MUSINGS, PONDERINGS, RUMINATIONS AND FANCIES

Discussion of the actors, directors and film-makers who 'made it all happen'
User avatar
Andree
Posts: 683
Joined: January 21st, 2023, 4:24 pm
Location: Balbec

Re: MUSINGS, PONDERINGS, RUMINATIONS AND FANCIES

Post by Andree »

jamesjazzguitar wrote: March 20th, 2023, 1:01 pm

Jaffe was 47 when he played the waterboy in Gunga Din. That has to be one of the most miscast roles in film history, but Sam does give a very good and moving performance. Why he wasn't promoted after decades of serving the British just shows how unfair life is!
What can I say. Anyone who throws in with the murderous and untrustworthy British imperialists deserves whatever fate awaits
them. Din should have been fighting against the limeys, not with them. I haven't seen Gunga Din in a long time, but I recall
that Jaffe seemed to be in good shape for a guy in his late 40s.
Every man has a right to an umbrella.~Dostoyevsky
User avatar
nakanosunplaza
Posts: 197
Joined: December 6th, 2022, 5:25 pm
Location: MONTREAL

Re: MUSINGS, PONDERINGS, RUMINATIONS AND FANCIES

Post by nakanosunplaza »

If I remember well he married an attractive much younger wife,they stayed together a long time until his death
User avatar
Intrepid37
Posts: 870
Joined: March 5th, 2023, 5:05 pm

Re: MUSINGS, PONDERINGS, RUMINATIONS AND FANCIES

Post by Intrepid37 »

nakanosunplaza wrote: March 20th, 2023, 4:14 pm If I remember well he married an attractive much younger wife,they stayed together a long time until his death
Bettye Ackerman.
User avatar
BagelOnAPlate
Posts: 223
Joined: March 2nd, 2023, 12:41 am

Re: MUSINGS, PONDERINGS, RUMINATIONS AND FANCIES

Post by BagelOnAPlate »

Bronxgirl48 wrote: March 20th, 2023, 3:04 pm
BagelOnAPlate wrote: March 19th, 2023, 9:39 pm
CinemaInternational wrote: March 11th, 2023, 12:10 pm

I saw that one through ...twice. I thought it was very powerful and extremely well acted, but then again I liked a lot of Woody Allen's films, although the last section of his directorial period has been hit and miss.
I've never seen Another Woman, but I do like a lot of Woody Allen's movies.
My favorite of his movies is probably Hannah and Her Sisters (it's one of mom's all-time favorites so I've seen it a lot).

Others I like:
The Purple Rose of Cairo (LOVE THIS ONE!!!)
Love And Death
Sleeper
Manhattan
Interiors
Match Point


Welcome, Bagel! (Hello, Gorgeous!) Love your Woody list. I am very fond of those as well, including BROADWAY DANNY ROSE.

I will probably check out ANOTHER WOMAN again just to see if my initial negative response was justified.
I haven't seen Broadway Danny Rose yet, but I hear it's great, especially Mia Farrow's performance.

Thanks for mentioning that one, Bronxgirl!
I think I'll get that movie today.
User avatar
BagelOnAPlate
Posts: 223
Joined: March 2nd, 2023, 12:41 am

Re: MUSINGS, PONDERINGS, RUMINATIONS AND FANCIES

Post by BagelOnAPlate »

HoldenIsHere wrote: March 20th, 2023, 3:47 pm
BagelOnAPlate wrote: March 19th, 2023, 9:39 pm
CinemaInternational wrote: March 11th, 2023, 12:10 pm

I saw that one through ...twice. I thought it was very powerful and extremely well acted, but then again I liked a lot of Woody Allen's films, although the last section of his directorial period has been hit and miss.
I've never seen Another Woman, but I do like a lot of Woody Allen's movies.
My favorite of his movies is probably Hannah and Her Sisters (it's one of mom's all-time favorites so I've seen it a lot).

Others I like:
The Purple Rose of Cairo (LOVE THIS ONE!!!)
Love And Death
Sleeper
Manhattan
Interiors
Match Point
I love HANNAH AND HER SISTERS.
The first time I saw it (in the early 2000s), I felt that, in the the scene where the three sisters have lunch at the restaurant, Holly (Dianne Wiest's character) was correct when she said Hannah (Mia Farrow) was discouraging even though Hannah insisted she was only trying to offer constructive advice. When I watched the movie again about 10 years later, I wondered if my allegation would have shifted. But I found that I was still Team Holly.
That restaurant scene is brilliantly written, acted and directed. One of my favorite lines in the movie is the response of the middle sister Lee (Barbara Hershey) to Hannah when Hannah asks about Holly, who has not yet arrived:
"You know Holly. When she’s depressed, she’s manic."

Holly is my favorite character in the movie, and Dianne Wiest is wonderful in the role (for which she received a Best Supporting Actress Oscar).
I love her scenes with Woody Allen's character Mickey especially their disastrous first date and the scene where they meet again by chance at the record store.

In general, I'm not a fan of voiceovers in movies, but they work in HANNAH AND HER SISTERS to convey the thoughts of multiple characters.

Image
Yes!
I love Dianne Wiest in Hannah and Her Sisters.

There are so many great lines in the movie that hit you by surprise like Lee's about Holly being manic when she's depressed.

One that always gets me is when Mickey's father tells him why he's not afraid of dying:
"Of what? I'll be unconscious."
User avatar
Swithin
Posts: 1731
Joined: October 22nd, 2022, 5:25 pm

Re: MUSINGS, PONDERINGS, RUMINATIONS AND FANCIES

Post by Swithin »

I like some of Woody Allen's movies but certainly not all. My favorites:

Radio Days
Manhattan
Broadway Danny Rose
Zelig
Annie Hall
Interiors


Of the more recent films, I enjoyed Midnight in Paris and A Rainy Day in New York.

There are others that I don't like, e.g. Take the Money and Run, Play It Again Same, and a few others. I'm not a fan of Crimes and Misdemeanors either.

What's Up, Tiger Lily? is a fascinating concept, not entirely successful, but with with some hilarious scenes.
User avatar
EP Millstone
Posts: 1048
Joined: October 20th, 2022, 9:40 am
Location: The Western Hemisphere

Re: MUSINGS, PONDERINGS, RUMINATIONS AND FANCIES

Post by EP Millstone »

I'm a fan of Woody Allen. I don't think that I've ever seen one of his movies that I did not find worthwhile (worthy of the time that I invested watching it). I would not say that I love all of his movies. Rather, I would rate his oeuvre as providing me with greater and lesser degrees of enjoyment.

I'm absolutely mad about his early, zany comedies; all of his movies up to Manhattan (except for Interiors) are in my movie collection. What's Up, Tiger Lily? Take the Money and Run, Bananas, Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex (But Were Afraid to Ask), Sleeper, Love and Death . . . these are the, for me, golden Woody Allen movies that I want to be watching on my deathbed, to send me hysterically laughing into The Great Hereafter.
Last edited by EP Millstone on March 21st, 2023, 7:40 pm, edited 1 time in total.
"Start every day off with a smile and get it over with." -- W.C. Fields
User avatar
TikiSoo
Posts: 702
Joined: March 9th, 2009, 8:37 am
Location: Upstate NY
Contact:

Re: MUSINGS, PONDERINGS, RUMINATIONS AND FANCIES

Post by TikiSoo »

I too am a fan of Woody Allen films, just detest the man. Almost the opposite of Quentin Tarantino-love the guy, dislike his movies.

But the decade between 1977 and 1987 was Allen's golden age with these stellar films in a row:
Annie Hall
Manhattan
A Midsummer Night's Sex Comedy
Zelig
Broadway Danny Rose
Pourple Rose Of Cairo
Hannah & Her Sisters
Radio Days

I like the early screwballs & the later introspective dramas & light comedies, but they are more or less sporadic. I love Crimes & Misdemeanors but all the others are mixed.
User avatar
Andree
Posts: 683
Joined: January 21st, 2023, 4:24 pm
Location: Balbec

Re: MUSINGS, PONDERINGS, RUMINATIONS AND FANCIES

Post by Andree »

I can rarely resist 12 Angry Men. I've probably seen it around twelve times over the years. A wonderful cross-section of
late 1950s American types. Of course some of the 12 angry men are angrier than others. Ed Begley is pretty worked up, but
not quite as much as Lee J. Cobb, in one of his classic steam coming out of his ears performances. Cobb is the last holdout
for a not guilty verdict and his change of heart is not all that convincing. It's more like a mental breakdown than a considered
change of mind. Still, Cobb is in prime meltdown form.


EXCITABLE ???????????????????????? YOU BET I'M EXCITABLE !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
........YOU LOUSY BUNCH OF BLEEDING HEARTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Every man has a right to an umbrella.~Dostoyevsky
User avatar
Detective Jim McLeod
Posts: 754
Joined: December 2nd, 2022, 12:26 pm
Location: New York

Re: MUSINGS, PONDERINGS, RUMINATIONS AND FANCIES

Post by Detective Jim McLeod »

[/quote]
ne that always gets me is when Mickey's father tells him why he's not afraid of dying:
"Of what? I'll be unconscious."
[/quote]

new post-

My favorite line from this film was when Mickey's mother and father are kvetching about Mickey converting to Christianity, the mother tells the father to explain why there were Nazis, he replies-
"How do I know why there were Nazis? I don't know even know how the can opener works!"
User avatar
Bronxgirl48
Posts: 1474
Joined: May 1st, 2009, 2:06 am

Re: MUSINGS, PONDERINGS, RUMINATIONS AND FANCIES

Post by Bronxgirl48 »

Bagel, I think you will adore BROADWAY DANNY ROSE! And yes, Mia is wonderful!
User avatar
Bronxgirl48
Posts: 1474
Joined: May 1st, 2009, 2:06 am

Re: MUSINGS, PONDERINGS, RUMINATIONS AND FANCIES

Post by Bronxgirl48 »

Andree, have you ever seen the screaming Lee J. Cobb Christmas tree on YouTube?

Now, for screeching, I nominate James Stewart. No one screeches like Jimmy.
User avatar
Bronxgirl48
Posts: 1474
Joined: May 1st, 2009, 2:06 am

Re: MUSINGS, PONDERINGS, RUMINATIONS AND FANCIES

Post by Bronxgirl48 »

Everyone, please do not miss THE YEARLING this evening (8 p.m. Eastern)

Hands down (imho of course) it is Gregory Peck's greatest performance. I will be controversial and state that I believe it is better and more heartfelt than Atticus in TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD.

Jane Wyman is also wonderful.
User avatar
Bronxgirl48
Posts: 1474
Joined: May 1st, 2009, 2:06 am

Re: MUSINGS, PONDERINGS, RUMINATIONS AND FANCIES

Post by Bronxgirl48 »

Dargo -- Vince Edwards, UGH!!! Hirsute City!!! I have never been attracted to hairy men. I like them blonde and relatively hairless. My teenage crush was James Franciscus as the teacher in Room 222.

Holden, that scene between Kim and Coral in LYLAH is so deliciously camp, Aldrich-style. Love it!

Millstone, excellent compare/contrast between the two LYLAHS!
User avatar
Bronxgirl48
Posts: 1474
Joined: May 1st, 2009, 2:06 am

Re: MUSINGS, PONDERINGS, RUMINATIONS AND FANCIES

Post by Bronxgirl48 »

My favorite scene in any Woody Allen movie: From BANANAS -- Woody, joining the revolutionaries, goes into a jungle shop and proceeds to order for the hungry group as if he were at a New York deli.
Post Reply