The Silver Screen Oasis

November Friday Night Comedies
November 22nd on TCM

TCM PRIMETIME - WHAT'S ON TONIGHT: FRIDAY NIGHT SPOTLIGHT: SCREWBALL COMEDIES

8:00 PM
My Man Godfrey (1936)

10:00 PM
Bringing Up Baby (1938)

12:00 AM
Ball Of Fire (1942)

2:00 AM
You Can't Take It With You (1938)

4:15 AM
Joy of Living (1938)


A powerhouse line-up of super duper Comedies - the twosome of OUR MAN GODFREY and BRINGING UP BABY is a knockout combination of laughter and tears. I just loved these movies and doesn't matter how many times you watch it - its always leave a smile on your face. Man, I just can't wait for November 22nd!

All Times EASTERN

Merrily, We Live on the 15th is a sort of "Godfrey" clone. My Maureen saw and liked it and suggested I check it out. So, I am doing that.

On the 22nd "Joy Of Living" will be new for me. Looks like another Irene Dunne winner.

Chris, I REALLY like Joy of Living! I think you will too, it's really charming. I won't tell more, but at least now I can get a good recording of it.

JackFavell wrote:Chris, I REALLY like Joy of Living! I think you will too, it's really charming. I won't tell more, but at least now I can get a good recording of it.

It's a favorite of mine for years!

Doug Jr. and Irene have tons of chemistry.

TCM actually shows a bona fide giallo from one of the masters on the 16th with Mario Bava's Hatchet for the Honeymoon (1970). Short review from the Giallo thread below:

Mario Bava takes a completely different approach for his 1970 giallo, Hatchet for the Honeymoon, showing us the face of the murderer in the opening frames and even giving us insight into his thoughts:

My name is John Harrington. I'm 30 years old. I'm a paranoiac. Paranoiac. An enchanting word, so civilized, full of possibilities. The truth is, I am completely mad. The realization which annoys me at first, but is now amusing to me. Quite amusing. Nobody suspects I am a madman. A dangerous murderer. Not Mildred, my wife. Nor the employees of my fashion center. Nor of course my customers.

Harrington might be a killer, but he--and we--are clueless as to the motive of his crimes and his only hope of understanding is to continue his homicidal spree:

I must go on wielding the cleaver. It's most annoying. But when I begin to hear the footsteps. Those stealthy footsteps, I know I just kill. And shall have to keep on killing, until I find out the truth. That's it, the whole truth.

One instantly draws connections with Peeping Tom (1960), but although Powell's film is a clear foundation, Hatchet for the Honeymoon uses the earlier work as a springboard, exploring supernatural and mystery aspects (each time he kills a small piece of the puzzle is revealed) that begin in Peeping Tom, but are more fully conceptualized (although that does not make it a better film, but a different one). Bava also pays tribute to his own Blood and Black Lace (1964), which many consider the foundational giallo film, by once again setting the murders in the world of fashion design, with Stephen Forsyth giving an excellent performance as an unhappy owner of a bridal company who feels that a woman should love once and die. Police investigation, normally inept in gialli films, has a strong presence here and often seems to foreshadow the popular American Columbo TV series, although it is unclear if the creators ever saw Bava's film, or were aware of him at all. One can also see technical ideas that Argento borrowed for Deep Red (1975).

[youtube][/youtube]


Visually, Hatchet for the Honeymoon is a treat for the eyes, with beautiful camerawork, disorienting pans, and Bava's incredible use of color, juxtaposed against an atmospheric score that sounds suspiciously like Ennio Morricone. Perhaps not Bava's best, but surely one of them. Highly recommended.

Joel, thanks for mentioning Hatchet for a Honeymoon, I would never have noticed it without your review above. Time to have a look see!

KR, GWTW is considered this lightweight melodrama, but I continue to find such enormous depth in it. I will always be a fan, always.

KR:

BE careful if you plan to record "Easy Living" because TCM is showing the 1949 version earlier in the day. The '37 version is on 11:30 ET.

Well, aren't you (Movieman, JF & Moira) the nicest.

I'll try to post something on Friday -- leaving in 15 minutes for the finale of this term's class, Romance, Tears, & More: Melodrama & Meaning. The focus has been on Domestic Melodrama. Showing, as a wrap-up, the wrap-uppiest of them all: ALL THAT HEAVEN ALLOWS. And tomorrow I actually have to work (that's the bad news; the good news is that it's the last day of 2013 that I can work).

The other movies of this term: HARD, FAST AND BEAUTIFUL (Sports), CHINA GATE (War), STARS IN MY CROWN (Western - well, close enough), HOUSE OF STRANGERS (Crime), & CAUGHT (film noir).

Now, off to watch the deer cry.

[u]Mr. Arkadin[/u] wrote:TCM actually shows a bona fide giallo from one of the masters on the 16th with Mario Bava's Hatchet for the Honeymoon (1970). Short review from the Giallo thread below...

Thanxxx for the tip. I haven't seen the schedule fully. This is great news.

JackFavell wrote:Joel, thanks for mentioning Hatchet for a Honeymoon, I would never have noticed it without your review above. Time to have a look see!

Wendy, as I said, this one is pretty unconventional in the sense that we are told from the beginning who the killer is. They mystery aspect is why he does it. Bava's movies have incredible color schemes and lighting and can be enjoyed from that standpoint alone.

A little documentary about Bava:
[youtube][/youtube]

CineMaven wrote:

[u]Mr. Arkadin[/u] wrote:TCM actually shows a bona fide giallo from one of the masters on the 16th with Mario Bava's Hatchet for the Honeymoon (1970). Short review from the Giallo thread below...

Thanxxx for the tip. I haven't seen the schedule fully. This is great news.

No problem. Glad to see TCM showing some of these movies. Wish it was Deep Red, but I'll take what I can get.

I'm so happy you posted about this, Arkadin. I've been wanting to dip my toe in but was too scared! You hooked me completely with that inner discussion the lead/murderer has within himself. That to me is brilliant, letting him narrate. It sounds like it lends itself to that 'what is the truth' thing that can be so pleasurable in movies, when we see things through a filter of someone else's emotions or thoughts.

JackFavell wrote:I'm so happy you posted about this, Arkadin. I've been wanting to dip my toe in but was too scared! You hooked me completely with that inner discussion the lead/murderer has within himself. That to me is brilliant, letting him narrate. It sounds like it lends itself to that 'what is the truth' thing that can be so pleasurable in movies, when we see things through a filter of someone else's emotions or thoughts.

Wendy, there are plenty of these films that have little, or offscreen violence. Most of the genre is built on the ideas of mystery and suspense that were originated by Hitchcock, particularly Vertigo and Psycho. Anima Persa (1977) is a very elegant film with Vittorio Gassman and Catherine Denuve with no violence whatsoever because the investigation deals with a death that happened in the past. Mr. ChiO, who is squeamish around all sharp objects enjoyed this one and deemed it safe for sensitive viewers.


Another good one is The Designated Victim which is based on Hitchcock's Strangers on a Train (1950). The TCM Movie Morlocks like this one also:

http://moviemorlocks.com/2010/06/19/str ... a-gondola/

Trailer:
[youtube][/youtube]

You also might enjoy seeing Karl Malden in The Cat 'O Nine Tails (1971). Here's an old review I did:

http://silverscreenoasis.com/oasis3/vie ... 78#p100178

Other low violence thrillers:

Devil in the Brain (1972)
The Evil Eye (1962)
Seven Notes in Black (1977)
The Double (1971)
Fragment of Fear (1970)
Liz and Helen (1969)
Detective Beli (1969)
The Lady in the Lake (1965)
Deadly Sweet (1967)
The Bloodstained Butterfly (1971)
The Monster (1977)
Footprints (1975)
Orgasmo (1969)
Copkiller (1983)