faceinthecrowd

"When +I+ use a word, it means just what I choose it to mean -- neither more nor less." Humpty Dumpty

Welcome to the forum. And you're right about Jessica Lange; she has the talent, as well as the physical resemblance, to play the role. As for Frances Farmer herself, her best film may be Come and Get It. It has the additional benefit of having Joel McCrea and Edward Arnold in the cast.

That review of AIW makes it sound like a faithful film version. Anyone who thinks it's a "benign children's fantasy" hasn't read the book attentively. (I'm considering the two books as one, as most people do. I can never remember which book a particular character was in.) It's interesting to see William Cameron Menzies mentioned, especially in connection with Things to Come, my favorite sci-fi movie. It had more than just special effects (which were impressive for those days) -- it had something to say, and, with a script by H. G. Wells, said it well.

The Browning Version (Michael Redgrave) Goodbye, Mr. Chips (Robert Donat) The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (Maggie Smith)

Burt is great, of course. I alway enjoy watching him. And Criss Cross is not to be missed. There's Tony Curtis right at the beginning, dancing with Yvonne de Carlo. And Dan Duryea plays the most vicious character of his career. But to get back to The Killers: I've heard it said that Ava Gardner was even more beautiful in person -- that the camera didn't do her justice. When she walked into the studio commissary, blase actors and actresses would stop eating and gawk at her. And who could blame them? She and Burt were two of the most attractive stars ever.

You talkin' to me?

You're right, Grant did get an Oscar nomination for None But the Lonely Heart. The other was for Penny Serenade. In addition to those two, I think he deserved at least a nomination for Suspicion and Notorious. And if Oscars were given for comedies, which seems to happen very rarely, His Girl Friday would be at the top of my list.

I forgot about LITTLE SHOP. The highlight of the film is Jack Nicholson as a pain freak telling the dentist, "No novocaine -- it dulls the sensation!" Then, as the drilling begins, he screams (in ecstasy), "Don't stop now!" The unspoken punch line of the whole scene is the way Nicholson looks when it's over.

I've read that Grant wanted to do None But the Lonely Heart because it was a different type of role for him. The public didn't go for him in that picture because it was too gloomy in tone and because he was 40, playing someone much younger. Even for the ageless Cary Grant there are limits.

True. If they gave an Oscar for Most Inappropriate Casting, NAAS would have won easily. Except for Gloria Grahame! She was the one bright spot in a dreary movie.

The most vicious person Dan Duryea ever played was Slim Dundee in Criss Cross. Claire Trevor won an Oscar for her performance in Key Largo as Gay Dawn, which was the professional name of Maggie Mooney.

Ephraim Katz's Film Encyclopedia says that Mirren's paternal grandfather was a nobleman in Czarist Russia, and that her father was also born in Russia. She was born in England as Ilyena Mironov (or something like that).

Sinatra wasn't bad in a small role in this picture. As for Mitchum and Marvin: they're two of my favorite actors, and they're unbeatable in the right parts. But they shouldn't have been cast against type here, because they were wrong for the roles they played. Montgomery Clift was originally slated to play the lead, but he was self-destructing at the time, so it went to Mitchum. If you've read the novel (I have, two or three times), you know that Clift would have been perfect.

A very interesting book about that transition period is Peter Biskind's "Easy Riders, Raging Bulls." (Subtitle: "How the Sex-Drugs-and-Rock 'n' Roll Generation Saved Hollywood.") If you can get past the many typos that exist even in the hardcover edition, it's an absorbing read.

I have THE SCAR and THE LIMPING MAN on the same DVD, from VCI. The quality isn't good; the best I can say is that it's better than not having these movies at all. When you see THE SCAR, watch for the scene where a gangster says, "Not going to let him get away, are you, Bullseye?" Bullseye is played by someone you may recognize. And in THE LIMPING MAN, see if you know the actresses who play the landlady's beatnik daughter, and the barmaid. If you don't know who they are, IMDb to the rescue. It's great for cast listings, even those who are uncredited.

Kiss of Death is a perfect choice. They made a point of using authentic locations. And it's a terrific movie, too.

About Maltin: even the worthy Homer Simpson nods, or however that saying goes. His guide is still the greatest, though.

Your post refreshed my memory and helped me to connect the dots. Now I remember that the deputy was killed by Rocco or his henchmen, and that Rocco led the sheriff to think that the Osceolas had done it. And one of the things I recall vividly was the look of horror on Bogart's face when he learned that the brothers were dead. He realized that Rocco was as responsible as if Rocco had pulled the trigger himself. Until then, Rocco's evil had been an abstraction to Bogart, which is why, when he held a gun he thought was loaded, he didn't shoot Rocco, figuring, why should I give my life to wipe out this vermin? But after the two killings, everything changed. That was the turning point for Bogart's character, and for the film.

THE GREAT MOMENT had its moments -- sorry about that. Two other movies with dentists as main characters are THE STRAWBERRY BLONDE and MARATHON MAN. And I think there was a short by W. C. Fields. Now there's an exciting idea for a thread -- movies about dentists. It might get, oh, two or three responses. Per year.

Re: movies that Sturges wrote but did not direct: Have you seen "If I Were King"? Ronald Colman stars in the story of Francois Villon. Basil Rathbone, Frances Dee, and Ellen Drew also appear. For a sample of the writing: "The pigs beseech you to accept their fattest hams."

The Fugitive Kind was called "uneven" by Leonard Maltin, who goes on to call the casting "strange," concluding, "Movie goes nowhere." I'm quoting Maltin because I agree with him at least 90% of the time -- but not on this. Anna Magnani and Victor Jory give Oscar-worthy performances, and Brando's monologue beginning, "There's people bought and sold in this world" is haunting. The only fault I find with it is Joanne Woodward's Southern accent. Her performance is good, but coming from someone born in Georgia, that accent takes the cake.

I agree with your reply to gagman66. Nobody ever said that Clockwork Orange was a comedy. As for Dr. Strangelove, I think it's hysterically funny. But Kubrick isn't saying that _nuclear war_ is funny; he's satirizing the thinking that makes it a possibility. You can't fight here, this is a movie forum!

Mercedes McCambridge won an Oscar, and rightly so, for All the King's Men. I think she deserved another for Johnny Guitar.

Your mention of Gregory Peck reminds me of what is probably the most controversial role he played: Captain Ahab in Moby Dick. Many thought he was ludicrously miscast. I thought he gave the performance of his life. (Leonard Maltin writes that Peck brings a "deranged dignity" to the role.) Whatever one's reaction may be, it was certainly a departure from anything he ever did before, or since.

If Walter more than leers at Phyllis, can you blame him? The first thing he sees is her legs coming down the stairs, and he wants to see more of her, "without that stupid railing getting in the way." And then: "That's a honey of an anklet." What a great line! And: "How fast was I going, Officer?" "About 90." And you're right, the corruption was already there. In his voice over -- the confession he's dictating to Keyes -- he says that he'd been thinking for years about a way to pull a scam, like a croupier at a roulette wheel who needs a shill to place the bet.