faceinthecrowd

Maggie Smith Isabelle Huppert Hanna Schygulla

What movie have you seen the greatest number of times? And approximately how many times have you seen it? 10? 20? 50?

In BODY HEAT I didn't see the plot twist coming. The startling surprise that comes midway through THE OTHER was handled as skillfully in the movie as it was in the book. If I hadn't read the book first, I never would have anticipated it. One's first reaction might be that the author/director didn't play fair with the reader/viewer. But if you go back, you'll see that he did. And, folks, given the nature of this thread, let's all be generous with our use of ====== SPOILER ALERTS ======

You should have used a SPOILER ALERT for that one.

Rita Moreno

Citizen Kane Double Indemnity Algiers -- great escapism, and Hedy Lamarr too Cleopatra -- the Claudette Colbert version The Grifters First alternate: One of the Busby Berkeley musicals

In DEAD RECKONING, there are strong echoes of Bogart's "I won't because all of me wants to" speech in THE MALTESE FALCON. And the final shot of the parachute opening was a great, imaginative touch. And what a lovely voice Liz had!

DESERT FURY, definitely. When is that going to be shown, or available for rental or purchase?

Thank you for the link. That's just the sort of thing I was looking for. At least IMDb says, "Scenes deleted," so viewers won't go nuts looking for him.

It looks like we're pretty much in agreement: that both the virtues and the faults of the film are those of the novel.

I never noticed him, and I've seen KANE umpteen times -- and believe me, that's a lot of times. Looking at the IMDb listing, I see that Nat 'King' Cole was a pianist at El Rancho. I can't believe I missed him.

Guilietta Masina is a good choice. I'm more familiar with her from LA STRADA, but, yes, she's very appealing. And Barbara Harris is another in this category.

I'll check the thread you mentioned. Briefly, it's not that GWTW is not an excellent movie, but that so much of what it's praised for -- the characters, the plot, the dialogue -- comes from the book, of which, to be sure, it's a faithful film version. And the casting is excellent (although I'll always maintain that Bette Davis would have been a better Scarlett), as is the music. And there are scenes that the film did better than any book could: the burning of Atlanta, the crane shot of the wounded soldiers lying on the ground, and, when Scarlett says, "As God is my witness..." the blood red sky behind her. Reading the above, I can see that I've almost undermined my own case; nevertheless, I don't consider it as great a movie as many people do. A minority opinion, no doubt.

That sounds like a good idea for a thread. Where is it? I'm going to start thinking of candidates now -- but ELMER GANTRY isn't one of them. And -- here I'm sure I'll get a lot of flak -- neither, IMO, is FROM HERE TO ETERNITY or GWTW. (They're good movies, but I don't think they do full justice to the novels they're based on. But that's a subject for the other thread.)

Agreed. Actually, I'm surprised that the book was filmed at all. And I'm even more surprised that the novel, which took shots at mainstream organized religion as well as at tent preachers, was the number one bestseller in 1927. (The fact that it was banned in Boston probably didn't hurt.) Edited by: faceinthecrowd on Nov 16, 2013 1:55 PM

If it's a western, it's usually Walter Brennan making the joe.

When "The Big Valley" started airing on TV, Stany was 58, and she was 62 when it ended its run. She was more than 30 years older than her female co-star -- but ask any guy why he watched the series.

Not usually considered to be in this category are: Julie Harris -- at first glance, rather plain, but -- look again. Claire Bloom -- more than just attractive. And they're both in THE HAUNTING, which, as a bonus, happens to be a very good film.

Interesting -- Carole Lombard? Myrna Loy? -- but it's the opposite of the thread's subject, which is actors who were IN the credits but NOT in the movie.

I just Googled Keenan Wynn Touch of Evil, then went to lockergnome.com. Some interesting examples are given there. (Although I disagree with the comment about Alan Ladd in CITIZEN KANE -- he's easy to spot; or at least his distinctive voice is -- his face is in the shadows, but he has a couple of lines in the last scene.) Update on lockergnome: I went back to this site, thinking that it might be an alternative to TCM, but I saw only one post dated later than October. TCM still looks like the best for movie buffs. Edited by: faceinthecrowd on Nov 15, 2013 9:03 PM Edited by: faceinthecrowd on Nov 15, 2013 9:06 PM

IMDb lists Dean as playing "Football spectator." I'll look for him the next time I see the picture.

That would account for these discrepancies. In fact, I don't know whether it's the director who films the credits. And they're probably done well before the final cut is released.

I agree that the scene with Shirley Jones was memorable. I can picture the studio suits discussing how to adapt the novel, saying, "Well, the way the book portrays Lulu is boring; let's have her become a prostitute; then we can have Shirley Jones in a slinky dress using one of her long legs to kick the money out of Burt's hand." It was a nice image. My only objection is that it wasn't in the book. A lot of changes are often made when adapting a book to film, but there seem to be more than the usual number in ELMER GANTRY. I've read the book at least three or four times, so I'm very aware of the differences....Which gives me an idea for a thread, after this one has run its course.

Any relation to Alan Smithee? ;-)

OK, I'll check that and refresh my memory. Update: ====================SPOILER ALERT==================== In Chapter XXV Lulu, now married, reappears in the novel, and she and Gantry almost immediately start an adulterous affair. (Gantry doesn't have to seduce her; it's very much mutually consenting.) In Chapter XXXI Gantry meets Hettie and dumps Lulu, who lets herself go and starts drinking; we see no more of her after that. The novel ends with the events that involve Hettie, which are just as you described them. Edited by: faceinthecrowd on Nov 15, 2013 6:23 AM