Singers Make Movies: Connie Francis and Donna Summer

Connie Francis & Harve Presnell.

When the Boys Meet the Girls (1965). What possessed a Hollywood producer to pitch a 1960s update of the George and Ira Gershwin stage musical Girl Crazy starring Connie Francis, Liberace, Louis Armstrong, Herman's Hermits, and Sam the Sham & the Pharaohs? We may never know. But shockingly, the movie was made and now we can experience When the Boys Meet the Girls.

The "plot" sends a wealthy college student named Danny Churchill (Harve Presnell) to Nevada to avoid marriage to a vivacious, troublesome blonde (Sue Ane Langdon). Once there, Danny meets Ginger (Connie Francis), a hardworking gal whose father is drowning in gambling debt. Danny quickly becomes invested in helping Ginger save her family’s ranch, which is on the verge of being seized by Reno gangsters. His big idea: transform the ranch into a divorcee getaway resort, with his new college friends pitching in on construction.

This framework is just an excuse for the incongruous musical numbers: Liberace and Louis Armstrong perform their own compositions, Connie and Harve sing Gershwin tunes, and Sam the Sham offers "Monkey See, Monkey Do." Peter Noone does double duty, performing the Gershwins' "Bidin' My Time" and a contemporary tune called "Listen People," which peaked at No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart the following year.

Unless you're a fan of the musical acts, the only reason to see When the Boys Meet the Girls is Sue Ane Langdon. She looks fabulous, exudes endless energy, and performs a peppy rendition of "Treat Me Rough." If you're like me, you'll be wondering why Danny didn't want to marry her character!

Disco queen Donna Summer.

Thank God It's Friday (1978). At the height of the disco era (yes, I was there), record company giants Motown and Casablanca teamed up for this time-capsule comedy that won an Oscar. I bet that caught your attention! OK, the Oscar was for Best Song for Donna Summer's classic "Last Dance," but, hey, it's still an Oscar.

Thank God It's Friday take place during a single night at The Zoo, a bustling Los Angeles disco. Over the course of the evening, an aspiring singer tries to get her big break, underage teens scheme to enter a dance contest, a married couple’s anniversary takes an unexpected turn, and a frazzled roadie races to deliver The Commodores’ instruments before showtime. As flirtations, mishaps, and disco‑fueled dreams unfold across the crowded dance floor, one is reminded how good Saturday Night Fever really was.

While this is a movie that will test your patience, there are some nuggets of interest. As a young woman looking for love, Debra Winger flashes the charm that would make her a star in An Officer and a Gentleman. Jeff Goldblum, in an early performance, uses his charisma to make the nightclub's sleazy owner almost likable. And Donna Summer proves that no one could match her high-octane and high-octave disco song performances. As a added bonus, The Commodores perform an original song called "Too Hot ta Trot" (take special note of Lionel Ritchie's 1970s hair and mustache).

For trivia fans: Thank God It's Friday has a connection to another Best Song Oscar winner. Terri Nunn, who plays one of the teen girls in the dance contest, later became lead singer for the group Berlin. She sang "Take My Breath Away" for the Top Gun soundtrack in 1986 and that song earned an Academy Award.

Newlywed Problems Abound in "The Family Way"

Hayley Mills and Hywel Bennett.

These days, The Family Way (1966) is best-known for featuring one of Hayley Mills' first grown-up roles and a music score by Paul McCartney. Viewers expecting a song-laden soundtrack by McCartney will be disappointed. It's a pretty pedestrian instrumental score, to be honest, though notable because Paul did it while still a Beatle. On the other hand, Hayley Mills fans will enjoy her nuanced performance as a newlywed--even if her own father, John Mills, steals the film.

Hayley and Hywel Bennett star as Jenny and Arthur, a young, working-class couple in Lancashire whose marriage remains unconsummated due to a lack of privacy, interfering in-laws, and personal anxiety. To make matter worse: they can't get their own place due to a housing shortage; they lose their honeymoon money in a scam; and they barely see each other because Arthur works nights as a movie projectionist. But their biggest challenge is the lack of physical intimacy in their marriage--Arthur begins to feel inadequate and Jenny starts to wonder if she is somehow responsible.

As a result, Arthur seeks professional help from a marriage counselor and, at her mother's urging, Jenny discusses the situation with her Uncle Fred (a masseur, which makes him a "medical professional"). Thanks to gossip and loose lips, family, friends, and neighbors soon learn about the state of Jenny and Arthur's marriage--.which, of course, make their lives exponentially worse.

Bill Naughton wrote an early version of The Family Way as a television play called Honeymoon Postponed, which aired on British TV in 1961. He expanded it into the stage play All in Good Time in 1963, which was a modest hit in Britain and a flop on Broadway in 1965 (that cast included Donald Wolfit, Richard Dysart, and John Karlen). John and Roy Boulting acquired movie rights to the play and produced the film. Roy Boulting began a relationship with his star, Hayley Mills, who was 33 years younger than him. They married in 1971, had a son, separated in 1975, and divorced in 1977.

John Mills as Ezra.

While the film's young stars acquit themselves nicely, The Family Way belongs to John Mills and Majorie Rhodes as Arthur's working-class parents Ezra and Lucy. John Mills gives Ezra a sharp, almost comic rigidity, scolding his son for wasting time on “fancy books” with the bluster of a man terrified of anything he can’t control. Yet, at the same time, he offers Jenny unexpected support that reveals a gentler instinct beneath his hard exterior, making his contradictions feel painfully human.

Naughton's screenplay hints at unresolved issues, specifically the sudden disappearance in the past of Ezra's best friend Billy. In one scene, Ezra reminiscences about his and Lucy's honeymoon, noting that watching a sunrise alone with Billy was the best part. Later, Lucy talks of the night Billy disappeared, leaving one to wonder if Arthur is really Billy's son.

The Family Way isn't among Hayley Mills' best non-Disney films. Those would include Tiger Bay, Whistle Down the Wind (based on a book by her mother), and The Chalk Garden. Yet, it's an effective family drama and well acted by the cast. By the way, that's Murray Head ("One Night in Bangkok") as Arthur's brother. Hayley Mills and Hywel Bennett reteamed for Twisted Nerve (1968) and Endless Night (1972). 

Stanley Baker Takes Command in Yesterday's Enemy

Stanley Baker as Captain Langford.

Set during the Burma Campaign of World War II, Yesterday’s Enemy (1959) follows a small, exhausted remnant of a British Army brigade struggling to escape through the jungle after being cut off by advancing Japanese forces. Led by the hard-edged Captain Alan Langford (Stanley Baker), the group stumbles upon a village held by the Japanese and seizes control after a brief skirmish.

Langford takes possession of a Japanese's general's map, but cannot decipher its meaning. As the situation grows desperate, Langford makes a morally fraught decision: he orders the execution of two innocent villagers to coerce a suspected informer into revealing crucial intelligence. His actions spark outrage from his unit's chaplain and a war correspondent traveling with them.

Langford defends his decision by pointing out the hypocrisy of war: It's easier to accept bombs killing thousands of innocent people than it is to watch two people die by a firing squad. Langford then argues that his actions will save many more lives than the ones lost. Later in the film, Langford’s arc turns on a brutal irony: the very ruthlessness he once justified as “necessary” is eventually used against him. 

Adapted by Peter R. Newman from his own 1958 British TV play, Yesterday's Enemy is a compact, tense drama made on a modest budget by Hammer Films (yes, the same studio famous for its Gothic horror films!). To save money, director Val Guest shot the entire film indoors. Yes, the Burmese jungle look "stagey" (though the black & white photography compensates somewhat). However, the film's artificiality contributes to its claustrophobic setting with Langford and his men trapped in a small village for much of the running time.

Gordon Jackson as Sgt. MacKenzie.

Stanley Baker, as Langford, heads a strong cast consisting of: Gordon Jackson (Upstairs, Downstairs) as Langford's loyal sergeant, Leo McKern (Rumpole of the Bailey) as the journalist, and Guy Rolfe as the chaplain. But this is Baker's show and he excels at playing a leader intent on looking strong and decisive in front of his men--even as he grapples with his inner demons. Baker, Jackson, and director Val Guest earned BAFTA nominations for their work on Yesterday's Enemy.

The previous year's Camp at Blood Island and Yesterday's Enemy were both moneymakers for Hammer. One would have thought more World War II films might have followed, but the only serious effort was The Secret of Blood Island in 1965. Part of the reasons may have had to do with the films' controversies. According Hammer Films: An Exhaustive Filmography, a Japanese film official wanted The Camp at Blood Island banned in the U.S. for its negative portrayal of the Japanese Army. In contrast, Yesterday's Enemy incurred controversy (as did the earlier TV version) for its unflattering portrait of a British Army officer.