This weekend I watched four more movies at home and saw two of the 2006 nominated films in the theatres. I also had some previously watched best picture winners still to comment on.
To quote from one of my all-time favorite movies:
Let me ’splain… No, there is too much. Let me sum up.
The Greatest Show on Earth (1952) : A real epic movie about the “behind-the-scenes” life of people working in the circus. It was made in conjunction with Ringing Bros. Barnam & Bailey, so it was quite elaborate and authentic for the day. Charlton Heston has such huge white teeth. Jimmy Stewart’s subplot as a murderer hiding in the circus as a clown was a bit of a stretch. Dorothy Lamour plays a supporting role and I thought to myself, “Bing and Bob should show up.” And they did.
The Life of Emile Zola (1937) : A semi-interesting, if overly long bio-pic, about Emile Zola who I’d never heard of before.
Mutiny on the Bounty (1935) : I have an unexplained love for any movies that center around life on a British sailing ship from the 1700’s and 1800’s. Add in Clark Gable and you have a winner. The copy of the movie I had was one I had recorded from TCM during one of their ‘31 Days of Oscar’ showings and after the movie there was a follow-up short (made around the time of the movie’s release) about the descendents of the ‘Bounty’ mutineers that was rather interesting.
The Lost Weekend (1945) : Drinking is bad for you.
The Great Ziegfeld (1936) : I love the big crazy two-hundred-people-posed-on-a-large-spiral-staircase production numbers, but in the end this was another bio-pic that just went on too long.
Going My Way (1944) : I’ve loved Bing Crosby since I was a little kid, so I’m completely biased towards any movie where he shows up and sings.
All Quiet on the Western Front (1930) : This classic about the horrors of war still resonates today. Powerful.
You Can’t Take it With You (1938) : Possibly the original dysfunctional family comedy. The more innocent times when dysfunctional meant grandpa made illegal fireworks in the basement while your sister took ballet lessons from a Russian dancer/wrestler while her husband accompanied her on the marimba. Jimmy Stewart is so young.
Hamlet (1948) : I have to acknowledge Sir Olivier’s version of Hamlet, otherwise Kenneth Branagh would never have been inspired to make my favorite version of the play. (Coming to DVD in 2007, finally!) Beyond the acting, I have to give some props to the costumes, which appeared rich and sumptuous even though it was a black & white film.
Babel (2006 nominee) : Oh boring. Reinforcing my belief that I’m just not that into dramas. This movie wanted to be an international Crash but to me it was just a cautionary tale for parents. Never, ever leave your children alone or they may either a) shoot someone b) be abandoned in the desert to die alone or c) try to seduce their dentist or a cop to deal with deeper emotional issues of abandonment. Seriously. Pretty much every problem in the movie was caused because someone left their child alone when they shouldn’t have. This is officially my pick for “this movie better not win the Oscar” for this year.
The Queen (2006 nominee) : This movie is all Helen Mirren and her portrayal of Queen Elizabeth II. She’ll win the Oscar for Best Actress. Beyond her performance, the rest of the movie based on the royal reaction (or non-reaction) to Princess Diana’s death, was a little uneven. There are moments with Tony Blair or Prince Phillip where I wasn’t sure if I should laugh or not considering the rather serious circumstances that brought all these people together. I compare it to Ray and how Jamie Foxx was Ray Charles and made the movie, but the movie absent of his performance was just another bio-pic.
Mrs. Miniver (1942) : I don’t even know what to say about this one. It comes with so much historical baggage beyond itself as it was admittedly made as a propaganda piece during WWII. I think my problem with it is the old-fashioned stance that the fact that the main female character is this strong woman who battles on to help her family and friends is something to be amazed at. I don’t know why one wouldn’t react to situations like she would. I did like the black and white cat in the movie. Good cat acting. I don’t think it was using a stunt cat for the scenes when it would get its tail pulled. And my favorite line from any movie I saw this past weekend came from the beginning of the movie. I actually can’t remember the exactly line, but the father of the family comes home and is greeting his family and his young son runs down the stairs with the cat in his hands and says something like, “Can’t stop now, the cat needs to throw up.” I couldn’t stop laughing. I have to go back and figure out the exact line. Pretty sad on my part, isn’t it?
Cimarron (1931) : Maybe I’m just a sucker for westerns, having been raised on a steady stream of them as a kid, but this 76 year old movie about a family’s triumphs and struggles in the time during and after the Oklahoma landrush, stood the test of time remarkably well. While it does employ some of the classic western cliches, I was able to look past those and be impressed with the acting and even the make-up employed in the film. It held my attention and went places I didn’t expect.
I’m caught up on my comments. Six movies left to see; five best picture winners, and one 2006 nominee. I’m so close!
