The greatest movie ever made..!

A Major Disappointment

The film was still a fun one that will make you laugh and have you leaving the theater feeling like you just stole something valuable and got away with it.

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

Katharine Hepburn reunites with two of her favorite men in film, director George Cukor and offscreen honeybun Spencer Tracy, in this political noir thriller. It was Kate and George's sixth film together and Kate's second film with Spence. In the follow up to the extremely well-received Woman of the Year, everything is a disappointment.In the film, Kate's husband has died and the nation mourns the loss of one of their favorite war heroes. There's a gang of reporters who are anxious to write an inside scoop of the man's life, but Kate won't see any of them. Spencer Tracy, a very famous reporter, literally hikes through the back woods and a waterfall to sneak into her home and ambush her. All the while, there's an underlying mystery that isn't particularly interesting or suspenseful; Kate and the household staff keep trying to hide some sort of secret about her husband's past. Kate herself thought the plot was boring, so if you start to nod off, don't feel too bad.My mom has a theory that actors do an impeccable job if you can't think of anyone else who could have played the part as well. Well, as Keeper of the Flame was playing, in order to keep ourselves awake, my mom and I kept coming up with alternatives to the cast: Loretta Young, Rosalind Russell, Cary Grant, Fred MacMurray—the list goes on. My point is that neither actor, even though they looked convincingly in love with each other, added anything special to their roles. Half the time, Spencer Tracy wore such a terrible glare it looked like he was about to murder his costars.On a sad note, Van Johson was on his way to see the film when he was involved in a terrible car accident that left him permanently scarred. They were in the middle of filming A Guy Named Joe, and Spencer Tracy and Irene Dunne threatened to quit if Van was replaced during his convalescence. A lifelong friendship was born.

During the war years, the theme of fascism trying to get a hold in America is depicted in this film.An American hero dies in a car accident,and in trying to write about his life, reporter Spencer Tracy discovers some very interesting but troubling facts about the man, Robert Forrest. Along the way, he has to deal with the man's mysterious wife, Katharine Hepburn.Darryl Hickman is effective as the child who cries and whines about not being able to warn the guy about the weakness of the washed out bridge where the crash occurred.The film often is brooding and is hurt by the fact that it basically takes place at the mansion where the deceased lived with his wife.Richard Whorf steals the show as the fascist's secretary, willing to commit mayhem to silence those discovering what has been going on.

Keeper of the Flame (1942)*** (out of 4) Deeply involving drama has an American hero getting killed in a car accident and while the country mourns his death a reporter (Spencer Tracy) goes to his home to try and tell his life story. When the reporter finally meets the widow (Katharine Hepburn) he starts to realize that there's a mysterious truth behind the man's legend that might go against everything he stood for. I'm not sure why this film doesn't get more credit when people discuss the various films with Tracy and Hepburn but I found the movie to be very involving and contain quite a bit of suspense. The film was clearly influenced by Citizen Kane and this is easy to see in the film's look and atmosphere. The movie is incredibly dark and I really can't recall one scene that takes place with any light. The cinematography really captures the moody settings and the visual style is certainly very impressive. Tracy is his usual self in that he gives another wonderful and intense performance. Tracy is one of my favorite actors because you can read so much into just by watching his face and here the intensity in his face is great to watch. Hepburn is also wonderful in her role and when she finally reveals all the secrets towards the end, it's among the best I've seen her in any movie. I think the film has some flaws including the whole mystery aspect that takes too long to reveal. I think the film would have been better had some hints been dropped throughout the film but instead they are all held for the end. Even with that flaw, this is still a highly entertaining film that deserves more credit than it gets.

It was Thursday evening and "CSI"s on 'CBS' at 9 p.m. PDT. And there's a Spencer Tracy & Katharine Hepburn drama on 'TCM' (7 p.m.). One I haven't seen. It's "Keeper of the Flame" (1942) and I've considered watching it. The description looked pretty darn good but will the timing work out?Tracy portrays Steve O'Malley a journalist who is assigned to write a biography of a beloved war hero who was accidentally killed in an auto-running-off-the-bridge accident. Katharine Hepburn is the Widow Forrest who has learned much about her deceased husband. At first stand-offish, Christine doesn't want to help Steve write the biography. Her reasons are unknown. With as many odd and unusual people in the drama questions are popping up all over. O'Malley, being the excellent journalist he is, has began to figure out things are not what they seem. Why? If you get a chance you must see it. The ending has quite the twist.Oh, BTW, the timing was great...So was the movie