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Post by morrisondylanfan on Sept 16, 2020 4:08:02 GMT
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Post by phantomparticle on Sept 16, 2020 9:49:06 GMT
I've only seen the 1949 Margaret O'Brien version, mostly because I'm an O'Brien fan. Dean Stockwell is at the beginning of his eccentric career. The sudden transition from b/w to full color is startling; other monochrome movies have unexpected color sequences in them but the scene in the garden is particularly effective because of the variety of foliage they had to work with. You lose that "shock moment" in a full color film.
O'Brien was a remarkable child actor, capable of emotional depth far more than the Shirley Temple who often comes across as plastic today (and I like her, too). Temple's most difficult dramatic effort was The Blue Bird but she fails to completely convince. It all looks like surface playacting. Contrast that with O'Brien's work in Meet Me In St. Louis, especially her breakdown moment when she destroys the snowman. O'Brien and Stockwell engage in a screaming match in this movie that would have sent Temple running from the room.
I should catch up on other versions of the Burnett classic.
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Post by TheOriginalPinky on Sept 16, 2020 13:05:59 GMT
I, too, have only seen the '49 O'Brien-Stockwell version, and liked it enormously! Love the feeling of it, and thought the two actors were phenomenal. I agree with phantomparticle regarding O'Brien's acting skills. I have always enjoyed watching her.
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Post by marshamae on Sept 16, 2020 14:17:08 GMT
I read this when I was nine and have loved it ever since. The odd device of planting an unattractive ,unsympathetic child in the center of the story and creating a group of unattractive people around her with only Dickon and Mrs Sowerby as sunny alternatives is uncommon. I have seen several versions. As always with beloved books or plays I tend to rate them by how close they stay to the book. I also consider how well the setting mirrors the setting described in the book. From this point of view my favorite version is a bbc CHILDRENS tv series from 1975. I liked it so well that I hunted it down on dvd. Surprisingly for BBC , there are no well known actors from British tv or film. Sarah Hollis Andrews plays Sarah. Although she is attractive she has a slightly pinched look you see on Lady Gabriela Windsor  |
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Post by marshamae on Sept 16, 2020 14:41:57 GMT
Another strength of the 1975 tv series is the haunting oboe theme. A down side is the bbc’s common ( at that time ) practice of video taping interior shots and filming outdoor shots. The result is a bit fuzzy. I happily watch it anyway but some might not care to. This is the version I find most satisfying
I have seen and enjoyed the1949 film. OBRIAn delivers as the selfish self centered Mary but she is too old. MGM was as unsuccessful at making Margaret look small as they were at making Elizabeth Taylor look like a school child in little women. Fortunately there, they simply let it be supposed that Taylor was older than Beth. Here there was no child to work that trick with. Another off voice was Martha. She came off as slightly hysterical ,a Bronte servant. Herbert Marshall was fine as mr craven and his wooden leg instead of a twisted shoulder did the job. The best was Dean Stockwell, still able to play children convincingly. His screaming match with OBRIAN was all anyone could wish.
I have not seen Agnieszka Holland’s version but with Maggie Smith as Mrs Medlock it certainly seems promising.
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Post by politicidal on Sept 16, 2020 16:45:33 GMT
I'm fairly certain I saw the '93 version but I don't remember much from it.
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Post by claudius on Sept 16, 2020 22:43:52 GMT
The 1949 version is something I watch on Thanksgiving every year, although that may be more due to TCM showing it than any role in my part.
I should take a look at the BBC-TV Serial.
There is also the 1987 TV Movie with Derek Jacobi, Billie Whitelaw, Michael Hordern, and a young Colin Firth. That version puts the story in flashback as an adult WW1 era Mary wanders the grounds.
I've seen the 1993 version several times. I remember the trailer used pieces from Danny Elfman's EDWARD SCISSORHANDS.
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Post by london777 on Sept 18, 2020 2:33:47 GMT
 The 1993 version is a great movie, thanks to the director (you would expect Agnieszka Holland to trump a Hollywood hack like Fred M Wilcox), and to an outstanding performance by young Kate Maberly. One of the rare occasions when the movie is better than the original novel, amplifying the magically curative properties of gardens and eliminating the Victorian mawkishness of the book. The switch to color in the earlier version was a masterstroke, though.
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Post by london777 on Sept 18, 2020 2:49:56 GMT
Although she is attractive she has a slightly pinched look you see on Lady Gabriela Windsor You have understated your case. I think they look amazingly similar in those two pictures. But who the hell is Lady Gabriela Windsor?
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Post by marshamae on Sept 18, 2020 20:36:48 GMT
I know this photo was a bit of a non sequitur. Lady Gabriela Windsor is the very nice daughter of Prince Michael Of Kent. I included her photo because she is a good example of how a lady can be very attractive and slightly pinched looking. Mary in the book is described as very plain but growing prettier as she grew healthier and stronger. An actress who is really very plain is hard to watch over seven episodes. She would have to be as talented as Margaret OBrien to hold the screen.
That was the point if lady Gabriella and I agree it’s a bit of a stretch.
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