Bride of Frankenstein ... 'Til Death Do Us Part

To kick off the month of Halloween ghosties and ghoulies, I want to re-introduce my take on Bride of Frankenstein.  It was originally posted in 2010, when I had about 4 followers.  I'm pretty sure I have a few more now, and I hope you enjoy it.
   

Elsa Lanchester of t he big eyes, cupid's bow mouth

and the ultimate bouffant hairdo.

Since 1931, when director James Whale brought his own unique film-making vision to Mary Shelley's novel, Frankenstein has spawned many, many remakes, sequels, mini-series and comedies.  Everyone wants to put their own personal stamp on this seminal horror story, some quite good, a lot just plain awful.  Bride of Frankenstein is different. There has only been one attempt of which I am aware at re-making it, a really dreadful movie called The Bride, with Sting and Jennifer Beals. (Mystery Science Theatre 3000 would have had a hey-day with that one!)

Lanchester with her iconic highlights, and Boris Karloff as the monster.

I think it would be impossible to re-capture in a remake the wonderful dark humor infused into the original bride story that was mostly responsible, in my opinion, for its unique nature. Bride of Frankenstein was born in the mind of director James Whale and his brand of side-glancing, off-beat humor which was his personal stamp. When I was a kid, I thought the story was deadly serious, and believed I should see it that way. After I had a few years under my belt, I realized how really funny this movie is. It still has the pathos of the poor monster’s loneliness and solitude, it has the wonderful eerie atmosphere of light and shadow, that fabulous laboratory, and lots of lightning. But it also has Ernest Thesiger as Dr. Praetorious with his little human menagerie, the violin-playing blind hermit, and of course Elsa Lanchester with the hair!

O.P. Heggie as the Hermit

As for the storyline, the monster is back on the rampage, frightening people everywhere, being misunderstood in his intentions, and longing for someone like himself to be his friend. He comes upon a hut in the woods and hears the music of a violin. The hut is inhabited by a blind man who welcomes the monster without fear since he can’t see him. The monster has learned to talk in rudimentary language, and the two men sit down together to eat dinner. When the blind man strikes a match to light a cigar, the monster screams because of his fear of fire. The blind man explains to him that fire is good, and offers him a cigar. “Smoke is good!” the blind man says, and the monster inhales and says “Smoke….good.” (In these days of political correctness, we may yet see this scene cut out, although the rampaging and killing will of course be left in.) The two are happy to be friends, but of course the villagers that populate every Frankenstein movie break up the friendship.  Some men stop by the hut and since they are not blind, they panic and attack the monster.  To the hermit's dismay, his new friend leaves and the villagers burn his house down accidentally.  Oh yes, they were a big help.

The wonderful Ernest Thesiger as Dr. Praetorius

Meanwhile, Praetorius is insinuating himself into Dr. Frankenstein’s life (Colin Clive reprises his role, looking a bit the worse for wear since the original Frankenstein). Ernest Thesiger is wonderful as the mad Praetorius, with his long, skeletal face and clipped British accent. He plays Praetorious in a threatening but gleeful way, prancing at times and clapping his hands together. Dr. Frankenstein is not interested in trying to re-animate dead tissue anymore, but Praetorius piques his interest by showing him his new brand of re-animation, or rather, creation of life. Praetorius displays his collection of tiny people kept in glass jars, a king, a queen, a bishop, a ballerina, alive and well and playing pranks. When the tiny people speak, it is with tiny squeaks like cartoon mice. Dr. Frankenstein is horrified, but interested. At one point, the monster finds Praetorius sitting in what looks like an open-air crypt, drinking gin and relaxing. When the monster realizes that it would be possible for Dr. Frankenstein to create a female, he hounds and threatens, with the help of Praetorius, until the doctor agrees.

The gang is all here ... Colin Clive, Elsa Lanchester,

Boris Karloff and Ernest Thesiger

The female is created in the same laboratory (that’s pronounced laBORatory) where the monster was brought to life. Her shroud is much more stylish, though, well-fitted and displaying a fine figure. She opens her eyes – the next scene shows her standing, dressed in a widely-shaped, floor-length, long-sleeved white dress. Her hair is done up in a very chic updo, dark with lightning-shaped white hair on either side. She sees Dr. Frankenstein and likes him, sees the monster and hates him, and utters a few creepy, distinctive echoing cries. The monster sees that she refuses his overtures, and decides he has had enough rejection in his life. He grabs a lever. Praetorius cries “Don’t touch that lever. You’ll blow us all to atoms!” Why such a lever would be installed in the first place is never explained. The monster, in an unusual mood of love for his creator, tells him to leave – “You live! We belong dead!” Then of course, he pulls the lever, and Praetorius’ warning comes true.

********************************************************************************

Rosalind Ayres as the Bride and Ian McKellan as Dr. Frankenstein

I cannot write about Bride of Frankenstein without paying tribute to two movies where it plays major roles. The first is Gods and Monsters starring Ian McKellan as James Whale. In a flashback for Whale, we see him shooting the bride's creation scene. The actor who plays Praetorius turns to Whale and says “Are Colin and I supposed to have done her hair?” Gods and Monsters is a tremendous movie and you shouldn’t miss it.

What a fabulous bunch ... Gene Wilder, Marty Feldman,

Terry Garr, Peter Boyle and Madeline Kahn.

The second movie is, of course, Young Frankenstein. For any lover of the Frankenstein movies, this is a must. It takes elements from Frankenstein, Bride of Frankenstein and Son of Frankenstein. It is one of the greatest comedy films I have ever seen. The wonderful Madeline Kahn plays the woman who becomes the bride, and the scene where she comes out of the bathroom to her new husband, with her hair in that style, is not to be missed. Frankly, I can never watch any of the Frankenstein movies anymore without the hilarious Young Frankenstein always in my mind.  Create a really fun, binge-watching October weekend for yourself – watch the aforementioned original Frankenstein trio. Then watch Young Frankenstein and Gods and Monsters. It will be an experience you won’t forget!

That Special Day When Turkeys Hope Your Family Serves Ham ...

Have a great Thanksgiving, everyone!  Here are a couple of funnies to get you into the spirit ...



Yuck, yuck, yuck ...




Boy, I LOVE Maxine!

My First Article For ClassicBecky's Brain Food, 2 Years Ago Today--"The Most Terrifying Book I Have Ever Read"



Then as now ... autumn is my time

Two years ago today, October 6, 2009, I posted my first article on my new blog.  I wrote about my favorite book of fright, which also was made into the best supernatural horror movie ever made, in my opinion -- The Haunting of Hill House, by Shirley Jackson.  So, without further ado, I am re-printing that inaugural article for ClassicBecky's Brain Food, just for auld lang syne ...
  
*************
10/6/09
It's October, the wind is sighing through trees, leaves are swirling and the night seems darker somehow.  Halloween is coming with its reminders of the demonic and divine.  This is the perfect time to scare yourself to death with one of the best horror novels ever written.

Shirley Jackson, Author

Shirley Jackson wrote The Haunting of Hill House in 1959, and readers ever since have found themselves unable to put down the book even though goosebumps literally run up and down their arms and they are reluctant to look behind them.  Director Robert Wise was given the book to read in 1962 by a friend.  He took it into his office and sat down to read.  He was about half way through when the friend came into his office and spoke.  Wise jumped halfway out of his chair.  He told the friend "I'm going to make a movie of this."


The Haunting of Hill House is the quintessential haunted house story.  The book tells of Dr. Montague, a parapsychologist, who has brought together three people to stay with him in the massive house, the reputation of which is so bad that people from the nearby village will barely speak of it, and never go there.  Since the death of the original owner, the house has been unoccupied because no one who has ever tried has been able to stay.  According to the professor, the house is diseased, leprous with the evil of the man who built it, Hugh Crane.  It is his determination to record the supernatural activity in the house in pursuit of proof of "the other side."


Dr. Montague and his invited guests Eleanor, Theodora and Luke, find their deepest fears and sensitivities challenged by the chilling atmosphere of the house.  Eleanor is a lonely, shy woman, insecure and vulnerable.  Theo is a bright, vivacious woman with the gift of ESP.  Luke is the nephew of the house's current owner, and only sees the house as a future gold mine for himself.  The relationships between these four people, the imposing housekeeper, Mrs. Dudley and her caretaker husband, and the addition of Dr. Montague's wife, a medium, and her stuffy friend Arthur, are all changed by their stay in the house.  The insensitive suffer no ill effects, but others are not so lucky. 

I will not go further into the plot, because it is exactly the events that transpire in the house that will give you the heebie-jeebies.  No spoilers here!  Robert Wise did indeed make the movie in 1963, called simply The Haunting.  It had a stellar cast, with Julie Harris, Claire Bloom, Richard Johnson and Russ Tamblyn. The four main characters were altered in personality and relationship, others were changed or completely left out, and for some unknown reason the doctor's name is changed to Markway.  However, the movie is a stunning experience of terror, and does justice to Shirley Jackson's magnificent writing.


Do yourself an October favor and get The Haunting of Hill House.  Read it at night with just one reading light on.  Then turn on all the lights before you go to sleep, and don't forget to keep your hands well under the covers.....
10/6/09
*************

It's been a real journey during the two years since I made this first attempt.  I knew only a few people who had come together at the TCM site, and decided to break off and make a group of our own, inspired and led by Rick of Classic Film and TV Cafe.  We are still friends, and have made so many others as the Classic Movie Blog Association grew to the wonderful group it is today.  I was lucky to be in the right place at the right time, meeting the right people and finding something I love to do.  Happy autumn, everyone!  Don't forget to read this book, see the movie, and find out, in the words of the great Vincent Price, "how wonderful it is to be scared to death."

Hitchcock and Herrmann--Alliance of Giants

Nothing lasts forever, but their genius will live on in our dreams.

Today, on Alfred Hitchcock's birthday, I cannot help but think of Bernard Herrmann.  Hitchcock and Herrmann were established professionals when they began to work together ... Hitchcock a great director, and Herrmann a great composer.  They did not need each other to be remembered for their work, but together they created a unique partnership in movie history.  Both were strong-willed men, both clung to their own ideas, and their relationship was stormy.  But what matter to us?  Their film alliance produced some of the best movies ever made, because of Hitchcock's incredible film visions and Herrmann's musical genius.

I have always considered Vertigo to be Hitchcock's masterpiece, and believe it was so in large part because of the perfection of Herrmann's musical score.  To celebrate both, I decided to listen to the Main Theme from Vertigo as interpreted by the fabulous Los Angeles Philharmonic and conductor Esa-Pekka-Salonen.  To those who have seen Vertigo, no more needs to be said.  For those who have not, no more needs to be explained as the strongest recommendation to do so.




Alfred Hitchcock (8/13/99 - 4/29/80. 
Bernard Herrmann (6/29/11 - 12/24/75). 
Equals in greatness.

A Tribute To Errol Flynn As His Own Sun Was Setting - His Performance In The Sun Also Rises

Errol Flynn as Mike Campbell in The Sun Also Rises

Errol Flynn died at the age of 50, a little over two years after appearing in 1957's The Sun Also Rises. Ernest Hemingway's novel is a story of people whose lives had been changed forever, some ruined, by the horrors of World War I. Hemingway's characters were damaged human beings who had lost their personal centers of identity with their war experiences, and they wandered in disillusionment and disenchantment. Flynn's character, Mike Campbell, is the most heartbreaking, and his performance was superb. The Sun Also Rises was not his last film, but it was his last significant performance, one which should have put to rest once and for all the ridiculous question of whether or not Errol Flynn was a real actor.

Errol Flynn as Mike Campbell, Eddie Albert as Bill Gorton, and Tyrone Power as Jake Barnes

My piece about this movie is not intended as a review, but as a spotlight for a wonderful actor who was never given his due by the industry to which he gave his talent, and for whose success he played a significant part. In discussing Flynn's work in The Sun Also Rises, it should be noted that the film was criticized for the choices of actors to play the leading roles. All were older than called for. Tyrone Power, Flynn and Eddie Albert were all in their late 40's. As per the usual Hollywood double standard, beautiful 34-year old Ava Gardner, who looked too young to be believable as a contemporary of the men, was cast as Brett Ashley. Gardner did a fine job, but casting her only further pointed up the age factor. Power and Flynn, both of whom battled alcoholism, difficult personal lives and the ravages of time, had lost the beauty of their youth, and this was probably a factor in the criticism as well.  Inexplicably, movie audiences were apparently unaware that youth and beauty do not last forever, even for movie stars, and perhaps they could not forgive their heroes for being real men.  I believe that The Sun Also Rises has its flaws, but it is a great film. This is due in large part to the performance of Errol Flynn.

It has been said that the character of Mike Campbell was so much like Flynn himself that it did not require much acting on his part. To my mind, that criticism shows incredible ignorance of acting as a craft as well as a gift.  Yes, the part of Mike Campbell is that of an aging, alcoholic playboy, but even if an actor drinks in his personal life, he cannot work if he is really drunk, and no director would put up with it.  People who are truly intoxicated are unobservant, clumsy and not sharp enough to work.  Actors have to remember lines, make the mark required for the shot, act with subtlety when required -- Flynn was acting.  It could not have been easy for him either.  Mike was a man of great charm whose looks and fortune were gone, who was no longer receiving the easy attention his youth and beauty once gave him, a  man forced to question all of the decisions of his life.  Flynn at this time was also dealing with the ultimate experience of all people reaching the latter part of life -- seeing the mistakes of our youth catch up with us and trying to deal with it.

Even in his older years, a "colorful fragment in a drab world."
(Pictured here in Crossed Swords)

When he was very young, with all of life before him, Flynn said, "I intend to live the first half of my life. I don't care about the rest." What young person ever truly believes he will get old and ill, or addicted to dangerous habits, or find tragedy in life? That belief in immortality is the charm of youth, and Flynn had more charm than anyone around him. When he matured and found that life as a movie star was not the picture of glamour most of us think, he once said, "It isn't what they say about you. It's what they whisper." There were many whispers surrounding Flynn's life, as well as headline shouts. When he began to age, and cruel remarks were made about him playing caricatures of himself, he said, "I allow myself to be understood as a colorful fragment in a drab world." Flynn was an enigmatic man, charismatic and determined to live fully to the end of his life, but also a man with demons to battle. Olivia deHavilland, who knew him well in his peak career days, said of Flynn, "He was a charming and magnetic man, but so tormented." Most surprising to me, even Jack Warner, known to be a harshly insensitive man who didn't like actors, Flynn included, once said, "Errol Flynn was one of the most charming and tragic men I have ever known."
*Quotes credited to Flynn's own writings and the Internet Movie Database* 

Flynn with Ava Gardner as Brett Ashley

The complex role of Mike Campbell required the ability to play charm, frighteningly-quick anger, self-deprecating humor, jealousy, disappointment and deep sadness. This was not an easy part to play, and despite his personal problems, Flynn was magnificent. The character of Mike carried much of the story's pathos on his shoulders, and Flynn's many scenes are some of the best. He received critical praise for his performance. So he was obviously nominated for an Oscar for best supporting actor, right? No. According to daughter Rory Flynn's website devoted to her Dad:  "A recent Australian documentary on his life and career, narrated by Christopher Lee, included a film clip of Errol Flynn being interviewed on his being nominated for the Academy Award for his critically acclaimed performance in The Sun Also Rises. We are then told that the nomination 'disappeared'.  (http://www.inlikeflynn.com/.) 

That is all I could find out. You know, I'm sure that the incredibly handsome, don't-give-a-damn-what-you-think type of man like Flynn grated a lot of people the wrong way. I'm sure he could be difficult to deal with, as are many people. I'm certain men felt a jealous hate because their women wanted him -- women felt similar emotions because they couldn't have him exclusively. I would bet the family farm that many of these were the very people in the movie industry who had the ability to deny him a well-deserved chance at an award.  Flynn had always wanted very much to be considered a serious actor, and official recognition of this role would have done it for him.

The 1957 Best Supporting Actor nominees would have provided stiff competition for Flynn that year.  Red Buttons, who won for Sayonara, and Sessue Hayakawa, nominated for The Bridge On The River Kwai, both gave fantastic performances. Vittorio de Sica was excellent in A Farewell To Arms.  Flynn had given a performance of a stature that clearly belonged with those.  But do you know who the other two nominees were? Russ Tamblyn and Arthur Kennedy for Peyton Place! No disrespect intended to those actors, but for that movie and those performances, it was an absolute joke. Somebody wanted to be sure Flynn was left out, and did so in such a manner that they may as well have knocked on his door and slapped his face. Shameful.

Even today, when our culture is supposedly more tolerant and open, and when Flynn is loved more than ever before by classic film fans, the movie industry still refuses any tribute to him.  His loving daughter Rory has been trying to get a tribute to her Father from the Oscar people, and recently had to post on her aforementioned website:  "Dear supporters, We have all struggled to have the Academy of Motion Pictures award a posthumous Oscar to Errol Flynn. I am sad to share with you that the academy will not be able to do so. The president of the Academy, Mr. Sid Janis has informed me that the academy will not and has not given the award posthumously. It is a sad moment for me personally and I know to the many who share with me the joy and happiness that Errol Flynn brought to the screen and to our hearts. Thank you for your support. Rory." 

Janis's statement that the Academy does not give posthumous awards is just not true. My blogging friend Caftan Woman advised me that the great Edward G. Robinson had never been awarded an Oscar, and he was dying when the Academy decided to give him an honorary award.  Robinson died before the Oscar ceremony was ever held, yet he was posthumously given the honor he definitely deserved.  Selective regulations do not sit well with me, and I think the Academy's reasoning about Flynn shows incredible hypocrisy in denying this wonderful actor the recognition from his peers that he hoped for during his life.

I am providing a link to Youtube so that any interested readers who have not done so, can see first-hand the quality of Flynn's performance in The Sun Also Rises. Actually, the link is to the entire movie, which surprised me to find. I am providing here the beautiful opening credit, and 3 particular scenes in which Errol Flynn just shines, with the exact places for you to forward and easily find them. If you choose to watch these, the short time it takes is worth every second.

http://youtu.be/d3la1ueMgxw

Opening credits with composer Hugo Friedhofer's magnificent score:
   From the very beginning to the director's credit.

Cafe scene after bullfight:
   1:16:20 - 1:19:16

Outdoor cafe after the fiesta:
   1:34:20 - 1:37:10

My favorite of Flynn's scenes, very short, revealing Mike as he truly is, when no one is looking:
   1:51:20 - 1:53:22


*I wrote and published this article originally on the Classic  Film and TV Cafe movie blog of which I am a member.  I would also like to thank Caftan woman, whose tip about the posthumous Oscar situation was so valuable.  Links to both sites can be found on my blogroll at the sidebar*

Bette Is So Bad!

My favorite picture of Bette Davis ... I wish I could walk around with
venetian blind shadows across my face ... it makes you look so good!

Most of my classic film favorites are on VHS tapes, and we all know those are becoming as obsolete as my old black rotary phone.  The tapes are getting old and the picture and sound quality are deteriorating.  I'm getting panicky about some of the old treasures I have taped off Turner Classic Movies that will never be available on DVD because they are too obscure.  Replace all of my famous favorites with DVDs, you say?  Hah!  Not unless I win the lottery, which I have actually been told is about as likely as having a giraffe with no parachute jump from a plane and crash through your living room ceiling.

Last year I gave myself a birthday present and a Christmas present.  Not that I don't get presents from other people, you understand.  I really do have family and friends who are willing to spend money on me.  These two particular items, though -- I was so greedy that I made sure I got them as gifts by spending my own money on me.  The fact that I had to put off paying the electric and gas bills to do it was a minor point.  I got two of the DVD collections of the movies of Bette Davis.  What a thrill to bring those home!  I lived in Bette-land all weekend with each one I bought.  Today, for some reason I can't explain, I am in the mood to see the great Evil Bette.  Maybe I'm feeling evil, and no one could inspire me to greater heights of meanness than Bette.  So just for fun, I'm going to spend the next couple of evenings (and late nights probably) with Bette at her most bitchy.  Here, in chronological order, are the movies I'm going to devour like a glutton devours dinner:



Jezebel (1938) Bette brazenly embarrasses poor Henry Fonda by wearing a lipstick-red gown at a ball where all young virgins wear white.  Well, maybe there was a good reason she did not wear white, and maybe it was all Henry's fault.  Oh, and later she tries to break up his marriage.  Forgot about that one.



The Letter (1940)  Bette coldly shoots her lover, lies to everybody about it, deceives her trusting husband (Herbert Marshall), hurts him when he finds out the truth, puts him through the torment of forgiving her infidelity, and then tells him ... "With all my heart, I still love the man I killed." 

 Lucrezia Borgia was an amateur compared to Bette.




The Little Foxes (1941) Boy, even her veil looks evil. Bette is a scheming, manipulative woman who has nothing but contempt for her sweet husband (poor Herbert Marshall again!). She wants money from him for a nasty business deal, he won't give it to her, and she watches him die of a heart attack as he desperately tries to find his heart medicine. Why do women like that always get the good ones?



 In This Our Life (1940)  Bette sits as no lady should ever sit with George Brent in the room. She breaks George's heart, steals from Olivia deHavilland (her own sister) the husband that Olivia loves. Bette then drives him to suicide, is nonetheless welcomed home by Olivia and parents, goes out drunk and runs down a little girl, tries to blame it on a young black friend, torments her dying uncle for money, then runs from police, crashes her car and dies. Applause, curtain down, good riddance!



Mr. Skeffington (1944) Maybe this doesn't really qualify as true evil, but Bette is an egotistical woman incapable of love who marries for money (Claude Rains), cares only about her looks, and doesn't want or care about her daughter. She is also really stupid.  Again, a mean woman gets a sweet, loving man.

 It's making me really mad.



Whatever Happened To Baby Jane (1962) Bette at her hammy best as an over-the-top, evil woman. She's also crazy. She's also delusional. And she beats her crippled sister (Joan Crawford) and serves rats to her for dinner. I personally have 4 sisters. I am going to choose carefully who I live with if I can't take of myself!

I hope you enjoyed this trip down Evil Bette lane.  To be fair, sometime I'll do an article about the loving, sacrificial, scared and wounded Bette ... Dark Victory, Now, Voyager, All This and Heaven Too, The Great Lie ... Bette could do anything!

Beware, My Lovely -- Film Noir With A Difference

This is my contribution to the Ida Lupino Blogathon being sponsored today and tomorrow at  www.missidalupino.wordpress.com.  The banner for this Blogathon is posted on my sidebar at right.  Don't miss these wonderful articles about a wonderful actress!


Beware, My Lovely is not a typical film noir. It does not take place in the underworld of Chicago or the back streets of New York. It is not set in modern time, nor does it involve crime bosses or femme fatale molls. Yet, it is as the genre name indicates, a dark movie, tense and disturbing, about a crime already committed and potential crime yet to come. The setting is a small American town in the year 1918. It is Christmas time in a lovely tree-lined neighborhood where children are laughing and playing and the sun is shining.

The film opens in the kitchen of a big-city apartment, where handyman Howard Wilton (Robert Ryan) discovers the dead body of the lady he has been working for. Howard looks at the body, shocked and confused. We know he does not know what to do, and in his fear he flees the building. The next scene opens in the small town described above, in the home of a World War I widow Helen Gordon (Ida Lupino). Helen is cleaning and preparing her house for Christmas. She is also saying goodbye to Walter (Taylor Holmes), her longtime boarder who is moving away. Helen’s niece Ruth (Barbara Whiting), a particularly sullen and malicious adolescent, is being punished by her mother, who has ordered her to help Aunt Helen with her cleaning. Some of Helen’s little piano pupils drop by, and Helen’s little dog is happily romping around with all the company.

Amidst all of this pleasant bustle, Howard walks through the front door. He seems intensely shy and unsure of himself, quiet and gentle. He is looking for work, and Helen decides to hire him for the day to help with the cleaning. Soon Walter is moved out, the children are gone home, Ruth has been released from her punishment, and the dog is outside. Helen is alone with Howard, and so begins a day of terror for her. Howard is mentally unstable, at once menacing and pitiful, sharp and alert one moment, confused and forgetful the next. Helen comes to realize that she is trapped in the house with him, and as she comes to understand the danger she is in, her fear and vulnerability increase with every moment.

Each scene of Beware, My Lovely builds upon the next like the little Russian doll that opens to reveal another smaller doll, than another, until the core is revealed. Screenwriter Mel Dinelli did a wonderful job with this subtly terrifying story. (Dinelli also wrote the screenplay for another of my favorite suspense thrillers, The Spiral Staircase.) There is little more I am willing to reveal about the film because the very nature of it depends upon the unknown. Suffice it to say that this is not a typical story with a typical ending.

Beware, My Lovely began as a stage play and then a radio play in 1945 on the popular Suspense program, starring Agnes Moorhead and Frank Sinatra in his radio drama debut.  Ida Lupino and her husband produced the movie of Beware, My Lovely in 1952. Lupino was one of the first women to begin working behind the camera to produce and direct movies. Director Harry Horner did his usual wonderful job (he also directed one of my favorite movies, The Heiress). The cast was solid, including long-time character actor Taylor Holmes and young Barbara Whiting, the sister of famed singer Margaret Whiting and the daughter of Robert Whiting, a prolific songwriter whose compositions included “Hooray for Hollywood”, “On the Good Ship Lollipop”, and “Too Marvelous for Words”. The art direction was done by the wonderful Albert D’Asgostino, who was also responsible for art direction in The Magnificent Ambersons. Mention must be made of the costume designer, Michael Woulfe. Lupino’s costume with the long hobble skirt popular in 1918 gives her an even greater look of trapped inability to save herself. Ryan’s clothing, including an oddly short tie, is rather dorky and sad, like a man who does not know how to dress himself.

With all these winning elements, the fact is that Beware, My Lovely is Robert Ryan’s film. Audiences accustomed to seeing Ryan as intensely masculine, tall and dominant, saw him in this movie as a sad, tired, mentally ill man. He is indeed menacing, but at the next moment unable to remember what had happened and afraid of his confusion. He terrorizes this woman, and at the same time has gentle feelings for her. His character cannot be pigeon-holed into good guy/bad guy, and Ryan masterfully creates this disturbing presence.  Beware, My Lovely belongs in the film noir genre despite its uncharacteristic elements, maybe even because of the peculiarity of mental volatility and disturbing undercurrents that darken the sunniest day.

(This article was originally posted on the Classic Film and TV Cafe)

I'm Just A Glutton For Punishment -- And I've Got The Link That Will Prove It

I wanted to put something new on my site until my next BrainFood article is finished, so I decided to kill two birds with one stone and provide a link to my new post on the Classic Film and TV Cafe.  Even though I state in the prologue that I might lose friends over this post, I'm taking another chance on losing my non-CMBA friends as well.  Thus, the title I chose for this shout-out to my post at the Cafe.  Besides, the Cafe is a great movie blog, and if you haven't visited it, this is your chance.

This month's theme at the Cafe is "The Five Best", and you can fill in whatever you want.  We've had The Five Best TV Sidekicks, The Five Best Movie Death Scenes (that's me), The Five Best Summer Movies -- you get the point.  These have been such fun and are really good.  My post today is titled "The Five Best TV Comedies I Didn't Like At All".  Talking trash about classic TV comedy is a very dangerous undertaking considering the rabid readership for such topics.  But, I am woman, hear me roar -- and perhaps whimper when people start commenting.

Just click on the link and find out if you like me anymore:

http://classic-film-tv.blogspot.com/2011/07/five-best-tv-comedies-i-didnt-like-at.html.

Apiphobia and Spheksophobia -- Everybody Has A Phobia -- I Have Two!

Spheksophobia - fear of wasps

Apiphobia - Fear of bees












I watched a movie last night called The Swarm.  It was released in 1978 by Irwin Allen as the disaster movie of the year, and it was a disaster.  The cast consisted of - wait for it -Michael Caine, Richard Widmark, Henry Fonda, Fred MacMurray, Jose Ferrer,  Richard Chamberlain, and Olivia deHavilland.  It is my guess that all of them had gambling debts to pay off, and didn't want a visit from Rocko and Luca late some night.  I can't think of any other reason these actors would be in this movie, especially Olivia!  I also can't think of any sane reason why I would watch it.  However, I was tired and lazy last night, and just watched what was on because the remote was on my desk, all the way across the room.

I have a paralyzing fear of bees and wasps.  It's so bad that all I have to hear is hummm and bzzzzz and my heart starts racing, perspiration breaks out on my forehead and I can hardly move.  I don't know where it came from -- I was stung a few times as a kid, like any other kid, no big deal.  But there it is nonetheless.  I'm too scared to even swat at them, so I keep a can of sticky hair spray around.  Aqua Net is best -- use that stuff on your hair and you have an impenetrable helmet.  If you spray the buzzing thing with it, their wings get stuck and they fall like a stone.  Then you can use a big book (I use my Complete Works of William Shakespeare) and squash them.  One time, though, a particularly large wasp took refuge in the runners of my sliding glass door.  So I sprayed him right there, probably using the last of my Aqua Net.  I don't think he died of sticky wings -- I think he drowned.  If I were a Buddhist, I'd be excommunicated, or whatever Buddhists do.
  


I guess my honey-scented shampoo
wasn't such a good idea

The story of The Swarm is very complicated - African bees make their way to Houston and try to kill everybody.  The End.  Actually, the key characters finally figure out how to get rid of the little buzzers, at least the characters that were left after various disgusting bee deaths.  I won't ruin the ending for you in case you want to see a really terrible movie for yourself.

I think I'm allergic
to this facial mask!

In 1967, moviegoers were treated to The Deadly Bees.  I never heard of anybody in it, except Frank Finlay, who is an excellent actor.  Maybe he had an unexpectedly high electric bill when he took the role.  I've never seen it, don't know what method was used to kill the bees, and actually don't really care.  If the writer took a cue from a lot of monster movies, he may have used electricity to do it.  I've always wondered why the military doesn't just electrocute all movie monsters, considering how many times it has been proved to be the only solution.

Wasps!


Come on over here, big boy!

Such a pretty little thing!

Now we turn to wasps.  I don't know of many wasp movies, although I'm sure they are out there somewhere.  The main movie I know of is actually one of my favorite cheesy Roger Corman movies, The Wasp Woman (1959).  Maybe I like it in spite of my phobia is because it is so unrealistic, except for the few parts that show real wasps.  Susan Cabot is unintentionally hilarious as the woman who wants to look young by taking some mad scientist's wasp serum.  She should have just stuck with Oil of Olay.  The poster is completely misleading.  Our wasp woman is Susan Cabot with a wasp head stuck over her own.  It's pretty funny.  But, I just love this movie!

A very disturbing thing happened in 1995.  Somebody actually did a remake of The Wasp Woman.  The filmmaker strikes me as a rather odd guy.  I never saw it, don't know where to find it, and sincerely doubt that it could possibly be better than Corman's movie.  I will say, however, that the wasp costume is pretty cool:

This is the maker of the film.  He decided to play the wasp
woman himself, and thought that modern audiences would
enjoy a more ample bosom with some serious cleavage. 

This is just a picture of a totally insane person trying to break a record for how long a person can stand still with 200,000 bees covering his body -- he needs a fire hose turned on him:

After reading this article, it should not surprise you that this is my favorite movie about bees or wasps:

Environmentalists, please do not chide me.  I know how important
bees are to the natural world.  But if one gets in my house,
he will nonetheless die a horrible, sticky death


If you don't care for my little piece, just don't say anything.
I also suffer from enissophobia!





She Wasn't Wearing That A Minute Ago, Was She?

Oh no!  Tell me it isn't so!

It is late at night, and I was struck by an interesting thought ... and please, faithful readers, no sarcastic quips about how seldom that happens...  It certainly is not a new thought, not even to me.  Just a memory. I was reading an article about the film noir Double Indemnity written by my friend Dorian.  It's a very good read, and because it inspired this little memory post, I'd like to give you the link to it -- at the end of this post.  (I don't want you to leave just yet!)  Included in the article is a Youtube clip about mistakes within the movie.  Mistakes differ from the bloopers that are always fun to watch.   Mistakes have to do with continuity of scenes -- you know, first the actress is not wearing any jewelry and two seconds later she has a necklace on -- that kind of thing.  It got me to thinking about my first realizations about how a movie is actually made.  I won't even tell you how old I was before I found out that movies are not shot in a linear fashion.  I always thought movies were shot from start to finish, like a play.  I had never even questioned that it could be otherwise.

I was still young and wearing the proverbial rose-colored glasses.  I was totally shocked when I found out that an intense love scene, occurring in the middle of the movie, might be the first scene shot, between actors who had just said hello for the first time.  I almost had a heart attack when I learned the truth about the filming of my favorite scene in Jezebel, with Bette Davis on her knees in her beautiful white dress professing remorse and love to Henry Fonda.  Fonda wasn't even there?!  They were never together in that scene?!  He had shot his lines looking into thin air, then left to be with his wife, who was having a baby.  Bette was looking into thin air as well when she performed her part.  Oy, the anguish!  Then it hit me -- if they really had been standing together, looking at each other, wouldn't you see a camera behind him and a camera behind her?  Jeez Louise!  More and more such technical details began to crowd into my brain.  None of that had ever occurred to me before.  Had I stepped into the Twilight Zone?  No, I had taken that big reluctant step into reality, and I didn't like it one little bit.

Well, I got over it.  That is when I really started studying films, not just watching them.  I learned a new-found admiration for acting as a technical art, as well as an instinctual gift.  I still don't know how they do it!  Pieces shot here and there, bits of dialogue, several unrelated scenes in one day.  It's amazing that any performance turns out smoothly, much less with the kind of genius we see in so many of the best films.  Equally awe-inspiring is the work of the director, crew, everybody behind the scenes who make the mish-mosh of film snippets into a work of art.

So what was the interesting memory that struck me?  Well, at least to movie audiences, probably the least-appreciated, least-recognized member of the crew -- the person who has the job of making sure that Humphrey Bogart's cigarette is still only half-smoked in a short scene that might be shot in 3 pieces -- the one who is responsible for checking to be certain that Myrna Loy's cocktail is the same color from one second to the next  At the lower end of the pecking order in moviedom, it's the script girl.  No gender exclusion intended -- it always seems to be a girl in classic movies.  Probably because it was considered rather a secretarial position, also called script clerk or script reader.  These very important members of the crew were usually uncredited, and probably paid minimum wage.  And for the most part, they did a fantastic job.

Every movie has such mistakes -- there are any number of websites and blogs written by people who specialize in watching movies second by second and find every flaw.  That is their hobby, and they enjoy it.  For myself, I just would not want to live with my finger on the pause button, or whatever is done, to find out if Harry Potter's broken glasses were taped on the right side or the left from scene to scene.  You can also find tons of Youtube videos with mistakes and bloopers.

I would love to hear what you may have seen or learned about interesting mistakes in movies.  But before that, I want to pay special tribute to three unsung women  There were more than a few mistakes for which they were responsible in the movie they worked on -- but frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn.  Gone With the Wind is almost 4 hours of hypnotic movie greatness, and as for mistakes, I never noticed.  Here's to the three ladies who helped make sure that Scarlett O'Hara wore the same earrings as she walked up the stairs of Twelve Oaks -- Connie Earl, Franclein Macconel and Lydia Schiller.  A little posthumous recognition is well-deserved!

I'm so glad you stopped by to read my post.  Now you can have the link to Dorian's article -- http://doriantb.blogspot.com/2011/07/double-indemnity-secret-life-of-walter.html.

I Was One Of Those Girls....

It really was like this!

I am experiencing a strange kind of writers's block.  My next post was going to be about famous sci-fi movies behind the scenes.  I don't know, maybe I have been struck by a ray from Mars.  In any case, I've been in the mood for nostalgia, not movie nostalgia, but teenage music memories.  With some of them I actually wasn't yet a teenager at all, just a little girl, but they were famous and I heard them a lot then.  So, just for fun, here are a few that made my heart go pitter-pat, made me cry litttle teen tears, or just made me want to dance.

Gene Pitney -- I had forgotten what a darling he was, with a fabulous voice.  He's singing my favorite of his songs on a British American Bandstand-type TV show.  He is obviously lip-synching, as they usually did then, but it's the best version anyway.




The Dave Clark 5 -- I was madly in love with Mike, the lead singer/keyboard player. Now I remember why!




The Animals -- Eric Burdon was a small guy but powerful, and seemed a little dangerous.  This one was not liked by parents, including mine!  I, of course, loved it!

http://youtu.be/P0-czS8PTBU

The next two songs are...well...let's just say that after the feminist movement came along, you will never hear their like again.

Shelley Fabares -- Those of you who remember the Donna Reed show will get a kick out of seeing this clip from the show where Shelley sings "Johnny Angel".  You will see Donna, and a young James Stacey, before his terrible accident when he lost an arm and leg.





Joannie Sommers -- There were a lot of Johnny's in those days.  This is another one for which I will be chastised by women a lot younger than me.  Hey, I was just a kid in a different time.  I thought it was so romantic!




John Gary -- this last number is not by a teenage heart-throb, but a very popular singer whose career was cut short by the rock music invasion.  Bell-like tenor voice, just a lovely man with an incredible talent.

Had to add one more -- this is for you, FlickChick!  Darlin' Bobby Darin!

http://youtu.be/JUAk-CRNC44

Hope you enjoyed this trip backward in time with me.

Well, Everybody Else Is Doing It!

"You like me ... you really like me!"

No, I'm not channeling Sally Field.  Several of my movie blogging friends have inspired me to acknowledge and thank my followers -- I hit 50!  That's a well-rounded and respectable number!  It is such a compliment when someone likes my stuff well enough to be an official follower.  And the names are great!  You should arrow over their pictures and see some of the clever nom de plumes.  Thanks everybody!  I hope you are still enjoying visiting.  I just love having you here.

Aw, shucks, folks!  Ya shouldn't have!
But I'm glad ya did!

4 CMBA Member Blogs Win Haiku Contest!



The Winners in their triumphant victory march!

 BestforFilm movie site recently sponsored a contest for the best Japanese haiku poetry inspired by movies. It was a big competition, and I am thrilled to congratulate four CMBA blogs chosen as winners: Caftan Woman, Flick Chick, Clara of via Margutta and the the team of Brandie, Carrie and Nikki of True Classics! These winning women are pictured above in appropriate wardrobe ...

Caftan Woman was awarded second prize for her clever and witty haiku based on Charlie Chan on Broadway.  Flick Chick was awarded runner-up for her laugh-out-loud haiku based on Some Like It Hot.  Clara was awarded runner-up for her really funny haiku based on From Here to Eternity.  The True Classics team was awarded runner-up for their unique laugh-with-a-shiver haiku based on Psycho.  Click on this link to view their wonderful work:
http://bestforfilm.com/film-blog/hollywood-haikus-2011-competition-winners/

It just goes to show you how much talent the CMBA has to offer. Kudos, ladies!

Bad Hair Days for Beautiful Stars -- Yes, Even They Had Them!

Today I was in a Sherlock Holmes mood, so I watched Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Weapon with the wonderful Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce.  I was inspired to do this just-for-fun pictorial by the hair stylist who was so incompetent he was able to make handsome, distinguished Basil look silly!  Takes a real lack of talent to do that!  I'm using captions for my little remarks for 2 reasons.  First, they pretty much speak for themselves, and second, fitting text with several pictures is a real pain, as most movie bloggers know!  Enjoy!



Basil Rathbone in Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Weapon.
Really?  Arthur Conan Doyle believed the dead could speak
to us -- why didn't he come back and complain?



Joan Crawford must have had 285 bobby pins
in this every-which-way updo...

Bette Davis in The Little Foxes ... great movie,
fabulous performance ... maybe the hair is
authentic for the era, but sometimes
authentic can be taken too far...

Judy Garland in Meet Me In St. Louis ... again, great movie, great
singer (darling Margaret O'Brien) ...but I never could figure out
 whether those are puffed-up bangs or long hair tortured forward ...

Rudy Vallee ... popular singer, cute face ...
sharply defined hair part and what
looks like 3 cans of Brylcreem ...



Young and beautiful Joan Crawford ... but let's face it,
no decent streetwalker would wear that hairbow!



Silent film star Valkyrien ... I don't know how I feel about the
hair ... but look at that gigantic bonnet thing ...

William Holden in Sabrina ... it's hard to find any picture that
makes Holden look bad ... but yellow hair?  I don't think so ...

I really don't mean to pick on Joan, but she had some weird do's ... same
bangs (?) as Judy, with a groove in the center, but with puffs of hair on
each side ... In the 1920's, they used to call those "cootie garages" ...

I have no idea who this lady is .. it is a happy day for her,
but why did 1920 fashion designers create headgear that came
so far down on the forehead that it looked positively neanderthal ...


Hope you had fun with this look at what are, in my humble opinion, some pretty bad do's!