THE MALE ANIMAL
US, 1942, 101 minutes, Black and white.
Henry Fonda, Olivia de Havilland, Jack Carson, Joan Leslie, Hattie McDaniel?, Eugene Pallette, Don Defore.
Directed by Elliott Nugent.
The Male Animal is a Warner Bros comedy of the early 1940s, based on a play by James Thurber and director Elliott Nugent.
The film is a vehicle for Henry Fonda, enabling him to make (in a light vein) rather strong speeches about the United States, the Constitution and American freedom. The rest of the cast have rather stereotyped characters, especially Olivia de Havilland as Fonda's wife.
The film is rather dated in its style set, as it is, on an old-style American campus. However, the points it makes about education are still relevant. It also seems rather daring in its treatment of human freedoms and the fierce anti-communist, anti-Red attitudes that are satirised. The film was probably not popular in the late 1940s and early 1950s, during the UnAmerican? Activities investigations and the time of Senator McCarthy?.
The film was remade with a vaudeville background (and Ronald Reagan in the Fonda role) as She's Working Her Way Through College.
1. A popular comedy of the '40s? Warner Bros. style? Its comment on American lifestyles, freedoms? Anti-communist stances?
2. Black and white photography, studio filming, style? Stars?
3. The wit of James Thurber and Elliott Nugent? Thurber and his humour, his presentation of various battles of the sexes? Nugent's film career as writer and director?
4. American colleges at the time, the predominance of sport, the American universities and the romance and conflict, the sexes, errors, reconciliation?
5. Academics, students, the student newspaper, power struggles? The film as a critique of various pressure groups?
brittleness of marriage, the battle of the sexes?
6. Henry Fonda as the sturdy American type: the ordinary citizen, quiet? His love for Ellen, yet the possibility of upsetting the marriage? Friendship and rivalry with Jack? Pressures on him and his English classes? Sport and its predominance at the university? The editor of the campus paper and his using him? Tilen's sister and her romances? Jack's arrival, his being spotlighted? Ellen's attraction towards him, the past? Dance and jealousy? The authorities and the board? His plan to read Vanzetti's letter along with the writings of Abraham Lincoln? The pressures, his decision? His reading the letter, the reaction, the eventual acclaim? The importance of his speech and the reading of the letter? The Red scare? American freedoms? Literature?
7. Ellen as pleasant, but the stereotyped wife, her flirting with Jack, her anger with Tom, going off with Jack, listening to the speech, the reconciliation?
8. Jack, the sport, the past, flirting, dancing, the romance with Ellen, the clash with Tom, the reconciliation?
9. Young people, the editor and his problems, drinking with Tom, the paper coming out, Ellen's sister and the attraction? The sports hero?
10. Academics and their role at the universities, the academic remembering 42 years, bowing to the pressures of the board?
11. Eugene Pallette and his satire on the sports-conscious member of the board, pressures, not understanding education? His denunciation of Tom?
12. The happy resolution ? '40s style? Anticipation of problems that were to come? Themes of American freedom and ideologies?
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SECOND DISCUSSION
THE MALE ANIMAL
US, 1942, 101 minutes, Black and white.
Henry Fonda, Olivia de Havilland, Joan Leslie, Jack Carson, Eugene Pallette, Herbert Anderson, Hattie Mc Daniel, Ivan F. Simpson, Don De Fore.
Directed by Elliott Nugent.
The Male Animal is based on a play by celebrated short-story writer and cartoonist, James Thurber (The Secret Life of Walter Mitty). He collaborated with Elliott Nugent who performed in the play on Broadway and has directed this film. Nugent had a varied career directing comedies as well as the 1949 The Great Gatsby.
The film is a mixture of romantic/marital comedy, with Henry Fonda as a very serious professor as a university, Olivia de Havilland his wife, a bit more scatty. Jack Carson is the football hero from the university who had previously been in love with the professor’s wife. Joan Leslie is a family friend.
The serious part of the film is its stance on censorship. It is interesting to look at in terms of 1942, the outbreak of World War Two for the United States, alliances with the Soviet Union. In this film, the trustees of a university have sacked three professors because of alleged communism. The film shows Eugene Pallette as the head of the trustees, a very strong Red-baiter. However, the student journal has an editorial against this kind of prejudice and indicates that the professor will read a letter from Bartolomeo Vanzetti, of the Sacco and Vanzetti case. The professor defends his right, saying that it was a fine letter and suitable for his course in English literature and composition, also quoting letters from Abraham Lincoln and General Sherman. (It has since been indicated that the letter was not written by Vanzetti himself but in collaboration with a journalist – but it is still quite a moving letter.)
The film is interesting in view of what was to happen within a few short years in the United States, the establishment of the Iron Curtain, the fear of communism, the House of Un- American Activities, Mc Carthyism and the establishing of the black list. This film could not have been made ten years later.
As a romantic comedy, it is a good vehicle for Henry Fonda – especially his delivery of the letter and the final speech about freedom of thought in the United States. Olivia de Havilland is very different from her role in Gone With The Wind. Jack Carson is exuberant. He represents the non-intellectual or anti-intellectual bias of American universities with the trustees thinking building a stadium and winning football competitions more important than learning.
1. The impact of the film in 1942? As a comedy, romance? The serious issues of freedom of thought? Anti-communism?
2. Warner Bros production values, the black and white photography, the university campus? The musical score? The use of Jerome Kern’s song, Who – and the reflections by the characters on the song and lyrics?
3. The title, Ellen Turner’s comment at the end about men, the male animal, and the behaviour of her husband?
4. The romantic comedy: Henry Fonda as the serious and sometimes absentminded professor? Olivia de Havilland as his vivacious wife? Their interactions, her birthday, the preparation of the party, his forgetting her birthday? The guests and the interactions? The visit to the dean and the raising of serious issues? The party, the football behaviour – and the professor taking the cup from Joe’s hand when he was demonstrating a move? The falling out between husband and wife? The jealousy as Joe took Ellen for the celebrations? His drinking, becoming ill? His attendance at the rally and not standing up? His discussions with Michael Barnes? The return home, the sorting out of the issues? Ellen: her vivacity, her birthday, with Cleota and the preparation of the dinner? Her not wanting Tommy to be serious, wanting him to give up reading the letter? Her past love for Joe, enjoying his company, the dancing, the kiss, going out with him? Her being upset with Tommy?
5. Joe, the football champion, his return, exuberance? His coming with Wally, Wally sitting in between Ellen and Joe, getting rid of him? Joe and the head of the trustees? Reminiscences, the football passes? Demonstrating the Statue of Liberty pass? His dancing with Ellen, the kiss, taking her out? Bringing her home, his matchmaking help at the end? Separation from his wife – and calling her?
6. Patricia, her relationship with Michael, disappointed with him, in the window when he was being reprimanded by the dean? Falling down? Her dating Wally? The romantic young people at university? Wally, football, a bit thick?
7. Michael Barnes, serious, editing the magazine, his editorial, his stances? His talking with Tommy, drinking? The reading of the letter, his vindication?
8. The dean, forty-two years’ teaching, subservient? Reading out the editorial? The condemnation of the faculty? The domination of the trustees? His taking a stance, his wife at the dinner? Vindicated?
9. Ed Keller, loudmouthed, the trustees, sport, hunting Reds, dismissing people? Bull-headed? Unthinking? His reaction against Tommy, threatening him, coming to the talk, his behaviour?
10. Cleota, Hattie McDaniel? as the maid – and her wisecracks?
11. The build-up to the class, everybody turning up, Tommy and his presentation, reading Vanzetti’s letter, people being moved? Joe not thinking it was bad? Everybody lifting up Tommy, Ellen, the dean? And the happy ending?
12. A film of 1942 – not being able to be made in 1952?
