Joan Blondell & Roland Young in "Topper Returns" (1941) - feat. Eddie “Rochester” Anderson скачать в хорошем качестве

Joan Blondell & Roland Young in "Topper Returns" (1941) - feat. Eddie “Rochester” Anderson

Wealthy heiress Ann Carrington (Carole Landis) and her best friend Gail Richards (Joan Blondell) are riding in a fast taxi driven by Bob (Dennis O’Keefe) when a figure in black shoots out a rear tire. The cab overturns near a seaside cliff. Bob gets the women out and runs for help. Stranded, Ann and Gail try hitchhiking, finally forcing a stop by planting their suitcases in the road. The car belongs to banker Cosmo Topper (Roland Young) and is driven by chauffeur Eddie (Eddie “Rochester” Anderson). The girls pile in and insist on being taken to the Carrington mansion, with Gail perched on Topper’s lap to his embarrassment. As they pass Topper’s house, Mrs. Clara Topper (Billie Burke) sees the tableau and fumes. At the cliffside mansion next door, Ann and Gail are received by a creepy staff, including butler Rama (Trevor Bardette) and housekeeper Lillian (Rafaela Ottiano). Ann’s father explains that tomorrow is Ann’s twenty-first birthday and, per her late mother’s will, she will inherit control of the fortune. Ann is given the grand bedroom and Gail an Oriental-themed one; after Gail complains, they swap rooms. That night a secret panel opens and the masked intruder enters, stabbing Gail by mistake. Gail’s ghost rises and goes straight to Topper, begging him to help solve her murder. Eddie can’t see her, but as Topper dashes out he is spooked by invisible voices, opening doors, and phantom footprints, and vows to quit. Topper, guided by Ghost-Gail, finds the body and tries to call police, but Dr. Jeris appears with a gun and the servants crowd in. When Topper insists on showing them the corpse, it has vanished, making him look insane. Ann arrives; the killer appears again, Ann glimpses him in a mirror and screams, and Bob rushes in as the black figure escapes. Detective Roberts questions everyone, but the case is muddled by Ghost-Gail’s tricks. Lillian begins to talk, admitting she helped with deceptions, when the lights go out and she disappears. A hidden chain in the fireplace triggers a chair to tip backward and dump its occupant down a vertical shaft. Topper deduces the killer stood closest to the fireplace: Mr. Carrington. Carrington flees by car, with Ghost-Gail commandeering Topper’s sports car to follow. Carrington crashes into a tree, dies, and returns as a ghost. Ghost-Gail thanks Eddie for his help; Ghost-Carrington apologizes for dumping him in the water, and Eddie bolts so fast he passes the Toppers’ car. In panic. A 1941 American Black & White fantasy screwball comedy fantasy mystery directed by Roy Del Ruth, produced by Hal Roach, screenplay by Jonathan Latimer and Gordon Douglas, additional dialogue by Paul Gerard Smith, cinematography by Norbert Brodine, starring Joan Blondell, Roland Young, Carole Landis, Billie Burke, Dennis O'Keefe, Patsy Kelly, H. B. Warner, Eddie "Rochester" Anderson, George Zucco, Donald MacBrid, Rafaela Ottiano, Trevor Bardette, George Lloyd, Brick Sullivan, William O'Brian, and Eddy Chandler. Released by United Artists. Eddie (played by Eddie 'Rochester' Anderson) says that he's going back to "Mr. Benny". The reference is to Jack Benny, on whose radio and television programs Anderson played Rochester, Jack Benny's driver. This would imply that the character actually IS Rochester, but evidently they couldn't legally use that name, so they use his real name instead. When Gail says, "Just like the Pot O' Gold program", she is referring to the popular radio show that was on NBC from September 1939 to December 1941. The premise was whoever answered the phone from a number chosen at random would win $1,000. Of course calling random numbers out of the phone book would result in a lot of calls not being answered. Topper's car is a 1936 Mercedes SSK. This was an exotic (and expensive) car from the era. Mercedes ended manufacture of the model in 1941. The crashed cab is a 1936 De Soto, Movie fans recognize this as a common taxi used in films of that time, ergo the De Soto Cab Company. The script was co-written by murder-mystery novelist Jonathan Latimer. He also wrote some of the better Peter Falk Columbo episodes in the 1970s. The third and final installment in the initial series of supernatural comedy films inspired by the novels of Thorne Smith, it succeeds "Topper" (1937) and "Topper Takes a Trip" (1938). The film was nominated for the Academy Awards for Best Special Effects (Roy Seawright and Elmer Raguse) and Best Sound Recording (Elmer Raguse). A TV series, "Topper", premiered in 1953 and ran for two seasons. Roland Young is for many viewers the definitive Topper but the later TV Topper, Leo G. Carroll, did a fine job too. A pilot called "Topper Returns" (1973) was later made for a proposed TV series. There was also a made-for-TV remake, "Topper", in 1979. An excellent dark house comedy/mystery. Possibly the best in the Topper trilogy. It mixes comedy with horror rather well for its time, with suspense until the end. A delight and not to be missed.