Father of the Bride (1950)

#83 on Laughs
After spending a long day shoveling the massive amounts of snow we got, watching a film from the list seemed like  a good idea. And this was a cute one.
Father of the Bride, stars Spencer Tracy, and Elizabeth Taylor.  I know, you were probably picturing this when you saw the film title: 

What up, Steve Martin?

Well, here is a surprise. That was a remake.  It was interesting to see the differences and similarities between the remake and the original.  The father still misses important events on the wedding day, the bride still has a fight with the groom, the presents still pile up.  I will say, I like the way they updated the old fashioned bits from the original for the remake.  It was also interesting to see how some scenes were exact repeats of the original/remake.

It was kind of odd to see Spencer Tracy running around a house, trying not to miss things, not fitting into a tux, etc. I’m use to him being so much more…serious.  Even though I know he has been in plenty of comedies. 

And of course the bride to be, Elizabeth Taylor, is gorgeous. As always her acting was excellent. 

Not sure how I feel about her dress though....

Some of my favorite actors show up in this, but briefly.  Billie Burke is Elizabeth Taylor's mother in law (but she isn't nagging anyone!!!) and Russ Tamblyn is the younger brother, but he doesn't do much in this film.  A shame really, because he is excellent (You probably know him from West Side Story.)

I think my favorite thing in the film was Spencer Tracy complaining about having to pay $3.75 a head for the reception. I used a conversion site, and figured out how much that would have been in today dollars.  The number amount he is bellyaching about? $35 a head .  $35!!!  All I could think was how happy people would be if they could throw a wedding reception for that amount…

Movies where weddings are a main plot point always make me think of the weddings I've been to/been involved in.  The ups, the downs, the stress, the excitement.  Sometimes I think people miss the point of the day, worrying about the money or making sure everything is perfect.  And then like in the movie, one person walks down the aisle, eyes locked on the other, and all is right in the world....at least for a little while.

/being sappy

Favorite Quote:
Stanley Banks: I always used to think that marriages were a simple affair. Boy meets girl. Fall in love. They get married. Have babies. Eventually the babies grow up and meet other babies. They fall in love. Get married. Have babies. And so on and on and on. Looked at that way, it's not only simple, it's downright monotonous. But I was wrong. I figured without the wedding.

Gaslight (1944)

#78 on Thrills

Hey hey now!  A blog post! What is this mysterious thing, long forgotten? I failed miserably at reaching my year goal in 2012 for the list, so I'm going to try to make up for it in 2013 by being more consistent with both my watching and my blogging. Wish me luck, faithful readers!

Lets start off the year with the psychological thriller, Gaslight.  I always find suspense, and psychological thrillers to be so much more frightening than gore and horror.  Because the things in a psychological thriller like Gaslight? could foreseeably happen. And we all know that reality is scarier than any fiction.

Gaslight tells the story of Paula, who's aunt was a famous opera singer.  The film starts after Paula's aunt is murdered, with Paula is trying to start over.  She meets and falls in love with Gregory.  They get married, and move back into the home where her aunt was murdered.  Suddenly things start to go missing.  Gregory is insisting that Paula herself is taking and losing the items, but she has no recollection of doing such things. Is it all in her mind? Or is something more sinister going on? (The answer is yes.  Something more sinister is ALWAYS going on….)

Beautiful, but crazy. Or crazy, but beautiful?

Ingrid Bergman is looking gorgeous, as usual.  I find that she always plays characters that terrible things happen to (or at least in the films I’ve seen).   She plays these tragic characters so well, though.   Bergman must have been doing something right, because she won the Oscar for Best Actress in a Leading Role (her first).

This film marks Angela Lansbury's film debut, as a maid. That would come full circle for her, when she became a tea pot….

Fun Facts: Gaslight was originally a play, and has a few film adaptations.  When this version came out, MGM apparently tried to destroy all the prints of the 1940 version.  Luckily, they were unsuccessful.  Gaslighting is now used as a term in clinical and research literature for psychology, the phenomenon coming from this story.

Favorite Quote:

Gregory Anton: I knew from the first moment I saw you that you were dangerous to me.

Brian Cameron: I knew from the first moment I saw you that you were dangerous to her.

Topper (1937)

#60 on Laughs

When a move opens with Cary Grant driving a car with his feet, (whilst singing) you know it is going to be good.

Seriously. With his feet. In a tux!

Cosmo Topper (Roland Young) is the president of a bank. George Kerby (Grant) is the largest shareholder in the bank.  The two could not lead more different lives.  Kerby and his wife are carefree, party goers.  Topper's life is micromanaged by his wife down to the second. Mrs. Topper is played by Billie Burke, who most of you know as Glinda from The Wizard of Oz.  

{I wonder if she always plays bossy people?  Topper don't run, Topper eat this for breakfast. Follow the Yellow Brick road. Figure out your problems for yourself, Dorothy. Nag nag nag.}

Topper takes a strange turn early in the film (no spoilers, so I'm not telling you what the turn is. If you really want to know, you can Google it).  The film is basically the story of how the Kerby's teach Topper to relax.

I feel like this is the definition of screwball comedy.  Because I see most of these wonderful films on TCM, Robert Osborne told me that this was Cary Grant’s first foray into screwball comedy. I'm so happy he continued in them after this, because he made some great ones. So if you are looking for a fun, slightly bizarre, film to watch, Topper is an excellent choice.


Cosmo Topper: My wife objects to drinking.
George Kerby: Then she shouldn't drink.
Cosmo Topper: She doesn't.
George Kerby: What's her objection?

~~~

O.M.G. A blog post!  I know it has been a while….a long while.  I apologize to the few readers I have if they are still around.  I got busy with work stuff, and to be honest I haven’t been watching movies from The List that often.  But now I am in the mad dash to meet my movie watching goal for the year, because I failed so spectacularly in the first 11 months of the year.   December is usually my annual “I need to watch films from the list because I was a slacker all year” time.  It is becoming sort of a tradition. 

Either way.  This (hopefully) means more blog posts, and more consistency here, at least for a little while.

Musical Numbers: Singin In the Rain

The musical numbers in Singin in the Rain have to the be the most joyous things ever caught on film. They also help to advance the plot, and help you relate to characters.  Some of them are frivolous, but most are important to the story line.  (Image heavy post. Sorry!)

The title number truly has me believing that Gene Kelly is in love, and can't contain his happiness. Plus the number shows off his incredible skill as a dancer. Just look at his face! He could have been flying down the street with that level of energy!

This man does not care that it is raining. Not one bit.

Kelly was supposedly very sick the day this number was filmed, which to me makes makes the joy he is able to portray even more impressive.

The first number that Debbie Reynolds performs in, All I Do is Dream of You, is so cute. You really do feel like you are at a Hollywood party, with girls from the floor show at the Copa performing, so they are good, but not perfect, and it really does make me like Debbie's character a little bit more. You fully realize she is just a girl doing what she can to make her dream of being an actress happen.

Make 'Em Laugh shows off the great physical comedy styling of Donald O'Connor. Not only could he sing and dance, but he could be funny as well. O'Connor performed an exhausting routine that to this day people still try to imitate. The routine was featured in an episode of Glee and Joseph Gordon Levitt performed the number as his opening monologue when he hosted Saturday Night Live.  While the attempts were impressive, they did not hold a candle to O'Connor's original number in this film.

Another number that featured O'Connor, with Kelly, was Moses Supposes.  A tongue twister of a song lyrically, and a fast paced tempo for dancing to it is probably my favorite number of the whole film. Plus its just a really fun number, full of energy and life

Look at the height they got! 

Good Morning is a number that is so well known it has been used in orange juice commercials recently. To watch Kelly, O'Connor and Reynolds dance this number is to wonder how they could accomplish this dance without passing out half way through. It is tiring to me just watching them, but all the more impressive that they could get through it, and stay in sync. After filming Debbie Reynolds had to be carried to her dressing room because she burst blood vessels in her feet.  And Gene Kelly apparently went and rerecorded the sound of her taps, because he didn't think they were strong enough. Stories like that really shows you how much goes into making a film.....and the lengths a perfectionist will go to to get precisely what he wants.

She is all leg

And finally we come to the Broadway Melody Ballet, which features the one and only Cyd Charisse. Fred Astaire called Charisse "beautiful dynamite" and I think that is an understatement. The entire time she is on the screen she draws my focus.  When she is the vamp in the green dress I completely forget about the rest of the movie. I forget that I'm watching a what is essentially a dream sequence. 

Look at how clean her lines are.  I'm so impressed

She was a favorite partner of both Astaire and Kelly, and its easy to see why. Girl was an amazing dancer. Also, the dance shows how athletic Gene Kelly was as a dancer.There are other dances that exemplify it better, but this one does a good job of showing his strength.  I'm leaving you with a clip from this number.

Singin' in the Rain (1952)

#10 on Original, #5 on Anniversary, #16 on Laughs, #1 on Musicals, #16 on Passions

Recently thanks to TCM and Fathom Events, I was able to see this film on the big screen.  There is something so amazing about seeing a movie you love, in a theater full of people who also love that film.  I always forget how funny this film is. I’ve seen it so many times, that I know all the punch lines…and the dialogue….and some of the movements the actors make. Whatever. Don’t judge me.

 But being in the movie theater setting, I really paid attention to the dialogue, and little things, like props and the looks on some of the actors faces. It was like direct injecting the funny back into watching it. I hope never to lose it again, because the film is so enjoyable.

Plot recap if you don’t know:  Set in the late 1920s, a new menace is coming to Hollywood: talking pictures.  Will the silent film stars Lockwood and Lamont be able to make the transition successfully? 

The casting in this film is right on. Gene Kelly has a great balance of arrogance at the start of the film, and he can play humble by the end just as well; Jean Hagan is great as the dumb blond starlet; Donald O'Connor pulls off funnyman sidekick, without venturing off into goofy unbelievability. And Debbie Reynolds has a perfect amount of wide eyed innocence, while still being clever when she needs to be.

I think the only bad thing about this film is the editing. There are some really obvious cuts where the scene does not line up, or it repeats from a close up.  And in the middle of a gorgeous dance number, that annoys me every time.  Other than that? It is just an all around great film. 

I think this musical made so many lists, but particularly #1 on the Musicals list, because it is so accessible throughout the entire thing (and awesome).   “An American in Paris” (which is #9 on the musicals list, and often I hear from people could be #1) is fantastic, but the ballet at the end, I find, can turn people off.  But Singin in the Rain is so much easier for anyone to enjoy and understand, even if you don’t usually like musicals and dance.  There are places where you feel more like you are watching a comedy, or a romance, not a musical. And then the musical numbers come, and Bam! You can’t help but be in awe of strength and grace of Gene Kelly, or the commanding presence when Cyd Charisse comes on the screen for one dance number.  Or the ball of energy that is Donald O’Connor. How could a viewer not smile and enjoy it? 

(I  could do a whole post on just the musical numbers alone. I think I will. So, enjoy the overview post!)

Favorite Quote

Lina Lamont: What do they think I am? Dumb or something? Why, I make more money than - than - than Calvin Coolidge! Put together!

[Also, I had a really hard time picking a favorite quote for this one, there are too many great lines!]

Gone with the Wind (1939)

#4 on Original, #6 on Anniversary, #43 on Cheers, #4 on 10 Top 10: Epics, #2 on Passions

Any of the movies in the “10 Top 10: Epic” category are going to be a commitment.  You are committing time, and emotions to watch one movie, one story, for hours. In the case of Gone with the Wind, it is a 4 hour long commitment. Sometimes the movies marked as Epics feel like they take days to experience.  Luckily, with GWTW the time flies. 

But watching Gone with the Wind always makes me so conflicted. I can view it so many ways.  I can get lost in the romance of it all (big sweeping house, Clark Gable taking Vivien Leigh into his arms, etc). Or I can get turned off by the way certain groups of people are portrayed, and what a brat Scarlett O'Hara can be.  And sometimes she is being a brat because she is doing what has to be done to save her families property, and sometimes she is just being a brat because she can. 

Clark Gable gets one of the prettiest entrance shots in any movie, ever.  Standing at the bottom of the grand staircase, camera zooming in to his handsome face. Just a classic movie moment. Hattie McDaniel ties the story together for me, with her portrayal of Mammy. Mammy is an almost constant presence in the film, except when Scarlett goes to Atlanta. Olivia de Havilland as Melanie was great at playing sweet, with out venturing into saccharine. The character of Melanie really was considered to be almost a saint by everyone, so it would have been easy to go overboard, and almost mock the character, but de Havilland was able to walk that line with out going over. 

It is interesting to see history interwoven into Scarlett's story. Make no mistake, this is not a film about the Civil War. It is a film about Scarlett O’Hara; the war just happened to coincide with her life. 

Overall, GWTW really is a story of survival. Life will always have ups and downs and hardships. But no matter what happens, you have to get up and keep on living, one day at a time. Or as Scarlett says "After all, tomorrow is another day."

Favorite Quote:

Scarlett: Sir, you are no gentleman.
Rhett Butler: And you, Miss, are no lady.  Don't think I hold that against you. Ladies have never held any appeal for me.