Ooop!! My BAD!!
Added 2/3/2010
Thought I had ordered a DVD ... this was a VHS! Don't even have anything to play it on, so I have no clue if it even works. I guess it would be OK if I could play it. <> It is a great story.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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No Comparison
Added 6/11/2009
Please, can we stop comparing "ALWAYS" to "A GUY NAMED JOE"? They are two different movies!
"A Guy Named Joe" was made while we were at war, fighting for our freedom and our lives. No other war quite like it before or since. Thousands upon thousands of men died in that war, many in one battle. The families of that day knew loss on a massive scale (suggest you watch "The Fighting Sullivans").
I think most people who watch older films already know the storyline of the Spencer Tracy film - and as I watched it for the umpteenth time a few days ago, I realized for the first time what that film must have meant to the viewing audience when it was first released. It is a magnificent film and no one could have done it better than Tracy. Van Johnson was just beginning a great career, and if you are not familiar with him, try watching "Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo" or "Miracle in the Rain". "Joe" deals with life and death, as we all must at one time or another. For me, it took away some of the fear, as I hope it did for all those who lost sons, husbands, lovers and brothers in WWII.
This is a classic film for all time. Anyone who loves film should see it and own it. It can be watched over and over and it never gets stale.
And how could I forget to comment on Irene Dunne?! Amazing actress who
made one miraculous film after the other in the 30's and 40's. She was a queen of the box office. There's no one like any of these stars around today - and the stars of "Always" were adequate, but I would guess they would agree, it would be tough to find better actors than Tracy and Dunne today. They are a gift and their films should be seen again and again. After all - they set the standard for those who followed.
1 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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Nice Story With Appealing Cast
Added 2/18/2009
This is one of those old-fashioned, nice stories with generally nice people, some good lessons to be learned and some touching scenes. You just have to go with the fantasy-type theologies, in this story dead people coming back as angels-you-can see.
Irene Dunne never looked better, although the soft-focus lens helped her looks. She isn't beautiful but she's wholesomely pretty, and thus appealing. Spencer Tracy gives his normal strong performance but I liked supporting actor Ward Bond in here better. Tracy gives an excellent short speech at the end of this film.
The special-effects in the aviator-war scenes were not good but, hey, this film was made over 65 years ago. You could tell the planes were model airplanes on several shots.
Note: this film was re-made by Steven Spielberg 40 years later under the title "Always." That was a nice film, too, but I think I'd still take this version. I just wish someone would put it out on a Region 1 DVD.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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"Girl clothes! From London! You bought me girl clothes!"
Added 10/8/2008
A GUY NAMED JOE is a wonderful, old-fashioned, patriotic film made in 1944 during WWII. Starring Spencer Tracy, Irene Dunne, Van Johnson, Ward Bond, and Lionel Barrymore, A GUY NAMED JOE is the story of Pete (Tracy), a hot shot bomber pilot, who dies when he purposefully crashes his disabled plane into a German aircraft carrier. Dorinda (Dunne), Pete's girl friend and a pilot with the Women's Air Ferrying Corps, is devastated, especially since she has just convinced Pete to take a safer assignment stateside teaching new recruits how to fly. In Heaven, which looks remarkably like an Army airfield only with soft, fluffy, white clouds on the ground, "The Commanding General" (Barrymore) makes Pete a guardian angel to Ted Randall (Johnson), a young, unsure Army pilot. Pete invisibly helps Ted through flight training and combat. Ted eventually picks of some of Pete's quirks and style, becoming quite a hot shot pilot himself. Of course, he eventually meets and falls in love with Dorinda, making Pete very jealous. Dorinda is still devoted to Pete's memory, but she, too, eventually falls for Ted. In the end, however, Pete lets Dorinda go, saving Dorinda, Ted, and even his own soul.
This sweet, sentimental film combines the war genre with romantic fantasy. Directed by Victor Fleming and written by Dalton Trumbo, the script is wry and witty with both Spencer Tracy and Irene Dunne delivering some great lines (hence the title of this review). Tracy, Dunne, and Johnson are all believable in their respective roles as well as what you expect them to be as actors. Barrymore is classic as "The Commanding General," and I loved Ward Bond as Pete and Dorinda's best friend. Considering this was filmed in 1944, the special effects are admirable and what you would expect from that era. Apparently, there are several inaccuracies in this film (e.g. there weren't any German aircraft carriers in WWII), but I simply did not care.
A GUY NAME JOE is a terrific choice for a pleasant, sappy, nostalgic evening at home. You may need a hanky in a few spots. But watching this classic film, both my husband and I found smiles on our faces for most of the evening.
Side notes: There is no character named Joe in this film. At the beginning some hero-worshipping kids explain that pilots in the Army Air Corps call any "right fellow" Joe. Also, A GUY NAMED JOE was remade in 1989 by Steven Spielberg as the movie ALWAYS.
2 out of 4 people found this helpful.
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BUYERS BEWARE! BOOTLEG OFFERING
Added 9/17/2008
This film has not been issued on DVD. This listing was created by a bootlegger, selling home-made copies.
1 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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Ooop!! My BAD!!
Added 2/3/2010
Thought I had ordered a DVD ... this was a VHS! Don't even have anything to play it on, so I have no clue if it even works. I guess it would be OK if I could play it. <> It is a great story.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
|
No Comparison
Added 6/11/2009
Please, can we stop comparing "ALWAYS" to "A GUY NAMED JOE"? They are two different movies!
"A Guy Named Joe" was made while we were at war, fighting for our freedom and our lives. No other war quite like it before or since. Thousands upon thousands of men died in that war, many in one battle. The families of that day knew loss on a massive scale (suggest you watch "The Fighting Sullivans").
I think most people who watch older films already know the storyline of the Spencer Tracy film - and as I watched it for the umpteenth time a few days ago, I realized for the first time what that film must have meant to the viewing audience when it was first released. It is a magnificent film and no one could have done it better than Tracy. Van Johnson was just beginning a great career, and if you are not familiar with him, try watching "Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo" or "Miracle in the Rain". "Joe" deals with life and death, as we all must at one time or another. For me, it took away some of the fear, as I hope it did for all those who lost sons, husbands, lovers and brothers in WWII.
This is a classic film for all time. Anyone who loves film should see it and own it. It can be watched over and over and it never gets stale.
And how could I forget to comment on Irene Dunne?! Amazing actress who
made one miraculous film after the other in the 30's and 40's. She was a queen of the box office. There's no one like any of these stars around today - and the stars of "Always" were adequate, but I would guess they would agree, it would be tough to find better actors than Tracy and Dunne today. They are a gift and their films should be seen again and again. After all - they set the standard for those who followed.
1 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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Nice Story With Appealing Cast
Added 2/18/2009
This is one of those old-fashioned, nice stories with generally nice people, some good lessons to be learned and some touching scenes. You just have to go with the fantasy-type theologies, in this story dead people coming back as angels-you-can see.
Irene Dunne never looked better, although the soft-focus lens helped her looks. She isn't beautiful but she's wholesomely pretty, and thus appealing. Spencer Tracy gives his normal strong performance but I liked supporting actor Ward Bond in here better. Tracy gives an excellent short speech at the end of this film.
The special-effects in the aviator-war scenes were not good but, hey, this film was made over 65 years ago. You could tell the planes were model airplanes on several shots.
Note: this film was re-made by Steven Spielberg 40 years later under the title "Always." That was a nice film, too, but I think I'd still take this version. I just wish someone would put it out on a Region 1 DVD.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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