Romancefest 3: Sadiefest - Sullivan's Travels

I've always wanted to see SULLIVAN'S TRAVELS and now thanks to Sadiefest, I have! I've been a theoretical Preston Sturges fan since I first saw PALM BEACH STORY, but for whatever reason, I've been lazy about exploring the rest of his filmography. What kind of a movie buff am I?

Anyway, SULLIVAN'S TRAVELS stars Joel McCrea (Horrorfest alum from THE MOST DANGEROUS GAME) as our title character, a socially conscious film director hell bent on adapting the important (but depressing) novel O BROTHER, WHERE ART THOU? Dissatisfied with his sheltered life and history in comedy films, McCrea hits on the idea of going undercover as a hobo to experience homeless life on the road. After these "real life" experiences, McCrea figures, he'll have the chops to make a "real" movie.

Early on in his adventures, McCrea runs into a down and out would-be starlet played by the beautiful Veronica Lake, who is on the verge of giving up on her dreams of a Hollywood career and heading back home in defeat. The two take a liking to each other and end up on the hobo trip together, falling in love along the way.

Aside from a little heavy handed moralizing at the end of the film after it takes a strong right turn into fairly serious territory, SULLIVAN'S TRAVELS feels refreshingly modern -- in many ways, so ahead of its time, it's ahead of half the stuff that's out right now! Most of this is thanks to writer/director Sturges' razor sharp sense of humor. He's a master of one-liners, set ups/punchline gags, elaborate comedy chase scenes and satire. It's rare you get all this in one flick. Sturges is following the rule of "writing what you know" as the McCrea character must be one who is close to his heart, and the central dilemma must have been something Sturges struggled with himself in Hollywood. Sturges gets a lot of mileage taking the piss out of studio execs while he tends to portray the downtrodden with a fair bit of dignity.

Veronica Lake steals almost every scene she is in, not just because of her looks, but also thanks to her dry and deadpan delivery. It works perfectly for the character, who clearly at one time was lighthearted, cute and funny, but who has slowly transformed over time into a somewhat pessimistic and sarcastic woman. It's fun to see how this cold (but funny) exterior falls away as she learns to like McCrea and loosen up around him. Because of this, the relationship and the way it develops is much more realistic than your average Hollywood fare -- it seems more specific and closely observed than more "epic" romances do.

In fact, the entire movie succeeds from its attention to detail. As an example, in a high speed chase, Sturges gets an unexpected joke out of a quick cut to a tight angle of the dashboard of a 13-year-old kids' hot rod to reveal the speedometer is drawn on with chalk. But, in more general terms, the way industry banter is thrown around without explanation, the way names of real celebrities are used, and the way minor characters like McCrea's servants (Robert Greig and Eric Blore) and a hapless cook (Charles R. Moore) are given little moments of truth, all add up to to make this a comic masterpiece.