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Post by Deleted on Apr 15, 2017 22:13:20 GMT -5
I just watched Mogambo on TCM today and I was stunned by the African Beauty and the lush and beautiful scenery and the authentic African Folklore and Heritage as well. It was a great adventure, good script, and wonderful acting of Clark Gable, Ava Gardner, and Gene Kelly. I just find this movie is one of my favorite Gable movie because it was tailored made for him and his sizzling relationship with Gardner was one of the many highlights of this movie. I haven't seen this movie in years and glad that I had a chance to watch it this afternoon with some friends. The three big guns of Mogambo and I loved the dresses that both Gardner and Kelly wore in that movie.
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Post by Ish Kabbible on Apr 15, 2017 23:46:04 GMT -5
...and wonderful acting of Clark Gable, Ava Gardner, and Gene Kelly. The three big guns of Mogambo and I loved the dresses that both Gardner and Kelly wore in that movie. Gene Kelly never looked lovelier
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Post by berkley on Apr 15, 2017 23:57:23 GMT -5
Amazing how different he looked after dying his hair blonde. And wearing a dress.
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Post by Ish Kabbible on Apr 16, 2017 0:05:14 GMT -5
Amazing how different he looked after dying his hair blonde. And wearing a dress. Gene Kelly's makeup artist in Mogambo did a great job compared to how he looked as a blonde beforehand
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Post by codystarbuck on Apr 16, 2017 16:40:25 GMT -5
My favorite version of the Three Musketeers is the 1973 version starring Oliver Reed, Richard Chamberlain, Michael York, Faye Dunaway, Raquel Welch, and others. Directed by Richard Lester. Internet Movie DatabaseI like the 1970s Three Musketeers films as well. Heck, I saw the first one in a theater when it first came out.
I wonder what Dumas would have thought had he known his creation would achieve its greatest fame as a candy bar?
Well, considering that the work was the byproduct of several different writers, with Dumas editing and rewriting segments, he'd probably be pretty okay with making money on it. His fortuens rose and fell quite a bit, during his lifetime. Meanwhile, Hollywood really needs to do a biopic of his father, Thomas-Alexandre Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie, aka the "Schwarzer Teufel" and the "Horatius Cocles of the Tyrol", a general of Napoleon's army and the son of a white French noble and an Afro-Caribbean slave. Tom Reiss' account, The Black Count: Glory, Revolution, Betrayal and the Real Count of Monte Cristo, would especially make a great starting point. His own father sold him for passage back to France, then bought him back when they arrived. he had a classical education and found a calling in the military, rising in the service of the Revolutionary army, then performing legendary feats in service of Napoleon, as one of his most capable, and mercurial, generals. It's been optioned; but, nothing yet, 3 years later.
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Post by Prince Hal on Apr 17, 2017 8:07:34 GMT -5
The three big guns of Mogambo and I loved the dresses that both Gardner and Kelly wore in that movie. I count four.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 17, 2017 8:14:54 GMT -5
The three big guns of Mogambo and I loved the dresses that both Gardner and Kelly wore in that movie. I count four. I don't see four? ... I'm puzzled!
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Post by Prince Hal on Apr 17, 2017 8:31:32 GMT -5
@mechagodzilla, that's because you are not as crass as I can be... (Grace and Ava? Hint, hint...)
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Post by Ish Kabbible on Apr 17, 2017 21:27:18 GMT -5
Watched the Three Musketeers (1973 & The Four Musketeers (1974). I've seen it once before back in the early 80's, either on VHS or Cinemax. Such a great cast . The production values were superb as well as the costumes. And yes, the fight scenes seemed realistic except when it tried too hard for comedic effects. The Musketeers were not portrayed as invincible swordsmen and much of the time were injured in battle.
The only thing I could find fault was it veered into comedy a bit too often and broadly. Richard Chamberlain's character was underused and had very few lines. But it did quit well at the box office and was received well by the critics. It gave producer's Alexander and Ilya Salkind the cache in Hollywood to work on a big budget Superman film
The 2 Musketeer films were shot together and the actors were paid as if it would be one epic long movie. Many of them banded together and sued the Salkinds when the films were released separately. They won in court and the Salkinds had to pony up more cash. It did not prevent him from doing the same thing when it was time to shoot the Superman film. But I'm sure that time he was more forthcoming with his intentions to the cast
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Post by codystarbuck on Apr 17, 2017 22:30:18 GMT -5
Watched the Three Musketeers (1973 & The Four Musketeers (1974). I've seen it once before back in the early 80's, either on VHS or Cinemax. Such a great cast . The production values were superb as well as the costumes. And yes, the fight scenes seemed realistic except when it tried too hard for comedic effects. The Musketeers were not portrayed as invincible swordsmen and much of the time were injured in battle. The only thing I could find fault was it veered into comedy a bit too often and broadly. Richard Chamberlain's character was underused and had very few lines. But it did quit well at the box office and was received well by the critics. It gave producer's Alexander and Ilya Salkind the cache in Hollywood to work on a big budget Superman film The 2 Musketeer films were shot together and the actors were paid as if it would be one epic long movie. Many of them banded together and sued the Salkinds when the films were released separately. They won in court and the Salkinds had to pony up more cash. It did not prevent him from doing the same thing when it was time to shoot the Superman film. But I'm sure that time he was more forthcoming with his intentions to the cast The lawsuits resulted in the "Salkind Clause," as it is known in Hollywood, which secures the actors rights to be paid when footage is used in more than one film. By the time of Superman, it was fairly standard. It was known going into it that they would film back-to-back and work was only halted on the second film when they fell behind on the effects work and editing of the first. Then, Richard Donner got into a fight with the Salkinds and was fired, resulting in Richard Lester coming in, reshooting some scenes, and creating a slightly altered story. As can be seen in the Donner cut, he shot close to 2/3 of the film. Lester did a fantastic job with the Musketeer films and a lot of the comedy works very well. It gets tiresome at points, but never badly so. The drama is kept up along the way and the character moments are excellent. Chamberlain is under-used, though I would blame part of that on the source material. Athos and D'Artagnan are at the heart of the novel, with Porthos adding bluster and humor along the way. Some of Aramis' stuff comes in the side episodes of the novel (it was serialized, like much of Dumas' work, which makes it very episodic); so, he isn't as big of a factor in the main plot. He comes to life more in the sequels, as he has become more involved in politics, in his higher position, within the church. Chamberlain does get some moments like that, in Return of the Musketeers. That sequel, shot in the late 80s, adapts The Twenty Years After, though rather more loosely than the originals films did The Three Musketeers. The budget is far smaller and the production was marred by Roy Kinnear's (Planchet) death, after he was thrown from a horse. You can tell it affected the cast. Also, Kim Cattrall and C Thomas Howell are definite weak links. Geraldine Chapman returns as Queen Anne, and Jean-Pierre Cassell returns as Cyrano De Bergerac, since King Louis XIII is dead, at this point. Phillipe Noiret is great as Cardinal Mazarin. Frank Finlay is fantastic throughout, though Oliver Reed is very hit and miss. He is better in later scenes than some of his earlier ones. Chamberlain is great and gets more to do. Christopher Lee returns, for the baddie's side, even though he appears to die in the earlier films (the character lived to fight D'Artagnan again and the pair grew to respect one another). A nice pair of films to also watch are The Count of Monte Cristo and Man in the Iron Mask, with Richard Chamberlain. Both were done for Lew Grade's ITC and are excellent, though Mask has the better production, in my opinion. Count features Donald Pleasance and Tony Curtis in villain roles. Pleasance is good; but Curtis seems to be in his down period, when he was on the outs in Hollywood and having substance issues. He's not bad; but, he lacks a spark that is necessary. Mask has Patrick McGoohan as the villain Fouquet and he always makes for a great villain. Ralph Richardson is Colbert, while Louis Jordan is D'Artagnan. None of the other Musketeers appear. Jenny Agutter is the love interest, while Chamberlain has the dual role. Very fine production.
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Post by Hoosier X on Apr 18, 2017 12:08:13 GMT -5
For Easter I watched Night of the Lepus (1972). It's wonderfully hilarious. I loved seeing Janet Leigh and DeForrest Kelley taking it all so seriously! THIS IS HOW IT'S DONE, FOLKS! Also - Rory Calhoun. Simpsons fans know him as "That actor who walks." I think this is the first film I've ever seen him in. I have a Halloween Night Movie Rotation and I'm thinking of putting Night of the Lepus in the "Silly Low-Budget Cult Movie Classic" category with The Thing with Two Heads and Frogs.
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Post by Rob Allen on Apr 18, 2017 17:22:45 GMT -5
How often do the Three (or Four) Musketeers actually carry or use muskets?
They usually look more like The Three Swordsmen.
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Post by Ish Kabbible on Apr 18, 2017 19:21:25 GMT -5
Speedy (1928) Harold Lloyd After Charlie Chaplin, my favorite silent-film comedian is Harold Lloyd. Safety Last is the film he's best known for, specifically the scene where he's hanging off the ledge of skyscraper. Speedy was his final feature length silent and it's a classic. Set in Manhattan, there's great location shots including Times Square in the roaring 20's, doubledecker buses, Coney Island and elevated train lines that were demolished by the 1940's. As a silent, the plot is simple enough-Speedy's girlfriend has an old pappy who runs the last horse-drawn commuter carriage in Manhattan. As long as he runs his carriage once a day, his route is protected by the city. Naturally, evil trolley-car operators want the route for themselves and aim to do whatever to make sure the carriage does not run. The film is filled with fantastic chase scenes through the city streets and huge brawls involving at least a hundred men. And if that's not enough, the Mighty Bambino himself, Babe Ruth makes an appearance and is part of the movie for 10 minutes. The DVD is brought to you by Criterion and as usual for this company, the restoration is magnificent. The picture is sharp, flawless and you'd think it was filmed yesterday
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Post by codystarbuck on Apr 19, 2017 2:41:43 GMT -5
How often do the Three (or Four) Musketeers actually carry or use muskets? They usually look more like The Three Swordsmen. In the Lester films, they are seen carrying them during D'Artagnan's reward ceremony, at the end of the film, when he is made a Musketeer (he starts out in the Guards, as in the novel). In the Four Musketeers, they are seen using their muskets during the siege of La Rochelle, when they make a bet to have their breakfast in abandon battlements. They use it as a chance to talk about Milady DeWinter's schemes, without spies around. Planchet loads while they fire (pistols , as well). It's a scene filled with both dramatic exposition and some great comedy, as they essentially play cricket with bombs that are hurled at them by the Huguenot defenders of La Rochelle. They don't use them much in the novel, either. In reality, the muskets of the period were rather inaccurate and weren't a major part of military strategy, other to inflict some damage at close range. Most battles were determined by a charge, which was still true into the Napoleonic Wars and the War of 1812. Interestingly, there are some English translations of The Three Musketeers that are titled The Three Guardsmen. In the novel, D'Artagnan is turned away by Mr. Treville, an old friend of his father, because a soldier must first earn distinction in a campaign or other act of bravery to enter the Musketeers. Treville is able to secure him a position in the Guards, instead. By the end of the novel, D'Artagnan has earned an officer's commission, thanks to Cardinal Richelieu. He carries that distinction into the later books, as the others retire to estates and the church (Aramis). D'Artagnan continues to serve in the Musketeers.
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Post by Ish Kabbible on Apr 20, 2017 14:55:09 GMT -5
A Summer Place (1959) Sandra Dee, Troy Donahue, Richard Egan, Dorothy McGuire
This film is as sexual as they could make a mainstream film in 1959
The story is about two couples.The Hunters-the father is a lush and they have a young teen boy (Troy Donahue). The Jorgansons-The wife is a cold victorian racist and they have a young teen daughter (Sophie Dee). The nice Hunter wife and the nice Jorganson father were high school sweethearts and now they are having a clandestine affair. And so are their two children. The adults are contemplating divorce, the kids are trying to remain virgins (but it's so hard to do).
The film's fascinating with it's wrestling over 1950's morality. Besides the soap opera pathos, you get many scenes shot within a Frank Lloyd Wright built ocean front house. Plus one of the most memorable theme songs from Max Steiner . Fun Fun Fun
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