Cast: Ethel Barrymore, Gary Cooper, Van Johnson, Gene Kelly, Janet Leigh, Marjorie Main, Fredric March, George Murphy
This film is part of TCM's The Immigrant Experience, which runs every Wednesday night during June. As you can see, it stars a bunch of A-listers (including William Powell and Keenan Wynn) dedicated to disproving McCarthyism, which was running rampant at the time, and displaying the diversity of American life. While they have characters that they play, each of them is clearly identifying themselves as one of the people.
PLOT: The film is divided into episodes, each detailing the life of a specific American.
EPISODE ONE: William Powell tells about the different kinds of Americans, including immigrants, and asks us the question "Which American are you?"
EPISODE TWO: Taking place in Boston (my town!), Ethel Barrymore goes to see a newspaper man, George Murphy. Later on, a census man comes to visit her and she realizes she is not counted as a citizen. Mr. Callaghan seeks to right this wrong.
EPISODE THREE: This segment focuses on African-Americans in the armed forces and American sports, including Jackie Robinson and Joe Lewis. Also focuses on African-Americans in the entertainment industry, medical fields, government and religious institutions.
EPISODE FOUR: The agricultural episode. Stefan Szabo (S.Z. Sakall) is an immigrant farmer who lives with his six daughters. One of them runs into Icarus Xenophon (Gene Kelly, who, bless his heart and I love him, does a terrible job at playing a foreigner), a Greek who owns an ice cream parlor. He gives her a ride and falls in love with her, but she realizes she can't marry him or work for him because she is Hungarian and Hungarians hate Greeks. She eventually comes around when Icarus tells her wisely that not all Hungarians hate Greeks. Rose tells her father who becomes enraged. One day, the youngest sister sees Icarus and Rose and of course a Gene Kelly kissing scene has to be spoiled by a tattletale, and she tells her father and he gathers everyone to see the "betrayal." He screams at Icarus, but the two have already married. In the end, he's finally convinced that the Greeks are good people.
EPISODE FIVE: Focusing on the American armed forces. A soldier must deliver hard news to his buddy's mother.
EPISODE SIX: Texas. Yee-haw! Gary Cooper (native Montanan. Close enough, right?) explains to us the misconceptions of Texas.
EPISODE SEVEN: Religion in America. A newly ordained minister, Adam Burch (Van Johnson) gives a sermon that everyone is unsure of. His boss thinks that he is preaching to one man and not the entire congregation.
EPISODE EIGHT: Education in America. A boy's father is an immigrant who is trying to teach his son. The boy hears perfectly, but seems to have a problem with his eyes. One night, the father tests his son's eyes and the boy realizes he has failing vision. He gets glasses and realizes a big change. That's how I felt when I got my glasses, kid! The boy gets into a fight and takes his glasses off. At the end, he learns that glasses are good!
REVIEW: This is why I wish I was born in the 50s. We no longer have this type of patriotism in our country today. People like Gene Kelly, Gary Cooper, and the others listed were so proud of their country and happy to serve it by entertaining its people. Now it's "Oh, America is going to hell and blah blah blah." Yeah, they had the Korean War, McCarthyism and the Cold War, but they still carried through with their heads high and God on their side, unlike the pessimistic assholes we have in this country today. I loved this film. It showcases American life and even touches on the still-then-segregated African-Americans. It even focuses on immigrants. 5 out of 5 stars. I wish my generation were as patriotic as me and this film.
And yes, Gene was HOT as a Greek man!
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