Garv’s Pick of the Week: The Bank Dick (Kino Lorber)
For the release week of November 9th:
Garv’s Pick of the Week: The Bank Dick [Blu-ray / Kino Lorber]: Let me extend a hearty handclasp to Kino Lorber Studio Classics for bringing three of W.C. Fields very best films — The Old Fashioned Way (1934), It’s a Gift (also 1934), and The Bank Dick (1940) — to Blu-ray this week. William Claude Dukenfield, better known as W.C. Fields, popularized both cringe comedy and misanthropic humor, so his comedy feels particularly modern. Even if you’re not a fan of the classic film comedians, you may be surprised at how much you like these films. The three titles being released on Blu-ray provide a perfect introduction to “the Great Man,” as Fields liked to be called. I hope you’ll pick up all three, but The Bank Dick is my personal favorite. I think I’ve watched this film more times than any other movie. Yet, it remains funny each and every time. You can find my full review HERE.
Additional Titles of Interest —
It’s a Gift [Blu-ray / Kino Lorber]: For those uninitiated in the comedy of W.C. Fields, It’s a Gift is probably the best place to start. It contains the comedian’s two longest sustained laugh sequences — “the grocery store” and “the front porch” scene — and it pulls together most of the hallmarks of the Great Man’s humor in a tight, 68-minute package. Fields subversively pokes fun at small town mores, mocks family values, makes villains of a blind man and a toddler, and never loses the sympathies of the audience. You can find my full review HERE.
The Old Fashioned Way [Blu-ray / Kino Lorber]: W.C. Fields often portrayed charlatans and hucksters in his films, based on the crooked men that cheated him during his early days on the stage. The Old Fashioned Way is my personal favorite of those movies. The picture features W.C.’s classic battle with child-actor, Baby LeRoy, and it contains the only filmed record of the comedian performing a portion of the legendary juggling act that first brought him fame on the Vaudeville stage. The film is worth watching for this jaw-dropping juggling sequence alone. You can find my full review HERE.
The Last of Sheila [Blu-ray / Warner Archive]: This witty 1973 multi-star mystery was co-written by composer Stephen Sondheim and actor Anthony Perkins. I haven’t seen this one in a few years, but I remember loving it.
Ladies They Talk About [Blu-ray / Warner Archive]: Why wouldn’t you talk about Barbara Stanwyck?
L.A. Story [Blu-ray / Lionsgate]: I always enjoy a Steve Martin comedy written by Steve Martin. It’s surprising that it has taken so long for this one to end up on Blu-ray.
The Addams Family [4K UHD / Paramount]: Barry Sonnenfeld’s big screen adaptation of Charles Addams’ creepy and kooky New Yorker cartoons (and the television series it spawned) gets a 4K upgrade.
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