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Amazon.co.uk Review
Instead of capitulating, Sullivan sets off disguised as a tramp, ready to meet life's crueler lessons face-to-face--albeit followed at a discreet distance by a motor home filled with studio handlers and reporters. His ludicrous odyssey may give the boy director no real insight, but it gives Sturges the chance to inject some reliably fine gags and a romantic subplot featuring the luminous Veronica Lake. It's at this juncture that Sturges the writer's darker objective throws a jolting shift in tone. Suffice it to say that just when a comic, upbeat denouement seems imminent, Sullivan travels instead from the sunlit California of the comedy's early reels toward a darker, relentlessly downbeat world influenced more by the social realism of the movies the hero desperately wants to make. By the final reel, Sturges has flirted with real tragedy, turning his conclusion into a meditation on his own seemingly carefree, dizzily comic art. --Sam Sutherland
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
28 of 33 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
"There's a lot to be said for making people laugh.",
By Steven Y. "Pop Culture Addict" (Marvel Universe 616) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Sullivan's Travels [DVD] (DVD)
Preston Sturges' "Sullivan's Travels" is a film about a great deal many things. Yet, despite its pointed commentary on the social and economic ills inherent in American society, its core message is an important one - people should never underestimate the important role laughter plays in their everyday lives. Film director John Sullivan (Joel McCrea) tells his studio bosses that he has grown tired of making comedies and wants to direct a project with more substance. He comes up with a plan to pose as a vagrant in order to learn first-hand how the real world treats the less fortunate. After he comes back from his masquerade, Sullivan plans to use his experiences to make an important and socially-conscious new work. A young, struggling actress (Veronica Lake) joins him on his journey but Sullivan's plans go awry when a strange series of circumstances leads to his imprisonment. "Sullivan's Travels" sometimes feels like it is biting off more than it can chew. Sturges uses Sullivan's 90-minute cinematic trek to comment upon the economic and artistic conflicts present in the Hollywood system, the plight of the downtrodden, and the troubling problems that exist in the American justice and prison systems. Trying to cover so much ground proves disorienting as the story oftentimes abruptly changes its focus. However, "Sullivan's Travels" nonetheless mostly succeeds in its multi-tasking endeavor and turns out to be both an entertaining and thought-provoking viewing experience. McCrea is perfectly cast in the lead role and Veronica Lake oozes with screen presence in every frame she occupies. Chalk up "Sullivan's Travels" as a journey that was well worth taking.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Simple, amusing , effective and fun,
By
This review is from: Sullivan's Travels [DVD] (DVD)
If you want to watch a film that keeps you amused, with a straightforward storyline, an entertainment with pathos and the stunning Veronica Lake in it ... watch this. love it.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Only one prettier person than Veronica here - that's Joel,
By Mario "At Mario's Film Cafe" (Devon UK) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Sullivan's Travels [DVD] (DVD)
This film is the most complete and accessible of all Sturges's films. Others have funnier moments although the mad chase near the start should have your stitches bursting; others are more frenetic, manic, bonkers etc. This is the only one'll make you weep a little so really it's anomalous if you want pure satire. There's a modernity of sensibility about Sturges which impresses compared to much of the stuff which doesn't date well from the period. Joel is a great sneezer, the best in cinema that I've seen and reminds me of the Tunes advert for the bloke who wanted a 'Return dicket to Dottingham' except Joel does it really well. In fact he's better than Eddie Bracken's hayfevered Truesmith in Hail the Conquering Hero, although he's pretty good too. The wit is just immense and Veronica Lake is like your Daddy told you she was - enchanting. There are always black characters in Sturges too. That sounds pretty patronizing but the scenes in the church where the 'decent' black community play host to the filthy prison inmates who are (this bit is clearly 'in the south') 'less fortunate than ourselves' is very knowing and underlines the liberal yet non-wishy-washy sentiments he seems to espouse.
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