1940's Hall Of Fame Part I

I was trying to remember if there were any specific comments about her being his wife, but I couldn't remember any. Until the end of the movie, I couldn't even figure out why she was in the movie.

I think I saw The Little Foxes many years ago, but I can't remember anything about it, so I'm considering it a first-time watch for me, unless it all comes back to me when I see it again.

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OPEN FLOOR.

They didn't have CGI in the 40's, Sean.

I know, but like, thank god they invented it. Cinephiles always sing the praise of practical effects, but sometimes, practical effects suck.

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CGI sucks sometimes too. At least bad practical effects are fun, which bad CGI (and CGI in general) never is.

I REST MY CASE!!

You win

Damn John Carpenter fans

I see that.

Rope:

I was probably going to nominate this if it didn't get nominated. I am very glad that I am starting to see some praise for it here because when I saw it a couple years ago it was one of the Hitchcock films I have never even heard of. I think it is one of his best and shows off his storytelling very well. I really seem to respond to films in mostly one location so immediately this appeals to me. It sets a natural tension, especially if the dialogue is good. It's not good here, it is fantastic. I love the pretension that the characters are written with and how that manifests itself. This is where I disagree with Camo. Usually I am always on board with more character development, the more the better for me. I love that we are dropped in the middle of the murder here though. I think it jives perfectly with the conversations later on that revolve around the smarter among us being given the freedom to kill without recourse. The motivations don't matter. These are men who feel they are above needing motivation, especially Brandon. We are to feel he is a complete sociopath. We are not to feel any sympathy for him on any level. He is the monster and dropping us in the middle of the murder assures he stays that way to us.

Stewart is great as always. He brings an immediate authority to the room and handles it so well. Even towards the end when things begin to unravel we feel safe with this character. The one shot "gimmick" is fun to watch as well. There are some really fun camera shots used. Everything is just perfect here. A great film I hope everyone enjoys and places high on the 40's list.

The Little Foxes:

Cricket is one of the most respected cinephiles around here for good reason. He watches everything and seems to try and have a very objective point of view. I am always interested in his opinions and what he is watching. That being said I don't think his taste and mine blend too often. This is one of those times where we are on the same page entirely. The Little Foxes is one of those gems that I can't believe I have never heard of till a week ago. This movie is astounding, and as always with me much of that has to do with the script. It is biting, funny, and poignant. The way all the characters were being setup at the beginning had me thinking of Altman. There is a ton going on and we are introduced to a bunch of characters in a short time but we feel like we get to know them all very quickly. Bette Davis is fantastic, but never over shadows the other characters who are all drawn very well and buoyed by good performances all around. The story is simple but full of intrigue and tension. I just can't say enough about this film. It reminds me a lot of Magnificent Ambersons in both style and story. Another favorite is born. So glad Cricket nominated it.

I don't think anyone got what i was saying. I must have not explained it well.

In bold. I'm not saying i care about seeing their motivations, i'm saying i'd like to see how they acted normally before the realization that they had killed someone and the paranoia that they may get caught had set in. Particularly Phillip who obviously completely changed after the murder since he was the more paranoid one. I'd be fine with it being nothing about the murder at all, just some scenes from say when they first met or when they first met David, long before murder was on their minds. I think in that case the drastic change in Phillip would've worked for me alot more. The fact that Brandon wouldn't have changed at all would have too actually since it would clash even more with Phillips erraticness since he'd be as nonchalant as always.

I agree with basically everything you say here otherwise. I know you still may disagree with that i just want to clarify what i meant.

That makes more sense. Sorry for misunderstanding. I still think I like just being propelled into this story but I get your point.


In a movie made today we would definitely get more of that aspect. I like it this way because it adds more mystery.

Yup. Your spoiler is pretty much what i thought. Then again i'm not sure if the original play drops you right into the murder, i imagine it would since it's a play. So i'd say my problem is more with the original material.

Can i ask why it adds more mystery for you?

On the motives point, i was clear on this way before i'd ever even heard of Rope. I've always been a weirdo true crime buff (as you know Sean from our thread ) and i was fascinated with Leopold and Loeb at one point. I know it was the case of two intelligent rich people with issues thinking that they'd be able to kill someone without getting caught. There wasn't much more to it than that as far as anyone can tell. So i think unless they created a whole new story them doing a backstory of the motives would be really boring anyway; and also wouldn't gel with the whole James Stewart part of this.

Glad you thought highly of The Little Foxes. If you didn't, I don't know if many would.

I think I'm going to watch Rope tomorrow.

Just added more intrigue into the nature of their relationship. All the relationships are kind of vague actually. I think the not knowing gives the Brandon character a lot of weight that might not be there otherwise.

I can see that. I think for me personally it would've worked alot more if we saw a few scenes unrelated to the murder showing both how they are as normal care-free students before dropping us into the murder, with Phillip completely changing after realizing what he had done while Brandon is the exact same as he'd always been. I personally think it would've benefited both characters, possibly Brandon more actually.

I think at this rate Sean is going to finish all the movies before I watch even one.

I actually meant to watch Thief of Bagdad last night, but got roped into doing some Christmas shopping instead. I should get around to it today. Though I might rewatch Rope instead, so I can thoroughly read through the above discussion without spoiling myself on something I may have forgotten about haha.

For the record we didn't mention the plot at all, none of what we said goes beyond the opening scene. Even Seans spoiler is more of a character interaction thing that you've probably already picked up on but i wouldn't recommend opening it just in case.

Shadow Of A Doubt:

My nomination but one that I am having a hard time saying a lot about. I basically think it is a perfect movie. If there is a movie in Hitchcock's fimography that shows off how meticulous he was, this is it. Everything seems just so. I have grown to love Jospeh Cotton. Teresa Wright is solid as well. There are a lot of fun moments that offset the dread throughout. Just a pleasure to watch. Not an all timer for me at this point but right on the edges of that. I hope everyone enjoys it.

So there are two actresses that are in both Shadow of a Doubt and The Little Foxes.

Yeah, I watched the small makkng of doc last night. They got along really well. Wright mentioned Little Foxes twice. A movie I had never heard of till you posted about it last week. Weird how things always work that way. Wright is in Pursued as well. She owned the 40's apparently.

I feel kinda the same. But now I'm actually finished with the animation HoF, so I can get started with this one. I've got ahold of five of the noms as of right now, so I'll probably do one either tomorrow night or on Sunday (spending the Saturday with my grandma, so no movies during the day). I will get started shortly, anyway.

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