REVIEW: Boom Town (1940)
Title: Boom Town
Release Year: 1940
Genre: Comedy, Drama and Adventure
Cast: Clark Gable, Spencer Tracy, Hedy Lamarr and Claudette Colbert
Plot: Two best friends become oil tycoons but their friendship suffers due to loving the same woman.
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️＿ ＿
Review: I watched this film a long time ago and didn't like it at all. My rating could've gone lower because I was dead bored watching, but I didn't think the story was all that bad, especially that it has some historical value in the sense that it painted a picture of how the oil industry of that period was like, so it deserved some points.
This was one of three films Clark Gable and Spencer Tracy did together, but after watching this, I thought I'd take a little break from Gable.
Clark Gable was as good as he can be. Eventhough he had worked as an oil rigger before he became an actor, the experience didn't help his acting any.
Anyway, I never really liked his roles because he was always a player who never regretted anything. In this film it was even more apparent. By the end of the film, I didn't feel anything that happened in his life meant anything to him and he learned nothing from any of his experiences. I understand that, for some people, it's not always natural to change and learn from past mistakes but still, that is what they meant.
Spencer Tracy as the bestfriend and partner was great. I liked his character. He was noble, heroic and had morals. I had never seen Tracy in drama films before this one. Most of the ones I've seen were romantic comedies, so it was strange seeing him act so seriously.
Rita Hayworth was considered for the role of Karen Vanmeer, but Hedy Lamarr was chosen. Actually I watched this film for Hedy but she appeared half way through it. Rasha and I thought maybe we were watching the wrong film until she appeared hehe. I was satisfied with Hedy but I love Rita so I wouldn't have minded having her instead but then I wouldn't have seen the film until after later. The only film I really liked Hedy's acting was in "The Strange Woman", 1946. In all the other films I had seen her in, I felt she didn't even try to act. Then again, maybe it was the roles that only required her to look pretty. Anyway the role of the other woman suited her perfectly!
Claudette Colbert as the wife, was hmmm. Well, I don't like Colbert. I never understood why she was a lead in any film, so I won't comment on her acting because it was never special enough for her to be considered for any film.
Other than Colbert, there were many other things I didn't like about this film - obviously - but the worst one of them was that they made it seem like cheating on a friend was such a believable thing. I don't think it is such a subject that any person would instantly believe, especially if it were about a person you trust. For instance, Gable's best friend Tracy had to lie to him about having a relationship with his wife to get him to be jealous enough to care for her. He did it so Gable would think he's losing his wife and in turn stop cheating on her. It worked. Gable believed him straight away and got mad, then went back to his wife. Is that even normal? I guess it is only so, where morals are lost.
In 1943, one of the theatres that was playing this film added aromas whenever each actor appeared on the screen. For Clark Gable they used Cigars, for Spencer Tracy Pine and for Hedy Lamarr they used a perfume called "My Sin".
I read a lot of good reviews about this film but personally it didn't do it for me. The only thing that came out of it was this joke:
"It's a great day for the race, ain't it?"
"What race?"
"The human race"
Release Year: 1940
Genre: Comedy, Drama and Adventure
Cast: Clark Gable, Spencer Tracy, Hedy Lamarr and Claudette Colbert
Plot: Two best friends become oil tycoons but their friendship suffers due to loving the same woman.
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️＿ ＿
Review: I watched this film a long time ago and didn't like it at all. My rating could've gone lower because I was dead bored watching, but I didn't think the story was all that bad, especially that it has some historical value in the sense that it painted a picture of how the oil industry of that period was like, so it deserved some points.
This was one of three films Clark Gable and Spencer Tracy did together, but after watching this, I thought I'd take a little break from Gable.Clark Gable was as good as he can be. Eventhough he had worked as an oil rigger before he became an actor, the experience didn't help his acting any.
Anyway, I never really liked his roles because he was always a player who never regretted anything. In this film it was even more apparent. By the end of the film, I didn't feel anything that happened in his life meant anything to him and he learned nothing from any of his experiences. I understand that, for some people, it's not always natural to change and learn from past mistakes but still, that is what they meant.Spencer Tracy as the bestfriend and partner was great. I liked his character. He was noble, heroic and had morals. I had never seen Tracy in drama films before this one. Most of the ones I've seen were romantic comedies, so it was strange seeing him act so seriously.
Rita Hayworth was considered for the role of Karen Vanmeer, but Hedy Lamarr was chosen. Actually I watched this film for Hedy but she appeared half way through it. Rasha and I thought maybe we were watching the wrong film until she appeared hehe. I was satisfied with Hedy but I love Rita so I wouldn't have minded having her instead but then I wouldn't have seen the film until after later. The only film I really liked Hedy's acting was in "The Strange Woman", 1946. In all the other films I had seen her in, I felt she didn't even try to act. Then again, maybe it was the roles that only required her to look pretty. Anyway the role of the other woman suited her perfectly!
Claudette Colbert as the wife, was hmmm. Well, I don't like Colbert. I never understood why she was a lead in any film, so I won't comment on her acting because it was never special enough for her to be considered for any film.Other than Colbert, there were many other things I didn't like about this film - obviously - but the worst one of them was that they made it seem like cheating on a friend was such a believable thing. I don't think it is such a subject that any person would instantly believe, especially if it were about a person you trust. For instance, Gable's best friend Tracy had to lie to him about having a relationship with his wife to get him to be jealous enough to care for her. He did it so Gable would think he's losing his wife and in turn stop cheating on her. It worked. Gable believed him straight away and got mad, then went back to his wife. Is that even normal? I guess it is only so, where morals are lost.
In 1943, one of the theatres that was playing this film added aromas whenever each actor appeared on the screen. For Clark Gable they used Cigars, for Spencer Tracy Pine and for Hedy Lamarr they used a perfume called "My Sin".I read a lot of good reviews about this film but personally it didn't do it for me. The only thing that came out of it was this joke:
"It's a great day for the race, ain't it?"
"What race?"
"The human race"
All I remember from this film is how much I hated it and how much time I wasted. I don’t remember much except a few of Hedy Lamarr’s Scenes. I guess I tried very hard to remove it from my brain.
ReplyDeleteI think if the cast was different (by cast I mean Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert) maybe then the film would’ve been watchable...not great but at least watchable haha.
And very true about the cheating part. I think a lot of Clark Gable films were unrealistic compared to other films made in those days...they somewhat resemble films made today...overly unrealistic.
Yes exactly! Maybe that's why people no longer act normal, they're used to watching crap that they started mimicking it. No personal feelings on anything anymore.
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