(Naturally you sound like me defending "Empire Burlesque")
― Alfred, Lord Sotosyn, Wednesday, 17 December 2008 02:25 (fifteen years ago) link
weird, i swear i voted for Avanti too, maybe i just shrugged and went for the Apartment after all
― Tom Botantino (some dude), Wednesday, 17 December 2008 02:35 (fifteen years ago) link
Forgot a lot of the great lines in A Foreign Affair! Congresswoman Jean Arthur on a crime spike in Iowa: "A little boy in Des Moines took a blowtorch to his grandmother..."
― Fusty Moralizer (Dr Morbius), Sunday, 14 February 2010 18:56 (fourteen years ago) link
tried to watch Avanti! a few wks ago and got about as far as the kitch-y coroner w/ the color-coded italian forms and turned it off. none of it was funny or charming and there was no reason to think it'd get better imo. there was a line where jack lemmon outright refers to juliette mills' character as fat that seemed really mean-spirited and would probably draw protesters today
― johnny crunch, Sunday, 14 February 2010 19:05 (fourteen years ago) link
After 1964 the guy totally lost it.
― Inculcate a spirit of serfdom in children (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Sunday, 14 February 2010 22:20 (fourteen years ago) link
i cant believe the witness for the prosecution hate on this thread
― Ron Polarik, PhD (and what), Tuesday, December 9, 2008 11:48 AM (1 year ago) Bookmark
― Luz, a saucy taco slinger (hmmmm), Monday, 15 February 2010 07:34 (fourteen years ago) link
but the correct answer is SABRINA, what the hell is wrong with you communists
― Luz, a saucy taco slinger (hmmmm), Monday, 15 February 2010 07:35 (fourteen years ago) link
nobody threw a bone to Five Graves to Cairo? shame on yall
― yakko warner (cankles), Monday, 15 February 2010 08:07 (fourteen years ago) link
I saw Jonathan Rosenbaum introduce Double Indemnity in Toronto last night (followed by Q&A afterwards). One of my dozen favourite films. Never read the novel, but he was describing the original ending, and does it ever sound preposterous. Apparently the Dietrichson house still stands in California. And the Pacific All Risk office where Norton makes a fool out of himself trying to intimidate Phyllis was designed like the Paramount offices--which made me wonder if Norton was modelled on a studio head whom Wilder thought a buffoon. (Which in turn made Fred MacMurray wonder if I wonder.)
― clemenza, Tuesday, 31 May 2011 19:42 (thirteen years ago) link
Probably Sunset Blvd, at this point. Maybe that would change with re-viewings.I actually enjoy Witness for the Prosecution.
― MrDasher, Tuesday, 31 May 2011 20:08 (thirteen years ago) link
you can buy A Foreign Affair from TCM now
― saltwater incursion (Dr Morbius), Wednesday, 26 December 2012 03:46 (eleven years ago) link
yes!
― the little prince of inane false binary hype (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Wednesday, 26 December 2012 03:54 (eleven years ago) link
Black market,Cuckoo clocks and bangles
― Albee Thousand (James Redd and the Blecchs), Wednesday, 26 December 2012 04:01 (eleven years ago) link
Seem to have read today that BW was considering using Marilyn Monroe for another project after Some Like It Hot but can't remember what that might have been.
― Albee Thousand (James Redd and the Blecchs), Wednesday, 26 December 2012 04:03 (eleven years ago) link
Kiss Me, Stupid I guess
― Albee Thousand (James Redd and the Blecchs), Wednesday, 26 December 2012 04:30 (eleven years ago) link
Irma la douce. Liz Taylor was also considered.
― Big Sambola & The Tailspinners (C. Grisso/McCain), Wednesday, 26 December 2012 19:06 (eleven years ago) link
Oh yeah, look at that, thanks.
― Albee Thousand (James Redd and the Blecchs), Wednesday, 26 December 2012 19:45 (eleven years ago) link
I think it's amusing that a pre-"Faster Pussycat" Tura Satana is in Ild.
― Big Sambola & The Tailspinners (C. Grisso/McCain), Wednesday, 26 December 2012 20:56 (eleven years ago) link
It's gotta be Foreign Affair. Or the Lost Weekend. Or the first 20 mins of Sabrina. Love in the Afternoon is genuinely awful though.
― Chuck_Tatum, Wednesday, 26 December 2012 23:23 (eleven years ago) link
i was pretty disappointed in 'ace in the hole' when i finally saw it. haven't watched any of these in a long time but 'the apartment' still stands out to me as the best one.
― (The Other) J.D. (J.D.), Wednesday, 26 December 2012 23:35 (eleven years ago) link
I couldn't get through One, Two, Three. Two votes for that ahead of Sunset Blvd. or Double Indemnity is some outstanding contrarianism.
― Rocking Disco Santa (Dan Peterson), Wednesday, 26 December 2012 23:48 (eleven years ago) link
xp def agree on both
― johnny crunch, Wednesday, 26 December 2012 23:53 (eleven years ago) link
Voted One, Two, Three for incredible fast-paced funny and believable performance of Cagney as a hectic executive and its images of post-war, pre-wall Berlin. Almost voted A Foreign Affair for reasons stated above. Not conscious contrarianism, just think these New World meets Old Europe scenarios stress his strengths and help him steer clear of schmaltz.
― Albee Thousand (James Redd and the Blecchs), Thursday, 27 December 2012 02:59 (eleven years ago) link
Recently remarked that Tony Curtis wrote a book about the making of Some Like It Hot, but a perfunctory perusal seemed to indicate that it mainly consisted of him making stuff up, mostly about Marilyn.
― Albee Thousand (James Redd and the Blecchs), Thursday, 27 December 2012 03:11 (eleven years ago) link
^^I think I read an excerpt from that in VF when it came out. Apparently he was rocking a serious irl boner during the boat seduction shoot.
― Big Sambola & The Tailspinners (C. Grisso/McCain), Thursday, 27 December 2012 03:17 (eleven years ago) link
Would have killed an ordinary man.
― Albee Thousand (James Redd and the Blecchs), Thursday, 27 December 2012 03:20 (eleven years ago) link
cmon, A Foreign Affair can't be the BEST: John Lund.
― saltwater incursion (Dr Morbius), Thursday, 27 December 2012 03:33 (eleven years ago) link
Curtis & MM had allegedly had a thing years before SLIH.
― saltwater incursion (Dr Morbius), Thursday, 27 December 2012 03:34 (eleven years ago) link
Anything is possible. But are you sure he wasn't confusing her with someone else, like Yvonne De Carlo?
― Albee Thousand (James Redd and the Blecchs), Thursday, 27 December 2012 03:53 (eleven years ago) link
Not a single film that Crowe didnt defend in that hagiography.
― the little prince of inane false binary hype (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Thursday, 27 December 2012 04:12 (eleven years ago) link
i appreciate 123's energy and setting, but the humor is really stale to me.
― turds (Hungry4Ass), Thursday, 27 December 2012 04:16 (eleven years ago) link
I've never looked at the Crowe book. He annoys me.
― saltwater incursion (Dr Morbius), Thursday, 27 December 2012 04:17 (eleven years ago) link
Much as he obviously wanted it to be, that Crowe Wilder book is no Hitchcock/Truffaut. No Objects of Desire either.
― Albee Thousand (James Redd and the Blecchs), Thursday, 27 December 2012 04:42 (eleven years ago) link
It's more interesting for the anecdotes and observations he pulls out of a still-sharp Wilder, but even my contrarianism stops at the gates of Fedora and the remake of The Front Page.
― the little prince of inane false binary hype (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Thursday, 27 December 2012 04:56 (eleven years ago) link
Wazzabout Buddy Buddy?
― Albee Thousand (James Redd and the Blecchs), Thursday, 27 December 2012 05:01 (eleven years ago) link
I saw The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes in a beautiful 35mm print last night. Have to rate it an honorable miss (I think it might 'play shorter' if we had the full 5-episode 165-minute version, if we had it). Robert Stephens' excessive makeup took some getting used to, and while I like dopey sidekicks Colin Blakely's Watson began to grate after the first 30 mins. Good non-fanged Christopher Lee; nice brief work from Clive Revill as the ballet impresario (nothing like a protracted 1970 gay-ppanic sketch) and the old broad who played Queen Victoria.
― images of war violence and historical smoking (Dr Morbius), Wednesday, 30 April 2014 15:59 (ten years ago) link
despise that movie, but i'm v protective of watson. hardly the only movie to violate him but at least the guys directing nigel bruce towards banana peels didn't think they were so goddam clever.
― difficult listening hour, Wednesday, 30 April 2014 16:28 (ten years ago) link
Superb long feature on the Brackett-Wilder partnership: http://thedissolve.com/features/movie-of-the-week/635-charles-brackett-billy-wilder-and-the-rise-and-fal/
― guess that bundt gettin eaten (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Friday, 27 June 2014 18:08 (ten years ago) link
Just took a look and read the beginning. Wow, thanks for posting. Always wanted to know about that, looking forward to the publication of those Brackett memoirs.
― That's How Strong My Dub Is (James Redd and the Blecchs), Saturday, 28 June 2014 11:36 (ten years ago) link
http://image2.findagrave.com/photos250/photos/2004/292/6295551_109825082512.jpg
― son of a lewd monk (Dr Morbius), Thursday, 24 July 2014 16:34 (ten years ago) link
The guru has laid another egg.
― I Don't Zing Like Nobody (James Redd and the Blecchs), Thursday, 24 July 2014 17:07 (ten years ago) link
Lemmon and Matthau planted close by, Marilyn about 50 yards away.
― son of a lewd monk (Dr Morbius), Thursday, 24 July 2014 17:09 (ten years ago) link
Nobody's perfect.
― I Don't Zing Like Nobody (James Redd and the Blecchs), Thursday, 24 July 2014 17:12 (ten years ago) link
Joe E Brown's in Glendale
― son of a lewd monk (Dr Morbius), Thursday, 24 July 2014 17:24 (ten years ago) link
Double Indemnity... kind of a fake film noir, really? Sort of what High Noon is to non-watchers of westerns.
http://www.slantmagazine.com/film/review/double-indemnity
― son of a lewd monk (Dr Morbius), Monday, 28 July 2014 16:12 (ten years ago) link
I'm sympathetic to claims that it's drab and uninteresting and once you get it the first time it doesn't keep resonating (and Kael was right about the other supporting actors, so bad they're unbelievable); but in the novel Phyllis and Walter aren't much crazy about each other either.
― guess that bundt gettin eaten (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Monday, 28 July 2014 16:14 (ten years ago) link
not my favorite noir. it's good but there is something perfunctory about it.
― Οὖτις, Monday, 28 July 2014 16:25 (ten years ago) link
I think it's pretty damned good but a definite step below a lot of other classics (and even a bunch of films not considered to be classics.)
― LIKE If you are against racism (omar little), Monday, 28 July 2014 16:33 (ten years ago) link
Stanwyck playing not-as-smart-as-he-thinks-he-is MacMurray holds my interest more than the Robinson scenes ... they're both repellent characters, but that doesn't make the proceedings any less noir
part of the problem is probably Raymond Chandler, who couldn't quite write a screenplay
― Brad C., Monday, 28 July 2014 16:34 (ten years ago) link
it's certainly one of Wilder's best films.
― guess that bundt gettin eaten (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Monday, 28 July 2014 16:34 (ten years ago) link