AddisonDeWitless
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Posts posted by AddisonDeWitless
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Dear Ray,
So glad you dropped in. Help me out here: I know you're the soundtrack expert: *am I nuts, or was there almost no score througout the entire movie Jesse James? Just the occasional 5-second music cue....*
(I don't know why this has become such an obsession of mine, but I'd say the film's lack of a soundtrack was one of its number one faults.)
Edited by: AddisonDeWitless on May 21, 2013 8:33 AM
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Yup, count me in on the Hatorade party too.
Tried watching Flint and it was so *dishwater dull* I couldn't make it thru the first fifteen minutes.
Watched almost all of The Silencers because I really like Dean Martin- who I'd put on *any* list of most underrated actors *any* time- and I kept hoping Victor Buono would show up more, and Dalia Lavi (did I spell that right? Who cares? She was fine as hell. ) And there were enough briefly funny-ish moments to keep one sort of kinda into it but overall, yeah...
Ick.
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> {quote:title=jamesjazzguitar wrote:}{quote}
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> Black Widow has issues (which were discussed in detail back in March April after it was shown), but I wouldn't say it was terrible (which to me is a 1 out of 5 ranking).
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> In addition the real Addison would have something more to say in his criticism than just the same old 'it stinks'.
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Yes, the Black Widow: the end of the studio era -titled thread started by Fred C. Dobbes (sp?) was a lengthy, and sometimes contentious, but ultimately quite inn-teresting one.
I think though that we were pretty much divided into two camps:
1. It f-ing sucked (which sometimes, believe me, is far more apt than three solid pages of articulate criticism)
vs.
2. It wasn't that bad.
I am heartily and unapologetically with the first camp and intend to say no more on the matter.
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This is some of my own work (hope it posts properly.)
I am a miniature garden enthusiast.
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(I'd still kick the kids out and get to work with me own vision though.)
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Okay, actually I google imaged the garden from the 1993 version:
Pretty nice actually...it's been a loooooong time since I saw it, maybe I should check it out again.
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It's inn-teresting to me that, maybe the ne plus ultra of garden-themed stories, *The Secret Garden* has never had a fully fitting representation in *any* screen version- *most definitely true of the titular garden itself.*
The unfortunate Margaret O'Brien (sp?) 1949 MGM version doesn't make the garden itself enough of a focus, choosing instead to pile on the MGM-brand treacle and using a distracting and disjarring technique of only using color in the garden scenes (obviously a studio set)
The 1987 Hallmark Hall of Fame version of the story is notable for the baaaaaaaaaaaaaad acting of the chidren and the fact that the garden itself- while more of a star than in the 1949 version- *is the most meticulously trim, clipped, manicured and edged thing I have ever seen.* It is flawless, and I respect that- but I think it's a trifle anachronistically so in that I don't believe Echo made edgers and grass trimmers in the early 1900's. (seriously, the course at St. Andrews is less well-manicured than this thing.)
The nineteen-ninety-something Coppola-produced version has some inn-teresting visuals, but honestly- I found the garden to be too messy (although it was probably the closest thing to what three children would maintain, but just too au natural for me.) I'd kick the kids out and go to town with the clippers.
*Somewhere between the latter two version lies the garden as I think it should be.*
Edited by: AddisonDeWitless on May 20, 2013 9:11 PM
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I hesitate somewhat to post the following as it is from wikipedia, and I know they have issues with accuracy (and I don't know what kind of math they're using, whether they adjust for inflation and whether they're factoring in re-release and even VHS/DVD data, but here goes:
TOP 2O HIGHEST GROSSERS OF 1939
.1. [Gone with the Wind|http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gone_with_the_Wind_%28film%29|Gone with the Wind (film)] Selznick International Pictures/MGM $400,176,459 2. [Jesse James|http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesse_James_%281939_film%29|Jesse James (1939 film)] 20th Century Fox 3. [Gunga Din|http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gunga_Din_%28film%29|Gunga Din (film)] RKO 4. [Mr. Smith Goes to Washington|http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mr._Smith_Goes_to_Washington|Mr. Smith Goes to Washington] Columbia 5. "[The Rains Came|http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Rains_Came|The Rains Came]" 20th Century Fox 6. [babes in Arms|http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Babes_in_Arms_%28film%29|Babes in Arms (film)] MGM 7. [Dodge City|http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dodge_City_%281939_film%29|Dodge City (1939 film)] 8. [The Women|http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Women_%281939_film%29|The Women (1939 film)] MGM 9. [Goodbye, Mr. Chips|http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goodbye,_Mr._Chips_%281939_film%29|Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1939 film)] MGM 10. [The Wizard of Oz|http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wizard_of_Oz_%281939_film%29|The Wizard of Oz (1939 film)] MGM $16,538,431 11. [Drums Along the Mohawk|http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drums_Along_the_Mohawk|Drums Along the Mohawk] 20th Century Fox 12. [stanley and Livingstone|http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stanley_and_Livingstone|Stanley and Livingstone] 20th Century Fox 13. [union Pacific|http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Union_Pacific_%28film%29|Union Pacific (film)] Paramount 14. [Ninotchka|http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ninotchka|Ninotchka] MGM 15. [Another Thin Man|http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Another_Thin_Man|Another Thin Man] 16. [The Old Maid|http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Old_Maid_%281939_film%29|The Old Maid (1939 film)] Warner Bros. 17. "[Hollywood Cavalcade|http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hollywood_Cavalcade|Hollywood Cavalcade]" 18. "[Destry Rides Again|http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Destry_Rides_Again|Destry Rides Again]" Universal 19. "[Andy Hardy Gets Spring Fever|http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andy_Hardy_Gets_Spring_Fever|Andy Hardy Gets Spring Fever]" MGM 20. Gulliver's Travels
*so, according to them* Jesse James *is the #2 grosser of the year,* *right behind only GWTW!!!!* Which is not how The Hollywood Reporer Book of Box Office Hits says it went down, but that is a boring and crappy book and I have come across an error or two in it.
It's worth noting also that Tyrone Power and Henry Fonda were also in other big grossers ( The Rains Came and Drums Along the Mohawk ) and that other westerns- Destry and Union Pacific did pretty well (in fact, Stagecoach which is often credited as being the film whose success revitalized the Western is nowhere on the list.)
ps- weird too, I've always read The Women and Ninotchka were not successful at the box office.
Edited by: AddisonDeWitless on May 20, 2013 8:44 PM
Edited by: AddisonDeWitless on May 20, 2013 8:49 PM
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This was a TCM premiere back in March(?) and it was inn-teresting because, the week(ish) before TCM showed Black Widow (1954?) also written by Nunnally Johnson, also featuring Reginald Gardiner and also done by 20th Century Fox.
Black Widow is a terrrrrrrrrrrrrrrible film, Mr. Hobbs is not.
It's kind of raunchy (the Playboy joke!); it's certainly a departure for Stewart (doesn't he swear in his opening line?) and it's definitely a more straightforward and honest depiction of famile life than anything I can think of from the 1950's.
In spite of some odd moments in the plot, I liked it.
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> {quote:title=Arturo wrote:}{quote}
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> Yes these are all Fox films, but all the studios seemed to assign their pretty new contractees to similar front of the camera chores. It wasn't a question of how well they were able to play the part, but how well they photographed and elicited comments via fan mail from viewers.
Which is one reason why I have a growing respect and inn-terest for "your girl" (so to speak) Linda Darnell. It is astounding the Olympian gamut of roles she was forced into in all her years at Fox. Not only was she REALLY YOUNG when she started (and thus all the more challenged) , but she's pretty darn good in all of them and it's quite the variety: young latinas, a silent Virgin Mary, the concubine to the King Of Siam, Frontier Woman, and of course, the endless parade of whores.
A lot of people would've cracked under the pressure (and maybe she did) but *their on camera work would show it.* That doesn't seem to be the case with her at all, she steps up the plate and delivers every time (that I've seen.)
Oh shoot, I'm derailing me own thread.
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*YES I KNOW!!!!*
*AND BELIEVE IT OR NOT, I AM ONE OF THE MORE SANE POSTERS ON THIS SITE!!!!!!!!!*
(not really)
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Oh believe it or not, I am chill- no worries.
I like to *embolden* things sometimes to make a point, which is- in this case- that the film was *sorely lacking a musical score.*
*SOMETIMES I EVEN USE ALL CAPS AND MULTIPLE EXCLAMATION POINTS TOO!!!!!- PROBABLY A HABIT I SHOULD BREAK!!!!!!!!!!!!!*
Edited by: AddisonDeWitless on May 20, 2013 7:39 PM
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> {quote:title=infinite1 wrote:}{quote}
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> *If you really want to talk about boring films how about a film like HIGH NOON* ? (It) has put me to sleep on numerous occassions.
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> *Oh believe me, I could.* You and I are in a distinct (but correct- if you ask me) minority of classic film lovers who dislike High Noon.
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> ps- I hate it when the quotes eat the text.
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Edited by: AddisonDeWitless on May 20, 2013 7:24 PM
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> {quote:title=GoodGuysWearBlack wrote:}{quote}The title sequence was meh. The theme music was kinda lame.
What theme music? As I watched the whole thing, I kept thinking "WHERE IS THE MUSIC???!!!" There were brief moments of *music cues,* but they lasted maybe 5-6 seconds.
Aside from that, the film as I recall it *had next to NO music, especially in the action scenes were it needed it the most!*
Do I remember it wrong?
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> {quote:title=GoodGuysWearBlack wrote:}{quote}
> > {quote:title=finance wrote:}{quote}Any "B", shoot'em up Western over GIGI or THE BANDWAGON?
> Yes.
Seconded, (and heartily.)
And even though I didn't think Jesse James was particularly good, I'd *definitely* watch it again, whereas you'd have to strap me down and tape open me eyes Clockwork Orange style to get me to sit through Gigi.
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duplicate post.
Edited by: AddisonDeWitless on May 20, 2013 6:48 PM
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> {quote:title=finance wrote:}{quote}The title was kinda meh.
Well, what else were they supposed to call it? I mean, it's about Jesse James and all...
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> {quote:title=jamesjazzguitar wrote:}{quote}I think you meant to say the movie lines are like the book, since the movie lines were based on the book.
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Well, chicken/egg, potayto potahto...it's not necessarily inn-correct to say it my way, but six of one, a half dozen of the other...
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> {quote:title=misswonderly wrote:}{quote}I remembered after I posted that comment on the hot house scene in *The Big Sleep*, that the General actually says something about "the smell of decay".
> Can anyone recall the exact words of that speech? It's really effective, especially as we're only about five minutes into the film.
I don't recall the exact quote in the film, but from my copy of the novel:
" I seem to exist largely on heat, like a newborn spider. And the orchids are an excuse for the heat. Do you like orchids?....they are nasty things. Their flesh is too like the flesh of men, and their perfume has the rotten sweetness of a prostitute."
The book is like the movie line for line in many parts, but this (obviously) is not one of those parts.
Edited by: AddisonDeWitless on May 20, 2013 2:18 PM
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*...and the technicolor does suit him so well.* (although it makes me wonder *all the more* why they *didn't* shoot The Mask of Zorro from *the very next year* in color- that is a film that BEGS TO BE SHOT IN COLOR. (Oddly enough, I feel like Jesse James would've been just fine in B&W- of course, with a different script and better director.)
Thanks to all the replies, I was thinking I was going to be inundated with people saying " Jesse James is awesome: you twit!"
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Things keep occuring to me after the fact:
Destry Rides Again is another Western from the same(ish) year 1939/1940 that blows Jesse James out of the water.
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I just imdb'd the film and director Henry King.
Two notable things:
Apparently two horses were deliberately killed in the cliff-jumping scene that led to the ASPCA monitoring all film productions from then on. *So- the film was NOT completely "actionless",* but I would say *the first hour is definitely action-lite* (and so many early scenes could have been much livelier.)
Henry King was a big director for Fox, he did Song of Bernadette, Looooooooooooove is a Many Spleeeeeeeeeeeeendored Thing and 12 O'Clock High- three films which went over gangbusters with audiences and The Academy, but in retrospect ( I think it's safe to say) are nowhere near as highly regarded TODAY as they were on release.
He also directed Wilson (1944)- but be careful bringing *that* up as threads that mention that film seem to get locked and scrubbed from the board, and I would so like to hear what the rest of you have to say on the matter.
ps- I see The Return of Frank James was directed by Fritz Lang. Maybe I watched the wrong film first.
Edited by: AddisonDeWitless on May 20, 2013 11:31 AM
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First off: *thanks for the new blood, TCM.* (even if they're not the greatest films, I'll take anything new over Gigi again.)
I was hoping someone else would start a thread on the double-feature last night of Jesse James (1939) and its 1940 follow-up The Return of Frank James, as I don't feel really passionately on the matter, and yet I *do* want to know;
*was anyone else seriously underwhelmed by the first film?*
(FYI: I had no interest in sticking around for the second one.)
It was intriguing to me that Jesse James is- according to various sources- AMONG THE TOP FIVE GROSSERS OF 1939, a year that did not lack for films of sterling quality. And yet- what a bore! *seriously lacking in action in the first part,* CRYING OUT DESPERATELY IN NEED OF A SCORE (in most parts), and worst of all: *terminally slow pacing*.
With most westerns, I can forgive the lack of character development, the silly dialogue, the lazy plotting, even the anachronistic costumes and hairstyles of the actresses- but *bad pacing* I *cannot forgive.*
Tyrone Power was terrific and gorgeous in technicolor, Henry Fonda looked good and was good in the *pathetically underdeveloped* and *undershown* character of Frank James, Carradine was good in a borderline walk-on role that was (AGAIN!), underdeveloped, I love Jane Darwell, although she is nearly always underused in everything (and she was, somewhat, in this as well.) Randolph Scott was a likeable presence and Donald Meek is always good, *and the technicolor was stunning*- but- MY GOD!- it was a lifeless affair, what few action scenes there were could barely be termed "action" in the loosest sense (campare it to the cheaper, less gorgeously filmed Stagecoach when it comes to "action"; or even The Hunchback of Notre Dame or Gunga Din.)
Has there ever been a more listlessly filmed train robbery in a film?
How inn-teresting that this film, directed (barely) by Henry King with its overall blandness outgrossed so many *much better* films in that year.
Jesse James: *two stars out of four.*
Edited by: AddisonDeWitless on May 20, 2013 11:30 AM
Edited by: AddisonDeWitless on May 20, 2013 11:34 AM
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> {quote:title=Intermission wrote:}{quote}The monitor is probably *pretty lenient,* drawing the line at mean-spiritedness and vulgarity, appropriately.
But don't *YOU DARE* to mention Woodrow Wilson.
(Oh shoot, guess I just did.)
and soon the thread was banished to the land of wind and ghosts....
Did anyone else think "Jesse James" (1939) was kinda meh?
in General Discussions
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> {quote:title=WhyaDuck wrote:}{quote}
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> I see what the starter of this thread is getting at.....and yes, Tyrone Power as Jesse does get upstaged by Fonda and Carradine ....
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Actually, no. There were many problems with the film, but one of the biggest was how *shamefully underused and underdeveloped* pretty much every character but Jesse James was. I get that Tyrone Power was THE BIG STAR, and he was the reason the film did so, so well (and Power looked great and did a pretty good job)- but the film really suffers because Frank James and Robert Ford were so blatantly pushed into the background for most of it.
So no, Fonda and Carradine in no way upstaged Power, they never really got the chance to.
ps- great actors both though.
Edited by: AddisonDeWitless on May 21, 2013 8:40 AM