This is the perfect film to view in between seeing today's myriad message movies and super-techno thrillers. In stunning black-and-white the merry adventures of bachelor and aging academics, struggling to complete a massive encyclopedia funded by an increasingly doubtful (and homely) heiress, unfold. The scholars encounter the beautiful (and wonderful) Barbara Stanwyck, a gang moll who needs to hide out while her crime boss boyfriend seeks to avoid an unpleasant prosecution related to a rival who disappeared wearing concrete shoes (low tech disposal of the suddenly terminated was the simple order of the day in 1941).
Gary Cooper is the youngest of the researchers and, obviously, from the first moment that he and the gorgeous Stanwyck set eyes on each other, the ultimate outcome can't be in doubt. No psychological exploration of the nature of evil or the vagaries of love between opposites darken this sprightly gem from the vaults. The cast must have enjoyed making this film.
Easily obtainable for rent or for purchase, "Ball of Fire" shows pre-Pearl Harbor comedic Hollywood at its zenith.
Gary Cooper is the youngest of the researchers and, obviously, from the first moment that he and the gorgeous Stanwyck set eyes on each other, the ultimate outcome can't be in doubt. No psychological exploration of the nature of evil or the vagaries of love between opposites darken this sprightly gem from the vaults. The cast must have enjoyed making this film.
Easily obtainable for rent or for purchase, "Ball of Fire" shows pre-Pearl Harbor comedic Hollywood at its zenith.