What Classics Did You See Last Week (July 6–July 12)
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unex — 8 months ago(July 27, 2025 12:22 PM)
Yes, thanks for the alert about Kanopy, which I have. That said, I'm wondering if the film might be too dark for me right now (a lot of family losses lately). I may have to put it off for a while, but I do hope to see it one of these days.
Sorry to hear about that. I can understand your hesitation.
Wonder why McCarey didn't like working with the Marx Brothers.
I think it was their reputation and then his firsthand experience with how difficult it was to corral and control them so they could shoot their scenes. -
spiderwort — 8 months ago(July 27, 2025 02:56 PM)
Thanks for your compassion, unex. I very much appreciate it.
And I have a feeling you're right about McCarey and the Marx brothers. I haven't gotten to the film yet; hope to sometime soon. Too many films, too little time. -
spiderwort — 8 months ago(July 13, 2025 03:22 PM)
First viewings:
I’m Still Here / Walter Salles
(2024). A mother of five must reinvent herself and her family when her husband, a former politician during the military dictatorship in Brazil, is abducted. Based on a true story, this is a brilliant and powerful work by director Salles, with an equally brilliant, Oscar nominated performance by Fernanda Torres, later played in old age by Fernanda Montenegro. It won the Oscar as the Best International Feature Film, and it’s one of the best films I’ve seen in a very long time, with haunting reverberations about dictatorships around the world. Highly recommended. (On Netflix)
Midnight / Michell Leisen
(1939). A Paris cabby (Don Ameche) chases a chorus girl (Claudette Colbert) hired by a rich man (John Barrymore) to pose as a baroness. Another Michell Leisen delight with an excellent script by Charles Brackett and Billy Wilder and wonderful performances by all, including the supporting cast, Mary Astor, Monty Wooly and Francis Lederer. Highly recommended.
Garbo / Christopher Bird & Kevin Brownlow
(2005). An original documentary from Turner Classic Movies, narrated by Julie Christie. Very well done with a lot of interviews with whose who knew her, were related to her, wrote about her, and worked with her, including directors. A fascinating history about a woman who kept her life so much to herself. Highly recommended, certainly for fans of Garbo. (On TCM until August 8).
Echo in the Canyon / James Slater
(2018). A look at how musical groups such as The Byrds, The Beach Boys, Buffalo Springfield, and The Mamas and the Papas birthed the beginnings of the Laurel Canyon music scene and how the echo of these artists’ creations reverberated across the world. Jacob Dylan is the host and talks with many of the singers from that era who are still living. And of course, there’s a lot of archival footage, too. It’s a documentary that’s hard for me not to love, because it brought back so many memories of my college life in the sixties with all that great music in the world, and then my new life in L.A. in the seventies when I actually lived in Laurel Canyon for awhile. Highly recommended for fans of the music and the singers.
Re-watches:
My Man Godfrey / Gregory LaCava
(1936). A socialite (Carole Lombard) falls in love with the homeless man (Willam Powell) she hires as her butler, though it’s much more complicated than that. Probably the first screwball comedy I ever saw and one of the best of all time. Great performances by all the cast, especially Lombard and Powell under LaCava’s pitch-perfect direction. Nominated for six Oscars in all the major categories, it’s a must-see for those who haven’t already seen it and a worthy re-watch for those who have. A truly great classic film. (Available on multiple streaming services.)
His Girl Friday / Howard Hawks
(1940). A newspaper editor (Cary Grant), uses every trick in the book to keep his ace reporter ex-wife (Rosalind Russell) from remarrying. Another of the great classic films, far superior to
The Front Page
(1931), upon which it’s based, with its character Hildy changed from male to female to create a more interesting conflict. Grant and Russell give superb performances under the Hawks’ great directions. Hawks was determined to make it the fastest paced dialogue in film history. He told Peter Bogdanovich: “I had noticed that when people talk, they talk over one another, especially people who talk fast or who are arguing or describing something. So we wrote the dialogue in a way that made the beginnings and ends of sentences unnecessary; they were there for overlapping.” Most scripts when filmed run about a minute a page, and the shooting script for this version was close to 200 pages, but the final edited version runs only 132 minutes, so you can imagine how fast people talked. (
https://thescriptlab.com/wp-content/uploads/scripts/HisGirlFriday.pdf
). Orson Welles said that he learned a lot about fast paced, overlapping dialogue from this film, which he used skillfully the next year in
Citizen Kane
. I love this classic every time I see it. Highly recommended. (Available on several streaming services and on TCM until July 14)
Yankee Doodle Dandy / Michael Curtiz
(1942). A wonderful musical biopic of the renowned musical composer, playwright, actor, dancer, and singer George M. Cohan, played by James Cagney. Cagney almost turned down the role, but later said it was the best film he ever made. Highly recommended. (On TCM until August 3.) -
PygmyLion — 8 months ago(July 14, 2025 06:36 PM)
My Man Godfrey
is one of my favorite movies also.
I, also, watched
His Girl Friday
this week. Another top movie. The thing I was noticing watching it this time around was that Rosalind Russell is quite a bit more glamorous in this film than in many of her other movies. I don't know whether it is the make-up, hairdo, or outfits that does it. She and Cary Grant really seem to work well together, and it seems like a shame that we don't get to see them together in more movies. -
spiderwort — 8 months ago(July 14, 2025 09:21 PM)
Glad to see another fan of
My Man Godfrey
. So hard not to love that one.
And you are so right about Rosalind Russell in
His Girl Friday
. She did indeed look so glamorous in it. And she and Grant did such a wonderful together job together. Too bad, indeed, that they didn't make more films together. Our loss, for sure. -
unex — 8 months ago(July 17, 2025 12:09 PM)
Another of the great classic films, far superior to The Front Page (1931)
It is a better movie (Cary Grant is especially an improvement I think) but I still like The Front Page. And if you haven't seen it since 2016 then it is possible you never saw the domestic version which is considered superior (I think there were two other versions, one for foreign audiences and another specifically for the British). -
Rufus-T — 8 months ago(July 13, 2025 03:26 PM)
The Usual Suspects (1995)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0114814/
A crippled survivor of a burnt ship interviewed by the investigator about the possible busted drug deal on the ship. It does not matter I know the twist. A movie I watched many times. I love the atmosphere. I love the dialogue. I love the music. Yeah, Kevin Spacey is a problematic personality, but no one can deny he had a spectacular performance. Bryan Singers best directorial work, IMO. Yes, even better than Bohemian Rhapsody. Christopher McQuarrie won an Oscar for his outstanding screen writing. Excellent cast too in addition to Spacey, Gabriel Byrne, Benicio Del Toro, Stephen Baldwin, Kevin Pollak, Pete Postlethwaite, and Chazz Palminteri. Available at Prime now.
Airport (1970)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0065377/
After nominated for 10 Oscar including Best Picture, this movie basically started the trend of the disaster movies in the 70s. Adapted from Arthur Hailey, this movie even spawned a few sequels. I watched a long time ago and don't remember much so it was like a first watch. The movie is mostly a melodrama with many storyline relating to marriage and relationship. It could have been very boring. Thanks to the outstanding all-star cast, it was a bearable beginning. There were other airplane trouble movies prior to this. I still think The High and the Mighty was a better movie. Ultimately, it was very well executed movie, particular the technical part. Helen Hayes deservedly won her Oscar playing a charming old lady airline stowaway.
The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0049470/
Have not watch this a long time. I remember not liking it much. A couple, played by James Stewart and Doris Day, took their son visiting Morocco. They accidently caught in a conspiracy. It was quite suspenseful and lots of humor too, until the last part that's when I realize why I didn't have fond memory of the movie. There were scenes that you have to suspend your believe. The usher asked "May I have your ticket", and reply "I am just looking for someone", and the usher went away. I wish I can do that every time I go to a Broadway show without a ticket. There were other instances that bother me. This is one of the few Hitchcock movie that won an Oscar, for the song "Que Sera, Sera". It is one of his weaker film. Very interesting story nevertheless.
Donnie Darko (2001)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0246578/
One of my favorite film this century. A teenage boy, played by Jake Gyllenhaul, with mood disorder escape death by following a voice in his head, telling him the world is about to end. It gets into some thought provoking idea like time traveling and fate. One can get confusing at first watch. Even if the story hard to make sense, the atmosphere and the performance made this a intriguing and charming watch, especially the relation with Gyllenhaul and Jena Malone who played the love interest. Also wonderful was Mary McDonnell playing the mother. Their emotional connection makes you care about their livelihood. There was a theatrical and a director cut. I tend to like the director's cut more because of better fleshed out the characters and the ideas. The music sound track was also better like using the INXS song in the beginning instead of the Echo & the Bunnymen song. Written and directed by Richard Kelly, this is his first feature film over an hour. Both version are available on Prime.
S. Darko (2009)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1231277/
Daveigh Chase played Samantha Darko, the younger sister of title character in Donnie Darko. She reprised her role, as a young woman, in the direct to video sequel. I actually bought the DVD back then when it was in a huge clearance sale at a video rental store. Never open it until now. Samantha Darko and her friend went on a cross country trip. Their car had trouble and stuck in a small town which all the weird Donnie Darko stuff is happening. Why it is happening? Why in this small town? How did Samantha Darko got the sense as her brother? Never explained. In fact, this movie wouldn't have connected to the original movie if not for Samantha Darko and continuing bombarding the audience with the themes from the first movie. Unlike the first movie, this was very poorly acted, poorly written movie. Also unlike the first movie, I don't care about any of the characters. Talking about confusing, this movie was even more confusing. Does it make sense? Donnie Darko was a movie I wanted to watch again to see fitting of the puzzle. This sequel, I have no urge to see again. -
spiderwort — 8 months ago(July 13, 2025 03:44 PM)
Rufus, I haven't seen most of your films, except for Airport (ages ago) and The Man Who Knew Too Much (more than once, because I love Doris Day), and I agree with your assessment of both. I do love Doris singing Que Sera Sera though; it was one of my mother's favorite songs.
And I'm deeply intrigued by Donnie Darko. Don't know how I missed that one and will look for it on Prime. Hope it's not too dark though – no pun intended. Might have to put it on hold if it is. But it does sound really intriguing. -
PygmyLion — 8 months ago(July 14, 2025 07:20 PM)
Like you, I am not too high on
The Man Who Knew Too Much
, and thus I haven't watched it for many years. It's okay, but it is not a Hitchock movie that I look for.
I believe I have watched the 1934 version with Peter Lorre, more recently, maybe just a few years back. -
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PygmyLion — 8 months ago(July 14, 2025 06:25 PM)
The Sea Chase
1955 John Wayne, Lana Turner, Lyle Bettiger - a German Freighter Captain tries to get his ship home from Sydney at the start of WW II. ***
The Fool Killer
1965 Anthony Perkins, Edward Arnold, Henry Hull. A low budget film that is somewhat interesting. In the period after the Civil War, a 12 year old boy runs away from his step parents and runs into interesting characters on his journey, including a Civil War veteran (Perkins) suffering from mental problems. **1/2
The Night of the Hunter
1955 Robert Mitchum, Lillian Gish, Billy Chapin, Shelly Winters - Self-Proclaimed Preacher Harry Powell(Mitchum) tries to acquire some stolen funds. The only movie directed by Charles Laughton. - ***1/2
His Girl Friday
1940 - Cary Grant, Rosalind Russell, Ralph Bellamy. ***1/2
Julia Misbehaves
1948 Greer Garson, Walter Pigeon, Elizabeth Taylor, Peter Lawford, Cesar Romero, Nigel Bruce. Julia (Garson), who had separated from her rich husband(Pigeon) when their daughter Susan (Taylor) was an infant, because she is a show business person, is invited (out of the blue) by her daughter Susan to Susan's upcoming wedding. ***
Beauty and the Boss
1932 - Marian Marsh, Warren Williams, Mary Doran, David Manners, Charles Butterworth - Rich Baron Josef Von Ulrich (Williams), who is president of a bank, fires his secretary (Doran) because he finds her too attractive and makes her his mistress. He hires frumpy, workaholic Susie Sachs (Marsh) to take her place, but finds that frumpy girls are not always quite what they seem. *** -
Rufus-T — 8 months ago(July 16, 2025 06:45 PM)
It was such a shame that Charles Laughton didn't direct another movie, discouraged by poor review and box office return. People weren't ready for the dark theme in The Night of the Hunter. Too ahead of its time. May have done much better if released in the 60s.
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CoriSCapnSkip — 6 months ago(September 09, 2025 08:19 PM)
I finished watching the TV series
Mr. Lucky
, which ran from 1959-1960, on July 7.
I tried to watch
Pirates of the Caribbean
on July 8, which my dad called "the stupidest movie I ever saw," and after 55 minutes of trying to force myself to be interested I was inclined to agree with him. I found no appeal in the story or its characters. Having watched less than half of it (why was it so long?) I can't review this movie.
The only movie I completed was
Oliver and Company
on July 12. I know this is a very old film but it was my first time watching it.