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| ehle64 |
 Posted: Wed May 03, 2006 12:40 pm |
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Joined: 20 May 2004
Posts: 7149
Location: NYC; US&A
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| I don't know squat about Jack Benny, but I do know that To Be Or Not To Be is a bona-fide comedy classic. |
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| Joe Vitus |
| Posted: Wed May 03, 2006 1:38 pm |
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Joined: 20 May 2004
Posts: 14498
Location: Houston
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| Don't disagree at all about its classic status. Just that it isn't representative of the director or star. |
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| billyweeds |
| Posted: Wed May 03, 2006 1:51 pm |
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Joined: 20 May 2004
Posts: 20618
Location: New York City
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| Is everybody aware that To Be Or Not to Be was remade starring Mel Brooks and Anne Bancroft? |
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| Joe Vitus |
| Posted: Wed May 03, 2006 2:23 pm |
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Joined: 20 May 2004
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Location: Houston
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| Oh yes. I thought it was funnier than the original myself. But many people consider it one of Brooks' worst. |
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| dlhavard |
| Posted: Wed May 03, 2006 2:35 pm |
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Joined: 24 May 2004
Posts: 1352
Location: Detroit (where the slow are run over)
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Gotta disagree Joe. Brooks took over the movie completely and had to be the star in every scene. He spoiled it completely. The trouble with Brooks is that he just doesn't know when to stop.
Benny, on the other hand, was part of the ensemble. That one scene were he's manfully going "To be OR NOT TO BE" and Robert Stack gets up and walks out - that scene cracks me up every time.
Everything works beautifully in the older version - Lombard, Benny, Atwill, even Stack. |
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| Marj |
| Posted: Wed May 03, 2006 4:02 pm |
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Joined: 21 May 2004
Posts: 10497
Location: Manhattan
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I've seen both but it's been some time since I've seen the Carole Lombard - Jack Benny version. So it would be unfair for me to compare them.
Meanwhile, I finally got to see Uncle Tom's Cabin 1927 (silent) last night on TCM. At first I thought, this is the film that I loved so much as a child? Can't be. Then came the scene between Eva and Topsie (played by a white actress) and it had me all over again. Yet, not to the point it did when I was a child.
Finally, during work breaks I saw The Staircase. If anyone is scared off of this film because it's a documentary and a two disk one at that, don't be. It will grab you and not let you go. It really is that compelling! |
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| Joe Vitus |
| Posted: Wed May 03, 2006 5:34 pm |
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Joined: 20 May 2004
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Location: Houston
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dlhavard wrote: Gotta disagree Joe. Brooks took over the movie completely and had to be the star in every scene. He spoiled it completely. The trouble with Brooks is that he just doesn't know when to stop.
Benny, on the other hand, was part of the ensemble. That one scene were he's manfully going "To be OR NOT TO BE" and Robert Stack gets up and walks out - that scene cracks me up every time.
Everything works beautifully in the older version - Lombard, Benny, Atwill, even Stack.
Well, it was Pauline Kael who said "If those are Jews in the basement, who's onstage? The implication is that Mel Brooks is a Polish Catholic. That's a first."
The movie has flaws. And I'm certainly no fan of the flitty gay wardrobe, er, mistress. Athough that's a weakness of Brooks throughout his career (some critics say he puts down gays to offset the close bonds between his other male characters).
But so much of the movie is hilarious to me, and I think Bancroft is the lead attraction. "I don't mind my name in smaller print. I don't mind being beneath the title. But in parentheses?" |
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| Syd |
| Posted: Wed May 03, 2006 7:21 pm |
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Joined: 21 May 2004
Posts: 12921
Location: Norman, Oklahoma
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I finally got to see Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans the other day thanks to Turner Classic Movies. This is often cited as the best of all silent films, and, although I wouldn't rate it quite that high, it is still a damned good film, and at its best, is as good as any film ever made. The scene at the beginning where the Man is going through the marsh to meet the Woman from the City (nobody has a name in the movie), the scene at the Church halfway through, and the storm and its aftermath are all particularly fine cinema. A little slow at times near the beginning (the husband seems to have read Wuthering Heights one time too many), and the lighter middle third goes on too long. Excllent performances by Heathcliff...er, George O'Brien and Janet Gaynor. Gaynor won the first Oscar for Best Actress for this and two other roles, getting that category off to a good start, and Sunrise won for "Best Picture: Unique and Artistic Production," which means that it and Wings, which won for "Best Picture: Production" actually share the honors for being the first Best Picture, and I think both deserve it.
The direction and camerawork on this are fantastic in both senses of the word. I understand the DVD of the movie has a commentary track on how it was made, and I'd be fascinated to hear that. |
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| mo_flixx |
| Posted: Wed May 03, 2006 7:25 pm |
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Joined: 30 May 2004
Posts: 12533
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| see post below about "Sunrise." |
Last edited by mo_flixx on Wed May 03, 2006 7:30 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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| mo_flixx |
| Posted: Wed May 03, 2006 7:30 pm |
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Joined: 30 May 2004
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There's a good description of the extras on Murnau's "Sunrise" at www.amazon.com. Scroll down to see the viewer comments.
Cinematographer John Bailey, a protege of "Sunrise's" cinematographer Karl Struss, does the commentary. There are also outtakes and footage of a lost Murnau film.
Definitely sounds worth checking out. |
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| Earl |
| Posted: Wed May 03, 2006 8:06 pm |
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Joined: 09 Jun 2004
Posts: 2621
Location: Houston
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marantzo wrote: Nancy wrote: Gary,
I think the problem is that lulu tends to put subject lines on her posts, which don't show up for those of us using the thirdeye color scheme, so we don't always know what she is talking about.
Ah, yes. Thank you Nancy. I think the words in the subject line should be larger.
Or visible, even. |
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| Marj |
| Posted: Thu May 04, 2006 12:17 am |
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Joined: 21 May 2004
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Location: Manhattan
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dlhavard wrote: Gotta disagree Joe. Brooks took over the movie completely and had to be the star in every scene. He spoiled it completely. The trouble with Brooks is that he just doesn't know when to stop.
Benny, on the other hand, was part of the ensemble. That one scene were he's manfully going "To be OR NOT TO BE" and Robert Stack gets up and walks out - that scene cracks me up every time.
You just reminded me of that, Dawn. And it cracks me up too ... at exactly the same moment!
Quote: But so much of the movie is hilarious to me, and I think Bancroft is the lead attraction. "I don't mind my name in smaller print. I don't mind being beneath the title. But in parentheses?"
Joe -- She is. You couldn't be more spot on! But how in heaven do you remember so much of the dialogue? Besides the fact, this may be one of the funniest quotes ever. |
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| Joe Vitus |
| Posted: Thu May 04, 2006 2:28 am |
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Joined: 20 May 2004
Posts: 14498
Location: Houston
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| Certain movies, or sometimes just parts of them, are tattoed on my skull. I think it's Bancroft's superb delivery that does it in this case (I haven't seen the movie in over a decade). |
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| Marj |
| Posted: Thu May 04, 2006 3:49 pm |
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Joined: 21 May 2004
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Location: Manhattan
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| lady wakasa |
| Posted: Fri May 05, 2006 1:15 pm |
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Joined: 21 May 2004
Posts: 5911
Location: Beyond the Blue Horizon
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For those who have multiregion DVD players: Yeon DVD in Korea is closing down their business. They're unwinding their inventory, and there may be discounts to come. Mostly Korean film, with some other Asian as well.
I'd already noticed a couple of things cheaper than on the standard video sites, and DVD Beaver has rated some of the versions they carry higher than what's available domestically in the US.
http://www.yeondvd.com/index.html
The owner's expat husband also runs a Korean film site (in english): http://koreanfilm.org/. |
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