I Just Watched...

[speedracer5]

Neither, I was accepted into the Disney College Program and have started working in the Magic Kingdom and will be here until May 18 of this year (unless I decide to extend my program). I am planning on persevering and dedicating myself to becoming a performer for their parks eventually

Cool! I had a friend that did that program back in like 2008 or so.  That same friend's sister currently works at Disney World.  I believe she works in the Magic Kingdom as well.  I think she works in the guest services area.  

[speedracer5]

No worries, our new "president" promises to undo the 60s and take us back to the 50s and before.

 

I always thought it'd be cool to go back in time and see what the 50s and 60s were like, but I didn't want to experience it like this! 

[darkblue]

I always thought it'd be cool to go back in time and see what the 50s and 60s were like, but I didn't want to experience it like this! 

 

For the most part, they were pretty awesome.

 

As long as you were white and straight, anyway.

[film lover 293]

"When Knighthood Was In Flower" (1922)--Starring Marion Davies.

 

Source: YouTube.  I found this while searching for silent science fiction movies (!???).  Copy runs 1 hour and 40 minutes; is missing the ending.  It credited "additional materials 1997 by", then there were three words that were too faded to read.  Film is on "Harmon Foley"s channel.   That said:

 

This is the film that brought Marion Davies widespread critical approval.  Film is a lavish costumer (it cost over a million dollars in 1922 dollars) and every penny shows onscreen.

 

Davies is Mary Tudor, sister of Henry VIII of England.  She falls in love with a commoner, and doesn't wish to be married to old King Louis of France.  Film is about her efforts to avoid that fate.

 

When Davies is on camera, not off camera or on the sidelines, all is well.  She has opportunities to show off her comedic gifts as well as some dramatic moments.  When she's not directly involved, film slows to a near halt.

 

William Powell can be spotted from time to time as one of the bad guys (TCM's webpage for the film has him billed 14th).  Gustav von Seyferritz is in the film somewhere.  The rest of the actors I didn't recognize.

 

Film is in watchable condition, is in better shape than some of Davies other silents on YT (1927's Tillie the Toiler, for example).  Very worth a watch, even considering it's incomplete.  No rating, as copy is incomplete.

[Sepiatone]

No offense, but as somebody born in 1972, I'm wondering when we as a society are finally going to move past the 60s. I'm to the point of calling it cultural arrested development that the Baby Boomers have left us in.

 

First, you're young enough to be my son( my 1st born in '72 also) and I gotta say...

 

Society is WAY past the '60's.  Give one slight example.:

 

In '69, my girlfriend and I went to a music festival held in Sept. of that year in Detroit's old OLYMPIA STADIUM.  When we got there(and as ticket sales were at the box office only) the crowd was so big we stood in one of the many long lines waiting to get tickets.  Along comes a "rent-a-cop" and shoves his arm in front of me and shouts, "EVERYBODY PAST THIS POINT WILL HAVE TO LEAVE.  THERE'S NO TICKETS AVAILABLE PAST THIS POINT!"  Well, I was discouraged.  But the "hippie" in front of me turned around and said, "Gimme your money.  I'll get tickets for ya."  So, idealist youth that I was, I handed over my cash, and 15 minutes later, the dude returned and handed me my tickets!

 

Try THAT in the '70's, '80's, '90's, or even NOW. 

 

 

Sepiatone

[DownGoesFrazier]

Is it my imagination, but was James Mason's role in THE SEVENTH VEIL similar to his role in LOLITA, 16 years later?

[TomJH]

"When Knighthood Was In Flower" (1922)--Starring Marion Davies.

 

 

I found that the highlight scene of this costumer for me was the one in which Marion posed as a male, allowing a few of her natural comedic talents to shine through.

[misswonderly3]

I just watched...on TCM...

 

James Mason excellently playing one of biggest damn abusive and manipulative jerks of a husband and father you'll ever see in this flick made in the land of the superfluous-u, circa 1945. And, a guy in serious(and I mean SERIOUS) need of a freakin' beat-down! THAT'S how good as usual the great James Mason was in this movie. BOY, do ya ever end up hatin' the S.O.B.!

 

I'm talking about the movie THEY WERE SISTERS, and not a bad little melodrama, I might say.

 

I liked the way in which it started out presenting all the main characters in younger adulthood, and thus giving this viewer a basis to see why these characters later(17 years to be exact) would end up in the situations and interpersonal dynamics in which they would find themselves.

 

In fact, I found the acting done by everyone to be first rate, even by the child actors. But then again, HEY, they're British, so what did ya expect, RIGHT?!  

 

Btw, the moral of the story in this one seems to be: People in general and by the choices they make, get what they deserve in life.

 

(...rating: 2.9/4...no, wait a sec...make that 3.1/4...Mason's performance made it better than just 2.9)

 

Oh now, Dargs...poor Charlotte did not deserve a life of humiliation and tears. She was young and foolish when she made the fateful choice to marry horrible Geoffrey ( aka James Mason at his cruelest), and yes, she did turn out to be quite a weak and spineless person. But we do see another side of her, a side capable of cheerfulness and humour, and certainly possessing a great capacity for love ( the misdirected love for her monster husband, and the unconditional love she has for her children), whenever she has a chance to be away from the monster for a while. She sheds her timidity and depression, and becomes just an ordinary but nice lady.

 

I don't think people should be punished forever for a choice they made when they were 18 ( which is the age I imagine Charlotte was when she met Geoffrey.) 

 

However, I do agree with you that They Were Sisters was a pretty darn good little melodrama. Even my husband liked it, and he's not big on what used to be called "women's movies", which arguably the film could be labelled.

 

What struck me in almost every scene Mason appeared in was, how common that kind of man is;  that kind of psychological cruelty, that need for control and power over others, especially over those you'd think he'd love, is, sadly, just as present today as he was then. I recognized a couple of horrible people I've known in the James Mason character.

[Dargo]

Oh now, Dargs...poor Charlotte did not deserve a life of humiliation and tears. She was young and foolish when she made the fateful choice to marry horrible Geoffrey ( aka James Mason at his cruelest), and yes, she did turn out to be quite a weak and spineless person. But we do see another side of her, a side capable of cheerfulness and humour, and certainly possessing a great capacity for love ( the misdirected love for her monster husband, and the unconditional love she has for her children), whenever she has a chance to be away from the monster for a while. She sheds her timidity and depression, and becomes just an ordinary but nice lady.

 

I don't think people should be punished forever for a choice they made when they were 18 ( which is the age I imagine Charlotte was when she met Geoffrey.) 

 

However, I do agree with you that They Were Sisters was a pretty darn good little melodrama. Even my husband liked it, and he's not big on what used to called "women's movies", which arguably the film could be labelled.

 

What struck me in almost every scene Mason appeared in was, how common that kind of man is;  that kind of psychological cruelty, that need for control and power over others, especially over those you'd think he'd love, is, sadly, just as present today as he was then. I recognized a couple of horrible people I've known in the James Mason character.

 

Absolutely agree with you about nobody deserving the treatment Charlotte received from Geoffrey in this film, MissW. However, strictly looking at it in a cause and effect manner, it does point to a classic case of people owning of little inherent self-worth becoming much more likely to be victimized than those who might possess a higher regard for themselves.

 

I think the reason I included "the moral" in my earlier short review of this film was because one of the characters in this film, the kindly Uncle William played by Peter Murray-Hill, even says such a line in one scene to his wife Lucy played by Phyllis Calvert while I believe they're at the breakfast table.

 

(...btw...did you know they were actually married in real life?...I remember Ben M. in his intro mentioning James Mason's wife at the time Pamela playing his daughter in this film, but I don't recall him mentioning the Murray-Hill/Calvert connection...maybe I missed that, though)

[kingrat]

I was excited about the early James Mason night, especially because I'd never seen or even heard of They Were Sisters and They Met in the Dark. Like Dargo and MissW, I really liked They Were Sisters, with its unusually clear portrayal of verbal and psychological abuse and its hints of incest. You could show this film to people to today if you were trying to explain how an abusive spouse operates.

 

I think it's a strength of the film that, although the preceding is true, there are many lighter moments and quite a number of well-drawn characters. Vera, for instance, isn't a bad person, but simply cannot be unselfish or put herself in someone else's position. James Mason can play a charming sadist better than just about anyone, and it's a credit to the film and to Phyllis Calvert that the good character, Aunt Lucy, is as interesting and complex as the others. There's no weak link in the cast.

 

Warner Brothers really should have done an American remake with, say, Ida Lupino as Charlotte, Eleanor Parker as Vera, and Olivia De Havilland as Lucy. I guess that would give us Paul Henreid as Geoffrey and John Garfield as Terry.

 

Now I want to see The Seventh Veil again, for it seems to be much more sympathetic to the James Mason character who isn't all that different from the one he plays in They Were Sisters.

 

 

[film lover 293]

"Doomwatch" (1972)--Starring Ian Bannen, Judy Geeson, and George Sanders.  Directed by Peter Sasdy.

 

Thanks to Mr. Gorman for mentioning this film in the thread on ecological horror films.  I'd never heard of it.

 

 British horror/suspense film is a marvel of what can be accomplished on a low budget.  Movie was filmed in Cornwall and is very creepy.

 

The plot; Something is causing unhealthy levels of growth hormone in fish off a British island.  Dr. Shaw (Bannen) travels from London to investigate.  Once on the island, he is met with extreme suspicion and distrust.  A schoolteacher, Victoria Brown (Geeson) is the only villager willing to help Shaw in his quest for the truth about what's happening on the island.

 

Film is well acted by all, with understated menace.  Sanders is especially good in a cameo role as a British naval officer in charge of dumping chemicals. 

 

Movie was filmed in Cornwall, and is very atmospheric.  Film is somewhat similar to "The Wicker Man" (1973), in its' distrust of religion.

 

There are two plot strands that are left unresolved, and they give a Nasty fillip to the film.  "Doomwatch" made me think about corporate irresponsibility and its' consequences.  Film is hard to shake off.  Definitely worth a watch.  2.5/4.

 

Source--YouTube.

[Dargo]

"Doomwatch" (1972)--Starring Ian Bannen, Judy Geeson, and George Sanders.  Directed by Peter Sasdy.

 

Thanks to Mr. Gorman for mentioning this film in the thread on ecological horror films.  I'd never heard of it.

 

 British horror/suspense film is a marvel of what can be accomplished on a low budget.  Movie was filmed in Cornwall and is very creepy.

 

The plot; Something is causing unhealthy levels of growth hormone in fish off a British island.  Dr. Shaw (Bannen) travels from London to investigate.  Once on the island, he is met with extreme suspicion and distrust.  A schoolteacher, Victoria Brown (Geeson) is the only villager willing to help Shaw in his quest for the truth about what's happening on the island.

 

Film is well acted by all, with understated menace.  Sanders is especially good in a cameo role as a British naval officer in charge of dumping chemicals. 

 

Movie was filmed in Cornwall, and is very atmospheric.  Film is somewhat similar to "The Wicker Man" (1973), in its' distrust of religion.

 

There are two plot strands that are left unresolved, and they give a Nasty fillip to the film.  "Doomwatch" made me think about corporate irresponsibility and its' consequences.  Film is hard to shake off.  Definitely worth a watch.  2.5/4.

 

Source--YouTube.

 

On a somewhat similar note regarding the ecological/corporate irresponsibility issue here FL, last night I watched a very well done documentary film on PBS's American Experience series about Rachel Carson, the author of the 1960's best selling book "Silent Spring", and a woman now recognized as the founder of the modern environmental movement.

 

She would be the driving force behind the banning of DDT, and also begin the public conversation about the wholesale and unregulated process of pesticides being used in mass in this country and around the world, and with this documentary presenting the extreme political push-back she would receive from the chemical industry because of it. This film mentions that because of the era in which this took place, quite often the corporate forces attempting to silence and discredit her would resort to sexist commentary in these efforts. 

 

This two hour in length film closes with the thought that this and other environmental issues are still a hot button topic to this very day, and something I think we all know to be true, unfortunately.

 

(...excellent bio-doc...rating: 3.8/4)

[EricJ]

"Doomwatch" (1972)--Starring Ian Bannen, Judy Geeson, and George Sanders.  Directed by Peter Sasdy.

 

Thanks to Mr. Gorman for mentioning this film in the thread on ecological horror films.  I'd never heard of it.

 

 British horror/suspense film is a marvel of what can be accomplished on a low budget.  Movie was filmed in Cornwall and is very creepy.

Movie was filmed in Cornwall, and is very atmospheric.  Film is somewhat similar to "The Wicker Man" (1973), in its' distrust of religion.

 

It was promoted as some sort of "Wicker Man"-style Hammer-era supernatural eeriness, but actually plays more as a sort of eco-X-Files about the town's toxic cover-up.  

No actual monsters or horror, but does have a nice edgy atmosphere for Creepy Distrustful Small English-Coastal Towns that the heroes of these movies always wander into.

[hamradio]

"CSI: Crime Scene Investigation - Stalker" (2002)

 

Just to think anyone could beat this weirdo "Cable Guy"

 

 

 

 

 

Good to have Directv.

[film lover 293]

"Lucy Gallant" (1955)--Starring Jane Wyman, Charlton Heston, Claire Trevor, and Thelma Ritter.

 

Enjoyable soap opera with a feminist theme.  Wyman is in the title role as a woman stranded in a Texas boomtown who ends up selling her trousseau to make money, and then becomes a businesswoman.

 

Charlton Heston is totally believable as the humorless male chauvinist lout Wyman falls in love with.  His scenes where he eats crow are a pleasure to see.

 

Claire Trevor is a pleasure to see as Lady "Mac", owner of the town saloon/etc.  She has a good accent and most of the best lines.

 

Ritter is the scriptwriters' mouthpiece; she bewails Wyman not getting married and having children but staying a businesswoman, and has an occasional wisecrack.

 

If you can ignore the scripts' drumbeating that a woman must be married to have a worthwhile life, movie is enjoyable.  2.8/4.

 

Question about "Miracle in the Rain" (1956)--In the film's beginning, Wyman says she can't go out because "there's a food sale at Macy's".  Did Macy's ever sell groceries?

[LornaHansonForbes]

Charlton Heston is totally believable as the humorless male chauvinist lout

 

Good casting goes a long way.

[LornaHansonForbes]

i watched a good deal of MAGNIFICENT OBSESSION (1954) last night...I don't really know why. Such a lovely movie to look at, but so deeply stupid in most every other sense.

 

i've said it before, but here it is again: Jane Wyman's performance in it has GOT to be one of the least impressive to ever earn an Oscar nomination.

[RoyCronin]

That comment Lorna reminds of the scene in Lorna Luft's television movie "Me and My Shadows" when they are all watching the Academy Awards, commenting on the other nominees, assured that Judy would win.  When Jane's name is read, Kay Thompson says "It should have been Rock Hudson's!"......

 

The others were Audrey Hepburn (won't win, won last year), Dorothy Dandridge (Not in This Town!"), something about Grace Kelly's promiscuity.......

[LornaHansonForbes]

That comment Lorna reminds of the scene in Lorna Luft's television movie "Me and My Shadows" when they are all watching the Academy Awards, commenting on the other nominees, assured that Judy would win.  When Jane's name is read, Kay Thompson says "It should have been Rock Hudson's!"......

 

The others were Audrey Hepburn (won't win, won last year), Dorothy Dandridge (Not in This Town!"), something about Grace Kelly's promiscuity.......

 

OMG LOVE IT. THANKS!!!!!!!!

[Hibi]

Good casting goes a long way.

 

 

LOL.

[Dargo]

Charlton Heston is totally believable as the humorless male chauvinist lout

 

Good casting goes a long way.

 

And in an ironic twist, I was all set to watch Chuck in this thing last night, but because that Mary Tyler Moore tribute was on at the same time and with my wife really wanting to watch that, when I asked her hand me the TV remote so I could change it to TCM, she replied "You can have it when you can pry it from my cold dead hands".

 

Needless to say, we watched Oprah Winfrey go on and on about Mary instead of watching that Jane Wyman flick.

 

Think I'm gonna mess with the wife when she's intent on something?! No way, Jose!

 

(...naaah, this didn't really happen...just couldn't resist, that's all) 

 

[AndreaDoria]

i watched a good deal of MAGNIFICENT OBSESSION (1954) last night...I don't really know why. Such a lovely movie to look at, but so deeply stupid in most every other sense.

 

i've said it before, but here it is again: Jane Wyman's performance in it has GOT to be one of the least impressive to ever earn an Oscar nomination.

Jane Wyman is the big glaring fault in so many otherwise fine movies.  I always ask the same question about her -- Why?  She's stiff, one note, and almost never smiles.  I last saw her in,"Miracle in the Rain,"  with poor Van Johnson, who was desperately trying to emote enough personality and enthusiasm for two actors, because she seemed to be heavily sedated through the entire thing.  Finally, in the last scene, he proposes to her on the street before being shipped out and I thought, "Now!  She'll smile!"  She did, but it was a tight little close lipped simper and I just want to shake her.  Most boring actress ever.  Even her bangs are boring.

[scsu1975]

 

 

Question about "Miracle in the Rain" (1956)--In the film's beginning, Wyman says she can't go out because "there's a food sale at Macy's".  Did Macy's ever sell groceries?

Yes, and the practice goes back at least to the early part of the 20th century. In the 1950s they also advertised a "food plan," which I suspect involved delivery.

 

Click here to see a Macy's grocery ad from 1912 (it's in the bottom right corner):

 

http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030193/1912-08-14/ed-1/seq-10/

[scsu1975]

Jeez, Lawrence, you're a speed reader.

[LawrenceA]

Jeez, Lawrence, you're a speed reader.

 

Was that "Like" too quick? I read the Macy's ad, featuring their "Fruit Syrups" and assurances of quality, and enjoyed the quaintness of it all. I'll wait longer to "Like" next time.