Congratulations MoFos for choosing some great comedies! You guys have good taste
Today's comedy inclusions weren't on my crowded ballot but both well deserve a place on this countdown. I rated one of those two films a 5/5 read on....
When Harry Met Sally (1989)
Nora Ephron's screenplay is really a thing of beauty. In a way her screenplay reminded me of a Woody Allen film only without the cynical outlook on life. I liked the way her screenplay examined relationships, while still feeling very grounded and real. Of course Nora Ephron is one of the legends in movie screenplay writing and she doesn't disappoint here.
I thought Billy Crystal was a jerk at the start and of course so did Meg Ryan's character, so that was the whole point. Meg Ryan was a bit of a snood too here and heaven forbid if you should ever have the misfortune of taking her to a restaurant. But as they both grew older they mellowed and became more complex characters and that's thanks to the phenomenal screenplay and probably also the director Rob Reiner. It's hard to tell in any movie if the credit goes to the director or writer?
When Harry Met Sally is one of the best written relationship films I've seen, except for two scenes that I think were over cooked. They are: The famous orgasm scene...and Billy Crystal doing his elderly Jewish man bit (which he did on the TV show
Soap as well). Both were over the top and felt like comedy bits and didn't fit with the realism of the rest of the movie. I read that both scenes were improvised and not originally in Nora Ephron's script. To bad the director didn't modify those scenes to make them match the rest of the film's feel & flow.
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and keep reading
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The Gold Rush (1925)
There's something joyous about looking back in time to an era so long gone. Silent films are a different form of artistry, the acting style is unique and so are the stories. Charles Chaplin once said that The Gold Rush was the one film that he wanted to be remembered for. I feel like it's important not to forget him or any of these great artist that were once so important to the world.
So much has already been lost, 75% or more of all silent films are gone...erased from history. The moments, the people, the images vanished into the ether. Occasional a lost film is found but it's extremely rare. Of the remaining silent films, many are in storage and deteriorating. Sad.
At least we have this gem. I really loved watching
The Gold Rush. All one has to do is watch Chaplin's face as he does the dancing rolls to know you're watching a very special artist.