JamesJazGuitar
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Posts posted by JamesJazGuitar
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With regards to casting Anthony Perkins as a young college basketball player; I assume he was cast mainly because of his height (6.2) and his acting ability. Such young star athletes are often sex symbols regardless of their looks; i.e. their "status" at the school is the primary factor.
I tried to think of other actors that could have played the part: Tony Donahue came to mind, and he would have been a better fit; He was the right age, Perkins was 28, Donahue would have been 22, and Donahue was one inch taller at 6.3.
Donahue didn't have the acting ability of Perkins but the role didn't really require much in that area.
Of course Donahue had just signed a contract with Warner and Perkins was under contract with MGM.
Fonda and Donahue would have made a cute couple.
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10 minutes ago, jameselliot said:
In their intro, Eddie calls The Fugitive the most noir television series of all-time. It was a great show, but that description goes to Peter Gunn, in my (pulp paperback) book.
For me Peter Gunn also had the best musical score of any T.V. show as well as the best guest musicians. The only issue I have is that I wish Craig Stevens had a more compelling screen persona.
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10 hours ago, Eucalpytus P. Millstone said:
I disagree with your opinion.
Making another adaptation of a film, song, play is not entirely about "those involved expressing their artistic ability."
We are specifically concerned with The Night of the Hunter -- a Hollywood movie. IMO, there are several reasons for adapting a story or remaking a movie multiple times:-
The first adaptation was a failure or regarded as a failure (cf. the first two versions of The Maltese Falcon).
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The evolution of motion picture technology (e.g., The Wizard of Oz, Godzilla: King of the Monsters).
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Thar'$ gold in them thar hill$; i.e., habitually mining a tried and true, proven commodity (see Dracula, The Hound of the Baskervilles, Little Women).
- Hollywood's hidebound mindset, creative myopia, and apathy re cultivating originality.
I've never read Davis Grubb's novel, so I don't know if Laughton's interpretation was a faithful adaptation and whether Grubb approved or disapproved of the movie (and faithfulness to the source material and author approval are of little concern to Hollywood producers and studios). For me, Laughton's treatment nailed it. The '91 TV remake was superfluous and inferior.
As for the point that making another adaptation of a film, song play is not "entirely" etc... I didn't use the term "entirely" and never implied that. Instead I just offered what I believe to be a primary reason for making another adaptation from the POV of the creators of said arts. You list many other reasons and I agree with those so I don't see where we disagree.
As for Night of the Hunter, which is one of my favorite films, Laughton indeed nailed it, but I don't see how that relates to what I posted. Instead I see it as making my point; I.e. there are other directors in this world that would like to take the fine source material and see if they can make a version that expresses their view of said source material.
"My POV here isn't on this one film but instead your comment of: A movie that should never be remade (the 1991 TV rendition was pointless) because perfection cannot be improved upon"
I guess I read this comment by you too narrowly; as in: a movie should never be remade unless it can be improved upon.
As for those other reasons: There is a lot of discussion at this forum as for the best reasons to make a new adaptation of a film:
I really Like your first bullet point and in that vein, for me the best reasons would be solid source material but prior versions didn't do the source material justice; the two prior The Maltese Falcon are a great example of these reasons. Huston "nailed it" by writing a screenplay that was very faithful to be book.
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The first adaptation was a failure or regarded as a failure (cf. the first two versions of The Maltese Falcon).
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2 hours ago, Eucalpytus P. Millstone said:
Hmmm, I wouldn't categorize The Night of the Hunter as an Adventure/Action film. I've seen it classified as Film Noir and as a Horror Film. Me, I call it a Thriller. But perhaps, Charles Laughton's directorial debut and swan song defies simple classification.
What The Night of the Hunter is, IMO, is a case of a filmmaker being waaaaaayyyyy ahead of American movie audiences and some film critics.
Delightfully abundant with arresting and unforgettable images and scenes, the vignette in which murderous Harry Powell, chasing his young prey up the stairs from the basement of Hell -- arms outstretched like Frankenstein's Monster -- is a particular favorite of mine.
A movie that should never be remade (the 1991 TV rendition was pointless) because perfection cannot be improved upon -- as far as I'm concerned.Making another adaptation of a work of art (film, song, play), isn't about improving upon prior-versions but instead about those involved expressing their artistic ability.
Such efforts are not pointless from the POV of the artist.
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1 hour ago, ElCid said:
Would have to pull out my DVD Falcon sets, but I think Mona Maris was in a few. Maybe even The Saint movies. But she is one I also remember.
Mona Maris was in A Date with the Falcon; The second in the series with George Sanders.
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41 minutes ago, ElCid said:
I liked Martha Vickers and Nestor Paiva in this one.
This is also my favorite Falcon film.
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1 hour ago, NickAndNora34 said:
is this the one with Gene Hackman? If so, it is already high up on my priority list.
Yes, Night Moves features Gene Hackman in one of his best roles (and that is saying a lot since he has done a lot of really fine work).
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1 hour ago, Thompson said:
Oh yes, this is good one. The pacing is so good. Can’t remember the music, I’m sure it’s going to be great
The music \ score for Friends of Eddie Coyle, was by Dave Grusin. A fine jazz pianist, as well as composer, record producer and arranger.
The film is a first rate neo-noir and one I saw on the big screen in L.A. CA, in the 90s since, at that time, in La La Land, the film was a neo-noir cult classic.
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17 minutes ago, TopBilled said:
Loretta is surprised to learn that many of these Paramount films starring Alan Ladd have not yet aired on TCM:
THIS GUN FOR HIRE (1942)...12 times
THE GLASS KEY (1942)...25 times
LUCKY JORDAN (1942)...1 time
CHINA (1943)...0 times
AND NOW TOMORROW (1944)...0 times
SALTY O'ROURKE (1945)...0 times
THE BLUE DAHLIA (1946)...27 times
TWO YEARS BEFORE THE MAST (1946)...0 times
O.S.S. (1946)...0 times
CALCUTTA (1947)...0 times
WILD HARVEST (1947)...0 times
SAIGON (1948)...0 times
BEYOND GLORY (1948)...0 times
WHISPERING SMITH (1948)...7 times
THE GREAT GATSBY (1949)...0 times
CHICAGO DEADLINE (1949)...0 times
BRANDED (1950)...1 time
CAPTAIN CAREY U.S.A. (1950)...0 times
APPOINTMENT WITH DANGER (1951)...0 times
RED MOUNTAIN (1951)...0 times
THUNDER IN THE EAST (1952)...0 times
BOTANY BAY (1953)...0 times
SHANE (1953)...32 times
THE CARPETBAGGERS (1964)...16 timesLoretta helps Alan convince the TCM programmers to make him Star of the Month:
Wow, too many zeros here. I know I have seen Chicago Deadline fairly recently, but I guess not on TCM.
Many films here I haven't seen that are on my bucket list of Ladd or noir films, like Calcutta, where Ladd is reteamed with Gail Russell as a femme fatale.
Saigon is the final Ladd \ Lake film. Worst one in the bunch from what I have read, but still a film I would like to see so I can decide that on my own.
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7 minutes ago, cody1949 said:
There are 3 films from Paramount that I would like to see on TCM :
AMONG THE LIVING
A MEDAL FOR BENNY
SALTY O'ROURKE
Interesting list of films; I have seen Salty O'Rourke a few times; Good film with Alan Ladd playing a gambler but one with a heart. Interesting seeing him paired with Gail Russell. The supporting cast of William Demarest and Stanley Clements are in fine form.
Never seen Among the Living, but it is an early Susan Hayward, in this mix of a social drama, horror film, and suspense thriller. Frances Farmer is the other gal in the film.
Also, haven't seen A Medal for Benny; I'm a fan of Dorothy Lamour so even if the plot sounds somewhat uninteresting (one note), I would tune in.
There are so many of 30s and 40s Paramount films that I wish TCM would show, but I understand these films can be difficult to obtain.
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16 minutes ago, TomJH said:
Garfield said, "Our eyes would meet and we both knew we were going to have to do it. It was like you couldn't let the home team down. Everyone was waiting for it."
According to author Robert Nott's He Ran All the Way the "it" happened after director Tay Garnett went on a bender in the middle of production after the cast and crew located to San Clemente Beach. Filming came to halt, Garfield and Turner were hanging out together and, . . . well. Though it turned out to be a one night stand the two actors remained on friendly terms with one another. Garfield's wife may have had suspicions and showed up at the beach site on a number of occasions. There is even a picture of Lana and Garfield relaxing on the beach together, with a woman in the background who maybe, just maybe, was Mrs. Garfield observing them.
I'm not certain if this is the photo to which Nott referred. One source said this is actually Laguna Beach, where they first started filming the beach scene.
The photo looks like Laguna Beach more so than San Clemente Beach. Spend the 4th of July at San Clemente Beach and pier since they have a fireworks show and my wife's cousin is the executive chef at the restaurant at the pier. They take over the entire pier for the 4th so we went with the chef's mom (wife's godmother), and had a great time.
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8 minutes ago, Dargo said:
Like maybe Game-1 of the NBA Finals, James?
I've played a bit of poker in my life too James, but have never found the scenes being all that unrealistic in this film. Well, except during the final hand scene and when someone supposedly as adept at the game as McQueen makes the major mistake of thinking that Eddie G. couldn't possibly have had the straight-flush.
(...so what else seems phony to you about the poker scenes?)
Uh, you know me well! I was watching the NBA Finals and only saw that kook, when I switched to TCM during a time-out \ half-time.
I'm pulling for the Suns, even if they are in the same division as my Lakers; Never been much of a fan of Chris Paul (felt he was a whiner), but I really like the young players on this team, and Paul is clearly giving his all, so it would be nice to see him get a ring as one of the top point guards in NBA history.
You're also correct about the Kid: I should have only said that the last scene was the unrealistic one; I.e. the odds of two of those type of major hands in a two-player poker game has to be over 100 thousand to one.
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30 minutes ago, moira said:
Does noir music have to be jazz? Can't it be classical, and why not pop?
You do have a point, but I believe most people associated jazz music with film noir. E.g. TCM played the fine French film last night Elevators to the Gallows which features a score by Miles Davis.
I do find some non-jazz songs to be highly associated with film noir like Laura, but that is because the name of the film was Laura, the main character was Laura and the song was written for the film by composure David Raksin.
Many of the other songs on that Simon album were originally written for Broadway stage plays. Also there is not much "mystery" or dark type themes in them; they are romantic songs. Laura has a haunting, dream like melody and the lyrics, while somewhat romantic, have a theme I can associated with noir.
But again, you do have a point; there are no rules and If I implied there were, that was my mistake.
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On 7/7/2021 at 8:40 AM, cmovieviewer said:
Unfortunately the theme is not about astrology and / or fortune tellers in the movies. That would be a more typical theme. Rather, it is organizing the films around common astrology signs for the stars appearing in the movies based on their birthdays.
Yes, this has to be one of my least favorite themes of all time. When I first saw that kook talk, I believed it was a parody. But no!
I turned to something else.
A focus on movies where astrology / fortune tellers / sprit world), might have been interesting: E.g. The Uninvited. Of well, like Lombard says to Powell at the end of My Man Godfrey - it will all be over in a moment.
Also, The Cincinnati Kid has some fine acting but the actual poker playing scenes are so unrealistic that those scenes come off as a parody to someone like myself that actually plays the game.
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7 hours ago, moira said:
http://www.bernardherrmann.org/articles/misc-torncurtain/
if you look to the right of the article, there are more links and resources to noir music.
and there's this
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Film_Noir_(album) Carly Simon's Film Noir, a 1996 album:
Edit
- "You Won't Forget Me" (Kermi Goel, F. Speilman) – 2:52
- "Ev'ry Time We Say Goodbye" (Cole Porter) – 4:33
- "Lili Marlene" (M. David, Norbert Schultze, H. Leip) – 3:41
- "Last Night When We Were Young" (Edgar Yip Harburg, Harold Arlen) – 4:42
- "Spring Will Be a Little Late This Year" (Frank Loesser) – 3:34
- "Film Noir" (Jimmy Webb, Carly Simon) – 3:35
- "Laura" (Johnny Mercer, David Raksin) – 4:44
- "I'm a Fool to Want You" (Frank Sinatra, Joel Herron, John Wolf) – 3:32
- "Fools Coda" (Torrie Zito) – 1:13
- "Two Sleepy People" (Frank Loesser, Hoagy Carmichael) – 3:37
- "Don't Smoke in Bed" (Willard Robison) – 2:54
- "Somewhere in the Night" (Josef Myrow, Mack Gordon) – 3:29
I would only consider one or two of these song film noir type music. Clearly not jazz, but instead pop music of the 30s.
E.g. Last Night When We Were Young was a hit by Judy Garland in the late 30s.
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14 minutes ago, Thompson said:
Repulsive for sure. Look at those knees. How can you be a femme fatale with knees like that?
Wear long pants? I get that the knees do look odd and not very sexy, but frankly I never noticed them until it was pointed out to me, at this forum, a few years back.
As for the film: There are some scenes that I really enjoy but overall the film isn't one of my top 10 or even 20 noir films. I believe the direction could have been tighter and there are few noir visuals. Plus Cecil Kellaway couldn't play guitar!
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6 minutes ago, Fedya said:
Yeah; I figured people here already knew that.
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2 hours ago, Stallion said:
I have a mixed reaction to this movie. On one hand, you are seeing the end to some very prominent careers as actors. On the other hand, John Huston probably should have gotten an honorary oscar to have gotten through this movie with his sanity intact.
The book Courage and Art (Jeffrey Meyers), about John Huston covers the making of The Misfits. Yea, Huston had a rough time making the film; Monroe was not reliable, meds impacting her health and ability, Clift and his off screen antics \ lovers got under Huston's skin, and Huston's concerns about pushing Gable to hard (which sadly might have been the case).
Still a well made movie that I find interesting and one that takes one's emotions in a lot of different directions. Eli Wallach and Thelma Ritter were also first rate supporting actors and this is some of their best work (which is saying a lot for those two).
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2 hours ago, Dargo said:
So Fedya, then it appears you might know that Bass Lake, CA (a place where my family would often rent a cabin for a week every other couple of summers back then, and not to far from the southern entrance to Yosemite N.P.) was where many of the scenes in Leave Her to Heaven were filmed, and perhaps most notably the one where Gene Tierney allows little Darryl Hickman to drown in that lake.
(...and coincidentally, another location used in this film would be here in Sedona AZ)
Great info! I knew Bass Lake, CA had been used in a movie I had seen but I couldn't recall which one. I've been to the eastern Sierra a lot more than the western Sierra but I've been to Bass Lake, and the other major sites in the area.
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4 minutes ago, Shank Asu said:
Yeah, I thought the Polly character would've been the natural person for him to marry and didn't like how a new character was introduced as his wife. I don't believe his high school nephew was ever introduced before either before the final film. After 12 years they could've even had a different actress play Polly.
I agree that more tie-ins with characters from the series would have made Goes Home more of an Andy Hardy film, but the late 50s was the breakdown of the studio era with so many actors no longer under fixed terms contracts with studios. E.g. Lana Turner and Judy Garland, the most famous of the gals featured in the original series, where both no long under contract with MGM. If they were under a fixed term contract, common during the heyday of the studio-era, Goes Home could have used them, in very brief cameos, without having to pay them anything additional.
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30 minutes ago, Shank Asu said:
Did make it through this film over the long weekend as well as Love Laughs at Andy Hardy.
I do feel like the series should've shown Andy actually meeting the woman he marries, if not actually having a film that revolves around the wedding itself. I'm guessing the films became more spaced out at the end due to falling popularity, but after the attempt to revive the series with what becomes the final film following a 12 year gab, just feels like so much has taken place that fans feel cheated for the potential storylines/films that we never got.
I've still only seen half of the series (mostly the latter half for some reason) so I guess I still have some films to look forward to.
Rooney was no longer under a fixed contract with MGM after the film Words and Music in 1948. That, along with the fact Rooney was turning 30, made ending the Andy Hardy series the right move by all. So what is odd is that Goes Home was made at all, 12 years later.
As for seeing Andy get married: Wiki has this:
Mickey Rooney tried to persuade Ann Rutherford to return as Polly Benedict, Andy's on-and-off sweetheart in most of the original movies, so the two characters could be a married couple, but Rutherford's salary demands were too high, and the character was written out.[8][9] Andy's wife in the film, Jane (played by Patricia Breslin), had no prior connection to the town of Carvel.
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18 hours ago, Fedya said:
Just for kicks I looked it up, and apparently you're a good 3-1/2 hours away from Bass Lake.
As for me, I could go down US-209 to get to Elisa [sic] Landi Drive, and then a few more miles to the Hurley Mountain Inn, where some of the scenes in Tootsie were filmed. I have no idea if the place survived the coronavirus shutdowns.
Curious why you mention Bass Lake. E.g. was that lake featured in Out of the Past? The only lake I recall was Lake Tahoe where Douglas lived.
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I'm planning on going to Bridgeport CA, the very small town in the Eastern Sierras that was featured in Out of the Past (where Jeff (Mitchum), had his gas station).
Typically go there every year to camp and fish (at Twin Lakes), and in the Walker river which was also featured in Out of the Past (river where Stephanos was hooked by the kid).
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You guys that are letting this thread veer off in an odd, non-noir direction are:
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Noir Alley
in General Discussions
Posted
Next weeks Noir Alley is Los Tallos Amargos.
I recommend one doesn't let subtitles cause them to miss this film.