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Post by OldAussie on May 31, 2017 1:08:37 GMT
Based solely on my 1ST viewing only, as many of my favourites only acquired that status after 2 or more viewings -
Lawrence of Arabia - cinema viewing - automatically became my first ever favourite and has retained that standing.
Vertigo - television broadcast - blew me away.
The Right Stuff - television broadcast - hired the vhs. 3 hours later I rewound it and watched it again.
Ride the High Country - television broadcast - I knew it had a good reputation so I watched a midnight television broadcast. Wasn't disappointed and the last 5 minutes are among my most memorable of all movies.
Hombre - cinema viewing - Never heard of it when I went to see it on a double bill with Butch and Sundance. I love it.
One-Eyed Jacks - television broadcast - a western with crashing ocean waves. Love it.
The Alamo - cinema viewing - first movie I remember seeing in a cinema....and John Wayne died!!!
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Post by howardschumann on May 31, 2017 2:05:16 GMT
These films to one degree or another have meant a lot to me in my life. Of course, since I have lived a while, I could name 100 but these immediately come to mind.
Apu Trilogy (1955, 1957, 1959)
This trilogy opened a new world for me, opening up the ability to empathize with children in a distant country whose material well being was different than my own. They are films of great humanity and artistic integrity that explore universal themes in an unsentimental but deeply poetic way.
The films contain images that remained with me even after I could no longer remember their context in the film: the brother and sister in awe of the train outside their village that opens up a new world to them, Durga dancing in the rain, the awkwardness of the first conversations in The World of Apu between Apu and his bride after they just got married, Apu’s walk in the forest symbolically discarding his ties to the past, and the final scene in The World of Apu between the now responsible father Apu and his little boy, Kajal. It has been my favorite film(s) for half a century.
The Search (1948)
I first saw Fred Zinnemann’s The Search when I was a child. It was an experience that connected me for the first time with other children in different parts of the world whose suffering I could hardly have imagined. Aside from newspaper pictures of the war and the occasional newsreel, I had never before seen the real face of war, children with sallow looking faces, their clothes in tatters wandering among the bricks and stones of bombed out buildings, many without parents who had been through the most devastating experiences of war that one can imagine. It brought tears to my eyes then as well as each time I have seen it over the years.
I’m Not Scared (2003)
Expressively captures the world of a child in its wonder, innocence, and beauty. It is not only about coming-of-age but about a young boy's awakening of conscience. This gorgeous Italian film has a strange otherworldly and mythical quality to it, like a cinematic dream and the result is not vacuously uplifting but powerfully moving.
Leolo (1992)
Though Leolo is very personal to me, it is a film made for every outsider whose environment is so devoid of the things that nurture their souls, that, to survive, they must escape into a world of dreams, surviving only by being a spectator to their own life. Leolo’s cry “Because I dream, I am not” enters our heart and buries itself until it is our own, a cry from the depths of our being. For those who know what it means to grow up alone, at odds with the world around you, Leolo will make you feel that you have found a kindred spirit.
The Jolson Story (1946)
Introduced me to a new world of show business and to the first Jewish entertainer I had heard of. The film led me to become a sort of child entertainer, though it took a while until I realized I didn’t have much talent.
Fateless (2005)
Though I was familiar with “The Diary of Anne Frank” in its many forms, this film allowed me to see the impact of the holocaust on a young boy who could easily have been me. It was a very personal and moving experience.
Broken Wings (2002)
This beautiful Israeli film allowed me to newly appreciate the trauma that accompanies the sudden loss of a beloved family member. its sadness, however, is balanced with humor and the strength and dignity of its characters. Seeing the film with my younger son Marc brought us closer together and I was very moved by his tears.
Promises (2001)
Whether the life lived by Arab and Israeli children allows them to accomplish their dreams, this film allows us to believe it is possible. This documentary is shown from the point of view of seven Israeli and Palestinian children including Arabs, Orthodox Jews and secular Jews. if adults were as open, honest, and giving as these children, there would be no more talk of checkpoints and terrorists and innocent people blown to bits.
Ordet (1955)
Ordet is an allegory about the power of simple, direct faith to produce results when every other means fail. The film, which I saw as a teen, got me in touch with something I knew instinctively but wasn’t yet in touch with, that the possibility of miracles is something real and can happen through the purity and innocence of a child and the redemptive power of love.
Searching for Bobby Fischer (1993)
This film reminded me once again that the love for one’s child is unconditional and should never be tied in with expectations for success in the eyes of the world.
Running on Empty (1986)
This film allowed me to consider how far I would go to support a cause I believe in, and how such actions can affect those I care about. It views the characters as fallible human beings who have made a mistake and must pay the price, even though what they did was an act of conscience. It is also about a parental love that is so deep that the thought of letting go is hard to bear.
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Post by london777 on May 31, 2017 2:28:02 GMT
Great post, Howard, and you mention some of my favorite films.
The World of Apu was possibly the first "Third World" (for want of a better word) film I ever saw. It left me in tears, and very few films have ever done that. Still one of my Top Ten. I saw the other parts later and they are not as polished. The Trilogy should be seen in the right order so "World" presents a satisfying conclusion.
Regarding your comments on Apu and on The Search, I was working as a volunteer with Haitian children for a few years after the earthquake. They still have desperate needs but my health deteriorated so I could not continue. It was emotionally gruelling but I would not have missed it for anything.
Ordet (1955) is another tear-jerker for me at the end, but as a fully paid-up atheist I have a different approach to it. I have never seen Gustaf Molander's version (1943). I hear it is of similar quality.
I first watched Running on Empty (1986) only a few months ago. Another fine Lumet effort. Again, I draw slightly different conclusions to yourself.
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Post by howardschumann on May 31, 2017 2:59:38 GMT
Great post, Howard, and you mention some of my favorite films. Thanks very much for your comment. I also saw Wild Strawberries when it first came out. Though I had seen several Bergman films, I was quite unprepared for its depth and scope. I had never before seen a film where the the psychological content of dreams was shown with such power. I admit that the opening scared me half to death and it was a long time before I mustered enough courage to see it again. As far as Ordet is concerned, I think it can be appreciated whether or not you adhere to its message from a strictly religious point of view. For me, it is is best viewed as an allegory contrasting people who feel powerless to change their lives with people who know that they have the ability to transform the quality of their life. Curious about the different conclusions you drew from Running on Empty.
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Post by london777 on May 31, 2017 3:08:36 GMT
As far as Ordet is concerned, I think it can be appreciated whether or not you adhere to its message from a strictly religious point of view. For me, it is is best viewed as an allegory contrasting people who feel powerless to change their lives with people who know that they have the ability to transform the quality of their life. That is it exactly. Insightful comment! You can stay curious, buddy. I am not bringing a shitstorm down on my head.
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Post by Deleted on May 31, 2017 13:29:44 GMT
Farewell, My Concubine The Leopard The Godfather The Godfather Part II Throne of Blood Fitzcarraldo Once Upon A Time in America The Damned Elevator to the Gallows The Bride Wore Black
They will always stay with me for the same reason as the paintings that I used to stare at for hours in the museum, when I was a student: admiration of timeless masterpieces.
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Post by BATouttaheck on May 31, 2017 14:16:22 GMT
I have always been a film fanatic. Thanks for the opportunity to express some feeling about films.
Of Mice and Men. All versions. If I was forced to pick a "favorite book", this would be IT and the film adaptations all pretty much are the book and faithfully present the people as they are supposed to be.
The Greatest Show on Earth. I had seen that edition of the circus at Madison Square Garden in NYC and the film presents me with a souvenir of that outstanding event. I still have the original program in my "circus collection". When I see TGSOE listed as the "worst Best Picture ever", I am amazed and dismayed.
British films of the 50's such as Lavender Hill Mob, Genevieve,Man in the White Suit, Wee Geordie remind me of going with my anglophile mom to a special theater in Manhattan (it was down the street from Radio City Music Hall) to see the latest films from the UK that weren't shown in the regular neighborhood theaters. I enjoy re-watching UK films of this period.
Mom used to tell the story of her father, the village doctor. He loved to go to the movies and always sat in a special seat so that if anyone had a medical emergency, they knew where to find him. He especially loved westerns. I figure that my affection for Shane, Hondo, Red River, Hopalong Cassidy, Roy and Dale are possibly genetic. Thanks Doc, too bad I never met you.
John Zackerly was my introduction to Horror Films. He was an earlier rendition of the Svengoolie type movie presenter. Showed all of the classic horror pictures,, I much prefer them to the slash and gore things of today. Lon Jr's Lawrence Talbot and Rains Invisible Man , Karloff ! whoa !
Million Dollar Movie. Every day after school watching the old Warner Brother films. John Garfield, Bogart, Cagney. ALL of them. Films before my time and yet timeless.
Last but in no way least. Membership in the Museum of Modern Art. Every day after work going to see the films being shown. The first week of programs were silent horror films, then DW Griffith, followed by Hitchcock, all sorts of series from other countries, experimental films. You name it, they showed it and I went to see it. I miss NY.
Reading back what I have written, I realize that it's not about ten specific films but represents in general what has stuck with me and probably why I prefer the old films over the new.
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Post by mcavanaugh on May 31, 2017 14:19:47 GMT
To Kill a Mockingbird – many great novels don't fare well when adapted for film. This is not the case with TKAM. Everything about the adaptation works perfectly beginning with a superb performance by Gregory Peck as Atticus Finch. The story, filtered through a child's point-of-view, has a number of important messages but doesn't bang us over the head with them as so many films do. Great performances also by Brock Peters, Collin Wilcox, the three children – Mary Badham, Phillip Alford, and John Megna – and Robert Duvall making his film debut as Boo Radley. There's also the haunting and evocative musical score by Elmer Bernstein.
Sophie's Choice – Meryl Streep gives one of the greatest performances ever captured on film as the woman who survived Auschwitz but cannot live with the horrific choice she was forced to make.
Michael Collins – I grew up listening to my grandparents' stories of the Irish fight for independence. Though it contains a number of historical inaccuracies, "Michael Collins" is still a very compelling film with a (mostly) great cast, headed by Liam Neeson. One point of dissent: I wish an Irish actress had been cast in the role played by Julia Roberts. Her attempts at a Dún Laoghaire accent are cringe-inducing.
Rear Window – Hitchcock is my favorite director, and if I had to pick a favorite from among his films, this would be it. It's the film that turns us all into voyeurs, which is what Hitch knew we were as film viewers, and he seems to have had great fun playing with that idea. Great performances by Jimmy Stewart, Grace Kelly, and Thelma Ritter. Then there's that spine-chilling moment when Raymond Burr sees his wife's wedding ring on Grace Kelly's finger and looks straight into the camera … at us. The master of suspense does it again. I also love the mixture of suspense and dark humor.
Some Mother's Son – Helen Mirren and Fionnula Flanagan are brilliant as the mothers of two IRA prisoners during the 1981 hunger strike. It's a heartbreaking film.
Monty Python and the Holy Grail – When not watching heartbreaking films, I like to laugh, and this is hands down the funniest film I've ever seen. I've seen it more times than I can count, and I quote from it frequently. Who else but the Pythons could give us the duel between Arthur and the Black Knight (“I've had worse”), the killer bunny, the holy hand grenade of Antioch, the Knights Who Say “Ni”, to mention just a few bits of comedic mayhem? It's also a great teaching tool. I use this film every time I teach the Arthurian legend. Students love it and enjoy applying their newly-acquired knowledge to the film.
The Lion in Winter - It's an intelligent film that's also wholly entertaining. How often do we find that combo? O'Toole and Hepburn are in top form (and that's saying a lot!) as they trade barbs meant to draw blood. Henry II: Give me a little peace. Eleanor: A little? Why so modest? How about eternal peace? Now there's a thought. What's not to love?
To Have and Have Not - I love all the Bogey-Bacall pairings, and I could honestly list them all here. I picked this one because I never tire of hearing Lauren Bacall say: "You know how to whistle, don't you, Steve? You just put your lips together and ... blow." Woo-hoo! The film bears little resemblance to the Hemingway novel of the same name, but so what? It's a great romantic adventure war thriller. And it has Walter Brennan to boot. What more can you ask for?
More to come when I have the time.
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Post by teleadm on May 31, 2017 17:47:44 GMT
I've been giving this a lot of thought of which ones to choose as it is restricted to 10 movies. The movies I've chosen here are those I like to watch from time to time, but there are many many more. Like one of those mechanical old measure instruments, after much use, they have to be calibrated to show the correct result from time to time. The 10 movies mentioned down here below are movies I use (because I love them) to calibrate my brain and mind after watching to many lousy movies in a row to remind me what great movies are all about and how they should be done.
The Bride of Frankenstein 1936 The Adventures of Robin Hood 1938 Casablanca 1942 Great Expectations 1946 From Here to Eternity 1953 Mary Poppins 1964 (My first cinema movie) On Her Majesty's Secret Service 1969 (My first Bond) Star Wars 1977 The Commitments 1991 Billy Elliot 2000
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Post by london777 on May 31, 2017 18:23:09 GMT
British films of the 50's ... remind me of ... my anglophile mom You had an anglophile mum? So at what point thereafter did your life take a wrong turn?
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Post by BATouttaheck on May 31, 2017 19:40:51 GMT
British films of the 50's ... remind me of ... my anglophile mom You had an anglophile mum? So at what point thereafter did your life take a wrong turn?I have no idea what that is supposed to mean.
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Post by pippinmaniac on Jun 1, 2017 2:30:00 GMT
1. The Wizard of Oz was my first movie experience-on tv. I can still remember when it was shown only once a year.
2. The Cowboys-shortly before my father died, I asked him what his favorite movie was. He said it was The Cowboys starring John Wayne.
3. Ben Hur-This is my mom's favorite movie. It was another film that used to be shown only once a year on broadcast tv. I have to say, I also enjoy this film.
4. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring-My favorite novel, made into my favorite movie (so far). I wasn't expecting much when I went into the theater, but they truly impressed me. As good as the next two parts were, nothing can equal the experience of seeing Fellowship for the first time, at least for me.
5. Casablanca=I asked my sister what was her favorite movie of all time. She said Casablanca, because she could watch it every day and not get tired of it. She had great taste.
6. Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein-This was my father-in-law's favorite movie when he was a kid. He said it made him laugh and scared him half to death at the same time. Every time I watch it, I remember him.
7. War of the Worlds (1953)-I'm fond of 50's sci=fi movies. This is my favorite one.
8. From Russia With Love- As I've gotten older, this James Bond movie has become my favorite. Istanbul, the Orient Express and Venice. What's not to like?
9. The Empire Strikes Back-This was my all-time number one film, until Fellowship of the Ring. I had a huge crush on Harrison Ford. I wanted to be Princess Leia so badly...
10..Vertigo= My favorite Hitchcock film. I had to grow into it, of course. I always felt bad for Scotty. They really did a number on his life.
So there they are. Mostly genre films, but that's what I like.
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Post by Nalkarj on Jun 1, 2017 4:33:17 GMT
Some of these I have posted before but, as no-one much reads my posts except my stalkers, salzmank and Bat Outtaheck, that does not matter much. Oh, come on. I'm genuinely sick of your immature drivel now. Why don't you just do us all a favor and shut up? And, yes, I know you'll "like" this post, make a joke (or something), and then disappear for a while just to reappear elsewhere and post something else nasty about me. I wonder how you live with yourself. Oh, wait, it's because you're behind the protective wall of a computer screen. Got it.
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Post by Nalkarj on Jun 1, 2017 4:55:25 GMT
Wonderful. As expected. Good to know you're at least consistent in your inanity.
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Post by twothousandonemark on Jun 1, 2017 6:56:38 GMT
1. Stand By Me - (as posted in the rate thread) SBM delivered 3 unique experiences for me - as a kid having a blast with the peer child actors swearing up a storm & having fun in the summer... teenaged after my father passed when I was 12 + my best friends of life were as the film states at 12yrs old - I had 3 best friends pre-highschool & while I was a 'normal' kid like Gordie I had a athletic friend like Chris, a friend from a weird family like Teddy, & a younger friend in our circle a bit naive like Vern. Of course, the film re-watched as an adult is a masterpiece for me... tremendous ensemble from the 4 leads, to Dreyfuss' narration, Sutherland, & even Cusack for gravitas. Capped with a perfect soundtrack & B.B. King's track, SBM really is flawless for me, literally personally.
2. Peter Pan '53 - I guess because it's a bit more masculine in the Disney catalogue + it seemed to play annually around Christmastime & it really was a classic fantasy.
3. Back to the Future - another which played quite differently for me as a kid & again as an adult. It was in fact the first film I owned, on vhs, bought at a McDonald's of all places.
4. Clerks - mid 90's smashed the cliches about the industry for me. Surely the first film to make me laugh from start to end. It looked & sounded so much like reality, of course with exaggerations to make it entertaining.
5. Trainspotting - another great outside the Hollywood machine, this film changed the entire course of my musical appreciation. Electronica, namely trance & techno mostly sans lyrics have been a go to ever since.
6. Star Wars - being a younger 80's kid, growing up with the trilogy mashed around mostly via bday parties, I finally saw the SE being released in 97. I figured no one would pay much attention anymore until I got to the theatre & the entire night's showings were sold out. Next morning showing, a Sunday, barely 20 of us in the theatre, technical difficulties so the staff made up trivia to gift us free SW swag. Walking out to see long waiting line ups for the afternoon showings, ppl looking at us like how the f did you get such a prime viewing? was awesome.
7. Titanic - surely the most memorable theatrical experience because the audience was such a wide range (SPR didn't have children, Avatar didn't have seniors, SW had a lot of fanboys, etc). The historical gravitas of the film was quite heavy that first time, a stunned audience was a valuable experience to be a part of.
8. Avatar 3D - while it doesn't play great at home on blu, the 3D experience was one for the books. I will never forget as credits rolled, taking the 3D glasses off as if we were all leaving an avatar experience of our own. The crystal clear, zero gravity awakening scene was mind blowing to start & I was all in.
9. A Christmas Carol '51 - one of the first b&w films I fell in love with as a kid (let alone adult fare), which I discovered on my own via tv. It's become an annual Christmas staple for me, & I've landed it #41 all time. Might be the longest running streak of years watching any film.
10.Rushmore - Wes Anderson, his sense of humour, his sandpaper, his musical choices, & esp set designs have all been a huge hit for me personally. I probably stopped propagating after Darjeeling Ltd. because I know now he'll not stop working even without mainstream appeal- I couldn't care less what ppls tastes are.
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Post by spiderwort on Jun 1, 2017 23:17:08 GMT
Farewell, My Concubine The Leopard The Godfather The Godfather Part II Throne of Blood Fitzcarraldo Once Upon A Time in America The Damned Elevator to the Gallows The Bride Wore Black They will always stay with me for the same reason as the paintings that I used to stare at for hours in the museum, when I was a student: admiration of timeless masterpieces. Julie, I love your films and especially your comment about them. It's one of the most perfect distillations of the impact of the art of cinema I think I've heard.
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Post by Doghouse6 on Jun 1, 2017 23:59:28 GMT
There are so many ways to approach the question and, initially hesitant to settle on one, I've concluded that those which most stay with me are the ones I've kept with me, revisiting regularly and never tiring of them. Some are like faithful old friends: always welcome when they drop in, they tell the same stories and you still love hearing them; the film equivalent of comfort food. Others continue to dazzle with virtuosity and technique that never fail to impress, after no matter how many viewings. Still others always have something new, surprising and insightful to reveal about their stories, their characters and the ways in which both are developed and presented by the film makers.
Rather than categorize, I'll simply list them chronologically (and warn you: I'm gonna cheat a bit on that limit of ten).
Any Astaire/Rogers picture from their second through their eighth (The Gay Divorcee, Roberta, Top Hat, Follow the Fleet, Swing Time, Shall We Dance, Carefree): My favorite is usually the one I've seen most recently. They're all gossamer-light and elegant, sophisticated yet silly, and designed to transport you to a world that grants passing acknowledgement of the real one but which never actually existed...and should have. And although they shouldn't need mentioning: the composers; the songs; the dances. These films are beyond comfort food: each makes a meal of the richest and most satisfying pastry.
Casablanca: It's been mentioned before, and justifiably so. No film provides more evidence of what gave Hollywood's Golden Age its name: every element, from the casting and performances, cinematography and editing to the art direction, music scoring, writing and direction fit together like a fine watch and everything clicks accordingly. It can be said that all concerned did better individual work elsewhere, but none collaborated on another project where every contribution dovetailed so neatly together and with such enduring craftsmanship. To professionals of the day, it was a picture; to students of succeeding generations, it's a film; to anyone who loves them, it defines what makes any of the best of them A Movie.
Double Indemnity: Director Billy Wilder and co-writer Raymond Chandler took a morbid James M. Cain novella that had been deemed unfilmable for nearly a decade and, stripping it to its essentials while exploring dimensions the author never imagined, fashioned a tragic morality play that was instrumental in defining a genre that would be identified only retroactively many years later. While cynically examining the basest human instincts and weaknesses, it contrasts them with those of integrity, honesty and altruism in a way that ultimately requires sacrifice as the cost of redemption, but with its hard edge, delivers its tale in a snappy and highly stylized manner that never feels preachy, and leaves viewers not only with indelible characters, dilemmas, dialogue and images, but at liberty to take from them just as much as their own instincts and ideals will allow.
Sunset Blvd: More cynicism and tragedy from Billy Wilder, but with an underlying sense of sympathetic tenderness that may not be apparent upon first viewing. As with Double Indemnity, the story unfolds in flashback: we know where we are and why ("An old-time star is involved... the body of a young man was found floating in the pool of her mansion with two shots in his back and one in his stomach"), and the interest lies in learning how we got here, and who these people are: the "young man" is an opportunistic screenwriter with perhaps more ambition than talent; the "old-time star" is a middle-aged woman so invested in the youth, beauty and vitality of her public image that she's retreated to the isolation of that mansion when they've deserted her. Legend has it that the Hollywood power structure reacted badly to the film, but come Academy Award time, the rank-and-file membership rewarded it with eleven nominations and three wins. They no doubt saw what the moguls missed: the humanity of those a cutthroat industry can squeeze dry and cast aside. And in re-teaming with on-again/off-again writing partner Wilder, Charles Brackett helped craft dialogue and images more memorable and indelible than those of Double Indemnity (with which he wanted nothing to do), quotable even by those who've never seen the film: "A am big...it's the pictures that got small;" "Alright, Mr. DeMille, I'm ready for my closeup." And what I consider to be one of the most haunting and poetically beautiful lines in any film: "There's nothing else: just us, and the cameras...and those wonderful people out there in the dark." We hear and say much about "the magic of the movies;" what that Wilder/Brackett sentiment tells me is that the filmgoing audience, upon which all involved in the making of that "magic" depend, are at least as magical - and mysterious - to them as they are to us.
All About Eve: Joe Mankiewicz directs his own script in a straightforward manner with a minimum of cinematic flourish, allowing the presentation of an insular world and those who inhabit it - along with the performances of those portraying them - to carry the day: we see a collection of colorful characters who are at each others' throats every other minute but, like a family, are bound together and can't live without one another. And even at their worst, they're intelligent, witty, incisive and unpredictable...and just plain fun to be with. Within both the story and the film itself, they're there for one purpose only: to entertain...with their flaws as well as their merits. Oh, how they do, and they're never dull for a moment. It may be the funniest film that's decidedly not a comedy, and becomes one even more quotable than Sunset Blvd.
A Star Is Born: This is both lush, lavish, 1950s film making on a grand scale (in the words of the Cole Porter song: glorious Technicolor, breathtaking CinemaScope and stereophonic sound) and viscerally-felt-and-presented human drama. Under the direction of George Cukor, who employs characteristic long and uninterrupted takes allowing his players to really run with a scene, James Mason delivers perhaps the most credible and harrowing portrayal of a charismatic yet self-destructive charmer in the grip of alcoholism yet seen at the time, depicting the ways in which such a magnetic personality holds enablers in his orbit; Jack Carson turns his usual geniality coldly reptilian and bitterly toxic, doing what may be the best work of his already respectable career; authoritative Charles Bickford upends the stereotype of a studio mogul by providing him with a heart; Lucy Marlow fully inhabits another, that of the shallow, self-centered starlet. But at the center of it all is Garland, pulling out all the stops in demonstrating what made her arguably the preeminent entertainer of the 20th century: with maturity, sophistication and rawness she hadn't displayed before, this picture sets forth both a distillation and a compendium of her prodigious talents.
Sweet Smell Of Success: Did real people ever act this way? Think this way? Talk this way? Maybe two out of three. Burt Lancaster and Tony Curtis broaden their screen personas as, respectively, a powerful and vindictive columnist and a power-hungry and venal press agent under Alexander Mackendrick's direction of Ernest Lehman and Clifford Odets's lacerating script. Depicting the seamy side of mass media circa mid-1950s, it provides a time capsule of Manhattan at the intersection of cafe society and the beat generation, and from which another endlessly quotable film emerges: "I love this dirty town;" "My right hand hasn't seen my left hand in years;" "I'd hate to take a bite outta you...you're a cookie full of arsenic;" "You sound happy, Sidney...why should you be happy when I'm not?" Like All About Eve, it portrays an insular urban environment of brittle personalities and relationships that, to most of us, is foreign yet fascinating, and goes a step further in exposing the grit beneath the glamour. With its idiosyncratic vernacular and shady, on-the-make denizens (of which even the most crude and brutal cop is colorfully erudite), it might be considered the dark underbelly of the world of Damon Runyan. In any case, I'm not sure there's another film or collection of characters quite like it.
The Boys In the Band: Filmed in the summer of '69 on the cusp of the modern gay liberation movement, it's another urban time capsule; cinematically, it's surely one of the most kinetic screen adaptations of a single-set stage play. Under William Friedkin's direction, Arthur Ornitz's camera is everywhere; complimented by brisk editing, what could have been static becomes dynamic, yet the proper focus upon remarkable work from an ensemble cast - still performing the play nightly while shooting during the day - is never sacrificed (nor is playwright Mart Crowley's text, transferred virtually intact). Perhaps most challenging for them was modulating those performances for the camera: reinventing what they'd been doing onstage for over a year; accommodating new sets, blocking, business and the start/stop/out-of-sequence demands of a film shoot. And then going back to "the old way" each night. Friedkin expertly shepherds the endeavor, presumably aided by his previous experience filming Harold Pinter's play The Birthday Party, and out of it comes a film that rivals All About Eve for memorable dialogue while surpassing it for laugh-out-loud moments within searing drama. It's lively and intense, pensive and bombastic, and was instantly - and remains - iconic.
Cabaret: Fashioned from elements of the writings of Christopher Isherwood, John Van Druten's play "I Am A Camera," and the Joe Masteroff/Kander & Ebb show based thereon, director Bob Fosse created something uniquely his own. As with Friedkin's efforts described above, Fosse's cinematic sense and execution is bravura but never intrusive; propulsive is the word I'd choose. And he expertly negotiates not one cinematic style but two, visually and rhythmically varying those of his dramatic and musical sequences in counterpoint to - and commentary upon - one another. Complimenting the endlessly inventive visuals is sound design that's perhaps easily overlooked, but subtly plays its part within an overall template of brilliance (by any definition of the word). At a time when it had been relegated to the wilderness, the film musical was reimagined by Cabaret in ways that both evoke and depart from that done a decade earlier by West Side Story, and in the decade before that in A Star Is Born, and by Vincent Minnelli yet another decade before (and with that, how fitting that Liza Minnelli should figure so prominently in yet another advancement of the form).
Chinatown: Is there such a thing as a perfect film? If not, this one may come as close as any. Each new viewing of more than I can count over 43 years reveals an undiscovered layer; an unnoticed thread in an intricate tapestry; another tiny detail so meticulously inserted by director Roman Polanski and screenwriter Robert Towne. As with Casablanca, every element clicks, fitting together, connecting and supporting one another as in that metaphoric tapestry. And all the more remarkable given the chaotic nature of its preparation and production in yet another Casablanca parallel. But I'll go a step further and assert that no one among its creative and technical personnel ever did better work anywhere. It intrigues; it puzzles; it frightens; it shocks; it haunts. And it fully respects the intelligence of viewers, for one of the daring aspects of its complex craftsmanship is what it leaves out: questions remain unanswered; connective plot points go unexplained. It's a film designed as much to be re-watched as seen only once, and to be thought about afterward. In this way, each viewer is invited to investigate just as protagonist Jake does, and to continue doing so long after the film has made its major revelations. And the beauty and cleverness of this construction is that anything a viewer comes up with to address one of these plot points - how did Ida Sessions know about "those people," for instance - is as good as another. Any satisfactory answer still gets you from Point A to Point B, like multiple roads leading to a single destination. I could go on and on - about the brazen dangling before our eyes of crucial clues whose significance becomes clear only later, about the instantly-classic music score, about the dead-on period duplication and so on - but I won't.
I wanted to talk about Network, but if you count my Astaire/Rogers cheat as one entry, that would make eleven. Just the same, I'm gonna cheat some more, and briefly mention two films that, unlike the others, I've seen only once each, but which repeatedly occupy my thoughts when considering great film making.
Intruder In the Dust: Clarence Brown, known primarily as a solid director of glossy MGM product, turned in for that studio this stark and arresting examination of racial tension and injustice in a small southern town. Its Oxford, Mississippi location work - incorporating many locals in bits and as extras - brings blunt authenticity and impressive imagery to what develops as a tale of bravery and holding to principles at personal peril. It begins in a deceptively modest fashion, but grips you before you've realized it, and along the way exhibits standout work from familiar character players Juano Hernandez, Elizabeth Patterson and Porter Hall, the latter two more typically associated with lighter fare, but who astonish in some truly chilling scenes.
Gone Baby Gone: Despite recommendations and a prestigious cast, I resisted this film for some time: a first feature directorial effort from a middling actor and sometime screenwriter; a not very attractive subject; a truly off-putting title. What it delivered was not unlike that described in the paragraph above, with its location work in Boston and environs (and their inhabitants) furnishing authenticity to a story that, like Chinatown, exposes layer after layer in a crackling story leading to civic corruption, and ultimately to a shattering and unresolvable moral dilemma. A very finely crafted and thought-provoking film.
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Post by BATouttaheck on Jun 2, 2017 2:00:03 GMT
Doghouse6I have noticed that your posts always add something to a film that I have seen and make me want to watch those that I have missed. Thanks for sharing your thoughts and insights so very generously.
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Post by BATouttaheck on Jun 2, 2017 3:29:32 GMT
Borrowing a few ideas (stealing is such a harsh term), some "forever" films come to mind:
Among those old friends which are being added to the many that have already been mentioned
Groundhog Day. Initially seen as just a funny movie with some memorable scenes and situations, it has become a yearly ritual to watch it as close to Groundhog Day as can be scheduled. Having had some "serious" discussions about the film in the olden days before v2.0 and having learned that there is a more-ness to this picture, new things seem to be found with each viewing. The "moral" of this comedy seems to be "keep trying 'til you get it right" which is a good a thing to work towards as any presented in a film, I suppose.
Tootsie another go-to visit with familiar friends. Gleaned from this one - Sometimes you have to be someone or something other than yourself to find out who you truly are.
The 'Burbs. Sometimes it's just a blast to park your brain at the door, go with the flow and just enjoy the total idiocy of what's happening as if it's the first time you have seen it.
Planes, Trains and Automobiles. So much more than the airport and pillow scenes, it's really about strangers becoming friends and that there may be hope for people after all.
These are all neo-classical pictures but they were ones that came to mind as well written, ultimately positive and hopeful films. Sometimes they are the ones you just need to be watching.
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Post by Doghouse6 on Jun 2, 2017 13:39:26 GMT
Doghouse6 I have noticed that your posts always add something to a film that I have seen and make me want to watch those that I have missed. Thanks for sharing your thoughts and insights so very generously. Kind of you, Bat. Others on the thread have exhibited some adventurous and varied tastes; mine must seem prosaic by comparison, but I'm a Hollywood kid. Born and raised there, and brought up on its product. Now living 1000 miles away, I still retain the familiar tastes of home.
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