Sullivan’s Travels (1942)

Joel McCrea (Ride the High Country) stars as a successful young film director who makes formula pictures and is frankly tired of the lightweight musicals and comedies - "with a little sex," the producer is quick to add.

Sullivan wants to document the plight of the unwashed and make pictures of relevance despite the fact that his producers tell him they won't sell. Not only that, they point out that he doesn't know what hardship is, so how could he tell about it? With that in mind, he decides to go out on the tramp, dressed as a hobo, with only a dime in his pocket.

The movie goes through several scenes showing with increasing comedy that Sullivan (McCrea) can't even get out of Hollywood. Every time he leaves, somehow he gets a ride back.

The first scene is a classic. Sullivan is shown tramping down the road in classic hobo attire, right down to the stick with the little bundle hanging over his shoulder. The camera pans back and we see him being shadowed by a deluxe motor home with his full staff eagerly observing him, complete with reporters. The thing is decked out like a streamliner train with dining room with chef and a wait staff who serve smoking hot pancakes on silver platters with white linen.

Sullivan hitches a ride from a kid in a hot rod and leads the motor home on a merry chase over the back roads and hills. The interior of the motor home gets trashed in a scene that could have been lifted from the Three Stooges - absolutely hilarious slapstick comedy. Some may be peeved at the racial overtones as the chef is black and ends up being the butt of much of the physical comedy, ending up with a face full of pancake batter.

Veronica Lake (This Gun for Hire) turns out to be in the diner where Sullivan's latest ride drops him off - back in Hollywood. Even though she is a hard luck case herself, she takes pity on him and buys him eggs. He calls for his car and takes her back to his mansion and shows her around and tells her about his project. She wants to go along and won’t take "no" for an answer. Now Sullivan and his frail go out with the real hoboes and see how the other half lives. Of course they are never too far from their back up crew in the motor home. There is a decent mix of comedy and drama till the end of the movie, with Sullivan finally finding out what he wants to know.

The acting is good, but some of the comedy seems forced, with Veronica Lake providing a pretty girl in her first big screen appearance. Joel McCrea is right at home as Sullivan. I didn’t like the running joke with him with his hay fever sneezing without covering his nose. I thought it was gross. Supporting cast is good, with many familiar faces including William Demarest.

Preston Sturges directed and he has a good flair for comedy and satire. Sullivan’s Travels was disappointing at the box office but has gained stature through the years. I think it’s a good example of a well made comedy but I’m not ready to put it in the top 100 list as some reviewers are.

The movie has some acidic, and perhaps unconscious subtext: Sullivan realizes he has no business making movies about real social ills and should stick to comedy, just like his producers told him. The public wants to laugh, not cry.

Cinematography is first class, as it should be, with cinematographer John Seitz, who has Double Indemnity, The Lost Weekend, and Sunset Boulevard on his resume.

The DVD is from the Criterion Collection. The 90 minute movie is presented in flawless black and white, in the correct 1.37:1 academy format. You can see thin black bars at the top and bottom of your screen. The disk has many extra features including a 75 minute featurette about John Sturges and his movies; a full length commentary by several film buffs, production stills, an interview or two; a theatrical trailer, and several subtitle and language choices.

More good old-fashioned comedies -
It Happened One Night
Ninotchka

Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Video Occasion: Good Date Movie