Human Comedy | Mickey Rooney, Frank Morgan | Great, Great Piece Of Americana

Human Comedy | Mickey Rooney, Frank Morgan | Portrait of America Circa 1943

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Human Comedy

	Human Comedy Mickey Rooney, Frank Morgan MGM (Warner), 1998 average customer review:based on 13 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

Great, Great Piece Of Americana

This is a unique drama, one of those unusual dramas where there are no villains, no evil people. Yet, it's not a sweet-and-sugary movie, either. It's simply a "slice of life," as they say, or "Americana." In the case, about life in a small California town during the middle of World War II. It is very true to the book written by William Saroyan.

The story features genuinely nice people who trust one another, respect one another, have manners, read the Bible and say their prayers, do what they are told and apologize if they are nasty....not exactly what you've seen in films in the past half century.

Although the film is a bunch of vignettes featuring a number of characters, Mickey Rooney is the central figure and I wonder if he ever was better. He is outstanding in here. I never realized what a good actor he was until I saw this movie.

Frank Morgan also was memorable in here, and I usually didn't care for the roles he played many times. But here, he's very serious and honest and real.

The "slices of life" include Rooney and his family, school friends, his job as a telegram delivery boy; Morgan and his drinking problem; James Craig and his romance; Van Johnson and his army buddies and Jackie "Butch" Jenkins and his little friends. Also of note are three young military men making an appearance, actors who became well known by the end of the decade: Robert Mitchum, Barry Nelson and Don DeFore. Donna Reed, Fay Bainter and Marsha Hunt add the female touch and a big dose of wholesome beauty. This has a deep cast, as you can see. There are other recognizable actors in here, too, such as "Alfalfa" (Carl Switzer) of "Our Gang" fame.

This picture of "Americana" is so innocent compared to today, it is almost shocking. A kiss was a big deal; nobody locked their doors at night; the girls went out on blind dates with the soldiers and all treated each other with respect.

It's a very sentimental film, which is another reason I like it. It's a sad comment about film critics who think that "sentimental" is a dirty word, but even those cynics still had praise for this film. It's so well done that it's hard not to praise it. If they just release this on DVD, perhaps more people would discover this gem.

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Portrait of America Circa 1943

This film is both unique and profound. There isn't a wasted scene in this film--in fact, it is crowded with poignant and profound images to go with the great words and acting. I found myself hanging on every word, enjoying every scene in this romantic vignette of the World War II homefront. Mickey Rooney delivers his finest performance, especially when he reads a letter from his brother (played by Van Johnson). The co-stars would take up a whole page to describe, but it appears that MGM brought in every up and coming star to this cast. Share this one with a good friend.

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Smorgasbord of Home Front Americana Studded with Familiar Faces.

The Human Comedy is one of the old standards, a patriotic, sentimental smorgasbord of home front Americana that every family should watch together. On surface it's comparable to "Sunday Dinner For A Soldier" and "The Fighting Sullivans," but overall a better picture. It has a sad part, but is also uplifting, with many humorous and poignant scenes.

Mickey Rooney (Young Tom Edison, Boys Town, National Velvet, etc.) plays teenage Homer, who takes a job in the local telegraph office delivering messages - many of tragic news, since it's the height of World War II - to friends, acquaintances, and strangers throughout his home town, Ithaca. His older brother Van Johnson (30 Seconds Over Tokyo, In The Good Old Summertime, etc.) has gone off to fight the war. His younger brother Ulysses - Useless to his friends (Jackie 'Butch' Jenkins, who also appeared in National Velvet and Our Vines Have Tender Grapes) - is just five years old and discovering life with daily wonder.

Homer looks up to the manager of the telegraph office, James Craig (Our Vines Have Tender Grapes, Lost Angel), and the elderly telegrapher, Frank Morgan (The Wizard of Oz, The Shop Around The Corner), who requires, "in the event of drunkenness - mine, not yours," a degree of understanding only a child can provide. Homer clashes with a schoolmate, learns from his teacher, misses his brother, all in scenes with Leave-It-To-Beaver flavor.

Meanwhile Ulysses visits the town Library with his older friend Lionel (Darryl Hickman, who appeared in numerous movies including Keeper of the Flame and The Tingler, and whose brother Dwayne played Dobie Gillis). Neither can read, but they sure are awed just to look at all the books, all of them different. Later they join older boys stealing apricots, then Ulysses learns the meaning of fear from a mechanical man in a store window.

Homer's sister, Donna Reed (It's A Wonderful Life, Ransom) entertains three soldiers on leave, played by Don DeFore (Ramrod, Ozzie and Harriet), Barry Nelson (A Guy Named Joe, Airport), and a very young Robert Mitchum.

Ray Collins, who went on to play Police Lieutenant Tragg on Perry Mason, plays the spirit of of Homer's late father, who narrates at the beginning and end of the film.

All of these actors play their roles well to make the movie effective, including the children. Others in the cast include Marsha Hunt (Valley Of Decision, Lost Angel) as James Craig's girl, Fay Bainter (Our Town, State Fair) as Homer's mother, Clem Bevins (Wake Up And Dream) as the apricot owner, and in bit parts Morris Ankrum (who often played a judge on Perry Mason), Frank Craven (Our Town, Jack London, Penrod And Sam, etc.), S.Z. "Cuddles" Sakall (In The Good Old Summertime, Casablanca), Carl Switzer (Alfalfa of the Little Rascals), and many others.

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Sticky Sentiment

The Human Comedy is the story of a poor family whose strong love for each other help them through all times of crisis. The father of the family has just died two years ago, and the oldest son (Van Johnson) is away at war. Now Homer (Mickey Rooney) is the man of the house and his job at a telegraph office sustains the family. He's still in high school, so we see the way he interacts with kids his own age as well. Also, we peek into the lives of his younger brother Ulysses (Jackie Jenkins) and sister Bess (Donna Reed).

This film is terribly sentimental and very biased toward family and Christianity. However, sometimes it is too sentimental and instead of seeming genuine, it comes off as a bit forced. The lessons are true, but they're presented in a way one would speak to a four year old. The story and performances are still good, but one would expect that from such a wonderful cast. It is certainly refreshing to watch these types of feel-good films to escape from the pessimistic attitudes in modern movies.

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A Bit Much but Appreciated for its' Place in Time

I saw this movie a few months ago and parts of it stay with me. I thought it was a nice attempt to summerize the moods, trials, and perspectives of the folks at home during WWII. In attempting such a bold purpose, it takes a few liberties. Unfortunately, those liberties have tended to stay with me longer than the rest of the movie. One of the artistic licenses was a drive through the park on a Sunday afternoon. As our characters drive along, they pass one ethnic group after another; each doing their own cultural "thing" often in their unique cultural dress. The message is meant to be about America welcoming all groups into embrace but it's hard not to notice, from 60 years down the road, how nobody seems to be assimulating and none are interacting with each other.

The other artistic liberty was the portrayal of the idea that one life replaces another. It's a nice perspective of life, death, and the continuation of society ("When I die there'll be one child born to carry on"). However, as portrayed in "The Human Comedy", there is no allowance for the very real considerations of grief and its' lengthy process.

All that aside, there is a lot of Homefront Americana that makes this movie worthwhile. I was caught off guard by the appearance of an uncredited appearance by a young Robert Mitchum. Watch it but leave your pragmatism behind.

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reviews: page 1, 2, 3

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