Hello from Ottawa Canada

[HoldenIsHere]

I'll have to take another look at LIFEBOAT. I remember Robert Osborne comparing John Hodiak to Marlon Brando. Not so sure about that, lol. I like Bernard Hermann's "rustic" score for THE TROUBLE WITH HARRY. Still trying to process MR. AND MRS. SMITH but it does deal with a familiar Hitch theme of marriage as being essentially problematical. I like Jimmy in just about anything except maybe ROPE. That was unfortunate miscasting in my opinion and I don't think Stewart knew just what to do with that character. Haven't seen SHENANDOAH and only remember bits and pieces of FLIGHT OF THE PHOENIX.

You know, I don't think I've ever seen Hitch's MR. AND MRS. SMITH. Going to have to remedy that.
I have watched ROPE but that was so long ago I don't remember much aside from that it was filmed as one long contiguous scene. The fact that I can't remember much belies that it was not high on my Hitch list.

As far as Stewart being miscast, I think THE SPIRIT OF ST-LOUIS wins hands down. Not too often a 50ish actor is cast to play a 20ish role. Stewart did his best but it was clear he was not the spring chicken the role demanded. I enjoy that film as a historical (such as it is) and technical movie rather than an outright drama.

Question: Is it the norm to CAPITALIZE movie titles on this forum? Did not look to see if there was a post or FAQ on how things are done here.

I too am a "Monster Kid" (and frequent a certain horror film message board -- you probably know the one I mean) and have never outgrown my love for that genre.

I don't know what message board you are talking about as this is the only message board I'm actually using at the moment and the first one in years.
I used to participate in a number of them (recycled SF BBS forums, a local B-Movie forum as well as forums for some of my other hobbies), but one by one they disappeared over the years and these days most of my info and interaction is via Facebook and YouTube. It was on a whim of a Google search that led me to this forum and I was pleasantly surprised to see that board like this are still active. Good on you folks.

I almost forgot about THE SPIRIT OF ST. LOUIS -- you're right, lol.

MR. AND MRS. SMITH is an interesting Hitch oddity. But you can't go wrong with Carole Lombard or Robert Montgomery.

Not sure if it's "correct" to name another message board so I'll refrain for now. This site been around for over twenty years and is quite fun and informative. The posters have extensive knowledge of horror movies and all its sub-genres.

Except for Stewart, I find ROPE moderately entertaining, especially the macabre double-entendre wordplay. ("I write for a beauty magazine, with a column on the body beautiful", etc.)

I also find ROPE entertaining, but I think James Stewart was out of the loop on the gay subtext. . . Although if he had read or seen the source play it was explicit especially with regard to his character and the two leads.

[txfilmfan]

I like "The Spirit of St. Louis" and for the same reason.
Don't believe we have any solid protocol for movie titles and how you display them.
I use either quotes or bold most of the time, but not all caps.
Guess I am not detail oriented as thinking of Jimmy Stewart as an old-timer playing a younger role didn't come to mind.
My favorite line is "Switch to a tank with some gas in it."
The idea of someone talking to themselves lends itself to being old.
I believe "Rope" was shot one reel at a time, in real time, which is fascinating.
I'm a bigger fan of "Rear Window."
CanuckNoir: You may have an award-winning avatar!

Rope was shot in long takes, often an entire reel. While unusual for films, the nascent live TV industry at the time was very used to this, as all the live shows were shot this way out of necessity. All of those drama anthology shows that were live in the 1950s were done this way, but with the luxury of multiple cameras to shift the focus of action, but, on the other hand, with the added "thrill" of going out live to millions of homes and no retakes.

[CanuckNoir]

MR. AND MRS. SMITH is an interesting Hitch oddity. But you can't go wrong with Carole Lombard or Robert Montgomery.

I told you I was going to remedy my tardiness on watching it and I did just that last night.

While it was a decent movie in many ways I was not overcome with it in many regards, but what I really found odd was it just did not 'feel' like a Hitchcock movie. And not because it is a comedy as The Trouble with Harry definitely has a Hitchcock vibe to it. Had I not known Mr. & Mrs. Smith was a Hitchcock film, I would have never guessed it.

I loved Carole Lombard who was very edgy, but Montgomery seemed more like he was playing in a TV show. Cornier jokes, never serious. Jack Carson had a very small role but I enjoyed those moments with him. The third banana in the love triangle, Gene Raymond, someone completely new to me, was annoying, but that was just the character he played not the actors fault. The (spoilers!) make up ending was so abrupt it caught me off guard. I just think the film could have used a better script to make it more entertaining and, most importantly, funnier.

I'm still glad I watched it as it was bothering/bugging me that I had not seen it and I was very curious when you brought it up (thanks for that), but now that I have I won't be revisiting it.

[CanuckNoir]

Burgess Meredith was a pain in the butt judge on the TV show In The Heat of the Night.
But as The Penguin on Batman in the 60s, he was great.
Not sure how much television from down here you have access to.

Not familiar with the TV show you say he judged in, but I've watch a LOT of Burgess Meredith over the years and loved him from Of Mice and Men, the Penguin role (which sadly defined him to most audiences when he was so much more than that), all the other classic TV shows, The Day of the Locust, Mick in the Rocky films, the few horror films like Torture Garden, and even in those last Grumpy(er) old Men with Lemmon and Matthau. If you have the DVDs of those last films watch the special features to see some hilarious outtakes that did not make the final cut of those films.

While there was a time we would not get all the US channels from across the border even with cable, I think it's fair to say that by the eighties we pretty much got all the network TV broadcasts here (NBC, CBC, ABC) so I grew up with as much American TV as most folks here. I can't speak for all the specialy channels today to compare as I don't subscribe to any. Back in the day of course we also had the two Canadian Networks at the time which oddly meant we often got two extra 'midnight' movies since both the CBC and CTV local affiliates tended to show movies instead of TV shows in those late night slots. I grew up watching midnight movies. That also meant Canadian content of course and a lot more British shows than I believe you folks had. Those of us who grew up in Quebec, as I did, also had two french channels one of which also favoured midnight movies over TV shows. But many (most?) were English movies that were dubbed (often badly).

[Swithin]

Canuck, I've enjoyed reading your reviews. Perhaps you can chime in on an argument I've been having with a friend for a few years, related to one of the movies you reviewed.

When I was a kid, my father took me to see a double bill of It Conquered the World and The She-Creature. Decades later, I took a friend to see It Conquered the World at the Film Forum in New York City. I mentioned to her that the title of the film was It CONQUERED the World, with the emphasis on the word "Conquered." After seeing the film, my friend insisted that the title should be pronounced IT Conquered the World, with the emphasis on the word "It." Which way would you say it?

(Please don't tell me you would say It Conquered the WORLD!)

[CanuckNoir]

CanuckNoir, my favorite actress is Norma Shearer. Also a Montrealer by birth, she eventually reached the San Fernando Valley:

While I know the name and have probably seen some of her films I'm not well acquainted with Shearer. Did not know she was a Montrealer. Which Shearer film would you recommend to start with?

When people mention Montreal and Actor together William Shatner is often the first person who comes to mind. I've watched more Shatner films than I care to admit. Some mention the late great Donald Sutherland, but he was not born in Montreal but spent a lot of time there as a fanatical Montreal Expos baseball fan. He got there as often as he could.

[CanuckNoir]

Canuck, I've enjoyed reading your reviews. Perhaps you can chime in on an argument I've been having with a friend for a few years, related to one of the movies you reviewed.

When I was a kid, my father took me to see a double bill of It Conquered the World and The She-Creature. Decades later, I took a friend to see It Conquered the World at the Film Forum in New York City. I mentioned to her that the title of the film was It CONQUERED the World, with the emphasis on the word "Conquered." After seeing the film, my friend insisted that the title should be pronounced IT Conquered the World, with the emphasis on the word "It." Which way would you say it?

(Please don't tell me you would say It Conquered the WORLD!)

Alas poor Beulah. Never realized there would be people debating the pronunciation of the title but I would have to agree with your friend (Sorry!) placing the emphasis on IT. You are lucky to have seen IT and She-Creature on the big screen. At least they made a clear delineation with It! The Terror from Beyond Space.

Glad you enjoyed my reviews. I don't take them seriously but have a little fun writing them for myself as much as for anyone who wants to read them.

I kept a near perfect record of getting out a weekly review for about 15 years but had to slack off tremendously dealing with aging parent issues since the end of last year which meant (and still means) many trips to Montreal keeping me too busy to maintain my weekly review schedule. Hopefully I will get back to writing weeklies at some point. I have however managed to maintain at least watching 5 or 6 movies a week. You may have noticed that I also enjoy watching (35-40) film marathons during the holidays when I have more time.

I learned long ago (during the pre-Internet, computer Bulletin Board System days participating in forums like this) that if I planned on writing a review my attention with be just a little more focused and I would sometimes pick out a few subtle things that I would otherwise miss. So I was actually getting a little more enjoyment myself just because I planned on writing a blurb. I make sure I don't overdo it and take any of the the fun out. Just a little more attention than I normally would.

The aforementioned long gone BBS was more about Science Fiction novels and writing book reviews, but the same applies to reviewing anything. I knew that for myself at least writing those short movie reviews often enhanced my viewing experience.

[NoShear]

CanuckNoir, my favorite actress is Norma Shearer. Also a Montrealer by birth, she eventually reached the San Fernando Valley:

While I know the name and have probably seen some of her films I'm not well acquainted with Shearer. Did not know she was a Montrealer. Which Shearer film would you recommend to start with?

When people mention Montreal and Actor together William Shatner is often the first person who comes to mind. I've watched more Shatner films than I care to admit. Some mention the late great Donald Sutherland, but he was not born in Montreal but spent a lot of time there as a fanatical Montreal Expos baseball fan. He got there as often as he could.

I will let Norma Shearer suggest that one: Marie Antoinette (1938) - her personal favorite if I'm not mistaken.
I was thinking of William Shatner with you before your mention of him, CanuckNoir, especially the following Canadian appearance with him:

Murdoch Mysteries: - - "Marked Twain"

Love Donald Sutherland in JFK as Jim Garrison's Washington contact, "X":

(Don't let Dargo see this screenshot.)

I'm guessing Le Grand Orange was a favorite of Sutherland's at one time:



Of film, sport and Canada:

[Dargo]

(Don't let Dargo see this screenshot.)

LOL

Well, at least there was ONE actor in this pic that I never found boring at all, anyway!

And just so there is no confusion on your part here CN, the one who I never thought was boring at all would be your fellow Canadian up there.

(...ya see, NS here was referencing my oft stated opinion that Mr. Costner has been one of THE most boring actors to ever appear on the big or small screen)

[dianedebuda]

I've watch a LOT of Burgess Meredith over the years

He was so much fun in Foul Play (1978).

While there was a time we would not get all the US channels from across the border even with cable

Kind of a reverse memory here. Back in the dark ages, we had a big dish and was able to watch the Canadian feed of the '88 Winter Olympics. Have never been able to find it on the web, but there was an ad that always had me in stitches. Think it was maybe from Tim Horton's, but there was this farmer who'd complain to his wife after returning from the barn about the cows watching curling. Or something like that.

----------

Not a huge Donald Sutherland fan, but did like him in The Dirty Dozen (1967). My favorite though was his role in Citizen X (1995).

[jimimac71]

I'm easily as fond of TV shows as classic films.
Just like with music, I like TV from the 1900s, not so much the 2000s.
Boston Legal was an interesting vehicle for William Shatner.
Very different from Star Trek.
Bill was a bad guy in an episode of Colombo.
In the Heat of the Night was very different from All in the Family.
Carroll O'Connor was good versus silly.
The last thing In the Heat of the Night is would be funny.
Except for M*A*S*H, I prefer sitcoms in small doses.
Our favorite TV show, Mom and me, is Andy Griffith in Matlock.
A new Matlock will premiere later this month on CBS.

[Bronxgirl48]

MR. AND MRS. SMITH is an interesting Hitch oddity. But you can't go wrong with Carole Lombard or Robert Montgomery.

I told you I was going to remedy my tardiness on watching it and I did just that last night.

While it was a decent movie in many ways I was not overcome with it in many regards, but what I really found odd was it just did not 'feel' like a Hitchcock movie. And not because it is a comedy as The Trouble with Harry definitely has a Hitchcock vibe to it. Had I not known Mr. & Mrs. Smith was a Hitchcock film, I would have never guessed it.

I loved Carole Lombard who was very edgy, but Montgomery seemed more like he was playing in a TV show. Cornier jokes, never serious. Jack Carson had a very small role but I enjoyed those moments with him. The third banana in the love triangle, Gene Raymond, someone completely new to me, was annoying, but that was just the character he played not the actors fault. The (spoilers!) make up ending was so abrupt it caught me off guard. I just think the film could have used a better script to make it more entertaining and, most importantly, funnier.

I'm still glad I watched it as it was bothering/bugging me that I had not seen it and I was very curious when you brought it up (thanks for that), but now that I have I won't be revisiting it.

Glad you saw it! Gene Raymond was sort of the hapless "good" guy a la Ralph Bellamy in HIS GIRL FRIDAY and THE AWFUL TRUTH -- only better looking, lol. Montgomery fascinates me as an actor, underrated in my opinion. He can go from early 1930's witty young romantic leading man to charismatic serial killer (NIGHT MUST FALL) to likeable boxer (HERE COMES MR. JORDAN). Versatile indeed but highly overlooked these days I think.

[Dargo]

...Not a huge Donald Sutherland fan, but did like him in The Dirty Dozen (1967). My favorite though was his role in Citizen X (1995).

I've also always thought he beautifully underplayed his role as the father in 'Ordinary People'.

(...and one many consider, including me, of being one of the biggest Oscar snubs for its lack of even being nominated)

[CanuckNoir]

Gene Raymond was sort of the hapless "good" ... to likeable boxer (HERE COMES MR. JORDAN). Versatile indeed but highly overlooked these days I think.

That's why he looked so familiar. Yes, I enjoyed him as the 'dead' boxer.

[CanuckNoir]

...Not a huge Donald Sutherland fan, but did like him in The Dirty Dozen (1967). My favorite though was his role in Citizen X (1995).

I've also always thought he beautifully underplayed his role as the father in 'Ordinary People'.

(...and one many consider, including me, of being one of the biggest Oscar snubs for its lack of even being nominated)

Shamefully neglected by the Academy. I suspect that some of the snubbing may have been because he was just as comfortable in making genre films like Invasion of the Body Snatchers and Don't Look Now. He was always so versatile, which I think worked against him in some people's views, but that same versatility enamoured to film fans. The only actor to be both in The Dirty Dozen and copycat Kelly's Heroes!