1940's Hall Of Fame Part I

Nothing good comes from staying with normal people

12-02-16

Can't think of a single joke from the movie, so no, it's not the comedy as such. What I find funny is Scott, how socially awkward he is and what an utter douchbag he sometimes is. Mostly it's a recognition of how I feel when I'm at a party, while not being as bad as him, I can recognize that I too am that wierd unsocial dude who's standing in a corner, not talking and wondering how much time I must spend here without it looking too wierd when I leave.

So no, it's not the comedy I like most, more the absurd situations he gets tossed into, mixed with a love of the 8-bit visuals and over the top fighting scenes.

__________________
Why not just kill them? I'll do it! I'll run up to Paris - bam, bam, bam, bam. I'm back before week's end. We spend the treasure. How is this a bad plan?

Clazor

Nothing good comes from staying with normal people

12-02-16

Thumbs up for your dad having goodtaste then.

CosmicRunaway

Winner by Default

12-02-16

Pursued (1947)
Dir. Raoul Walsh
Starring: Robert Mitchum, Teresa Wright, Judith Anderson

I don't watch many Westerns because I'm not particularly interested in the American frontier, where most Westerns tend to be set. I do however like film noirs, so going into this film I didn't know what to expect at all. Luckily there is more than enough noir elements in Pursued (particularly in its filmography) to catch my attention, and the setting never influenced by enjoyment of the film one way or the other.

While I rather adored Teresa Wright's performance, I wasn't really a fan of Robert Mitchum. I thought he did a great job with the narration, but whenever he was on screen he appeared somewhat bored. I don't recall seeing him in anything else, so perhaps that was just how he looked naturally. It didn't take too much away from his performance, but it was still a bit odd. I did, however, have a hard time accepting Jeb and Thor's romance. They were raised as brother and sister, so I found their relationship to be uncomfortably incestuous.

It was definitely an interesting cross between genres. I liked the camera work and use of shadows more than the plot itself, but I can say the same thing about a lot of films from this period. I'm glad this was nominated because I highly doubt I would have watched this otherwise.

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cricket

Registered User

12-02-16

One thing I liked about Mitchum in that movie is that he naturally has a haunted look about him.

CosmicRunaway

Winner by Default

12-02-16

Originally Posted by cricket

One thing I liked about Mitchum in that movie is that he naturally has a haunted look about him.

Yeah, that expression definitely worked with the sombre tone and for all the scenes in his old house. I would've liked to see him have a bit more emotional range in the earlier scenes with Thor though. Except for...

View Spoilers

WARNING: "Pursued" spoilers below

...in the bedroom after their wedding when Thor wanted to kill him.

His (lack of) expression was great there.

edarsenal

Women will be your undoing, P�p�

12-02-16

going from your list, clazor, there is a possibility of you enjoying Arsenic and old lace. At the premise, anyway. In fact, I would take a wild guess that it will be Peter Lorre's character (Johnny's doctor) you may enjoy the most.

Enjoyed your write up, Cosmic. Like you I'm pretty sure I would have missed this one and a few others here like Shadow, which I am so glad I watched last night. The same with your nom - very curious to see that one as well.

Seen a couple of Mitchum movies and the languid attitude works most of the time. Though, yes, a little more range would be nice.

__________________
What I actually said to win MovieGal's heart:
- I might not be a real King of Kinkiness, but I make good pancakes

~Mr Minio

CosmicRunaway

Winner by Default

12-02-16

Originally Posted by edarsenal

Enjoyed your write up, Cosmic. Like you I'm pretty sure I would have missed this one and a few others here like Shadow, which I am so glad I watched last night. The same with your nom - very curious to see that one as well.

Thanks! I was thinking it was a little brief, but I read through the older posts before writing it, and I thought that Camo and GBG covered anything I would've said about the plot and Thor's character arc already, so I didn't bother bringing it up again.

I imagine most people wouldn't otherwise see Murderers Are Among Us, not unless they had an interest in Post-War German Film, so I'm looking forward to seeing everyone's reactions to it. If you like German Expressionism (or film noirs, since the noir aesthetic was heavily influenced by it), you might enjoy the film. If not, I'm not sure if the plot alone will hold the film up. I haven't seen it since I wrote a paper on it about 7 years ago. I am going to rewatch it soon. Though I'm kind of in the mood to watch Laura next.

edarsenal

Women will be your undoing, P�p�

12-02-16

a bit of a fan of noir, my very first venture was with Fritz Lang so I'm pretty sure in that regards it should be intriguing.

And I know what ya mean bout going over ground previously covered. Found myself doing that with my last write up on Shadow of a Doubt

CosmicRunaway

Winner by Default

12-02-16

Strange connection there: "M�rder unter uns" (murderer among us) was the original title for Fritz Lang's 1931 film M. The full German title ended up being M - Eine Stadt sucht einen M�rder (a city searches for a murderer). I don't remember the original title of Staudte's film, I think it was something like "Der Mann den ich t�ten werde" (the man I will kill), but he changed it to Die M�rder sind unter uns after the Soviets requested changes to the film's ending.

edarsenal

Women will be your undoing, P�p�

12-02-16

been decades since seeing M and that is some great trivia regarding the titles. THANK YOU

Citizen Rules

Noir Time

12-02-16

Shadow of a Doubt (Hitchcock, 1943)

Did anybody else think Uncle Charlie was a bit too friendly with his niece? It was an odd relationship! At first, Charlie (Teresa Wright) seemed to have a crush on Uncle Charlie (Joseph Cotton). That actually gave this film a good kick start and the film starts off with a bang.

Into that dynamic comes the mom Patricia Collinge, who also adores her brother, Uncle Charlie. I found Patricia Collinge to be a very bright spot, she had this certain quality when she spoke of her deep love and admiration for her brother. Her performance was a real thing of beauty.

Teresa Wright, was right! for this role. She's so normal, wholesome and down to earth, no wonder she was so popular in the 1940s...She is uniquely real. And that's at a time when many an actresses career was built on star power.

Same goes for Joseph Cotton...and accomplished actor who was never a movie star. Cotton cut his teeth with the great Orson Welles as one of the Mercury Theater players. Cotton starred in two of Welles' great films Citizen Kane and The Magnificent Ambersons. He too was one of the powerhouses in the 40s. I almost nominated another of his films.

Hitch rewards us with well developed and interesting characters, from the little precious, know-it-all girl, to the nerdy murder mystery fan, played by a very young Hume Cronyn in his first movie role.

I mean this movie is really fleshed out with great on location settings, which is something Hitch normally didn't do...and with naturalistic, enlivened dialogued by Thorton Wilder (Our Town) and Sally Benson another great screen writer.

I guess what I'm saying is, this is a good film!

edarsenal

Women will be your undoing, P�p�

12-02-16

I wondered a bit about the relationship between the two in the beginning. Along that line it seemed her young friends seemed rather friendly to the much older men: Charlie and the two detectives as well.
A bit odd, that.

Camo

BANNED

12-02-16

Can't think of a single joke from the movie,

Thumbs up for your dad having goodtaste then.

Got to tell my dad he should keep trying

Citizen Rules

Noir Time

12-02-16

Yup, Hitch put in some juicy parts which makes the movie better than the average mystery thriller...My favorite part is when the younger sister, Ann says her prayers and says outloud ....and bless Veronica Lake...

golden!

Camo

BANNED

12-02-16

but whenever he was on screen he appeared somewhat bored. I don't recall seeing him in anything else, so perhaps that was just how he looked naturally. It didn't take too much away from his performance, but it was still a bit odd.

Dunno, i really don't think he ever looked bored. At most he looked stoney-faced as i tried to put it, by that i meant trying to look cold and uncaring particularly during the scene outside the courthouse. Fair enough though.

edarsenal

Women will be your undoing, P�p�

12-02-16

Originally Posted by Citizen Rules

golden!

I got a kick outta that too!

Camo

BANNED

12-03-16

I really don't know anything about Veronica Lake so it weirds me out when she is discussed. As i said the other day after watching Sullivan's Travels (the first time i've watched her acting.)

Even though i've never seen her in anything or could even name a film she's in, i've always been familiar with the name Veronica Lake. I mean from an early age, it's weird because i don't have a clue why this is

CosmicRunaway

Winner by Default

12-03-16

Originally Posted by Camo

I looked at some pictures of him and I think it might just be his eyes. For some reason they make him look bored/sleepy to me in a lot of shots. I guess that's just the way his face is though.

Camo

BANNED

12-03-16

Originally Posted by CosmicRunaway

I looked at some pictures of him and I think it might just be his eyes. For some reason they make him look bored/sleepy to me in a lot of shots. I guess that's just the way his face is though.

hahaha. I actually know exactly what you mean there. It's definitely just his eyes/face, one of my closest friends has similar eyes so i am really used to knowing what he is expressing. Because of that i don't think i've ever actually thought about Mitchum that way but i get where you are coming from.

seanc