laffite
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Posts posted by laffite
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"Yes, you look a little like Igor Stravinsky...but I wouldn't get carried away with it."
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For those who have Netflix, I see that The Bravados is available on INSTANT PLAY.
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*Jackie*, I also thought of young love a la Shakespeare, or at least any classic/old story about a love that just isn?t going to work. The marriage maker serves as Chorus in the Classical scheme, revealing truth. He tells Bowie, ?I can?t sell you any hope where there ain?t any.? All Keechie needed to do was to commit suicide and we would have had the Classic ending, ha. But, not to make light of the story?it was sad, and in a lingering way because we know from early on that it won?t end well (just as in Classical Tragedy). The dysfunctional families of Bowie and Keechie play such a role in their story. Families are a big part on the Romeo and Juliet story too, but in a different way.
I liked Helen Craig a lot. Such sharp facial features and expression. The looks she gives when her husband leaves after release were rending. Did he slink away without so much as a glance because he disapproved of the way she obtained his release---ratting out. Or because he does not and never has really loved her, I think more the latter. The Mattie-Bowie scene when the note to Keechie is written shows Mattie with a mixture of envy, resentment, and guilt. *Frank*, your comments on this scene are persuasive. I believe you emphasized the envy aspect. Overall, Helen was very effective in this role, early on as well, the desperation, ?Remember, I get first money.? She has marvelous eyes.
I had never seen Cathy O?Donnell before. She seemed so drab at first but then transforms into such a pretty little thing. She gives Keechie a sweetness that belies the notion of such a dysfunctional upbringing. Farley Granger is good too. I didn?t blanch when he uttered the line about how nice it would be in a movie theater and hold a girl?s hand. It so tells where he (and she too with her past) come from. The movie?s treatment of the story quashes any notion that it?s not realistic for two like this to be so na?ve or have longings such as this. It might generally be unlikely that it could be so but the two portrayals and the movie as a whole render it believable here.
*Jackie*, your caps and discussion of such things as, cars, windows, symbolism, etc., are brilliant. I?m not thinking along those line at all when I?m watching
. I?ll have to notice these sort of things better so that I can at least experience recognition when I read your posts. 
You have a real Jeweler?s Eye when it comes to this. -
*Owen?s stalwart, honest, quick to fight for the justice of things. Yeah, you can tell he loves his brother?s wife. But you also know he won?t do anything about it.*
That's a good summing up, that last sentence. Yes, he's good, maybe a little too good and most best expressed in his ardent devotion and undying gratitude to Arch. The sense of loyalty extends to his protection of Lee that results in this myopia that he and Arch both have towards Lee. And there might be a little naivete as well. Owen might have seen what was up after learning that the two menacing brothers were on the roundup and that Lee knew about that. He readily accepts Lee?s reversal on the Allard deal and believes the wholly improbable story that Lee will ride off and (as co-owner, no less) leave the ranch for Owen. He doesn?t suspect that there might be something dangerous in that ride to the telegraph station. I kept thinking he would wise up before they reached the boulder.
*I found Walker good in the part of Lee Strobie,*
So did I. He was especially good at the outset. He has that boyish almost callow mien that fits with the initial perception of Lee as being basically a good kid who needs a little bailing out once in a while. Walker makes the adjustments as Lee becomes more and more treacherous as the story progresses. Walker seems to have an easy versatility. Remember that charming young man in The Clock (and he actually played Johannes Brahms once)
*Lee has fathered a child with pretty (Ida Lupino protegee) SALLY FORREST as Lily. She was interesting because of her approach to being an unwed mother. There was no moralizing or shame attached to this. Pretty progressive thinking. It was refreshing to see and rather startling for 1951 and whatever nineteenth century year that portrayed..*
Good point.
*Now what they?re trying to do is honorable ( finding the man responsible). It doesn?t seem to dawn on them that Sis is just plain fine the way tings are now. She?s prepared to raise her child as a single parent. The bro-thers? motive seems to have morphed into a vendetta against the priviledged brothers.*
Quite right, not an ounce of consideration for ?sis.? It seemed to me a family pride thing with them. Ireland?s character declares to sis that the family has known strife but the one thing they have is the ?blood tie.? Hence, they were being ?honorable? in that sense, perhaps. But with these types it might have generalized quickly into a hatred for its own sake for the other brothers.
*JAONNE DRU plays Walker?s character?s knowing wife Jen.. Jen realizes she?s made a marital mistake marrying Lee...*
I loved her in that dress :x
I was surprised right away that Jen and Lee were married. I had to rewind the DVR to make sure I had that right. Even before we know the true Lee, the two just didn?t seem right. Jen's "realization" may have come sooner than we think.
*So we've got all these forces about to converge in the metaphoric valley of vengeance. Straight-shooter Owen, sly Lee, my favorite bad guy Ted DeCorsia thrown into the mix (nice fight scene here too), two ornery scoundrels and a real woman waiting back at the ranch for the victor.*
Great!
*Sadly...not an Anne Francis in sight. < Sigh! > :-(*
That's why I watched the film, to see Anne (sigh). But it's okay, I got to see Joanne instead :x
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*misswonderly* : The Fourth was my entry-level piece for Mahler as well. As you say, it is relatively accessible and probably the best recommendation for anyone starting out. My favorite is Szell/Cleveland with Judith Raskin, soprano. The tempo is a bit slower than the clip you provided. It seems more beautiful to me that way but it?s the one I grew up with and it has become imprinted as the definitive for me. You are probably aware of the nice double entendre you made with the use of the word ?heavenly? to describe the music because if you know the story (as you imply) then you know that the song in the fourth movement is a child?s vision of Heaven. Maybe that was your meaning. But even if not, the music is ?heavenly? nonetheless, as you also mean to say, I?m sure.
*Chris* : The Eighth is so moving, so utterly transporting for me, that I become totally consumed by it. If Mahler ever out did himself, this might be the piece. My favorite is the first Bernstein version. He has the perfect understanding of the music (based on my version of perfect
. The opening movement of the Ninth is tough but I finally got it (or getting it, it?s a process) after listening to Benjamin Zander?s discussion of it on CD. His discussion is included with the CDs of his music recording of same. He has also done this with #3, #4, and perhaps others as well. The talks can be quite long (the first movement of the Ninth takes 54 minutes) but they are worth it for anyone really interested. As for Mahler symphonies, I?m very familiar with One, Three, Four, Five, Six, Eight, with Two and Seven as nagging holdouts, although some parts of these last two have hit home. (You must try the Adagio from the Tenth sometime, very beautiful?and eerie in some places.)Edited by: laffite on Nov 1, 2010 12:34 PM
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Hi, *Fred*, I watched/listened to them all except the Callas, I have so much of her...but I'll check them out. She was a pupil of Elvira de Hidalgo (I learn). The montage in the Elvira clip showed photos of Maria when she was younger and plumper than we are used to seeing her (I love her that way!). I like the old singers too. They sound so sweet. It was either the way they sung or the way they were recorded but their voices sounded so girlish and cute. Lily Ponds comes across that way too. La Paloma, that great Spanish song. I'm almost ashamed to admit this but I'm not sure I knew the title of that one, but of course, so familiar, the quintessential Spanish tune. I have recordings of Galli-Gurci and Beniamino Gigli, a favorite tenor (Pavarotti idolized him). A very nice little program you put together there for us, Fred, thanks.
Hi *Jackie* your remark about Callas is so true. There is a clip on ClassicArtsShowcase (see link below for info on CAS) that turns up periodically. Callas is shown singing an aria (Ouch, can't think of the name right now) in a concert setting where she doesn't come in until about three minutes after the music begins. She doesn't just stand there but experiences the music with her face which, yes, many opera singers can do...but not like this, she is uncommonly real, no putting on, she is experiencing the music on the fly, so to speak, and absolutely convincing. A show of her professionalism and commitment and she's not even singing yet, whew!.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Classic_Arts_Showcase
Hey, *Maven* , so cool that you were taking in a little Mahler (albiet in the "background"
. I'm sorry I missed that and I'm scanning the schedule. PBS sometimes repeats programs. I love Mahler and I used your post as a cue and listened to the entire Seventh---all 79 minutes---on the iPod at work Sunday evening thinking from time to time, hmm, I wonder where the Maven was (in the music) when she wrote that. I'll have to check out that movie. Edited by: laffite on Nov 1, 2010 12:21 AM
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Re "Una voce poco fa" Supervia is Superbia, lovely rendition, thanks for that, Fred. I'm sure you and others may recognize this from Citizen Kane, the music lesson scene, "No, no, no, no ...," screams the music teacher at poor Susan Alexander. Mr Kane had something to say about that (as we all well know).
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Mon Oncle
Playtime
Mr Hulot's Holiday
Jour de Fete
Hi Casablancalover
Remember that fine thread on Tati awhile back? You and screennamer CC Baxter (haven't heard from him for awhile) contributed nicely as I recall. I looked it up a couple months ago and found that it had suffered the death imposed by the Moderator's one year rule. No sense in reviving it. Let it die a natural death rather than revive it and have it murdered. At least it can be looked up and linked sometime.
EDIT: I looked it up and here it is.
http://forums.tcm.com/jive/tcm/thread.jspa?threadID=131982&start=0&tstart=0
One problem though, the thread was in General Discussions where screen caps are no longer visible due to some mishap during an upgrade. The thread is understandably diminished by this but there are still many fine comments there.
Edited by: laffite on Oct 31, 2010 2:37 AM
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>3:10 to Yuma
Which one?
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*I think James Best's finest scene comes at the beginning. When he thinks he has Brigade caught in a trap*
That was good and I thought he did well throughout. Whit himself may be more clever than given credit for. He was a little sly with Whit in nearly getting the gun from him. Whit's no genius himself but still there was some clever manipulation. And maybe he should get a little credit for showing at least some discretion in not challenging Brigade in that opening scene. Of course fear is mighty motivator but he wasn't stupid enough recklessly challenge. Hmm, I wonder why Frank, Billy, and the gang just didn't gun Brigade down at the beginning prior to Billy catching up with Brigade. It certainly would have been in character. If they can shoot people in the back and hang women, there shouldn't be qualms with dispatching Brigade to the next world from behind some rock. It would have made a short movie, though.
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Thank you, pard?, for those mighty kind words. So kind though probably a little too generous. I think those things of you as well but I especially admire your ability to probe the depths. I?m a lightweight by comparison.
*I'm rooting for a top five pick and a last-place schedule.*
I?m rooting for something I can?t possibly have. The demise of you-know-who. But it won?t happen. All we hear from top banana is, ?Your doin? a heckuva job, Norvie.?
*Laffite*: It?s a ?lawless? land where one fends for oneself and is willing to do what he must to get what he wants and in ways that might give pause or even appall in a conventional drama.
I was referring to how I see the way things are, the reality of the West, if you will. I don?t mean to imply that anything is permissible to get what one wants. If I came across that way, it was wrong. So much for ?clarity? and ?focus.?
*So would this apply to Frank and Billy and the gang? They are in a western and they did what they did ((kill)) to get what they wanted. I believe there is more to it.*
It does apply to them?after all, they killed for whatever reasons. But they went about it the wrong way (they murdered) and at least ended up paying for it with their lives. I was mainly referring to Boone and Brigade, each who both straddle the line between good and bad (unlike Frank and Billy), who cross the line (they killed or wanted to kill for personal reasons) and who grapple with their environment (The West) and are forced to make choices that blur the line between acceptable and unacceptable, at least compared to our own standards where what is permissible is more regulated by law. Not that the same moral universe doesn't exist for all, presumably it does. I don?t justify their doings, just making a generalization that in a land with fewer restraints of law, basically decent people can go astray and even be cut some slack for what they do, or at least be understood in some way. Not Frank and Billy in this regard, their crimes would offend anywhere and anytime, Western or no.
*So if Boone had shot Brigade on a quick draw, you would have been okay with that? You would have thought, "he had to do it to get what he wanted.?*
Yes, I would of thought that, but only from Boone?s point of view.
*But, again, Frank and Billy do the same ((klll to get what they want)). I believe motives matter.*
You had asked earlier, ??and didn?t Boone want to kill Brigade for Billy?? I didn?t express it well but my point about motives was that if I want to take Boone to task for wanting to kill Brigade then I should consider doing the same with Brigade since he had already killed. Whatever the motive (i.e. it doesn?t matter what it is) killing is still killing and the two of them might therefore be held to the same standard, that is, being held responsible for such an act. Boone and Brigade both took the law into their own hands though their motives differed (I'm referring specifically to Boone's willingness to kill Brigade to get Billy, not his earlier transgression, which we don't know too much about). The point holds when talking of these two, I believe, but with Frank and Billy you certainly have a point so I will waver a bit on that. We don?t know their motives but they were probably lowdown given who they are and the way they went about it.
*It's as someone else stated, if Brigade kept Billy, it would have made him less "pure." As it stands, his only driving force was vengeance. If he decided to pocket the money, that would have made his actions less "honorable."*
That?s really good. That makes the ending even better.
*Oh, and, uh, keep your eyes peeled with the womenfolk out heres. They like to fools ya into thinkin' they're a sweet.
*Well, they?re sure doin? a good job.
I?m already a fool so why fight it. I think I?ll stay on their good side a spell yet 
(miserable sycophant that I am )*Chris*, I agree with Goddess, great post.
*Ollie T*, I liked James Best. Very competent. I liked the way he tried to get Mrs Lane to betray Brigade. Nicely done. Good try, Kid.
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*Howdy there, Laffite -- It's really nice to see you back on the board. And to see you out west.*
Thank ye, pardner. I am much obliged for the fine welcomin? from you and the womenfolk out here.
The doagies are maybe headin' out fer good in Rancho Arlington and Rancho Diego after the recent rodeos. Prospects have turned a mite grim of late.
*Was he a decent fellow? Was he sympathetic?*
Okay, Re Boone, I thought him ?sympathetic? and ?decent? enough so as not to be offended when he gets what he wants. He has been askew of the law, we know that, but Pernell?s portrayal makes Boone likable and even admirable in the vein of that type that is often seen in Westerns. Wyatt Earp comes to mind. We don?t condone some of the bad things he does but we can admire him even extol his virtues in spite of ourselves. Boone comes across that way to me. He is ?cool,? he has the good looks of a Western hero type, he saves Brigade?s life in an admirable (albeit dangerous) manner, he's at least a little endearing when he makes the joke about the?eyes" (a regular guy), he doesn?t try to snow Mrs Lane with ?I love you? but honestly tells her ?if you come live with me I?ll take care of you,? and he reveals an admirable sentiment with regard to Whit. From the movie's point of view, he is obviously meant to be liked and even admired so that the audience will accept his good end. And I fall in line with that.
*I enjoyed Boone, too. Although, I was getting tired of all the talk.*
That?s one of the things I liked about him. *He gets want he wants. What if he didn't?*
I would be interesting to see how they would have handled that, especially the narrative up to that point being what it is. If Boone had not gotten what he wanted and given how Hollywood perceives their audiences Boone would have probably been portrayed as a scoundrel undeserving of amnesty. It would have been a different movie.
*And wasn't he going to kill Brigade for Billy?*
I?m not particularly offended by that. Not in a Western. It?s a ?lawless? land where one fends for oneself and is willing to do what he must to get what he wants and in ways that might give pause or even appall in a conventional drama. Boone is a genre type and I can accept what comes with that. In order to get amnesty he might have to shoot through somebody. How often have we seen that in the ole West, Hollywood style! And in the end he at least engages Brigade in a fair fight, something that is considered admirable in the Zeitgeist of the West. He won?t shoot Brigade in the back like Billy or Frank would. And are we to admire Brigade any less for wanting to kill Frank? Do motives matter or is killing still killing? Brigade wants revenge and Boone wants freedom. They are both willing to kill to get what they want. What?s a shoot ?em up without that.
*It's that it was too easy of a conclusion?.*
*...But, we get the quick "pat on the back."*
I wonder if the director and screenwriter were winking at each other as if pulling off some practical joke on the audience. Actually, I wouldn?t go that far. It makes sense and for some of us at least it has a payoff of its own. Yes, it _was_ slick, but I thought a little clever too. Botticher (and the rest) knew that Ride Lonesome would not be a Critic?s Choice but rather fodder for the popcorn crowd and they didn?t want to jar sensibilities. Having set up two characters that they hoped would be favored by the audience and developing an adversarial tension along the way, they sought to please everybody with simplicity and yes a little expediency too. Not for everybody though
. Too bad they don?t have alternative endings like they do nowadays (obviously there were none, they liked the ending they had.) It would have been interesting but I'm okay with what we got. Brigade got what he wanted---brother Frank---but why not take Billy in and get the money anyway? He could have used the cash. Rather, he makes the gesture...maybe because Boone saved his life, who knows? ... but also because he LIKED Frank (despite their adversarial skirmishing).
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The Gods must be Crazy
split second
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>Awful, awful ?biography? of The Babe
This movie was released the same year that Ruth died. Hope he missed it.
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>One more stride down memory lane...
I loved that. Thanks.
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*Hey.. I am liking that whole "new you" look. Way cool!! I think you are have sort of a Richard Boone-ish Long Haired "Paladin" thing going on. (April?? Do you see the resemblance??) ha. Whatever you call it, you wear the West well, sir* --- Ro of the West
*i do see the "Paladin" flair* --- Prairie Goddess
Hmm, might work.
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>Unless TCM-PTB changes their mind, perhaps someone who would like to restart an old thread could just post a link to it in the first post of a new thread on the same topic.
The moderators here have suggested just that, I believe. The problem is that as this new thread progresses the link to the old one gets lost because posters either forget or simply don't know that is there. If the original thread is allowed resurrection the number of hits and replies are there to see and might therefore attract archive lovers.
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The Others (2001)
White Elephant
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*So if you can bear the heat and want a change of pace, you can be*
*sure you will fit in just fine.* ---MissG
Thankee ma?am. I am much obliged. Plumb.*if you hang around THESE parts very long.. ha. with all the "blabbing" I tend to do (and all the "long winded replies" I generally feel compelled to make for some unexplanied reason..ha) there is often a seemingly endless supply of hot air. so you SHOULD be ok for quite some time to come! ha.
* ---RohanakaHo Ro, that I might ?blab? like you! (Why, folks might even listen to me). As far as the alleged hot air is concerned I have given up the Red Ryder wind-propelled land boat idea and have opted instead for a new look.
The Western Dandy! Now don?t I look right like ole Bat Masterson, or somebody really classy like that? I know I can?t fool anyone but the hat was on sale.
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*But just the very thought of the message board's very own "Pirate Extarodinaire" pawning his "peg leg" for a pair of boots.. We can't be having THAT!!*
Oooh, now you're making me ashamed
. Hey, wait a minute, I remember an old Red Ryder comic book where ole Red had this boat with wheels on it and sails above propelled by the desert winds. Maybe I can do that. *the Grey Dude and I NEVER agree.. .(or haven't you read???*
I think I did run across an instance where you and the Grey actually agreed on something. It took me a long time to get over it.
*I am "unofficially" learning elementary FRENCH as a part of my new job.. ha. Go ahead.. ask me a color.. any color!!!*
How about crimson purple green?
Edited by: laffite on Oct 23, 2010 1:45 PM
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_*MissG*_, Queen of the West writes:
*Bonjour...or shall I say, "how do" M. Laffite. So glad to see you on this side of town!* +
Thank ye, ma?am. Much obliged. Now if I can jus? find the general store I may gits me a good pair o? boots (and some spurs too?or should I get a horse first?) Hmm, maybe I can pawn my sword and peg leg?where?s the saloon?, BTW.
I saw Frank?s alert on Lonesome Ride and was able to find time to sit down and watch it. More alerts like that, please
_*Rohanaka*_, Golden Girl of the West writes:
*Maybe because they would also have to understand that as men... THEY were the reason WHY!!!! ha*
You?re right. Her husband upped an died on him, mangy polecat! That was terrible of him. But at least we can say that most men would a hold a woman at a worth higher than that of the Mescalero. Mrs Lane might have wept at the death of her husband (shameful!) but she had pretty eyes and is certainly worth more than a horse. (However, I might not want to concede much more than that
)*I agree.. and "flimsy" is the right word for him.*
Coined by *Frank* (Grimes, that is, not the other one) who must take credit for this mot juste.
Thanks, Gals, for the welcome. This is indeed a strange land for a pirate. I mean, where's the water? And it's so hot! And where's that saloon?
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Hamlet
lightening rod
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>Another horrible bombing in the Bronx tonight.
And another (in Texas this time)...and the AL pennant race is all over for 2010. Maybe the other guys are still not being paid enough
In all seriousness, congratulations the the Texas Rangers who won their first pennant ever earlier this evening. Now they need only 27....32?....37?...whatever... more to catch up with those Yanks? One day---er, season---at time (as they say).
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According to some, not much difference.
. I?ll have to notice these sort of things better so that I can at least experience recognition when I read your posts. 
You have a real Jeweler?s Eye when it comes to this.
(miserable sycophant that I am
The First Film That Comes to Mind...
in Games and Trivia
Posted
The Collector
apples and oranges (fig.)