Strong and Moving!

It's a movie as timely as it is provocative and amazingly, for much of its running time, it is weirdly funny.

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

Rio de Janeiro: City of Splendour (1936) ** (out of 4) A rather bland entry in MGM's TravelTalks series with James A. FitzPatrick. This time out we visit Rio de Janeiro where we see some famous palm trees, Sugarloaf Mountains and various other landmarks and how they've changed over the years. The beauty of the Technicolor is the main reason to watch this film as the colors leap off the screen but outside of that this is a pretty bland entry. The narration is also rather bland but the biggest problem is that nothing we see is all that special. Most of these shorts at least have a few moments that really make your eyes drop but I never got that feeling here. That's not to say there's nothing good in Rio but this short just doesn't capture it.

A rather ordinary Traveltalk from James A. Fitzpatrick about Rio de Janeiro, described as one of the most beautiful cities in the world.The emphasis, of course, is on the beautiful mosaic patterns on the sidewalks; the numerous parks and fountains; the Royal palm trees; and the smart shops that comprise the bustling metropolis of Rio. The city began the turnover from old to new during the period from 1902-06.But still, the most imposing sight is the outstanding landmark--Sugarloaf Mountain. Replicas of it are shown on various ornamental objects for the tourist trade--as are the colorful butterfly specimens that appear on much of the art work.An interesting glimpse at a beautiful city.

An MGM TRAVELTALK Short Subject.Sailing in under striking Sugar Loaf Mountain, this film introduces us to RIO DE JANEIRO, CITY OF SPLENDOUR. We visit some of the beautiful parks & gorgeous beaches, as well as view the intriguingly intricate patterned sidewalks. Finally, we are shown examples of the butterfly industry, in which tiny bits of the luminescent wings are glued together on glass to form pictures - the perfect souvenir of Rio.This is one of a large series of succinct travelogues turned out by MGM, beginning in the 1930's. They featured Technicolor views of beautiful & unusual sights around the globe, as well as vivid, concise narration. These films were produced & narrated by James A. FitzPatrick.