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Post by Deleted on Sept 6, 2016 10:39:45 GMT -5
As I noted on FB a few days ago, during the long weekend (we got Friday off as well as Monday) I watched my first silent film in ages -- The Man Who Laughs. I have to say I was pretty much blown away, not only by the story itself but also by the very expressive (of course) acting. First silent I'd seen in something like a quarter-century, when I rented M (which I'm surprised to see was silent -- I mean, I recalled it as such, but 1931 seems pretty late in the game for that format) on VHS.
I really need to step up my silents game, especially as a horror fan. For instance, I don't believe I've ever seen anything of Lon Chaney Sr.'s other than the occasional brief clip. Otherwise, I watched Nosferatu & (I think) Blind Husbands (not horror) & maybe one other flick in a film appreciation class in college, & Cabinet of Dr. Caligari about 5 years after that ... that may be it. Shameful. At the very least I need to catch Phantom of the Opera & Hunchback of Notre Dame.
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Post by brutalis on Sept 6, 2016 10:53:48 GMT -5
Love Lonesome Dove and really liked Comanche Moon. Ride the High Country is a classic in every way. Scott and McCrea are superb as grizzled tired cowhands. As for Wayne, i will watch his westerns any time as they are all superb renditions of the old west as we would envision it being if we could go back in time. Tim Holt in his B Westerns were fun but i have a fondness for Tom Mix and Tom Tyler and Johnny Mack Brown in particular. Always enjoy seeing Guinn "Big boy" Williams as sidekick in many westerns. While they are more studio hero than cowboy i really liked the Errol Flynn and Tyrone Power westerns. I can go on endlessly about the westerns and their stories and th adventures and thrill of riding across the open range. Me too! Dodge City: best saloon brawl ever! Tell me you've seen Power in Rawhide: excellent movie! Not at all enamored of the prequel/sequel stuff McMutry did, though. I thought he mailed them in and that he showed his dislike for doing them, whether consciously or unconscously, by the way he treated the LD characters, cruelly, disrespectfully, and/or illogically.(Pea-Eye and Lorena? Really?) Lonesome Dove (hope you've read the novel... it's superb) is beautifully written and McMurtry should have left very very well enough alone, IMHO. Duvall still says Gus was his favorite role ever. Quite a statement from an actor of his stature. Oh yes i have Tyrone Power in Rawhide! Think that Dodge City saloon fight has been one of the most used sequences for other television western shows ever! Robert DuVall and Tommy Lee Jones were the living breathing embodiment of Lonesome Dove. Having read the book i admit to having my doubts about a television movie but they went and got supreme actors and went mini-series so it had room to roam and breath taking time to develop and showing the west as it was. Agree it was superb! As you say the other prequels were not nearly as good but i felt in Comanche Moon the actors felt enough like the original versions and that was enjoyable if not the story itself being as good. I never bothered trying to read any of the other McMurtry novels after Lonesome Dove as i thought it was his "best" and i would only be let down by any other books, especially as they were "prequels for the money" and going into stories that were better off not having been written.
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Post by Ish Kabbible on Sept 6, 2016 17:37:23 GMT -5
Good Western Palaver Up Above Now A Western Roped In From Way Back In The Library Shelves Flipping through the racks of DVDs at the Lincoln Center Performance Art Library (home of, I kid you not, about 10,000 dvds available for rent) I came upon this film I was totally unaware of Catlow (1971) Yul Brynner, Richard Crenna, Leonard Nimoy, Jeff Corey, Daliah Lavi, Jo Ann Pflug Interesting cast and the clincher was it's an adaptation of a Louis L'Amour novel. Yul Brynner plays Catlow, leader of a band of thieves who are now planning to rob the Mexican army of a gold shipment. Yul plays his role with abandon and just lights up the film with his enthusiasm. Crenna plays a U.S. Marshall, friendly with Catlow but must do his job and bring him in. Somehow, even though Crenna is fine, I find it weird of him being in a western. Leonard Nimoy is a bounty hunter, paid to bring down Catlow , dead or alive. Nimoy lurks in and out of the movie with his various attempts to ambush Catlow Leonard Nimoy is in quite a memorable scene. He's taking a bath in his hotel room and Yul Brynner gets the drop on him. It's now a naked Nimoy wrestling with Brynner with plenty of butt shots. You'll never look at Mr. Spock in the same way again Jeff Corey is a veteran Western co-star. Daliah Lavi (a Hoosier X favorite I believe) plays a Mexican spitfire you won't want to turn your back on. This is her final theatrical film It's light-hearted action as the various protagonists square off against each other.Throw in a band of murdering Apaches as well. A battle of some sort every 10 minutes.
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Post by Ish Kabbible on Sept 7, 2016 3:35:00 GMT -5
As I noted on FB a few days ago, during the long weekend (we got Friday off as well as Monday) I watched my first silent film in ages -- The Man Who Laughs. I have to say I was pretty much blown away, not only by the story itself but also by the very expressive (of course) acting. First silent I'd seen in something like a quarter-century, when I rented M (which I'm surprised to see was silent -- I mean, I recalled it as such, but 1931 seems pretty late in the game for that format) on VHS. I really need to step up my silents game, especially as a horror fan. For instance, I don't believe I've ever seen anything of Lon Chaney Sr.'s other than the occasional brief clip. Otherwise, I watched Nosferatu & (I think) Blind Husbands (not horror) & maybe one other flick in a film appreciation class in college, & Cabinet of Dr. Caligari about 5 years after that ... that may be it. Shameful. At the very least I need to catch Phantom of the Opera & Hunchback of Notre Dame. For what it's worth, here is my list of silents from my personal library. There are other good ones I never got around to obtaining and there are later excellent Charlie Chaplin feature films too. I also might have skipped accidentally a few I own too PASSION OF JOAN OF ARC 1928 PANDORA'S BOX 1929 M 1931 KING OF KINGS 1927 Cecil B DeMille METROPOLIS 1927 RING 1927 Hitchcock UNDERWORLD 1927 WINGS 1927 GENERAL 1926 LODGER 1926 Hitchcock BATTLESHIP POTEMKIN 1925 BEN-HUR 1925 GOLD RUSH 1925 Chaplin LOST WORLD 1925 HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME 1923 SAFETY LAST 1923 Harold Lloyd HAXAN 1922 NANOOK OF THE NORTH 1922 NOSFERATU 1922 CABINET OF DR. CALIGARI 1919 BIRTH OF A NATION 1915
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Post by Ish Kabbible on Sept 7, 2016 7:26:04 GMT -5
Well Made British War Filmed Marred By Offensive NameThe Dam Busters (1954) Richard Todd, Michael Redgrave An intelligent, meticulous film in regards to one of the most important military operations by British air fighters over the German skies. The bulk of German steel manufacturing during WWII lay along the Ruhr river. Three giant dams where in the area that also provided the regions hydro-electric power. These dams were so thick, so well guarded against torpedoes and the surrounding water helped absorb the shockwaves of explosives. A British scientist came up with a method of destroying these dams. It called for a new type of explosive bomb, one to be used by a plane approaching the dam extremely low and releasing the bomb to skip over the river like a pebble until it hit the target. All while avoiding flak and enemy fighters. A true tale from 1943 and the film has much to be regarded highly. Except one thing The flight commander of the British squadron, one of the chief characters in the movie, has a black labrador retriever named nigger. The dog is referred to many times during the first half of the film, set at the British training grounds. That name is also used as a codename for the operation. My understanding is that during the 1950s and earlier, that word did not have offensive connotations in England. For American TV airing, the word Trigger was dubbed in. Footage of this movie was also used for Pink Floyd's film The Wall
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Post by brutalis on Sept 7, 2016 7:49:52 GMT -5
Good Western Palaver Up Above Now A Western Roped In From Way Back In The Library Shelves Flipping through the racks of DVDs at the Lincoln Center Performance Art Library (home of, I kid you not, about 10,000 dvds available for rent) I came upon this film I was totally unaware of Catlow (1971) Yul Brynner, Richard Crenna, Leonard Nimoy, Jeff Corey, Daliah Lavi, Jo Ann Pflug Interesting cast and the clincher was it's an adaptation of a Louis L'Amour novel. Yul Brynner plays Catlow, leader of a band of thieves who are now planning to rob the Mexican army of a gold shipment. Yul plays his role with abandon and just lights up the film with his enthusiasm. Crenna plays a U.S. Marshall, friendly with Catlow but must do his job and bring him in. Somehow, even though Crenna is fine, I find it weird of him being in a western. Leonard Nimoy is a bounty hunter, paid to bring down Catlow , dead or alive. Nimoy lurks in and out of the movie with his various attempts to ambush Catlow Leonard Nimoy is in quite a memorable scene. He's taking a bath in his hotel room and Yul Brynner gets the drop on him. It's now a naked Nimoy wrestling with Brynner with plenty of butt shots. You'll never look at Mr. Spock in the same way again Jeff Corey is a veteran Western co-star. Daliah Lavi (a Hoosier X favorite I believe) plays a Mexican spitfire you won't want to turn your back on. This is her final theatrical film It's light-hearted action as the various protagonists square off against each other.Throw in a band of murdering Apaches as well. A battle of some sort every 10 minutes. This is one of my favorite Brynner movies because you see the fun mischievous side of his personality here. One of the more exciting Brynner performances and not his usual subdued style. Quite a quirky little western movie and well worth tracking down to watch!
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Post by Ish Kabbible on Sept 7, 2016 11:35:43 GMT -5
The Bitter Tea Of General Yen (1933) Barbara Stanwyck, Nils Asther, Walter Connolly, Richard Loo Directed by Frank Capra With plenty of scenes of warfare and urban unrest, this is quite a different type of Frank Capra film China is going through a civil war and Stanwyck with her fiance are missionaries caught in the middle. Stanwyck is knocked unconscious during a riot and separated from her beloved. Fortunately (??) a powerful warlord who calls himself a general (Asther) takes her off the streets to recuperate at his palatial headquarters. His motives are not all altruistic however Pre-code film and couldn't be made a few years later since interracial love would be verboten. Well, General Yen is actually played by Swedish actor Nils Asther. Why Swedish actors wind up as Chinese leading men, only Charlie Chan knows. Lots of money went into this production and it looks quite authentic. To it's credit, the character of General Yen is not a stereotype and is multi-faceted. Richard Loo is here in one of his earliest roles. This was the first movie to be played at New York City's Radio Music Hall
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Post by Prince Hal on Sept 7, 2016 11:52:00 GMT -5
The Bitter Tea Of General Yen (1933) Barbara Stanwyck, Nils Asther, Walter Connolly, Richard Loo Directed by Frank Capra With plenty of scenes of warfare and urban unrest, this is quite a different type of Frank Capra film China is going through a civil war and Stanwyck with her fiance are missionaries caught in the middle. Stanwyck is knocked unconscious during a riot and separated from her beloved. Fortunately (??) a powerful warlord who calls himself a general (Asther) takes her off the streets to recuperate at his palatial headquarters. His motives are not all altruistic however Pre-code film and couldn't be made a few years later since interracial love would be verboten. Well, General Yen is actually played by Swedish actor Nils Asther. Why Swedish actors wind up as Chinese leading men, only Charlie Chan knows. Lots of money went into this production and it looks quite authentic. To it's credit, the character of General Yen is not a stereotype and is multi-faceted. Richard Loo is here in one of his earliest roles. This was the first movie to be played at New York City's Radio Music Hall Love this movie. You're right: so "un-Capra," and way transgressive for the time. The forbidden attraction between the two is palpable. Stanwyck gets better every time you watch her. Just saw The Lady Eve the other day,and she was a firecracker.
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Post by Hoosier X on Sept 8, 2016 12:31:09 GMT -5
I've been watching movies as much as ever but I haven't been mentioning them here, which is a shame, because I saw some good ones! Last night I saw Some Came Running (1958) with Frank Sinatra, Shirley MacLaine, Dean Martin and Arthur Kennedy. I liked it a lot more than I thought I would, mostly because of Shirley MacLaine. Frank Sinatra was badly miscast. I never believed he was a tortured writer who has run out of confidence and ideas. A lot of the dialogue about art and writing is cringe inducing and I was rolling my eyes a lot. But aside form that rather glaring weakness, there's a lot to love about this movie! By the end, I was very alert and watching intently and I really wanted to know what happened. I liked Dean Martin a lot more than usual as well. Changing the subject, I'm DVRing horror movies so I can have a stockpile of really good ones for the end of October. I still have Freaks and Hausu from the last twelve months and I've also recorded Dracula (1931) and The Body Snatcher. And TCM is helping me out by showing Frankenstein movie marathons once a week throughout October.
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Post by Hoosier X on Sept 8, 2016 14:11:01 GMT -5
You guys have lately mentioned some very interesting movies that I love.
Would you believe I saw The Man Who Laughs on a big screen when I lived in Los Angeles? With a live organ? It's been 20 years or so but I remember it very well. I remember the crowd laughing when the scholar yelled at the dog (unfortunately named "Homo") and said "Be quiet, Homo!" And Olga Baclanova, who we all remember from Freaks. A little younger and much prettier because she was getting much better lighting. I thought she looked like Madonna. And then there was Conrad Veidt, Major Strasser himself, as Gwynplaine in a very touching performance. It does indeed look like the Joker was based on this movie.
I saw The Bitter Tea of General Yen within the last year or so. Great movie! It made me re-arrange my Top Five Barbara Stanwyck Movies list. (I'm sure I wrote about it on this thread somewhere.) Highly recommended, especially for people who think 1933 might have been the BEST YEAR EVER for the movies.
And I saw Dangerous fairly recently and I'm sure I wrote about it. Another great movie! It didn't make me re-arrange my Bette Davis list, but I've seen a lot of Bette David movies. (Right now I have The Corn Is Green on the DVR.) I think my favorite moment from Dangerous is when she's all drunk in the speakeasy and she stands up and recites some lines from "Romeo and Juliet" and then passes out on the table. (It's not the only time Bette Davis performed a little "Romeo and Juliet" in one of her movies.)
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Post by Hoosier X on Sept 8, 2016 14:20:15 GMT -5
If any of you are lucky enough to be in Portland this summer, you'll have the immense pleasure of meeting me, and also: The Northwest Film Center's "Bette and Joan" series - Bette Davis and Joan Crawford movies, in a theater like they're supposed to be! The schedule: Grand Hotel - July 8 Dangerous - July 10 Jezebel - July 17 Dark Victory - July 23 The Women - July 24 The Letter - July 31 The Little Foxes - August 1 Now, Voyager - August 6 Mildred Pierce - August 7 Humoresque - August 12 Possessed - August 14 Daisy Kenyon - August 15 Beyond the Forest - August 20 All About Eve - August 21 Sudden Fear - August 26 Johnny Guitar - August 27 What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? - August 28 More details: nwfilm.org/film-series/bette-joan/I'm a member of the NW Film Center but will not be able to go to all of these. Which ones would you recommend? So, Rob Allen. Which movies did you see and what did you think?
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Post by Ish Kabbible on Sept 8, 2016 14:21:50 GMT -5
You guys have lately mentioned some very interesting movies that I love. Would you believe I saw <b>The Man Who Laughs</b> on a big screen when I lived in Los Angeles? With a live organ? It's been 20 years or so but I remember it very well. I remember the crowd laughing when the scholar yelled at the dog (unfortunately named "Homo") and said "Be quiet, Homo!" And Olga Baclanova, who we all remember from <b>Freaks</b>. A little younger and much prettier because she was getting much better lighting. I thought she looked like Madonna. And then there was Conrad Veidt, Major Strasser himself, as Gwynplaine in a very touching performance. It does indeed look like the Joker was based on this movie. I saw <b>The Bitter Tea of General Yen</b> within the last year or so. Great movie! It made me re-arrange my Top Five Barbara Stanwyck Movies list. (I'm sure I wrote about it on this thread somewhere.) Highly recommended, especially for people who think 1933 might have been the BEST YEAR EVER for the movies. And I saw <b>Dangerous</b> fairly recently and I'm sure I wrote about it. Another great movie! It didn't make me re-arrange my Bette Davis list, but I've seen a lot of Bette David movies. (Right now I have <b>The Corn Is Green</b> on the DVR.) I think my favorite moment from <b>Dangerous</b> is when she's all drunk in the speakeasy and she stands up and recites some lines from "Romeo and Juliet" and then passes out on the table. (It's not the only time Bette Davis performed a little "Romeo and Juliet" in one of her movies.) Good seeing you back here again Hoosier. I was afraid you were taking a long film sabbatical Never saw a silent film in the cinema. Must be a real trip with live musicians, or even an organ player BTW, I think something is wrong with your attempts on Bolding words. I see instead the bold commands in parentheses before and after the word
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Post by Deleted on Sept 8, 2016 14:56:27 GMT -5
I like Dam Busters for all it's worth and I enjoyed it watching it twice in my lifetime and I would love to see it again someday.
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Post by Ish Kabbible on Sept 8, 2016 15:06:18 GMT -5
Oy My Tuchis HurtsExodus (1960) Paul Newman, Eva Marie Saint, Ralph Richardson, Lee J Cobb, Sal Mineo, Peter Lawford, John Derek, Hugh Griffith Based on the Leon Uris novel, Dalton Trumbo Screenplay, Otto Preminger Director Massively long 3 and 1/2 hour saga of the birth of the Jewish state 1947/48. Fictionalized characters. Great Britain had been in control of Palestine for close to 40 years at this point. While somewhat sympathetic to Jews wishing to return to Israel, they heeded Arab opposition and made that return quite difficult. Now with the end of WWII and the Holocaust, boatloads of Jewish refugees are attempting to settle in Israel. Britain blockaded the shore and led the Jewish settles into detention camps in Cypress, eventually to send them back to Europe. Paul Newman plays a character modeled after Ben Gurion with plans to smuggle the refugees into Europe. The first hour of the film deals with an entire boatload of refugees going on a hunger strike unless they are allowed entry to The Promised Land Eva Marie Saint is Newman's Presbyterian love interest, Peter Lawford an anti-semitic British commander, Sal Mineo is a hot-headed Auschwitz survivor willing to be a terrorist for the cause. The 2nd hour of the film takes place in Israel as the characters await the UN vote on the partition of Palestine. Meanwhile acts of terrorism by Israeli youth, such as the bombing of The King David Hotel, are meant to hurry Britain to leave Palestine The final third of the film deals with the official proclamation of Israel and the immediate attacks by Arabs to make this independance short-lived . All scenes are filmed on location. A memorable theme song is also included But the film is so, so long. No real compelling sub-plots, nothing spectacular on the action scenes and the romance between Newman and Saint is quite flat The best way to sum this up is this fact: Otto Preminger held a huge Hollywood preview for all his associates, celebrities and critics. At the 3 hour mark and with no end in sight, comedian Mort Sahl stood up from the audience and proclaimed "Otto, Let My People Go"
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Post by Rob Allen on Sept 8, 2016 15:08:53 GMT -5
The Northwest Film Center's "Bette and Joan" series - Bette Davis and Joan Crawford movies, in a theater like they're supposed to be! So, Rob Allen. Which movies did you see and what did you think? Sigh... not a single one. What I think is, my life is too busy.
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