look back in anger

the good guy

2012-01-23T02:33:00.001-08:00

as you can tell from this blog, i rarely watch contemporary films. still, every once in a while i come upon one that grabs my attention. while showing the trailer for 'never let me go' to a friend yesterday, i was immediately caught with tears in my eyes by seeing the face of andrew garfield. his character in this stunning movie broke my heart in a perfectly satisfying way.

he is now making a film based on an 'oprah' approved novel. brand new hardcover copies of that book are for sale on amazon for 75 cents. what is this world coming to? ain't no one reading real books? fahrenheit 451 here we come...

johnny and vanessa

2012-01-22T03:35:00.000-08:00

just like everyone else, i too am kinda sad to see this end.

where to draw the line

2012-01-21T03:30:00.000-08:00

fred macmurray took a big chance when he took on the role of 'walter neff' in director billy wilder's genius film 'double indemnity.' the year was 1944 and fred was known mostly as a likable character in lots of films. he was blessed with the role of 'walter', a guy whose ordinary life as an insurance salesman goes way south upon seeing the anklet on the wife of a potential client. said anklet was on the slim ankle of barbara stanwyck.

her performance is exceptional. these two have over two hundred credits between them but it is 'double indemnity' that is the most deeply etched in cinema history. i have seen this film more times than i will confess. hallelujah for actors who break free from public perceptions of them.

stamina

2012-01-17T18:47:00.000-08:00

how does she do it? we all know that living with sam shepard must have been intense. still, when i watched jessica win her golden globe the other night, i was once again seduced by the fizzy concoction of confidence/sincerity (with a dash of bashful) that the woman continues to exude.

my introduction came with 'tootsie.' her performance in 'blue sky' knocks one's socks off. 'frances'? forget about it. the genius actress kim stanley played her mom in that. if i am not mistaken, at the golden globes she seems to have been carrying kim within her.

i'm not about to watch the scary series she just won for but clearly she is still knockin' people's socks off.

what's it all about

2012-01-17T17:43:00.000-08:00

i believe this is the scene in 'alfie' when he calls his girlfriend (one of many) 'cloth ears.' i love british expressions big time. i also loved michael caine's performance in this classic film. it is never too late to hear the story of a man's ascent to consciousness. everyone is splendid as the cast of characters who tolerate and come to extricate alfie from their lives.

thanks to sherry for the great photo.

art imitates life

2012-01-15T14:58:00.001-08:00

'Kim Stanley in the film The Goddess as the best performance ever in film. Recommended viewing for anyone interested in the “Golden Age” of film and Broadway.

'1958 Columbia Pictures drama film starring Kim Stanley and Lloyd Bridges. Others in the cast include Steven Hill, Betty Lou Holland, Joan Copeland, Patty Duke, and Elizabeth Wilson. The movie was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay.

'In her movie debut, Kim Stanley gives a heart-rending performance in one of the very few films to show what effect Hollywood or show business, in general, can have on a single person. She captures the character’s restless misery, fragile turmoil and neurosis, brought about by the rejection and unhappiness of childhood.'

it has been said that this film is about marilyn monroe. maybe it is.

dang

2012-01-15T10:58:00.000-08:00

garbo and gilbert had serious chemistry. when she began to make films in hollywood he was the biggest star of all. they fell in love, the talkies came, and as garbo rose to greater fame gilbert was out of a job due to audiences laughing at the sound of his voice. cruel!

when garbo made 'queen christina' she had them cast gilbert opposite her. i never really liked that film but i surely admire greta for reaching out to the one who gave her guidance in her early days.

what makes a legend most

2012-01-14T18:11:00.001-08:00

short and sweet

2012-01-14T13:18:00.001-08:00

fade to black

2012-01-14T13:08:00.001-08:00

seems there is a new wave of black and white movies being made. they look so bland! in this techno age we are living in, why aren't they processing the film to get gorgeous contrasts?

black and white can be BEAUTIFUL, as this image proves.

gimme plenty clementi

2012-01-14T12:40:00.001-08:00

leave it to pierre clementi to play the role of a man teaching a class to make a bomb.

j.d. squared

2012-01-13T12:03:00.000-08:00

even more beautiful

2012-01-11T16:02:00.001-08:00

http://www.youtube.com/user/Ohpoopnotagain#p/u/18/gH_R0Nvw9_M

this film from 1964 shows a side of bergman that will thrill you. sarcastic, proud, and as ever, gorgeous.

photo: promotional shot made on set of the 1964 film.

elizabeth's profile

2012-01-11T14:48:00.000-08:00

men and women

2012-01-11T14:22:00.000-08:00

when i first saw 'women in love' i was envious. the sisters not only traipsed around their english village in beautiful clothes, they existed outside of society yet were able to penetrate the hearts of two men from the upper class, by birth or association. i loved the actors and actresses. glenda jackson and alan bates remained favorites of mine through all of their films.

d.h. lawrence fans are well aware of his perceptions of the conflicts between lovers. he is a lovely writer and most likely he would have appreciated director ken russell's painful depiction of people trying to keep love from getting the better of them.

it's never too late to see this film. the acting is exceptional and the scenes remain provocative.

fascinating

2012-01-11T09:29:00.000-08:00

My mother and I could always look out the same window without ever seeing the same thing.- Gloria Swanson

as my mom used to say, 'what's not to love.' that's how i feel about gloria swanson. thanks to a documentary on silent films, i now know much more about swanson than simply her spellbinding performance as 'norma desmond' in 'sunset boulevard.' the woman was enchanting. smart, classy, courageous, and fun.

she lived to be 84. she has 84 screen credits! her many times director cecil b. demille called her 'little fella.' her wiki page is stuff of legend: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gloria_Swanson

she was fabulously stylish, courageous and forward thinking. she was a health foodist. she drove across the country in her rolls royce with nuts in the trunk! when she'd stop with her driver so that he could eat she'd order a cup of hot water and use her own tea bag. i think she was my mom in a parallel universe. ? i adore her spirit.

romy

2012-01-07T09:14:00.001-08:00

from my other blog: http://popsicleskies.tumblr.com/post/15457339816/romy-schneider-by-alberto-mielgo

huston's own

2012-01-06T16:01:00.001-08:00

some of the best lines in 'the maltese falcon' are delivered to the policemen who keep on bogart's trail. expressions like 'crackin' foxy' really get me.

"Sam Spade: Haven't you anything better to do than to keep popping in here early every morning and asking a lot of fool questions?
Lt. Dundy: And gettin' a lot of lyin' answers!
Sam Spade: Take it easy."

the way he says 'take it easy' is priceless.

then there's always:

Detective Tom Polhaus: [picks up the falcon] Heavy. What is it?
Sam Spade: The, uh, stuff that dreams are made of.
Detective Tom Polhaus: Huh?

the screenplay was written by the film's director john huston.

reimagination

2012-01-06T15:15:00.000-08:00

the job's yours

2012-01-04T08:11:00.001-08:00

bette davis was unbelievable in 'of human bondage.' if you adore actor leslie howard like i do, this film is downright painful to watch. still, bette and leslie are both true artists and their talents manage to uplift the viewer from such a downright drag of a story.

ageless, considering

2012-01-04T08:00:00.000-08:00

raquel welch 100 years b.c.

o'toole and child

2012-01-02T18:35:00.000-08:00

breathtaking

2012-01-02T17:06:00.001-08:00

'In 2007, she accepted a part on a Brazilian prime time soap opera, Páginas da Vida, and then in the Portuguese language version of the American TV series Desperate Housewives. After that she moved back to Roosevelt Island in New York City to relaunch her career in the United States.'

gosh, how stunning was sonia braga?? so that's what she's been up to. well, if the legendary shirley knight can do a stint in a 'housewives' production, i guess it's acceptable.

hey days

2012-01-02T11:04:00.000-08:00

keaton's card

2012-01-01T21:38:00.000-08:00

“It was on purpose that I started looking miserable, humiliated, hounded, and haunted, bedeviled, bewildered, and at my wit’s end. Some other comedians can get away with laughing at their own gags. Not me. The public just will not stand for it. And that is all right with me. All of my life I have been happiest when the folks watching me said to each other, ‘Look at the poor dope, wilya?’

Because of the way I looked on the stage and screen the public naturally assumed that I felt hopeless and unloved in my personal life. Nothing could be farther from the fact. As long back as I can remember I have considered myself a fabulously lucky man. From the beginning I was surrounded by interesting people who loved fun and knew how to create it. I’ve had few dull moments and not too many sad and defeated ones.”

-Buster Keaton, in his autobiography My Wonderful World of Slapstick (1960)

makin' movies

2012-01-01T21:35:00.001-08:00

class

2012-01-01T13:20:00.000-08:00

anjelica huston was stunning! i had a brief exchange with her in a store and she was gracious as well.

a man needs a carrie

2012-01-01T09:10:00.000-08:00

legend has it that neil young fell for actress carrie snodgress after watching her in 'diary of a mad housewife.' he wrote 'a man needs a maid' without giving too much thought to what those lyrics might mean to others. then again, neil has gotten away with plenty in the lyrics department.

their union ended as abruptly as her shining career. i only included the magazine page so you can see her and the son she had with neil. he looks like his pa.

she was a magnificent actress, tiny and fragile, yet fierce.

the allure of a total prick

2012-01-01T08:59:00.000-08:00

today is frank langella's 74th birthday. i first set eyes on him in 1970 when he played a total cad opposite carrie snodgress in 'diary of a mad housewife.' gosh, carrie was surrounded. richard benjamin played her impossibly irritating husband and their two daughters were a total drag! however, even though the quality of the dvd is poor, the film is terrific and the performances are stellar.

it was frank's first big screen role. he was so gorgeous that i was able to fully understand carrie's character choosing to spend time with him. langella has 82 screen credits. he just completed a film in which he plays a man named 'frank.'

there have been so many great looking fellas in countless movies. still, i think i'd have to give this man the vote for sexiest screen presence for his work in 'diary.'

a man in love

2011-12-31T13:52:00.001-08:00

oliver and leigh

happiness was a warm theatre

2011-12-31T13:50:00.000-08:00

1958.

down on the farm

2011-12-30T20:12:00.001-08:00

effective

2011-12-30T18:15:00.000-08:00

the great edward g. robinson used to scare the heck out of me when i was little. just sayin'.

here's looking at you kid

2011-12-30T18:05:00.001-08:00

natalie's eyes

2011-12-30T17:52:00.000-08:00

i watched 'inside daisy clover' again the other night. natalie's huge chocolate eyes still amaze me. it is nutty that she played a fifteen year old when she was twenty seven. still, she was tiny and those eyes convinced you to suspend disbelief. i love the film. andre previn's music is dark and beautiful. his wife dory wrote the lyrics to the songs i danced to when i watched this film on t.v. in the sixties.

robert redford plays a malcontent and is really good, even a bit scary. christopher plummer is plummy. teeny ruth gordon is magnificent as 'daisy's' mom. the outdoor scenes were filmed where i grew up in santa monica, along the pier where i roamed. blessedly, the carousel is still there.

this isn't exactly the story of my life but there's a chance that when i first saw it i imagined it could be. i sure sang the hell out of 'you're gonna hear from me.'

terrific movie.

un homme

2011-12-28T15:40:00.000-08:00

'Raised in and around automobile racing, Jean-Louis Trintignant was the natural choice of film director Claude Lelouch for the starring role of race car driver in his film Un homme et une femme/A Man and A Woman (1966, Claude Lelouch). Trintignant was – and still is - good friends with actress Anouk Aimée. He recommended her to Lelouch for the female lead in the film. Un homme et une femme became an art-house classic, and at the time it was the most successful French film ever screened in the foreign market.'

i adore this guy. brigitte bardot is the famous one from 'and god created woman' but it was the slap she received from her husband (played by jean-louis) that created the loudest echo. he is now making a film with the great (and ageless) isabelle huppert.

photo courtesy of http://filmstarpostcards.blogspot.com/

by way of illustration

2011-12-28T15:32:00.000-08:00

the original diary of a mad housewife.

sun kissed

2011-12-28T15:21:00.000-08:00

the grand dame maggie smith is celebrating her birthday today. she was born in 1934. i bet when she was a kid she never imagined that her freckles would not get in the way of her dream of being a film star. she is gloriously great in all she does.

one of her first roles was a smallish part in the hard to find 1964 film 'the pumpkin eater.' she was terrific as 'philpot', the young woman who was sleeping with the husband of dedicated wife and mother anne bancroft. it is a film well worth finding.

recently maggie has lit up the small screen in the immensely popular 'downton abbey', in which her character condescendingly slays anyone in her path.

top photo: with anne bancroft in 'the pumpkin eater'

another alumni

2011-12-24T13:56:00.000-08:00

seems like some amazing people ended their screen careers with the 'batman' t.v. series. julie newmar was indeed a very unique screen goddess. there was a sweet and humorous side to her persona.

she has 69 credits, the last one being 2010.
this early photograph of her is amazing.

the dawn of the seventies

2011-12-24T12:41:00.000-08:00

i loved 'harold and maude.' bud cort was really something special. his co-star ruth gordon was still something special. after i saw it i watched 'brewster mccloud' but i really don't remember it! still, stripes rule in any decade.

photo: brewster's leads, bud and shelly duvall

marlon moment

2011-12-24T12:00:00.001-08:00

what a doll

2011-12-23T11:27:00.000-08:00

look at this adorable guy! for all of you interested in the charming actor, someone has a blog dedicated to all things robert montgomery.

total abandon

2011-12-23T11:15:00.000-08:00

when patti smith sang the words' total abandon' over and over i thought she was singing 'tallulah bankhead.' i did.

if she had i would have understood. tallulah was drop dead gorgeous and so unique. she only has 20 screen credits but her name is legendary. i am most familiar with her 1931 film 'the cheat.' it is a fairly creepy story of a glamourous woman's improper association with a very disturbed guy. tallulah was very graceful and a truly special actress.

her last screen appearance was on the television show 'batman'. seeing as 'batman' is more popular than ever, it now seems a rather grand exit.

you didn't have to marry her

2011-12-16T17:20:00.000-08:00

Gun Crazy (1950): A well meaning crack shot husband is pressured by his beautiful marksman wife to go on an interstate robbery spree, where he finds out just how depraved and deadly she really is.

poor John Dall. he is so interesting yet he's only known for this terrific film and hitchcock's 'rope.' well, no matter. two classics will suffice. Peggy Cummins is absolute dynamite in this film that will have you thinking, 'don't!' over and over. as i often remind myself, if characters made the wise choice i'd have no favorite movies.

image: peggy, little but lethal.

loy love

2011-12-16T17:18:00.000-08:00

the ring of truth

2011-12-15T08:51:00.003-08:00

Edward D. Wood, Jr.: Boy, Mr. Lugosi, you must lead such an exciting life! When is your next picture coming out?
Bela Lugosi: I have no next picture.
Edward D. Wood, Jr.: You gotta be joking, a great star like you? You must have dozens of them lined up!
Bela Lugosi: Back in the old days, yes... Now, no one gives two fucks for Bela.
Edward D. Wood, Jr.: But you're a big star!
Bela Lugosi: No more. I haven't worked in four years. This business, this town, it chews you up, then spits you out.

getting in the spirit

2011-12-15T08:43:00.001-08:00

Marcello Mastroianni in ‘8½’ (1963)

silents

2011-12-14T20:10:00.000-08:00

i have been watching a very long (12 discs) documentary on the history of silent film. interestingly, this fascinating period of cinema lasted only about 15 years. i have preferred the beauty of silent films since discovering them two years ago. i took one night away from this terrifically detailed bbc series (beautifully narrated by james mason) to watch chaplin's masterpiece 'city lights.'

i loved it more than any other time i'd seen it. chaplin is so touching. he refused to film a comedic scene if it did not contain logic. both chaplin and keaton never worked from a script. i could go on and on, i have learned so much from the series. suffice to say, silent films are treasures that spoke an international language. so many of them are deeply worth the experience.

little leo

2011-12-14T20:08:00.003-08:00

serious class

2011-12-14T18:17:00.003-08:00

i love paul scofield

beauty fades

2011-12-14T15:06:00.000-08:00

but till it does.....

beautiful birkin

2011-12-14T09:47:00.000-08:00

jane turns 65 today. the british born jane had made some films in the sixties before getting together with france's great musical genius/rude boy serge and settling in france. she sings like a little bird and lights up the screen with a fragile awkwardness that is very alluring. her and serge gainsbourg passed their respective genes down to their daughter charlotte. she too sings like a falling leaf and makes memorable film performances.

the coolest thing about jane is her heart. the famous and coveted 'birkin' bag (which is ridiculously pricey) may have been named after her, but she has wisely found a reasonable role for it to play in her life:

I got Hermès to fork out for my charities once I saw the fortune they were making. A certain amount of money every year goes straight to my charity and it will continue to after my death. This year I was able to [use some of that money] to go to Japan for a benefit concert after the earthquake. We use some of the money to feed the poor people who can’t afford to eat in France. I sold one of my Birkin bags for $163,000 to help the Japanese Red Cross. So that rather trivial piece of heavy luggage has done a lot of good in the world.

photos: jane with serge/the english rose/with charlotte

'neely!!!!!'

2011-12-14T09:28:00.000-08:00

when i brought a copy of patty duke's autobiography up to the counter in a bookstore the guy working smiled and said, 'the dukester!' i nearly fell down laughing.
i always liked patty duke. her t.v. show was great and her turn as 'neely' in 'valley of the dolls' is legendary. she wound up making lots of made for t.v films which could only be better as a result of her being in them. she went through way too much dark times due to depression but lived to write about it. today 'the dukester' turns 65.

images: patty 2011/makin' hits/as 'neely'/young patty/her book was made into a t.v. movie!

g.g.

2011-12-12T15:43:00.001-08:00

just lie still

2011-12-10T12:41:00.001-08:00

nastassja's face is so dang arresting that i never once noticed the snake kissing her ear. photographer richard avedon sold two million posters of this image. i wonder how many people didn't notice that snakes tongue.

back to the future

2011-12-10T07:22:00.000-08:00

John Malkovich and Uma Thurman smoking on the set of Dangerous Liaisons.
Picture by Brigitte Lacombe

sad eyed buster of the lowlands

2011-12-08T10:37:00.001-08:00

this out of print book is being sold for $999.00! i have a feeling dear buster was broke in his later years. typical that this book would have bought him a ton of groceries.

eli's coming (hide your heart girl)

2011-12-07T10:10:00.000-08:00

for all of you who are not aware of the mind blowing talent of singer/songwriter laura nyro, here is a link to her song 'eli's comin':

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EfW41eKUkKE

the great actor eli wallach is 96 today! eli was terrific as 'silva', the man who came into the lives of the miserably married 'archie' and 'baby doll' in tennessee williams's brilliant, funny and tender play 'baby doll.'

Baby Doll: Excuse me, Mr. Vacarro, but I wouldn't dream of eatin' a nut that a man had cracked in his mouth.
Silva Vacarro: You've got many refinements.
Baby Doll: Thank you.

image: eli wallach and marilyn monroe shooting 'the misfits'

mini driver

2011-12-04T18:47:00.001-08:00

not a misspelling!

horses horses horses

2011-12-03T13:57:00.000-08:00

31 of them! the beautiful actress jenny seagrove has just adopted 31 horses. that is seriously incredible. dame seagrove sounds so nice.

the publicity machine

2011-12-02T18:44:00.001-08:00

what a great photograph.

Photo of Swedish actress May Britt by Leonard McCombe, 1957.

g.g.

2011-11-30T19:16:00.000-08:00

she arrived in hollywood age 19. she spoke no english. in the next sixteen years she made 24 films. then she was gone from public view. no one has ever been as divine and reclusive as garbo.

marlene

2011-11-30T19:12:00.000-08:00

dietrich was an incredible force. if you are interested in this woman's great courage you can watch this enlightening documentary. it will amaze you.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eHwv0TtLkgc

by way of illustration

2011-11-29T19:00:00.001-08:00

feast your eyes

2011-11-29T18:58:00.000-08:00

hot spell

2011-11-29T18:41:00.000-08:00

she has not made a movie in eight years, still the gorgeous carroll baker has 81 screen credits. she was already in her twenties when she starred in the 1956 film 'baby doll', but she was thoroughly convincing as the young wife who is 'not ready for marriage.'

eli wallach and karl malden are equally great in the film. even though no sex is shown, the movie managed to seriously outrage the board of decency. i think of it as a truly tender film. writer tennessee williams brought to the story much humor. he is said to have had a great fondness for kazan's version of his play.

when i came upon this photo of carroll i had to post it. how gorgeous she was!

p.s. the terrific actor rip torn pops up in a small but interesting scene.

she's got the look

2011-11-28T14:11:00.000-08:00

my friend wants glasses like rashida jones, daughter of quincy. i think of her as daughter of peggy lipton! anyone who grew up with 'the mod squad' would agree. either way she is a very cute gal. she is also a harvard grad with 44 screen credits.

keeping fit

2011-11-27T20:28:00.001-08:00

anne francis was so dang darlin'.

decisions decisions

2011-11-27T11:29:00.001-08:00

Anything well written with good language and clarity and honesty is worth doing. It comes out of the same tradition as Shakespeare.-Michael Moriarty

i often wonder what makes someone decide to do a film. because they want to work with a co-star? they love the script? $? moriarty makes it sound pretty simple.

images from 'who'll stop the rain'

not worried about douglas booth

2011-11-23T12:10:00.000-08:00

this darlin' was excellent as 'boy george' in the bbc film 'worried about the boy.' the entire cast was tops. next up, booth plays both 'pip' in 'great expectations' and 'romeo.' naturally.

'mickybo and me'

2011-11-22T15:01:00.000-08:00

in my quest to see more movies with actor ciaran hinds i found this treasure. i was up late into the night staring into my computer screen (i rarely watch stuff on the computer) because i loved every scene.

John Joe McNeill, Niall Wright (the boys who carry the story), Julie Walters, Ciaran Hinds and everyone else were perfectly cast and perfectly real. this 2004 irish drama is not available in the states. you can see it on youtube.

my love of the irish began with 'the crying game' and has never faltered. the accent really wows me. the irish storytellers have a brilliant gift for weaving humor through the sadness. i hope you take the time to watch this touching film.

ciaran with a k

2011-11-21T20:57:00.001-08:00

where does one even start with such an amazing actor? he already has 79 screen credits. he's done indie films and mega films. an incredibly gifted man.

in the dark

2011-11-19T18:48:00.001-08:00

"it's an unhealthy relationship."

2011-11-19T07:29:00.000-08:00

Edie: I want you to stay away from me.
Terry: Edie, you love me... I want you to say it to me.
Edie: I didn't say I didn't love you. I said, "Stay away from me."

there are so many quotable lines in 'on the waterfront.' both the novel and screenplay were written by budd schulberg. how happy he must have been to have the best actors reading his words.

photo: amy and blake

smart can be fun

2011-11-18T08:07:00.001-08:00

this morning i was reading a piece written by warren beatty and annette benning's intelligent kid. as they say, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. warren may have earned his reputation as a playboy, but the man made stupendous films. if there are still some of you who have yet to see 'heaven can wait' i offer this clip as a tease:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-sQfCJLDU2A&feature=player_embedded

it is one of the most wonderful movies ever made. team warren!

'love that bob'

2011-11-17T15:16:00.000-08:00

most people know robert cummings as the lover of grace kelly in hitchcock's 'dial m for murder' but he had a serious heyday in television. in his hit t.v. series he played a fashion photographer. all the models seemed to be in love with him. the show still seems funny.
cummings married five times. his show lasted five years. 178 shows total! each episode would begin with bob taking a photograph of the television audience and then stepping back to say, "i think you're gonna like this." as ray davies once sang, 'young and innocent days...'

he also has 104 other screen credits. a man definitely worthy of remembrace.

some cool facts:
Godson of Orville Wright, an old family friend, who also taught him to fly. He piloted his own plane most of his life.
Not only was he a health food fanatic, but he often carried a small suitcase with him full of vitamin pills.
"I was accused of being a vitamin addict, of eating 40 or 50 tablets a day. I said, 'That's a dastardly lie, I take 140!"

by way of illustration

2011-11-16T13:08:00.001-08:00

the original keeler

2011-11-16T13:01:00.000-08:00

it's foolish for me to confuse ruby and christine just because their last name is keeler. but i do. not any more! last night i watched '42nd street' and i shall not be confused any longer. ruby is unforgettable. so is the terrific actress bebe daniels.

ruby can sure dance! she became a professional dancer at age 14. two husbands (the first was al jolson) and five kids, she may only have 16 acting credits (and several more uncredited dance credits) but she has a star on hollywood blvd. she also had a great turn as dick powell's darlin' in this tale of a first timer getting to go to the top of the ladder. 42nd street must have been really cool a long time ago.

images: keeler/with powell

missed

2011-11-12T16:25:00.001-08:00

jimmy takes on the world

2011-11-11T09:38:00.000-08:00

j.d.

2011-11-11T09:35:00.000-08:00

James Dean refused to attend the premiere party for East of Eden, which almost cost him the lead in Rebel Without a Cause. maybe he just coudn't handle seeing raymond massey (he played his father) again!

nothing compares with him.

master's mistake

2011-11-11T09:28:00.000-08:00

great photograph. terrible film! billy wilder made classic movies that i will watch again and again. i wonder if there are people who actually liked his 'kiss me, stupid.' i think the comma got in the way. it could so easily have meant (kiss me till i'm stupid)

genius

2011-11-08T15:23:00.001-08:00

jean cocteau was one of my first creative loves. every drawing is perfect to my eyes. his films are deeply splendid. he directed 11, acted in 12, and wrote 63. his signature always included a tiny star. he is eternally inspiring.

missed

2011-11-07T15:43:00.000-08:00

i don't know how to post a moving image on this blog, but if you go to this link:

http://popsicleskies.tumblr.com/post/12484344517/brittany-murphy-was-terrific

you will see what i'd like to post here.

in youth is beauty

2011-11-07T14:24:00.000-08:00

seriously ahead of his time. truman with a man sac!

m.m.

2011-11-05T18:35:00.000-07:00

no one can portray her, but they keep tryin'.

newman's own sewing service

2011-11-04T17:52:00.000-07:00

by way of illustration

2011-11-04T13:07:00.001-07:00

i have not seen this film. however, i just read the book and it is quite amazing. in fact it is so good i don't want to see the film! how about that, a posting about NOT seeing a movie. great poster.

when you get where you're going

2011-11-03T17:07:00.000-07:00

Simone Signoret became the first French person to win an Academy Award, for her role in Room at the Top (1959). i rewatched that movie just last night. such a great performance from simone. everyone was really good in the classic rags to riches story of a hungry young man determined to have it all. but the price, the price...

I suspect there isn't an actor alive who was able to truthfully answer his family's questions after his first day's activity in his future profession. -Simone Signoret

simone's looks changed drastically over the years. the more weary she appeared, the greater the impression. like anna magnani, she was a force to be reckoned with.

too much to say

2011-11-03T06:01:00.001-07:00

Akira Kurosawa & Michelangelo Antonioni

verona comes to hollywood

2011-11-02T12:51:00.000-07:00

in the original play Juliet delivers a lengthy speech, commonly known as The Potion Scene, before drinking the sleeping potion. in the film version Juliet simply says: "Love give me strength" before drinking the potion.

my shakespeare teacher took our class to see this gorgeous movie. i imagine people still study shakespeare, but are there still day trips?

sad eyed buster of the lowlands

2011-11-01T20:27:00.001-07:00

b.b.

2011-11-01T20:25:00.001-07:00

accept no substitute

by way of illustration

2011-11-01T16:37:00.001-07:00

it happened one summer

2011-11-01T16:29:00.000-07:00

wanna see a very good film? of course you do. the story is simple, the acting is superb. as a cillian murphy fan i appreciated emily blunt's beauty. they could be siblings. even though the film moves at a slow pace, there is suspense throughout. love, family, and trust brought into focus through the eyes of two girls whose lack of experience demands the price of their naievity.

see it for free on hulu.com

comforting

2011-10-30T09:07:00.000-07:00

'Still the tightest, sharpest, and most cynical of Hollywood’s official deathless classics, bracingly tough even by post-Tarantino standards. Humphrey Bogart is Dashiell Hammett’s definitive private eye, Sam Spade, struggling to keep his hard-boiled cool as the double-crosses pile up around his ankles. The plot, which dances all around the stolen Middle Eastern statuette of the title, is too baroque to try to follow, and it doesn’t make a bit of difference.'-George Theofanopoulos (media online)

thanks george! i always figured there was a screw loose in my head. i've seen this terrific film so many times and still i give up trying to put the puzzle together without cutting the corners off one or two pieces. while i was out walking this bright snow dripping off the trees morning, i decided 'the maltese falcon' is the best picture ever made. either it was the early snow or john huston's brilliance at assembling all the right pieces together to make the classic movie.

no one compares to bogart. or astor. or lorre! one person compares to greenstreet and that is rupert everett. if rupert were four times his size, i swear to you sydney greenstreet would come to mind.

a perfect film. i wouldn't be surprised if huston signed them all up and then just sat back and let them at it. a deeply satisfying, if bewildering experience.

by way of illustration

2011-10-27T13:09:00.000-07:00

there is no good reason for me to never re-watch this movie. the acting, the dialogue, the costumes... all good. still, it is not a fave of mine! however, what a terrific poster.

then again

2011-10-25T15:56:00.000-07:00

this beautiful woman reminds me of diane keaton

keaton: in her own words

2011-10-25T15:53:00.000-07:00

diane keaton's got a memoir coming out. i'm gonna save it for my next long flight, if only for the warren beatty pages. great title, right?

glamour

2011-10-24T15:44:00.000-07:00

eyebrows! nails! and what a super hat on joan crawford's head.