The Clock

Viewed June 24, 2017.

Very silly romance film starring Robert Walker as a G.I. who has two in days in the city, during which he meets and marries Judy Garland. Though it's awfully hokey, Garland is a full-lipped babe, Vincente Minnelli's crane shots are always a pleasure to behold, and Keenan Wynn has a funny scene as a drunk.

Star Rating: ★★★★

87.50

Mostly what it says in the blurb: a whirlwind (if slightly hokey) romance between an on-leave soldier and the girl he meets at the train station. There are some odd moments (was the long scene with the drunk really necessary?) and it lurches tonally about three-quarters of the way through.

watched: 2012, 2020, 2023

Robert Walker in his usual naive part...just a wee bit too 'whirlwind' for a practical guy like me. Some very good dialogue otherwise. Recommended!

A charming romcom

O Ponteiro da Saudade tinha sua première há 75 anos nos EUA. Tinha esquecido o quanto é bom assistir de vez em quando esses filmes que aquecem o coração e se o Minnelli atingiu o ápice da maturidade artística nos anos 50, os filmes dos anos 40 nem por isso deixam de serem maravilhosos além da média. DVD Obras-Primas do Cinema.

"There you go. I think he's pretty, uh, pretty, uh, pretty good." http://illusionpodcast.blogspot.com/2014/06/episode-18.html

The title refers to the clock that the lovers meet under, but it also refers to the general theme of the film: time. The two leads constantly refer to having time to kill, being late, not having enough time, having to wait around to get married, not waiting to get married, etc. All that pseudo-intellectual bullshit aside, I couldn't stop laughing at the scene with the old lady daintily eating at the diner and making ridiculous expressions. She deserved an Oscar.

Very similar to Miracle in the Rain, but even more so like a direct precedent to Quiet City (right down to dialogue about New York being "quiet" vs. loud, i.e. i'm pretty sure Aaron Katz was referencing this) with a borderline-naive sensibility that is either "empty" romanticism or very "pure" depending on how one chooses to look at it. In that sense it's almost akin to a silent film but unfortunately less visually accomplished. That said, the scene with the drunk guy is seriously amazing!

Judy Garland doesn't sing a note in this film, and it doesn't matter. Charming and romantic tale of a soldier meeting a girl in New York City.

Charismatic Walker and likeable Garland make a fine screen couple, and Wynn is memorable as the drunk.

Thinking back on such a seemingly simple-minded movie, it's hard to grasp how it's so great. Its premise is, at best, frivolous, and the characters are slightly ridiculous... and yet it never goes into wild comedy territory, rather managing to strike an eerie balance between romantic fantasy and down-to-earth realism. The entire milkman sequence is a dead-ringer for good Italian neo-realism. My hat is off to Minnelli, the writers, and both stars.

Now, this was sweet! Good to see Judy Garland get a suitable leading man and deliver something so simple and adorable.