Swithin

They get exposed, yes; but at the very end, the big bad guys get pardoned; the witnesses die mysteriously; and the good guys lose. Then the army takes over a few weeks before elections are set to award a major victory to the opposition. That's a problem with *Z*, the rapidly reported news items at the very end which reverse everything -- not very cinematic.

I watched *Z* today -- recorded it when it was on TCM recently. I'd never seen it and expected it to be dated. Sadly, it's so timely.

I just made a point in another thread -- I don't particularly like the urge to have to show films that go with holidays, or with the Oscars. That can get pretty old. At Christmas, there was complaining that there weren't enough Christmas films; one year there was complaining about a shortage of war films around one of the "patriotic" holidays. Let's just have good films on all subjects year-round. Having said all that, *Wilson* is my favorite film about a president. I also think it has perhaps the best performance by an actor in any film, ever -- Alexander Knox as Woodrow Wilson. But I think I did notice that *Sunrise at Campobello* (about FDR) is on next Sunday, February 27. That's close enough for me.

If you want a treat, listen to Shirley Booth on the original Broadway cast album of the 1951 musical, *A Tree Grows in Brooklyn*. She played the character that Joan Blondell played in the earlier, non-musical film, but they beefed up the part for Shirley. Her rendition of "He Had Refinement" is priceless. You can see Elaine Stritch do a sort of imitation of Booth singing the song on YouTube, but imagine Booth singing it -- the song was written for her. Here's the Stritch version. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sRK6vIPjK4Q

I tried to watch a movie on AMC last week. It was very difficult, not just because of the fact that they have commercials, but because of the abrupt way they cut to the commercials -- in mid scene, mid line even. That's really an insult to the film and the viewer and makes the films unpleasant to watch. I don't think TCM is in danger of tarnishing its "mission". Sometimes I do get annoyed with the practice of having to put certain movies up at certain times of the year -- there was a big fuss on this board made by people who felt there weren't enough Christmas movies. And there are those who would make a fuss if there weren't war movies around Memorial Day. Maybe the 31 days of Oscar concept can be dispensed with altogether. I do love *Lord of the Rings*, and wouldn't mind it being shown on TCM, except that it was just shown on another station. That's the point -- the newer stuff tends to get enough exposure; so part of the definition of"classic" for me is rarely shown movies, most of which tend to be older.

Shirley Booth's career did not take "a Luise Raineresque" turn. She simply preferred working on the stage. Shortly after her Oscar win, she began a long run on Broadway as the original lead in *The Time of the Cuckoo* which later became the film *Summertime* (with the lead character totally changed for Hepburn, much to the chagrin of playwright Arthur Laurents). Booth also created the lead roles on Broadway in *Desk Set* and *My Sister Eileen* (as Ruth Sherwood), among others. Capra tried to entice her back to Hollywood with a remake of his *Lady for a Day*, but she turned down his offer, and the role in *Pocketful of Miracles* was then given to Bette Davis. Booth won three Tony Awards -- for Goodbye My Fancy; Come Back Little Sheba; and The Time of the Cuckoo. She did some television, most notably *Hazel*, and was one of the few actors to win Tony/Oscar/Emmy.

She did a lot of theater, but still, she died very young. I remember as a young boy seeing the headline of The New York Post (a good newspaper in those days): "Judy Holliday, dead at 42." (Most sites give her age at death as 43; I just remember The Post headline that way.)

I agree with you about *Lawrence of Arabia* being overrated. I think David Lean's real masterpiece is *A Passage to India*. But *Chariots of Fire* did NOT get the ball rolling with all the lush period pieces -- rather, it got on the bandwagen rather late. The period pieces, which had always been popular in Britain, gained real interest in the U.S. with the *The Forsyte Saga* in 1967 and then in a very big way on both sides of the Atlantic with *Upstairs Downstairs* in the very early 1970s and other similar films and TV series. *Chariots* was made at the same time as the monumental *Brideshead Revisited*, which is really the masterpiece of the genre. When speaking of the genre, *Chariots...* barely rates a mention compared to those other works. *Reds* is a great romance set against turbulent times, not a political drama. And the Witnesses provided a wonderful counterpoint between fact and fiction. *Reds* suffered at the Oscars much the same way *Brokeback Mountain* suffered years later. The Academy gave the Best Picture Oscar to *Chariots* because they were always accused of being left wing and were afraid of *Reds*; they gave the award to *Crash* instead of *Brokeback* because they were accused of being too gay friendly.

*Gallipolli* was a noble attempt but should have been better. Weir was just getting some international, after the success of *The Last Wave* (perhaps his best film); and *Picnic at Hanging Rock*. But *Gallipolli* just didn't measure up to those two. Regarding *Chariots*, it's pretty and atmospheric, with good acting and characters, but it's not really a great film. If I had to pick the absolute WORST decision of the Oscar people, ever, it would be that *Chariots* won for best film over *Reds*, for political reasons. *Reds* is a truly great film. I still remember the look on Warren Beatty's face when Loretta Young opened the envelope and announced *Chariots of Fire*. But at least *Reds* got a few awards, including Best Director (Beatty).

Will check it out again, haven't seen it in years. What I remember is their agenda was to criticize -- and they seemed intentionally to have overlooked -- or glossed over -- some beauty. I believed that they mentioned but totally avoided any serious discussion of *Thunderbolt and Lightfoot*. Just look at that relationship between Eastwood and Bridges! But to have delved into it would have gone against the agenda of *Celluloid Closet*. The relationship in *Wings* was also only given a nod; whereas much was made of depictions of effeminacy in other films. But I will look at it again.

I think it was Hawks. The great directors made films which reflected various aspects of life. In the early days, they couldn't come right out and deal with certain issues. So they used the tools available to them -- between-the-lines, double entendre, shot setups. Look at the opening of *Bride of Frankenstein* -- the scene with Mary and Percy Shelley and Lord Byron. Mary was bored because her husband was sleeping with Lord Byron. Look at how director James Whale sets up the shot. Most of those shots have Percy and Byron in one shot; Mary in another, emphasizing the distance. Btw, *The Outlaw*, directed by Howard Hughes, has a definite gay subtext. And I believe Hughes got alot of advice from having worked with Hawks.

I generally share her political views but felt her assessment was a bit over the top. A friend of mine who worked on a project with her said she was really nasty. I was sorry to hear that -- one wants one's political bedfellows to be civilized human beings.

I didn't like *The Celluloid Closet*. It had a chip on its shoulder (with some justification), but it refused to rejoice and find beauty in some of the sensitive depictions of gay relationships which were often "between the lines" in early movies. Susan Sarandon, as I recall, was particularly offensive in what seemed like stock anger. And I think the film misread a few of the movies it discussed. Of course, the subject of this thread was "subtext", but there have been so many films which have dealt overtly with gay relationships. These are more recent films, particularly from the 1980s on, in the mainstream, but at the top of the list is of course Merchant/Ivory's gorgeous *Maurice*, based on E.M. Forster's novel.

*Thunderbolt and Lightfoot* *Bride of Frankenstein* (From the Shelley/Keats relationship at the beginning; to the Dr. Frankenstein/Dr. Praetorius relationship. Even the Praetorius/Monster relationship in the crypt scene).

I love *The Diary of a Country Priest* and just about all of Bresson's work. But if you think that film -- and Bernanos's book -- portrays the Church positively, you and I have different definitions of what "positively" means. Re: *The Nun's Story*, I knew Robert Anderson, who wrote it. They were hoping for Oscars but it was the year of *Ben Hur*.

I met Stathis Gialellis a couple of years ago. Very nice man, lives in NYC. I believe he became a teacher.

Who dares to call *The Human Monster* aka *Dark Eyes of London* less than perfect? If you must call a Lugosi film less than perfect, save that honor for *Old Mother Riley Meets the Vampire* aka *My Son the Vampire*, a movie that not only has Bela Lugosi, but also stars Arthur Lucan, one of the top UK drag characters of the day playing an Irish washerwoman. And to top it off, possibly the most ridiculous (but fun) musical number in any movie ever made! I'm not talking about the Allan Sherman song which was tacked on to the U.S. version; I'm referring to Old Mother Riley's song and dance number: "I lift up my finger and I say "Tweet tweet, shush shush, now now, come come."

*Rocky* won best picture because the Neanderthal voters love movies about boxing. They still do. Apologies for the pejorative.

The great Irish actor TP McKenna has died in London. He appeared on stage, on television, and in many movies, but I will always remember him particularly as Buck Mulligan in Joseph Strick's film of James Joyce's *Ulysses*. He will be buried in Mullagh, Ireland, next to his wife May, who died five years ago.

I've never been a fan of Crosby, though I like him well enough in *We're Not Dressing*. But the real stars of that film are Lombard, Burns and Allen, Merman, and Leon Errol. It's a sort of Admirable Crichton story, with Crosby playing the Crichton character. Great songs. Best line is from Gracie, at the end of the film: "I'm not crying because I'll miss them, I'm crying because this accordion is pinching my stomach."

Best film of 1944 was *Wilson*. I know it wasn't a success when it was released, but it's an incredible biopic. And Alexander Knox as President Wilson should have won over Crosby and everyone else. Knox gives one of the great screen performances. The supporting categories were also particularly strong that year.

A few months ago, someone on this board kindly pointed me to *...Edwin Drood* on YouTube. You have to watch it in installments, but it's there. I'm looking for *The Vulture*, an atmospheric 1967 British horror film with Akim Tamiroff, who occasionally turns into a big birdman. Takes place in Cornwall, as I recall. I thought it was online, but I couldn't find all of it.

The year Poitier won his Oscar, I think Albert Finney should have won for *Tom Jones*. Re: 1954, I think James Mason should have won for *A Star Is Born* over Brando in *On the Waterfront*.

I don't agree about Streep. Just because she puts on an accent once in a while, people demean her. I think her performance in *Out of Africa* is one of the greats. Regarding Steiger, I actually like him as the Hasidic rabbi in *The Chosen*. I think he does a splendid, subdued job in a complex role. I also like him as Mr. Joyboy (a necessarily not-so-subdued role) in *The Loved One*. I think current attempts at "realism" on television are affecting people's ideas about acting. If someone becomes someone other than themselves, many people consider it overacting. If the actor doesn't seem to be playing a character we come across in our daily lives, we think they're overdoing it. I don't agree. My least favorite television show of all time is "Friends." But shows like that are redefining acting for many Americans.

Yes, Hope Emerson is no longer with us. If she were here, she would do to you what she did to Spencer Tracy in *Adam's Rib*. (I think it was Tracy she lifted into the air). The thing about *Caged* is its realistic bleakness, perhaps a combination of reality and film noir. A few years later, there was a sort of remake -- *House of Women* -- in which the Eleanor Parker - type character marries the prison doctor. That was the 50s setting in, with fairy tale happy endings. *Caged* even hints at lesbianism -- that would have been unthinkable a few years later. And Betty Garde is the real supporting actress star of the film. Is there any scene so powerful as when Garde stabs Hope Emerson with the fork? Or so touching as when the ladies sing "Bird in a Cage" at Christmas? *Caged* is not a "camp classic" but as serious a look at what happens in prison as had been shown on the screen up to that point.