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Reviews
Cactus Flower (1969)
This Movie Is Great Fun!
I've been playing this movie incessantly this month, and I just love it. I was around in the 60s (oh dear), so it is nostalgic in one sense. However, it's the funny premise, the snappy dialogue and the great performances that keep me watching.
Dr. Winston's reactions to Stephanie at the end of the movie are priceless. (I'd be more specific, but don't want to spoil it for anyone.) Who other than Matthau can play a man not entirely on the up-and-up and yet have us still love him? As for Bergman's costumes, I think she looks as dowdy as she's supposed to. I think "she was robbed" the one time that she appears in an evening gown. It doesn't suit her at all, which is too bad. I never liked it when I first saw it on her and I still don't.
Goldie won an Oscar for her role. People thought it was a groundbreaking performance at the time, and yet it's the one performance that I don't love as much as the others. She does have the right amount of sweetness and likability, however, which is important for this role.
And I agree - I thought Rick Lenz was great in it and it's too bad that his movie career didn't take off after this.
I hope more people watch this movie ... they'll love it!
Bringing Up Baby (1938)
The Best Screwball Comedy Ever Made!
No, it's not hyperbole; it truly is the best screwball comedy ever made. The timing is impeccable, the situations are hilarious, wonderful character actors abound and who can resist Baby and George? Katharine Hepburn and Cary Grant have great chemistry together and it is obvious that they enjoyed making this film. In my mind, Kate is less strident than in some previous films; her voice is softer and more girlish. As for Grant, I am continuously amazed at what a wonderful actor he was. Because he was so handsome, Grant was underrated as an actor; people always seemed to think he was just playing himself. If you'd like to get a better idea of his acting range, watch this movie and Notorious; those two performances couldn't be more different.
What I would love to know is how they filmed the sequence of Baby (played by the leopard, Nissa) and George (played by the terrier, Asta) playing together. It is real - no trick photography there. It is possible that Nissa grew up playing with dogs, but Asta probably never played with a leopard before in his life! They have different trainers, so it's doubtful that they grew up together. I slowed the DVD down to watch them play together, and I realized that Asta is the aggressor! He leaps on Nissa and grabs her ear ... all classic dominant dog play.
As for the "Because I just went GAY all of a sudden!" remark made by the Grant character, it's my opinion that the general public thought of the term "gay" as only meaning happy, carefree. They, and most likely the censors, never picked up on the double entendre.
This film is a must see, so grab your popcorn, sit back and enjoy!
The Mysterious Island (1929)
Early Talkie
The film is on TCM right now and I started watching it for a few minutes because it starred a fairly young Lionel Barrymore, before he was crippled. I think it was the first time I had seen him without white hair! What struck me was that the usually stellar Barrymore was giving a really bad, hammy performance. In this one long sequence where he's explaining that he believes there are these man-like sea creatures, he rarely looked the other actor in the eye, he kept putting his hand on his chin and rubbing his face. The camera, most likely due to the lack of technology, was very static. No camera movement at all - just cuts. It's a hoot to watch such a youngish Lionel (although he was already 51 at the time) and it is also interesting to note his stronger resemblance to his brother in this movie (more so in this movie than in later films.) During this time of transition, many films were basically silent films with some talking scenes, as studios found it difficult to wholly embrace this new technology. Even the well-known movie, The Jazz Singer, was not an all-talking movie. It is, however, the first feature length movie to have talking in it. On July 6, 1928, the first all-talking feature, Lights of New York, premiered. Our movie is made in 1929, which was at the end of the silent era.
If you want to know more about early talkies, check out this link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sound_film
Fearless Fagan (1952)
Great Animal Scenes
Stanley Donen directed this movie immediately after directing Singin' in the Rain. He was to have directed Jumbo, but that film wasn't ready to go yet.
It's true that neither Stanley Donen, Janet Leigh or Carlton Carpenter wanted to do the film, but it did OK at the box office.
This is a fun movie, although slight, and the lion, Fagan, is amazing. (Fagan plays himself.) In one of the opening scenes, Carpeter's character performs with the lion, and the lion reminded me of a great big kitty cat playing hide n' go seek!
To read more about this movie, go to tcm.com.
The Devil Makes Three (1952)
Fascinating Post-WII Film
The movie grabs your attention immediately and doesn't let go until the end. Post WII Germany is one of the main characters here and it's fascinating to see the bombed out buildings and how people had to live after the war. The fact that it was filmed on location in winter only adds to the mystery.
As for Gene Kelly not being an actor but only a showman, watch him in Inherit the Wind, and you may change your mind. His non-dancing roles were not really all that rare, even during his heyday as a dancer.
Pier Angeli, who was Italian, is cast as a German girl. That doesn't quite work for me, as her German isn't good enough for her to have been a native, yet her appealing nature, her huge eyes and her inherent sweetness help her performance as woman whose innocence has been lost.
The corruption and struggle to rebuild in Germany and Austria after the war is something that most people do not really know much about. Other recommended movies that deal with this subject are A Foreign Affair and The Third Man.
Funny Face (1957)
Love this movie!
I've always loved this movie and have considered it one of Hepburn's best, unlike the clunker Paris When It Sizzles. Now THAT movie I cannot sit through, it is so bad.
Sure, we think Astaire is too old for her - but is he? Both Astaire and Kelly married much younger women when they got old, so who's to say? Hepburn is lovely, and it's fun to see Kaye Thompson (love the song she does with Astaire) perform in front of the cameras for a change. Most of her work was behind the scenes at MGM (she was voice coach to Judy Garland, Lena Horne, to name a few, and vocal arranger) or in nightclubs.
This movie is normally considered one of the better musicals.
Pride & Prejudice (2005)
One of the Worst Versions Ever Made.
This was one of the worst versions ever made, as it wasn't true to the book or times. In the book, Elizabeth was never a tomboy nor did she giggle excessively with Jane as if they were young schoolgirls. In truth, she was a refined, witty young lady who was out in society, with a good sense of decorum. Jane was a proper young lady also, who may not have had Elizabeth's wit, but was all goodness, with never a mean thing to say about anyone.
The worst part of the film is the depiction of their family home and father. Donald Sutherland is miscast as the father; he portrays the father as an addled country bumpkin, when the father is actually a witty gentleman who loves his family, but distances himself from them via his witty remarks.
The Bennets are not poor, slovenly people with pigs practically running around inside their home, as depicted in the movie; they have a position in society and, although not wealthy by any means, live in a comfortable, livestock-free home.
If this movie wasn't based on a famous book, I might have been able to enjoy it. But considering that they ruined one of my favorite novels, it was quite unbearable to watch. Watch the Garson/Olivier or the Firth/Ehle versions instead.