JonnyGeetar
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Posts posted by JonnyGeetar
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> I don't see what's so difficult to understand: the film never makes clear whether Sebastian is privy to the poisoning of Alicia -- what is clear is that his confederates are quite aware of it and are certainly the ones behind it.
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Thanks, Mr. Dobbs for the lesson in quoting, I hope I did the above Quote of Mr. Hawk's properly.
What are you talking about? There's a scene where one of the Nazis almost drinks Alicia's poisoned coffee and both Sebastian and Momma Sebastian are all "No! Not that one!"
Sebastian completely knows what's going on with the poisoning, his co-horts are deliberately kept in the dark as to what's going on so that they don't put him and Momma Sebastian into the proverbial wood chipper.
How long's it been since you've seen "Notorious"?
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HUDSON HAWK WROTE: The whole point of the movie is that Devilin is, in his way, more ruthless than Sebastian, since he was more willing than Sebastian was to sacrifice Alicia to accomplish his mission, and her, in the end, not caring.
(Sorry, I still have no idea how to properly attribute quotes to other posts.)
I've read and re-read your last statement many times, and forgive my thickness, but I don't get what you mean. Could you re-pack that for me?
I also see Devlin's being AS ruthless or ALMOST AS ruthless, but not MORE ruthless. At best, it's a tie.
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"Overrated" was, forgive me, far from the right word for "Notorious", I don't know what is.
For the record, I watch it EVERY SINGLE time they ever show it on TCM and I am always glad when it's on. It's a blast to watch Bergman and Grant playing different sorts of characters from the usual, and I don't think either was ever better in anything else (and, duh, they were pretty damn good in everything they ever did.) Claude Raines is- of course- fanastic as the somewhat oddly British-accented Nazi, and MADAME KONSTANTIN- Mon Dieu!- how hard do I wish she had been in more stuff than just this! The writing, camera work- etc etc is superb, oh and I love the music too.
My beef with "Notorious" is the ending, which reminds me a little of blowing up a balloon, letting it go and watching it pffffooooft all over the room.
Hitch amps the tension and builds the drama so well and then he just goes, "eh, let him carry her out of the house."
The End.
Eh?
Lord Knows the man could end a film with a bang (STRANGERS ON A TRAIN, VERTIGO, my fave: SHADOW OF A DOUBT, NXNW, FOREIGN CORRESPONDENT) all prove this...And I don't know, I just feel myself wanting MORE from the end of NOTORIOUS. I always feel this way, every time I see it, and I'm up to viewing #10 at least.
I'm not saying I want slo-motion footage of Grant and Bergman running from the fireball of the exploding mansion all Michael Bay-style...But something's missing- to me at least.
Anyone else agree?
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movieprofessor wrote:
"Mason was without question in Hollywood, living in the house once owned by Buster Keaton. He was currently invovled in television production that had him hosting several dramatic programs."
THE THREE:
1.What did he have for breakfast the morning of the premiere?
2.What color socks did he wear that day? (If multiple pairs, please specify.)
and
3. Did he mind that you were crouched in his bushes?
I'M KIDDING!!
I'm totally into the passion in your input, and really appreciate it...But seriously, are you human or, like, some kind of HAL-type thing, like TCM-BOT 2000?
Oh, and this is non sequitor as hell, but I LOVE BELLS ARE RINGING! When the heck are they gonna play "The Solid Gold Cadillac," I've never seen it and it's not on DVD.
Edited by: JonnyGeetar on Nov 2, 2009 11:24 AM
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drednm wrote:
"To me, Garland's loss (an utterly superb performance no matter what the film's problems were) ranks with Gloria Swanson's loss to the ho-hum Judy Holliday in 1950 as the biggest Oscar blunders--at least in acting categories."
Amen, my brother (sister?) Although I note, the big tragedy about Holliday is that her later work (especially in THE MARRYING KIND) blows what she did in BORN YESTERDAY out of the water, but she was never nominated again. Had to smart.
Personally, I rank Luise Rainer beating Garbo, Stanwyck and Dunne (THE three greats of the 30's who NEVER won an oscar) in 1937 to win her second (un-merited) best actress award for her turn as a Viennese-accented Chinese peasant who looks like someone has just stomped on her toes in every scene as the #2 biggest blunder of Oscar, but that's another post.
Edited by: JonnyGeetar on Nov 2, 2009 9:11 AM
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maybe james mason didn't go to the premiere of "a star is born" but he gave the eulogy for garland at her funeral in 1969.
that says something to me.
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"1954"
judy gave the best
performance of that year, and
the "country girl" stinks
-That's what it's all about. Period.
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finance wrote:
If Judy [Garland] had won [the 1954 Oscar], do you think she would have gotten a lot of good film offers? (she ended up with virtually none.)
(I have no idea how to cut and paste the quotes of others, that's the best I can do.)
my reply:
Probably not, but there's always hope that in Bizarro world, Judy won the Oscar, managed to hang on to Sid Luft, kept the weight off, kicked the Bennies and went on to triumph after triumph after triumph, eventually netting a second Best Actress award in 1969 for "Hello, Dolly!" (Thereby beating Liza in the process, I know.)
There are few books on film that I could recommend more than ALTERNATE OSCARS by a guy named Danny Peary (sic?) It's out of print and my own copy ended up falling apart, but he analyzes the picture, actor, and actress awards from the very start up until 1991 (when it was printed.)
He's right on the head nearly every single time.
You may be able to find it on amazon, and it is SO worth it for those who get the chance to check it out.
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I agree wholeheartedly with your statement with one exception:
(in my opinion) Lana Turner gave at least three successful performances in her career: THE BAD AND THE BEAUTIFUL, and (debateably, I admit) THE POSTMAN ALWAYS RINGS TWICE and PEYTON PLACE (hey, I buy her in it.)
Kelly never once gave a performance that wins me over.
And excellent point about the 11 films, pretty paltry, and all the more reason why I rate her Oscar win over Judy Garland as an out-and-out disaster (for all involved.)
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Methinks i know what you need:
LE JOAN CRAWFORD COLLECTION VOLUME THREE DVD BOX SET:
JOHNNY GUITAR
FEMALE ON THE BEACH
SUDDEN FEAR
LETTY LINTON
SUSAN AND GOD
I know it'll never happen because of legal/rights issues, but, wouldn't it be uber-fabu? I'd pay $150 for it.
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that is an excellent point, and one that never occured to me.
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FredCDobbs wrote:
I wonder why they are showing "Gaslight" again tonight in prime time? This film has been showing every couple of months for the past several years.
Charles Boyer wrote:
Tsk, tsk, Paul-uh. You are ee-mah-geening tings again, juss like zee footsteps in zee attic. Zhey can nevaire show "Gaslight" too much. Now please, please, enjoy "Zee Haunting" again for zee second time in tree days or I wheel have to send you away some place, juss like your crezy aunt.
Edited by: JonnyGeetar on Oct 31, 2009 10:19 AM
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A&E did a Bio on KARLOFF: THE UNCANNY a while back, you might like checking it out (it's on DVD and video, heck it may even be on A&E considering the time of year.)
He was apparently- by every single account- an absolutely lovely person in real life. Carol Burnett, of all people, has some really nice things to say about him. You should also check out "The Lost Patrol"- it's one of his non-horror roles and he is AMAZING in it. I'd also recommend "Targets," which was on recently and has been discussed and dissected else where in the forums.
Avoid anything he ever made in Mexico though. Hoo-Boy! Those had to be a late-in-life regret.
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he was probably just self conscious about the fact that she was a foot taller than he was.
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"I would love to see Evelyn Ankers as Star of the Month when Universal titles become available to TCM."- Prince Saliano
I agree wholeheartedly. Amen, brother, amen.
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johnm, dude, you are so totally my 180 that it frightens me. were we ever in the same room, the world would surely end.
have you never seen the "born in a trunk" number?
"dial m for murder" is dreck, but it's a masterpiece compared to "the country girl"- dear God above me, I LOATHE that film. Check it out when they show it later this month, but stay away from heavy machinery and sharp objects for two weeks afterwards.
sidenote: i love audrey hepburn, but "sabrina" was the only time she was nominated for an Oscar that I completely disagree with. it is an unremarkable performance in one of the very few billy wilder movies i don't care for. of course, i would sooner jane wyman have won for "magnificent obsession" than the award going to the pretentious, maudlin, stagey, crapfest that is clifford odet's "country girl."
the smoking thing is going iffy. it's going iffy.
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it's MST-THREE-K, ya'll.
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i hear you loud and clear. i would also note that I would NOT have picked many of the Karloff films that whoever picked today's schedule did. (they're all too similar.)
unfortunately, the last few years, the Universal Horror flicks have been on AMC- (they had a HUGE marathon the year before last). and for all the complaining I do about TCM's scheduling, at least they don't show commercials. AMC is essentially a commercial delivery system, if parts of movies happen to get played in between the commercials, okay, but they're not the main objective. Seriously, it took them two and a half hours to show "Frankenstein" from 1931, and it's no more than an hour twenty minutes at most.
If you don't have Netflix- GET IT NOW. You can get all the Universal Monster films on DVD and many of them contain more than one film in the series..Of course, all the "Dracula" and "Wolfman" sequels SUCK, so that's a mixed bag, but they've got some other good bonuses on them as well.
I've got "Werewolf of London" (1935) on right now.,
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hey man, to each his own.
(speaking of which, why do they NEVER show "to each his own" with Olivia DeHavilland from 1946?)
I'm okay with "Lover Come Back" (but not nuts about it). I also like "Funny Face," I just included them because there was a period a few months back where they were on maybe three times a month each- and almost always on a weekend, (HAS ANYONE ELSE NOTICED HOW THE WEEKEND HAS GOTTEN TO BE RECYCLE CITY FOR TCM?)
I did not mean to imply "NxNW" was overrated, that was sloppy syntax.
But yeah, it wouldn't hurt to cool it off for a while. speaking of which "psycho" is on tonight for the umpteenth zillionth time this year, and if I can stay up, i'll be watching from start to finish.
And at the risk of getting off topic (and all apologies to the author of this post) what the HELL is up with "Poltergeist" ?? It's been on at least twice in the last six weeks and that's two times too many.
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It's funny, I actually deleted a sentence where I mentioned that I was stunned at how good Bing Crosby was in the film and that I was totally cool with his Oscar nod- but I felt like it hurt the flow of the rant.
For the record, he's the ONLY good thing about that movie.
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(Author's note: I am trying to quit smoking and it is rainy and dreary on the East Coast and I am Mr. Supercrankypants this week, so I'm sorry for all the negative posts, for the record, TCM makes lots of programming decisions that I am kosher with, although I will note, I have been more irked than pleased in the last year.)
That said: Grace Kelly as star of the month?
Why?
Now, I admit that the Prince Albert spot they've been airing is very touching and sweet, and there are numerous accounts of what a kind, generous person she became as Princess of Monaco, and I give you: AS A MOVIE STAR SHE IS AN A+, AND AS A BEAUTY SHE IS WITHOUT EQUAL.
That said, as an actress, I'd give her no more than a B- at best. (And to note, I have won zero Oscars to date)
That ****-elegant, icewater-in-the-veins routine she does just sticks in my craw, and it is to note I would put "High Noon," "High Society," "Rear Window," and "Green Fire" on the list of films TCM just plays too damn much already, oh, "Mogambo" too. And in the case of "High Noon" and "High Society," I would say that she is one of the weakest spots in two films I consider to be weak enough already.
In "Society" she picks up on the frostiness of Hepburn in "Philadelphia Story," but doesn't inject the character with any human feeling whatsoever (in my opinion.) And in "High Noon"- a film I find more and more annoying and cliche' every time I see it- she has to be the most immaculately coiffured Quaker in the history of westerns. Every time she has a scene with Gary Cooper, I expect her to tell him, "darling, you simply cahn't stay for a shootout, it would be too, too gauche! Now I'm off to lunch and shopping."
I also HATE "The Country Girl," and for the record, her beating Judy Garland for the 1954 Best Actress Oscar for that humdrum little **** is the biggest atrocity in the history of an award that has been given to the wrong people and the wrong films about 90% of the time.
There. That's it. I'm sorry for all the kvetching, but I could laundry list the stars (especially supporting and character players) who deserve a month more.
Feel free to nominate some alternate stars of the month in your replies and I'm sorry, as always, if I have offended.
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wow,
i was all ready to take up for "NxNW" until I read all the other posts...for the record though, it is one that I will watch EVERY SINGLE time they show it, just like the also over-exposed (and overrated, if you ask me) "Notorious."
I agree that TCM's biggest strength is showing gems not available on DVD, like last night's marathon (depressing as it was) or others like "the night digger" and "cluny brown" (to name two out of hundreds.) I just wish they wouldn't do it so late at night, not all of us are insomniacs and not all of us have DVR.
I will however state that I'd rather see Cary and Eva on the face of Mt. Rushmore than "The Facts of Life," "Yours, Mine and Ours", "High Noon," "Candleshoe", "Mr. Blandings", "Lover Come Back", "3:10 TO YUMA","Funny Face" or (the worst) BEDKNOBS AND FRIGGIN' BROOMSTICKS again...and again and again..
ps- and again...
pss- maybe we should start a new thread nominating the most overplayed film of the year.
Edited by: JonnyGeetar on Oct 30, 2009 10:08 AM
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Please forgive, did not mean to imply "Targets" was a Corman film in any sense other than his name on a couple of checks, if even that...I was more referring to the story of how Roger agreed to give Bogdanavich a break, but only if he used footage from the mediocre "The Terror" and the services of Karloff for two days (as per Osborne's intro and the imdb trivia section)
The end effect kind of reminds me of how they give the designers on "Project Runway" a piece of purple chiffon and some safety pins and say: "now make an evening gown for Camryn Manheim in fifteen minutes" and one of them totally manages to rock it out.
ps- maybe I'm reading between the lines here, but I'm glad to see someone else is not a big fan of William Castle, what is UP with the **** TCM has for him this month? But I guess that's another forum topic.
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C'mon now!
I usually find something to gripe about in every film I see (just check out my post history), but aside from the "Oriental" joke (which could be chalked up to character exposition) I can't think of anything to kvetch about!
This film was an out-and-out box of Cracker Jacks from start to finish! I had to run an errand to the drug store after it was over and found myself looking over my shoulder in the parking lot and all along the way there.
As an avowed fan of "Mystery Science Theater" I have seen almost all of Roger Corman's GOD AWFUL 1950'S-60'S CRAP, and I would have to say that this is a text book example of turning a sow's ear into a silk purse- the only argument would be whether or not Bogdanavich or Polly Platt deserved the credit...And judging by some of Pete's later work , I think Miss Platt deserves her due.
I've only seen this once now, but I have to say it is now one of my favorite films of the 1960's. Just couldn't have been better.
Shame though, Karloff more or less got to call this his Swan Song while Lugosi got "Plan 9 from Outer Space"- a masterpiece of a whole other kind.
But I guess that's the breaks.
Ben Mankowitz left wing statment after Capricorn One
in Hot Topics
Posted
everyone, seriously:
please do what i do on the weekend, when THE MANK comes on, just hit the mute button and start talking like Lenny in "Of Mice and Men":
"Duh-ee! Hiya everybody! 'm Ben Makiewicz! I work in television! Duh-aye! Let me just regurgitate the imdb trivia entry for this movie and then contemptuously roll my eyes at it even though I've never written a screenplay or been in a movie of note myself! Duh-eee. Boy, any number of people sure could do this job better than me AND be charismatic or even attractive to boot, duh-ee. Can I play with the rabbit now, George? Can I have my eyebrows back now, George? Duh-eee."
It'll save you A LOT of frustration and if your neighbors have been calling the cops on you for all the loud swearing and furnbiture throwing, this'll help with that too.
Yes, that's right: I'm a hater.