Adaptation

I suppose I’m overdoing it blogging about old films, but I want to avoid politics and I didn’t find any fun items in today’s news. So here I go again. Last night Movies!, channel 5–2 on over the air antennas in NYC, ran The World, the Flesh and the Devil (1959), post apocalyptic fare starring Harry Belafonte, Inger Stevens and Mel Ferrer. They are three of the world’s survivors of a showdown involving radiation poisoning of the planet by hostile nations. The first half hour, which involves only Belafonte, is riveting. The film loses steam soon after Steven’s character is introduced, although it’s heart is always in the right place. Nothing in the scenario is implausible, but it just flattens out and ends with a plea for unity that seems preachy rather than powerful. It was based on two sources: the M.P. Shield novel of the same name and a story, End of the World, by Ferdinand Reyher. Director Ranald MacDougall adapted the screenplay. He is most famous for his adaptation of James M. Cain’s novel Mildred Pierce, which earned him his sole Oscar nomination. His second most successful work was his adaptation of the delightful Albert Husson play We’re No Angels (1955), starring Humphrey Bogart, Peter Ustinov and Aldo Ray. He was also one of the three writers of Cleopatra (1963). There are 31 titles listed under his name as writer at IMDb, and six as director, the most notable in the latter category the aforementioned. The flick’s best aspect is the location footage of Manhattan, shot by Harold J. Marzorati. Unfortunately, there isn’t much info on him, only 12 credits under cinematographer, although his career spanned 1939-’59. He also shot one of the most notorious exploitation movies of the ‘50’s, High School Confidential! (1958). I suspect a lot of his work is missing from his profile, as there is a gap from ‘39-’55. Shot in black and white, appropriately given the bleak theme, The World… runs only 1:35, a plus. 2300+ users at IMDb have rated it, forging to a consensus of 6.9 on a scale of ten. Too high in my opinion, but it’s still worth a look. Here’s a still of Belafonte in a familiar location:

After two days of rain, it was so good to again be out selling books in one of my prime locations. And business was good, making up a little of the recent lost ground. My thanks to the gentleman who bought Hannibal by Thomas Harris, Cabal by Clive Barker, The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold, and Icebreaker, a James Bond novel by John Gardner; and to the man and woman who each selected two books in Russian; and to the woman who purchased Can You Keep A Secret? by Sophie Kinsella and The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery and Alison Anderson; and to the woman who chose three works of non-fiction: No Fears, No Excuses: What You Need To Do To Have A Great Career by Larry Smith, Avoiding the 12 Relationship Mistakes Women Make by Georgia Shaffer (we shared a laugh wondering how the author has made out), and A History of God: The 4,000-Year Quest of Judaism, Christianity and Islam by Karen Armstrong.

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