ChiO

MissG: *Alas, I missed Youth Runs Wild and it's the only one of the RKO movies I haven't seen.* I caught that & *Mlle Fifi* AND *The Informer* (thinking of you), but nothing surpassed The Edge of the World, one of the finest films I've seen in quite awhile (or at least since Letter from an Unknown Woman).

This is another film from what may have been Eagle-Lion's finest year (1948), releasing five movies for which John Alton was the cinematographer. The others: *Canon City* (Crane Wilbur) *The Spiritualist* (aka The Amazing Mr. X) *Raw Deal* (Anthony Mann) *He Walked by Night* (Alfred Werker; Anthony Mann, uncredited) Although Steve Sekely received the credit for directing Hollow Triumph, Henreid apparently took over the direction during the shoot.

There were a number of memorable *I Love Lucy* episodes with movie stars appearing as themselves, but the two biggies for me were: (a) John Wayne -- with Lucy trying to get his footprints in cement, and ( Harpo Marx -- with Lucy, dressed as Harpo, recreating the faux-mirror scene from Duck Soup.

Of the films listed at http://www.silentera.com/info/events/chicago2008-1.html, are there any that you Lubitsch scholars would tell me that I must not miss?

MissG -- I'm not familiar with Timothy Carey but I'm certainly acquiring an education. Did he mainly play villains? Thank you. It's so kind of you to ask. If I can recruit just one person to the Carey Camp before I die, my time here would be justified. I'm giving up on FrankG and focusing on you. The IMDb has a nice bio of the man John Cassavetes said had "the brilliance of Eisenstein" (the TCM database has no bio). His roles tended toward villains, but what is a 6'5" wild-eyed madman to do? He is a hit man of sorts in *The Killing* and Chesty Morgan, U.S. Navy, a mobster in *The Killing of a Chinese Bookie* and Crime Wave, and a member of Chino's (Lee Marvin) biker gang in The Wild One. He is a man gone mad because of his obsession with power in his The World's Greatest Sinner, a truly eye-opening spectacle of a movie. He certainly isn't a good guy in *Bayou* (aka Poor White Trash) (as a lover of the dance, you'll appreciate ). Although portraying putative bad guys in *Beach Blanket Bingo* and Waterhole #3, it is done with good humor -- and a smidgen of self-parody. And my recollection of his TV roles in the '60s and '70s, where I first came to notice and love his performances, is that they were predominantly bad guys or, at least, outsiders (duh!). On the other hand, my two favorite performances are ones where he is not a villain: *Minnie and Moskowitz* and Paths of Glory. Perhaps it is, at least in part, because Cassavetes and Kubrick were the two directors most respectful of his art, were most encouraging for him to improvise, and the dialogue in the key sequences is largely improvised by Carey. He opens *Minnie and Moskowitz*, portraying a coffee shop denizen, with a rap that is stunning. In Paths of Glory, his trip to the firing squad is the film's climax and one my single favorite scenes in all of moviedom. The Saint of the Underground...Madman of the Method. Of course, there are those who say he was a scene-stealing emoting teeth-clenching no-talent ham. Po-tay-toe, Po-tah-toe.

What happens when two screen titans meet? A great Artist explains his Art. Message was edited by: ChiO

I have deep fear of blades (e.g., knives, axes) and needles, so if those are in a movie, then my hands are over my eyes because I'm terrified; however, five minutes after the movie, the fear is gone. The real scary movies for me generally don't have much violence, but do involve ever-mounting paranoia in a relatively benign setting. Those movies will keep me thinking, looking over my shoulder, and give me nightmares. At the top of the list: *Rosemary's Baby* *Invasion of the Body Snatchers* Now, our younger daughter (now 20) can watch blood and gore, be scared and entertained, and seemingly have no long term negative reaction. So what scares her? "Daddy, those eyes...those eyes are too creepy." Tod Browning's *Dracula* just freaks her out (all of the various modern retellings she merely finds amusing). And... "Daddy, he couldn't really read lips could he?" She refuses to rewatch *2001: A Space Odyssey* because of HAL touched her scary bone. Go figure.

FrankG -- I just learned from a friend that *Mermaids of Tiburon* will be released in February. "Huh?", you say. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0056233. The list of available masterworks continues to grow. Message was edited by: ChiO

Frank-My-Doppelganger -- Once again, you lure me into a stupid list of actors when I, too, first peruse the TCM schedule for directors. With each list of 20, the first listed is tops for me, and thereafter it is in alphabetical order. Actors/Actresses Barbara Stanwyck Joan Bennett Humphrey Bogart Timothy Carey (waiting for him, weren't you) Charles Chaplin Claudette Colbert Marlene Dietrich Dan Duryea Cary Grant Sterling Hayden Myrna Loy Ida Lupino Lee Marvin Robert Mitchum Marilyn Monroe Edward G. Robinson Robert Ryan Randolph Scott James Stewart Richard Widmark Directors Orson Welles Robert Bresson Charles Burnett John Cassavetes Charles Chaplin Carl Th. Dreyer Samuel Fuller Howard Hawks Stanley Kubrick Fritz Lang Joseph H. Lewis Anthony Mann F.W. Murnau Max Ophuls Yasujiro Ozu Otto Preminger Jean Renoir Jacques Tourneur Erich von Stroheim Billy Wilder P.S. You would L-O-V-E Secret Beyond the Door, not that obsessions are your thing.

I'm taking the Powell/Pressburger class because (a) they are generally critically acclaimed and I need the exposure, ( those Powell films I have seen, for the most part, I have liked, though like you I am not a huge fan, and (3) a good friend is teaching/moderating the class and he is incredible -- enthusiastic, knowledgable, stimulating and has never failed to expose me to films that I would otherwise never see. I think this is the 7th class I've taken with him (Unknown Noir I & II; Written by Sturges; Westerns of Tourneur; American Independents of the '60s; Hollywood Directors Post-Code), which is how we became friends. And he just had a film accepted at the South by Southwest Film Fest -- exciting stuff. The Powell films I've seen: *The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp* -- didn't do alot for me, so I need to try again *I Know Where I'm Going* -- after Sunrise, perhaps the loveliest film I've seen *Black Narcissus* -- another lovely one *Red Shoes* -- the 1st one I saw; the 1st Mrs. ChiO was a ballerina (and still teaches); I don't think I was quite prepared for the rhythm of this *PeepingTom* -- I know what you're thinking: "You liked this, didn't you?"; no -- I loved it Films to be shown in the class: *Contraband* (1940) *One of Our Aircraft is Missing* (1941) *The 49th Parallel* (1941) *The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp* (1943) *A Canterbury Tale* (1944) *A Matter of Life and Death* (1946) http://www.facets.org/asticat?function=web&catname=facets&web=cinematheque&path=/filmschool/wintersession2008

MissG -- Nicely played. You'll probably get me completely devoted to Lubitsch before Ford. FrankG -- Reading between the lines and assuming you're serious ("What? Me serious? Get serious."), I take it that Lubitsch is not your cup of tea for two, or one. I have s-l-o-w-l-y force fed myself a few films and have come to enjoy them. *Ninotchka* I love (how did Wilder write that stuff, in his second language yet?). It took a couple of viewings for To Be or Not to Be. And Trouble in Paradise -- ahhh, so well put by MissG. I think of it as a proto-Screwball Comedy film noir -- and probably the only one. But I'm funny that way.

So many interesting choices. Those that pop into my head (must be Kismet) are: TV "Little Buddy" Gilligan (Bob Denver) and The Movie Star (Tina Louise) Bob Collins (Robert Cummings) and Charmaine "Schultzy" Schultz (Ann B. Davis) Movies Skip McCoy (Richard Widmark) and "Moe" Williams (Thelma Ritter) Hank Quinlan (Orson Welles) and Tanya (Marlene Dietrich) Brandon Shaw (John Dall) and Phillip Morgan (Farley Granger)

My favorites: (5) *Psycho* (1960) (4) *Notorious* (1946) (3) *Strangers on a Train* (1951) (2) *North by Northwest* (1959) (1) *Rear Window* (1954)

Yes, M. Boyer is in it; and, yes, he is not one of my favorites; and, yes, I like him in Earrings of Madame de... Consistency is not necessarily my strong suit. My guess: (1) hearing him in French & reading him in English is preferable to hearing him in English, and (2) Ophuls is preferable to Cukor. Never let it be said that I can't be petty. P.S. I also like *Daisy Kenyon* even though on paper I would think that I wouldn't. So it goes. Hope you see more Herr Otto than I got around to. The next class I'm taking is on the films of Powell & Pressburger made during WWII. More films that push my envelope.

The Music Box Theatre in Chicago (http://musicboxtheatre.com), a combo art-house & revival theatre that every city should have.

*He said it's a film that lacks substance. It's basically a "lines" film.* I can't -- or won't -- argue with that, but ohhhh those lines! What I told you about Timothy Carey also applies here -- it's a conceptual thing. And, after all, Steve Buscemi is Timothy Carey with a future.

Yes, you have to see it. I, too, treasure my copy of this film and my *Skidoo!* one-sheet has an honored place in my collection. It is not a bad movie. It is, ummm, a different movie. If you want a bad Preminger movie, see Rosebud.

Just received a Christmas gift from myself today -- John Cassavetes: Five Films. I have never seen *Opening Night* and I haven't seen *A Woman Under the Influence* since it's original release (I just remember being in pain for about a week). Given what appears to be a ton of extras, I should be in Heaven for quite awhile, even if my Greek Goddess spouse won't watch her countryman with me.

I was lucky enough to see *The Earrings of Madame de...* on the big screen a few months ago. Stunning. Beautiful. Ophuls.

At a recent screening in Chicago of his Romance & Cigarettes at which he was present, John Turturro started riffing and said something along the lines of: "People say I'm such a good character actor and I guess I should take that as a compliment, but I'm not sure if they mean what it means to me. Every role every actor plays is a character, so every actor is a character actor."

*Der Letze Mann* (The Last Laugh) (Murnau, 1924) -- Not only a silent, but it has very few intertitle cards. Hitchcock cited it as the best example of pure cinema. And it is just a wonderful movie,

Oops -- forgot to mention Ikiru. See, it is hard to go wrong with Kurosawa. Watch Ikiru, *Tokyo Story* (Ozu), *Umberto D.* (De Sica) and *Make Way for Tomorrow* (McCarey), and then call an older person in your life.

To my shame, I have never seen an Akira Kurosawa film, so at least one of his--any suggestions? Besides Rashomon? *Seven Samurai* and *Yojimbo* are probably the most popular ones, but my favorite is Throne of Blood. *Ran* is great, too -- in fact, it is difficult to go wrong with any Kurosawa film.

Why isn't Max Ophuls worshipped? I am hard pressed to think of another director whose camera is as lush and sweeping, but whose stories at their core are as dark. I saw *Letter from an Unknown Woman* for the first time a month or two ago and was completely taken in. It is beautiful.

Metropolis -- Visually stunning. A good Lang to see before delving into Langian film noir. It tends to interest me less now than it used to, but a must-see. I would also recommend seeing either or both *Dr. Mabuse, the Gambler* and *Crimes of Dr. Mabuse* (my preference is the latter) and definitely M, a film that usually is in my Top Ten, as an introduction to Lang's U.S. films. Gaslight -- Though I'm not a huge fan of either the 1940 or 1944 version, it is a good movie to see. The earlier one may have a slight edge for me because the latter has Charles Boyer (I prefer his brothers, Clete and Ken, for you baseball fans) and George Cukor. I do like Angela Lansbury and Joseph Cotten, however, in the latter. The Third Man -- Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful. Welles may not have directed it, but it often looks like he did. And I happen to like Joseph Cotten's performance here, too. Citizen Kane -- Sigh. The first time I saw it was in the early-'60s. I thought it was different than any movie I had seen and it instantly became my favorite movie. I try to watch it once or twice a year now. It has only improved with its age and my age. Some consider it the greatest movie of all time. They are probably right. It is the greatest movie I have ever seen. Jonathan Rosenbaum has two wonderful responses to the common criticism of Welles that he never made another Citizen Kane: (1) who needs a second Citizen Kane, one in a lifetime is enough, and (2) nobody else has made another Citizen Kane either. Revel in this one. Oh, and enjoy Joseph Cotten.