Really? You've NEVER seen that Classic Film?

Discussion of programming on TCM.
Post Reply
User avatar
speedracer5
Posts: 249
Joined: October 20th, 2022, 7:24 pm
Location: Portland, OR Metro Area (Westside)
Contact:

Re: Really? You've NEVER seen that Classic Film?

Post by speedracer5 »

Lomm wrote: March 3rd, 2023, 2:45 pm
dianedebuda wrote: March 3rd, 2023, 9:45 am Another film I've never seen: Mildred Piece (1945). Have read that Joan Crawford is very good in it, but haven't seen anything of hers except Grand Hotel (1932) that I've liked.
It's funny how some stars just leave us cold, despite their fame and longevity. I feel the same about Crawford, even to the point where her presence in a movie leads me to actively avoid it. And I can't really articulate why.
I'm not a big fan of Crawford during her ingenue period, she's horrible in "Dancing Lady" where she flails about, supposedly dancing. She is great as the villain in "The Women." She, along with Rosalind Russell and Paulette Goddard are the best characters in the film. I like "The Women," but I can't help but feel that the film is too long. It feels like they could easily chop at least 30 minutes out of it. I absolutely love Joan and her films between "Mildred Pierce" (one of my all-time favorite films, though Ann Blyth and Eve Arden are my favorite characters in it) and "What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?" Joan made a lot of "woman in peril" movies during this time and she's great in them. I recommend "Sudden Fear" with Joan, Jack Palance, and Gloria Grahame. I also liked her in "Autumn Leaves" with Cliff Robertson and Vera Miles in a vixen role. Joan was also good in "Johnny Guitar," a Western with Sterling Hayden. She has a super intense scene with Mercedes McCambridge who was absolutely terrifying in that film.

Unfortunately, I think Joan's image was overshadowed by the "Mommie Dearest" image bestowed upon her by Christina Crawford and Faye Dunaway's performance which remains a camp classic. While I don't doubt Christina's claims, nor do I think Joan was an angel, I think the real truth probably lies between the two portrayals. I also think that Joan adopting the image of the huge smeared lips with big eyebrows by the 1950s really did herself a disservice as well. I thought she was gorgeous in "Mildred Pierce." But by 1954's "Johnny Guitar," she could definitely be described as a "handsome woman." In "What Ever Happened to Baby Jane" when Joan is supposed to look disheveled and ill, I thought she actually looked very pretty because she didn't have the silly lips or eyebrows.
Letterboxd: https://letterboxd.com/kayla622/
Reddit: kayla622
Twitter: kaylar622
Blog: Whimsicallyclassic.wordpress.com
User avatar
LawrenceA
Posts: 937
Joined: October 22nd, 2022, 1:04 pm

Re: Really? You've NEVER seen that Classic Film?

Post by LawrenceA »

speedracer5 wrote: March 3rd, 2023, 7:15 pm Another film that my generation seems to have inexplicable nostalgia for is "Hocus Pocus." I have no idea why. I saw it exactly once, when it came out in 1993 when I was 9 and that was enough. Never once have I felt compelled to re-visit it. Just last year, I had to explain to someone only a year younger than me that "I Put a Spell On You" was not in fact, an original song from "Hocus Pocus." For the record, I prefer the Screamin' Jay Hawkins original, or the CCR cover.


Nowadays, there is inexplicable nostalgia for things that are touted as nostalgic via social media. Having nostalgia for a particular film or television show is a bandwagon fandom that social media devotees can jump on. "Hocus Pocus," "Nightmare Before Christmas," [...]
I finally broke down and watched Hocus Pocus last year, and hated it as much as I thought I would based on the trailers/clips I'd seen. But granted, I'm not exactly the intended audience.

It cracks me up the way Nightmare Before Christmas became such a "beloved classic", as I still recall when it came out and kinda flopped at the box-office. It also got fairly mild reviews, as far as I can recall. I also remember there being a lot of tie-in merch at the time, and almost no one bought any of it, and I saw it clearance bins for months. Then, somehow, about five years later or so, I started seeing Nightmare stuff popping up in stores again, and soon it was inescapable. I liked the movie when it came out, but now I'm rather sick of seeing the merchandise every where every year.
Watching until the end.
User avatar
speedracer5
Posts: 249
Joined: October 20th, 2022, 7:24 pm
Location: Portland, OR Metro Area (Westside)
Contact:

Re: Really? You've NEVER seen that Classic Film?

Post by speedracer5 »

LawrenceA wrote: March 3rd, 2023, 8:49 pm
speedracer5 wrote: March 3rd, 2023, 7:15 pm Another film that my generation seems to have inexplicable nostalgia for is "Hocus Pocus." I have no idea why. I saw it exactly once, when it came out in 1993 when I was 9 and that was enough. Never once have I felt compelled to re-visit it. Just last year, I had to explain to someone only a year younger than me that "I Put a Spell On You" was not in fact, an original song from "Hocus Pocus." For the record, I prefer the Screamin' Jay Hawkins original, or the CCR cover.


Nowadays, there is inexplicable nostalgia for things that are touted as nostalgic via social media. Having nostalgia for a particular film or television show is a bandwagon fandom that social media devotees can jump on. "Hocus Pocus," "Nightmare Before Christmas," [...]
I finally broke down and watched Hocus Pocus last year, and hated it as much as I thought I would based on the trailers/clips I'd seen. But granted, I'm not exactly the intended audience.

It cracks me up the way Nightmare Before Christmas became such a "beloved classic", as I still recall when it came out and kinda flopped at the box-office. It also got fairly mild reviews, as far as I can recall. I also remember there being a lot of tie-in merch at the time, and almost no one bought any of it, and I saw it clearance bins for months. Then, somehow, about five years later or so, I started seeing Nightmare stuff popping up in stores again, and soon it was inescapable. I liked the movie when it came out, but now I'm rather sick of seeing the merchandise every where every year.
I hated "Hocus Pocus" as a 9-year old in 1993. Lol! Don't feel too bad.

I don't understand the obsession with "Nightmare Before Christmas." Disney changes the entire theming of the Haunted Mansion at Disneyland every single year from August through January. No doubt though that Disney started doing that AFTER the film became a cult classic. It's not like they started doing it as a publicity stunt when the film came out. I've seen 'Nightmare' a few times. It's fine, but frankly, there are so many other Halloween movies I'd rather watch. Though, Tim Burton's entire gothic aesthetic is not entirely my taste anyway. I do like "Ed Wood," "Big Fish," his Batman films, "Beetlejuice," and "Edward Scissorhands."

In October 2021, my husband and I went to Disneyland and attended the Oogie Boogie Halloween Party. Oogie Boogie (the best character in 'Nightmare,' imo) was great but I was so sick of "This is Halloween" from that movie by the end.

The fandoms over some of these things like "Hocus Pocus," "Nightmare Before Christmas," "Halloweentown (w/ Debbie Reynolds)," Halloween in general...half of these people I doubt even actually like these things, but because of social media, I feel like they think that they have to like it and be obsessed with it in order to belong to this community online. Social Media is creating such rabid fandoms that are truly unhealthy. I don't even care if people truly, actually like these movies. It's just the culture around the obsession with these titles makes the fanatic fanbase seem phony and disingenuous.

Then I look like the weirdo when I say that my Halloween viewing does not consist of any of these films. I watch: It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown, Universal Horror movies, Bell Book and Candle, Vincent Price movies, James Whale movies, Val Lewton films, Little Shop of Horrors (1986), The Stepford Wives (1975), Burnt Offerings, the original 1970s/1980s slasher films, Buffy the Vampire Slayer (with Luke Perry), Beetlejuice, Young Frankenstein... No cornball Disney Channel movies. If I'm watching Disney on Halloween, I'm watching something like "The Great Mouse Detective," or "The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad."
Letterboxd: https://letterboxd.com/kayla622/
Reddit: kayla622
Twitter: kaylar622
Blog: Whimsicallyclassic.wordpress.com
User avatar
Dargo
Posts: 2478
Joined: October 28th, 2022, 10:37 am

Re: Really? You've NEVER seen that Classic Film?

Post by Dargo »

speedracer5 wrote: March 3rd, 2023, 8:27 pm
1970s- "What's Up Doc" is hilarious. It is Peter Bogdanovich's ode to screwball comedy. At the start of the movie, the film feels like a remake of "Bringing Up Baby," but it is definitely its own film by the end. This is Madeline Kahn's film debut and she is hysterical as Eunice, the prissy, uptight and ignored wife of Ryan O'Neal.
Agree with you about this Bogdanovich comedy here, speedy. Doing updated 1930s style screwball comedies usually turn out to be more a miss than they are a hit, but I've always thought Bogdanovich pulls it off in this case. And Babs plays her part perfectly in it, as well.

And of course the final little inside joke which references an earlier Ryan O'Neal film is always funny.

(...however, Eunice isn't Ryan O'Neal's wife in this movie...she's his fiancee)
User avatar
speedracer5
Posts: 249
Joined: October 20th, 2022, 7:24 pm
Location: Portland, OR Metro Area (Westside)
Contact:

Re: Really? You've NEVER seen that Classic Film?

Post by speedracer5 »

Dargo wrote: March 3rd, 2023, 9:30 pm
speedracer5 wrote: March 3rd, 2023, 8:27 pm
1970s- "What's Up Doc" is hilarious. It is Peter Bogdanovich's ode to screwball comedy. At the start of the movie, the film feels like a remake of "Bringing Up Baby," but it is definitely its own film by the end. This is Madeline Kahn's film debut and she is hysterical as Eunice, the prissy, uptight and ignored wife of Ryan O'Neal.
Agree with you about this Bogdanovich comedy here, speedy. Doing updated 1930s style screwball comedies usually turn out to be more a miss than they are a hit, but I've always thought Bogdanovich pulls it off in this case. And Babs plays her part perfectly in it, as well.

And of course the final little inside joke which references an earlier Ryan O'Neal film is always funny.

(...however, Eunice isn't Ryan O'Neal's wife in this movie...she's his fiancee)
Thank you, Dargo. I knew Eunice was with O'Neal in some capacity. Barbra was great in this film. She always seems so serious, it's nice to see her playing such a wacky character. I also love when she sings "As Time Goes By" in the film. The joke about the earlier O'Neal film is very funny. I haven't even seen that film and I still thought it was funny.

I think "What's Up Doc?" was such a success because Bogdanovich was such a huge movie fan, plus he was acquainted with Howard Hawks. I'm not sure if Hawks provided any guidance for this film though.
Letterboxd: https://letterboxd.com/kayla622/
Reddit: kayla622
Twitter: kaylar622
Blog: Whimsicallyclassic.wordpress.com
User avatar
Allhallowsday
Posts: 1446
Joined: November 17th, 2022, 6:19 pm

Re: Really? You've NEVER seen that Classic Film?

Post by Allhallowsday »

Though I am a fan of WALLACE SHAWN, I've not seen MY DINNER WITH ANDRE (1981)!
User avatar
TikiSoo
Posts: 704
Joined: March 9th, 2009, 8:37 am
Location: Upstate NY
Contact:

Re: Really? You've NEVER seen that Classic Film?

Post by TikiSoo »

Allhallowsday wrote: March 4th, 2023, 12:53 am Though I am a fan of WALLACE SHAWN, I've not seen MY DINNER WITH ANDRE (1981)!
Well I saw it once & it was so forgettable didn't remember Wallace Shawn was in it-inconceivable!
User avatar
LawrenceA
Posts: 937
Joined: October 22nd, 2022, 1:04 pm

Re: Really? You've NEVER seen that Classic Film?

Post by LawrenceA »

In my earlier post I listed the Most Popular (according to Letterboxd) American movie from each year that I haven't seen. I narrowed it down to American releases to make it a bit more accessible here, but I thought I'd also now mention the most popular movies regardless of nation of origin, if they differed from the previous list.

1921 - The Wildcat (Germany)
1924 - Michael (Germany)
1925 - Tartuffe (Germany)
1927 - Bed and Sofa (USSR)
1928 - The Seashell & the Clergyman (France)
1929 - Piccadilly (UK)

1930 - Little Lise (France)
1933 - Liebelei (Germany)
1936 - The Crime of Monsieur Lange (France)
1937 - Humanity and Paper Balloons (Japan)
1938 - La Marseillaise (France)

1940 - You're Missing the Point (Mexico)
1941 - The 47 Ronin (Japan)
1942 - Aniki-Bobo (Portugal)
1944 - Maria Candelaria (Mexico)
1949 - Prison (Sweden)

1951 - Awaara (India)
1952 - Lightning (Japan)
1953 - A Geisha (Japan)
1954 - An Inspector Calls (UK)
1955 - The Criminal Life of Archibaldo de la Cruz (Mexico)
1956 - The Mystery of Picasso (France)
1957 - Pyaasa (India)
1958 - Girls in Uniform (Germany)
1959 - Night Train (Poland)

1960 - Cruel Story of Youth (Japan)
1962 - The Turning Wind (Brazil)
1963 - Ikarie XB 1 (Czechoslovakia)
1964 - Yearning (Japan)
1965 - Sao Paolo, S.A. (Brazil)
1968 - The Bride Wore Black (France)
1969 - The Passion of Anna (Sweden)

1970 - A Swedish Love Story (Sweden)
1974 - Celine and Julie Go Boating (France)
1975 - India Song (France)
1977 - One Sings, the Other Doesn't (France)
1978 - Watership Down (UK)
1979 - Lupin III: The Castle of Cagliostro (Japan)

1980 - La Boum (France)
1982 - The Fan (Germany)
1983 - Nostalgia (USSR)
1985 - Shoah (France)
1986 - Castle in the Sky (Japan)
1988 - My Neighbor Totoro (Japan) this is the most popular film from any year that I haven't seen
1989 - The Seventh Continent (Austria)

1990 - Days of Being Wild (Hong Kong)
1991 - A Brighter Summer Day (Taiwan)
1992 - Porco Rosso (Japan)
1994 - Satantango (Hungary)
1995 - Fallen Angels (Hong Kong)
1997 - Neon Genesis Evangelion: The End of Evangelion (Japan)
1999 - Ratcatcher (UK)

2005 - Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit (UK)
2008 - Ponyo (Japan)

2011 - The Intouchables (France)
2014 - Mommy (Canada)
2016 - Your Name. (Japan)
Watching until the end.
User avatar
Swithin
Posts: 1734
Joined: October 22nd, 2022, 5:25 pm

Re: Really? You've NEVER seen that Classic Film?

Post by Swithin »

LawrenceA wrote: March 4th, 2023, 1:36 pm In my earlier post I listed the Most Popular (according to Letterboxd) American movie from each year that I haven't seen. I narrowed it down to American releases to make it a bit more accessible here, but I thought I'd also now mention the most popular movies regardless of nation of origin, if they differed from the previous list.

1974 - Celine and Julie Go Boating (France)
You haven't seen Celine and Julie...? I'm shocked, it's one of the great French films and one of my favorites.

Regarding the silent film Piccadilly, on your list, I tried to watch a restored print, but the updated soundtrack was so offensive that I had to stop. Possibly adding a new soundtrack enabled a new copyright, but it just doesn't work.
User avatar
LawrenceA
Posts: 937
Joined: October 22nd, 2022, 1:04 pm

Re: Really? You've NEVER seen that Classic Film?

Post by LawrenceA »

And for anyone interested (and I know you all are), here are the most popular films from each year overall. How many have you seen?

1910 - Jeffries-Johnson World's Championship Boxing Contest
1911 - Dante's Inferno
1912 - From the Manger to the Cross
1913 - The Student of Prague
1914 - Cabiria
1915 - The Birth of a Nation
1916 - Intolerance
1917 - A Man There Was
1918 - Shoulder Arms
1919 - Broken Blossoms

1920 - The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari
1921 - The Kid
1922 - Nosferatu
1923 - Safety Last
1924 - Sherlock Jr
1925 - Battleship Potemkin
1926 - The General
1927 - Metropolis
1928 - The Passion of Joan of Arc
1929 - Man With a Camera

1930 - All Quiet On the Western Front
1931 - M
1932 - Freaks
1933 - King Kong
1934 - It Happened One Night
1935 - The Bride of Frankenstein
1936 - Modern Times
1937 - Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
1938 - Bringing Up Baby
1939 - The Wizard of Oz

1940 - Pinocchio
1941 - Citizen Kane
1942 - Casablanca
1943 - Shadow of a Doubt
1944 - Double Indemnity
1945 - Brief Encounter
1946 - It's a Wonderful Life
1947 - Black Narcissus
1948 - Rope
1949 - The Third Man

1950 - Sunset Boulevard
1951 - Alice in Wonderland
1952 - Singin' in the Rain
1953 - Tokyo Story
1954 - Rear Window
1955 - The Night of the Hunter
1956 - The Killing
1957 - 12 Angry Men
1958 - Vertigo
1959 - North By Northwest

1960 - Psycho
1961 - Breakfast at Tiffany's
1962 - Lawrence of Arabia
1963 - The Birds
1964 - Dr. Strangelove
1965 - The Sound of Music
1966 - The Good, the Bad & the Ugly
1967 - The Graduate
1968 - 2001: A Space Odyssey
1969 - Midnight Cowboy

1970 - The Aristocats
1971 - A Clockwork Orange
1972 - The Godfather
1973 - The Exorcist
1974 - The Godfather Part II
1975 - Jaws
1976 - Taxi Driver
1977 - Star Wars
1978 - Halloween
1979 - Alien

1980 - The Shining
1981 - Raiders of the Lost Ark
1982 - Blade Runner
1983 - Return of the Jedi
1984 - Ghostbusters
1985 - Back to the Future
1986 - Ferris Bueller's Day Off
1987 - Full Metal Jacket
1988 - My Neighbor Totoro
1989 - Dead Poets Society

1990 - Goodfellas
1991 - The Silence of the Lambs
1992 - Reservoir Dogs
1993 - Jurassic Park
1994 - Pulp Fiction
1995 - Se7en
1996 - Scream
1997 - Titanic
1998 - The Truman Show
1999 - Fight Club

2000 - American Psycho
2001 - Spirited Away
2002 - Spider-Man
2003 - Kill Bill, Vol. 1
2004 - Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
2005 - Batman Begins
2006 - Little Miss Sunshine
2007 - Ratatouille
2008 - The Dark Knight
2009 - Inglorious Basterds

2010 - Inception
2011 - Drive
2012 - Django Unchained
2013 - The Wolf of Wall Street
2014 - Whiplash
2015 - Mad Max: Fury Road
2016 - La La Land
2017 - Get Out
2018 - Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse
2019 - Parasite

2020 - Soul
2021 - Spider-Man: No Way Home
2022 - Everything Everywhere All at Once
Watching until the end.
User avatar
LawrenceA
Posts: 937
Joined: October 22nd, 2022, 1:04 pm

Re: Really? You've NEVER seen that Classic Film?

Post by LawrenceA »

Swithin wrote: March 4th, 2023, 1:55 pm You haven't seen Celine and Julie...? I'm shocked, it's one of the great French films and one of my favorites.

Regarding the silent film Piccadilly, on your list, I tried to watch a restored print, but the updated soundtrack was so offensive that I had to stop. Possibly adding a new soundtrack enabled a new copyright, but it just doesn't work.
Yeah, I have Celine & Julie in my queue to watch when I get to 1974, which will be soon, as I'm just wrapping up my queue of 1970 films at the moment.
Watching until the end.
User avatar
dianedebuda
Posts: 147
Joined: October 23rd, 2022, 9:49 am

Re: Really? You've NEVER seen that Classic Film?

Post by dianedebuda »

LawrenceA wrote: March 4th, 2023, 2:14 pmAnd for anyone interested (and I know you all are), here are the most popular films from each year overall. How many have you seen?
1910 - 1919: 2
1920 - 1929: all but 3
1930 - 1939: all but 3
1940 - 1949: all
1950 - 1959: all but 2
1960 - 1969: all but 1
1970 - 1979: 4
1980 - 1989: all but 2
1990 - 1999: all but 3
2000 - 2009: 2
2010 - 2019: 1
2020 - 2022: 0
User avatar
Dargo
Posts: 2478
Joined: October 28th, 2022, 10:37 am

Re: Really? You've NEVER seen that Classic Film?

Post by Dargo »

LawrenceA wrote: March 4th, 2023, 2:14 pm And for anyone interested (and I know you all are), here are the most popular films from each year overall. How many have you seen?
1910 - 1919: 2...the two being the Griffith films
1920 - 1929: All
1930 - 1939: All
1940 - 1949: All
1950 - 1959: All
1960 - 1969: All
1970 - 1979: All but 1...could never get past the first 20 minutes of A Clockwork Orange after a few tries at it
1980 - 1989: All but 1...the one being My Neighbor Totoro
1990 - 1999: All but 1...the one being Fight Club
2000 - 2009: All but 2...the two being The Eternal etc, and Spirited Away
2010 - 2019: 1...the one I did see being The Wolf of Wall Street
2020 - 2022: 0
Last edited by Dargo on March 4th, 2023, 4:00 pm, edited 1 time in total.
User avatar
LiamCasey
Posts: 331
Joined: October 22nd, 2022, 1:02 pm

Re: Really? You've NEVER seen that Classic Film?

Post by LiamCasey »

LawrenceA wrote: March 4th, 2023, 2:14 pm And for anyone interested (and I know you all are), here are the most popular films from each year overall. How many have you seen?
1910 - 1919: 2
1920 - 1929: 3
1930 - 1939: 9
1940 - 1949: 8
1950 - 1959: 7
1960 - 1969: 9
1970 - 1979: 6
1980 - 1989: 9
1990 - 1999: 7
2000 - 2009: 4
2010 - 2019: 2
2020 - 2022: 1
User avatar
HoldenIsHere
Posts: 642
Joined: October 22nd, 2022, 7:07 pm

Re: Really? You've NEVER seen that Classic Film?

Post by HoldenIsHere »

LawrenceA wrote: March 4th, 2023, 2:14 pm And for anyone interested (and I know you all are), here are the most popular films from each year overall.


2011 - Drive

I had no idea that DRIVE was the most popular movie from 2011.

I love the movie, but I know quite a few people who did not like it and some even hated it

The following scene (where Ryan Gosling and Casey Mulligan's characters meet for the first time) is brilliant in so many ways.

Last edited by HoldenIsHere on March 4th, 2023, 5:47 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Post Reply