, it's an entertaining chunk of action that's well worth viewing.
Since the running time of this film is only an hour and six minutes (the back of the DVD package incorrectly lists this as 75 minutes) one won't be surprised to find that this isn't a terribly demanding movie. But it's certainly engaging, and it's quite enjoyable to watch James Cagney as an official in the Office of Weights and Measures going around thumping people who don't perform up to... More Info about this DVD Director(s): John G. Blystone DVD Release Date: Released the 30 January 2003 Special Order
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