The John Garfield Story (2003)

Good concept, poorly executed.

From my favorite movies..

a film so unique, intoxicating and bizarre that it not only demands another viewing, but is also forgivable as a satirical comedy where the jokes eventually take the back seat.

Very good movie overall, highly recommended. Most of the negative reviews don't have any merit and are all pollitically based. Give this movie a chance at least, and it might give you a different perspective.

This is a biography of John Garfield that was made by Turner Entertainment. It talks about the life and career of John Garfield. It also, towards the end, talks about his problems during the Red Scare, as his left-wing politics were an excuse to hound him about communism. The film consisted of many interviews--most notably his youngest daughter--who really didn't know her father that well, as she was awfully young when he died at age 39. What a loss.The film was well-made and entertaining. Interesting and filled with many interesting facts and anecdotes. My only complaint, and it's a small one, is that the film was so short. But, so was his life...so perhaps this is fitting.By the way, if you wonder about Garfield's wife, she was alive in 2003 when the film came out but was suffering from Alzheimers--so she really was not available to participate in the film. She died a year later.

"The John Garfield Story" is a good look at an actor who died very young and under the cloud of the blacklist. The sections concerning the actor's personal life were most interesting to me, since I knew very little about it. Garfield's story is narrated by his daughter, the actress/teacher Julie Garfield. There was another daughter who died from a massive allergy attack as a child.The documentary covers Garfield's early days as Jacob Garfinkle, whom his family called Julie and who later billed himself as Jules, and how at a school for problem kids his dramatic and boxing skills were honed with the help of the head of the school. It goes into his early theater work, and how he took a contract at Warners after losing out to Luther Adler as "Golden Boy," a play specifically written for him by Clifford Odets. He was evidently considered too green for the role by the Group Theater and actually didn't play the lead until 1952, when his Hollywood career was over.Garfield's star rose quickly - he was a handsome tough guy who gave honest performances and was rewarded with some major films, including "The Postman Always Rings Twice," "Gentlemen's Agreement," and "Humoresque." And his star fell just as fast when the Communist witch hunt began. A liberal in his views, and one who consorted with writers, actors, and directors deemed questionable, his major sin was going to Yugoslavia during the war. He was unable to enlist because of a bad heart, and instead helped to entertain the troops. (Lee Grant ended up on the blacklist, by the way, because she attended the funeral of someone who was blacklisted.) When he was subpoenaed for the hearings and refused to name names, the last nail went into his coffin. His last film was a B picture, "He Ran All the Way." I can't agree totally with one of the posters, who claims that Garfield would have been washed up anyway. Yes, it's true, the '50s were filled with costume dramas and musicals; they were also filled with angry young men for whom he was the prototype - James Dean, Marlon Brando, Rod Steiger, and Paul Newman, to name a few - and surely Garfield could have successfully continued to work in and produce movies. The stage would have gotten him through the harder-to-cast middle-aged years until "The Godfather," and there's no doubt his later career as a character actor would have been very rich. But there's no use speculating.If you don't know much about Garfield - and I didn't - you will find this a fascinating look at his career and life. But watch a little more closely, and you'll realize also that he was undoubtedly a lot more complicated than this documentary shows.

This is a very well-made documentary focusing on the life and career of popular 40's actor John Garfield. Garfield was way ahead of his time- a very natural actor who paved the way for Method actors like Newman and Brando in acting style and presence.Lots of great footage here and discussion of Garfield's films- this is a very detailed documentary that really gives the viewer insight into the man himself. It's tragic that Garfield died of a heartache when he was only 40- this was a terrible blow to the American cinema. Before his death, he was being earmarked for the role of Stanley Kolwalski in 'A Streetcar Named Desire'. We'll never know now how he would have went compared to Brando, but it's fair to say he would have turned in a darn good performance in his own right.His daughter Julie narrates this doco that tells of the primary reason why Garfield died so young- he was basically hounded into an early grave by the HUAC commission through blacklisting and continual pressure.He left our world far, far too young.

I just want to say that I was so happy to see TCM do a special on John Garfield. My only complaint is that it only lasted an hour! John Garfield was the very first anti-hero. He paved the way for all who came after him...from James Dean and Marlon Brando to todays actors. Todays fans do not know who he is, and that is a shame. They are missing out on true quality acting. TCM did a great job summarizing his life and films. And I was pleased to see Julie Garfield, his daughter, commenting throughout the special. Bravo TCM!!