Fanny and Chemistry
Posted: November 22nd, 2008, 11:04 pm
Before we get too far into Since You Went Away so I can watch it for the 50th time, if not more times, I wanted to talk a little about chemistry. Early this a.m. I watched Love is a Many Splendored Thing, from 1955 starring Jennifer Jones and William Holden. While watching it, I thought what great chemistry these two people had, I could almost believe she was a Eurasian doctor and he a war correspondent and they met and fell in love in a nice, slow, leisurely way.
Their embraces were so real, and the way they looked at each other made you almost feel guilty for being a voyeur into their private little world. Then when it was over, I looked it up on imdB and learned Jennifer and Bill rarely spoke to each other off set. Apparently his womanizing tried to include her, but as a newlywed she wasn't interested, but couldn't make him stop, so she took to eating garlic before love scenes to punish him. eeeewwwww.
With all of that said, I looked forward to a good, old fashioned love story for the evening since starting my day that way, I guess I wanted to end it the same way. In this case however, I felt no chemistry at all. Horst did a great job in playing the cad and maybe there wasn't enough time given to bring their feelings more into play, because I just didn't see the adoration. Actually, there really was only that one scene out on the wharf, and the short walk into her house. In fact, I saw more love in Leslies' actions at the end for her older husband, than for Horst through the whole movie. If not for the earlier movie, I would say I might be getting jaded in my old age, but with two actors who disliked each other I saw emotion (that's acting), than I did in Fanny.
I do think this movie is what made studios keep trying to get Leslie to come back from France to resume her career, because she did prove she was an actress as well as a song and dance gal. Some of those close up shots were fantastic. I think she played her part perfectly as a girl in love with a guy who was still not sure who he was. Even by the end of the movie he still hadn't found his niche.
Anne
Their embraces were so real, and the way they looked at each other made you almost feel guilty for being a voyeur into their private little world. Then when it was over, I looked it up on imdB and learned Jennifer and Bill rarely spoke to each other off set. Apparently his womanizing tried to include her, but as a newlywed she wasn't interested, but couldn't make him stop, so she took to eating garlic before love scenes to punish him. eeeewwwww.
With all of that said, I looked forward to a good, old fashioned love story for the evening since starting my day that way, I guess I wanted to end it the same way. In this case however, I felt no chemistry at all. Horst did a great job in playing the cad and maybe there wasn't enough time given to bring their feelings more into play, because I just didn't see the adoration. Actually, there really was only that one scene out on the wharf, and the short walk into her house. In fact, I saw more love in Leslies' actions at the end for her older husband, than for Horst through the whole movie. If not for the earlier movie, I would say I might be getting jaded in my old age, but with two actors who disliked each other I saw emotion (that's acting), than I did in Fanny.
I do think this movie is what made studios keep trying to get Leslie to come back from France to resume her career, because she did prove she was an actress as well as a song and dance gal. Some of those close up shots were fantastic. I think she played her part perfectly as a girl in love with a guy who was still not sure who he was. Even by the end of the movie he still hadn't found his niche.
Anne