Tikisoo
-
Posts
9,238 -
Joined
-
Last visited
-
Days Won
6
Posts posted by Tikisoo
-
-
Agreed that Lancaster was just a powerhouse of an actor. I'm usually so dazzled by his beauty I forget he's just a man playing a part in a story.
My favorite late career performance is Peter Finch in Network. (another super hunk in his yout)
I just recently watched this again and am just amazed at how prophetic & wonderful this story is. Bill Holden (yet another hunk!) is great in it too, but Finch is just so over the top, I can't imagine anyone else playing that quite as well.
I am always amazed when I see true artistry in acting-what a weird profession!
-
>I'm not here to complain or argue and start trouble.
Haha, sorry. I'm not here to flame you or call you names either! (I abhor name calling)
>I've decided to give DVDs another shot. This morning I went to work on my DVD recorder. (snipped) I read about the Toshiba machine (the one i own)
Great! I own the same recorder and highly recommend it for it's simplicity and longevity-it's been heavily used for over 2 years. I *play* DVDs via a separate unit to help extend the life of the recorder. They are so cheap right now, it's worth it.
>I've given up on the VCR-DVD Recorder for now. And rather than buying a VHS/DVD combo, you can hook your VHS player directly to the recorder to transfer any VHS to DVD you want-EASILY.
Hopefully I can help walk you through it. I know once you get the hang of it, you'll love it. You can PM me if you like, but posting within the thread allows others to chime in with more (& often better) advice.
I pretty much use DVD *-* Rs, because that's what's compatible with my Mac. I have found no need to finalize disks after recording them, they work just fine on my DVD player. Try it to see. It may be that minus format, I really don't know WHY, it just works.
But if you feel the need to finalize, press the "setup" button on the remote. A menu of 4 to 5 options will appear, "Finalize" is in there. "Format" erases RWs, so don't choose that!
>There was a movie on that I've waited a long time to see.
Which one? I may have burned it. :-)
>I tried timer recording set up. I couldn't change the date.
(you might want to read the legend for the remote, pg 12 in my instruction book for clarification of buttons)
Again, go to "Setup" on your remote. One of the options that appears is "clock setting"-choose it by pressing "enter" on your remote. Then, use the "up/down" arrows in the center circle of your remote ^ to scroll through the date, then press right arrow > to do the same for the time. Make sure the time is correct to the MINUTE or you'll cut off your recordings!
Really, once you get the hang of it by scrolling through options, it will become second nature. But your recorder's date & clock MUST be correct at all times. Let us know if you can't figure out setting the timer to record.
Edited by: TikiSoo because I had forgotten to address the time set question
-
Thanks Tom for the wonderful comments & synopsis on this movie.
I love this kind of "mindless" entertainment film once in awhile. I am often saddened when people quickly discount this sort of film because it's "corny" or "plotless".
When you watch this type of movie with an audience, it's handled like a real stage performance; people clap if they really enjoyed a segment or groan at the bad jokes.
>Ann Sheridan beautifully dressed wearing a snood
I'm totally impressed you know what a snood is! Yay!
> McDaniel has a strong singing voice and personality to spare
Yeas! I love this movie if ONLY to see her performance. Now THERE is an underrated talent. What a shame she wasn't put in better parts.
>Alan Hale and Jack Carson vigourously hamming it up in a vaudeville type musical number
I caught this number once and decided to record the movie next time it aired because of it. It's amazing to see these two together and DANCING. Alan Hale is amazingly light on his feet for being such a chunk. Again, nice seeing another stretch from the typical role.
That's what makes these movies work for me-seeing the stars as people with talent, not losing themselves in a role.
And I love Eddie Cantor so my enjoyment is complete!
-
I have never needed to put anyone on "ignore" either....I just deal with it. And I've posted my share of faux pas and taken "correction" for it.
But then again, I learn from my mistakes for the most part.
Seasoned forumers quickly learn to figure out the intelligence & maturity level of newbies and help guide them to fit in cyber society better.
I do not understand why anyone would prefer VHS to DVD. The OP tries to explain why, but the reasons just don't hold water. And I'm sorry to say, that failure is typical of that member's posts to date.
It's always smarter to respond to existing threads awhile and get a feel for a message board before randomly starting new threads.
I *thank* Krieger for his response, it's frustrating to have to "correct" any poster again & again. Now I truly understood the difference between + and - DVDs, why laserdisks failed, etc the kind of information I enjoy learning in this forum.
-
Thanks for that great side-by-side comparison, filmlover. Isn't that the same Pier used in Inside Daisy Clover?
Here's one of the horses in case anyone's interested:
_http://nationalcarousel.org/psp/SantaMonicaPier/_
(and no, the Triceratops isn't original-oy!)
I was avoiding posting this but the beginning explains the reason for all Binghamton's carousels:
_http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JnovR8XdMgQ_
It airs locally tomorrow, I still haven't seen it yet! (no SooTube) but I know I say, "It's just as easy to paint it correctly, it pains me to see them painted badly" see above & below comparison.
Rather unglamorous to see them off the ride, isn't it?
Edited by TikiSoo because I can't seem to make those links work! Sorry.
-
>Sometimes the camera focusses on the painted horses and they seem to take on a malevolent grin
I think anytime you have representation of people or animals as statues (and a lesser degree paintings) you have this effect. It's almost like a frozen death.
I used to work in fashion stores and know the general public hated seeing mannequins stacked up in storage. My house is full of carousel figures & mannequins and it freaks a lot of people.
>Several posters have mentioned Twilight Zone episodes with strange and disturbing events centred around a carousel.
Rod Serling grew up in Binghamton NY where 6 Herschell carousels run in various city parks. They were ingrained in his psyche and he used the imagery often.
Disney owned quite a few whole carousels but had zero regard for their historical significance. The Mary Poppins horses were classic vintage ones, but Walt directed artists to carve into the heads to make the faces resemble the actors that rode them, destroying the original carving.
The Disneyland carousel pictured in my earlier post, Walt ordered all standing horses legs repositioned so they could be used as "jumpers" and all the paintings painted over to reflect Disney movies. They had 3 complete carousels, used the figures he wanted and burned the rest in a bonfire.
The movie studios were the same. They had a few complete carousels as well as several "prop" horses but never destroyed them like Disney. I faintly recall a Busby Berkely number using a bunch of carousel horses (ca 1900 Looff made) with beautiful girls in organdy riding them.
-
Thanks slayton for IDing that Utah amusement park.
How could I have forgotten *Something Wicked...* ? I had two of the horses from that carousel in my shop for years in the late 80's. The owners wanted them repainted "pretty" so they could sell them. I refused, saying the paint job was very important to their value. I have no idea whatever happened to them, but I've never seen any SWTWC horses for sale since.
Old carousels were driven by a small steam engine. A calliope is a steam driven mechanical instrument with a distinct high pitched "toot" kind of sound. When electricity took over, pneumatic band organs were installed to play music for the ride-they have a "throatier" pipe organ sound, often with drums & bells. WurliTzer made band organs for theaters, skating rinks and dance halls before reinventing themselves as jukebox makers.
I don't recall that "Ruggles" scene, but that is a Herschell/Spillman tiger and both Tilden Park in Berkeley CA & Golden Gate Park in San Francisco have that type of carousel & figure.
In 1935, the Tilden Park ride ran in Griffith Park in LA and was most likely the one used in the film because of it's proximity to Hollywood. The other one was between gigs in Oregon (33) & Treasure Island (39).
The photo of the girl on the deer is most likely the same carousel.
I have this photo, but never seen the movie "40 Pounds of Trouble":
But I know the carousel, it's still out there.
The ending of Strangers On A Train is remarkable because they used a real park carousel (the present Griffith Park ride) a carousel on the lot (same one in Twilight Zone's Walking Distance episode) and a miniature for the carousel destruction. The model makers took great care to replicate the Allan Herschell horses, but not the deck or canopy proportion. But hey, that's the ONLY way I could discern it was a model!
-
Eh it's days like this that make me wish I still had TCM... I love Errol Flynn.
Errol Flynn was a huge star in his day and still has strong reputation today.
I think what the original poster may have meant was that Flynn was/is an underrated ACTOR.
Certainly people enjoyed seeing him in film, but I think his actual performance often went unnoticed. He truly was a very good actor and I'm always impressed with his strength & subtlety.
Like Liz Taylor, he's one of those people who is so "pretty", you don't often realize how good he actually is.
-
I've always wanted to know what amusement park *Carnival of Souls* used at the setting-super creepy.
Griffith Park's carousel in LA is commonly used (Strangers on a Train) as is Long Beach's Hippodrome and Santa Monica Pier's carousel seen in *Inside Daisy Clover.*
I love the NYC carousel used in *Purple Rose of Cairo.* I generally see carousels/roller coasters/parks when they are closed and it gives others a chance to see what it's like.
*Coney Island* with Fatty Arbuckle shows several once common rides that are now very rare like The Whip.
*Ride The Pink Horse* shows a small simple carousel that would be completely appropriate for Mexico.
It's kind of my job to ID carousels and amusement parks in movies, although when I catch them on the screen they're sometimes difficult to see clearly.
It was thrilling to spot really good footage of an unusual Kansas built carousel at Cinefest last year, but can't remember the film title (I'll find out if anyone's interested)
-
>I may wind up watching it for entertainment value. (so bad it's good!
)So the quality level of today's movies is about the same as good old Ed Wood's creations? Guess he was ahead of his time!
-
>It is a little-known fact that TCM actually stands for Tyrannical Cacophonous Malcontents.
Haha, you always crack me up Ms. Wonderly!
I try giving confusing posts the benefit of the doubt before labeling them a troll, although this "fan" is trying my patience.
In 15 years of posting on internet newsgroups/forums it's obvious there is a huge number of people who do not understand the importance of proper grammar for other's comprehension. I'm not referring to common typos, but knowing how to phrase your comments so others truly understand what you've typed.
This board has a good number of well written, literate posts and occasionally you can even recognise sarcasm-difficult to convey in the written word! Even though I am a published writer (& former editor) I've certainly made my share of misunderstood faux pas postings.
I am rather saddened at the low literacy skills deemed acceptable in our society. There is an entire generation of people who do not recognise words like "light" because they've only seen "lite". And now I'm finding simple typos in books (recent Busby Berkely bio) because they've been edited by "spell check" instead of an educated person.
Also challenging is the number of postings complaining about "what TCM _should_ or _shouldn't_ broadcast" as if the entire world film library is available and they are the programmer.
-
>He mustn't be any good. We would of all heard of him. He'd be well known like Grant , Brando , Stewart , Hepburn , Fonda and others.
Surely you must be joking.
Or are you simply a newcomer to film appreciation and just not familiar with anything more than the biggest, most famous names & titles?
I don't mean to pick on you, but your post must be an attempt at some kind of joke and I just don't understand it.
>He throws his cane and runs like it's 1940.
Can you clarify what it means to "run like 1940"?
-
>It is usually law enforcement that disapproves of the way movies glorify Criminals, Crime, and the Criminal behavior and the Police and FBI infringing on the criminals rights, etc. Am I correct, or are there other reasons for not liking two of Scorsese's best?
I opened this thread because while loving Scorsese, I hated this film. Even my MOM loves it, so once when it was on at her house, I gave it a try. Within 20 minutes I was so upset, my stomach was turning & I had to leave the room. I could not take the violence. It was way too graphic and brutal.
I guess I prefer the old WB movies where you might see a dark spot on a shirt when a guy gets shot, but no twitching, blood dripping, gaping wounds, etc.
I loved the story in Raging Bull, but will never watch it again because of the gore.
MrTiki is in law enforcement and he LOVES movies about criminals, especially prisons since he's in them all the time.
Even _I_ know they are ridiculous logically, but for whatever reason he enjoys them. He couldn't wait to see Dillinger & Al Capone recently broadcast on TCM.
-
>Sepiatone said: I just thought it was amusing. "Why should I pay for something when I can get it off tv for free..."
As usual, my reaction was exactly the same as yours. Funny to hear a thief complain.
Truth be told, it's not really free, you're paying through the nose for the broadcast (cable or dish) but you're still stealing from whomever has the rights to the film/DVD/movie.
>They could probably sell DVDs for HALF of what they ask and still make a nice profit.
True, nothing frosts me more than seeing a DVD I spent $10-15 for a few years ago, now selling for $4.99.
>Those plastic discs they burn movies on cost about a buck.
True, but the cost is not in the production, but in all the royalties.
I recently watched Woody Allen's Hollywood Ending and the funniest line (paraphrasing) was "I get a half percent of profit after quadruple cost recoup."
A friend visiting from France remarked on this and truly believes everything (books/movies) should become public domain after 20 years.
For example: why should Irving Berlin's publisher's grandkids get a portion of profits when they had nothing to do with the writing of the song?
-
I want to know why some insist on posting anything with the word "QUESTION" in the title in the "Hot Topics" or "General Discussions" forums?
There's a forum devoted to answering questions called "Information Please".
If you're looking for more of a discussion on a particular film or person there's a forum called "Films & Filmmakers".
Oy.
-
Well A Star Is Born was the first BluRay I watched on my new player. I've always hated previous versions because of the echo-y soundtrack and I'm so happy to know this has been "fixed".
Love your take on this film LZ, beautiful. I learn so much here.
I have always preferred Fredric March as Norman Maine & Judy as Vicky Lester-too bad each film has it's high & low points.
But in defense of Mason, his English gentleman-ness is totally believable as an early film star. Although there were rugged cowboy types we enjoyed as romantic leads, there were also a share of well spoken elegant romantic leading men like William Powell.
Mason's understated performance has grown on me. It allows Judy to shine even more.
And yeas although Judy was a little too old for the part in her early 30's, she is so sweet & bubbly with that elfin face, it worked ok for me. And realize artists may not hit the bigtime until their 30's.
Janet Gaynor was too cloyingly cute and kind of dumb acting for my taste. I much preferred Judy's dignity and it made the "This is Mrs Norman Maine" line much more believable.
-
>Dargo said: ...supposed to make you contemplate; IS she nuts, OR are there really ghosts at that manor? In "The Haunting", I believe the whole idea of the story is to ask the question if Nell is going nuts or is Hill House really haunted.
That's exactly why I love that sort of movie, left up to the viewer.
I have had "ghostly" encounters since childhood; hearing voices, feeling touches & the like. Turns out I have a neurological issue that causes these hallucinations (as well as migraines, oh yay)
I never believed in ghosts, but it's awful jarring to walk into an empty room that sounds as if a party's going on or feel someone push your back while brushing your teeth.
The Haunting is my favorite film because I know exactly what it feels like to be "haunted". For people like Nell & myself, it's very real.
-
I don't go much to the theater these days (& the nearest drive-in offers Disney only-no thank you Madagascar/Dark Shadows) but I've been really enjoying my free Netflix: the library.
I saw this in a preview & can't WAIT to see it! I absolutely LOVE the whole idea of a "rediscovered" film that documents a piece of time in recent history:
THE BLACK POWER MIXTAPE 1967-1975
New York, NY : Sundance Selects c2011.
ISBN: 9780788614439
Summary: "THE BLACK POWER MIXTAPE 1967-1975 mobilizes a treasure trove of 16mm material shot by Swedish journalists who came to the US drawn by stories of urban unrest and revolution. Gaining access to many of the leaders of the Black Power Movement, Stokely Carmichael, Bobby Seale, Angela Davis and Eldridge Cleaver among them, the filmmakers captured them in intimate moments and remarkably unguarded interviews. Thirty years later, this lush collection was found languishing in the basement of Swedish Television"--From mrqe.com.
-
Thanks for bringing up DePalma's *Phantom Of The Paradise* ('74) I've never heard of it before and I bet I'll enjoy it. I've also added *The Boyfriend* and *All That Jazz* to my queue, I've always wanted to see them.
As for *Tommy* you're right, Oliver Reed is awful, but what a great opportunity to see The Who act & perform. Ann Margaret & Elton John are bonuses. Good point, Kyle, that it was pre-MTV, that's what made SEEING the musicians so exciting!
For rock musicals, what about *Rocky Horror Picture Show?* I was lucky enough to see it when it first came out, before all the "performance" nonsense. It was a fun homage to old horror movies, well acted with GREAT songs.
And a few years later I saw the stage show which blew me away! The creature was a baton twirler extraordinaire!
-
Thanks for all the great info on this thread!
Luckily I keep special wipes & cleaner right by my TV. I'd NEVER use tissue or Windex on my TV, why would I use them on a disk?
That said, I borrow from the li-berry a lot and those disks are often in scratched rough shape.
Oops, I often change the Sharpie written titles on RWs with alcohol & tissue. I use my RWs as "temporary" recordings anyway, but does washing the TOP effect a disk in any way? I know not to make stick on labels, I heard that will warp them.
What about those paper sleeves? Bad idea? I scored hundreds of clamshells & slim cases from Blockbuster's dumpster. Rather take a moment to hose them off than see them end up in a landfill.
Why bother duping your commercially purchased disks to have a "master" copy? There will always be some more expensive format (currently BluRay) that you'll have to replace your original ones with anyway.
-
>filmlover wrote:Whoa! Sweeney Todd has no good songs??!!!! Sweeney Todd is one of the great stage musicals of all time! Stephen Sondheim is a genius. How can you say it has no good songs when gems like "The Ballad of Sweeney Todd," "Johanna," "Pretty Women," "Not While I'm Around," to mention just a few.
OK, ok, just my opinion. _I_ didn't enjoy any of those songs and cannot remember any of the tunes. I find Sondheim's type of music requires repeated listenings to fully appreciate. (loved his recent NPR interview-I learned a LOT)
As I stated earlier, this musical style seems heavy on the lyrics (which you obviously agree with since you quoted them) and the tunes seem like an afterthought.
It seems to me (again, no musical expert) that the TUNE in a musical needs to be very strong and fairly simple, "catchy" so that it sticks in your mind as you leave the theater.
Irving Berlin seems to be the *king* of this high impact style with Cole Porter and other "American Songbook" composers alongside him.
And you misinterpreted my observation about tuneless Danny Elfman's education to Webber....here's my OP:
>Danny Elfman is the only one who trumps Webber as the worst movie composer today. It's obvious he's never even studied music.
-
>Sure wish they'd show more foreign films and fewer Same Old Same Old Hollywood teenybopper movies.
I wouldn't mind if the "teenybopper" type movies sparked interest in classic film with the younger crowd-it would be worth enduring. Instead the insipidness of most of these films turns everyone off.
But as we all know, securing the rights to broadcast these films is the driving force.
-
I was reading this thread just out of curiosity wondering if I'd agree/disagree with the opinions and then Sepiatone piped up with "Andrew Lloyd Blubber".
I was excited to see Phantom of the Opera as my first real Broadway play, until seeing it. I thought the music was lousy-forgettable.
I also just watched the filmed play of Sweeny Todd when Angela Lansbury was star of the month and realized there wasn't ONE good song in it (although the singing was great)
A few weak tunes can be elevated if the musical has a good story & acting support, like Guys & Dolls, but Phantom & Sweeny offered nothing but interesting sets & costumes. The words seem to be written first, with just notes attached, no melody, no catchy phrasing, no orchestration indicating mood.
Laugh if you like at the simplicity of Irving Berlin but nothing beats humming a tune when leaving the theater. Some musical movies, such as Footlight Parade & My Fair Lady you can't forget the tunes.
Granted, I'm no music expert, but even *I* delight at oddball musical phrasing like Meredeth Wilson's The Music Man. (who was clever enough to use the word "carrion" in a love song!)
But most contemporary composers really fall short (imho) with their flat musical styles. Danny Elfman is the only one who trumps Webber as the worst movie composer today. It's obvious he's never even studied music.
-
Thanks for letting me know how much you enjoyed it! I recorded it but haven't watched it yet. I remember how people talked about it back then, but was just too young for it until now.
I too would enjoy more foreign films on TCM. I'm partial to Bollywood.
)
Best late career performance
in General Discussions
Posted
OK, I know my opinion is going to be unpopular...but I just can't agree with some of the examples stated in this thread.
Sometimes I think we confuse "good movie" with "good performance".
While I love On Golden Pond and Harold & Maude, I do not think Katherine Hepburn, Henry Fonda or Ruth Gordon give any special performances. Instead, I'd call these "typical" performances.
Instead, the OP of Burt Lancaster stating it was a "best late career" performance is on the money. The actor's ability, maturity and talent is showcased by the role and he's stretched from his "typical" performance.
People like Spencer Tracy or Richard Burton played all sorts of roles throughout their career, but some really didn't get a chance to show their range until they are older.
Sorry to be argumentative....but I'd love to know if anyone thinks this is a valid point.