Tag: Romance

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Blogathon Favorite Classic Movies (Pre-1980) Favorite Performers

Marilyn Monroe 100th Birthday Blogathon–“Gentlemen Prefer Blondes” (1953)

Today (June 1, 2026), marks the 100th anniversary of Norma Jeane Mortensen’s birth. Norma Jeane, of course, would be christened “Marilyn Monroe” in 1946. For the sake of clarity, I will refer to her as “Marilyn” from here on out. To say that Marilyn’s childhood was tumultuous and difficult would be an understatement. In 1942, at the age of 16, Marilyn married James Doughtery. They would be married for 4 years, until divorcing in 1946. Marilyn signed an acting contract in June of 1946. Husband Doughtery was against her having a career, and her contract stated that she needed to be unmarried, because they couldn’t risk her becoming pregnant. Marilyn filed for divorce, stating that the marriage didn’t make her unhappy, but it didn’t make her happy either. She was bored.

A young Marilyn Monroe before she was “Marilyn Monroe”

While the divorce sucked for James Dougherty, it was great for us as the audience, because it paved the way for Marilyn to become “Marilyn Monroe.” After toiling away in bit parts for a few years, memorably in 1950’s All About Eve and The Asphalt Jungle, Marilyn finally landed her star-making role in my favorite of her films, Howard Hawks’ Gentlemen Prefer Blondes in 1953. This film would cement the iconic Marilyn Monroe look and persona–the platinum blonde hair, figure hugging costumes, breathy voice, and sex appeal up the wazoo. Gentlemen Prefer Blondes also features what is perhaps one of the most iconic Marilyn Monroe moments of all time, perhaps only second to the subway grate scene in The Seven Year Itch, the “Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friend” number featuring Marilyn in the bright pink strapless gown.

LORELAI: Don’t you know that a man being rich is like a girl being pretty? You wouldn’t marry a girl just because she’s pretty, but my goodness, doesn’t it help?

Marilyn Monroe in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes

In Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, Marilyn plays Lorelai Lee, a singer who travels from New York to Paris with her best friend, Dorothy Shaw (Jane Russell), via ocean liner. Lorelai and Dorothy are singers who are traveling to Paris for Lorelai’s upcoming wedding. She is engaged to the hilariously nerdy and wimpy, but wealthy, Gus Esmond Jr (Tommy Noonan). The senior Esmond, Gus’ father (Taylor Holmes), does not like or trust Lorelai (despite never having met her), as he thinks she’s a gold digger. Esmond Sr would be correct, as Lorelai is laser-focused on finding a wealthy husband who can keep her supplied in diamonds. Dorothy on the other hand, is more interested in finding someone she’s physically attracted to, regardless of his wealth.

Marilyn in the iconic “Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend” number. Future Oscar-winner, George Chakiris, is in the background on the right, mouth obscured.

Determined to prove that his dislike of Lorelai is warranted, Esmond Sr hires private detective, Ernie Malone (Elliott Reid), to spy on Lorelai and Dorothy and obtain evidence that Lorelai isn’t worthy of marrying his son. Esmond Jr asks Dorothy to keep an eye on Lorelai and keep her from doing anything that could break up their engagement. Also onboard the ocean liner are the wealthy Beakmans, “Piggy” (Charles Coburn) and his wife Lady Beakman (Norma Varden). Piggy owns a diamond mine and Lady Beakman has her diamond jewelry onboard, including a diamond tiara. Mr. Henry Spofford III and his valet are also onboard, leading to a hilarious scene where Lorelai discovers that he’s a child. Later Henry helps Marilyn out of a tight spot, literally, when she finds herself stuck inside a porthole window. Henry has a very funny voice for a child, it reminds me of Charlie Brown’s. Finally, the entire US Men’s Olympics Team is on the ship–which brings a lot of joy for Dorothy.

MR. ESMOND SR: Have you got the nerve to tell me you don’t want to marry my son for his money?

LORELAI: It’s true!

MR. ESMOND SR: Then what do you want to marry him for?

LORELAI: I want to marry him for your money!

Taylor Holmes and Marilyn Monroe in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes.

Lorelai and Dorothy try to pass the time onboard, with Ernie tagging along trying to keep watch of them. One very funny scene has Dorothy and Lorelai trying to recover a roll of incriminating film from Ernie. In another scene, Piggy and Lorelai reenact a scene he saw while traveling in Africa: a python wrapping itself around a goat’s neck and strangling it until it dies. Piggy was the python and Lorelai was the goat. My favorite part of the movie actually doesn’t involve Lorelai, but it involves Dorothy watching the US Men’s Olympic Team work out (the men dressed to give the illusion of nudity) while she sings “Ain’t There Anyone Here for Love?”

DOROTHY: (singing) …I like big muscles and red corpuscles…

Jane Russell singing “Ain’t There Anyone Here for Love?” in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes

Jane Russell checking out the scenery in the ship’s gymnasium during the greatest musical number of all time, “Ain’t There Anyone Here for Love?”

Marilyn Monroe’s iconic “Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend” number comes towards the end of the film after Lorelai and Dorothy have arrived in Paris. By now, Ernie’s report on Lorelai and Dorothy’s onboard shenanigans has made it back to Esmond Sr, who has canceled Lorelai and Dorothy’s line of credit that his son had promised them. Having spent all of their cash on clothes and other trinkets, Lorelai and Dorothy are broke. They are forced to find work at a local revue.

DOROTHY: Now let’s get this straight, Gus. The chaperone’s job is to see that nobody else has any fun. Nobody chaperones the chaperone. That’s why I’m so right for this job.

Jane Russell in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes

Lorelai goes on stage in her bright pink, strapless gown to sing about not wanting rhinestones, only diamonds. This is a very striking musical number. It was a bold choice to juxtapose Marilyn’s bright pink dress against a bright red background–two colors that traditionally clash. The male background dancers, including a young George Chakiris, are made up to look like dignified ambassadors (with greying temples). The women in the number’s faces are covered with a black mesh, as they appear as part of the chandelier, as well as in pink dresses in a lighter tone than Marilyn’s.

Jane Russell imitates Marilyn Monroe

Marilyn’s performance in “Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend” is firmly cemented in pop culture, not just American, but dare I say, internationally. There are countless homages and imitations of Marilyn’s performance. In 1985, Madonna famously imitated Marilyn in her music video for “Material Girl.” At the 2024 Oscars, Ryan Gosling performed “I’m Just Ken” from my favorite 2023 film, Barbie. In 2001’s Moulin Rouge! Nicole Kidman’s Satine would memorably hang from a trapeze bar while crooning “Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend.” Kidman is good, but she’s no Marilyn Monroe. Actually, I think I’d rather have heard her Moulin Rouge! co-star, Ewan McGregor, belt out the song. He would have killed it.

DOROTHY: Honey, did it ever occur to you that some people just don’t care about money?

LORELAI: Please, we’re talking serious here.

Jane Russell and Marilyn Monroe in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes

Marilyn regrets being “the goat” to Charles Coburn’s python

William Travilla’s costumes in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes are fantastic. Aside from Marilyn’s hot pink dress, there are a lot of other great outfits. I love Jane Russell’s outfit she wears in my favorite number “Ain’t There Anyone Here for Love?” She wears a very chic black jumpsuit with a black buffalo plaid coat with yellow lapels, and some fantastic turquoise earrings. The opening musical number outfits, the matching red sequined gowns with the deep V-neck that Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell wear are amazing. The fit is perfection. My husband and I saw these dresses at the Academy Museum a few years ago, and they were just as fantastic in person as they are in the film. I also loved the outfit Marilyn wears when she and Piggy are reenacting the python and goat bit. She dons a long sleeved teal top with a deep V-neck portrait neckline with sapphire blue slacks and a purple sash around the waist. Gentlemen Prefer Blondes is truly a feast for the eyes.

Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell in the fantastic opening number, “Two Little Girls From Little Rock.”

I love Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. I have seen it many many times. I’ve seen it in the theater. I never tire of it. It’s such a fun movie. Marilyn and Jane are both fantastic. The songs are fantastic. The performances are fantastic. The costumes are fantastic. Everything is perfection.

Marilyn Monroe finds herself stuck in a porthole as George Winslow attempts to help. I Love Lucy would recreate this scene (sub Ricky and Ethel for George) in an episode of “I Love Lucy.”

HENRY SPOFFORD III: Alright I’ll help you. I’ll help you for two reasons.

LORELAI: Never mind the reasons. Just help me.

HENRY SPOFFORD III: The first reason is I’m too young to be sent to jail. The second reason is you’ve got a lot of animal magnetism.

George Winslow and Marilyn Monroe in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes

Gentlemen Prefer Blondes is the ultimate buddy comedy and perhaps romance (without the “romance”). Lorelai and Dorothy are so devoted to one another, with Dorothy even impersonating Lorelai at one point to get her out of a spot. I’ve read some other interpretations of the ending of this film, featuring the dual wedding of Lorelai and Dorothy, that the two women are actually marrying each other; but had to have the men in the scene due to the production code. While I don’t think there’s any romantic interest between Lorelai and Dorothy, these two women have a bond and a friendship. I also love that the ending features a chorus singing the “Diamond’s Are a Girl’s Best Friend” song. It reminds me of the ending of a Disney princess movie, just like the wedding ending. I’d like to think that Dorothy and Lorelai live happily ever after–regardless of how their respective marriages turn out.

Jane Russell and Marilyn Monroe in the final scene

Along with Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, Marilyn would also make How to Marry a Millionaire and Niagara in 1953. If she had only made one of those films, she would have been an instant star; but she made all three. Aside from these films, Marilyn would also make an iconic appearance in The Seven Year Itch, a film that I don’t particularly enjoy, but there’s no doubt that Marilyn is fantastic in it and in my opinion, the only reason to watch it. Marilyn standing over the subway grate as her iconic pleated white halter dress flies up around her cemented her legacy as a Hollywood legend (much to husband Joe DiMaggio’s chagrin, but whatever). She would also appear in other films like Some Like it Hot and The Prince and the Showgirl.

DOROTHY: He looks like he’s going to explode.

ERNIE MALONE: What was that?

LORELAI: Just equal parts of Scotch, Vodka, Brandy, and Gin!

Jane Russell, Elliott Reid, and Marilyn Monroe in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes

By 1961, Marilyn had tired of her sexpot image and wanted to do drama. Sadly, her last completed film, The Misfits, proved that Marilyn could have asserted herself as a good dramatic actress. She was not just a lightweight blonde bombshell. She was an actress. Unfortunately, her life was cut short, perhaps mysteriously, perhaps not, but I don’t want to speculate here. Had she been able to go on, I think Marilyn would have shocked everyone as the 1960s wore on, and she’d aged out of her “Marilyn Monroe” image, and turned into a gritty, dramatic actress. However, because she wasn’t given the opportunity, and passed away at the age of 36 in 1962, Marilyn Monroe will forever be remembered as the ultimate blond bombshell. People still try to emulate her, but they’ll never be her–there’s only one Marilyn Monroe.

Lucy Ricardo does her best Marilyn Monroe impression to prove she looks more like her than Ethel does. Fred Mertz thinks he looks more like Marilyn than either Lucy or Ethel!

MARILYN MONROE: I’ve never liked the name ‘Marilyn.’ I’ve often wished that I held out that day for ‘Jean Monroe.’ But I guess it’s too late to do anything about it now.

Happy 100th Birthday, Marilyn!

Categories
Blogathon Favorite Classic Movies (Pre-1980)

Spring CMBA Blogathon– “Make ‘Em Laugh,” The More the Merrier (1943)

I’m not a big fan of war movies, however, what I do love are movies set against the backdrop of war, where a different story unfolds, something that isn’t just one battle scene after another. While there are films set during pretty much every war (some major, some minor), perhaps no other war inspired as many war films as World War II (1939-1945). While there were many films that focused on the individual WWII military campaigns, battles, prominent figures, etc. there were just as many films focused on the homefront in the United States after December 8, 1941, the day that the United States officially entered the war–the day after the attack on Pearl Harbor. It is these homefront films that I find more compelling and interesting than the films that just depict the military.

World War II was an era of great patriotism in the United States, citizens were encouraged to do their part to support the war effort. Hollywood stars used their celebrity to sell war bonds which helped to finance the United States’ military efforts. Star Carole Lombard was one of the war’s first American casualities when she died in January 1942 in a Nevada plane crash on her way home to Los Angeles from selling war bonds in her home state of Indiana. Other stars like Bette Davis and John Garfield formed the Hollywood Canteen to provide food, drinks and entertainment to the troops.

Ordinary citizens were issued ration stamps for both food and fuel to manage shortages of essential goods and supplies. Victory gardens were grown by countless families across the country as a way to reduce the strain on public food supplies. Women drew lines on the backs of their legs to simulate the seams of their stockings, because all nylon production was devoted to manufacturing parachutes and other war-related objects. Another way that citizens were asked to help the war effort was by offering up extra rooms in their homes to help alleviate the housing shortage. After the United States’ entry into World War II following the attack on Pearl Harbor, the government halted all non-essential construction projects, citing that all building materials were needed for the military effort. The subsequent housing shortage is the subject covered in one of my favorite comedies, Director George Stevens’ The More the Merrier, from 1943.

Jean Arthur keeps Charles Coburn on schedule.

In The More the Merrier, Jean Arthur plays Constance “Connie” Milligan who lives in a 2-bedroom apartment in Washington DC. To do her part for the war effort, she sublets out half of her apartment for $12/week ($229 in 2026) and puts out an ad. Retired millionaire Benjamin Dingle (Charles Coburn), who has arrived in DC two days early to discuss plans with a government bureaucrat to alleviate the housing shortage, answers Connie’s ad. Mr. Dingle lives by the mantra, “Damn the torpedos! Full speed ahead!” where he’s just going to go for “it” regardless of the potential consequences. It’s a great mantra, because frankly, sometimes you just have to take a risk (provided what you want to do isn’t illegal or harmful). Connie is reluctant to sublet half her apartment to a man, but relents after Mr. Dingle tells her a fictitious scenario where she rents her apartment to a dumpy looking roommate who is always dirty and insists on borrowing all her things. The next day, Mr. Dingle meets Sergeant Joe Carter (Joel McCrea) who needs somewhere to stay for a week while he waits to be shipped overseas. To help out Joe, Mr. Dingle sublets him half of his half for $6 ($114/week). Connie is not pleased.

MR. DINGLE: Well, any woman, no matter who, would insist upon borrowing that dress you got on right now. Because it’s so pretty.
CONNIE: I made it myself.
MR. DINGLE: And how would you like it if she spilled a cocktail all over it…at a party you couldn’t go with her to because she borrowed it to go to it in.
CONNIE: She might have something I could wear.
MR. DINGLE: Not her.
CONNIE: Why not?
MR. DINGLE: Because she’s so dumpy looking. Never has anything clean. That’s why she’s always borrowing your dresses.

Charles Coburn and Jean Arthur in The More the Merrier.

JOE: What do you do?
MR. DINGLE: I’m a well-to-do retired millionaire. How about you?
JOE: Same.

Joel McCrea and Charles Coburn in The More the Merrier.

MR. DINGLE: What’s your name?
JOE: Carter.
MR. DINGLE: Bill Carter?
JOE: Joe Carter.
MR. DINGLE: I used to know a party named Bill Carter.
JOE: Wasn’t me.
MR. DINGLE: Don’t you suppose I know that?
JOE: What’d you ask for then?
MR. DINGLE: Get you to know I know what Bill Carter looked like.
JOE: Not like me.
MR. DINGLE: Then you know Bill Carter?
JOE: No I don’t. But he sounds like a great guy.

Charles Coburn and Joel McCrea in The More the Merrier.

MR. DINGLE: Oh. Maybe you think it is none of my business.
JOE: Maybe I do.
MR. DINGLE: Probably your name isn’t even Bill Carter.
JOE: Probably not. It’s probably Joe Carter.

Charles Coburn and Joel McCrea in The More the Merrier.

Charles Coburn struggles to keep up with Jean Arthur’s extremely tight morning routine

The entire scene where Connie gives Mr. Dingle the lowdown on her schedule is hysterical and one of my favorite parts. First of all, Mr. Dingle is retired, why does he need to follow her schedule? Connie should just do her thing and leave him to do his. Second, Connie is an extremely efficient and organized woman. Here is the schedule that she gives to Mr. Dingle:

7:00am Connie’s alarm goes off, she and Mr. Dingle get up.
7:01am Connie goes into the bathroom. Mr. Dingle goes out to the hall to get the milk.
7:05am Mr. Dingle starts the coffee.
7:06am Connie leaves the bathroom.
7:07am Mr. Dingle enters the bathroom.
7:08am Connie starts to get dressed for the day.
7:11am Connie drinks her coffee.
7:12am Mr. Dingle leaves the bathroom.
7:13am Connie puts her eggs on the stove and finishes dressing while the eggs cook. Mr. Dingle puts on his shoes.
7:16am Connie takes her eggs off the stove.
7:17am Mr. Dingle starts shaving.
7:18am Connie eats her eggs.
7:21am Connie is in the bathroom fixing her hair.
7:24am Mr. Dingle is in the kitchen putting his eggs on the stove.
7:25am Mr. Dingle makes his bed.
7:26am Connie makes her bed.
7:27am Mr. Dingle eats his eggs, while Connie takes out the papers and cans.
7:29am Mr. Dingle washes the dishes.
7:30am Connie and Mr. Dingle are all finished, ready for the day.
7:32am Connie’s carpool comes to take her to work.

Jean Arthur meets Joel McCrea as matchmaker Charles Coburn looks on.

This woman does not leave herself much wiggle room in her schedule. 32 mins total from wake-up to carpool and in between she gets ready for work, has time to put on some sort of bed jacket while she eats her eggs, then puts on her actual work clothes, puts out her trash, and does the dishes! Mr. Dingle cannot keep up and has a hilarious scene where he accidentally brings the coffee into the shower with him.

Mr. Dingle quickly realizes that Connie and Joe are very compatible and should be together. The only person who stands in their way is Connie’s fiance of 22 months, Charles J. Pendergast (Richard Gaines), a 42-year old businessman who wears a terrible toupee and makes $8600/year ($164k in 2026), not too shabby. One of my favorite quotes in this movie comes in the scene where Joe and Mr. Dingle razz Connie about her relationship with Pendergast.

CONNIE: You look messy. Don’t you ever brush your hair?
JOE: I s’pose Mr. Pendergast combs his hair every hour, on the hour.
CONNIE: Mr. Pendergast has NO hair!

Jean Arthur and Joel McCrea in The More the Merrier.

Joel McCrea and Jean Arthur’s sexy scene on the stoop

Eventually, we know that the relationship between Connie and Mr. Pendergast is going to fizzle out. It has to! He is NO hunky Joel McCrea. We especially know that Connie and Joe will end up together after they share a very romantic scene on the front stoop of the apartment building. The scene between Jean Arthur and Joel McCrea on the stoop is one of the sexiest scenes in Classic Hollywood. Apparently, Arthur’s stage fright made her extremely nervous and anxious and she was having trouble with the scene. McCrea decided to ad-lib and distract her by nuzzling and touching her hands, shoulders and arms. Arthur’s nervousness is present, but it comes across as her character obviously becoming somewhat aroused by Joe’s actions, versus an actress nervous about shooting a scene.

CONNIE: What happened? Nothing. I’m not the kind of person anything happens to.

Jean Arthur in The More the Merrier.

There is also a scene with Morton (Stanley Clements) who may be the most annoying character ever committed to film. I hate this character. He’s too old to join the Scouts so who cares whether he’s the camp craft-type or not? I don’t want to talk about him any more because I hate him so much. However, his character does serve as the plot device that brings about the third act of the film–where Mr. Dingle is able to finish his scheme to bring Joe and Connie together.

Boo! The “L” must be for “loser.”

Charles Coburn won the Best Supporting Actor Oscar, which I think his deserved, because he’s hilarious in this movie. Except when I see he beat Claude Rains for Casablanca, it’s hard to accept whether Coburn deserved the award instead of Rains. If only there’d been a tie. Coburn gets to do a lot of physical comedy in this film, one of my favorite bits being his reoccuring schtick with his suspendered-pants repeatedly getting caught on something and flying out the window.

Jean Arthur and Joel McCrea make for a great pairing. They appeared together in two other films aside from The More the Merrier, The Silver Horde (1930), and Adventure in Manhattan (1936). They have amazing chemistry together and McCrea was one of the few actors that could relax the notoriously anxious Arthur and calm her nerves. Arthur also has fun chemistry (thankfully not romantic) with Coburn, having memorably appeared with him earlier in 1941’s The Devil and Miss Jones. It also helps that Arthur and McCrea are very attractive people and make for an even more attractive couple.

Joel McCrea is fawned over by a bunch of women, including Ann Savage on his left.

There is a very funny scene where Connie and Joe dance together at a nightclub. They were just introduced by Mr. Pendergast after he is introduced to Joe courtesy of Mr. Dingle. Mr. Pendergast just happens to be the bureaucrat with whom Mr Dingle was planning to meet to discuss the housing shortage. After their dance, a group of Connie’s acquaintances (including an uncredited Ann Savage!) show up and fawn over Joe, and Connie is only too happy to show that he’s with her. I guarantee that they don’t fawn over Mr. Pendergast.

I would highly recommend this film as it features everything that I want in a film. It’s hilarious, it’s romantic, and it captures a unique moment in United States history. Why doesn’t this movie have a Blu Ray?! The More the Merrier also has great dialogue with Joel McCrea getting in a lot of funny sarcastic lines. The only blights on this film are McCrea’s comment about “being a Jap” to scare Morton away, and every single scene involving Morton. I loathe him.

Damn the torpedos! Full speed ahead!

Categories
Blogathon Favorite Classic Movies (Pre-1980)

The 7th Golden Boy Blogathon, A William Holden Celebration: The Moon is Blue (1953)

I do love “Picnic” and who doesn’t want some beefcake on their page?

Director Otto Preminger’s The Moon is Blue (1953) is memorable for being featured in a 1982 episode of M*A*S*H, “The Moon is Not Blue.” M*A*S*H took place during the Korean War (1950-1953) and during this particular episode, Hawkeye and BJ try to obtain a copy of the newly released film, The Moon is Blue, having heard about its scandalous content. Upon finally viewing the film, the two men are dismayed about how innocent and non-salacious it was. One of the other characters states that a character did say “virgin,” and Hawkeye replies with “that’s because everyone was!”

This movie has a great poster!

The Moon is Blue, debuted on my birthday June 22, 1953, albeit 31 years before I was born. It was memorable for being the first film to be released into theaters nationwide, without PCA (Production Code Administration) approval. This was a landmark decision by United Artists (who distributed The Moon is Blue) and was the beginning of the end for the production code. The Man with the Golden Arm (1955) starring Frank Sinatra and Kim Novak would follow suit a couple years later and also be released without PCA approval. The modern ratings system would come into play in 1968 and put an end to the production code once and for all.

Now why was The Moon is Blue so controversial? This film, based on the 1951 play of the same name, depicted the modern and progressive attitudes about sex exhibited by 22-year old Patty O’Neill (Maggie McNamara in her film debut). The Moon is Blue starts with a kicky (and corny) theme song and opening credits and then segues into a scene taking place inside the Empire State Building. We spot Patty, then we spot architect Don Gresham (William Holden) spotting Patty too. Immediately smitten, Don follows Patty up to the fabeled observation deck at the top of the Empire State Building.

William Holden, Maggie McNamara, David Niven

It’s immediately obvious to the audience that Don is putting on the charm and trying to pick up Patty and she allows him to try and pick her up. She’s not oblivious. He tells her that he paid for her ticket, he gets her to try and sew a button on his jacket, he gives her a dime for the telescope so she can get a closer look at New York… Don does everything. Eventually, he lowers the boom and invites Patty over to his apartment for dinner and drinks. This seems wildly dangerous to meet a stranger at his home, but it’s 1953, and Patty takes him up on it.

William Holden is knocked out by Maggie McNamara’s overprotective father, Tom Tully.

Throughout their conversation, Patty shares that she’s a virgin, but not because she’s pious or self-righteous or anything. She just hasn’t made the choice to have sex yet. Patty asks Don point blank if he’s trying to seduce her, to which he’s taken aback. However, it’s obvious that that was his intent. Patty’s frank talk about sex intrigues Don. When she discovers a photo of Cynthia (Dawn Addams), Don’s ex-fiancee, Patty asks him if Cynthia is his mistress. In 1953, a mistress was a sexual partner, not “the other woman.” Again, Don is somewhat shocked by Patty’s frankness and apparent lack of decorum when it comes to asking personal questions. Despite this however, Don finds Patty charming and interesting, and continues trying to seduce her.

Adding to the tension in the film is Don’s neighbor, David Slater (David Niven), who also happens to be Cynthia’s father. I do have to say that Niven’s casting is odd. In the film, he states that he’s 41, but Cynthia is stated to be older than Patty, who is 22. This means that David I guess was a teen father. This is the only weakness in the film, imo, I think Niven’s character should have been made older, or perhaps Cynthia maybe should have been another neighbor in the building. But I digress. David is presented as a bit of a playboy, who is always on the prowl. David discovers Patty’s attitudes re: sex and also makes it a mission to try and seduce her.

Cynthia, Don’s ex-fiancee, just can’t accept that the relationship is over.

Don eventually becomes frustrated with Patty. He more or less finds her a tease, and that she seems to have made her virginity her entire personality—it’s all she talks about. Patty tells Don that she won’t lose her virginity without marriage. She tells Don that men find virgins boring and prefer a life without monogamy. Patty expends a lot of effort informing Don that women are also sexual beings, to the point that Don asks her why she’s preoccupied with sex. Patty responds with a glib, “Don’t you think it’s better for a girl to be preoccupied with sex, than occupied?” Finally, Don has had enough and accuses Patty of being a “professional virgin.” This criticism is on the nose, maybe too on the nose, and Patty is offended. Don rubs salt in the wound by stating that someone who talks about their experience all the time probably doesn’t have any. This scene reminded me of Where the Boys Are (1960) where Merritt spends much of the film expelling various progressive philosophies about sex, only for us to discover that she’s all talk.

David Niven’s character, David, is an odd one. He’s not a particularly good character. He’s always trying to get Patty to “sin” by drinking or smoking–behaviors that she likens to high school, saying that it’s immature to do these things without having a craving. David is also always trying to seduce Patty, in fact, he proposes marriage to her within hours of meeting. Obviously, this was his desperate attempt to bed her by appealing to her virgin status. He is a lech throughout the film, and tells this horrible story about his ex-wife and hitting her with a hot muffin pan. However, he’s weirdly entertaining as well.

William Holden puts the moves on Maggie McNamara.

William Holden plays his usual type, however, he is very good and it’s easy to see why Patty would be so smitten. His character, Don, is handsome, has a good job, a nice apartment, and is charming. Don would obviously be a much better partner than David, since he’d probably be loyal. David would drop Patty the second someone else came along. Don also finds Patty’s attitudes about sex somewhat funny, even if he’s somewhat taken aback and shocked by them. There is also a funny scene where Don is watching TV and sees the “sophisticated actress” Patty, appearing in a “Chloro-foam Beer” commercial. Terrible beer title. “Chloro-foam, more like Boro-foam!” (to paraphrase Billy Madison).

Patty McNamara was United Artists’ attempt at finding their own Audrey Hepburn. McNamara had the pixie, gamine type quality of Hepburn, but she lacks the European sophistication, stature, and glamour of Hepburn. McNamara’s Patty was very young and sweet, but also naive despite her progressive views on sex. Patty reminded me very much of Debbie Reynolds’ character, Julie, in The Tender Trap (1955). In the film, Julie is also old-fashioned (or seems old-fashioned) and informs Frank Sinatra, David Wayne, and Celeste Holm, of her exact plan for her life–marriage, 3 children, life in the country, kids attending school in Scarsdale, NY. Both Patty and Julie seem to believe they’re mature when it comes to sex and marriage; but when conversing with older adults who have lived more life than they have, it’s obvious how immature they are.

David Niven and Maggie McNamara

The Moon is Blue is tame by today’s standards, even tame by 1982 standards when Hawkeye and BJ watched it in M*A*S*H. But it caused quite the scandal in 1953. Nice society just didn’t talk about seduction, mistresses, or virginity. Even in 1952, I Love Lucy was not allowed to say the word “pregnant,” despite Lucy Ricardo (and Lucille Ball!) being a married, pregnant, woman. Instead, she was ‘spectin. However, The Moon is Blue is an interesting time capsule of the early-to-mid 1950s and shows just how much the world was changing after World War II. Stars like Marilyn Monroe, Jayne Mansfield, and Elvis Presley burst onto the scene in the 1950s and all of them shocked the country with their blatant shows of sexuality and sensuality–things that wouldn’t have been on the screen even just ten years prior. While The Moon is Blue is not a household name in the movie world, it is an important film as it was the first film to challenge the puritanical production code, and weaken its interference in filmmaking.

Categories
Favorite Classic Movies (Pre-1980) Favorite Modern Movies (post-1980)

Rain in the Movies

Satsuke and sister Mei take shelter from the rain at a bus stop with Totoro keeping watch in My Neighbor Totoro (1988).

As a native of the Pacific Northwest, Oregon specifically, I have seen my share of rain. In fact, NW Oregon (where I’ve lived my entire life) is in the middle of yet another “atmospheric river” event. Basically, we’re getting rain and a lot of it–at least 3″ between yesterday through tomorrow. Personally, I like the rain. It’s relaxing and makes the outside smell nice. Plus, it makes for excellent movie watching weather. As long as the rain stays out of my basement, I am good.

During the last major rain event, just a couple weeks ago, I watched a bunch of excellent rainy film noir and Clue because I love it and it has rain. That rain marathon and this week’s downpour inspired me to write a post about rain in the movies as well as allows me to highlight some of my favorite movies. Right now, I haven’t returned to watching any rainy films, because I’ve been obsessed with playing Pokopia on Switch 2.

Movies have been using rain since almost the beginning to put forth a certain emotion, add suspense, express a metaphor, or even just to add some atmosphere. A rainstorm is often used as a reason for characters to be forced to stay confined in one space, such as in Key Largo (1948). Rain can be used as a setting for romance, such as the famous kiss in the rain between Audrey Hepburn and George Peppard in Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1961). To add atmosphere, rain will often be included such as in Clue (1985), where the characters are summoned to Mr. Boddy’s mansion during a dark, rainy night, and end up caught up in a murder mystery. In this blog entry, I want to focus on some of my favorite rain scenes in films.

Rain is often used to lend suspense to a scene, and where else would you want a lot of suspense and drama? A scene in which someone is driving. Driving in the rain can already be fairly treacherous. Add in a driver who is nervous, angry, distraught, or any other distracting emotion and it’s almost always a recipe for danger, or at least great melodrama.

BEST DRIVING IN RAIN SCENES

Lana Turner has a meltdown in “The Bad and the Beautiful.”
  1. The Bad and the Beautiful (1952). Lana Turner’s Georgia is distraught after discovering that her boyfriend and producer, Jonathan Shields (Kirk Douglas) has been cheating on her with a starlet. She expresses her indignation over his betrayal and he more or less tells her that he can do whatever he wants. He doesn’t owe her any loyalty, because he gave her stardom. Distraught, Georgia gets into her car and takes off on a high-speed race home, through a pouring rainstorm. Anyone who thinks Lana couldn’t act should watch her performance in this scene. She enters the car sobbing, but soon collapses into pure hysteria as the reality of Jonathan’s betrayal and callousness sets in. Juxtaposed against the frenzy of rain and flashes of lights, Georgia’s emotional collapse reaches its apex when she screams and slams on the brakes.
  2. Dead Reckoning (1947). Humphrey Bogart’s character, Rip Murdock, is investigating the death of his friend, Johnny. During his investigation, he falls in love with Coral Chandler (Lizabeth Scott). Unfortunately, he learns that Coral isn’t all she seems and was involved in his friend’s death. Coral and Rip end up in a car together after she accidentally shoots her accomplice instead of him. While Rip drives through heavy rain, he and Coral argue over her intending to kill him. She then pulls out a gun and he hits the gas pedal to floor it. Anyone who has watched a lot of old movies knows that whenever it’s raining and someone is driving recklessly, something bad is going to happen. In this film, Rip ends up crashing head-on into a tree, mortally injuring Coral.
  3. Psycho (1960). This is a classic and for good reason. In this film, Janet Leigh’s Marion Crane leaves Phoenix and heads to California with $40,000 in stolen money in hand. She wants to marry her boyfriend, Sam (John Gavin), but he refuses to do so due to lack of funds. When Marion’s employer asks her to deliver a $40,000 deposit to the bank, the temptation is too strong to resist. This money would solve all of her and Sam’s financial woes. While she originally plans to drive through the night, a rainstorm forces her to seek refuge at the Bates Motel, operated by the young and nervous Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins). Unfortunately for Marion, this is the end of the line.

Rain can also be used to add romance to the scene, because what is more romantic than a classic kiss in the rain type scene. Rain also seems to bring people together–often because they’re forced to seek shelter and each other for warmth.

FAVORITE ROMANTIC RAIN SCENES

Lucy and Desi kiss and make-up in “The Long Long Trailer.”
  1. The Long, Long Trailer (1954). My favorite film of all time features a romantic, albeit cliched (now) romantic kiss in the rain. Tacy (Lucille Ball) and Nicky (Desi Arnaz) spend the entirety of the film more or less on the honeymoon road trip from hell, with one catastrophe after another. The tension and frustration reaches its end when Nicky discovers that Tacy has not only lied to him, but has also put their lives at risk. The couple needs to drive over a high elevation (8000 feet) peak in Colorado. Because of the steep incline and possibility that extra weight could pull the trailer down (and possibly off) the mountain, Nicky tells Tacy that she needs to get rid of all the extra weight she’s added to the trailer in the form of rocks and preserves. Tacy’s idea was that they could collect large rocks from different places they visit and use them to decorate their patio when they reach their new home in Colorado. As a cost-saving measure (to justify the purchase of the trailer), Tacy stars canning fruits and vegetables.

    Instead of removing the material from the trailer, she instead distributes it evenly around the trailer, thinking it would solve the weight issue. It does not. Everything comes out. Nicky discovers it. The couple fight and separate. In the pouring down rain, Nicky finally tracks down Tacy (and the trailer) at a trailer park where she’s in the middle of planning to sell the trailer. He opens the trailer door, finds Tacy, but can’t bring himself to apologize. Nicky drives away and suddenly Tacy realizes that she doesn’t want him to leave. She runs out into the rain, in front of Nicky’s car. He stops and gets out. Nicky and Tacy embrace, having made up and reconciled. They run up the steps into their home (the trailer) and kiss.
  2. Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1961). While a lot can be said about this film, ::cough:: Mickey Rooney ::cough:: there are some fun parts as well. The ending of ‘Tiffany’s’ is much like the end of The Long, Long Trailer, with Audrey Hepburn’s Holly Golightly and George Peppard’s Paul (or “Fred Baby” as I like to call him) reconciling and kissing in the rain drenched streets of New York City. However, this scene has extra poignancy beyond the classic kiss in the rain. In a previous scene, Holly very cruelly abandons “Cat” her pet, out in the rain, saying that nobody belongs to anyone–even animals. Her whole mantra throughout the film is that she’s a free spirit, she doesn’t belong to (or with anyone). Paul is the only person her circle to actually care about her and want to help her. Everyone else in her orbit is someone she makes money off of (via trips to the powder room), or someone who takes advantage of her naivete (e.g., Sally Tomato providing her with the “weather report” to pass on to one of his associates).

    However, Holly is no better in that she only associates herself with people she believes can do something for her. She’s a phony, her agent says. Paul bitterly tells Holly off by stating that in her efforts to prevent herself from being put into a “cage” she’s put herself into one, because she’s unwilling to share herself or part of her life with anyone. He then gets out of the car, throws the ring (that they’d had engraved at Tiffany’s during their fun day in New York City together) at her. The ring is a symbol of a time where Holly was probably being closer to her true self and not putting on airs. Holly grabs the ring, places it over the ever important (and symbolic) left ring finger and realizes that she (and Cat) belong with Paul. Their kiss in the rain (plus keeping Cat warm) symbolizes their new life together. Holly found where she belongs.
  3. Top Hat (1935) Another one of the Fred Astaire-Ginger Rogers films that features Astaire as a character who initially annoys Rogers’ character until a dance brings them together. In this film, Astaire’s Jerry Travers, a tap dance star, arrives in London to appear in a show for producer Horace Hardwick (Edward Everett Horton). Late at night, he decides to practice his number (on hard floors!) and wakes up and annoys Dale Tremont (Rogers). She comes up to his room to complain and he is smitten. She is less so. Then there’s a case of mistaken identity, with Dale thinking that Jerry is Horace, the husband of her friend Madge (Helen Broderick).

    Jerry pursues Dale throughout the film and she continues to be repulsed by him because she thinks her friend’s husband is coming onto her. A rainstorm at the park forces Jerry and Dale to seek refuge under a gazebo, where they dance to “It’s a Lovely Day (to be Caught in the Rain).” As with many of their films, Rogers’ annoyed attitude towards Astaire lessens, as they start to fall in love through song and dance.

Finally, rain can also be utilized to add a certain atmosphere to a film, or to evoke a specific feeling.

FAVORITE ATMOSPHERIC RAIN SCENES

Gene Kelly in what is probably the most famous rain scene of all time in Singin’ in the Rain.
  1. Singin’ in the Rain (1952). This film contains the most iconic rain scene of all and I would be remiss to not mention it. Gene Kelly’s classic dance in the rain to the title song, is perhaps the greatest dance number ever captured and the most joyous. I dare anyone to watch this scene and not feel better at the end. What is happier than a dance in the rain, splashing in puddles, without a single care in the world? The “Singin’ in the Rain” number happens after Kelly’s character, silent screen star Don Lockwood, returns from a disastrous screening of his first “talkie,” The Dueling Cavalier. It co-stars his on-screen partner, the incredibly untalented Lina Lamont (Jean Hagen), who is oblivious to the movie’s awfulness and delivers one of my favorite lines, “I liked it!” Don figures that his career is over until friend Cosmo Brown (Donald O’Connor) and new love, Kathy Selden (Debbie Reynolds) convince him to re-tool the film to be the musical, The Dancing Cavalier, with Kathy providing behind the scenes support to cover up Lina’s inadequacies. Overcome with joy and his new lease on life, Don happily sings, dances and splashes his way down the Hollywood streets, until he’s stopped by a befuddled cop. What a buzzkill.
  2. Clue (1985). This film opens with the six main characters arriving at the mansion of Mr. Boddy, in their color-coded vehicles. The house is tall and ominous, as is the torrential downpour. Inside the mansion, both Mr. Boddy and the chef are killed, leaving the six guests, plus butler Wadsworth (Tim Curry) and maid Yvette (Colleen Camp), to wonder who was responsible. The rain forces other unsuspecting visitors to enter the mansion, like a motorist breaking down in the rain and wanting to use the phone, and a cop investigating the motorist’s abandoned car. It rains the entire time throughout the film, lending a sort of spookiness to the classic mystery of “Who Killed Mr. Boddy?”
  3. Thunder on the Hill (1951). This film takes place almost entirely at a convent. Sister Mary Bonaventure (Claudette Colbert) is in charge of the hospital ward of the convent. A horrific rainstorm closes nearby roads, keeping everyone inside and others out. A woman, Valerie Carns (Ann Blyth), is brought to the convent to wait out the storm due to the closed roads. She is supposed to be delivered to the prison to await her execution for the murder of her brother. However, the washed out road delays the inevitable and she is forced to stay at the convent. As one can imagine, Valerie is not particularly amiable or even polite. Sister Mary does her best to be gracious and empathetic to Valerie, eventually softening her up a little. Through talking to Valerie, Sister Mary realizes that she may be innocent and decides to investigate Valerie’s brother’s death before the rain lets up and the roads re-open.

    In this film, the rain adds a harshness and uneasiness to the events in the film. As soon as the rain lets up and the road is passable, Ann Blyth’s character is headed to Death Row for a crime that she may not have committed. Other refugees are unhappy with her presence. The head doctor’s wife, Isabel, is a patient at the hospital and is unhappy with Sister Mary. Lending to the tension is that this same doctor also testified against Valerie in the case against her brother–more or less sealing her conviction. The Mother Superior (Gladys Cooper) is upset that Sister Mary refuses to follow her orders that she not intervene between Valerie and the police. Sister Mary is also holding onto her own baggage–the recent suicide of her sister. The relentless rain, the only thing keeping these people cooped up at the convent, increases the tension and drama.

HONORABLE RAIN SCENE MENTIONS:

Dorothy Malone watches, longingly, as Bogart departs her bookstore in “The Big Sleep.”
  1. The Big Sleep (1946). It rains constantly in this film and only lends to the overall darkness and spookiness of the proceedings. The plot is also a mess, the weather might as well be too.
  2. My Neighbor Totoro (1988). In this film, sisters Satsuke and Mei discover Totoro, a forest spirit, living near their new home. The sisters are living near a local hospital where their mother is convalescing. Totoro and his fellow spirits watch over the girls and intervene when Mei goes missing.
  3. Casablanca (1942). Humphrey Bogart’s Rick stands in the rain, eagerly awaiting Ingrid Bergman’s Ilsa’s arrival, only to be handed a “Dear John” letter. As Rick’s heart breaks, the rain washes Ilsa’s words off the page. His life is over as he knows it.
  4. Red Dust (1932). Getting caught in a monsoon forces Mary Astor’s stuffy Barbara into the home of the rugged Dennis Carson (Clark Gable). Also staying with Dennis? Vantine (Jean Harlow), a prostitute who is none too happy or impressed with Barbara’s presence. Vantine has her eye on Dennis too and does not want to share. However, upon spotting a rain soaked Barbara, Dennis is overwhelmed and seduces her. The rain in this film lends an intensity, further making an already stifling film feel even more stuffy than it did before. This isn’t a cold rain. This is a hot, humid, rain.
  5. The Old Dark House (1932). A common trope in horror or mystery films, this is another movie that uses rain to force people inside. Horror often has people seeking shelter from strangers, and they’re always unusual strangers. In this movie, Phillip and Margaret Waverton (Raymond Massey and Gloria Stuart) are driving in a heavy storm with their friend, Penderel (Melvyn Douglas). They end up seeking refuge from the Femm siblings, Horace and Rebecca. The Femms are very weird. They warn their visitors about their butler Morgan (Boris Karloff), who is mute, alcoholic, and extremely dangerous. Eventually, two more people arrive at the Femms seeking shelter, Sir William Porterhouse (Charles Laughton) and Gladys DuCane (Lillian Bond). As the group stays at the home longer, they start to discover more and more unusual people and continue to be terrorized by Morgan. This is not only suspenseful, it is also very funny. “Please pass the po-tay-toes,” is my favorite line in the film.

Categories
Blogathon Favorite Classic Movies (Pre-1980)

Cry Me a River: Tearjerkers Blogathon–“The Way We Were” (1973)

Full disclosure, I don’t cry at movies. While there are definitely movies that I find sad like Make Way for Tomorrow (1938) or the end of Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey (1993), I have yet to actually cry at a film. The Way We Were (1973) always seems to make the list of classic tearjerkers, which is why I picked it; but I would like to argue that I didn’t find the ending sad. In fact, I found the ending of The Way We Were (1973) to be very satisfying.

The Way We Were spans a 20-year period, starting in the late-1930s and ending in the late-1950s. It also features a non-linear narrative, with the film beginning in 1944 towards the end of World War II. Barbra Streisand’s character, Katie Morosky, works at a radio station and goes to a nearby nightclub in New York City after work for drinks. She runs into an old acquaintance, Hubbell Gardiner (Robert Redford) at the bar. He’s dressed in a Navy uniform and seems like he’s had one too many drinks. In what ends up being an extremely questionable scene, she ends up inviting him back to her apartment to “rest” and the two reconnect and start a romance.

Prior to Katie and Hubbell’s reunion at the nightclub, they were college classmates in the late-1930s. In the college scenes, Katie is shown to be a bit of a plain Jane and very involved in political activism. She seems to always be protesting against something, whether it be politics or war. It’s also made very clear that she’s Jewish, which definitely is a sharp contrast to her WASP classmates like Hubbell. Hubbell is shown to be naturally handsome, athletic and seems to coast through life without much effort at all. This is particularly evident in a scene where Katie is shown to be working on writing a paper for hours and Hubbell sort of just slaps his paper together in a fraction of the time. The professor is impressed with Hubbell’s paper and praises it in front of the class. Katie is infatuated with Hubbell (because duh, it’s Robert Redford), but sees him as being clearly out of her league.

After Katie and Hubbell reunite in 1944 at the nightclub, they become a couple. However, their personal differences quickly surface with the death of Franklin Delano Roosevelt in 1945. Hubbell’s friends make jokes and Hubbell is indifferent. Katie is furious that they would dare to make jokes about FDR’s death as well as Hubbell’s complete lack of interest in politics. She is also unhappy about Hubbell’s unwillingness to support her and tell off his friends. On the flipside, Hubbell does not care for Katie’s bluntless and unrelenting insistence on being right. They end up breaking up, but get back together shortly after.

Hubbell proves himself to be a naturally gifted writer, a talent that I’m sure both infuriates and pleases Katie. He easily whips out a novel without exerting too much effort. His novel proves to be a hit, to the point that he receives an offer to come out to Hollywood and help adapt his novel into a screenplay. Katie worries that Hollywood is beneath Hubbell’s talents; but they move to California despite her hesitations. Hubbell’s contract proves lucrative, which allows him and Katie to live lavishly. Because of their comfortable lifestyle, there is an expectation that Katie will stay at home. However, she quickly becomes involved in protesting against McCarthyism and the infamous blacklist which starts to endanger Hubbell’s career and reputation.

Katie’s activism and Hubbell’s absolute nonchalance about everything comes to a head when her activism becomes bigger and more outspoken. She also discovers she’s pregnant, which only further strains Katie and Hubbell’s marriage. Hubbell eventually escapes the marital issues by having an affair (because obviously), which causes Katie to realize that he’ll always find a way to avoid dealing with anything difficult. She ends up divorcing him and moving back to New York City.

Now here’s where the tearjerker part comes in. If you haven’t seen The Way We Were, then I’m sorry for discussing the ending. It is now the late-1950s, the television era. Katie is on a busy corner opposite the Plaza Hotel in New York City protesting the nuclear bomb. She’s remarried and raising her and Hubbell’s daughter. Suddenly, she spots Hubbell and another woman coming out of the hotel. She runs over to Hubbell and asks what he’s doing in New York City. He explains that he’s writing for television. There is a tinge of hope that maybe Katie and Hubbell will find each other, reunite, and this time it will be different–except this time it doesn’t happen. They exchange pleasantries. Hubbell asks Katie about their daughter. Katie says she’s fine. Katie then invites him out for a drink. Hubbell declines, they embrace and part ways. Perhaps never to cross paths again.

Apparently people just sob about there being no happy ending for Katie and Hubbell. However, I would argue that their divorce is probably the best thing that could have happened to both of them. The main motif throughout the entire film is that Katie and Hubbell are opposites in almost every way–physically, personality-wise, ambition, etc. However, both are too stubborn to even try meeting their partner in the middle. Katie was very outspoken politically whereas Hubbell was indifferent. She could have perhaps tried to be a little less outspoken, or at least less public about it, especially when it was negatively affecting Hubbell’s career and potentially their livelihood. Hubbell could have also tried, even a little bit, to learn about some of the issues that Katie was passionate about and tried to form an opinion–even if he wasn’t outspoken about it. Katie and Hubbell spent so much time arguing over each other’s differences, instead of finding common ground.

While I don’t disagree that Katie and Hubbell were truly in love, I think this is a case where two people can love each other deeply; but cannot be together. At the end, when Katie and Hubbell see each other, there is a brief moment of tenderness when they are reminded of their love for each other, despite the strife and unhappiness they endured together, i.e., “The Way We Were” as the title song says. However, that innocent drink that Katie offers is not that harmless. That drink has the potential to reignite Katie and Hubbell’s tumultuous relationship–after all, the film started with Katie and Hubbell having drinks together and starting their romance. Hubbell was wise to decline.

Categories
Blogathon Favorite Modern Movies (post-1980)

The Seventh “So Bad It’s Good” Blogathon–Xanadu (1980) & Road House (1989)

The 1980s ushered in the era of the blockbuster, a type of film with an entirely different filmmaking philosophy than the eras that preceded it. The Golden Age of Hollywood (1927-1968), was the period of the studio system and production code. While this period did produce many of Hollywood’s most beloved films and stars, it was definitely not an era that encouraged individualism and art. While money is the main goal of most film productions, in the Golden Age, it was the only goal. No matter how creative or avant-garde a film might have been, if it didn’t turn a profit, Hollywood executives didn’t care. Too many failed projects, and the star would be labeled “box office poison,” and kicked to the curb.

By the late 1960s, with the fall of the studio system and implementation of the modern ratings system, the New Hollywood movement took off. This movement brought a lot of more contemporary themes to the big screen like Vietnam, and the women’s rights movement. Young Hollywood filmmakers like Steven Spielberg and Martin Scorsese, free from the rigid production code adhered to by their Golden Age predecessors, were able to take more risks with their themes and content. Growing advances in computers and technology led to more advanced filmmaking, seen in films like Star Wars and Close Encounters of the Third Kind, both released in 1977. The new Hollywood films of the 1970s often were more gritty, more realistic and presented a less glamorous side of life.

Olivia Newton-John in just one of her many costume changes in the finale in “Xanadu”

The 1980s ushered in the age of the blockbuster–films that were specifically made to appeal to the mass audience’s senses and yield the highest box office. Gone were the convoluted plots of the film noir of the 1940s. Gone were the experimental films of New Hollywood. While there were definitely outliers, many of the 1980s films didn’t have the heavy, dreary plots of their 1970s predessors. Plots were simple, but entertaining. Comedians like Steve Martin, Rick Moranis, Christopher Guest, John Candy, Dan Aykroyd, Rodney Dangerfield, and Eddie Murphy (to name a few), were given the chance to star in hilarious comedies that exhibited their unique type of comedy. Action stars like Murphy (Beverly Hills Cop), Bruce Willis (Die Hard), and Mel Gibson (Lethal Weapon) were popular for their action-packed, but also funny, series of films.

The content of films featuring teenagers changed (simultaneously for better and for worse) as they featured more realistic plots such as in Valley Girl (1983) and Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982), but were also made to appeal to adult men, which was definitely a step in the wrong direction. Actors who were part of the “Brat Pack” (Demi Moore, Ralph Macchio, Molly Ringwald, Rob Lowe, Emilio Estevez, Jon Cryer, Anthony Michael Hall, Andrew McCarthy, to name a few) were featured heavily in teen films of the era. Also featured heavily in 1980s films was music.

Olivia Newton-John, Gene Kelly, and Michael Beck in “Xanadu”

Soundtracks in the 1980s really upped their ante with film after film being chockful of catchy tunes and themes written for the film (“Ghostbusters” and “Axel F,” anyone?). Pop singers and bands were recruited by filmmakers to contribute one or more tunes to the soundtrack. Other films featured soundtracks comprised of a dozen or more popular songs, specifically chosen to fit the mood and tone of the scene. To finally get to the point in this article, two such films featured with excellent soundtracks are the “so bad, they’re good” Xanadu (1980) and Road House (1989) which bookended the decade and showed the complete shift from the late 1970s-1980s era of disco and New Wave to the new Aqua Net enhanced hairy, yet grungy late 1980s.

In Xanadu, Olivia Newton-John, still riding the success of Grease (1978) from two years prior, starred as Kira, one of the nine muses of Olympus. One day in Los Angeles, Sonny Malone (Michael Beck), a struggling artist, tosses one of his failed sketches into the wind. It lands in front of a mural depicting the nine muses of Olympus, which suddenly comes alive. The other eight muses fly away, but Kira skates towards Sonny and kisses him.

Olivia Newton-John and Gene Kelly in Xanadu

Sonny’s job involves him painting album cover reproductions. He is tasked with painting an album cover for a group called “The 9 Sisters.” The cover features a mysterious woman standing in front of an Art Deco building. Sonny realizes that the mysterious woman is the woman who kissed him earlier. His boss states that she isn’t supposed to be on the cover and that she’s popped up in previous covers he’s done as well. Obviously the “mysterious woman” is Kira. Sonny manages to track her down and learns her name.

Sonny then meets Danny McGuire (Gene Kelly), a former clarinet player and orchestra leader. He is now a successful construction mogul. Danny and Sonny get to talking and Danny tells Sonny that in the 1940s, he fell in love with a big band singer who resembled Kira. Eventually Kira encourages the two men to open a nightclub together, Xanadu, inside the old abandoned Art Deco building seen in Sonny’s album cover.

Xanadu is ridiculous. The plot sounds good on paper, but wasn’t executed properly. The script apparently changed day-to-day, with parts even being written during filming (which worked for Casablanca; but it did not for Xanadu!). Parts of the story feel disjointed–especially the Don Bluth-animated sequence. The sequence was a shortcut the producers took to showcase an additional song and shoehorned it in–and it shows, horribly. However, the poor execution of everything is also what gives the film its charm.

Gene Kelly’s amazing “glitz makeover” in Xanadu

It is amazing that the film got Gene Kelly, even a legend in 1980, to appear in this film. Kelly is the highlight of this film. He more or less reprises his character from 1945’s Cover Girl, except obviously there is no mention of Rita Hayworth or Phil Silvers’ characters. Kelly appears in my favorite part of the movie, the “Glitz Makeover” scene, where he’s given a snappy new wardrobe, more in line with the film’s aesthetic. He is also given a chance to dance and performs a genuinely charming dance number with Olivia Newton-John. At the end of the film, he appears on roller skates at the opening of Xanadu. In a move that should surprise no one, Gene Kelly choreographed all his numbers and controlled the filming of his dance number with Newton-John. She called dancing with Kelly one of the highlights of her career. Despite the star power of Kelly and Newton-John, Xanadu ultimately failed at the box office. One big reason was that when the film went into production at the end of 1979 (alongside one of my other favorite “so bad, it’s good” films, Roller Boogie), roller disco was popular. By the beginning of 1980, the fickle audience hated roller disco.

Despite how one may feel about roller disco, what cannot be argued however, is the awesomeness of the soundtrack. Olivia Newton-John and her longtime producer/writer, John Farrar, and Electric Light Orchestra (ELO) both contributed about a half dozen songs to the bangin’ soundtrack. Newton-John’s “Magic,” “Suddenly” and the title track, “Xanadu” all come from this film. ELO was the perfect choice for this film as their style of music and image meshed perfectly with the New Wave, roller disco, fantasy aesthetic of Xanadu.

Patrick Swayze cleans up the town in “Road House”

Flash forward nine years. The 1980s are almost at a close with hair metal and glam rock on its way out and grunge is on its way in. Flannel and Doc Martens, fashion almost synonymous with the 1990s, has replaced the power suits of the 1980s. Also popular during this time is the Rockabilly look and the ever classic mullet. And let me tell you, nobody, NOBODY, has ever rocked the mullet better than Patrick Swayze in Road House. Kurt Russell in Big Trouble in Little China is a close second.

It can be argued that Road House is a modern version of the classic American Western, a film genre that was also making a comeback during the 1980s. In Road House, Swayze plays James Dalton, the professional bouncer who is hired by Frank Tilghmann, owner of the Double Deuce road house in Jasper, Missouri. To draw correlations between Road House and the Western, Dalton (as he’s known throughout the film) is more or less the sheriff brought in to clean up the town (aka the Double Deuce).

Patrick Swayze almost rips out someone’s throat in “Road House”

The beginning scenes of Road House feature an insanely rowdy bar, full of drunks, breaking the furniture and throwing things at the house band protected by a cage. These fight scenes are juxtaposed against the music coming from the amazing house band, led by blind guitarist, Jeff Healey. Healey and his band deliver a rendition of my favorite song by The Doors, “Roadhouse Blues.” Not to be outdone, Patrick Swayze also sings on the soundtrack (though he doesn’t perform at the road house). Much of the Road House soundtrack is comprised of rowdy classic rock songs and other popular music, including Otis Redding’s “These Arms of Mine,” Dion’s “Runaround Sue,” and Little Richard’s “Long Tall Sally.”

Dalton starts to clean up the rowdy bar by firing anyone who does not agree with his philosophy. He repeatedly coaches his employees to refrain from fighting, but isn’t above getting into brawls himself, as long as they’re outside. Road House is full of tons of amazing fight scenes, well choreographed and executed perfectly by Patrick Swayze, a professional dancer.

Patrick Swayze and Sam Elliott in “Road House”

Dalton makes a mistake however, when he fires the nephew of Brad Wesley (Ben Gazzara), a local businessman who essentially runs the town. He and his gang have a hold over all the other local businesses, and use their control to make demands. If the business owners fail to acquiesce, Brad and his gang will use violence to make sure that the business owner pays. Dalton solidifies his position as Brad’s #1 enemy by pursuing a romantic relationship with Dr. Elizabeth Clay (Kelly Lynch), to whom Brad is also attracted. Obviously, she is going to date Dalton. Who would turn down Patrick Swayze in his prime? Brad’s hatred of Dalton starts to hurt operations at the Double Deuce after Dalton gets it turned around.

Time for some eye candy! Patrick Swayze practices tai chi.

For his Doc Holliday, Dalton recruits his friend, Wade Garrett (Sam Elliott), a legendary bouncer known across the industry. Together, Dalton and Wade join forces to take down Brad and his gang. Sam Elliott sports great hair in this movie! Interspersed with the action scenes and fighting, are shots of Dalton practicing tai chi, which he does as a form of relaxation. I’m not a tai chi expert, I don’t know if Swayze is even doing it correctly. But it doesn’t even matter. These are shots fully intended to show off his bod. These scenes are for the ladies not digging the rowdy fighting scenes. Personally, I like both.

While Road House was ridiculed upon its release mainly for the emphasis on showing off Patrick Swayze’s body, and the gratuitous fighting scenes, crude language and dialogue. However, the gratuitous fight scenes, language, dialogue and Swayze’s body are the whole reasons to watch the film.

Are Xanadu and Road House good films? No. Probably not. Are they fun films? Yes. Both films are very fun, and in my book, if they’re fun, then they’re good. Sometimes an entertaining film is enough. Not every film needs to change the world.

RIP Gene Kelly, Olivia Newton-John, and Patrick Swayze.

Categories
Blogathon Favorite Classic Movies (Pre-1980)

A Haunting Blogathon: In the Afterlife–Random Harvest (1942)

“Random Harvest” (1942)

For the Classic Movie Blog Association’s Annual Fall Blogathon, this year’s theme is the afterlife. However, the definition is expanded beyond the supernatural and instead also includes the idea of someone being haunted by something–whether it is past trauma, unattainable love, abandonment, obsession, or even the pursuit of a goal seemingly out of reach. Random Harvest (1942) starring Greer Garson and Ronald Colman definitely fits within the confines of this motif.

Random Harvest is a story of a woman, Margaret Hanson (Garson) who is desperate to regain the love and life she lost. The film starts with a man, a patient, casually walking away from the asylum where he’s been convalescing since the end of World War I. During the war, the man was gassed in the trenches and as a result has amnesia. After walking away from the asylum, the man ends up in the small town of Melbridge.

While walking to work, Margaret comes across the strange man meandering through the streets of Melbridge. Figuring out that he is from the nearby asylum, Margaret invites the man to come with her to the theatre where she works. It is here where we see Margaret (stage name Paula Ridgeway) perform a delightful number, “She’s Ma Daisy” while showing off her great legs! Later that evening, the man is spooked after an incident brings unwanted attention to him. Wanting to help, Margaret brings him to an inn out in the country to rest. They end up falling in love and marrying. They rent a small cottage and have a son together.

Margaret’s great gams!

Margaret ends up nicknaming the man “Smithy.” While settled into his new life with Margaret, Smithy discovers that he has literary talent and seeks to obtain work at a newspaper. While in Liverpool for a job interview, Smithy is hit by a car. The impact from the car causes him to regain his memory, but lose memory of his life with Margaret and their son. Smithy, now going by his real name of Charles Rainier, returns to his previous life as a wealthy businessman. He has no memory of the previous three years of his life. The only remaining souvenir of his past life with Margaret is the key to their cottage. However, Charles no longer remembers what the key unlocks. The image of him looking at the key will be a reoccurring motif throughout the remainder of the film.

This leads to the most heartbreaking part of the film where Margaret desperately looks for her missing husband. She spends months trying to find him until one day, she sees his picture in the newspaper under his real name. Margaret also learns that Charles is looking for a secretary and applies for and gets the job as his executive assistant. Every day Margaret gets to see Charles, but he has no idea of their previous life. Making matters worse is when he becomes romantically involved with (and later engaged to) a young woman named Kitty (Susan Peters).

Margaret and Charles in their business marriage.

Then, if having to watch the love of your life romance another woman while not remembering you isn’t enough, Charles proposes a business marriage or a “merger” after being elected to Parliament. Charles admires and appreciates Margaret’s efficiency and the value that she brings to his work. He wants to translate that to his career as a member of Parliament. Charles makes it very clear that this marriage is a business proposition–not romantic. He promises that he won’t develop any emotional attachment. Oof. Margaret makes the heartbreaking decision to accept his proposal, figuring that being in a platonic marriage with Charles is better than no marriage at all.

To his credit, Charles knows that he’s missing something. There are three years of his life that he cannot remember. Throughout the second half of the film, he comes across small trinkets from his previous life with Margaret. Through happenstance, Charles ends up in Melbridge again where he first met Margaret. As he walks through town, his memories start to unlock and he starts to remember pieces of his life with Margaret. His memories bring him back to the inn and then the cottage where he is reunited with Margaret–his true love.

The happy moment when Charles finally recalls what door his key will unlock.

Random Harvest is absolutely heartbreaking while also being incredibly romantic. Both Margaret and Charles are haunted by what they’ve lost: Margaret lost her husband and true love, Charles. Charles has lost memories of his entire life with Margaret. He spends the film haunted by the knowledge that he missed the last three years of his life. Seeing Margaret starts to rekindle things in his memory. While it might be unconscious on his part, it is apparent that there’s something about Margaret that reminds Charles of his lost three years. When Kitty plays the hymn she wants played at her and Charles’ wedding, he is reminded of his previous life. While he cannot articulate it, his reaction informs Kitty that Charles is in love with someone else. The most tragic part of this entire film is when Margaret agrees to marry Charles for business purposes. Here she is living out the dream she had for her and Charles, albeit in a superficial and platonic way. One’s heart aches for Margaret as she has to put on a facade of being the perfect wife and hostess. Charles just thinks his secretary is so adept and perfect for the job of “his wife.” Margaret wants to be these things too but as a reflection of her love for her husband. When Charles finally sees and remembers Margaret at their old cottage, it is almost overwhelming. Finally, Margaret can stop suffering.

Categories
Blogathon Favorite Classic Movies (Pre-1980)

It’s in the Name of the Title Blogathon–Alice Adams (1935)

This blogathon event is devoted to films named after the name of one or more characters in a film. Typically, the titular character is the main character, though in some cases (e.g., 1971’s Klute) it could be argued that the film is named after a supporting character. In 1935’s Alice Adams, the titular character, portrayed by Katharine Hepburn, is very much the main character. It could also be argued that she is the only main character, as everyone else in the film is very much supporting. Hepburn’s Oscar-nominated performance is tremendous and she deserved to win the Best Actress award. Bette Davis ended up winning for her turn in Dangerous, and felt that Hepburn was robbed. Davis felt like her award was an attempt by the Academy to make up for her lack of a nomination for Of Human Bondage (1934) and it came at Hepburn’s expense.

Alice Adams, based on Booth Tarkington’s 1921 Pulitzer Prize winning-novel of the same name, is simply about a young woman trying to move up the social ladder in her small Indiana town. Alice lives with her father, Virgil (Fred Stone), her mother (Ann Shoemaker) and brother Walter (Frank Albertson). Mrs. Adams’ first name is never revealed. The Adams family is made out to be impoverished, but they live in a decent 2-story home and seem to have enough food and things they need. It does appear however, that there isn’t much money leftover for any luxuries.

Alice Adams and her corsage of violets.

However, despite the Adams family’s lack of wealth, Alice isn’t exactly ostracized by her wealthier peers. At the beginning of the film, Alice is at a local florist looking for a corsage for a party to which she’s been invited–a party thrown by the wealthy Mildred Palmer (Evelyn Venable). At first Alice is looking at a rather extravagant corsage and is forced to ask to see the more modest corsage of violets. However, even the $2 ($45.77 in 2024) is too expensive for Alice’s pocketbook. In a motif that would repeat itself throughout the film, Alice refuses to admit that she cannot afford to purchase any merchandise and laments that she didn’t come in sooner when the florist had a bigger selection. She ends up making her own free corsage with violets she finds outside.

Alice has Walter escort her to Mildred’s party. He clearly couldn’t care less about impressing the rich set, but agrees to take Alice at the behest of their mother. Alice on the other hand, immediately starts putting on airs, but is quickly identified as a poser. However, Alice’s social faux pas do not turn off everyone at the party. A young man, the wealthy Arthur Russell (Fred MacMurray), finds Alice charming and talks her up at the party.

Fred MacMurray is an underrated dreamboat from the 1930s.

Alice and Arthur start seeing each other which of course attracts the attention of the upper classes. Mildred is supposedly engaged to Arthur and cannot understand what he sees in the lowly Alice Adams. Alice, who is always conscious of her family’s status and wealth (or lack thereof) continues to put on airs with Arthur so that he doesn’t catch on that she’s part of a much lower social set. Alice’s lies come to a head in one of the funniest and most bittersweet moments in the film.

To impress Arthur, Alice invites him over to her family’s home for a fancy dinner. She frets over the position and condition of the family’s furniture, trying to strategically hide stains and tears by turning the furniture at an angle, flipping over the cushions and placing pillows. Alice even goes as far as to hire a maid, Malena (Hattie McDaniel) to serve the meal. Unfortunately for Alice, she is unequipped and inexperienced to entertain and makes many faux pas at her dinner: the family is way overdressed in formal wear and the meal is too heavy for the hot summer day. Credit must be given to Arthur for enduring one soup and stew after another while he heavily perspires while wearing a wool (or tweed) suit jacket.

Hattie McDaniel is hilarious in this film.

Hattie McDaniel’s performance as maid Malena must be singled out, because she is hysterical and brings some much needed levity for a very heartbreaking (for Alice) scene. Malena is a terrible cook and comes up with a series of soups and stews for the family dinner. She also serves things like pickled watermelon rind and melted ice cream. As she gets hotter and sweatier, Malena’s maid headband (hat? headpiece?) keeps falling and covering half her face. The funniest part though are her facial expressions. As Alice pretends that the family eats caviar and fancy food all the time, Malena’s face tells the real story. She just barely keeps from rolling her eyes when Alice yammers on about her family’s fancy diet and lifestyle.

Eventually, the jig is up when Virgil tells Arthur the truth about the family’s wealth and exposes Alice’s lies. Alice is heartbroken and horrified and fully expects Arthur to dump her due to her lack of wealth and social class. The scene after the dinner party, when Alice looks out the window and sobs, is heartbreaking. She thinks that she’s probably lost her best chance to achieve her dream of moving into the higher social class. However, because Arthur is a genuine sweetheart throughout the entire film, he only finds Alice’s attempts to impress him endearing and tells her that he loves her. We have to hope that he and Alice will live happily ever after.

There is a subplot involving Virgil and his employment at a glue factory where he regularly butts heads with Mr. Lamb (Charles Grapewin) and eventually strikes out on his own with his own “glueworks.” Why a small town needs two glue factories, who knows. Walter eventually embezzles money from Mr. Lamb, which horrifies Virgil. I don’t want to focus on this subplot however, because frankly Virgil’s incessant whining gets on my nerves. I don’t have sympathy for Virgil Adams because he’s such a sad sack.

Arthur and Alice at the dinner party from hell

Back to the best part of the film, Alice and Arthur. Alice Adams is a story about social class. Alice and her family are part of the lower class. Alice desperately wants to be part of the upper class. She recognizes that the upper class have the privilege that allow them to live a life free of struggle. However, because her peers know about her social standing, Alice cannot pretend to be part of their lifestyle–she needs another “in.” Arthur represents that in, as he’s already part of that social set. Meanwhile, Alice’s father, Virgil, seems resigned to being part of the working class and feels that Alice’s attempts to move up the social ladder are a waste of time. He repeatedly thwarts Alice’s attempts to try and be more than she is. Alice’s mother however, also recognizes that there are benefits to being part of a higher class. She urges her husband to strike out on his own to hopefully become a successful business owner, hereby giving them not only the income, but a boost in their social standing.

Katharine Hepburn’s performance is what makes Alice Adams work. She is adept at conveying hope and joy when Alice comes up with her latest tale to tell about her family’s wealth. When her charade is ruined by her father at the dinner, our hearts break for her. The amount of torment and despair is evident on Alice’s face as she weeps. She lights up when she sees Arthur, the man who throughout the entire film has never wavered in his love for Alice–even when she assumes the worst about him. Hepburn is known for playing strong willed, independent women. However, Alice Adams allows her to reveal a softer, more vulnerable side. Hepburn was robbed of the Oscar.

Categories
Blogathon Favorite Classic Movies (Pre-1980)

The Rule, Britannia Blogathon–“Brief Encounter” (1945)

I haven’t seen a lot of films made outside the United States, but I’ve been trying do better about doing so. One country that I have seen a fair number of films from is Britain. I’ve found that British films tend to focus more on working class people, with decidedly less glamour–especially films showcasing Britain during or just after World War II. American films featuring British actors taking place in British locales are definitely more glamorous and have higher production values. Mrs. Miniver (1942) featuring British actress Greer Garson, showcases Garson as the titular character living in a gorgeous home on the Thames River. Garson looks gorgeous even as she’s hunkered down in a shelter listening to bombs falling on and around her home.

Trevor Howard and Celia Johnson in “Brief Encounter.”

The British film, Brief Encounter (1945), taking place around the same time period as Mrs. Miniver, features a decidedly less glamorous and more realistic setting. The two protagonists of the film, Laura Jesson (Celia Johnson) and Alec Harvey (Trevor Howard), are not glamorous. They are not Ingrid Bergman and Cary Grant. Laura and Alec are two regular people, not hideous, not extraordinarily beautiful, just two average people. If someone saw the two of them sitting at a table in a train station cafe, they wouldn’t give them a second look–except if they are Dolly Messiter (Everley Gregg). Dolly, an acquaintance of Laura’s, spots her friend sitting at one of the tables. Laura, clearly upset, sits idly while Dolly blathers on incessantly. Laura eventually boards a train and returns home to her husband, Fred, and their two children.

After tucking her children into bed, Laura returns to the living room where she grabs her mending and Fred grabs the newspaper’s daily crossword puzzle. It is clear that this is Laura and Fred’s usual nightly routine, the two of them sitting quietly, occasionally chatting when Fred asks Laura for help with an Up or Down clue. As Laura starts mending, her internal struggles take over, preventing her from putting down even a single stitch. She looks at Fred, blissfully completing his crossword puzzle, unaware of her emotional conflict. Laura’s voiceover takes over, as she confesses the cause of her conflict–the brief affair she had with Alec.

Laura explains that she met Alec during her weekly Thursday jaunt to Milford, where she shops and attends a matinee film. While at the train station, a piece of dirt gets into her eye. One of the other passengers, Dr. Alec Harvey, jumps in to assist. The next week, Laura and Alec happen to meet again outside a pharmacy. It turns out that Alec also visits Milford on Thursdays to perform consultant work at the local hospital. Laura and Alec make a lunch date for the next Thursday and end up seeing the afternoon matinee film together. Soon, they are making a point to meet up every Thursday.

Laura and Alec say goodbye at the train station

In her voiceover, Laura expresses the shame as well as the excitement she felt during these weekly dates with Alec. Mending clothing and helping her husband with his crossword puzzle is clearly not bringing Laura the fulfillment that she seeks in life. This affair with Alec, a man who ignites something in Laura, previously unknown, brings her the exhilaration she desires. However, she expresses guilt when the lunch dates start to turn romantic and she and Alec are teetering on the edge of infidelity.

LAURA: It’s awfully easy to lie when you know that you’re trusted implicitly. So very easy and so very degrading.

Celia Johnson as “Laura Jesson” in Brief Encounter (1945)

As the audience, we are just as conflicted as Laura. She seems so unhappy in her average, middle class home, with her average middle class husband. Laura seems to be living comfortably and has two children. From all appearances, she is living the life many women seek. However, her life as no drama, no excitement. It is very routine and monotonous. Not much is known about Alec’s life, his wife and children are never shown, however, it is easy to imagine that his life is similar to Laura’s. However, he is someone different and exciting. From Laura’s narration, we know that the relationship has ended, but it’s hard to feel happy about it because Laura looks and sounds so miserable. The ending of this film is very bittersweet, but realistic. Would we want Alec and Laura to give up their respective marriages and families for a brief encounter at the train station?

David Lean makes excellent use of the train and train station as an allegory for the film’s themes.

Celia Johnson’s performance as Laura is what makes the film. She is absolutely heartbreaking in this film and as an audience member, you empathize with her. Without any words, a flood of emotions run across her face, from happiness, to regret, to pride, to shame, as she recollects her relationship with Alec. The scene where it appears like she and Alec might take their relationship to the next level, but then are interrupted, is heartbreaking. It’s not heartbreaking because they weren’t able to take it to the next level, but rather for the amount of embarrassment and shame she feels to have been caught as “the other woman.”

ALEC: I do love you, so very much. I love you with all my heart and soul.

LAURA: I want to die. If only I could die…

ALEC: If you’d die, you’d forget me. I want to be remembered.

Trevor Howard as “Alec Harvey” and Celia Johnson as “Laura Jesson” in Brief Encounter (1945)

Director David Lean also utilized trains to excellent effect in this film. The train and train station are central characters in the film. The train station is where the main story starts and ends as it represents the beginning and end to Laura and Alec’s affair. This is where they meet and where they ultimately part ways. The train station is where people from all walks of life, regardless of class, occupation, marital status, etc. will cross paths and interact. The train is used to good effect as it often interrupts Laura and Alec’s affair, forcing them to return home to their respective spouses. Laura’s reflection is shown often in the train windows, as she contemplates her affair and how it’ll affect her marriage and family. Laura’s reflection, combined with the steam from the train and the nighttime, gives the film a dreamlike quality. As she rides into the night, Laura dreams about spending time with Alec, only for her dreams to shatter when the train pulls into the brightly lit station in her home town–bringing her back to reality.

Brief Encounter makes an amazing use of reflection during Laura’s train scenes.

I highly recommend Brief Encounter, as it is one of the most romantic films ever made. It doesn’t have a trite, tacked on happy ending. While infidelity isn’t romantic and shouldn’t be celebrated, it’s hard to not feel sad for Laura. This woman seems utterly heartbroken to have to return home to her husband and his crossword puzzles, when she could be jet-setting with Alec to exotic locales. However, she knows that she and Alec needed to end their clandestine affair, for the sake of their families and reputation. The clincher comes during their final meeting at the train station when Laura and Alec lean in for a passionate kiss, but other passengers turn the corner and come into view. The couple quickly separate and go their separate ways down the dark corridor. Suddenly, Laura is seen in her living room with her husband taking a break from his crossword to get her attention. This scene is absolutely heartbreaking and the cherry on top of a perfect film.

FRED: You’ve been a long way away.

LAURA: Yes

FRED: Thank you for coming back to me.

Cyril Raymond as “Fred Jesson” and Celia Johnson as “Laura Jesson” in Brief Encounter.
Categories
Blogathon Favorite Classic Movies (Pre-1980)

Ingrid Bergman Blogathon–“Casablanca” (1942)

Ingrid Bergman was born 108 years ago today, August 29th, in 1915. Her life came full circle with her passing 41 years ago on her 67th birthday in 1982. Throughout her life, Ingrid won 3 Oscars, was condemned for her affair with Italian director Roberto Rossellini on the floor of the US Congress, and came out on the other side of the scandal stronger than ever. She appeared in more than 40 films (including films in the US, Italy, and her native Sweden), a half a dozen made-for-TV movies, and dozens of theatre and radio performances. Despite winning awards for Classic Hollywood films such as Gaslight (1944), Anastasia (1956), and Murder on the Orient Express (1974), Ingrid is best known for her role in Casablanca (1942).

Today, Casablanca is regarded as one of the best films ever made. It also ranks on the top of many lists as one of the most (if not *the* most) romantic films ever made. However, during the time of production, nobody involved thought much of the film–especially its star, Ingrid Bergman. The script was constantly being re-written to the point where the stars didn’t even know how the film was going to end. The crux of the climactic scene at the airport involves the resolution of the film’s classic love triangle. Ingrid was kept in the dark as to who her character, Ilsa Lund, would end up with–Humphrey Bogart’s Rick Blaine or Paul Henreid’s Victor Laszlo.

One of the most famous love triangles in cinema history: Victor Laszlo (Paul Henreid), Ilsa Lund (Ingrid Bergman), and Rick Blaine (Humphrey Bogart)

Casablanca takes place in the city of the same name in Morocco. Rick Blaine is an American who operates a nightclub, Rick’s Café Américain (aka “Rick’s”). His club offers a refuge for citizens from all countries and all walks of life who are desperate to escape the Nazis and leave for the United States, which has not yet joined the war effort. Rick is seen signing off on a bill dated a few days prior to the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor. Every refugee is desperate to procure a “letter of transit” which is required to leave Morocco for neutral Portugal, which then will allow them to get to the US. At the beginning of the film, a crook by the name of Ugarte (Peter Lorre) rushes into Rick’s, requesting a place to hide. Rick refuses and Ugarte is killed by the Nazis. Ugarte had stolen two letters of transit by murdering two German couriers. He manages to hide the letters of transit at Rick’s prior to his death. Rick’s possession of the letters of transit provides one of the main motivations for both the French and German police’s constant presence.

UGARTE: You despise me, don’t you?
RICK: If I gave you any thought, I probably would.
(Oof)

Nazi Major Heinrich Strasser (Conrad Veidt) and French Captain Louis Renault (Claude Rains) are constantly at odds with one other, with their blows often coming to head at Rick’s. Louis, while he is the prefect of police, is corrupt and is friends with Rick. It is implied that Louis propositions young female refugees, asking for sex in exchange for an exit visa. Strasser and Renault’s main bone of contention is the arrival of Victor Laszlo, a Czechoslovakian who escaped from a concentration camp and is the leader of a resistance movement. Major Strasser’s main motivation in the film is to capture Victor Laszlo and return him to the concentration camp.

However, while the political strife of Casablanca is important to the plot, the film is mainly remembered for its love triangle between Rick Blaine, Ilsa Lund, and Victor Laszlo. Throughout the beginning of the film, Rick is shown to be cynical and completely apathetic to everything. He has funny lines such as when he’s asked if he is available for drinks later in the evening, and he responds: “I never make plans that far ahead.” One evening, Ilsa and her husband, Victor Laszlo enter the club. When Rick spots Ilsa, his face suddenly contorts into the look of sheer anger and heartbreak.

Rick is distraught after Ilsa re-enters his life. “Of all the gin joints, in all the towns, in all the world, she had to walk into mine.”

In flashback, we learn that Rick and Ilsa used to be romantically involved, while living in Paris. They’re shown in blissful happiness: romantic drives around the French countryside, sipping champagne while engaging in flirty banter and dancing at romantic clubs. Rick and Ilsa are in love and when they learn that Germany is marching into Paris, they make plans to leave together on the train. One rainy afternoon, Rick waits for Ilsa at the train station, but she never shows up. Heartbroken, Rick reads the “Dear John” letter she sent and boards the train. Ilsa’s reappearance in Morocco brings back a flood of memories to Rick and reminds him of how much she hurt him.

Seeing Rick is obviously a blow to Ilsa as well. Her admiration and love for him comes flooding back to her gorgeously lit face (kudos to whoever lit Ingrid Bergman for this film) that just sparkles on screen. Throughout the film, Ilsa becomes conflicted, not knowing if she wants to leave Victor and rekindle her romance with Rick. In her confusion, she tries to convince herself that she doesn’t love Rick and tries to hold him at gunpoint to force him to give her the letters of transit. Rick isn’t convinced and soon Ilsa confesses that she still loves him.

Rick and Ilsa during happier times in Paris.

Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman acted out Rick and Ilsa’s romance perfectly. They are still in love, but Rick has been so hurt by Ilsa, that it’s hard for him to drop his defenses. The fact that she’s married makes him even more adverse to getting involved with her again. Ingrid portrays Ilsa’s dilemma perfectly, with her face displaying the conflicted feelings she has for Rick. She loves Rick, but she also admires Victor for his work in the resistance. In a very gallant speech, Rick tells Ilsa that Victor needs her, as she is his motivation. In the famous airport scene, Bogart’s face perfectly portrays the love that Rick has for Ilsa. Ingrid’s face beautifully portrays Ilsa’s confusion and overwhelming love for Rick. However, this time, Rick is able to end the relationship on his own terms, knowing that it’s for the best that Ilsa stays with Victor. Ilsa on the other hand, seems to have expected that she’d stay with Rick and send Victor packing.

“Play it Sam, play ‘As Time Goes By.'”

In the end, do we want Rick and Ilsa together? The Simpsons offered an alternate ending. As Rick and Louis walk away together as Sam (Dooley Wilson) plays piano. Sam then warns Rick that Louis has a gun. As Louis prepares to shoot Rick, Sam shoves his piano at Louis and knocks him out. Hitler then pops out of the lid of Sam’s piano, preparing to throw bombs at Rick and Sam. Ilsa suddenly parachutes down from her departing plane, lands on the piano lid, locking Hitler inside. Sam begins playing something that kind of sounds like “As Time Goes By” (but isn’t, obviously. Rights issues) and the scene segues into Rick and Ilsa’s wedding.

While this is obviously a ridiculous way to end the film, it does give the audience the happy ending that many in the audience want–Rick and Ilsa ridding the world of Hitler and living happily ever after. Personally, I cannot imagine Casablanca with that ending. The entire airport scene, oddly one of the most romantic scenes in cinema history, despite being basically a break-up scene, is so perfect. The credit for how the scene plays out entirely belongs to Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman. The problems of three little people may not amount to a hill of beans in this crazy world, but for 102 minutes, we’re captivated. We’ll always have Paris. And we’ll always have Ingrid Bergman’s luminous face. Here’s looking at you, kid.

The alternate ending to “Casablanca” as envisioned by The Simpsons.

RICK: Last night we said a great many things. You said I was to do the thinking for both of us. We’ll I’ve done a lot of it since then, and it all adds up to one thing: you’re getting on that plane with Victor where you belong.

ILSA: But Richard, no, I…I…

RICK: Now, you’ve got to listen to me! You have any idea what you’d have to look forward to if you stayed here? Nine chances out of ten, we’d both wind up in a concentration camp. Isn’t that true, Louis?

LOUIS: I’m afraid Major Strasser would insist.

ILSA: You’re saying this only to make me go.

RICK: I’m saying it because it’s true. Inside of us, we both know you belong with Victor. You’re part of his work, the thing that keeps him going. If that plane leaves the ground and you’re not with him, you’ll regret it. Maybe not today. Maybe not tomorrow, but soon and for the rest of your life.

ILSA: But what about us?

RICK: We’ll always have Paris. We didn’t have, we, we lost it until you came to Casablanca. We got it back last night.

ILSA: When I said I would never leave you.

RICK: And you never will. But I’ve got a job to do, too. Where I’m going, you can’t follow. What I’ve got to do, you can’t be any part of. Ilsa, I’m no good at being noble, but it doesn’t take much to see that the problems of three little people don’t amount to a hill of beans in this crazy world. Someday, you’ll understand that.

(Ilsa lowers her head and starts to cry)

RICK: Now, Now…

(Rick lifts Ilsa’s chin, so their eyes meet)

RICK: Here’s looking at you kid.

Humphrey Bogart as Rick Blaine, Ingrid Bergman as Ilsa Lund, and Claude Rains as Louis Renault in “Casablanca.”
Ingrid Bergman’s gorgeous face as Bogart gives her the most romantic brush-off in cinema history.