O Henry's Full House (1952)

Full House of Fox Stars

This is a great film for O Henry fans and fans of some 20th-Century Fox favorites featured. The cast includes Fox superstars and contract players Jeanne Crain, Anne Baxter, and Richard Widmark, along side up-and-comers Jean Peters and Marylyn Monroe. Two of the best stories in the group: The Last Leaf, featuring Baxter and Peters and The Gift of the Magi, featuring Crain and Farley Granger. A nice package altogether for this classic omnibus feature film. March 20, 2008

TJ's Review

O'Henry is a master story-teller. He combines laughter, tears, happiness all in one story. Too bad there were not more writers of this caliber. My favorite - Gift of the Magi...truly uplifting. February 16, 2008

A surprise reprise

One aspect of this film that no one mentioned: A rare treat, the chance to see Richard Widmark do Tommy Udo again! His character has a different name this time (Johnny Kiernan), and his nickname for people he doesn't like has changed ("clamhead" instead of "squirt"), but the rest is pretty much the same. He doesn't push an old lady down the stairs here, but he does slap a bartender around for the way he sings, "Camptown Races."

And, just like the Dale Robertson character in this film, we all know who that laugh belongs to before we ever see him on camera. February 3, 2008

Four Out of Five Gems, Four Stars

I bought this movie as a Christmas present for my girlfriend. I thought that "The Ransom of Red Chief" didn't hold up to the other four, but it had very tall shoes to fill. I loved the way these stories showed O. Henry's range as an author, as well as Steinbeck's enthusiasm about a fellow author. It's a shame that more people haven't seen this movie, but it is a gem, and you should jump at the chance to get it. January 19, 2008

Five Beloved Tales Get Hollywood Treatment

O.Henry will always be remembered for his endearing short stories with a surprising twist at the end. Just as important, his characters were real people the common man could identify with. The average Joe, the man-on-the-street, the struggling homemaker---these were the memorable people O.Henry chose to write about and they made a lasting impression on anyone who ever read one of his stories. As O.Henry himself once said, "There are stories in everything. I've got some of my best yarns from park benches, lampposts, and newspaper stands."

Rather than take one story and pad it out into a two-hour movie, Hollywood made the wise decision of selecting five of his stories and stringing them together for one movie. The idea worked and was enhanced by starring some of the most famous actors of the day in each story. Another bonus is that celebrated writer John Steinbeck appears at the beginning of each story with a helpful introduction.

"The Gift of the Magi" from his collection The Four Million is perhaps his most widely read story and is arguably the crowning jewel of this video collection as well. Jeanne Crain and Farley Granger portray the young married couple short on cash but long on love who each desire to give the other a perfect Christmas present.

"The Cop and the Anthem" from the same collection stars Charles Laughton as Soapy, an elegant hobo who decides that the best way to stay warm in the winter is to get arrested and have a warm bed and three square meals a day in the city jail. David Wayne accompanies him on his attempts to get arrested and a sultry streetwalker portrayed by the legendary Marilyn Monroe adds spice to the escapade.

"The Clarion Call" from The Voice of the City pairs Richard Widmark as a well-to-do hoodlum and Dale Robertson as a successful detective. They are boyhood friends with an old score to settle and settle it they do when a murder is committed.

"The Last Leaf" from his collection The Trimmed Lamp is one sure to bring a tear to your eye. Anne Baxter and Jean Peters star in this touching story of a sick young woman who believes she will die when the last leaf has been blown from a tree outside her window. A frustrated artist attempts to lift her spirits one snowy night.

"The Ransom of Red Chief" from Whirligigs is perhaps the weakest link in this collection. A strong and extremely humorous story when read loses some of its punch due, in my opinion, to less than stellar acting by Fred Allen and Oscar Levant as two kidnappers who have the tables turned on them. Preview audiences who saw the film agreed and this entry was removed from the original film when it opened in 1952. It was not restored to the original film until it reached television and is now included on this DVD.

Fans of classic movies will enjoy these playful and optimistic tales set in New York, the city O.Henry once lovingly referred to as Baghdad-on-the-Subway.




January 15, 2008

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