Mickey @ 100: "Babes in Arms"

by Camila Henriques

As we continue our centennial tribute to Mickey Rooney, it’s time to talk Babes in Arms. For a long time the 1939 musical was remembered mostly because of the pairing of Rooney and real life BFF Judy Garland, but the conversation has shifted to a necessary bumpier road, since the movie is just one of many examples of that era to feature performances in blackface (including the two leads).

The film’s place in Mickey’s career is not to be diminished: he received an Oscar nom for Best Actor at the age of 19 (the second youngest ever nominated) . The year before he had been awarded a Juvenile Oscar (Judy won the same honor the following year, as she had this hit and that other 1939 film).

A vaudevillian kid just like his co-star, Rooney was already a veteran when Babes… came around, with his Andy Hardy journey already begun...

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Mickey @ 100: "Mickey McGuire" and "Andy Hardy"

by Nathaniel R

While we've never been Mickey Rooney fans, per se, you know we love to celebrate anniversaries here at TFE so we're going to look at three of his most famous films this week. But first a bit of history. This pint-sized sensation, a household name for most of the 20th century, was born in Brooklyn on September 23rd, 1920.  Though his career no longer holds the enduring caché of several of his contemporaries, he was the most popular star of the late 30s and early 40s. What's more he had the longest onscreen career of any American movie star -- he worked in the films from the time he was 6 years old until his death at the age of 93...

Like many famous actors of the Golden Age, his career actually began before the talkies, via vaudeville and then silent film. While franchise stardom is de riguer in the 21st century, it wasn't as common 100 years ago though Mickey Rooney was prime proof that the general concept has always been with us. He first came to popularity in serials, those shorts franchises that would play before features. His first big role was the titular character in the "Mickey McGuire" serials which ran from 1927 through 1934 as direct competition for the popular "Our Gang" comedies (which the wee Mickey had auditioned for). Here's a clip from one of the McGuire films...

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Smackdown '38: You can't take the great waltz with you, Jezebel!

In the Supporting Actress Smackdown series we take a particular Oscar vintage and explore it with a panel of artists and journalists. This episode goes way back to 1938. 

THE ACTRESSES & CHARACTERS
In 1938 the Academy was still evolving and the "Best Supporting Actress" category was just three years old. Still, their all time favourite type (the long-suffering wife/mom) was already showing its strength (Beulah Bondi in Of Human Hearts, noticeably that film's only nomination). Other then-popular character types like 'the vamp' (Milja Korjus in The Great Waltz) and ditzy/funny moms (Billie Burke in Merrily We Live! and Spring Byington in You Can't Take It With You) didn't stay in vogue with the Academy for as long. In 1938 we also got an historic first: Fay Bainter was the first actor to be double-nominated, competing in both Lead (White Banners) and Supporting (Jezebel) categories simultaneously, winning the latter. Will our panel agree? 

THE PANELISTS
Here to talk about these performances and movies are the actors Steven Weber and Britney Young, Joanna Robinson from Vanity Fair, and TFE's busiest duo, Cláudio Alves and your host Nathaniel R. Let's begin.

1938
SUPPORTING ACTRESS SMACKDOWN + PODCAST  
The companion podcast can be downloaded at the bottom of this article or by visiting the iTunes page...

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The New Classics: The Wolf of Wall Street

By Michael Cusumano  

Scene: Quaaludes
It’s difficult not to lapse into hagiography when talking about Scorsese so I will simply say this and attempt to reign in the fawning as best I can: As much as anyone in the medium’s history he understands that the power of film isn’t in the text. It’s not in constructing an argument like an essay or a speech. It's in the images. 

Like all of Scorsese’s period pieces, The Wolf of Wall Street covers mountains of information in its headlong dash through the years, but what makes these films great are the moments when they distill all that material into a memorable frame. The technical gambling know-how makes you buy into the world of Casino, but it’s an overhead shot of a reckless Sharon Stone making it rain chips at the craps table that leaves a mark on the audience...

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Emmy Review: Comedy Series

By Abe Friedtanzer

It's Schitt's Creek vs. Mrs Maisel for the gold.

We here at The Film Experience hope you've all enjoyed our category reviews. The Emmys begin in a few days on the 14th with the Creative Arts awards (i.e. below the line categories) before the big final awards night on September 20th.

Comedy series is the category where, by all visible indications, the winner is already set: Schitt’s Creek. While I don’t love the show, I harbor no ill will against it and am already prepared for it to win. Its two biggest hurdles seem surmountable to me. As far as I can tell, only two shows have won this award only for their final seasons: Barney Miller in 1982 and Fleabag last year. For the former, it was a nominee all eight seasons, and the latter wasn’t nominated in any category for the first of its two total seasons. This is only the second nomination for Schitt’s Creek. The other factor is that most of us – and the Internet – aren’t Emmy voters, and could it be possible that the collective enthusiasm around the show won’t materialize on Emmy night? If it doesn’t, what show wins instead?

I’ll try to avoid major plot details in my analysis – but if you’d like more spoiler-filled descriptions, click on the episode titles. Let’s consider each nominee…

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