Stepping Out (1991) and A Matter of Time (1976)

[moira finnie]

Stepping Out (1991)
Wed. Dec. 15th at 1:00 AM ET on TCM
I used to be like many people who thought Liza Minnelli was too over the top for me, but then I saw Stepping Out (1991), a charming movie about a professional dancer down on her luck (two experiences that the performer knew first hand). Taking on a group of amateurs, she takes a job as an adult ed dance instructor for a motley crew in Buffalo, ranging from a subdued (honest) Shelley Winters to lovely Jane Krakowski to the brilliant, born too late for silents Bill Irwin. Minnelli's heroic efforts to help each of the individuals in her class learn to dance and to feel alive are quite touching in this small scale movie that I once thought may have been a direct to video film. Directed by Lewis Gilbert (Alfie, several of the Roger Moore Bond flicks).

A Matter of Time (1976)
Wed. Dec. 15th at 1:00 AM ET on TCM
The last film directed by one of the great stylists of the American screen, Vincente Minnelli. Long out of circulation, A Matter of Time was chopped up by the production company and brutalized further by critics who did not respond to it well when it opened in a time of enormous anger and strife in the world and little room for whimsy. The movie stars Ingrid Bergman (her penultimate film), Charles Boyer (his last film) and Liza Minnelli as a chambermaid who relives the romantic adventures described to her by a mysterious countess living at the hotel where Minnelli works. Aren't you curious? I sure am.

I hope others will post about these movies after seeing them.

[ziggy 6708]

enjoyed "stepping out" very much. like RO stated, fun, little known gem. Liza was great, talented, lovely but restrained and very sympathetic. other characters wonderful and very funny. LOL in several places. back stories good, but not overdone. got a good glimpse of every one. ending was great, really had me smiling. in short, great pick, alot of fun.
"matter of time" seemed kind of incoherent. alot of wasted talent. even the Rome travelogue shots were weird. must've been the terrible post-prod editing, but a pretty bad last film for one of the most genius of directors. maybe dad & Liza were just too anxious to do one project together. I'd just like to ignore this one & remember the rest of his wonderful film legacy.

[moira finnie]

Thanks, Ziggy.

I recorded both films, but only saw a few minutes of A Matter of Time, which didn't make sense out of context. I am glad to know that my fond memory of Stepping Out may be accurate and it might be enjoyable to see it again. I was sorry to read that A Matter of Time was a disappointment despite that cast. Ah, well.

[ziggy 6708]

link to a cool examination of Vincent Minelli's films: http://mikegrost.com/minn.htm#Minnelli

[moira finnie]

Thanks, Ziggy! Mike Grost's encyclopedic compilations of filmmaker's characteristics are always fascinating to read. I particularly like Mike's auteur influenced breakdown of characteristics of various directors, even though I feel that most movies belong to more than one person. His analysis of Fritz Lang is particularly fascinating. His list of directors from Percy Adlon to Frank Woodruff is here:
http://mikegrost.com/film.htm

[JackFavell]

I tried to watch A Matter of Time, but was so sleepy I couldn't make it past the first 15 minutes or so. The settings were very beautiful looking in a soft colorful European way, but I thought the makeup and hairstyles were not the best. I could have forgiven that if it had not been so choppy - even the confusing editing could have been a stylistic choice, but then it didn't seem to follow through to anything.

The interview with Liza was very good I thought - I liked Liza so much better than I have before. It was most interesting when he asked her a couple of personal questions (maybe something about her feelings when her mom died) and she replied, "I felt like anyone would, I'm just a normal person." She really came across as very down to earth - something I never thought of her as before.

Not to digress too much, but this morning I woke up to The Bad and the Beautiful, and I swear, it's my favorite Minnelli movie outside of Meet Me in St. Louis! It's so much fun, with little echoes of Singing in the Rain all through it, and it has a remarkable sense of humor about itself. It's another film I never can miss - even if I try to walk out on it, I am always drawn back - just like Jonathan's victims....