In this adaptation of William Saroyan's award-winning play The Time of Your Life, James Cagney plays a gentle barfly named Joe who settles in Nick's (William Bendix) Bar with various colorful characters like an imaginative old cowboy or a tap dancing comic who can't get laughs. His sister Jeanne plays Kitty Duval, a woman who claims to once have been in burlesque. She and her brother have some of the most touching scenes in the movie. The pace takes a while to get used to but if you're in the mood for something optimistically offbeat, The Time of Your Life should be up your alley.
Reviewer:
criminaljusticeprofessorgettingold
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January 15, 2022 Subject:
Lessons for Would Be Detectives and Film Buffs
Facts: The Time of Your Life opened on Broadway just three weeks after the invasion of Poland by Nazi Germany in 1939. It is a five-act play by American
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playwright William Saroyan. The play is the first drama to win both the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and the New York Drama Critics Circle Award. It had an off and on run of 249 performances during 139-1940 with later revivals both on and off Broadway. On Broadway, the role of the young dancer and comedy character (Harry) was performed by Gene Kelly. The play is set in Nick's Pacific Street Saloon, Restaurant and Entertainment Palace, a “dive bar” in San Francisco. Aside from its entertainment value (and I would rate this film a solid “B+” in this regard, the film, not the Broadway play!), as a getting older and retired criminal justice professor I can say that this abridged Saroyan movie play is rather ideal for teaching preservice and serving law enforcement officers various skills related to paying attention to crime scene details. The film is in black and white and almost entirely takes place in a large one room space. These circumstances should help and some police entry civil service exams actually feature b & w photos whose details have to be quickly memorized and then the candidate has to answer a number of questions about the photo. Anyone interested in detective work might have fun answering the following “pop quiz.” The questions are based on the events in the film. Please have fun! 1. There are at least two felonious crimes committed and several minor crimes committed. Try to identify these crimes and their perpetrators. 2. There are two or three scenes where the same member of the San Francisco police force appears. His uniform appears different in each sequence. How? 3) The long bar counter is routinely shown throughout the film. What type of objects aside from liquor or beer glasses and bottles appear on this counter. 4) Several women characters appear from time to time in the film. Can you identify their roles and/or occupations? Which of the women wore hats? 5) How many times did one actor, Tom (Wayne Morris) leave the bar to run errands and make peculiar purchases for Joe (played by James Cagney)? Can you recall what he purchased and the nature of any of the errands? 6) Which characters in the film possessed a pistol in the play? (Hint it was always the same pistol.) What details can you provide about this weapon? How many times was it pointed at someone and how many times was its trigger mechanism operated? 7) Who was the most “shady” looking character(s) in the film? Provide your reasons. 8) There is a sign in the window which reads: ….. (Hint: the last scene in the movie ends with the sign being torn-up.) 9) A “dive bar” is typically a small, unglamorous, eclectic, old-style bar with inexpensive drinks, which may feature dim lighting, shabby or dated deco. Can you recall any features of the bar that fit this description? 10) The play’s time frame is 1939, World War II began in Europe on September 1, 1939, when Germany invaded Poland. Life as it was known and understood changed forever when WWII began. Are there any references to the impending war in the film? If so, describe. For more information about the film and its somewhat controversial ending (not discussed here) see: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Time_of_Your_Life_(film)
Reviewer:
editorterry
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February 9, 2014 Subject:
Kissing the Jack Warners Goodbye.
Without a big studio behind him, Mr. Cagney was a flop. Same thing happened to Frank Capra. And William Saroyan used to be a better than average writer
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until everyone started calling him a genius, then he had to fill those shoes. The best thing about this picture is that it was a screen test for Bill Bendix's comic abilities. Jeanne Cagney was rather pretty in a sullen way. See her in the PD "Quicksand" with Mickey Rooney and Peter Lorre.
Reviewer:
rivercritter
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December 18, 2011 Subject:
Cagney Is Saroyan's THE TIME OF YOUR LIFE
In 1948 I was busy being born, arrived in the spring. This movie springs off that era with a play writer's view on a movie set. But this set is really
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the one and only scene, so it does the script incredible justice. The characters are lively, but also sweet as the baby's butt that I was back then. It represents a time of innocence in our history. Yet it touches on the multiple themes of hurt between people. Well worth watching!
Reviewer:
Dark Moon
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May 2, 2011 Subject:
Watch this
...and then read the Callahan's Crosstime Saloon stories
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by Spider Robinson. After that, sit in a quiet place for a while and meditate on human nature, and see if you don't wind up shaking your head, too. ;)
This is probably the strangest and most rarely seen film in the Cagney collection. Based on a one set stage play it is pleasant enough but doesn't really
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work as a movie. Cagney hardly moves from his chair until the last five minutes! With some well known faces in minor supporting roles the film is one for collectors of movie oddities.One nice touch- Cagney saying that he couldn't dance!
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