JonParker
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Posts posted by JonParker
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"The Conqueror Worm" is an excellent little film.
It doesn't really go with "White Christmas" though.
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I was semi-tempted to get that, and I probably would have if it had included the serials.
As it was I picked up the serial set, the Donner cut of Superman II, and Superman Returns (which I have not yet seen).
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I totally agree about the Forgotten Man number -- it's just chilling.
The movies were released last year as a box set containing 42nd Street, Golddiggers of 1933 and 1935, Dames, Footlight Parade and a bonus disc of just the musical numbers from a lot of Busby films. It's well worth picking up -- I think I paid like $40 for it at a warehouse club.
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> Could some of the Busby Berkeley musicals - the
> Warner ones in the early 30's be considered pre-code
> material? I seem to remember women disrobing behind
> sheer curtains. . And all those water scenes!
>
> Julie
Those are definitely pre-code, and great films besides.
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> (Under "Sex") 5. White slavery shall not be
> treated.
>
> What does this mean? White people could not be
> portrayed as slaves on film, like in Uncle Tom's
> Cabin?
White slavery is forced prostitution, especially of adolescent women.
>
> (Under "Sex") 1. Adultery, sometimes necessary
> plot material, must not be explicitly treated, or
> justified, or presented attractively.
>
> How about this in respect to In Name Only? Was
> this a controvercial film or does anyone know?
I haven't seen that one. But looking at some reviews of it on imdb, it certainly sounds like it was pushing the boundaries of what was acceptable in 1939.
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Fred, that certainly sounds pre-code to me. It also may explain why I wasn't familiar with it, as I have never been able to stand Joan Crawford. I don't know why. Just something about her ticks me off.
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I'm curious as to what you found hysterical. I found it gritty and sordid, although I have to admit that the second death was kind of silly.
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Ok, two more things. BHF, you have to watch for some of the pre-code stuff -- in many cases it wasn't explicit. Nudity was limited to brief flashes and translucent clothing. There were no steamy sex scenes by today's standards -- a more realistic scenario was man and woman kiss in a hotel room, then fade to a table showing breakfast dishes for two. It wasn't overt, but the meaning is clear.
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One more thing. Here is a link to the actual text of the Hayes code.
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> I think some of these issues are discussed in a book
> I bought a long time ago but haven't read yet:
> "Complicated Women: Sex and Power in Pre-Code
> Hollywood." I am feeling inspired to read it now!
>
It's a decent book. My biggest problem with it is that it's nearly a Norma Shearer bio -- he glosses over a lot of important pre-codes to feed his Shearer worship. Not that I don't understand his POV.
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> So, ?pre-code? generally means the early sound films
> made in 1929 through June of 1934, if they contain
> sex, nudity, and violence in them. That gives us
> about 5 years of some pretty risqu? films that were
> basically hidden away from June of ?34 until just
> recently, until they were re-discovered and revived.
Fred, nice encapsulation. One thing that I would add is that it wasn't just the sex, nudity and violence that makes a pre-code. It wasn't just that the characters, including women, had active sex lives, it's that they paid no moral penalty for their transgressions.
For example, in the delightful "Bed of Roses," Constance Bennett is a petty thief and probable prostitute who is the romantic heroine of the movie. If the movie had been made at all post-code, it certainly wouldn't have had a happy ending.
It's not just that the movies showed sex, violence and nudity, but that these subjects were treated in a much more realistic manner than in the post-code era.
Also, I'd be interested to know any titles you're aware of from 1929 that qualify as pre-code. I was under the impression that the pre-code era was kicked off in 1930 with Norma Shearer's "The Divorcee." I have my issues with LaSalle, but he seems to be right about this.
BHF, there are several books on pre-code Hollywood that you should read. Your library should be able to get them for you, or you can buy them from Amazon.
Mick Lasalle wrote two, "Complicated Women," which was also a TCM documentary, and "Dangerous Men." "Sin in Soft Focus" by Mark Viera is a lavishly illustrated coffee table book. "Pre-Code Hollywood" by Thomas Doherty is a scholarly look at the pre-code era. Also, biographies of stars popular in the pre-code era can be a valuable research tool, for example the two Kay Francis bios.
I do hope you managed to tape "Red Dust," with Clark Gable and Jean Harlow this morning. This is a fantastic pre-code movie. If you didn't, PM me and I'll burn you a DVD. In addition, all of the pre-code fans here are salivating over the Dec. 4 schedule, so be sure to catch that.
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Could you rephrase the question? I don't really understand what you're asking here.
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I've been waiting for this one. I have it on an old TCM recorded VHS, but I'd like to get it on DVD and get rid of the tape.
Now if they'd just show "Millie," "What Price Hollywood," "Dynamite," "Midnight Mary" and about 40 other precodes I could finally make a dent in getting rid of these stacks of tapes.
Anyway, this is the move that made me fall in love with Jean Harlow. Not to be missed.
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New rant: forced double dipping. When Peter Jackson's "King Kong" came out I went for the two disk special edition. Fine, i loved the movie (even though I bought the DVD blind), and it's one of those I was quite happy to have the extra features for.
But now there's a THREE disk extended edition, with 13 minutes of new footage added to the film. So now I have two copies of the film, and I paid for it twice.
Bah.
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I'm pretty much ok with the mix as it is now. Yeah, I'm not going to watch those movies yet again (and if i want to I have them burned to DVD), but I understand that not everyone is a film freak like me. If it takes showing the popular favorites again to keep the channel going, so be it.
I've said this before, but I can't emphasize enough that every TCM fan needs a DVR. It's totally changed my viewing habits -- if there's something on that i want to see, I record it to the hard drive, burn it to DVD and watch it when I want to. Prime time is a meaningless concept to me -- even shows on networks that have commercials benefit from being able to fast forward through them. The only thing I watch in real time anymore is the weather report.
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Several of the old serials, like Flash Gordon, are even in the public domain, so they could show them without licensing issues.
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It sounds like 'Hello Down There" with Tony Randall and Janet Leigh.
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Why thank you.
I've been at home alone all day. On the bright side I got to catch up on some disc burning and some movie watching.
I do get to go see my family at Christmas, but I don't have any that lives around here.
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I loved Peter Jackson's remake of "King Kong," and I say that as a huge fan of the original. It wasn't a pointless remake, but rather was made with a lot of love and affection for the first one. Jackson's appreciation for the original version is in every frame of the remake.
Remember that following "Lord of the Rings" Jackson could pretty much make any movie he wanted, and Kong was what he wanted to do. It wasn't a stupid studio idea like many remakes -- it was a labor of love.
The original will always be the best, but Jackson did a great job of translating the story into something modern audiences could appreciate. The only thing I didn't like about it was that Naomi Watts didn't show nearly as much skin as Fay Wray.
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> Hedy Lamarr (November 9, 1913 ? January 19, 2000) was
> an actress and communications technology innovator.
> Though known primarily for her great beauty, she also
> co-invented the first form of spread spectrum, a key
> to modern wireless communication.
Warren William was also an inventor. I think he held quite a few patents. He was not, however, as attractive as Hedy Lamarr (at least to me).
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Not that "Valley of the Dolls" isn't a classic, but "Beyond the Valley of the Dolls" is simply the best movie ever made.
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I don't think Rudy can get the nomination for the same reason that McCain will have problems. They don't pander to the social conservatives enough.
If I had to choose I'd rather have Rudy.
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I think the most uncomfortable viewing experience I ever had was the Todd Solondz film "Welcome to the Dollhouse." It's a fantastic movie, but hard to watch even though there's nothing remotely lurid about it.
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It's not just distracting to watch a dubbed movie, it completely ruins the actor's performance. You can tell a lot from voice tone even if you don't understand the language.
Not watching films because you don't care for subtitles is shutting yourself off from a whole universe of great movies.
Not happy about movies made after 1975
in General Discussions
Posted
Amen, BHF