1930s Hall of Fame [Archive]

Citizen Rules

06-20-18, 03:26 PM

https://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=45445&stc=1&d=1529518431

Everyone is Welcomed to Join!

If you're new to Hofs know that you are required to watch all the movies that are nominated and to participate in the discussions and writing your thoughts on the movies in this Hof. If you need to drop out after this Hof starts:
Do so at the very start, and most importantly PM me if you need to drop out so I know to remove your movie

IMPORTANT:

We've had a problem with people joining HoFs, but never participating, and never saying they've dropped out either. That causes problems!

New HoF members will need to post their movie write ups on a regular basis. 1 write up in the first 2 weeks, and 3 in the first month and so on. That way we know your keeping up. If too much time passes without any activity from someone, their movie with be disqualified.

Members Reviews:

Citizen Rules 7/7 List Sent In
Child Bride (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1917139#post1917139)
The Bride of Frankenstein (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1919364#post1919364)
Gunga Din
(https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1920717#post1920717)Make Way For Tomorrow (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1921223#post1921223)
Bachelor Mother (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1921485#post1921485)
Pepe Le Moko (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1923043#post1923043)
The Scarlet Empress (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1926801#post1926801)

CosmicRunaway 7/7 List Sent In
The Bride of Frankenstein (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1918343#post1918343)
Gunga Din (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1918406#post1918406)
Pepe Le Moko (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1919193#post1919193)
The Scarlet Empress (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1919347#post1919347)
Bachelor Mother (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1921599#post1921599)
Make Way For Tomorrow (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1921757#post1921757)
Child Bride (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1921870#post1921870)

Cricket 6/7 List Sent In
The Bride of Frankenstein (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1916644#post1916644)
Bachelor Mother (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1920319#post1920319)
Pepe Le Moko (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1921357#post1921357)
Gunga Din (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1922103#post1922103)
Child Bride (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1923552#post1923552)
Make Way For Tomorrow (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1925986#post1925986)

Edarsenal 7/7 List Sent In
Pepe Le Moko (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1916621#post1916621)
The Bride of Frankenstein (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1916687#post1916687)
The Scarlett Empress (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1917307#post1917307)
Bachelor Mother (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1921032#post1921032)
Gunga Din (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1922436#post1922436)
Make Way For Tomorrow (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1924921#post1924921)
Child Bride (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1926560#post1926560)

PahaK 7/7 List Sent In
Child Bride (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1916684#post1916684)
The Bride of Frankenstein (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1917672#post1917672)
Gunga Din (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1918339#post1918339)
The Scarlett Empress (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1920702#post1920702)
Pepe Le Moko
(https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1921486#post1921486)Bachelor Mother (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1922381#post1922381)
Make Way For Tomorrow (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1925197#post1925197)

Nathaniel 7/7 List Sent In
Bachelor Mother (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1918422#post1918422)
The Scarlett Empress (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1919383#post1919383)
Gunga Din (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1920883#post1920883)
The Bride of Frankenstein (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1921240#post1921240)
Pepe Le Moko (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1921982#post1921982)
Child Bride (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1923263#post1923263)
Make Way For Tomorrow (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1923480#post1923480)

Siddon 7/7 List Sent In
Bachelor Mother (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1916513#post1916513)
Child Bride (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1916591#post1916591)
Pepe Le Moko (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1924426#post1924426)
Gunga Din (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1925058#post1925058)
The Bride of Frankenstein (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1925975#post1925975)
Make Way For Tomorrow
(https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1926371#post1926371)

The Scarlett Empress (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1926604#post1926604)

.

Citizen Rules

06-20-18, 03:26 PM

The Nominations
1930s Hall of Fame

The Scarlet Empress (1934)
Director: Josef von Sternberg
1h 44min
Nominated by: @cricket (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=68505)
https://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=45616&stc=1&d=1530030971

Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
Director: James Whale
1h 15min
Nominated by: @Siddon (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=95448)
https://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=45618&stc=1&d=1530031001

Pepe Le Moko (1937)
Director: Julien Duvivier
1h 34min
Nominated by: @edarsenal (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=50536)

https://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=45622&stc=1&d=1530031034

Gunga Din (1939)
Director: George Stevens
1h 57min
Nominated by: @CosmicRunaway (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=90868)
https://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=45620&stc=1&d=1530031021

Bachelor Mother (1939)
Director: Garson Kanin
1h 22min
Nominated by: @Citizen Rules (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=84637)
https://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=45617&stc=1&d=1530030993

Child Bride (1938)
Director: Harry Revier
1h 2min
Nominated by: @pahaK (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=100614)
https://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=45619&stc=1&d=1530031007

Make Way For Tomorrow (1937)
Director: Leo McCarey
1h 31min
Nominated by: @Nathaniel (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=100931)
https://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=45621&stc=1&d=1530031028

.

pahaK

06-20-18, 05:42 PM

Nomination sent.

Citizen Rules

06-20-18, 07:55 PM

Reserved

cricket

06-20-18, 07:57 PM

It'd be great if we could also find Camo, Sean, and Vamp. They would certainly join this if they were around. Maybe GBG is interested in getting back in.

Citizen Rules

06-20-18, 08:00 PM

It'd be great if we could also find Camo, Sean, and Vamp. They would certainly join this if they were around. Maybe GBG is interested in getting back in.I asked GBG last night if she wanted to join, I haven't heard back from her. I wish Camo and Sean where around, but it's going on a month since they've last posted. I'm fairly sure Vamp is not coming back, it's been two months since her last post. So many people gone:(

Citizen Rules

06-21-18, 12:08 AM

@Siddon (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=95448) @edarsenal (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=50536) @rauldc14 (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=60169) @Thursday Next (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=9011) and any one else, hey join!....It'll be easy and fun and a good way to watch some 1930s films for the upcoming 1930s Countdown.

P.S. if I didn't mention you it's because I don't like you, ha! Joking of course:p I didn't do the mentions for you guys who already know about this thread, such as Cosmic, Cricket and Okay...I DO hope you guys join!:)...and I probably forgot some people too, but not intentionally:cool:

CosmicRunaway

06-21-18, 03:02 AM

I'm in. I just need to decide on a nomination, which is easier said than done haha.

Siddon

06-21-18, 09:54 AM

I'm actually torn between three nom's right now so let me rewatch them and I'll give you my pick.

Citizen Rules

06-21-18, 01:29 PM

I'm in. I just need to decide on a nomination, which is easier said than done haha. Cool:)

I'm actually torn between three nom's right now so let me rewatch them and I'll give you my pick. and Cool:p

I still haven't decided either. I have a short list of 12 films to consider. Hopefully we get a few more people to join. I'm pretty sure this will be a small Hof.

Thursday Next

06-21-18, 05:54 PM

I don't have time to commit to this right now as it's a busy time of year for me, but have fun, I'll drop in :)

edarsenal

06-21-18, 06:45 PM

I'm in.
Trying to figure out between the french version or the american version of a film I want to nominate.
It may come down to availability of them for others to see.

Citizen Rules

06-21-18, 07:27 PM

I don't have time to commit to this right now as it's a busy time of year for me, but have fun, I'll drop in :) Bummer, I was thinking you might be someone who would like my nom. Maybe you've seen it before, if not you might like it.

I'm in.
Trying to figure out between the french version or the american version of a film I want to nominate.
It may come down to availability of them for others to see. Cool, glad to have you Ed.

CosmicRunaway

06-22-18, 03:33 PM

Citizen Rules

06-22-18, 04:44 PM

Do you have a specific start date in mind? I need to figure out how much time I have to think of a nomination. I'm throwing around a few ideas, but I haven't seen either film in a long time, so I should probably rewatch them first. Especially since I'm worried that one of them might be uncomfortably racist by today's standards haha. Oh, I just seen your post....I'm in no rush to start this. I'm still deciding myself on a nom and so are a couple other people. How long do you need?

Especially since I'm worried that one of them might be uncomfortably racist by today's standards Those are the best kind! (no I don't mean that like it sounds), I mean movies that might be seen as racist today are important so that we can see how things were in the past. And it lends itself to good conversation. And I really like to see more convo going.

CosmicRunaway

06-22-18, 05:07 PM

How long do you need?
I could probably decide today if I had to. I'm just wondering how long I can procrastinate haha.

I mean movies that might be seen as racist today are important so that we can see how things were in the past. And it lends itself to good conversation.
That's a very good point.

Citizen Rules

06-22-18, 05:15 PM

I could probably decide today if I had to. I'm just wondering how long I can procrastinate haha. Ha for a little while:p

The soonest I'd start would be Saturday or Sunday. I'm easy on this and it don't matter to me. Just whenever all the noms come in and everyone wants to start.

edarsenal

06-22-18, 11:13 PM

made up my mind, nomination sent in :)

Citizen Rules

06-22-18, 11:27 PM

made up my mind, nomination sent in :) Thanks Ed. I made up my mind too:cool: It took me awhile but I did it:p OK now we just need @Siddon (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=95448) to send in his nom.

Thursday Next

06-23-18, 06:47 AM

Bummer, I was thinking you might be someone who would like my nom. Maybe you've seen it before, if not you might like it.

Well I might watch it anyway if it seems like something I might like! :)

rauldc14

06-23-18, 09:29 AM

I won't be able to join this one unfortunately but I'll have an eye out for it. I'll probably watch some as well here and there.

Citizen Rules

06-23-18, 02:00 PM

Well I might watch it anyway if it seems like something I might like! :) Whoops, I didn't go with that movie after all. But...maybe you would still like my nom? Maybe you've even seen it. We'll see:p

Citizen Rules

06-23-18, 02:01 PM

I won't be able to join this one unfortunately but I'll have an eye out for it. I'll probably watch some as well here and there. Bummer:(

Siddon

06-24-18, 09:22 PM

Maybe we should do double noms because 7 seems kinda low

Citizen Rules

06-24-18, 09:40 PM

Maybe we should do double noms because 7 seems kinda low I had thought about that, but decided no...as I don't want to make too much of a work load for everyone, as some of us still have films to watch in the Foreign and 16th Hof to watch.

After this one is over, maybe there will still be time to do a 30s Hof Part II. We did 3 50s Hofs in a row once.

BTW who else is around right now?

rauldc14

06-24-18, 10:45 PM

I'm here

Citizen Rules

06-24-18, 10:52 PM

@pahaK (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=100614) @Nathaniel (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=100931) @CosmicRunaway (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=90868) @Siddon (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=95448) @cricket (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=68505) @edarsenal (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=50536)

I'm going to be gone all day Monday, so I'll have to start this on Tuesday evening. Hope you guys can be online for the reveal, around 6:30 P.M. Pacific Standard Time...I'm on the west coast of USA.

We have a neat selection of films:up: Some serious, some scandalous, a comedy, a sci-fi horror, a foreign language, good stuff people!....And most are very short, some are only a bit over an hour. So an easy and fun Hof:)

Citizen Rules

06-24-18, 10:54 PM

I'm hereYeah but you didn't nominate anything:p You can still join bro! Only 7 movies and most are really short.

CosmicRunaway

06-25-18, 03:17 AM

I'm going to be gone all day Monday, so I'll have to start this on Tuesday evening. Hope you guys can be online for the reveal, around 6:30 P.M. Pacific Standard Time.
That is well past my bedtime which I think works out to be around 2:30pm Pacific, so definitely don't adjust your schedule for me. I can always catch up on the reveal the next day while getting ready for work.

Speaking of work, I should probably get moving before I'm late haha.

edarsenal

06-25-18, 09:35 AM

Citizen Rules

06-26-18, 02:14 PM

The Nominations
They're also on the 2nd post.

The Scarlet Empress (1934)
Director: Josef von Sternberg
1h 44min
Nominated by: @cricket (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=68505)
https://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=45616&stc=1&d=1530030971

Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
Director: James Whale
1h 15min
Nominated by: @Siddon (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=95448)
https://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=45618&stc=1&d=1530031001

Pepe Le Moko (1937)
Director: Julien Duvivier
1h 34min
Nominated by: @edarsenal (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=50536)

https://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=45622&stc=1&d=1530031034

Gunga Din (1939)
Director: George Stevens
1h 57min
Nominated by: @CosmicRunaway (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=90868)
https://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=45620&stc=1&d=1530031021

Bachelor Mother (1939)
Director: Garson Kanin
1h 22min
Nominated by: @Citizen Rules (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=84637)
https://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=45617&stc=1&d=1530030993

Child Bride (1938)
Director: Harry Revier
1h 2min
Nominated by: @pahaK (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=100614)
https://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=45619&stc=1&d=1530031007

Make Way For Tomorrow (1937)
Director: Leo McCarey
1h 31min
Nominated by: @Nathaniel (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=100931)
https://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=45621&stc=1&d=1530031028

.

CosmicRunaway

06-26-18, 02:23 PM

I see the nominations went up much earlier than planned. That was a pleasant surprise. :up:

Now that this HoF has officially started, maybe I can get around to rewatching my nomination, which I've been intending to do for the last 3 days haha. In the meantime, here are some initial thoughts:

The Scarlet Empress - After just reading Cricket's review for Der blaue Engel, I'm not at all surprised that this was his nomination, especially since he referenced loving another of von Sternberg's films. It's funny because I actually considered nominating Der blaue Engel for this HoF, so it would've been a funny coincidence for Cricket to have posted about that film not long before the nominations were revealed haha. I haven't actually seen The Scarlet Empress, just parts of it, so I'm interested to finally see the entire thing.

Bride of Frankenstein - I used to love this film. I'm definitely looking forward to watching it again, since it's been quite some time since I last saw it.

Pepe Le Moko - I haven't heard of this before, but Wikipedia's description of it being "considered an early predecessor of film noir" has me quite intrigued.

Gunga Din - This is my nomination. I haven't seen it since I was a kid, and I'm a little worried that parts of it might be considered racist by modern standards, so I hope it doesn't make anyone too uncomfortable. I love adventure flicks and I love Cary Grant, so I'm silently hoping that this holds up better than I think it will.

Bachelor Mother - I don't think I've heard of this one before. I like David Niven, so it should be an interesting watch.

Child Bride - Is this the same Child Bride was that "too awful and disturbing" for MST3K?

Make Way For Tomorrow - This one doesn't sound at all familiar, so I have no comment.

Chypmunk

06-26-18, 02:33 PM

Siddon

06-26-18, 02:47 PM

Make Way For Tomorrow - This one doesn't sound at all familiar, so I have no comment.

That was on my short list to nominate (Emperor Jones, Black Cat, The Good Earth, Things to Come)

I almost nominated The Good Earth but I felt the racial issues would be to hard for people to get over, I also re-watched Emperor Jones though it lost a bit of its power on second watch.

pahaK

06-26-18, 03:01 PM

Besides my own scandalous nomination I think I've only seen Bride of Frankenstein before and that must have been at least 30 years ago. Don't know anything about the others so it'll be kinda interesting.

Siddon

06-26-18, 03:52 PM

https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3027/3001824417_58d4444453.jpg
Bachelor Mother is the story of a sales clerk who through no fault of her own ends up with an orphaned child. Obviously the pay was much better back then as Ginger Rogers is able to afford a single apartment in New York City and a mink coat. Also David Niven is somehow British while his father is American if you can figure that one out.

Anyways moving through the plot holes the film is a decent little comedy romp. Rogers is a compelling and charming lead, they even work in a dance sequence to play to her strengths. The film moves along at a brisk pace even though the gender politics are particularly fascinating. Turns out women can't even finish a sentence back then..now you can never get them to stop yapping <budumpbump>

Fun little watch good pick, put me in a good mood.

Citizen Rules

06-26-18, 03:53 PM

I see the nominations went up much earlier than planned. That was a pleasant surprise. :up: That's because I'm coming down with a flu/cold, and wasn't sure if I'd feel:sick: like posting them later tonight. So I thought I'd better do it while I could!

CosmicRunaway

06-26-18, 03:57 PM

Hopefully you can get some rest and feel better soon, CR.

Citizen Rules

06-26-18, 03:58 PM

Siddon Wow! you're fast, you already watched one:up: The good thing is the films are short. Did you guys see I put the length of the films? That's in case you want to watch two shorties at one time, or just need to budget your time.

the gender politics are particularly fascinating. That's one reason I nominated this as it gives us a window into the views of 1930s and how a single unwed mother would be viewed and treated. Hell it's a history listen wrapped up in a comedy.

Citizen Rules

06-26-18, 03:59 PM

Hopefully you can get some rest and feel better soon, CR. I have some light work to do at home, but I'll see, maybe it will be a 24 hour bug, I hope.

Nathaniel

06-26-18, 03:59 PM

Nice varied set of nominations.

Seen Pepe Le Moko & my own but I'll give them a rewatch for this. Everything else is up in the air.

Similar to Cosmic, I have not seen Gunga Din since I was a kid. Glad it was nommed as I don't think I would have rewatched before the countdown. Should be interesting...

Citizen Rules

06-26-18, 04:00 PM

I forgot to say, if you guys find links online, please PM them to me. I need them + I can save them for anyone else who might need them later.

CosmicRunaway

06-26-18, 04:00 PM

Did you guys see I put the length of the films? That's in case you want to watch two shorties at one time, or just need to budget your time.
I noticed that, and thought it was a nice addition. :up:

Luckily none of these films are particularly long, so I should be able to watch them on weekdays instead of waiting for my days off. :cool:

pahaK

06-26-18, 04:05 PM

I'll post a review of my own nomination tomorrow. Watched it few days ago when I was trying to choose what to nominate. Wrote most the of the review then but will do some polishing when I wake up.

Citizen Rules

06-26-18, 04:24 PM

I think we've a cool bunch of noms! I'm excited to watch these. My initial thoughts.

The Scarlet Empress (1934)
I haven't seen it, but, I'm a big fan of Marlene Dietrich and I've seen her in a number of things including The Blue Angel, so this early film will be a treat.

Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
I seen this long ago, and I love 30s sci-fi horror and this should be fun too.

Pepe Le Moko (1937)
Ed picks good ones and I'm interested in this as it has Jean Gabin from one of Ed's other noms, The Grand Illusion.

Gunga Din (1939)
Big fan of Cary Grant here, I mean who doesn't like Cary! I'm very curious as to what the potential racially insensitive material is. Hopefully we can have some good convos about it.

Bachelor Mother (1939)
My nom, and I decided to go with a comedy. Ginger Rogers is in my top 10 of favorite all time actress and this is a happy film, and it makes one ponder the changing social roles too.

Child Bride (1938)
This looks cool! It looks to be a wild ride. Very curious about this one, which I also hope makes some good convo.

Make Way For Tomorrow (1937)
I've not seen this before but I do know the work of some of the actors Victor Moore, Beulah Bondi, Fay Bainter, and all of them are worth watching!

cricket

06-26-18, 04:57 PM

Bride of Frankenstein

1 of less than 5 movies I've already seen that I was planning on watching again for the countdown. It used to be my favorite of the old monster movies, but it's been many years since I've seen it.

Pepe Le Moko

Never heard of it before. If I had, it would have been on my watchlist already. I like the lead actor.

Gunga Din

I know nothing about it but it was already on my watchlist due to it's inclusion on the top 100 Cheers list.

Make Way for Tomorrow

I know nothing about it but it was already on my watchlist due to it's inclusion on Ebert's great movies list.

Child Bride

This is a very controversial movie that I already knew about. I am uneasy having to watch it, but watch it I will.

Bachelor Mother

Never heard of it before and it would appear to be an underdog on my list. Ginger Rogers is definitely a plus though.

The Scarlet Empress

As most of you know, I do not care for historical films. That should tell you that this is not the typical historical film. I think it's pretty wild and unique and I love it. It's on the Ebert list and I forgot to check before if anyone had seen it. A couple of you have already but I still think it'll do well.

Siddon

06-26-18, 06:40 PM

https://i.ytimg.com/vi/SG6ZAFnSIns/hqdefault.jpg

Child Bride (1938) yeah this was terrible....it's borderline child pornography. Also their is a subplot with a little person in it...for reasons I can't even begin to get into. Basically this is a exploitative film about Appalachian people the teacher wants to get rid of the child marriage but she's mostly the sub plot.

Really the main story is about how this family falls apart and how Jennie ends up married to Jake Bolby (the pedophile). I can see how Mystery Science Theater would want to tackle this because of all the hilarious domestic violence, misogyny, and how ridiculous they make Appalachian people look. However at the end of the day the film is garbage

Citizen Rules

06-26-18, 07:49 PM

Child Bride (1938) yeah this was terrible....it's borderline child pornography...I can see how Mystery Science Theater would want to tackle this because of all the hilarious domestic violence, misogyny, and how ridiculous they make Appalachian people look. However at the end of the day the film is garbage :eek:Hmmm, I'll have to see if I can watch this one tonight. Seeing how it's a public domain movie it's easy to find....and only an hour too.

edarsenal

06-26-18, 08:28 PM

Pepe Le Moko was remade by Hollywood a year later as Algiers if that maybe rings more of a bell for those unaware of it. Glad to see it nominated in this as it means at least someone else here enjoys it :up:

CORRECT-AMUNDO!!!!

The Scarlet Empress (1934) I have seen this when we did a serious Marlene Dietrich binge a few years back, and thought it was great, so looking forward to a rewatch. Which I had planned to do along with a couple others of hers. VERY happy to see her represented in this HoF.

Bride of Frankenstein (1935) An excellent choice for a horror flick of the 30s. When I saw someone picked a horror I was wondering if it was Frankenstein, or maybe Dr Jekyll & Mr Hyde. . . but this is perfect! And it's been DECADES since watching it, so, YAY

Pepe Le Moko (1937) Chympunk IS correct, this was remade as Algiers with Charles Boyer and Hedy Lamar, which I love. Was actually going to go with that and then, this week, while looking up Algiers on youtube I came across a clip of this. THEN I researched it. It came out the year before, was loved all around the world and, either the director or the film studio in Hollywood bought the rights to it, kept it shelved in America until they made Algiers and redistributed it. The director practically shot it frame by frame, using the original stock footage from Algiers AND all the secondary actors. There is a minimal change in dialogue and how the final scene comes to be, but that's about it.
This IS the far better film with a much better leading actor that truly pulls off the role brilliantly and more convincing than Boyer. (Though don't get me wrong, I love Boyer).

This is about a French thief hiding out in the section of Algiers known as Casbah for the past 2 years to the local, and French authorities frustration. Then, along comes a beautiful woman from Paris that may change everything.

Gunga Din (1939) Have ALWAYS wanted to see this, and NOW I can!!

Bachelor Mother (1939) I may or may not have seen this. Ginger Rogers is excellent at comedy so, either way, very excited to watch this.

Child Bride (1938) Just read Siddon's review on this. Intrigued to see where they go with this.

Make Way For Tomorrow (1937) This is actually unknown to me, I think. so, should be pretty cool.

edarsenal

06-26-18, 09:02 PM

http://www.museobbaa.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/pepe-le-moko.jpg

Pépé le Moko

As I've stated, my original nom would have been the remake to this, BUT, once seeing THIS, AND with Citizen Rules assistance in finding it online, (THANKS - YOU ROCK) there was NO WAY I'd have gone with the remake, Algiers, regardless of my past love of it.

There has been several references to this film as being one that could easily be tagged as noir BEFORE noir came into being. With not only the cinematic style, but with many of the story plots and characters that would become a staple of the genre.
There is also a belief that this character is the inspiration for the cartoon skunk, Pepe le Pew lol
https://78.media.tumblr.com/1930af005216022bd2105b30921ff404/tumblr_p41rop4sdt1uhsa09o1_500.gif

Filmed partially in Algiers with some very well constructed, and detailed sets filmed in studios, we delve into the labyrinth of the Casbah. Home to the criminal element through out the world, with one, in particular, Pépé, who is beloved and feared by them all. Played with the charm and danger befitting the character by Jean Gabin.
Along with the police force that DARE NOT attempt to arrest him within the Casbah, is the clever and patient Inspecteur Slimane, who is both friend and enemy to le Moko.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNjdmNmYyNDQtZmEwOS00OGZjLTk2ZDUtNTlhZThhZTNiMTU1XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTI3MDk3MzQ@._V1_UY317_CR105,0,2 14,317_AL_.jpg

This movie provides an excellent, and, at times, gritty look into their world and how the "chase" of the past becomes shifted and tossed about with the entrance of a gorgeous woman from Pépé's beloved Paris, his home, which he misses terribly.

I am thrilled that I came across this, for me, unknown original.
Hope you all enjoy it!

cricket

06-26-18, 09:33 PM

I'm not going to read it yet but that picture at the top looks awesome.

edarsenal

06-26-18, 09:46 PM

I'm not going to read it yet but that picture at the top looks awesome.

Got my fingers crossed it may be up your alley.

cricket

06-26-18, 09:59 PM

The Bride of Frankenstein

https://scifist.files.wordpress.com/2014/11/1935_bride_of_003.jpg

Like I said before, I was glad to see this nominated because it's been 30 plus years since I last saw it. I remembered it as my favorite of the old monster movies, but I also remembered it having a lighthearted element and I wasn't sure if I would still enjoy it.

I thought it started off great picking up where the first movie left off. The comedic element quickly reared it's ugly head, and I found it most noticeable with the music. It was a bit of a distraction as I wished for darker horror, but it actually worked a good amount of the time. I thought watching the monster drinking and smoking was a riot. In fact that whole scene was a great one. The horror part of the movie is pretty awesome and that is definitely the big appeal to me. The set design is a huge asset and Elsa Lanchester is a total babe. The iconic part when he screams "She's alive, alive!", I swear that is in one of my favorite movies, maybe someone watching a movie within a movie type of thing, but I can't think of which one. In closing, I wouldn't quite call this movie a favorite but it's a great watch.

3.5

cricket

06-26-18, 10:01 PM

I noticed that, and thought it was a nice addition. :up:

Luckily none of these films are particularly long, so I should be able to watch them on weekdays instead of waiting for my days off. :cool:

I was thinking the same thing and it's pretty much what I've been doing with the average 30's movie being not very long.

edarsenal

06-26-18, 10:27 PM

great lil write up, cricket, I actually just started watching this as well.

I agree about the shortness making them easier to slip into the weekday viewing.

mark f

06-27-18, 12:03 AM

"It's alive, alive!"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-UJ9K8lMxPA

pahaK

06-27-18, 12:19 AM

Child Bride (1938) N

A controversial movie about the child marriages in the Ozarks that's often (and not completely without reason) labeled as an exploitation film.

http://www.badmovies.org/othermovies/childbride/childbride6.jpg

Story revolves around the progressive teacher who's campaigning against child marriages, a group of local men who see no reason to change the local customs and young Jennie and her family. Jennie's father is already in bad terms with the leader of the group, Jake, and things escalate when he saves the teacher from tarring and feathering.

Jennie's father is no perfect though. When drunk he at times beats his wife. On such an occasion Jake kills him and frames the wife. In exchange for his silence he demands Jennie to become his wife. To prevent her hanging Jennie's mother agrees and Jennie marries Jake (for a very short time).

Film's notoriety came mostly from nudity by Shirley Mills who was 12 at the time. Being done in 1938 it was post-code but as an independent production and claiming to be educational it managed to bypass the restrictions. The nudity is rather mild but camera does like her butt during the swimming scene so exploitation reputation is somewhat deserved but in my opinion the scene was justified by the story.

Technically the film is a mixed bag. Some scenes (like the whole stormy night when Jennie's father is killed) look genuinely good and cinematography in general is decent. Script has its moments but especially the dialogue is pretty bad at times. Acting is generally quite bad but Jake and (for the most part) Jennie do okay. Jennie's friend Freddie is especially terribly acted.

I was positively surprised by the quality of this film. It's not great by any means but perfectly passable. It's notoriety as borderline child pornography is vastly exaggerated and to me it seems that most people are offended just in case.

3-

edarsenal

06-27-18, 12:30 AM

http://basementrejects.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/bride-of-frankenstein-1935-experiment-doctor-septimus-pretorius-colin-clive-ernest-thesiger-review.jpg

The Bride of Frankenstein

We belong dead.

This was a great little revisit to a film I don't think I've watched since my 20's if not late teens.
So much of it, beyond the iconic final scene, that I had forgotten, and so much of that made me think of Mel Brook's Young Frankenstein, since he did use this, along with Whale's first Frankenstein film as base material to create his comedy from, along with Gene Wilder.

Forgotten the wild, devilish demeanor of Dr. Pretorius, (Ernest Thesiger) whom I remember from my favorite A Christmas Carol (1953) when he played the Undertaker. There is also a great little cameo by John Carradine as one of the hunters that show up at the Old Blind Man's cottage. As well as the return of Dwight Fry, this time as one of the assistant murderers. And, of course, Clive Owen reprising his manic Dr. Frankenstein and his great reluctance to continue his experiments.

With a few comedic moments in this, it still remains a great old time monster film.
It's actually pretty amazing the body count The Monster runs up throughout this film. He does take out quite the number of villagers.

And, as the first film, the darkly lit castle and the bringing to life scene, is still pretty amazing. Along with those moments where Karloff gets to bring some emotion (genuine sadness, fear, longing) to the creature. Really love those moments.
And, of course, Elsa Lanchester was pretty d@mn incredible as The Bride. And, yes, cricket, she is very much, a total babe!

Great choice in old horror, Siddon! NICELY done!

Citizen Rules

06-27-18, 02:52 PM

https://flavorwire.files.wordpress.com/2014/04/childbride.jpg?w=1920

Child Bride (1938)

Different, I'll say that...I did actually like the overall story premise of moon shiners, louts and dirt poor farmers, but the acting was mostly crummy. I read that many of the cast were non-actors, and it showed. Though the girl who played Jenny was pretty good.

Interesting trivia, the little person (Don Barrett), is Angelo Rossitto (https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0744441/?ref_=tt_cl_t9) who was 'Master' in the Master-Blaster of Mad Maxx Beyond Thunder Dome.

So let's cut to the chase: Child Bride is notorious for having an underage girl topless. Now that's been done many times before in movies. In the 8th Hof (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?t=42907), we had a Swedish film, My Life as a Dog (1985), that had underage nudity. In that Hof many people didn't have a problem with the 14 year old actress appearing topless. Here's what I wrote:

My Life as a Dog
While I liked the majority of the film, I did not like the scenes where a 12 year old girl (played by a 14 year old actresses) exposed her breast to the camera. Over 18 being topless, no problem!...but I don't want to see a little girl semi nude in a movie, yuk!

Maybe this is a cultural thing and in Sweden it was considered enduring and natural....
Luckily in Child Bride the video quality was so poor that I couldn't see any detail (thank goodness!)

What bugged me was knowing the real actress, who was a 12 year old girl at the time, appears to have been completely nude in front of a bunch of men (the film crew)...That's creepy to me and so sad. I have to wonder why this was shown in the film at all? If there had been no nudity it might have gotten a much broader release and made more money.

As it was made, it was a 'blue film' and might have been shown at 'smokers' which were all male gatherings where the guys smoked, drank and watched racy movies. But why in the hell would they want to see a naked 12 year old!

Interesting nom @pahaK (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=100614) I'm glad you nominated it.

edarsenal

06-27-18, 11:51 PM

https://dustyflix.files.wordpress.com/2017/08/scarlet-empress-8.jpg

The Scarlet Empress

One of a number of great films from Marlene Dietrich, and one very worth watching and enjoying.
It centers around the beginning years of Catherine the Great's life upon arrival to court in Russia and her marriage to Peter III, referred to in the film as Grand Duke Peter, who, with a nice little cross over to another film in this HoF, is played by Sam Jaffe, who also plays Gunga Din in the film of the same name. (Always do enjoy these little crossovers)

One of the things I love about this role is that we get to see Dietrich begin as a naive innocent upon her arrival to the Russian court. And, in time, we see the transference to the confident gamester that learns "how" to play to win, and does just that. I just love watching her grow from a "child" to a knowledgeable and cunning woman who would rule Russia.
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_zGreRPcsAtg/SX_oeRHA3uI/AAAAAAAAAeA/_L3W0sBjAYM/s400/ScarletEmpress6.jpghttp://iv1.lisimg.com/image/4633316/500full-the-scarlet-empress-screenshot.jpg

She also has a number of great individuals working along side her. Louise Dresser as the fiery Empress Elizabeth and the romeo of the court, Alexi, played with sultry charm by John Lodge; both of which capture your attention every time they were on screen.

I can also not forget the morose statues and architecture of the palace that has such a tangible role in it all.
http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6039/5907965288_9bbb0d457f_d.jpghttp://2.bp.blogspot.com/_zGreRPcsAtg/SX_oBUXPSNI/AAAAAAAAAdw/hFIq00eeXKE/s400/ScarletEmpress5.jpg

I think the only oddball comment I have is some of the things on the numerous placards in the beginning of the movie that get pretty catty about Russia.
This isn't a critique, simply an amusing side note that made me chuckle about.

Still, an epic film contained cleverly within small sets; rife with intrigue - like any good royal story should.
F@ckin BRAVO cricket for nominating it!!

Citizen Rules

06-28-18, 01:59 PM

With Ed's review we now have 8 total movies reviewed. And Ed's done 3 of them! Way to go guys:)

CosmicRunaway

06-28-18, 03:47 PM

And now I feel like a slacker, haha.

Citizen Rules

06-28-18, 04:02 PM

And now I feel like a slacker, haha.Ha, I almost type that!:p:)

pahaK

06-28-18, 04:37 PM

Bride of Frankenstein (1935) r

In hindsight I shouldn't have watched Frankenstein before this because then the terrible continuity errors wouldn't have bugged so much.

45695

So the monster survived the fire, there's a new doctor in town who creates mini-people from nothing and wants Frankenstein's help to create a full-sized mate for the monster. Frankenstein is reluctant but Pretorius has the monster kidnap his wife to force his hand. In the end there's no happily ever after for the monster but at least Frankenstein is redeemed in its eyes.

This being a direct sequel for the Frankenstein the start is quite confusing. So the old baron is suddenly dead, burgomaster has transformed into Frederick Kerr wannabe and the staff of Frankenstein household has vanished and been replaced by Minnie. And this all has happened during the first film's end sequence. Couldn't they even try?

Another issue is the overuse of (bad) comedy. First had some comedic scenes but it tried to be a suspense film. The sequel doesn't know what it wants to be (just like its writers didn't bother to check what happened in the first). It's a shame because some of the more serious parts are actually pretty good and the whole idea of the bride isn't bad (as proved by the series Penny Dreadful).

Visually Bride is much better and more consistent than the first film. Lightning and shadows are used to much better effect. Directing is also tighter. Acting is pretty bad at times (especially in the intro and early discussions with Dr. Frankenstein and Elizabeth), Karloff is decent as a monster but little uneven.

Overall this is little weaker than the first even though the good parts are actually better than anything in it. Too much comedy, continuity issues with the first film and few details that just didn't fit (like those mini-people) keep the popcorn at rather low levels.

2.5

Citizen Rules

06-28-18, 06:06 PM

Seems The Bride of Frankenstein is trending:p Oh, just noticed we have two 'Bride' movies...coincidence?

edarsenal

06-28-18, 07:37 PM

With Ed's review we now have 8 total movies reviewed. And Ed's done 3 of them! Way to go guys:)

And now I feel like a slacker, haha.

don't worry, this rate won't last long :nope:;)

Citizen Rules

06-28-18, 08:38 PM

don't worry, this rate won't last long :nope:;)Errghhh!:p

At least the films are short!

edarsenal

06-28-18, 11:29 PM

Errghhh!:p

At least the films are short!

just need to be sure to knock out the 16th and Foreign as well :)

CosmicRunaway

06-29-18, 03:47 PM

Warning: Potential spoilers for Penny Dreadful below.
It's a shame because some of the more serious parts are actually pretty good and the whole idea of the bride isn't bad (as proved by the series Penny Dreadful).
Is this in reference to Billie Piper's character? It didn't click right away with me, since I didn't find her compelling at all. I did not like Piper's performance, so by extension her storyline kind of irritated me. Maybe I would've found it more interesting if the character had been played by a different actress.

pahaK

06-29-18, 04:09 PM

Warning: Potential spoilers for Penny Dreadful below.

Is this in reference to Billie Piper's character? It didn't click right away with me, since I didn't find her compelling at all. I did not like Piper's performance, so by extension her storyline kind of irritated me. Maybe I would've found it more interesting if the character had been played by a different actress.

Yes, I'm talking about Billie Piper. I agree that the series didn't use her to full potential but I liked the character.

pahaK

06-29-18, 04:46 PM

Gunga Din (1939) N

Three Stooges fighting Thuggees in British India with some help from faithful noble savage.

45716

At least I now know where the plot for Temple of Doom came from. In essence it's the same movie where Indy @ Co. is replaced by three army officers and one water bearer. Murderous cult is rearing its ugly head but the mighty Englishmen are there to save the day.

The film focuses way too much on the three leads twisting their faces and attempting to look so damn funny. All the comedic elements felt completely forced and I don't think I snickered even once. The story itself could have worked with less (or at least better) humor and more investment to the actual plot.

The big fight at the end looks good considering the age of the film. Otherwise it's quite uninspired in every way. Kinda like modern Hollywood spectacle but form the 1930s (wait... it is exactly that). It looks and feels like professional work but it lacks something that would bring it to life.

Old adventure / action films also suffer from really bad fight scenes. I guess it's unfair to compare them to modern fully choreographed fights but those old fisticuffs make me shake my head (especially when heroes are superhuman manhandling bad guys like an adult fighting a bunch of children). But action is a big part of these films so I can't just ignore it.

I found Gunga Din pretty boring and would much rather watch Mola Ram and Indy butt heads.

1.5

CosmicRunaway

06-29-18, 05:25 PM

https://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=45718

Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
Director: James Whale
Starring: Colin Clive, Ernest Thesiger, Boris Karloff

Since it had been nearly two decades since I last saw Bride of Frankenstein in its entirety, I was looking forward to revisiting it, especially since my understanding and perception of film has changed so much since I was a child. I was mostly curious to find out if I had blurred parts of the 1931 Frankenstein into this sequel, and whether or not films like Young Frankenstein might have coloured my perception of certain sequences.

The biggest surprise for me was how much of the comedy in Bride was actually intentional. While I do think the humour worked well overall, there were some moments when it felt oddly out of place. For example, an early scene where the villagers had to be forced away from watching the fire made me feel like I was watching a Monty Python sketch, perhaps due to Una O'Connor's shrill voice and quirky mannerisms. On that note, there were far too many shrieks and sudden screams for my delicate ears to handle, and I found myself adjusting the volume more often than I would've liked.

One thing that did not change was my fondness for Pretorius. Ernest Thesiger always commanded my attention whenever he was on screen, and he stole every scene he was in. I would've loved to see more interaction between him and Frankenstein, since I found their scenes to be infinitely more engaging than the Monster's interactions with a world he can never belong to. The Monster's “outsider” story didn't resonate with me as strongly as it should have, but that may just be a consequence of having seen those same themes in countless films since this was made.

While I always liked the climactic finale in the laboratory, my memories did not do it justice. The camerawork and cinematography become more Expressionist than in the previous scenes, with angles and contrast that almost make it seem like another film entirely. It was absolutely beautiful. The Bride does not appear on screen for very long, but she leaves quite the impression in her wake. Bride of Frankenstein definitely ends on a much stronger note than it starts, and I honestly don't understand why the opening with Mary Shelley wasn't cut. It's inclusion only seems to service giving Elsa Lanchester more screen time. As lovely as she is, that unfortunately isn't enough justification for me.

cricket

06-29-18, 07:27 PM

Going in,^^I also figured that I had blurred Frankenstein and Bride of.

CosmicRunaway

06-29-18, 07:51 PM

cricket

06-29-18, 08:39 PM

I did notice it as it seemed like a point was made to emphasize it. I read why but I forget now.

CosmicRunaway

06-29-18, 09:35 PM

https://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=45726

Gunga Din (1939)
Director: George Stevens
Starring: Victor McLaglen, Cary Grant, Douglas Fairbanks Jr.

While it is difficult not to cringe at the abundant use of “brown face” throughout Gunga Din, the film is simply a product of its time and not overtly or actively racist in its presentation. It was fortunately not the uncomfortable relic of a bygone era I feared it might be when I nominated it. As such, I was able to enjoy the film as the comedic action-adventure flick it was, with just the occasional shake of my head or eye-roll.

The sets and outdoor locations throughout the film were beautiful, particularly those in and around the temple. The cinematography was a pleasure to watch, though no one specific moment jumps to mind. The film has its own sense of humour, as well as some unintentional laughs. I found the visible strings attached to the snakes in the temple's pit so hilarious that I had to pause the film to show my room mates. It was just a lot of fun.

Most of the runtime focuses on McLaglen. Grant, and Fairbanks, who luckily have a great deal of chemistry together. I vastly prefer Cary Grant's comedic roles to his more serious ones, but his performance sometimes felt a bit odd here. His accent constantly slid on a moving scale between Cockney and the Transatlantic accent he is known for, then back again – sometimes in the same sentence. While definitely distracting, he was still entertaining.

I love adventure films, and Indiana Jones in particular. So despite a few problems, Gunga Din is exactly the type of film I like to indulge in. I really wish I had more to say about it. It's not going to be to everyone's taste, but it's a piece of cinematic history that I think is worth watching at least once.

Nathaniel

06-29-18, 10:05 PM

Bachelor Mother (1939)
45723

I knew absolutely zero going into this. I appreciate the relative obscurity, had a quick look and this has just over 3000 ratings on IMDB.

If I had to describe it:

Ginger Rogers finds herself haplessly thrown/pushed/cajoled/threatened into motherhood in this dark tale of societal pressure and sexism. Oh, and it's a comedy.

Ultimately, it worked out ok for me, mainly down to the contrast that's made between male/female pressure and rich/poor experience. Whether that was the director's intention or not is questionable but I found it interesting looking at it from a 30s context. The character of Polly Parish moves through this story like a puppet on a string. Just a sign of the times. The comedy was more charming than funny which suits the plot to a degree. However, there isn't anything out of the ordinary here in terms of dialogue or camerawork for this time frame.

Rodgers and Niven are both good but I don't think they mesh that well together barring a couple of scenes. Niven's butler played by EE Clive (Who is a part of the cast of Bride of Frankenstein) actually had me laughing a couple of times with his stand out facial expressions. This was an enjoyable, brisk 82 minutes.

Citizen Rules

06-30-18, 01:15 PM

Bachelor Mother (1939)

....Ultimately, it worked out ok for me, mainly down to the contrast that's made between male/female pressure and rich/poor experience. Whether that was the director's intention or not is questionable but I found it interesting looking at it from a 30s context. The character of Polly Parish moves through this story like a puppet on a string. Just a sign of the times...

Thanks for your review. If you check the 1st post, I've added links for all the member's reviews. And I've added your's too:)

So now everyone is on the board:p yahoo!

edarsenal

06-30-18, 04:07 PM

Yes, I'm talking about Billie Piper. I agree that the series didn't use her to full potential but I liked the character.

Going in,^^I also figured that I had blurred Frankenstein and Bride of.

So, what was irritating about her, Cosmic?

I enjoyed her as well, and, at first, I had a hard time getting used to the path her character, which did make sense.
on how her and her "followers" were all taken out, though. Perhaps they saw it has a little TOO big a subplot to allow to go any further than it had.

edarsenal

06-30-18, 04:10 PM

Before I forget, did anyone else notice that Boris Karloff is just referred to as "Karloff" in the opening credits? For some reason I found that highly amusing haha.

I wonder what the earliest example is, of an actor not needing to be credited by their full name for audiences to still recognize them. (Also: is there an easier way to structure this sentence? haha)

I did notice it as it seemed like a point was made to emphasize it. I read why but I forget now.
I think it may had to do with how it was a "?" in Frankenstein and to play on that, they simply left it as his last name only. (this is PURELY a guess and no actual fact to back it up)
Which, I think, going by that guess they did the same "?" with The Bride.

And yeah, seriously found myself doing comparisons with Young Frankenstein and seeing which scenes were a source of inspiration.

Citizen Rules

06-30-18, 04:21 PM

Oh...I so need to watch The Bride of Frankenstein, maybe tonight. That way I can know what you guys are talking about. I swear one day an Hof should have a movie per week, where everybody watches the same film. I think that would get conversation going.

CosmicRunaway

06-30-18, 04:50 PM

I think it may had to do with how it was a "?" in Frankenstein and to play on that, they simply left it as his last name only. (this is PURELY a guess and no actual fact to back it up)
Which, I think, going by that guess they did the same "?" with The Bride.
I haven't seen Frankenstein in almost two decades as well, so I forgot about that aspect.

In the opening credits to Bride they do have a "?" next to "The Monster's Mate", which I assumed that was a reference to the plot of the film itself. I thought that was clever, but in retrospect it was probably just following the trend from the first film's credits.

Warning: Potential Spoilers for Penny Dreadful below.
So, what was irritating about her, Cosmic?

I enjoyed her as well, and, at first, I had a hard time getting used to the path her character, which did make sense.
on how her and her "followers" were all taken out, though. Perhaps they saw it has a little TOO big a subplot to allow to go any further than it had.
Basically everything. :lol:

Her accent at the start was absolutely horrible, though thankfully it did get dropped later on. I didn't like her relationships with the other characters, though towards the end when she started taking more control of her life, I did start to respect her a tiny bit. I still really wanted her character to get killed off though.

It's funny because I remembered being fine with her when she was in Doctor Who, but when she reappeared in a later season, there was something about her I just didn't like, and that seemed to have carried over into Penny Dreadful. A sort of unfounded, immediate resentment that I can't explain.

CosmicRunaway

06-30-18, 04:52 PM

I swear one day an Hof should have a movie per week, where everybody watches the same film. I think that would get conversation going.
I do think that's an interesting idea, but it would take quite a bit of planning, especially since everyone would need access to the same films each week. There'd probably need to be extra time granted after the nominations are revealed to track down each film before things really kick off.

Citizen Rules

06-30-18, 05:41 PM

I do think that's an interesting idea, but it would take quite a bit of planning, especially since everyone would need access to the same films each week. There'd probably need to be extra time granted after the nominations are revealed to track down each film before things really kick off. It's too late now, but what I was thinking for future Hofs is: that after the reveal everyone would post back in a day or two what films they can easily find and we could collectively come up with a watch list, 1 movie title per week....BUT strictly optional as I know people like to go at their own pace and do their own thing. So just as a fun thing and not a rule. Well maybe next time.:p

CosmicRunaway

06-30-18, 05:47 PM

https://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=45733

Pépé Le Moko (1937)
Director: Julien Duvivier
Starring: Jean Gabin, Lucas Gridoux, Mireille Balin

While it does lack the sharp contrast and dominant shadows that became a key visual component to film noir, there are a number of distinct “pre-noir” elements in Pépé Le Moko's aesthetic and story that I naturally appreciated. Parts of the film did seem incredibly familiar, so it's possible that I may have seen the American remake at some point, likely on TV without even knowing what I was watching, which was typically the case for these older films.

I loved every shot of the casbah terraces that showed their labyrinthine construction, and any scene that showed those narrow streets, whether they were crowded or eerily empty, were brilliantly done. The most visually interesting part of the film was when Pépé starts to run through the streets against a misaligned, and increasingly foggy and angled backdrop. While it could mistakingly be interpreted as poor editing (until the background turns into an obvious fantasy), I found that the intentional disconnect worked very well.

Initially, I didn't find Jean Gabin to be charming enough for his role, though I did ultimately like his performance. Pépé and Slimane made great frenemies, and their scenes together were always fun to watch. Despite their relationship being my favourite part of the film, the most memorable scene for me didn't focus on either of them. Instead, it was the moment when Tania started to sing along to the recording from her youth. It was genuinely touching. I also appreciated the final scenes, which thankfully didn't go for a sappy or Hollywood style ending. I'm quite glad that this was nominated, because I likely wouldn't have stumbled across it on my own.

edarsenal

06-30-18, 09:06 PM

I haven't seen Frankenstein in almost two decades as well, so I forgot about that aspect.

In the opening credits to Bride they do have a "?" next to "The Monster's Mate", which I assumed that was a reference to the plot of the film itself. I thought that was clever, but in retrospect it was probably just following the trend from the first film's credits.

Warning: Potential Spoilers for Penny Dreadful below.

Basically everything. :lol:

Her accent at the start was absolutely horrible, though thankfully it did get dropped later on. I didn't like her relationships with the other characters, though towards the end when she started taking more control of her life, I did start to respect her a tiny bit. I still really wanted her character to get killed off though.

It's funny because I remembered being fine with her when she was in Doctor Who, but when she reappeared in a later season, there was something about her I just didn't like, and that seemed to have carried over into Penny Dreadful. A sort of unfounded, immediate resentment that I can't explain.
done that before. You see an actor or actress and for some reason, you just hate them. They hit that nerve and grind it.

edarsenal

06-30-18, 09:17 PM

CosmicRunaway

07-01-18, 09:36 AM

I really, really love that scene. And amazed they didn't keep it for the American remake. Considering HOW MUCH they did take. There was so much emotion in that scene.
She literally puts a voice to Pépé's own melancholic feelings of nostalgia for Paris and a time when he wasn't trapped in the casbah, so removing that scene doesn't seem like it would be right at all.

Pepe dies in the American remake but he's running toward the boat on the pier, crying out Gabby's name, and one of the police shoots, and kills him, thinking, he was trying to escape.
And you don't see Ines at all. It's just Slimane and Pepe saying their goodbyes as he dies.
So does Inès not betray Pépé to the police in Algiers? The fact that she would rather see him behind bars rather than run away with Gaby was quite powerful.

CosmicRunaway

07-01-18, 11:08 AM

https://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=45748

The Scarlet Empress (1934)
Director: Josef von Sternberg
Starring: Marlene Dietrich, John Davis Lodge, Louise Dresser

The Scarlet Empress is visually fascinating, and almost feels like a silent film at times with long sections accompanied only by an orchestra, an abundance of title cards, and movement that sometimes matches perfectly with the music. Almost every shot is mesmerizing, and it was difficult to tear my eyes away from the screen.

Though the sets are not historically accurate, the architecture on display is nothing short of stunning. Tormented and nightmarish figures are carved onto every surface of the palace, with skeletons on the dining table and doors so large it takes half a dozen women to open them. The décor is grotesque, yet immensely fascinating. There are recurring motifs throughout the entire film, and I could easily spend hours breaking down and evaluating the film's mise-en-scène.

The lighting, being Expressionist in nature, is naturally incredible. There's an interesting use of textures and veils or sheer curtains to diffuse the light in a number of shots, and I wouldn't want to count the number of candles seen in the frame, let alone any that may be outside of it. The costumes were fabulous as well, adding volumes to the film's visual elegance. The film's content definitely takes a back seat to its aesthetic, but that's perfectly acceptable to me when it's done as well as it is here.

cricket

07-01-18, 11:12 AM

Did you think of it the way you thought you were going to, given that you've seen bits and pieces before?

CosmicRunaway

07-01-18, 11:24 AM

Did you think of it the way you thought you were going to, given that you've seen bits and pieces before?
The start of the film did catch me a little off guard with how innocently everything is framed for young Sophie. Yes there's a startling contrast between her life and the brutal imagery in the stories she's told, but it doesn't seem to have any impact on her, probably because it seems like a far off fantasy. The real horror doesn't come until she is moved to Russia, where it surrounds her every second of the day.

Since I had only previously seen parts from the latter half, I had been missing the change that occurred to her character throughout the film. So witnessing that play out was definitely a pleasant surprise.

cricket

07-01-18, 11:35 AM

CosmicRunaway

07-01-18, 11:42 AM

I feel the same, but I was also surprised to love the story, performances, and especially the humor.
I did thoroughly enjoy Sophie/Catherine's story, and found most of the performances to be engaging. John Davis Lodge was incredibly charming, and Louise Dresser never failed to be entertaining. The only one I didn't really like was Sam Jaffe. Well, one scene of his I did love:

His dismissal of the people coming to congratulate him on "fathering" a son.
I did enjoy the story, but I was too engrossed in the visuals to really say anything substantial about it in my post. I sometimes get so carried away talking about cinematography that I forget to mention the rest of the film haha.

Citizen Rules

07-01-18, 01:03 PM

https://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=45749&stc=1&d=1530459753

The Bride of Frankenstein (1935)

Damn, now I've got that song Weird Science stuck in my head:cool: You know I thought I'd seen this before, but geez I didn't remember a scene of it. Well except for the 'He's alive!' line by Colin Clive...and now I can't forget it!

I really thought I'd enjoy this one as I've seen the original and it's great and people are always saying this one is even better than the 1st one....Sorry I just don't see it.

The film felt like one of those matinee serials they use to make, like Flash Gordon. I guess you'd call it the pacing, as the scenes are choppy. They start and finish without any set up or without furthering: the story, the theme or the characters plight. It's like it was made for a kid audience and the scenes are just the bare bones minimum, without any nuances. There's a couple of exceptions: the blind hermits cabin scene and the last 20 minutes in the lab. BTW the lab set is extremely cool looking as was the lighting and cinematography for that scene.

I found the music score annoying and loud, and yeah I watch a lot of old movies and they often have heavy scores. And Una O'Conner? At first I thought she'd be a favorite character but the movie goes to her with these over done-long close ups of her ranting and shrieking, which does nothing to tell the tale, and is just filler material. I blame the director, not her, it's like James Whales just didn't care to do great work.

In the original I found the monster both freighting and sad. I felt bad for him and yet I could see why he was being persecuted. Those themes of being persecuted as an outsider worked in the original. There were no themes in Bride, at least none that struck me.

I liked Colin Clive in the last 20 minute but it was Dr. Pretorius (Ernest Thesiger) who stole the show. Now that dude could act! Too bad the fiance of Frankenstein was flat in her acting. And when she was taken to the cave, why wasn't that scene played out more? It would seem to be a pivotal moment when suspense and drama come to a head. In the cave scene we could have learned more about the mindset of the monster and seen the fiances fear and loathing of it, which would then make the ending more of an emotional punch.

I have to say this might be the most overrated film I've ever seen. BUT I'm super glad it was nominated as I wanted to see it and it's an important film in the lexicon of cinema.

Nathaniel

07-01-18, 02:00 PM

The Scarlet Empress (1934)

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A third Dietrich-von Sternberg watch this year for me. This is definitely of the same kind of calibre as the previous two (The Blue Angel, Shanghai Express) and it might be my favourite. One of the things I love about von Sternberg is his knowledge on when to let scenes breathe. A good example in this film is when Catherine enters the council chamber and the score completely bottoms out, and it's such a great way to build suspense. Other filmmakers at the time were just getting used to the best ways to use sound effectively but Von Sternberg is the master and takes to it so well.

Many great things to touch on here with quality editing, set design and costume design. There's a lot of shots of the Cross in this film, I couldn't figure out whether there's a deeper meaning to that or it's just highlighting the influence the Orthodox Church had on the Russian elite? Dietrich's outfits get increasingly extravagant the more Catherine loses her innocence which is a nice touch. I imagine the actors were in their element shooting for this film. It's supremely stylish.

I was a little concerned early on as the first few scenes with Catherine and the Count are very awkward but thankfully that doesn't continue. Peter III is portrayed in his classic idiot persona taken from Catherine's memoirs. It works here as I don't think portraying him as progressive would lead to the kind of conflict and triumphant resolution that Von Sternberg would want the film to end on. Plus, it brings more weight to the feeling of entrapment around Catherine.

Great nom cricket :up:

Citizen Rules

07-01-18, 02:15 PM

@Nathaniel (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=100931) Way to go, you're rocking it! much appreciated:) I haven't seen The Scarlett Empress, but it sounds like people are really liking it.

pahaK

07-01-18, 02:23 PM

I'll probably watch The Scarlet Empress next as well. Seems interesting.

Nathaniel

07-01-18, 02:27 PM

The discussion about Pepe Le Moko is pushing it up the watchlist. It might be next for me depending on time.

Way to go, you're rocking it! much appreciated:) I haven't seen The Scarlett Empress, but it sounds like people are really liking it.

Seems like we're all rocking it at this rate :)

edarsenal

07-01-18, 10:11 PM

Some great reviews going on right now. I'm on my phone so I can't get involved presently, but will tomorrow.

edarsenal

07-02-18, 10:42 AM

She literally puts a voice to Pépé's own melancholic feelings of nostalgia for Paris and a time when he wasn't trapped in the casbah, so removing that scene doesn't seem like it would be right at all.

So does Inès not betray Pépé to the police in Algiers? The fact that she would rather see him behind bars rather than run away with Gaby was quite powerful.

she does, reluctantly, but you don't see her that final moment in his death, just when he steps off the gangplank and they exchange looks.

edarsenal

07-02-18, 10:45 AM

It seems that a lot of the film's fans feel the same as you, as I saw many people praising the style. I feel the same, but I was also surprised to love the story, performances, and especially the humor.
It really comes together in this movie on all levels, doesn't it?
I did thoroughly enjoy Sophie/Catherine's story, and found most of the performances to be engaging. John Davis Lodge was incredibly charming, and Louise Dresser never failed to be entertaining. The only one I didn't really like was Sam Jaffe. Well, one scene of his I did love:

His dismissal of the people coming to congratulate him on "fathering" a son.
I did enjoy the story, but I was too engrossed in the visuals to really say anything substantial about it in my post. I sometimes get so carried away talking about cinematography that I forget to mention the rest of the film haha.
I had a bit of a problem with him as well.
Except for that scene as well. It was the one redeeming scene for the actor.

cricket

07-02-18, 07:10 PM

Bachelor Mother

https://i2.wp.com/www.thevintagecameo.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/bachelormother-ft.jpg

SPOILERS
I read a quick synopsis somewhere before watching that said she finds a foundling. I didn't know what that was, but for some reason I thought it had something to do with ducks. When it then shows her working with all those ducks, I couldn't believe I was right. Of course after a few minutes, I found out I wasn't. When her co-worker invited her to the dance contest, I thought that was super awesome. I would have liked to have seen her show off some more, but it was still a good touch. It's a cute movie and both Rogers and Niven are fun to watch. I liked the first half a bit more before it got slightly more serious. I was hoping to find out what happened with the original parents at some point but I don't have any real complaints. It's a very pleasant movie but I don't think it's particularly memorable. I liked the Gunga Din reference.

3

pahaK

07-03-18, 09:58 PM

The Scarlet Empress (1934) N

Historically very inaccurate depiction of Catherine the Great's rise to power.

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The Scarlet Empress is moderately entertaining film with beautiful sets, decent acting and surprisingly light approach to the subject. Its narration is quite fast paced only slowed down by occasional shoots of highly stylized and bizarre (and, I assume, very unrealistic) Russian architecture and one extremely prolonged wedding scene. Its strength is definitely the aesthetics while the story does have some gaping holes.

From the movie's point of view the whole coup comes from nowhere (well, there's one title card telling us that she charmed the army). I found it very awkward how the film doesn't bother to give any reasons why Catherine is loved and how she could turn others against Peter so easily. The whole transition from silly girl to proper monarch is almost completely ignored. For me that's the single biggest flaw of the movie.

Historically the film is completely absurd. Marlene Dietrich is way too old for Catherine, Sam Jaffe is even more too old for Peter (I think they were 16 and 17 at the wedding). They had met years before the marriage, Empress liked Catherine, etc. It's so flawed that even at my rudimentary knowledge of the subject it started to bother quite a bit. I think historical films should be little more accurate (or honestly be alternate history or complete fantasy).

Mostly entertaining pseudo-historical film that relies on style over substance in its purely fictional depiction of factual events.

3

cricket

07-03-18, 10:05 PM

Not a bad rating by your standards.

Am I the only one who sees the movie as a comedy?

Citizen Rules

07-03-18, 11:28 PM

https://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=45833&stc=1&d=1530668535

Gunga Din (1939) *spoilers*

I liked it, it was a fun watch...And it certainly had high production values. The on location shooting did wonders for the look of the movie. I loved those bleak, sun scorched rocks...and that hidden temple, very cool! I read that this was a very expensive film to make and I can believe it.

Some say this film is racist? For this to be racist it would've had to intentionally demean or make the Indians looks foolish, it didn't do that. In fact it did the opposite. It took an Indian, Gunga Din to save the three British soldiers and the entire British army from doom. Think about that.

And the Indians are NOT the bad guys, it's the members of the Thuggee cult who are the baddies. The Thuggee's were a real cult, that once was said to have killed 30,000 people a year in ritualistic murders. The cult leader was shown to be highly intelligent, self controlled and he outsmarted the bubbling, greedy British soldiers who were looking to steal gold.

I was impressed with the scene where the cult leader tells Cary Grant that his army is just as large, just as well trained and just as well equipment as the British. Does that sound like the movie is trying to belittle the native people? They looked pretty darn capable to me.

Yes it has so called brown face. In fact according to IMDB, RKO studio wanted a native born Indian to play Gunga Din, but he was unavailable, so they had to go with Sam Jaffe.

Sabu (https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0754942) was the first choice to play Gunga Din; when it became clear he was unavailable, Sam Jaffe (https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0415488) was hired in his place. In an interview years later, Jaffe (a Jewish Russian-American) was asked how he so convincingly played an Indian Hindu. Jaffe replied he kept telling himself to "Think Sabu." BTW...ask yourself this, in 1939 how many Indian actors were there in Hollywood? About zero....So it's not surprising the studio used contract actors to play the other parts. I mean they're filming in California not Bombay.

I'm glad this film was nominated as it gave me a chance to see it again.

CosmicRunaway

07-04-18, 03:08 AM

Am I the only one who sees the movie as a comedy?
While I'm not sure I would call it a comedy per se, there were certainly a number of comedic elements to the film, and it didn't have an overly serious tone.

pahaK

07-04-18, 06:09 AM

Not a bad rating by your standards.

Am I the only one who sees the movie as a comedy?

I think comedy would be little exaggeration but the tone was certainly much lighter than I expected. And yes, it's definitely among the better old films I've seen more or less recently.

Also I forgot to mention one thing in my review. While the sets were nice they often looked small and many scenes had crammed feel to them. It's probably a budget matter and while generally a flaw I think it actually helped a scene or two (like the wedding, it made me think the narrow-mindedness of religion and tradition in general).

Nathaniel

07-04-18, 03:19 PM

Gunga Din (1939)

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As mentioned earlier in the thread, I remember watching this when I was younger. I vaguely remember liking it.

The humour which is meant to carry the film just doesn't work all that well and actually hurts the film at certain moments. There's a couple of times where tension is wasted by the score or through poorly timed humour. It reminded me of a Carry On film though without fully committing to the overt goofiness. Therefore when the tone does shift to drama, I found it jarring and hard to connect with. I generally find Cary Grant funny but I found his accent constantly distracting here. It's just ridiculous. Maybe, his constant mugging to the camera is meant to distract from it.

Admittedly, there are some impressive set pieces. Backed up by a score when not intrusive is quite rousing. Just throw bagpipes in there and I'll likely find it rousing. The pacing starts to wane a bit in the second half with a bizarre sequence at the temple going on way too long. As an epic it worked at the time in terms of entertainment but I was hoping for something more consistent.

Like others here, I did not find any of the potentially racist elements off-putting but it's not surprising that people viewing this film today might find the brownface offensive. Citizen provides a good context for why it was used. However, the complaints about stereotyping are a bit harsh in my opinion.

I'm glad I got to see it again but I wasn't feeling it.

Citizen Rules

07-04-18, 03:38 PM

Gunga Din (1939)
I generally find Cary Grant funny but I found his accent constantly distracting here. It's just ridiculous. I felt the same, his Cockney or whatever it was accent was too obvious and took me out of his character. Cosmic noticed it too.

Cary Grant is one of my favorite actors, but here I couldn't really warm up to his character.

The pacing starts to wane a bit in the second half with a bizarre sequence at the temple going on way too long. As an epic it worked at the time in terms of entertainment but I was hoping for something more consistent. I was thinking the opposite that the first hour or so seemed to meander and not do much, then once they get to the temple the story starts focusing more. I suppose though it depends on what story line a person wants to follow: the comradeship of the three soldiers, one who is leaving to get married. Or...the temple scene. It's almost like two different movies. I watched a bit of the commentary with Rudy Behlmer, good stuff! He said that in the 1940s the film was re-released and had 30 minutes removed from the first part of the film. I wonder what that would be like?

Nathaniel

07-04-18, 04:10 PM

I felt the same, his Cockney or whatever it was accent was too obvious and took me out of his character. Cosmic noticed it too.

It's just totally noticeable when he has to raise his voice then lower it in the same scene it completely shifts back & forth. I would have preferred the film with someone else as the lead but I guess Grant was a star in 1939 so they didn't think twice about it.

I was thinking the opposite that the first hour or so seemed to meander and not do much, then once they get to the temple the story starts focusing more. I suppose though it depends on what story line a person wants to follow: the comradeship of the three soldiers, one who is leaving to get married. Or...the temple scene. It's almost like two different movies. I watched a bit of the commentary with Rudy Behlmer, good stuff! He said that in the 1940s the film was re-released and had 30 minutes removed from the first part of the film. I wonder what that would be like?

I wasn't particularly enjoying the first half either but it was ok. I think that during the temple scene, the tone goes off the rails and that's why I found myself losing interest. If they had committed to switching to drama once they reach the temple I would have enjoyed it more but they keep the humour and OTT mugging going when it doesn't fit. Really odd.

So the film was cut to 90 minutes in the re-release? Sounds interesting but it probably takes away a lot of the comradery. Did Behlmer say why they re-released?

edarsenal

07-04-18, 04:19 PM

Getting more and more excited to see Gunga Din. Rented yesterday from the library, along with Bachelor Mother, which I watched last night and really enjoyed. Should be putting a review up this evening.

And with the Empress, I would definitely say it has comedic elements while not a comedy per se. But I do see how it can easily be seen as one.
And yes, pahaK, historically, it is way off base, but I'm too much of a fan of Dietrich and enjoyed it visually to take it as anything historical. :)
SOOO many films I love that are historically incorrect that I've learned never to take them as fact and more as entertainment.

Citizen Rules

07-04-18, 04:36 PM

...So the film was cut to 90 minutes in the re-release? Sounds interesting but it probably takes away a lot of the comradery. Did Behlmer say why they re-released? Behlmer said it was cut to 90 minutes for the re-release so that it could be shown as a double bill in the theater.

pahaK

07-04-18, 04:43 PM

And yes, pahaK, historically, it is way off base, but I'm too much of a fan of Dietrich and enjoyed it visually to take it as anything historical. :)
SOOO many films I love that are historically incorrect that I've learned never to take them as fact and more as entertainment.

Maybe my review (written in the middle of the night and tired) emphasizes the historical inaccuracy a bit too much. I'm not really a history purist when it comes to movies but there are cases when filmmakers do something that starts to bug me. It didn't by any means ruin The Scarlet Empress and I guess my main issue with the changes made is that they actually weakened the story, not the fact that they're historically wrong.

CosmicRunaway

07-04-18, 04:44 PM

I was thinking the opposite that the first hour or so seemed to meander and not do much, then once they get to the temple the story starts focusing more.
I felt the same way. When I was first writing notes about what to cover in my write-up, I had scribbled down that I thought a lot of the first hour could've been cut, however I did change my mind later when I decided that I did actually like those scenes for their camaraderie. I do still prefer the latter parts of the film, and those are the only scenes I had remembered (other than the scene where MacChesney gives the elephant the medicine).

However, the complaints about stereotyping are a bit harsh in my opinion.
This reminds me of something I meant to bring up earlier:

While I agree with what Citizen said in his review about Gunga Din being the hero who has to rescue the foolish British soldiers (since that is how I saw it as well), there are other arguments for why the film's racial views are troubling that sort of twist that sentiment around. Some feel that Gunga Din's behaviour - namely his loyalty and willingness to obey British rule - is meant to set the standard for how all Indians should act, and that it glorifies both the British Raj and Colonialist perceptions of the world. While I can see how that is a bit disconcerting, I don't agree with that reading of the film since it seems like a consequence of the premise, and not a point the filmmakers were actively trying to promote.

I don't necessarily think that the people who claim that the film is racist are just grasping at straws, but I don't think any of the issues present are actually intentional.

Citizen Rules

07-04-18, 05:00 PM

I felt the same way. When I was first writing notes about what to cover in my write-up, I had scribbled down that I thought a lot of the first hour could've been cut, however I did change my mind later when I decided that I did actually like those scenes for their camaraderie... I was making mental notes during the film, though by the next day when I wrote the review, I forgot most of them:rolleyes:...I liked the first part of the movie, as I tend to like films where we just hang out and not too much happens.

Some feel that Gunga Din's behavior - namely his loyalty and willingness to obey British rule - is meant to set the standard for how all Indians should act, and that it glorifies both the British Raj and Colonialist perceptions of the world. While I can see how that is a bit disconcerting, I don't agree with that reading of the film since it seems like a consequence of the premise, and not a point the filmmakers were actively trying to promote... I've seen films that do make ethnic groups look horribly silly/ignorant etc, but I didn't see any thing like that in Gunga Din and I looked for it!

I read that the character of Gunga Din was suppose to be a 'untouchable' in the Indian caste system, and that the film was making a point that the caste system was wrong (what we'd call racist today).

And the caste system was horribly racist, the light skinned Brahmas were considered to be the highest level in Indian society and had all the best jobs...while the darkest skinned Indians were lower on the social/economic ladder. This was all justified by the idea of karma and rebirth. Of course maybe the film was just trying to have a ripping good fun time:p and didn't say anything about that?

pahaK

07-04-18, 05:11 PM

While I agree with what Citizen said in his review about Gunga Din being the hero who has to rescue the foolish British soldiers (since that is how I saw it as well), there are other arguments for why the film's racial views are troubling that sort of twist that sentiment around. Some feel that Gunga Din's behaviour - namely his loyalty and willingness to obey British rule - is meant to set the standard for how all Indians should act, and that it glorifies both the British Raj and Colonialist perceptions of the world. While I can see how that is a bit disconcerting, I don't agree with that reading of the film since it seems like a consequence of the premise, and not a point the filmmakers were actively trying to promote.

I don't necessarily think that the people who claim that the film is racist are just grasping at straws, but I don't think any of the issues present are actually intentional.

I actually agree with the pro-colonialist reading but I don't see any issue with it. The film is made during colonial era so to me it's obvious to read it that way. Is it racist? I suppose but why should I care? I don't have any need to be offended by old art embracing contemporary values.

Citizen Rules

07-04-18, 06:31 PM

...Some feel that Gunga Din's behaviour - namely his loyalty and willingness to obey British rule - is meant to set the standard for how all Indians should act, and that it glorifies both the British Raj and Colonialist perceptions of the world. Cosmic, that was a good point, sorry I forgot to say that earlier...Yes, I could also see how people could view Gunga Din as a suck-up and then come to that conclusion.

While I can see how that is a bit disconcerting, I don't agree with that reading of the film since it seems like a consequence of the premise, and not a point the filmmakers were actively trying to promote.

I don't necessarily think that the people who claim that the film is racist are just grasping at straws, but I don't think any of the issues present are actually intentional. You are indeed wise my friend:)

edarsenal

07-04-18, 08:04 PM

Maybe my review (written in the middle of the night and tired) emphasizes the historical inaccuracy a bit too much. I'm not really a history purist when it comes to movies but there are cases when filmmakers do something that starts to bug me. It didn't by any means ruin The Scarlet Empress and I guess my main issue with the changes made is that they actually weakened the story, not the fact that they're historically wrong.
Well I definitely didn't take it as a Purist outlook and I do agree with what you have to say.
The weakened story can ruin an movie experience and I do read it as an observation and a valid one.

As for myself, I was expressing how I've learned from past frustrations when my own, personal, inner purist gets agitated. lol

edarsenal

07-04-18, 10:37 PM

http://makingniceinthemidwest.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/118.jpg

Bachelor Mother

Like any proper screwball comedy, the premise should be outlandish and this has a fun little wind up and the pitch.
Ginger Rogers proves unequivocally that her comedic timing is equal to her dancing skill as she gets mistaken for a mother dropping off an unwanted baby. And then! In anticipation of cricket's funny comment: "I read a quick synopsis somewhere before watching that said she finds a foundling. I didn't know what that was, but for some reason I thought it had something to do with ducks. When it then shows her working with all those ducks, I couldn't believe I was right. Of course after a few minutes, I found out I wasn't." The ducks! THE DUCKS! SO MANY DUCKS! (I actually thought that this was going to involve real ducks in a pond or some sort lol)
Thinking of the Cast Credits in Bride of Frankenstein, I had to chuckle to see that they even listed Donald Duck, played by: Himself.

Along with the shout out to Gunga Din I also caught the venue for another 30s film I need to see: Love Affair with Irene Dunne and Charles Boyer on their night out.
It was also nice to recognize Frank Albertson, playing Freddie, whom I've only known from It's a Wonderful Life where he plays Sam Wainwright ( the one who's always doing the "EeeYAW" every time you see him). I would have loved to seen more of Charles Coburn whom I love, but very, very happy enjoying Rogers and the flustered Nivens going back and forth.

There is one particular scene that really made me laugh. In the park, where there is another mother bragging about her child being physically ideal, or some such and they do a shot of both babies, the goofy look on the one baby's face made me laugh and back it up to see it again. It was frickin priceless.

A fun little romantic comedy, that. THANKS CR for nominating it!

Citizen Rules

07-04-18, 10:41 PM

edarsenal

Cool! someone liked it. I've seen Bachelor Mother twice and it's just a fun film that I could spend time with, thanks to Ginger Rogers:up:

edarsenal

07-04-18, 11:00 PM

edarsenal

Cool! someone liked it. I've seen Bachelor Mother twice and it's just a fun film that I could spend time with, thanks to Ginger Rogers:up:

my roommate is big fan of Ginger Rogers comedies and this is one she's seen countless times and I'm glad I finally got to see it.

cricket

07-04-18, 11:22 PM

[Cool! someone liked it. I've seen Bachelor Mother twice and it's just a fun film that I could spend time with, thanks to Ginger Rogers:up:

I liked it too:)

Citizen Rules

07-04-18, 11:27 PM

I liked it too:) It's hard not to like Ginger, and not because she's pretty, but because she's so Ginger like:p

mark f

07-04-18, 11:39 PM

I liked it too:)
I liked that foundling - Donald.

edarsenal

07-05-18, 02:03 AM

It's hard not to like Ginger, and not because she's pretty, but because she's so Ginger like:p

She's Gingeresque is what she is

Citizen Rules

07-05-18, 01:08 PM

https://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=45874

Make Way For Tomorrow (1937)

You know a movie is good when Orson Welles comments on it, he said of the film: "it would make a stone cry".

Make Way For Tomorrow has a hard hitting and bittersweet script of unusual candor. The somber subject matter is unusual for films of that time. I'm not surprised to learn that Depression era audiences didn't care for the down beat message.

I thought it was exceptionally well written. It was nice to see actors who I'm familiar with get to play the leads for once. I hardly recognized Beulah Bondi in her old age make up...She was actually 47 at the time of the movie. Victor Moore, I didn't recognize him either at first, but I sure knew it was him by his distinct voice and mannerisms. Nice to see Fay Bainter and of course Thomas Mitchell.

This was a very hard watch for me emotionally. Excellent movie though and one that I had never heard of.

Thanks @Nathaniel (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=100931) for nominating it.

Nathaniel

07-05-18, 03:19 PM

Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
45877

I'm very familiar with the Frankenstein story in general but this is a film I have not seen a second of. I was looking forward to it and it delivered. Consciously, I kept comparing it to some of the more recent disappointing movies featuring Frankenstein's monster and it comes off well in those comparisons.

It was always going to be challenging to explain how the Frankenstein story continues based on the climax of the last film so I was willing to overlook any dumb plot issues in the opening. The Mary Shelley scene tries to circumvent that but it did not succeed. There are a few dumb plot issues after that too but they didn't take away from my enjoyment.

The film is deeper than it appeared on the surface and adapted a lot of the same moral issues that the novel explored. Although I think it went further into the realm of the danger in pursuing science in the face of stepping over the line. Apparently, the Hays office removed a lot of the references/comparisons that James Whale wanted to make to God and Jesus which is disappointing. I'd be interested in seeing how the film would look pre Hays Code with more symbolism inserted.

Plus points for including the blind man interaction from the novel as it's easily the most powerful section of the book for me and I think they did a decent job with it. Much more of a humorous tone to it which I ended up liking. Nice gothic feel to every shot and some of the editing for the final section was really impressive. The performances were pretty good, Karloff and Thesiger being the stand outs.

A cigar is the best way to a monster's heart ;)

cricket

07-06-18, 09:01 AM

Pepe Le Moko

https://i.pinimg.com/originals/50/ff/52/50ff52abc01d06193d700dbaf2c641ae.jpg

SPOILERS
I liked this a lot. The introduction to the setting was awesome, and that setting will go down as one of my favorites in any film. I found it fascinating and mysterious all by itself. I got a kick out of that woman saying something to the effect of "I have a face that men just like to pound". It seemed like a somewhat out of place touch at the time, but afterward it seemed like an omen for the role of all women in this world. I thought from the start that a woman would be Pepe's downfall. They were obviously his weakness, yet he treated them poorly. At least he treated his loyal girlfriend poorly, but eventually that would translate to any other girl that got close to him. I've seen Jean Gabin in a few other movies and always liked him. He has charisma, and I thought he was well suited to play the stereotypical gangster, charming but ruthless. The rest of the cast was also quite good. The relationship between Pepe and Slimane especially, but even Pepe and everyone else was quite interesting. Great nom Ed and thanks for the link CR.

3.5+

pahaK

07-06-18, 09:09 AM

Started Pepe Le Moko yesterday but was too tired to finish. Will watch the rest at some point today.

edarsenal

07-06-18, 12:41 PM

Very GLAD to hear you liked it, cricket!
I am SO glad I stumbled upon this original when I was considering it's American remake.

Citizen Rules

07-06-18, 03:08 PM

https://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=45898&stc=1&d=1530900916
Bachelor Mother (1939)

This is my nom and I just love it. It's one of my favorite 1930s comedies. I find it such an easy watch as the story starts off interesting and right from start I was interested into what would happen to Polly (Ginger Rogers). I find the twist and turns that befall Polly to arise from believable reasons, as opposed to just crazy stuff happening for the sake of comedy. The script was nominated for an Oscar and I could see why, it's cleverly written.

At first Polly refuses to care for the baby and denies it's hers ...so why would she later agree to care for it?

Well the film explains: David Merlin (David Niven) is so appalled by what he believes to be Polly's night of care free dancing while shirking her responsibilities that he threatens to black list her so that she'll never work again, unless she cares for the baby...And remember he's rich and powerful, and that's reason enough for a comedy film to have Polly take care of the baby. Plus look at Ginger's face when she's with the baby, she lights up! Obviously she bonds to the child and decides to give it a home. Love to me is very believable!

You know comedy never gets the respect that dramas do, but I've heard it said that good comic acting is harder than drama acting. And Ginger is one of the best. Not only could she do drama and comedy, but she dances too! In the 1930s there are three comedians I adore: Carole Lombard, Jean Arthur and Ginger Rogers. And Bachelor Mother is one of my favorite of Ginger's movies:)

pahaK

07-06-18, 03:10 PM

Pépé le Moko (1937) N

A French gangster Pépé is hiding in Casbah of Algiers and dreams of freedom and Paris.

https://78.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m3sbg1kldB1rpy49jo1_640.jpg

The cat and mouse game between Pépé and Algerian inspector Slimane is something I don't usually like. I just keep thinking how much easier, safer and cheaper it would have been if Slimane (or French police) had had Pépé assassinated instead of the long plotting to get him out of Casbah. Also the relationship between the two makes one question Pépé's intelligence.

I liked the concept of Pépé being a prisoner in Casbah and his growing yearning to be back in Paris. I didn't see much hope for him and the film's ending was very fitting. There weren't characters I could sympathize with and especially the women in the film were truly revolting persons (particularly Inés).

Storywise there wasn't much. Pépé (and his mates) wandered around Casbah, Pépé treated women like trash and the women loved Pépé for it. Even the plot to get Pépé out of Casbah just materialized as he fell in love with vain escort from Paris. I suppose it's some sort of realism but it's just not very interesting to me.

Acting was pretty good for 1930s film and sets were nice as well (I'm not sure if any of the actual scenes were shot on location, IMDb says panoramic views were shot in Casbah). Cinematography was alright with few good scenes. All in all it's a film that isn't exactly my type but I can still see the potential appeal. Personally I didn't like it that much but it barely misses the bad label.

2

CosmicRunaway

07-06-18, 06:43 PM

https://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=45907

Bachelor Mother (1939)
Director: Garson Kanin
Starring: Ginger Rogers, David Niven, Frank Albertson

I've always found that my state of mind can drastically impact how I feel about certain brands of comedy. The relatively plausible yet still ridiculous antics present in Bachelor Mother can be hit or miss with me, depending on how I'm feeling at the time. How charismatic the lead actors are can play a huge role in that as well, with great performances drawing me over the fence to side with the film and allowing myself to enjoy the absurdity of everything.

As such, I was cautious yet optimistic going into Bachelor Mother. I was in good spirits, and really wanted to watch a comedy, so the timing seemed perfect. I knew very little about the plot, but I knew it involved a baby, not knowing who the father was, and that it starred a number of reliable actors. So I'm watching Polly being mistakenly identified as the baby's mother and my inner voice is saying that this set-up is really stupid. However before that thought can continue any further, I was just immediately on board. I was smiling, having decided that I absolutely love this. Hardly a second had passed since my condemnation, and I was already won back over.

Ginger Rogers and David Niven are absolutely fantastic in this film. They commanded my attention so well that I couldn't tell you anything about the shot composition, framing, or lighting. I love cinematography, and I love taking my time to look around a shot, however my eyes never wandered from where the filmmakers were actively directing me to look. I genuinely laughed, chuckled, and even cackled a few times over the course of the film. It was very entertaining. It feels like it's been a long time since I was so engrossed in a comedy, so I'm quite grateful that this was nominated.

edarsenal

07-06-18, 06:49 PM

You know comedy never gets the respect that dramas do, but I've heard it said that good comic acting is harder than drama acting. And Ginger is one of the best. Not only could she do drama and comedy, but she dances too!
SO VERY TRUE!
I've only caught bits and pieces of comedies with Rogers and this is a great example of her comedic prowess.
All in all it's a film that isn't exactly my type but I can still see the potential appeal. Personally I didn't like it that much but it barely misses the bad label.
It's very hard to find enjoyment in a film type that isn't one's taste so I truly do appreciate the endeavor. Thank you.

For myself, I started Gunga Din this afternoon and might be able to finish it up after work tonight or perhaps tomorrow night. We shall see.

CosmicRunaway

07-06-18, 06:55 PM

I read a quick synopsis somewhere before watching that said she finds a foundling. I didn't know what that was, but for some reason I thought it had something to do with ducks. When it then shows her working with all those ducks, I couldn't believe I was right. Of course after a few minutes, I found out I wasn't.
Maybe it's just a local thing, but children here are often referred to as "ducks", so you weren't completely wrong haha. You get "duckie" a lot more though, since it's one of those terms of endearment that gets used even between adult strangers.

Now that I'm actually thinking about it, it sounds really strange. It's probably one of those regional oddities that outsiders think is crazy. I've heard "Yes me duckie" so many times in my life that the phrase has lost all meaning. :lol:

edarsenal

07-06-18, 07:20 PM

Ginger Rogers and David Niven are absolutely fantastic in this film. They commanded my attention so well that I couldn't tell you anything about the shot composition, framing, or lighting. I love cinematography, and I love taking my time to look around a shot, however my eyes never wandered from where the filmmakers were actively directing me to look. I genuinely laughed, chuckled, and even cackled a few times over the course of the film. It was very entertaining. It feels like it's been a long time since I was so engrossed in a comedy, so I'm quite grateful that this was nominated.

SERIOUS high praise when Cosmic is caught up in the movie and not the shot composition.

And I gotta know, what was your favorite cackle moment?
For me, as I said in my review, was in the park and it involved the look on the baby's face that the mother was bragging about.

pahaK

07-06-18, 07:23 PM

It's very hard to find enjoyment in a film type that isn't one's taste so I truly do appreciate the endeavor. Thank you.

It's also interesting how hard it is to explain or even understand myself what exactly makes film to be or not to be "my kind". Almost every time I read my reviews I see things I don't fully agree with anymore or see the text implying something that's not supposed to be there (and almost always it's not because of me writing in foreign language but because breaking the holistic experience into communicable pieces is very difficult). I'm pretty sure that I will eventually (if I haven't already) use exactly the same argument as a positive thing for one film and negative for another.

cricket

07-06-18, 07:30 PM

I also agree that the premise for Bachelor Mother is ridiculous but I don't think it affected my enjoyment much.

CosmicRunaway

07-06-18, 07:49 PM

And I gotta know, what was your favorite cackle moment?
I honestly don't even know. It wasn't necessarily a line of dialogue or a specific look, so it's hard to describe what exactly I was laughing at. Towards the end, once David found himself in a similar situation, I noticed that I started laughing for longer periods at a time. I guess it was just the culmination of events. I was certain my room mate was going to come in and ask what was so funny, then be disappointed by my lack of explanation haha.

cricket

07-06-18, 07:52 PM

I thought the funniest parts were when Ginger got her layoff notice and seeing the baby get abandoned.

Citizen Rules

07-06-18, 08:11 PM

Glad to hear you like Bachelor Mother, Cosmic. I couldn't tell you anything about the score, lighting, etc either, as I was into the world of Polly and David.

I think the funniest part to me was when David went to the complaints department to return the broken duck. I loved the way Ginger was hidden behind the counter and was feeding him lines...and he actually reported them word for word. I liked that for some reason.

CosmicRunaway

07-07-18, 11:33 AM

https://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=45918

Make Way For Tomorrow (1937)
Director: Leo McCarey
Starring: Beulah Bondi, Victor Moore, Thomas Mitchell

I was not immediately drawn into Make Way For Tomorrow's opening scene, since there was something about the performances that seemed strangely amateur. The delivery of certain lines almost made me feel like I was watching a high school play. There was an intentional awkwardness there, which does get explained when we learn more about the family dynamics, but the whole situation just didn't sit right with me. I was honestly worried that I wasn't going to be able to enjoy the film at all, but fortunately that wasn't the case.

Warning: The following two paragraphs contain spoilers.

It took a little while, but the performances did start to grow on me. I found myself becoming more and more engaged with the story, and by the time that first phone call was over (the one which interrupted the bridge lesson), the old couple had worked their way into my heart. Their relationship and unwavering love for each other was incredibly sweet, and I'd be lying if I said that their inability to be together didn't cause my eyes to water just a little bit. I think the most memorable scene for me was when Lucy demanded that her husband never know that she was going to an old age home. It was incredibly touching, especially since she also sparring George from having to send her away himself.

After having skimmed some reviews that focused on how emotional the film was, the ending was actually not as depressing as I was anticipating. Yes, it's likely that they may never see each other again, but at least the hope is still alive. Even if that day together was their final goodbye, it was an experience they'd surely remember. I appreciated that the film didn't force an overly sentimental or unrealistically happy ending. We do at least get the satisfaction of seeing the children finally confronted with the fact that they treated their parents poorly, which was another of my favourite scenes.

So despite a rocky start, I did end up liking the film quite a bit. There were some lighter moments here and there which prevented the situation from being completely heartbreaking, while still staying grounded in realism. It's definitely not the kind of film you watch to lift your spirits, but it's not something unpleasant either. I'm glad it was nominated because it's definitely not something I would've tracked down on my own

CosmicRunaway

07-07-18, 11:40 AM

I hardly recognized Beulah Bondi in her old age make up...She was actually 47 at the time of the movie.
I never would've guessed that she was so young at the time of filming.

How is it that they managed to do such a good job ageing an actress in the 30s, yet modern films often do it terribly? (*cough*Prometheus*cough*)

cricket

07-07-18, 12:00 PM

I've been really looking forward to that.

Nathaniel

07-07-18, 01:06 PM

It destroys me every time. Leaving it till last haha.

Anyone got a link for Pepe?

cricket

07-07-18, 01:18 PM

It destroys me every time. Leaving it till last haha.

Anyone got a link for Pepe?

Sent you the same one CR sent me. It was perfect.

Citizen Rules

07-07-18, 02:36 PM

...How is it that they managed to do such a good job ageing an actress in the 30s, yet modern films often do it terribly? (*cough*Prometheus*cough*) They were good at makeup back then weren't they! I'm impressed.

The makeup artist for Make Way for Tomorrow was Wally Westmore. The Westmore's are a multi generational family-dynasty of Hollywood makeup artist. 1000s upon 1000s of movies have had a Westmore as the makeup artist. Their descendants still work doing makeup today.

They even have a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
https://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=45924&stc=1&d=1530984810

Westmore's Wiki (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Westmore_family)

cricket

07-07-18, 04:09 PM

That reminds me of Max Von Sydow who was only 43 when they filmed The Exorcist

https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRMq14ojUMrD87_txtRCrGroK2FLJ73kuxUHHqQZx4ebAMhzXeZ

Up until a couple of years ago, I always thought it was an elderly actor. When I started watching Bergman movies, I was so confused.

CosmicRunaway

07-07-18, 04:22 PM

That reminds me of Max Von Sydow who was only 43 when they filmed The Exorcist
That is another fact that continues to shock me every time it's brought up, despite the fact that I've heard it before. It's like my brain refuses to believe it or commit it to memory. :lol:

CosmicRunaway

07-07-18, 07:59 PM

https://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=45931

Child Bride (1938)
Director: Harry Revier
Starring: Shirley Mills, Bob Bollinger, Diana Durrell

While there have been films in previous Hall of Fames that I haven't exactly enjoyed, I'm usually able to understand why they are appreciated, or find at least one positive thing to say. This is the first time where that is not going to be the case, and I'm still uncertain how to feel about that. As such, this review is probably going to be significantly shorter than what I would typically write.

Child Bride is not the film I was expecting it to be. I was mentally prepared to watch a dark, exploitative, and truly uncomfortable story. However, what I got was a boring, tedious film that felt like an eternity despite its short runtime. I am not exaggerating when I say that this was one of the worst films I've ever seen. The performances were absolutely appalling, especially from the adults, though the script didn't exactly give them the best material to work with. One thing I am grateful for is the fact that the film's best actor, the dog, remained unharmed on screen. So I guess I did technically think of something positive after all.

cricket

07-07-18, 08:02 PM

Child Bride was actually recommended to me by someone on the forum before. Any guesses as to who?

CosmicRunaway

07-07-18, 08:07 PM

Interesting trivia, the little person (Don Barrett), is Angelo Rossitto (https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0744441/?ref_=tt_cl_t9) who was 'Master' in the Master-Blaster of Mad Maxx Beyond Thunder Dome.
I thought his voice sounded familiar, but I couldn't place it. :up:

Child Bride was actually recommended to me by someone on the forum before. Any guesses as to who?
Minio? Swan? I have no idea.

cricket

07-07-18, 08:07 PM

pahaK

07-07-18, 08:12 PM

Child Bride is not the film I was expecting it to be. I was mentally prepared to watch a dark, exploitative, and truly uncomfortable story. However, what I got was a boring, tedious film that felt like an eternity despite its short runtime. I am not exaggerating when I say that this was one of the worst films I've ever seen.

I'm not saying it's great but I could probably come up with hundreds of films I liked less in an hour armed with google and IMDb :D But it's good that people have differing tastes and I'm not going to argue. Majority of people haven't liked my HoF16 nom either and my noms in song tournaments seem to get equally little love so this is nothing new.

cricket

07-07-18, 08:21 PM

I'm not saying it's great but I could probably come up with hundreds of films I liked less in an hour armed with google and IMDb :D But it's good that people have differing tastes and I'm not going to argue. Majority of people haven't liked my HoF16 nom either and my noms in song tournaments seem to get equally little love so this is nothing new.

The fact that you don't complain or put down the taste of others totally outweighs a couple of poorly received nominations.

Citizen Rules

07-07-18, 10:59 PM

...But it's good that people have differing tastes and I'm not going to argue. Majority of people haven't liked my HoF16 nom either. The first main Hof I entered, was the 8th Hof, my nom came in second to last. So look at it this way, you have something to aim for next time.

You're OK in my book Pahak:) And btw I liked both your noms, though I didn't love them by any means. They were interesting. I'm glad you've joined Hofs and I hope you'll join more.

CosmicRunaway

07-08-18, 06:36 AM

I don't think any two people have exactly the same taste, and even generally beloved films have their detractors. The same person can easily love one of your favourites, but hate your next one. I think that's what makes these HoFs so interesting.

I've had nominations end up just a couple of points away from first place, and I've also had a film come in dead last. That's all part of the fun as well.

So yeah, I hope that no one feels completely disheartened by any negative reactions to their nominations. Even if your film doesn't ultimately place high in the rankings, it's been shared with people who might not have watched it otherwise. And there's always next time, as long as you don't give up.

I don't know if this is true for any one else, but I've never regretted watching any nomination, even if I didn't enjoy them. It's the experience (as well as any discussions that might come out of them) that really counts.

Nathaniel

07-08-18, 08:32 AM

Pépé le Moko (1937)
45949

Cheers cricket & Citizen for the help finding this ;)

The main thing that strikes me about this film is the atmosphere. I feel like it's transported me to Algiers for 90+ minutes. Through its tight alleyways and sweaty criminal underworld. Impeccably shot. Like really damn impeccably shot. To manage to do that with this set design...excellent. It's been a good few years since I've seen it, probably when I was first going through Renoir, Carné & Duvivier.

Pépé's story is tragic, longing for a return to a France that he views with nostalgia. Only enhanced when combined with the thing he loves as much as France; women. Gabin is great here. I think his usual cynicism worked pretty well and it only adds to his excellent '36-'39 stretch of filmography. I found it difficult to feel much sympathy for his character but it's interesting to watch him again portray someone firmly in the realm of grey. It is very much a noir in the way the plot plays out so I can see it having had somewhat of an influence in America. Particularly with the US remake and the offers Gabin received after this film made its way over.

It's a good mix of the poetic and the thriller. And there are some fine tense moments. In particular, one section involving Pierrot and Régis had me on the edge of my seat, it is so well done and paced perfectly. However, there's a feeling that it is a tad lightweight from a character or plot perspective and that's probably why I don't love it. There just isn't much to delve into beyond Pépé's characterisation. I also think that the police are hilariously incompetent. Minor complaints though as I still think it's very good. Loved the ending too. Worth watching for the production alone even if noir is not your bag.

Nathaniel

07-08-18, 09:18 AM

I don't know if this is true for any one else, but I've never regretted watching any nomination, even if I didn't enjoy them. It's the experience (as well as any discussions that might come out of them) that really counts.

I've watched five and haven't regretted one so far. :cool:

In all seriousness, I am enjoying this quite a bit and I definitely intend to take part in more HoFs as they show up. For me, the differing thoughts on each film is the main appeal.

pahaK

07-08-18, 09:51 AM

Citizen Rules CosmicRunaway

I'm not sure if you misunderstood me. I'm not disheartened or sad if my nominations aren't liked. I don't participate in these to compete for the "victory" but to have an incentive to watch potentially good or interesting films that I wouldn't otherwise pick. That's also how I choose my nominations; something I expect majority haven't seen but I like a lot and/or find otherwise interesting. Also because tastes vary I try not to choose overtly long films.

I'll be joining more HoFs for sure. I may skip one every now and then if I don't feel like watching as much movies as I do now but it won't have anything do with the (lack of) success of my prior nominations.

CosmicRunaway

07-08-18, 10:33 AM

I'm not sure if you misunderstood me. I'm not disheartened or sad if my nominations aren't liked.
I was just talking about the HoFs in general, which is why I didn't quote or mention anyone specifically.

I don't participate in these to compete for the "victory" but to have an incentive to watch potentially good or interesting films that I wouldn't otherwise pick.
I totally agree with this. :up:

Citizen Rules

07-08-18, 01:44 PM

Cosmic is done, and the rest of us are doing pretty good on watching.
I haven't set a deadline, so I'm thinking sooner than later, as most of these movies are very short. If you add up the total run times and divide by 2 hours, it's like we only have five 2 hour movies to watch.

We started on June-26 and I'm thinking July 28th as the deadline which is 3 weeks. Can everyone make that? It looks like everyone is on target. Sidon are you still in this?

This is where we're at right now:

@Citizen Rules (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=84637) 5/7
@Cosmic Runaway 7/7 List Sent In
@cricket (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=68505) 3/7
@edarsenal (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=50536) 4/7
@pahaK (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=100614) 5/7
@Nathaniel (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=100931) 4/7
@Siddon (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=95448)2/7

CosmicRunaway

07-08-18, 01:49 PM

I'm thinking July 28th as the deadline which is 3 weeks. Can everyone make that?
If I hadn't already sent in my list, I would've jokingly asked for more time to make up my mind. :D

pahaK

07-08-18, 01:52 PM

We started on June-26 and I'm thinking July 28th as the deadline which is 3 weeks. Can everyone make that?

Sure, no problem.

Nathaniel

07-08-18, 02:04 PM

We started on June-26 and I'm thinking July 28th as the deadline which is 3 weeks. Can everyone make that?

Sounds good :)

Siddon

07-08-18, 02:28 PM

Siddon are you still in this?[/B]

1 write up in the first 2 weeks, and 3 in the first month and so on. That way we know your keeping up. If too much time passes without any activity from someone, their movie with be disqualified.

I'm still in this...I don't like that you've set this date in between the other two Hall's though.

We'll see what I finish this week and then set the deadline.

edarsenal

07-08-18, 02:31 PM

working on wrapping up the other two but I should be able to kick the final 2 off. I watched Gunga Din last night and should have a review up in the next day or so.

cricket

07-08-18, 02:44 PM

No problem for me finishing whenever.

Citizen Rules

07-08-18, 03:16 PM

I'm still in this...I don't like that you've set this date in between the other two Hall's though.

We'll see what I finish this week and then set the deadline. I've decided on July 28th as the deadline, everyone seems to be able to make that. The movies are very short and no real long ones to watch.

cricket

07-08-18, 06:25 PM

Gunga Din

https://78.media.tumblr.com/1f66a14849fd6fe4f16f901a8feeab0d/tumblr_mzghmg9Ayw1sr1ki0o3_500.gif

As I stated before, I already had this on my 30's watchlist by virtue of it's appearance on the top 100 cheers list. Just by itself, that was enough to make me happy to see it nominated.

George Stevens has made several movies I've enjoyed, most notably Shane, and the movie also boasts a great cast. I didn't realize Sam Jaffe was playing the title character until he flashed that goofy smile that was so apparent in The Scarlet Empress. I always like Cary Grant, but it seems that it's less the further I go back in time. It seems like he started out mostly specializing in comedic roles. I found it amusing to notice an uncredited Richard Farnsworth on the IMDb page, even if I didn't notice him in the movie. I think I liked Douglad Fairbanks Jr. and Victor McLaglen the most. Joan Fontaine was practically invisible and I would have liked to have seen more of her. A lot of adventure or action movies have a female co-star along for the ride, often unnecessarily, but in this case a stronger female presence would have been welcome, especially with the lighter tone. I really love a great adventure film, but there's not that many I enjoy anymore. I think it's similar to fantasy for me, in that there's a certain whimsical appeal that disappeared for me a few years back. I saw this compared to Temple of Doom and I can certainly see why. Unfortunately, that was my least favorite of the original Indiana Jones films. It may sound like I didn't enjoy this movie but that's certainly not the case. I just didn't feel any passion for it. While I mostly don't like comedy mixed with other genres, I do think it serves adventure films well. Maybe not quite this much, even if I thought this film was successful with it more often than not. The story was just fine. The scale and set pieces were wonderful for it's time, and I liked the ending. I think my favorite scene was the elephant threatening the bridge. I would have liked to have had more of the movie filmed at night, maybe adding a little air of mystery and danger, but really no serious complaints. It is what it is and I liked it.

3

pahaK

07-09-18, 05:44 PM

Bachelor Mother (1939) N

A comedy that's so timid and placid that there's nothing left to laugh.

http://rarefilm.net/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/Bachelor-Mother-1939-2.jpg

In my opinion practically every comedy that's built around a baby has failed. Bachelor Mother is no exception in this regard. From modern viewer's perspective the film could be used as a textbook definition for predictable - the ending is obvious after Merlin junior returns the baby to Polly. Remaining hour or so is just waiting for the script to catch up with the viewer.

I like my comedies somehow daring and witty. Unfortunately I found neither from Bachelor Mother. It's almost like a comedy without a single joke. Sets are fine, acting is fine, directing is fine but there's no soul at all. Just utterly empty and harmless 82 minutes that doesn't pique my interest in any way. There's just nothing else I can say.

1-

cricket

07-09-18, 05:48 PM

Don't worry about it CR, that's his average rating!

Citizen Rules

07-09-18, 06:52 PM

Bachelor Mother (1939) N

A comedy that's so timid and placid that there's nothing left to laugh.

In my opinion practically every comedy that's built around a baby has failed. Bachelor Mother is no exception in this regard. From modern viewer's perspective the film could be used as a textbook definition for predictable - the ending is obvious after Merlin junior returns the baby to Polly. Remaining hour or so is just waiting for the script to catch up with the viewer.

I like my comedies somehow daring and witty. Unfortunately I found neither from Bachelor Mother. It's almost like a comedy without a single joke. Sets are fine, acting is fine, directing is fine but there's no soul at all. Just utterly empty and harmless 82 minutes that doesn't pique my interest in any way. There's just nothing else I can say.

rating_1- Ugh:p...

It's your opinion and that's OK:). I can only say that any 1930s Post pre-code comedies are not going to be daring or bold, so one has to look for charming.

Though I'm a bit surprised by your rating, as Bachelor Mother in it's 'lightness' reminded me of your nom Poison of the Fairies (which I did like).

pahaK

07-09-18, 08:13 PM

Ugh:p...

Yeah, I feel bad for being so blunt on you nom but what can I do :D

It's your opinion and that's OK:). I can only say that any 1930s Post pre-code comedies are not going to be daring or bold, so one has to look for charming.

I was about to write that Bachelor Mother could serve as a fine example how something like Hays Code is detrimental to film industry but I'm not familiar enough with pre-code comedies to say if that's true or not so I left it out.

Though I'm a bit surprised by your rating, as Bachelor Mother in it's 'lightness' reminded me of your nom Poison of the Fairies (which I did like).

Really? I'll try keep that in mind when I rewatch Poison for the Fairies but at the moment I don't honestly see the similarities. Also you must take into account the fact that I generally hate baby comedies (and I really mean hate). Weirdly enough I find child protagonist often interesting though as they allow more focused characters and pure, undiluted character traits (it's also easier to forgive some inconsistency and illogical behavior with children).

edarsenal

07-09-18, 08:34 PM

Weirdly enough I find child protagonist often interesting though as they allow more focused characters and pure, undiluted character traits (it's also easier to forgive some inconsistency and illogical behavior with children).
That's kind of funny since I'm the complete opposite. Hate a lot of films where they add a kid to the story.
Though, to think of it, there has a been a pretty good run recently with films I've seen with kids as protagonists. But, like I said, normally, not a fan of them.

edarsenal

07-09-18, 08:58 PM

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-JnIhF-SKiT0/TdpgfW2BbxI/AAAAAAAABOw/lm7-WnRpkRA/s1600/gunga%2Bdin.jpg

Gunga Din

AKA: The Dangers of Bored White Folk ;)

Had a lot of fun with this one and I'm pretty sure if I had seen this as a kid or teen, it would have been a favorite of mine. Shame it took so long into my life to finally getting around to seeing this, but very happy to have finally done so.

Yes, Grant's accent and it's continual disappearance is quite apparent, but, I gotta admit, knowing full well about it, I kinda actually ignored it.
The comedic aspects and the "troublesome boys" of these three men who need war to keep them occupied or trouble WILL ensue was very nicely done. Each of their personalities interacted and combined very well and the friendship REALLY came through when they were together.

The same can be said about the action sequences and the scenes between. It all kind of rolled along quite nicely and I stayed entertained throughout. While I could nitpick the fight scenes, I won't since I grew up watching such and simply chuckle and enjoy.

Some of the filming, especially at night was really well done and they did a great job with desert scenes.

Surprisingly, I have very little say, even though I enjoyed it as much as I have.
Still, a very fun lil adventure flick - BRAVO Cosmic!

pahaK

07-09-18, 09:12 PM

That's kind of funny since I'm the complete opposite. Hate a lot of films where they add a kid to the story.
Though, to think of it, there has a been a pretty good run recently with films I've seen with kids as protagonists. But, like I said, normally, not a fan of them.

I don't know if you meant it but "films where they add a kid to the story" to me sounds like something I'd hate too. They need to be complete characters with personality, motives and goals instead of plot devices. Oh, and the actor needs to be good too (bad child actors are very unpleasant to watch).

What's funny though is that as kid (and young adult) I used to dislike children in movies nearly without exceptions. Maybe I'm just getting old and wish to be a kid again :D

edarsenal

07-09-18, 09:23 PM

I don't know if you meant it but "films where they add a kid to the story" to me sounds like something I'd hate too. They need to be complete characters with personality, motives and goals instead of plot devices. Oh, and the actor needs to be good too (bad child actors are very unpleasant to watch).

What's funny though is that as kid (and young adult) I used to dislike children in movies nearly without exceptions. Maybe I'm just getting old and wish to be a kid again :D

THAT is the wording I was looking for exactly!! Thank you!

I think my agitation was around late teens, early twenties (mid Eighties) where every kid in every movie was allowed to mouth off to adults who were considered dangerous and not get their butts kicked for it. Instead the villain would simply scowl at them. And it got worse from there for me.
I do remember seeing one Asian film a decade or two ago when I saw a kid mouth off to gangster and he got his face slammed into a glass top table. A harsh scene but d@mn if I didn't cheer the gangster for FINALLY doing what countless others before him would not.

Citizen Rules

07-09-18, 11:29 PM

pahaK have you seen any other 1930s comedies? Any of those that you liked? or even disliked? Just curious.

pahaK

07-10-18, 10:01 AM

pahaK have you seen any other 1930s comedies? Any of those that you liked? or even disliked? Just curious.

I've certainly seen some Marx Brothers films and both 30s Chaplins but it was ages ago. I kinda remember liking them but I was just a kid so it's not very relevant. More recently the only one that comes to mind is Buñuel's Age of Gold which is partly comedy according to IMDb (I certainly didn't review it as one) which I gave 3.5 popcorn.

I don't usually watch that much comedies and I suppose same applies to 1930s films so both of them combined means that my familiarity with the 1930s comedy is pretty low.

Citizen Rules

07-10-18, 01:17 PM

I've certainly seen some Marx Brothers films and both 30s Chaplins but it was ages ago. I kinda remember liking them but I was just a kid so it's not very relevant. More recently the only one that comes to mind is Buñuel's Age of Gold which is partly comedy according to IMDb (I certainly didn't review it as one) which I gave 3.5 popcorn.

I don't usually watch that much comedies and I suppose same applies to 1930s films so both of them combined means that my familiarity with the 1930s comedy is pretty low.OK thanks, I was just wondering. We've had a couple of 30s comedies in past Hofs. The two others that come to mine is Bringing Up Baby and My Man Godfrey. I didn't like Bringing Up Baby until like the 4th watch!

pahaK

07-10-18, 01:19 PM

I didn't like Bringing Up Baby until like the 4th watch!

I suppose I wouldn't have given a film that many chances :D

Citizen Rules

07-10-18, 01:31 PM

I suppose I wouldn't have given a film that many chances :DEither would I normally, but what happened is I watched Bringing Up Baby years ago and didn't like it. Then it was nominated in the 11th HoF (http://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?t=46753), so I watched it again and still didn't like it. Then the next night I re-watched it with commentary from Peter Bogdanovich who loved the film and talked about how revolutionary it was...I still didn't really like it but could see why it was considered great. Then it was part of the Director Dissection of Howard Hawks, so I had to watch it a 4th time and then it finally clicked and I ended up liking it.

MijaFrost

07-10-18, 11:16 PM

Siddon

07-10-18, 11:56 PM

Citizen Rules

07-11-18, 01:27 PM

I hadn't noticed this HOF until everyone had already sent in their nominations, but I just wanted to say, if anyone starts a '30s Pt. II list, or whatever the next HOF will be, I'd appreciate receiving a notification of that (whether it's a message or mention).
Thanks guys!

These films here all look interesting. Some were already on my watchlist, and I added the rest. I'll check 'em out at some point. Mija, would love to have you join another 30s Hof. I'm hoping when this one is done we could do a 30s Part II. I'm sure it would be small with not many members, so it would be easy to do.

I'll try to remember to PM you an invite when it starts. If I forget to do that, someone will hopefully give you an @mention or a PM to let you know.

edarsenal

07-11-18, 01:30 PM

I hadn't noticed this HOF until everyone had already sent in their nominations, but I just wanted to say, if anyone starts a '30s Pt. II list, or whatever the next HOF will be, I'd appreciate receiving a notification of that (whether it's a message or mention).
Thanks guys!

These films here all look interesting. Some were already on my watchlist, and I added the rest. I'll check 'em out at some point.
Would be very cool to have you continue to join in future HoFs and I'll try to help to get the mention out to you as well.

Citizen Rules

07-11-18, 05:56 PM

https://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=46016
Pepe Le Moko (1937)

I love the world of the Casbah, that the film builds...it's the real star of the movie. The film builds the Casbah world on multi layers, literally! From the dark corridors, to the crowded streets, to the overhanging terraces, it's a three dimensional set! That's why I went with a 4 pic montage. as the sets are so varied and so rich that I just couldn't settle on one lead photo.

I read that some of this was actually filmed in Casbah, Algeria (the wide shots)...which is very impressive for 1937. And even the sets they built do the film wonders in creating an interwoven catacombs, where the master criminal Pepe Lo Moko hides out. I can only think of a few 1930s films that have such 'world building' sets and this is one of the most impressive I've seen.

Beyond the location and sets, I did like the film but I didn't really connect to Pepe as the short run time didn't give a big chance for characterization. Which is OK, as this film isn't trying to do that. Instead it's a classic French detective-sleuthing story where a likeable roguish master criminal is outsmarting the detectives at every turn. The story reminded me of the master French detective Poirot.

I feel the movie is even better than I think. I did have a hard time keeping up with all the dialogue at times, especially the opening scene in the French police station. At times I lost track of who was saying what as there was overlapping and fast dialogue. I get the feeling if I spoke French the film would have had even more meaning for me. As it was, I wasn't into the story all that much, but I did really appreciate the amazing sets!

Nathaniel

07-11-18, 07:29 PM

I should get Child Bride up tomorrow. Probably Make Way For Tomorrow as well. Got a few days off here.

https://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=46016

Some of these images are still stuck in my head from the other day. Cool contrast there between the vastness of the rooftops and the cramped feel of the streets below.

cricket

07-11-18, 08:22 PM

Another thing I liked about Pepe Le Moko was the title. I kept saying it to my wife Pepe Le Moko Pepe Le Moko Pepe Le Moko, just to annoy the crap out of her. I did the same thing with Scaramouche and The Babadook:p

mark f

07-11-18, 08:42 PM

What does she chant back - "Douchebag Douchebag Douchebag"?

cricket

07-11-18, 08:56 PM

Something like that:)

edarsenal

07-11-18, 09:24 PM

I KNEW you'd dig the sets, Citizen Rules!! :)

Nathaniel

07-12-18, 04:54 PM

Child Bride (1938)
46043

The only thing I knew about this movie going in was that it was too disturbing/bad for MST3K. They actually didn't want to say the film's name in case anyone went to find it. I can't say that I blame them as there's an air of awfulness running through this film. Who was the audience for this in 1938? Apparently it's meant to be educational but continually goes off on random pointless tangents. With a poorly paced plot straight out of the worst serials. This education strapline just sounds like a way to skate around the Hays Code.

Genuinely awful acting from every single person. There's not a redeeming performance here to be seen with so many terrible lines. Particularly notable on that front is any section of dialogue involving school teacher Carol. The children are irritating too. The connection between Jennie and Freddie is non existent which hurts the film majorly. Freddie is meant to come across as sympathetic, but his acting is so weirdly awkward and not in a believable way either.

There's no cinematic flourishes in this one that I can point to as being impressive or original. That is disappointing as I was hoping for a redeeming feature but it's poor on that front as well.

Citizen Rules

07-12-18, 07:02 PM

Child Bride (1938)

Who was the audience for this in 1938? Apparently it's meant to be educational but continually goes off on random pointless tangents.
... I don't know if you've had a chance to read my write up on Child Bride, but I took a guess as to who the movie was intended for back in 1938.

Nathaniel

07-13-18, 03:34 PM

Make Way For Tomorrow (1937)
46070

In terms of movies that dance on the line of heavy handedness, Make Way is incredible in the way it approaches inner family dynamics. It's a film about the seeming inevitability that things will end badly, the awkwardness that can develop from a generation gap and also captures minor social situations perfectly. Simple things like how just being welcoming or kind can brighten someone's day. The contrast between how strangers treat Barkey & Lucy and how their family treats them highlights this well. It could have been straight forward to portray the children in this story as complete antagonists with little depth but that's never the case. The quality screenplay deserves praise for making these characters feel truly alive and how they would behave as they do under these circumstances. Barkley & Lucy Cooper are in no way perfect but are just trying to deal with the harsh reality of old age post Depression.

Beulah Bondi is so good, her's being a central performance that carries much of the film's mood swings. I found the first hour of this movie to be flat out uncomfortable at certain moments, down to the situations that Lucy finds herself in. The moments of happiness and reminiscence are effective because of these moments of sadness. And yes, the fact that she's 48 here is crazy. Awesome make up work on this film. The rest of the cast are very good too. Maurice Moscovitch's scene with Victor Moore as an example shows off the acting chops of both.

One of the most well known stories about this film is that when Leo McCarey accepted the Best Director Oscar for The Awful Truth he said; "Thanks, but you gave it to me for the wrong picture." It's not a surprise that The Awful Truth received more love at the time even if I'm in agreement with Leo. It would be an interesting double bill that's for sure.

Nathaniel

07-13-18, 03:39 PM

Ballot sent.

Citizen Rules

07-13-18, 04:27 PM

Ballot sent. Thanks👍 Nathaniel, glad you joined:)

I should be finishing up in a couple days, I have one more to watch, The Scarlett Empress. I hoped I could get it from Netflix DVD, but it says it's a Long wait, so I'll have to watch it elsewhere.

cricket

07-13-18, 06:10 PM

Thanks👍 Nathaniel, glad you joined:)

I should be finishing up in a couple days, I have one more to watch, The Scarlett Empress. I hoped I could get it from Netflix DVD, but it says it's a Long wait, so I'll have to watch it elsewhere.

Sometimes it says long wait but then they suddenly ship it. It happened to me this week with another movie.

Citizen Rules

07-13-18, 07:30 PM

Sometimes it says long wait but then they suddenly ship it. It happened to me this week with another movie.I always seem to have to wait like 3 months. With Wagons East I must have waited more than half a year for it. Sometimes I don't know about Netflix DVD:rolleyes:

edarsenal

07-13-18, 07:41 PM

I've said it before and, (apparently) won't shut up about it. . . so do enjoy an in depth write up by someone regarding their nomination that I haven't seen before. Nicely done, Nathaniel!

Actually started typing on trying to rack my brain on whether I've seen Awful Truth or not. But I'm pretty sure (now) I have. There's one I'll need to rewatch for the 30s Countdown.

Nathaniel

07-13-18, 09:11 PM

cricket

07-13-18, 09:18 PM

Child Bride

http://www.badmovies.org/othermovies/childbride/childbride5.jpg

This is exactly the kind of movie I'd like to be remade. They always remake great movies, but I think they should remake bad movies that have an interesting story. At least, I liked the story. I also liked the dwarf and the dog, but unfortunately that was about it. It's just done very poorly. There have been plenty of movies that have been worse for me to watch, but that would mostly be due to length and taste. On top of the quality, we have the swimming scene which also makes it an ugly movie. I don't know what the director's motivation was. Maybe it was artistic or to send a message, or something else, but it didn't work and it's a real bad look. I seek out shocking films, but that's starring adults. I do not see a place for this type of thing. There are plenty of ways to be a disturbing movie but I thought this was disgusting. I'm sorry I didn't like your movie Pahak, but I appreciate your out of the box nominations and I look forward to the next one.

1.5-

pahaK

07-14-18, 01:15 AM

Mija, would love to have you join another 30s Hof. I'm hoping when this one is done we could do a 30s Part II. I'm sure it would be small with not many members, so it would be easy to do.

I've actually been watching more 1930s film to find a candidate for the potential Part II. I think I've already found my next nomination and unfortunately it's not going to be as controversial as Child Bride :D

edarsenal

07-14-18, 01:04 PM

Citizen Rules

07-14-18, 01:26 PM

Wow, that is no easy thing to disgust cricket! Me and Cricket have something in common...we both don't like watching naked 12 year old girls in movies.

Question for everyone who's seen Child Bride: How disturbing was it for you to watch a 12 year old actress being naked on screen? Was it wrong? Or if it wasn't disturbing or wrong, why?

.

Chypmunk

07-14-18, 01:51 PM

Anybody would think all Child Bride consisted of was a twelve year old being paraded naked for an hour from the furore.

Citizen Rules

07-14-18, 02:01 PM

Anybody would think all Child Bride consisted of was a twelve year old being paraded naked for an hour from the furore.Fan of the movie?

Chypmunk

07-14-18, 02:10 PM

Fan of the movie?
Not particularly but I don't judge any movie purely by one scene, no matter how ill-conceived that scene might be.

Citizen Rules

07-14-18, 02:21 PM

Not particularly but I don't judge any movie purely by one scene, no matter how ill-conceived that scene might be. So have you seen it?

Chypmunk

07-14-18, 02:28 PM

So have you seen it?
Seriously? Wouldn't have commented had I not seen it :shrug:

pahaK

07-14-18, 02:39 PM

Question for everyone who's seen Child Bride: How disturbing was it for you to watch a 12 year old actress being naked on screen? Was it wrong? Or if it wasn't disturbing or wrong, why?

Not disturbing at all and not wrong (only way it would be either for me would be to know she was forced to do the scene against her will).

Why? Well, assuming she wasn't coerced to do the scene no one was hurt -> it's not wrong in my book. I didn't find anything wrong in Pretty Baby either and it has full frontal nudity of 12-year-old Brooke Shields. I just don't understand the hysteria.

Citizen Rules

07-14-18, 02:46 PM

Not disturbing at all and not wrong (only way it would be either for me would be to know she was forced to do the scene against her will). Why? Well, assuming she wasn't coerced to do the scene no one was hurt -> it's not wrong in my book. Thanks PahaK. I'm not one to usually try and convince others to change their view points, so I just wanted to know how others felt.

I didn't find anything wrong in Pretty Baby either and it has full frontal nudity of 12-year-old Brooke Shields. I just don't understand the hysteria. I hadn't seen that one, I've heard it was controversial, I didn't know Brooke Shields was full frontal nudity in that. One thing is for sure that scene could not be made today in America.

Chypmunk

07-14-18, 03:15 PM

FInished dinner now so I can answer the actual question....

Certainly not 'disturbing' (it's not hugely explicit or sexual imo) but it's not a scene I was particularly comfortable watching either .... the biggest problem I had with the scene was not the nudity per se but the overly drawn-out nature of it which felt unnecessarily voyeuristic. As for whether or not it's 'wrong', I'd have to partially echo pahaK - unless there was coercion or it was against the law, 'ill-advised' (unless of course they deliberately set out purely for notoriety) would be the way I'd term it.

cricket

07-14-18, 04:49 PM

Now that I think of it, there's quite a few movies with underage nudity in some kind of form. I was always under the impression that it was illegal though.

CosmicRunaway

07-14-18, 06:26 PM

.... the biggest problem I had with the scene was not the nudity per se but the overly drawn-out nature of it which felt unnecessarily voyeuristic.
That's how I felt as well.

I think the purpose of the scene was just to show that the kids didn't see anything wrong with swimming nude together until they were told so by adults, and it's the adults that look at their bodies in a sexual manner (like the perv who starts spying on her from the cliff). The only thing that was really disgusting to me about the scene was the fact that I know there are pedo creeps out there that would find it arousing, and the film didn't frame it in a way to discourage that mindset.

I also found it a bit funny that she took off her dress to go swimming, but then when she was finished, she put her dress back on while she was still in the water, immediately soaking the garment. So it felt like all that nudity was unnecessary.

Siddon

07-17-18, 03:53 AM

https://theredlist.com/media/database/films/cinema/1930/pepe-le-moko-/017-pepe-le-moko-theredlist.jpg
Pepe Le Moko (1937) is the tale of two films, the "thriller" and the "drama". In the first act of the film we get to see Pepe commit his crimes in gorgeous Algiers. Some of these set pieces are straight out of Raiders of the Lost Ark, their is a shooting scene in which the frame work and blocking is fantastic. When the film plays up to Julien Duvivier (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julien_Duvivier)'s strength's it's a fantastic film and reminds me of future new wave films from Melville.

But then you get to the other part...the "drama" in which you have a group of characters that you can hardly keep straight because of the short run time and they aren't really given much to do. The central plot of Pepe is the romance between Pepe and a wealthy business-men's wife but for me the character just feels like a piece of the scenery.

Jean Gabin is very good as Pepe and you wish the film just revolved around him and didn't take some of it's confusing side steps. The film had about 20 named characters and 24 hours later I could describe maybe five of them.

edarsenal

07-18-18, 08:42 PM

https://www.kozaksclassiccinema.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/Make-Way-for-Tomorrow-1937-Featured-Image-644x356.jpg

Make Way For Tomorrow

SPOILERS

What a very sad, but VERY enjoyable film!!

A great little tear-jerker that starts a little slow with some of the "children's" acting, but once Bark and Lucy are separated to live with one of their children, you suddenly find yourself quite invested. And by the end, OH how the tears come!!

It is a great concept and one you rarely see. An elderly couple whose children don't want, or claim they are unable to have them stay with them. Any of us who have elderly parents can truly relate to this film and it's dynamics.
Speaking of, I rather liked how we saw it, mostly, through Lucy and Bark's view of things. While getting the gist of the reasons why no one wanted them or were willing to make allowances for them. Especially to keep them together which was the ultimate heart breaker of this film. That, in their final years, after 50 yrs of marriage, they would split them up to accommodate themselves instead of helping those who raised and sacrificed for them.

One scene that irritated me was the Bridge game scene. Specifically when everyone felt bothered SIMPLY because she was rocking back in forth in her chair. I seriously started cussing at the screen. One of the best sounds of my childhood was that of a rocking chair.
Of course, when she had her phone call (so touching) I was watching each of them in background and scowling, "Yeah, feel like a bunch of d@cks, don't ya? Good!"

And, of course, that final day together was so beautiful. The long walks, the ride to the hotel they honeymooned at, and how total strangers all gave them such courtesy without knowing the full details of what that day meant to them.
Also, the little comments and looks they gave each other throughout. You could see a couple who had spent a life together.
Truly wonderful scenes.
LOVED the phone call Bark made telling their kids they wouldn't be back. Put a huge grin on my face.

And, oh my god, the good-bye!!
My heart STILL hurts thinking about it!
Especially the final fade out as Lucy's smile fades and she looks about and behind her.
What an emotional ending!!!

WOW!!

It's a very hard watch, but quite a wonderful one!!

Citizen Rules

07-18-18, 09:12 PM

@edarsenal (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=50536)

Ed, you summed up just how I felt about Make Way For Tomorrow. A great film, and unusual subject mater, very touching and very hard to watch.

Deadline is in 10 days on July 28th. Everyone looks to be easily on target. @Siddon (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=95448) are you still with us?

edarsenal

07-18-18, 10:15 PM

@edarsenal (http://www.movieforums.com/community/member.php?u=50536)

Ed, you summed up just how I felt about Make Way For Tomorrow. A great film, and unusual subject mater, very touching and very hard to watch.

Definitely one you don't see in films. And yes, very hard to watch, but definitely one TO watch.
I'm doing a double feature, as it were, for sad films with Entre Nos right now.

Citizen Rules

07-18-18, 10:25 PM

Definitely one you don't see in films. And yes, very hard to watch, but definitely one TO watch.
I'm doing a double feature, as it were, for sad films with Entre Nos right now.
Enjoy! I really liked Entre Nos, simplistic yet effective story telling. My type of movie.

edarsenal

07-18-18, 10:28 PM

Enjoy! I really liked Entre Nos, simplistic yet effective story telling. My type of movie.

That's an excellent description of the story telling.

Citizen Rules

07-18-18, 10:32 PM

That's an excellent description of the story telling. Feel free to use it:p

Siddon

07-19-18, 11:10 AM

http://weaponsman.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/Cary-Grant-as-Cutter-in-Gunga-Din.jpg

Yeah I don't know how to feel about Gunga Din. This is one of those films where blackface really played a prominent role. While the idea of doing a escapade about a group of British officers tracking down Bombay strangers is really fascinating in theory, the execution I found to be a bit lacking.

It wasn't all bad though, I really liked seeing Cary Grant play against type as the young cock sure officer without the slyness and guile he woud play in the 40's and 50's.

The set pieces were also fairly impressive for the time, it didn't look as good as Pepe or some other films from this era but it did look very good. Their is something to be said with using a cast of hundreds of extras that's missing from modern films.

But my big problem with the film was how underwritten and underutilized the titular character was. While have gotten past characters in brown face(I almost nominated The Good Earth) not developing the character was inexcusable in my eyes and undercut the final scenes.

cricket

07-19-18, 04:27 PM

I always get a chuckle from the word cocksure.

pahaK

07-19-18, 06:39 PM

Watching Make Way For Tomorrow. I guess the fact that I'm on the forums with my phone tells how I feel about it.

Nathaniel

07-19-18, 07:48 PM

Definitely 5 coming here from pahaK.

Calling it now.

This phone thing is just a ruse to throw everyone off...:modest:

pahaK

07-19-18, 10:13 PM

Make Way For Tomorrow (1937) N

I had no idea what this was going to be but somehow by quickly skimming some of the HoF reviews I got the impression that it would be a heavy drama :rolleyes:

46264
"Can I have 90 minutes of my life back, please?"

During the great depression an old couple loses their house. Of course they don't react in any way during the six month term of notice but inform their children few days before the actual eviction. Then they move to live with the children but, alas, each to different one. From there begins one of the most tedious movie experiences I've forced myself through.

There's absolutely nothing happening in the whole film. The mother is nosing around in the family she's staying with and I think they were rightfully pissed. Father is a bit more pleasant guest (except he's acting like a 5-year-old at times) but the daughter he's living with is total ass. I don't care about any of these people and their problems don't look that great considering the time.

I'm not sure if the film was trying to promote better relationships with the family elders. For me it mostly managed to show why I'd go mad if I had to live with my mother at this age. People need their privacy and while I agree that people should take care of their aging parents having them live with you and run your home isn't a working solution (at least it isn't for the most).

Only tears the film was close to jerking were the ones of boredom.

0.5

Siddon

07-22-18, 08:19 AM

https://machinemeandotorg.files.wordpress.com/2016/03/bride6.jpg

Bride of Frankenstein is perhaps one of the earliest uses of postmodern film-making. This is both a continuation of The Frankenstein film yet it's also given the framing technique of introducing Mary Shelley into the story. It's a little weird but it's also very cool.

Boris Karloff(billed only as Karloff!) spends the majority of the film on the run. His escapades are captured with these glorious set pieces that provides the film with a strange anachronistic quality to it. Henry Frankenstein, has survived his encounter with the monster is now being brought back to health with his wife Elizabeth when Doctor Pretorius comes in. Pretorius is a different sort of crazy from Henry. Henry's character has changed dramatically from the first film to sort of retrofit him as a protagonist. Pretrorius is a more calculating villain but it's just a different side of the ego driven coin which Shelly was going for.

But ultimately this is Jame's Whale film, he's more focused on creating incredible imagery and practically every shot in this film is so dense. You almost want to pause and just marvel at all the details that Whale inserts into each shot. I wonder if anyone has ever tried to retrofit the film as a silent one because the dialogue and acting are vastly inferior to the visual storytelling in the film.

cricket

07-22-18, 10:55 AM

Make Way for Tomorrow

http://deeperintomovies.net/journal/image11/makeway5.jpg

I already had this on my watchlist due to it's inclusion on Ebert's great movies list. I was looking forward to it and it did not disappoint. The story is as simple as can be yet so effective. I do sympathize with the dilemma the children face as it's a tricky situation. It's something many of us will encounter in some form. The children are not made out to be rotten, nor should they be. Still, it's the parents who deserve and get most of our sympathy. It's not sugar coated or made out to be more than it is. It's a very effective movie that makes the viewer reflect on their own life.

4

Mr Minio

07-22-18, 12:09 PM

Make Way For Tomorrow
0.5 I certainly didn't love it and thought it's perfectible, but this was one of Yasujiro Ozu's favourites, and you can certainly see that Tokyo Story is basically a remake of this film! Not that this should influence anybody's rating of it. Just pointing it out. Oh, and director's The Awful Truth from the same year is a superior film in my opinion.

All things considered, I think a 0.5 star rating is too harsh. I strongly disliked this guy's An Affair to Remember, but still gave it a 2. I think a half star rating should be reserved for really abominable films that insult cinema as an art form, or something. "It was boring" is amongst the weakest and laziest forms of criticism ever. "The protagonist(s) were annoying" is at least understandable and doesn't reek of ignorance.

tl;dr: Get out and go watch a blockbuster, or something. You're a contemptible cur! I repeat, Sir. You're a contemptible cur!

cricket

07-22-18, 12:47 PM

Tokyo Story is basically a remake of this film!

I didn't even think of that.

Oh, and director's The Awful Truth from the same year is a superior film in my opinion.

I'm looking forward to that too.

I strongly disliked this guy's An Affair to Remember, but still gave it a 2.

I often think of you and Bluedeed as having similar taste. He once called that the greatest American movie ever made.

"It was boring" is amongst the weakest and laziest forms of criticism ever.

But what do you say if a movie simply never interests you?

Mr Minio

07-22-18, 12:56 PM

I often think of you and Bluedeed as having similar taste. He once called that the greatest American movie ever made. So he likes Sirk and Lubitsch, because he read on some site they should be liked. Well, at least Lubitsch deserves the love. :cool:
But what do you say if a movie simply never interests you? A true cinephile is interested in everything film. I'm watching gay pinkus, for ****'s sake!!! Appreciate my dedication!!!

pahaK

07-23-18, 02:47 AM

I certainly didn't love it and thought it's perfectible, but this was one of Yasujiro Ozu's favourites, and you can certainly see that Tokyo Story is basically a remake of this film! Not that this should influence anybody's rating of it. Just pointing it out. Oh, and director's The Awful Truth from the same year is a superior film in my opinion.

All things considered, I think a 0.5 star rating is too harsh. I strongly disliked this guy's An Affair to Remember, but still gave it a 2. I think a half star rating should be reserved for really abominable films that insult cinema as an art form, or something. "It was boring" is amongst the weakest and laziest forms of criticism ever. "The protagonist(s) were annoying" is at least understandable and doesn't reek of ignorance.

tl;dr: Get out and go watch a blockbuster, or something. You're a contemptible cur! I repeat, Sir. You're a contemptible cur!

Thank you for your opinion. Not that I agree with anything you said but feel free to continue on your chosen path. Oh, and my ratings are based solely on how much I enjoyed watching the film so they're not affected in the least by things like "X is a remake of this film" or "Y liked this film a lot" or even " certain forum poster thinks disliking this is ignorant".

Mr Minio

07-23-18, 12:12 PM

pahaK

"The old proverb that you cannot argue about matters of taste may well be true, but that should not conceal the fact that taste can be developed."
- E. H. Gombrich, The Story of Art

cricket

07-23-18, 12:26 PM

"The old proverb that you cannot argue about matters of taste may well be true, but that should not conceal the fact that taste can be developed."
- E. H. Gombrich, The Story of Art

Come back when it happens to you:D

Mr Minio

07-23-18, 12:54 PM

Come back when it happens to you:D Eh, hate to be cocky, but I might very well have the most well-developed, eclectic, all-embracing taste here.

Find me some other user who loves extremely slow cinema of Lav Diaz, philosophical works of Tarkovsky, humanist masterpieces of Kurosawa, dirty pink films, disturbing CAT III gems, bitchin' spaghetti westerns, legit heroic bloodshed pictures, Brakhage's abstract experimental films, 100 years old silents... and brand-new flicks from 2017, classic Hollywood... and New Hollywood, Italian Neorealism, all New Waves all around the globe, film essays, stylish gialli... and unstylish best worst movies ever made. Cinema from Iran to Japan, from Brazil to Hongkong, from Sweden to Russia.

Truffaut asks "but... is cinema more important than life"? For me cinema is life!

I love cinema, not just single movies. ;)

Yep, my taste can be further developed, but suggesting it's underdeveloped is misinformed at best, and mordacious at worst.

cricket

07-23-18, 01:37 PM

Eh, hate to be cocky, but I might very well have the most well-developed, eclectic, all-embracing taste here.

Find me some other user who loves extremely slow cinema of Lav Diaz, philosophical works of Tarkovsky, humanist masterpieces of Kurosawa, dirty pink films, disturbing CAT III gems, bitchin' spaghetti westerns, legit heroic bloodshed pictures, Brakhage's abstract experimental films, 100 years old silents... and brand-new flicks from 2017, classic Hollywood... and New Hollywood, Italian Neorealism, all New Waves all around the globe, film essays, stylish gialli... and unstylish best worst movies ever made. Cinema from Iran to Japan, from Brazil to Hongkong, from Sweden to Russia.

Truffaut asks "but... is cinema more important than life"? For me cinema is life!

I love cinema, not just single movies. ;)

Yep, my taste can be further developed, but suggesting it's underdeveloped is misinformed at best, and mordacious at worst.

My bad. I assumed you were talking about good taste. You definitely have taste.

Mr Minio

07-23-18, 01:38 PM

My bad. I assumed you were talking about good taste. I rate your effort 2/10.

cricket

07-23-18, 01:41 PM

I rate your effort 2/10.

That's about what I give The Turin Horse. See, we all have things in common.

Mr Minio

07-23-18, 01:47 PM

Way to go, abderite. :)

cricket

07-23-18, 01:50 PM

Because the smart ones think it's deep lol

Mr Minio

07-23-18, 01:55 PM

Because the smart ones think it's deep lol You just implied you're not smart. You roasted yourself!

cricket

07-23-18, 02:07 PM

Well you gave me a shot because I didn't like The Turin Horse. I was being sarcastic.

Siddon

07-23-18, 02:12 PM

http://timelines.latimes.com/media/event_images/160/04d8f82f-9392-4ced-a89b-1a7beb426f24.JPG
Make Way For Tomorrow is 90 minutes of glorious guilt, a pair of elderly parents invite their four(though they have five) children to an evening dinner when they reveal that they are going to lose their house. The father retired for four years spent his savings and now both parents need to be taken in and taken care of. The children...terrible horrible children split the parents up one going to California the other to New York.

One of the things I love about the 1930's is you get these complicated films about complicated emotions with older actors. Films like Min and Bill, Lady for a Day, and Dodsworth touch on aging and aspects of life that contemporary (though really from the 50's up) had no interest in. So movies like this become sort of unicorns to be treasured and valued.

What this film is about it basically the human condition, often times in the film it's the unsaid moments. When the mother is speaking on the phone to her husband and the crowd playing cards are all dealing with existential crisis on their own. Or when the couple has to say goodbye at the end knowing that their is a decent chance one of them will pass away soon.

And I'm sorry if you don't see the artistic value in scenes like that.

Citizen Rules

07-23-18, 02:24 PM

...One of the things I love about the 1930's is you get these complicated films about complicated emotions with older actors. Films like Min and Bill, Lady for a Day, and Dodsworth touch on aging and aspects of life that contemporary (though really from the 50's up) had no interest in... That's a good point you made. It does seem like after the 1930s, movies focused on the stories of the elderly and told from their point of view, were few and far between. I hadn't seen Make Way For Tomorrow until this HoF, it's an impressive film.

Citizen Rules

07-23-18, 02:29 PM

Cool beans! We're all doing great:up: which is a good thing as the deadline is in just 5 days on the 28th.

Cosmic Runaway, PahaK & Nathaniel are done.
And Cricket, Edarsenal, Siddon and myself have only 1 more film to go. I'm watching my last one, Scarlett Empress tonight.

Edarsenal is going to host the 30s Hof Part 2 which will start shortly after this one ends. Hope everyone will join that:), it should be small so easy to do.

edarsenal

07-23-18, 08:49 PM

Part 2 WILL BE a mad race since it'll be a short run, finishing off BEFORE The 30s Countdown (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?p=1896180#post1896180) which starts after the September 30 due date for all lists.
But with the the usually short film lengths and, most likely, small group of participants, we should be able to knock it out. So, this will be the one to get a personal favorites that you may feel few know about that you'd love folks to consider for their lists.

And that is a solid remark about such a small amount of films about older folks. I can only think of a couple, myself and more than are set up on someone old thinking back about when they were young.
And Make Way For Tomorrow is quite the excellent hidden gem.
I also want to commend pahaK for speaking as he felt, gotta respect that.

edarsenal

07-23-18, 09:04 PM

Way to go, abderite. :)

https://i.imgflip.com/thtkz.jpg

"What's an abderite?"

:randy:

sorry, couldn't help myself

edarsenal

07-23-18, 11:16 PM

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMDI1MWQ5ZjAtYjQ1YS00MWExLWE1YzMtZWIyYzM1ZmVjZmM1XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNzU1NzE3NTg@._V1_CR0,45,480,270_ AL_UX477_CR0,0,477,268_AL_.jpg

Child Bride

Well. . .

To be truly honest, I am actually a little befuddled on what, exactly, to write about this.

I imagine I will get the obvious points out of the way.

Yeah, the acting was very hammy. My guess would be, since this was intended more as a public message against Child Brides, as the opening credits suggest, it kinda set the level of production talent a bit low. Though, considering what it was aiming at, I could almost look past that. For the simple fact that I actually did get concerned over the people of the story, even between the eye rolls I had with the acting.

There was a potential to make something pretty d@mn haunting and gritty, considering much of the aspects and situations that played out.
But, being a Public Message against Child Marriage, it's intent was to sensationalize, and thereby, shock and offend. So that upset citizens would speak up and out about Child Marriage and do something to outlaw it.

As for the swimming scene. . . well, to be honest, I simply saw a kid swimming in the nude. Not frolicking, or playfully splashing about with a sly/demure look. She simply went swimming. At one point calling her dog in to join her. Should we be concerned of the possible bestiality that some sicko would fantasize about, because of it?
The only "dirty" thing was the pervert watching her, and that's on that character. Not on a kid swimming in a pond.
The perversity was up on the ridge, watching, not in the pond.

Not much more to say, except I did enjoy the badly done fist fight and how the guy gets shot on his wedding day. I actually was worried that it was gonna be Freddie who would shoot him and go to jail for it.