film lover 293

scsu1975--"Esther and the King" (1960) is on archive.org. Search the title, and click on the version downloaded on March 30, 2016. It's directed by Raoul Walsh, and photography is by Mario Bava.

Hint; One of the films has already aired.

Lawrence--Out of curiosity, how do you rate "Cat O' Nine Tails"? My remark about Morricone's score isn't clear, and was meant as a compliment. I'll fix my post.

"Cat O' Nine Tails" (1971)--Starring Karl Malden, directed by Dario Argento. Disappointing horror film where I guessed the killer in the first half hour. In addition, the victims are remarkably stupid. They open doors and forget to close them, don't leave their apartments and call the cops when they repeatedly hear odd noises at night, etc. The plot: a blind man out for a walk overhears a blackmailer planning a murder. A burglary of a biological research center follows, along with several murders. The effective, unsettling musical score is by Ennio Morricone. The violence is badly acted, and the special effects are below par until the final fifteen minutes, which are good and tense. For me, it was too little, too late. 1.9/4.

"Born Yesterday"

Thank you Lawrence; I was fairly sure of the movie, but I didn't know the liquor industry was so organized then. This actress made two disaster films in her career, one at her home studio, one on loan-out to another studio. One film won the Best Special Effects Oscar; the other was nominated. Please name the lady, the films, year of release, the respective studios, and one costar from each film.

"Anything You Can Do, I Can Do Better" from "Annie Get Your Gun". Next: A song associated with Marlene Dietrich.

Ziegfeld, Flo, played by William Powell in "The Great Ziegfeld".

"The Lost Weekend", Howard Hughes?

Vengeance Valley

Cooper, Merian C.

A question: According to the ending credits,this was a 1998 Library of Congress Restoration. Is there a newer Restoration available? The one I saw was in relatively good shape, but the picture got fuzzy and then snapped back into focus several times--that's why I ask. Regardless, Thank You TCM for showing this film.

This film has one of the longest and most complicated barroom brawls in film history. Please name it , the year of release, and two of the stars.

This director made three horror films, all for the same studio, each featuring a different honoree from this month's SUTS. Please name the director, studio, the films I'm thinking of, their year of release, and their stars.

"The Anniversary" (1968)--Starring Bette Davis, directed by Roy Ward Baker. Hammer horror/social comedy is all Bettes' show. First fifteen minutes are Slow, and then Davis makes her entrance down a staircase; her first line--"Bloody Hell !" sets the tone for the film. Davis effectively wipes the rest of the cast from the screen. She ranges from funny to horrifying. Her lines don't have the charge they must have had in 1968, but Davis delivers them like she's detonating verbal bombshells. This isn't one of the Davis films TCM is showing August 21st. Saw film on a different website. This is an uneven film, but is very worth watching. 2.7/4.

"Witness" (1985) , Peter Weir, Harrison Ford?

The Giant Behemoth (1959)

Friday, August 5th; All times E.S.T.--two horror films: 6:00 a.m. "The Phantom of The Rue Morgue" (1954)--Was originally in 3-D. 3:30 p.m. "Cat O' Nine Tails" (1971)--Second in Dario Argento's "Animal" trilogy.

LornaHansonForbes--TCM has "Welcome Stranger" (1947) on DVD. It's been shown at least twice; it has one User Review from 2010 and two from Jan. 2013. It's overdue for another showing, if TCM is showing it every three years.

"Black Moon" (1934)--Starring Fay Wray, Dorothy Burgess, and Jack Holt. Directed by Roy William Neill, who also made "The Black Room" (1935), "Gypsy Wildcat" (1944), and several 40's Sherlock Holmes films--all of which are worth at least one watch. The film is about a womans' return to an island near Haiti, and her prior and subsequent involvement with voodoo. Underwritten screenplay tells the viewer instead of showing showing them any hint of her early involvement. This would be a routine film, except for three things: (1)--Joseph Augusts' eerie cinematography; it furnishes the dread and feeling of impending doom that the screenplay lacks. August also photographed "The Informer" (1935), and was nominated for an Oscar for "Portrait of Jennie" (1949). (2)--The atmospheric music score by Louis Silvers (he was uncredited for some reason, but TCM's article on Black Moon names him as composer in the end list of credits). Very effective and frightening use of drums and strings. (3)--Wray's strong performance in a ill-defined role that's better than the screenplay deserves Film is little known entry in the horror field that is worth at least one watch. 2.6/4.

"Black Moon" (1934)--Tense, atmospheric film builds a mood of mounting dread.

clore--I missed the short. But on "Black Moon", I have the same thing--picture from top to bottom, no black bars. The proportions are off--can't tell if it's a technical problem or just tricky photography--maybe both? I'm happy the movie is being shown.

EricJ--To your silent "starter kit" I'd add these films: "The Lost World" (1925)--Willis O'Brien special effects presage the work he did on 1933's "King Kong". "The Phantom of the Opera" (1925)--Lon Chaney Sr.'s most accessible horror film OR "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari" (1919)--your preference. "The Patsy" (1928)--Two of the Silent Era's best female comics, Marie Dressler and Marion Davies, are teamed here. Something with The Keystone Kops--your choice. Good "starter" list.

Another spammers handle to be added to the purple border of that eye-torturing photo--niaiwomaa02

"Thoroughly Modern Millie" (1967)--Starring Julie Andrews, James Fox, Mary Tyler Moore (MTM), and Bea Lillie. I saw the Roadshow print (I Think): the Overture, Intermission, and Exit Music adds eight minutes to the running time. This version ran for not quite 146 minutes, as opposed to TCM's running time of 138 minutes. Universal musical directed by George Roy Hill is wildly inconsistent, except in one respect; Elmer Bernstein's Oscar winning score carries the film, from its' title song, to Carol Channing's "I'm A Jazz Baby" number, through film's slow/irritating/self-consciously "Cute" spots. Hill has to be given credit; he attempted a spoof of early silent movies, with effects like wipes, title cards, and visuals like using pastels for most of the colors, especially MTM's outfits. He does an extended riff on Harold Lloyds' "Safety Last" (1923), which is funny and effective. Sometimes he is off by a decade or so; when the secondary pair of lovers first meet, they duet to "Ah, Sweet Mystery of Life", which is amusing, but thirteen years early (film is set in 1922). Each character spoofs a type. Julie Andrews is the Perky heroine. Her parody is right on target, and her singing and dancing are also near perfect. I found MTM irritatingly helpless, until I recognized her type was the helpless Rich girl who never does Anything for herself. Then, I enjoyed MTM's performance. James Fox was enjoyable in his role; I didn't know he could sing. John Gavin, as Millies' boss, must have been directed to act as woodenly as Nelson Eddy; again, I didn't know he could sing. TMM was one of the last 1960's "Roadshow" musicals to make a profit. TMM has a wonderful musical score, but an uneven script and too many "cutesy" moments offset that strength. Still, TMM is more than worth seeing. 2.8/4