It Happened One Night

Isn't Romantic Comedy redundant?
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Garbomaniac
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It Happened One Night

Post by Garbomaniac »

"The overt lustiness barred by the 1934 Production Code was transmuted into clever banter and the romance conveyed an ideal Depression-era fantasy."

"The Great Depression, as is usually the case in times of crisis, initiated a religious revival and a revival of conservative beliefs which would take hold of American society until the late 1960's. The code was finally abandoned in 1966."


Did it damage films or could we see right through the censorship? Shoud we have kept it, or are we better off without it?
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bobhopefan1940
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Post by bobhopefan1940 »

Well, I enjoy the imagination and originality it seemed to impose. In all reality, censorship is wrong... I wouldn't want any sort of censorship today, so I suppose I would have objected to its being enforced in 1934.

As for It Happened One Night, this was a pre-code, right? I thought I looked it up before its production ran before the code was inforced - I could be mistaken, of course.

Even so, this is just one of the greatest and most enjoyable films. Some of my favorite moments include when she sleeps on him by accident on the bus and when he is going to "write a book" about cab hailing. Very funny movie, Claudette Colbert is at her best.
"How strange when an illusion dies. It's as though you've lost a child." --Judy Garland
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MissGoddess
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Post by MissGoddess »

Hi GM!

I can only say the largest quantity of the best movies were made prior to 1966. I wish there was never any perceived "need" for censorship, that people would never have had such a desire to offend as they seem to have ever since. That's how I feel about the "code".

As for "It Happened One NIght", it's one of the sauciest comedies around, and it gets the message across pretty clearly without ever becoming salacious, which, admittedly, as fun as they otherwise are, some pre-codes did to the point of bad taste (tamely, though, compared to today's television or film).

Miss G
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dfordoom
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Post by dfordoom »

MissGoddess wrote:I wish there was never any perceived "need" for censorship, that people would never have had such a desire to offend as they seem to have ever since.
As much as I dislike the idea of censorship, I must say that the level of violence in modern movies disturbs and sickens me. I can't see any justification for any censorship of sexual material, but violence does worry me a great deal.
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Garbomaniac
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Post by Garbomaniac »

Well, BHF, you could be right, but I always thought that it felt the code and bent a little in that direction. Still racy, but understated.

And, that is a very insightful judgment you passed on the code, MG. I had never thought of it that way, but if we had gone the way of European films, nudity, sexual relations, etc. would have all been taken care of long before the Sixties explosion, and by now would be natural.

Personally, I appreciate the code. When people are left to their own devices, unchecked, they will inevitably fall into a state of moral decay. History has proven it time and time again. It is a shame we really aren't the lofty creatures we like to think we are. The glossed over sex, raunch, and violence during the PC was enough for me. I really don't enjoy seeing guts blown all over the place, or two people slobbering all over each other in a kiss, or grotesque depictions of people eating and spilling, dribbling and drooling. I liked going to the movies and believing the world was a beautiful place where people only went so far in their lust and madness. It was all quite believable and enough for me. And, I appreciated it all done in B&W. Now, my goodness! Reality as entertainment? Please, spare me!
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MissGoddess
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Post by MissGoddess »

Well said GM, well said! Regarding some of the bloodier movies I've seen lately I feel I should wear some sort of protective gear to keep from being splattered! :shock:
jdb1

Post by jdb1 »

I'm very pleased to hear even the faintest murmurs from the film industry in the past few weeks about the excesses of the product they are presenting to us, in light of the recent shooting sprees all around the country.

Why should it come as a surprise to anyone that the public at large has become thoroughly desensitized to violence? That's all they see in the media, ab ovo (from the very beginning), as they say in law.

The fact that one distributor even considered holding off on the prurient advertising campaign it had planned for its latest slasher/sadism extravaganza is encouraging.

Enough public sentiment, even if it is only of the bandwagon variety, may spur some action, and even more importantly some thought, in the right direction.
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