Immortal Blacksmith, The (1944)
*** (out of 4)
Another entry in John Nesbitt's Passing Parade series, which took a look at important people who many might have forgotten. This episode takes a look at Tom Davenport (Chill Wills), a poor blacksmith who wound up buying an electric magnet, which eventually led to the first electric motor. This series is quickly becoming one of my favorites due to how well made the films are and how interesting the actual stories are. As with most bios, I'm sure many liberties are taken with the stories but I really don't mind that because of how well told they are here. One big difference in this entry is that the actors get to speak their own dialogue. Most of the times you had Nesbitt's narration being the only thing you heard but that's cut down this time out and we get to see some of the acting. Wills, a character actor, does a very good job here and really captures ones heart with his uneducated, down to earth performance. The supporting players are very good as well and we get Nesbitt doing a good job on the narration he does do. The story itself is one I hadn't heard about before so it was certainly educational and kept me entertained.
*** (out of 4)
Another entry in John Nesbitt's Passing Parade series, which took a look at important people who many might have forgotten. This episode takes a look at Tom Davenport (Chill Wills), a poor blacksmith who wound up buying an electric magnet, which eventually led to the first electric motor. This series is quickly becoming one of my favorites due to how well made the films are and how interesting the actual stories are. As with most bios, I'm sure many liberties are taken with the stories but I really don't mind that because of how well told they are here. One big difference in this entry is that the actors get to speak their own dialogue. Most of the times you had Nesbitt's narration being the only thing you heard but that's cut down this time out and we get to see some of the acting. Wills, a character actor, does a very good job here and really captures ones heart with his uneducated, down to earth performance. The supporting players are very good as well and we get Nesbitt doing a good job on the narration he does do. The story itself is one I hadn't heard about before so it was certainly educational and kept me entertained.