The Outsider

There's been a decided shift over the decades with how Indigenous peoples have been depicted in Hollywood. The days of brownface have since been eradicated (for the most part) in favor of actually casting Indigenous actors in roles beyond the bloodthirsty savage stereotype. Still, there's a strange fascination in seeing earlier titles.

Now Delbert Mann's The Outsider has Tony Curtis as Iwo Jima flag raiser Ira Hayes. Having a Hungarian-American Jew from the Bronx play a Pima Native American wouldn't fly today (the only real similarity both men have is that they served in World War II, albeit different branches) but that's not to disregard Curtis' work here, far from it. Being more of a physical actor (as in more aware of body language), he conveys the discomfort Ira experiences from being in the public eye.

Speaking of which, The Outsider provides more of a depiction of how one buckles under the pressure from being put on a pedestal. Instead of offering him help as he slips into alcoholism, those that Ira encounters look down on him for not being the example of an American hero he should be. How much of that is true is hard to say but one thing's certain: had Hayes gotten help, he probably would've lived longer than 32.

Mann however can't quite break free from his television past, and it shows from time to time in The Outsider. Most of the actors feel confined in their actions and deliveries, almost as if they weren't allowed to be relaxed. It's jarring in comparison to Marty's easy nature.

The Outsider is far from great but Curtis' performance makes it bearable. Being made before knowledge of PTSD was better known, it probably explains the film's ham-fisted approach on the matter. Still, it's not a complete slog.

My Rating: ***1/2

Separate Tables

You know how most star-studded movies are either a glamorous mess or pitch perfect? Well, Separate Tables is the latter.

The cast of Separate Tables includes David Niven as an alleged war hero, Deborah Kerr as a woman dominated by her mother, Wendy Hiller as the lonely hotel manageress, and Burt Lancaster and Rita Hayworth as  a couple meeting years after their divorce.

Niven and Hiller were the two Oscar winners of the whole cast. Both play people who want to escape the truths of their lives, truths they never want to face. They play their roles quite well, but I wouldn't say they rightfully earned their Oscars.

Out of all the performances, I was particularly fond of Kerr's work. I usually see her in roles where she's the independent woman. But seeing her as a woman afraid to break out of her shell had me quite impressed.

Separate Tables is good, but I wouldn't call it the year's best. (That goes to either The Defiant Ones or Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.) The performances are very good, as mentioned before. The movie's not great, but it's quite good.

My Rating: ****1/2

Marty

Movies from the 1950's revolved on glamorous stars and improbable plots. It wasn't until the decade started coming to an end when movies from that time period became a little less glamorous and a little more down to earth.

One such example of a movie injected with realism is Marty, which focuses on lonely butcher Mary Piletti (Ernest Borgnine). His friends and family keep asking him when he'll get married, a question he has heard way too often. Then he meets schoolteacher Clara Synder (Betsy Blair).

Borgnine and Blair aren't as glamorous as, say, Cary Grant and Grace Kelly, but that's what makes Marty work. Looks aren't everything to make a relationship work. It shows how simple romance really is.

Borgnine won the Oscar for his work, but bear in mind he was up against some tough competition (his competitors were Spencer Tracy, James Cagney, Frank Sinatra and James Dean). Some have cried "Foul!" for his win, but I think Borgnine gives the most honest performance Hollywood has to offer.

Marty is definitely one of the most enjoyable movies I've seen in recent memory. Some overlook it because it's considered one of the lesser Best Picture winners. I'll say this: please don't ignore it.

My Rating: *****