JamesJazGuitar

Thanks for explaining the legal reasons Joan was able to win her suit and get out of her contract. So while she might of filed the suit because of the poor roles she was given that wasn't the legal reason she won her suit. If actors could sue for that Bogie wouldn't of made High Sierra after making Doctor X!

I agree with you. Both Grant and Day are at least 20 years too old to be playing characters that would act the way they do. I would always say I love Grant in everything until I saw this dud.

I really enjoy this movie because of the 4 stars and how different their characters are from each other. Liz Scott never looked better and while she isn't a great actress by any means she pulls her weight in this one. Van Hefin is at his best. He is a classic noir character; very ambiguous. We don't know what he is thinking or planning. Of course what makes the movie interesting is that Walter and Martha think they know exactly what Sam is planning. But of course they are wrong and because of their misguided actions they cause their own demise.

Can you explain what you mean by 'sued for better roles'? I don't think one can file a lawsuit for that. Olivia DeHavilland filed a sued against WB but that was because WB extended their contract based on the time she was on suspension. Anyhow, Joan was indeed mostly the good girl (but in High Sierra she appeared 'good' but in some ways wasn't). I always liked Joan and she was a very good 'second gal' in many movies (i.e. second to other WB actresses). Yea, its too bad that Jack was such a bonehead in his handling of stars, especially actresses. He almost messed it up with Bette (but did forgive her when she came back from England after losing her lawsuit and gave her great roles from than on), and he clearly didn't use Olivia as well as he could of since she was the top actress from 46 - 49 after leaving WB.

TCM did something similar with regards to The Big Sleep. There is the initial release (only shown to US troop overseas initially), and the the general U.S. release. While 90% of the movie is the same in the later version there are some additional Bogie Bacall scenes (since they got married Warner wanted more of them), some scenes cut (to make room for more B&, and two different actresses playing Mrs. Mars.

Well when Jane was asked about doing the role she just couldn't say no. Nancy called her and said 'just say no'!.

That is an interesting angle. i.e. the White House from the POV of a maid. That also helps avoid a lot of the politics. I agree that Fonda with her hair styled like Nancy look similar.

While The Big Sleep is one of my top 10 favorite movies I wouldn't say it is the pinnacle of Film Noir. The main reason would because of the love story between Marlow and Vivian. In the book Marlow has an affair with Eddie Mars wife. That creates a lot more tension and is more true to film noir than the romance Hawks creates. Hey, I clearly understand why Hawks pushed the BB romance in the movie after all the smoke they created in 'To Have'. Being a romantic I love that and it really works but it does distract from the noir element of the plot. An ending where Marlow is making love to the wife of the guy he helps get killed would of left many unanswered questions (i.e. did Marlow kill Mars for the Sternwoods justice or for his own goals). Not sure I understand this line: ',,,she made a two-bit loser out of him'. This this relate to the fact that Hawks wanted an affair with Bacall but instead she went with Bogie? Oh, and To Have and Have Not was based on a short story not a novel. The Breaking Point is a better version of that story, but again, 'To Have' like The Big Sleep are classics because of how they blend romance with action.

Jane as Nancy sounds interesting, but it would have to focus only on a narrow period of Nancy's life (I assume mostly just the 8 years in the white house), since Jane is in her 70s (but looking very well still). Of course there is a political angle there. Would the movie be designed to appeal to fans for the Reagans? Well that might backfire since some will never forgive Jane for her misguided actions.

It appears you don't understand my POV on this topic at all. At all. Say one when to see Plan 9 from Outer Space as a first movie date and during that date, one fell in love got married and were still married 40 years later. That movie could be one of their favorites. AGAIN, what is someone's favorite movie could have NOTHING to do with the overall quality of the movie. So it doesn't matter how many movies a person has seen. We are talking about favorite and NOT best.

Since I live in Southern CA and only about 35 miles from Hollywood, during the 80 (when I first got into classic movies), there were a few theaters that showed classic movies at least once a week, if not more. So I was able to see at least 20 classics. Most were either Bogie or Bette Davis movies, with a few Garbo ones and some noirs like Double Indemnity. It was great but it did set me apart from most of the people I grew up with.

I'm not sure I'm following the point of your reply. Yes, RO has seen a lot more movies than me but I don't see how that relates. My point was that for most people their favorite movies are such because of very personal reasons, and not, per se, the quality of the movie. It is a combination of what the movie is about and what that person was experiencing at the time they saw it. So it really doesn't matter how many movies one has seen but how a specific movie impacts someone at a very specific moment in their lives. The Razor's Edge is a movie with a theme that could have a major impact on someone, depending on where their head was at when they saw it. Of course maybe RO picked the movie has one of his top 3 favorites just because of how Gene looks in it! Often the simple explanation is the correct one, but I don't think that is the case here.

I think Fred might have the reason. I read the book in my mid 20s when I was "searching for truth". The book had a big impact on me and I went out and got everything the libraries in my area had by Maugham. I wasn't into classic films at the time so I didn't discover the movie until about 15 years later. So maybe the book and film had an impact on RO and that is why he list it as one of his favorites. Of course I'm just guessing here but that line of reasoning makes sense to me since as a movie, (i.e. if judged only as a movie) I also find it odd it would be in anyone's top 3 favorites, but hey The Petrified Forest is one of my top 3.

Great info, thanks. Yea, I was surprised how good Merle looked in Hotel. In fact I had to go and check the year it was made since it was my understanding it was made in the 60s but when I saw Merle I felt it could of been made then. She is one of the all time movie beauties.

What Bogie doesn't look and act Irish to you? How about as a Mexican in Virginia City as a leader of a gang of bandidos? Yea, Bogie was clearly out of his element.

My reply was based on the original list I saw and Bardot wasn't even on that list. But I should of added Jane Fonda. Like Woods and Loren, Fonda was on that original list and I believe she was one very good actress. I admit I haven't seen enough of Bardot (that I can remember), to judge her acting ability. (but I have seen enough to judge her beauty and this I do remember!).

Yes, Olivia did such a great job as Melanie that it is hard to imagine anyone else in that role now. As you may know Jack Warner wanted the cast of GWTW to be full of his players. He offer Davis but required that Flynn play Rhett. Now some people laugh at that but Davis and Flynn were very good together in The Sisters. i.e. Flynn was a better actor than he is often given credit for. But still like with the casting of Melanie, Gable and Leigh are perfect in their roles. Leslie Howard is my favorite actor but, yea he was too old and too english for that part. Oh well at least he got to make Intermezzo with a young Bergman.

Yes, the beautiful Merle Oberon. She looked as good in this 60s film as she did in the 40s. Yea, everyone ages but Oberon must of had a Dorian Gray like painting hidden in her house! I mean just by way of example, compare Davis or Crawford from the 40s with how they looked in the 60s.

While I love the ending of The Bad Seed (since Rhoda deserved to get fried), it is somewhat of a camp ending, especially since they add on Patty getting spanked by Nancy. So it done to be release the tension with humor. As for people getting away with murder, well the best example of this getting by censors is Scarlet Street with EG Robinson and Joan Bennet. EG does murder Joan but her boyfriend is the one that gets the death penalty. EG is a mental case after and that punishment was enough for the censors. Another good example is Bogie killing Canino outside by the car. Bogie knew Canino had no bullets left in his gun, but instead of taking him into the police he just shoots him dead. Hawks had to fight the censors to keep that scene in. Canino had poisoned Jones and in the previous scene so I guest it was viewed as an eye for an eye.

Based on how the term 'sex sirens' is used in cinema, I agree with you. Oh, and it isn't really a compliment. i.e. the term is used for an actress where the main or only appeal is her looks and body. Thus Woods or Loren don't belong on that list based on that criteria. But not because they don't have the looks, but because they were fine actresses.

Well in a Bette Davis thread I mentioned Brent, but my point was that in the movies the movie was all based on Bette's character and anyone could of played the role Brent played (and likely better). So I wouldn't view them as a romantic couple, per se, since a couple implies sharing and in those movies it was 95% Bette and 5% Brent! The Lynn Lane team is an interesting one. I have seen most of those movies (since WB is my favorite studio). As one can see many of these where sequels where WB milked a theme to death. Still I think Lane had a lot of talent and like most of the gals at WB was underutilized, due to the presense of Davis.

I wonder if Gable liked the idea of her hiring Haines. He didn't treat Cukor very nicely during the filming of GWTW. Yea, Carole was a beauty. I have a lot of still shots of her and if one didn't know she was a comedian (the best female comedian of the 30s in my view), one would think she was a model.

Yes, the roles Bette did from 34 - 44 cannot be matched by any other actress in my opinion. Just look at how different her roles are in The Little Foxes versus The Letter. Bette was magic.

I have the book (a second edition), but I haven't seen the movie. I purchased and read most of Maugham's books about 25 years ago during a time that he was IT for me. Great to see another one of his stories made into a movie.

I don't know if I would say VITN is the only dramatic role Lombard did. What about Made For Each Other, In Name Only, and They New What They Wanted? These movies all contain serious subject matter and I would define them as dramas. But VITN is the most dramatic performance Lombard ever gave.