by Frank Calvillo
Twilight Time honors the great Jane Fonda by ushering in two of her most indelible roles to Blu-ray for the first time. The western comedy Cat Ballou and the political thriller Julia may be as far apart as any two movies can be, yet they each capture the unmatched energy and gusto that Fonda has always managed to bring to the screen. The two films were made at decidedly differing periods in the actress’s career. However, both titles represent the sort of screen heroine Fonda spent so many years cultivating to perfection: the brave woman who is willing to go to the ends of the earth and stomp over any law to fight for something she believes in her heart to be true.
Cat Ballou
In Cat Ballou, Fonda plays the titular character, a recently-graduated young woman returning to her hometown and to her father’s ranch to begin a career as a schoolteacher. However, when her father is murdered as a result of conflicts with the railroad, she enlists the help of a notorious, drunken gunslinger named Shelleen (Lee Marvin) to help her seek revenge. Accompanied by a pair of outlaws (Dwayne Hickman and Michael Callan) and her father’s Native American ranch hand Jackson (Tom Nardini), Cat Ballou transforms herself from proper schoolteacher to sought after criminal.
From the get go, the bright, vibrant colors and presentation of the main titles set the stage for a light-hearted romp with some real heart to it as well. There’s an ongoing device of two balladeers (Nat King Cole and Stubby Kaye) popping up and breaking the fourth wall as they sing to the audience about the events taking place. These moments are so fun and well done thanks to the talent of the performers and some great tongue-in-cheek-lyrics. Cat Ballou has a somewhat scrappily put together sort of feel which works with the frenetic slapstick pace here. The fight at the barn dance is so wildly out of control and good fun to watch, with everyone literally fighting everybody else. Meanwhile, the train robbery remains the film’s main set piece and still garners laughs thanks to its highly farcical nature. It’s over half an hour before Marvin’s character is introduced into the film, but he commands the screen from the moment he shows up until the movie’s finale. The actor’s first scene as Shelleen, in which he explains his worth as a gunslinger despite being labeled a drunk by Cat, shows why the Oscar he won for the role was very much deserved.
As for Fonda, Cat Ballou represents for many her first truly memorable film role. At this point in her career, the actress was stuck in a variety of ingenue roles in a handful of enjoyable, if slightly throwaway, comedies as a result of being under contract to Columbia Pictures. While it may be incredibly animated, it’s hard to ignore the definite feminist take on the traditional western female stereotype that Cat represents. The scene in which her father dies and sees her deciding to take charge and get revenge after realizing the town officials are against her is powerful, especially when she so defiantly states, “They’ll never make me cry.” Fonda’s performance and the role rises far above the type of stuff she was offered during this period, begging the question: Why wasn’t she allowed to share in the kind of Oscar glory that her co-star was? In her hands, Cat’s transition from aspiring schoolteacher to notorious outlaw is a conviction-filled thrill to watch.
The Package
Lee and Pamela: A Love Story sees Marvin’s widow Pamela talk about the actor’s beginnings, family background, their long courtship, and the life they shared together. While it doesn’t offer that much of an insight into the actor’s career, it still works as a loving and fitting tribute. Meanwhile, The Legend of Cat Ballou is a 2000 interview with director Elliot Silverstein about his experience making the film. He has nothing but good things to say about working with Marvin (his dream casting choice) and Fonda (whom he describes as a pro) as well as the rest of the cast, which he took great pains in selecting. Silverstein describes trying to reign in Marvin’s broad comic turn before finally giving up, the methods he used to create the film’s various action sequences, and what inspired him to add the singing narrators.
Two commentary tracks accompany this release of Cat Ballou. The first featuring Hickman and Callan and is chock full with many great anecdotes about the filming experience, as well as them talking about their own connection to one another in the industry during that time. The second track has film historians Eddie Friedfeld, Lee Pfeiffer, and Paul Scrabo and is full of analysis regarding the various production aspects of the film, its influence, and its lasting legacy.
Julia
Coming from a short story by Lillian Hellman (which she claimed to be based on true events), Julia tells the story of Hellman (Fonda), who, when the film opens, is a struggling playwright living with famed writer Dashiell Hammett (Jason Robards). Upon hearing that her best friend from childhood Julia (Vanessa Redgrave) has encountered trouble due to the rise of Nazi-ism while living in Vienna, Lillian spends years trying to track her down, while at the same time making a name for herself as a successful playwright. When Julia contacts Lillian through a messenger with a mission to sneak funds for the resistance into Germany, she agrees to help her best friend, even if it means risking her life.
Julia came at the tail end of the great ’70s era of filmmaking, and it shows. This is such a well-made film from every angle. The cinematography, costumes, and production design all rival anything being made today, but it’s the way director Fred Zinnemann’s film flows which makes it so compelling and memorable. There’s such a great mix of quieter moments between characters and action-driven scenes of political strife. Case in point, the scene showing Julia and Lillian giggling and sharing a drink by the fire on New Year’s Eve juxtaposed with the Nazi mob scene at the university where the former is studying. The chronology of events and their presentation is all over the place with major happenings take place in the blink of an eye. This is such a brilliant move as it makes those scenes feel like an honest recollection of memories, rather than a straight retelling of events. Meanwhile, the mystery/thriller aspect is incredibly solid, and the filmmakers make sure we are with Lillian every step of the way, gathering pieces of information at the same time she does. Julia also makes sure to pay homage to the fearless men and women who acted as part of Germany’s resistance with a realistic look into what they risked.
Plenty of time is devoted to Lillian’s frustration of not being able to make it as a playwright as well as the relationship with fame, success, and Hammett. Yet Julia remains, first and foremost, a love story between two friends. The film shows how deep and true a friendship can go and hold on in spite of larger-than-life forces trying to tear it apart. The scene where Lillian visits Julia in the hospital following the mob attack is so magnetic simply because of the two friends’ undeniable connection to one another. The friendship that exists between these two women never feels anything but real and honest, and whatever horrors are taking place around them simply vanish when they are in each other’s spaces, as if they’re existing in a world which only includes them. Nowhere is this more than true than in the film’s climactic scene in the cafe, which seems to transcend the many dangers of the mission, and everything else, good and bad, that has happened to these two women in each other’s absence.
The Package
Julia comes with a really fascinating commentary featuring Fonda and Twilight Time’s Nick Redman which begins with Fonda clearing up the misconception that she helped put together the project. The legendary actress speaks enthusiastically about Hellman, addresses the rumor of the story’s accuracy, talks about Zinnemann’s preference of rehearsal over camera takes as well as his other various filmmaking techniques, and the experience of shooting in Vienna. There’s a discussion about celebrity and activism as well as the actress’s storied career. Fonda also talks about her continued friendship with Redgrave and gets emotional during the final scene between the two. Redman asks all the right questions throughout, while also pointing out some of the film’s best qualities, from the visual to the ideological. When Redman asks Fonda to relay his admiration of Redgrave’s work to her, Fonda casually states, “I’ll email her.”
The Lowdown
Cat Ballou is a wonderfully fun romp that also packs a lot of power as a western thanks to a story full of great twists and turns, while Julia is a story about the power of friendship, its ability to endure, and how far a person is willing to venture and sacrifice for it. Both Cat Ballou and Julia are now available on Blu-ray from Twilight Time.
