Another TCM Movie Catch-Up

Caught up on some movies the last two weeks.

The Purchase Price:  TCM's description says it best: "A night-club singer on the lam becomes a farmer's mail-order bride." This could have been a great movie: pre-code, Barbara Stanwyck and Lyle Talbot. Stanwyck even sings. Well, the actors are better than the script in this preposterous story. George Brent, cast against type, plays the doofus husband. I didn't buy that Stanwyck fell in love with Brent as quickly as she did. The biggest problem is that Lyle Talbot is the nicest gangster ever. There's no conflict when he reappears. He even pays off Brent's mortgage.

Berkeley Square: Leslie Howard manages to time travel and take the place of his ancestor arriving at Berkeley Square from America. Armed with the ancestor's diary, Howard thinks he can handle any contingency. From the start, he makes mistakes: he knows things he shouldn't know; he doesn't know people he should; he uses odd expressions. Howard meets his soul mate, but they are destined to live apart.

This Land is Mine: Timid school teacher finds his courage and his voice to fight the Nazis.Charles Laughton led a good cast led including Maureen O'Hara, George Sanders and Walter Slezak.

The North Star: It must have been fight the Nazis day on TCM. I recorded this just after This Land is Mine. It was a mistake: I thought I was recording Edge of Darkness--another Nazi resistance tale. The North Star focuses on a group including Farley Granger, Dana Andrews and Anne Baxter on a walking trip to Kiev, singing along the way. Things change quickly when the Nazis invade.

Nicholas and Alexandra: I was surprised how long it's been since I last saw this movie. I half-watched it as I was cleaning. On this viewing, a few things struck me. One was the sheer number of people just standing at attention as Nicholas and Alexandra leave for a party. Roderic Noble is excellent as Alexis in his first (of only two) films. This time I noticed Julian Glover's name in the credits: Maester Pycelle himself. Apparently, I've seen him in several films over the year. Now I'll take a closer look.