More Than Just A Pretty Face

Hollywood has always worshipped at the altar of beauty. The new phenomenon of bikini-clad actresses posing for the covers of men's lifestyle magazines , is only the latest in an escalating series of publicity efforts going back to the silent era. The more salaciously repressed times we live in demand that our stars display themselves in as wantonly a manner, as conservative society will allow. The sexual freedom of decades past has given way to sleazy voyeurism, on newsstands, on the internet and on the television. The starlets of the golden era of cinema also had to display their wares, albeit more modestly, with some being forever prisoners of their glamorous studio-built images. It is then all the more remarkable when these women were able to, on occasion, exceed the audiences perceptions of them by delivering a great performance.The following are five DVDs that reveal the talent hidden behind Hollywood's glamorous facade.

Only Angels Have Wings (1938) Rita Hayworth's first major role before she became a pin-up star, had her cast opposite cynical pilot Cary Grant and trouser-wearing ex-showgirl Jean Arthur. Hayworth had yet to receive the physical make-over that would transform her into the fantasy figure that she remains, but her beauty was already in evidence as was her dramatic talent. A relative neophyte, she more than holds her own with Grant, now exhibiting a mature stillness that was lacking in his previous energetically youthful performances. Regrettably, this would be Rita's last role that demanded talent over beauty until her middle-aged appearance dictated otherwise.

City for Conquest (1940) Ann Sheridan was sold to the public as "The Oomph Girl" but her striking looks masked an honest emotional range that served her well opposite frequent co-star James Cagney. Beloved in real-life for her earthy warmth and forthright charm, Sheridan excelled at portraying women who protected their tender inclinations with an assertive and street-wise persona. As an aspiring dancer who leaves prize-fighter Cagney due to his emotional immaturity, Sheridan is able to simultaneously engage our sympathies for her predicament as she struggles with career and relationships. Her own film career would last only a dozen or so more years but she had made peace with her image long before, and enjoyed a fulfilling social life that continued after her feature-film career had faded.

Leave Her To Heaven (1945) One year after starring in the noir classic Laura, Gene Tierney gave her greatest performance as the psychopathic wife of writer Cornel Wilde in this technicolor masterpiece. Tierney's early roles as the delicate victim, did not prepare the public for her startling transformation into a ruthless and conniving femme fatale. With help from the lush Oscar-winning cinematography by Leon Shamroy, Tierney uses her exquisite china doll veneer to hide all manner of dark schemes and emotional manipulations. It is the quintessential portrayal of dangerous beauty and evidence of a dramatic range that Tierney was unable to exploit in her subsequent films.

Don't Bother To Knock (1952) The iconic sexuality of Marilyn Monroe is one the 20th Century's most enduring images, yet before she was a sex symbol there lurked a serious student of acting technique. This film was her first starring role and depended on the ability of the young actress to give a performance of such complexity, that even those who dismiss the film as a minor thriller praise Monroe's subtle and thoughtful portrayal of mental illness. Obviously drawing upon her own troubling psychological battles and those of her family, Monroe is able to make the audience care about her, while fearing the harm she may cause to herself and others. It was a memorable beginning to one of cinema's most tragic and under-appreciated talents.

The Naked Spur (1953), Petite, blonde and pretty would certainly describe Janet Leigh's young Hollywood persona and the resulting roles were a typically bland collection that allowed for little in the way of acting. By 1953 with her marriage to Tony Curtis providing constant publicity, Leigh finally got her first taste of a juicy character. Director Anthony Mann whose famous noir films defined the post war era, now wished to bring some of that genre's dark emotional undercurrents to the Western. His regular leading man for this period was James Stewart and to co-star he cast the squeaky-clean Leigh. Shorn of her long blonde locks, her face dirtied, and clothed in work shirt and jeans, this was to be the type of physical performance that she had never experienced before. Emotionally withdrawn, and sexually threatened by the villain Robert Ryan, Leigh portrays this woman of the west with a simultaneous strength and vulnerability that is physically reinforced by her small frame and deep voice. Later on in her career, the roles would get even better but this example was the first to belie her glossy studio-manufactured image.