I Just Watched...

[MCannady1]

MY favorite exchange is from the SECOND film----

 

Gomez(looking down into their newborn's cradle):  "He has my Grandfather's eyes."

 

Morticia:  "Gomez!  Take those out of his mouth!"

 

 

Sepiatone

I like RAul Julia as Gomez and ANjelica Huston as Morticia in the later movies. They had some clever one liners. The Addams Family were a likeable entity unto themselves. With all their unusual clothing and dialogue, they were basically good people.

[MCannady1]

23 Paces to Baker Street (1956)

 

Set in London, this is an extremely entertaining thriller with Van Johnson as a blind playwright who overhears a kidnapping plot while sitting in a pub. Of course, the police don’t believe him, so he takes on the investigation himself. He is aided by Vera Miles, as his former secretary/girlfriend, and Cecil Parker, who is his ‘Man Friday.’ There are plenty of clever plot developments, some chills, and good performances all around. Parker, in particular, is excellent. Patricia “Devil Girl From Mars” Laffan has a key role. Estelle Winwood, in one of her rare film appearances, has a nice bit as the bartender at the pub.

 

Just two complaints:

•  

• Leigh Harline’s score often drowns out the conversations.
• The print I saw on FXM Retro started in Cinemascope for the opening credits, then was full-screen the rest of the way, which, as we all know, causes the heebie-jeebies. This is a common problem with this channel.

I imagine this film will be showing often on FXM Retro this month, so it is well worth catching.

 

Sounds exciting, but aspect ratio can be difficult when watching. I don't have FXM Retro yet, but will try to get it. I have so many set up on my DVR, going back to April! So to last October beat me. So I am starting to transfer. Most of mine are from TCM but the Fox Retro one sounds good too - if the proportionment is right it would be great to have access to these too.

[MCannady1]

Yes, but when Rob & Laura were out of bed, you couldn't keep them OFF of each other.  (But in a good way.)  

Even today, that's considered unusual for vintage TV.

Never noticed about the twin beds when I was a kid in the 50's and 60's. Lucy and Ricky, Ozzie and Harriet, and so on had twin beds. The Bradys actually had a big bed. Anyway, I loved the interactions of the adults - we never saw the bedroom in the Cleaver home come to think of it WHen you come to think of it, they were portraying married couples, so it should not have been a problem. I guess they were real sticklers for things like that..

[darkblue]

Never noticed about the twin beds when I was a kid in the 50's and 60's. Lucy and Ricky, Ozzie and Harriet, and so on had twin beds. The Bradys actually had a big bed. Anyway, I loved the interactions of the adults - we never saw the bedroom in the Cleaver home come to think of it WHen you come to think of it, they were portraying married couples, so it should not have been a problem. I guess they were real sticklers for things like that..

 

Unless they were Munsters.

[MCannady1]

I think "Addams Family" may be the third smartest sitcom of the entire 60's.  (With the Dick Van Dyke Show leading ahead of The Flintstones by a healthy margin.)

 

When we were kids, they were interchangeable with the Munsters, but the Munsters was more of a "goofy" sitcom of wacky setups and crazy gags, and Addams Family just taught 60's sitcoms how to play the silliest scenes with perfect cool, elegant deadpan.  I can't help cracking up at the serene earnestness with which Carolyn Jones practices her Japanese biwa ("*twanng!*"), or crosses the room in her Morticia-walk, even in the most serious scene.

Also, they still managed to work Chas. Addams' original humor into the series--Until I'd sat down and Netflix'ed the reruns, I never realized that Thing came from homaging Addams' original New Yorker cartoon in the first episode:

 

(Of course, I never realized either that Uncle Fester was actually Charlie Chaplin's "Kid" all grown up.)

My sister and I loved The Munsters too. Our dad pointed out that Uncle Fester was JAckie Coogan all grown up. This would have been interesting later, but we did not know who he was at the time, except to catch him on Perry Mason episode. On the Addams Family I just loved the mystery of Thing who had a life of his own! Also, now and then Cousin IT showed up and even topped my hairstyle! Lurch had a shy personality who seemed to view everything negatively. This was until Morticia and Gomez helped him when his mother came to visit. It seems that Lurch wrote his mom that he owned the house and that Morticia and Gomez were the servants. Hilarious, for they did a good deed when Lurch's mom visited. But he couldn't help being used to answering doorbells. A hilarious episode!.

[darkblue]

Of course, I never realized either that Uncle Fester was actually Charlie Chaplin's "Kid" all grown up.

 

Pretty horrifying, huh?

[EricJ]

Pretty horrifying, huh?

 

But at least his career did give us the Jackie Coogan bill, which makes it illegal in California for the child actor, or his or her stage-parents, to spend any of the earnings before the age of 18 without establishing a trust fund.

Which, sadly, before the law, is how he ended up in all those small-role westerns as an adult.

[LornaHansonForbes]

I think I just sprained my brain trying to keep up with all the various thought tangents.

 

( I'm not saying that's a bad thing.)

[Fedya]

This one could never hope to equal the marvelous and unforgettable Rebecca, Daphne DuMaurier's real masterpiece.

Jamaica Inn is underrated. Although when it was on this weekend, I noticed Charles Laughton's eyebrows.

[wouldbestar]

I like RAul Julia as Gomez and ANjelica Huston as Morticia in the later movies. They had some clever one liners. The Addams Family were a likeable entity unto themselves. With all their unusual clothing and dialogue, they were basically good people.

 

Julia said in an interview this is why he took the role.  He was very family oriented and mentioned the way that the Addams family members accepted each other just as they were and how loving and committed Gomez and Morticia were to each other and their marriage.  You saw this under all the macabre as you did with the Munster family as well.  This is why they're still running on TV after all these years even though both lasted only two seasons.  The first movies captured this too.

[hamradio]

"The Wizard of Oz" (1925) silent version.  

 

It should had been titled "The Wizard of Id"  

[LornaHansonForbes]

I watched FRANKENSTEIN for the umpteenth time last night and BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN for the fifteen hundrendth and umpth. I'M SORRY, I WENT TO BED BEFORE SON OF...I was just too tired.

 

I am SO GLAD Universal took the time to really restore the classic horrors to as close a condition as they were when released, both FRANKENSTEIN and DRACULA- two films which I have mixed emotions about have improved inestimably since their complete restorations when released on blu-ray and broke-ray DVD 2(?) years ago.

 

and thanks to TCM for showing them.

 

in watching FRANKENSTEIN last night, i was struck by how much (and how well) Whale moves the camera, it is like watching the story from a shark's eye view, the camera cannot stop moving, even jittering slightly at times during some of the more tense scenes. i've really come to enjoy the dolly shots as they sweep through the house, removing the outer wall and showing the room divisions- almost like this is being enacted in a doll's house. i dunno what the average shot length is, but it can't be long, rapid cuts, rapid movement, going in and out of close ups (often unsettlingly) for all the characters- at times, the continuity suffered as a result of the switching from reaction shots to close ups, but not too distractingly.

 

as a child of the eighties, i appreciate it when they keep the proceedings rolling along, I mean they don't call them "motion pictures" for no reason.

[film lover 293]

"She" (1982)--Starring Sandahl Bergman.

 

 Low budget, incoherent, Absolutely batshit Crazy remake of the H. Rider Haggard story.  Film is set after a nuclear apocalypse that is referred to as "The Cancellation".  There is no plot to speak of, no performances, and no direction except to see how many movie references can be put in the movie and restaged as faithfully as possible. In no particular order, a few of the films referred to are: "Heaven's Gate (1980),  "Cinderella" (1950), "Zardoz" (1974), "Frankenstein" (1931), "West Side Story" (1961), and "Gone With the Wind" (1939).  Movie had me laughing so hard I cried.

 

Look for the mythology that is mangled by the film.

 

The main baddie has a startling resemblance to Donald Trump, including his orange hair.

 

I loved it.  On a "So Bad It's Good"scale--3/4--Movie does have dull spots.

[LawrenceA]

"She" (1982)--Starring Sandahl Bergman.

 

This was being aired quite frequently on the MGM HD channel in the last few years, which is where I caught it. It's incredible that they show that thing in HD to an unsuspecting public. 

[film lover 293]

There are two copies of the 1982 "She" on YouTube.

[scsu1975]

There are two copies of the 1982 "She" on YouTube.

I'm still waiting for "Ze," the gender-neutral version.

[LornaHansonForbes]

I'm still waiting for "Ze," the gender-neutral version.

"HEESHE."

[HoldenIsHere]

Never noticed about the twin beds when I was a kid in the 50's and 60's. Lucy and Ricky, Ozzie and Harriet, and so on had twin beds. The Bradys actually had a big bed. Anyway, I loved the interactions of the adults - we never saw the bedroom in the Cleaver home come to think of it WHen you come to think of it, they were portraying married couples, so it should not have been a problem. I guess they were real sticklers for things like that..

 

I think Samantha and Darrin on BEWITCHED were the first television married couple to be seen sleeping in the same bed together.

 

[SansFin]

I think Samantha and Darrin on BEWITCHED were the first television married couple to be seen sleeping in the same bed together.

 

 

I am sorry to have to say that you are a decade-and-a-half late. I believe that the first depiction of a married couple sharing a bed was in: Mary Kay and Johnny (1947–1950). I believe that it is considered to be the first sitcom on American television. It is claimed to be also the first television program to feature a pregnancy but I do not know if the word: 'pregnant' was truly in the script.

[JamesJazGuitar]

I am sorry to have to say that you are a decade-and-a-half late. I believe that the first depiction of a married couple sharing a bed was in: Mary Kay and Johnny (1947–1950). I believe that it is considered to be the first sitcom on American television. It is claimed to be also the first television program to feature a pregnancy but I do not know if the word: 'pregnant' was truly in the script.

 

But did Mary Kay share a bed with two different Johns?   

[HoldenIsHere]

I am sorry to have to say that you are a decade-and-a-half late. I believe that the first depiction of a married couple sharing a bed was in: Mary Kay and Johnny (1947–1950). I believe that it is considered to be the first sitcom on American television. It is claimed to be also the first television program to feature a pregnancy but I do not know if the word: 'pregnant' was truly in the script.

 

Yes, you are correct.  MARY KAY AND JOHNNY was a 15 minute sitcom that starred a real life married couple (Mary Kay and Johnny Stearns) in the lead roles who also wrote the scripts. It debuted in 1947 and did show the couple sharing a bed. The show was broadcast live.

 

The next television couple seen sharing a bed were Fred and Wilma Flintstone on THE FLINSTONES (1960-1966) although many discount them since they were animated characters rather than real people.

Next were Samantha and Darrin on BEWITCHED (the first episode showing them sharing a bed aired on  October 22, 1964) followed by Herman and Lily Munster on THE MUNSTERS (the first time was in episode that aired on  November 26, 1964).

[film lover 293]

"The Brides of Dracula" (1960)--Starring Peter Cushing, Martita Hunt, and Yvonne Moniaur, directed by Terence Fisher.

 

Enjoyable Hammer entry in the Dracula series.  Marianne (Moniaur) is a  young woman in turn of the century Europe.  She is traveling by coach to a girls school, where she will teach French.  After her coachman stops at an inn, and receives a handful of silver coins from a stranger, he flees with the coach and her luggage.  Soon afterwards, the Baroness Meinster (Hunt) strides into the inn, and insists Marianne join her at her castle for the night.  Film goes from there.

 

Cushing is excellent as Van Helsing.  Hunt is an very effective Baroness, suggesting past depravities and current remorse.  Moniaur is pretty and rather Dim, as the script demands.

 

Film has all the Hammer trademarks; bright colors, blood that resembles paint/nail polish, a dramatic score, ladies that are overdressed (they're still human) or underdressed (the fewer the clothes, the greater the need for crosses to be within easy reach), etc.

 

Script is paint-by-numbers vampire lore, with a few twists added to the myth.  A fun watch.  2.8/4

 

I saw the film on archive.org--film is listed as "The Bride of Dracula".

[Swithin]

Yes, you are correct.  MARY KAY AND JOHNNY was a 15 minute sitcom that starred a real life married couple (Mary Kay and Johnny Stearns) in the lead roles who also wrote the scripts. It debuted in 1947 and did show the couple sharing a bed. The show was broadcast live.

 

The next television couple seen sharing a bed were Fred and Wilma Flintstone on THE FLINSTONES (1960-1966) although many discount them since they were animated characters rather than real people.

Next were Samantha and Darrin on BEWITCHED (the first episode showing them sharing a bed aired on  October 22, 1964) followed by Herman and Lily Munster on THE MUNSTERS (the first time was in episode that aired on  November 26, 1964).

 

At what point did Lucy and Ricky push their two beds together, basically making one big bed? Wouldn't that have been before Bewitched?

 

[Hibi]

At what point did Lucy and Ricky push their two beds together, basically making one big bed? Wouldn't that have been before Bewitched?

 

 

 

I bet Speedy would know!  Yeah, they started out separated. Maybe after Ricky was born? (LOL).

[darkblue]

"The Brides of Dracula" (1960)--Starring Peter Cushing, Martita Hunt, and Yvonne Moniaur, directed by Terence Fisher.

 

Enjoyable Hammer entry in the Dracula series.  Marianne (Moniaur) is a  young woman in turn of the century Europe.  She is traveling by coach to a girls school, where she will teach French.  After her coachman stops at an inn, and receives a handful of silver coins from a stranger, he flees with the coach and her luggage.  Soon afterwards, the Baroness Meinster (Hunt) strides into the inn, and insists Marianne join her at her castle for the night.  Film goes from there.

 

Cushing is excellent as Van Helsing.  Hunt is an very effective Baroness, suggesting past depravities and current remorse.  Moniaur is pretty and rather Dim, as the script demands.

 

Film has all the Hammer trademarks; bright colors, blood that resembles paint/nail polish, a dramatic score, ladies that are overdressed (they're still human) or underdressed (the fewer the clothes, the greater the need for crosses to be within easy reach), etc.

 

Script is paint-by-numbers vampire lore, with a few twists added to the myth.  A fun watch.  2.8/4

 

I saw the film on archive.org--film is listed as "The Bride of Dracula".

 

'Brides of Dracula' was my favorite Hammer movie when I was a kid. Thought it was bent and wonderful. Loved the vamp's mom!