How to get into politics: 101 A&C/The Best Man
Posted: August 1st, 2009, 6:18 pm
The Best Man and Advise and Consent. Back in the early 60's when I was a smarter than thou high school senior we went and saw Advise and Consent and I didn't have the vaguest idea what was going on in it, nor did I care. The only politics I cared about were how cute JFK was. About 10 years later A&C and The Best Man were both on in one evening and I sat and watched, and learned how dumb I had been when I was a H.S. senior. The Best Man should be mandatory for everyone to watch during presidential election years and A&C should be shown whenever a new cabinet member is selected by the Pres. It definitely would have helped some folks during all of those Bush choices that were thankfully eliminated. Perhaps not as dramatic as the movies were, both films exhibit fine examples of what goes on and why it is so important to know the candidates.
Besides that however, nobody plays a mean, nasty, disgusting louse like Charles Laughton. He can be so slimy you want to climb into the film and kick him across the screen. Then he can also be sweet and funny like in Witness for the Prosecution with tongue in cheek, or pitiable when his selfish and thoughtless niece wants his help when he just found out he's dying, and she says she doesn't care because he's old.
A&C is just loaded with big named stars but the best part is seeing Walter Pidgeon and Gene Tierney in a clinch while having an on-going 'back street' affair, although neither is married, but Walter rarely gets to be the lover boy and I loved the scene with them. Hank Fonda is again the strong, immovable rock. I wonder if he got tired of always being so good. Franchot Tone either had a really good make-up man, or he was quite sick while playing the dying Pres. I never liked Hank's wife in The Best Man, but thought both Edie Adams and Cliff Robertson were great as the crooked politician and his 'go for the gold' wife.
Personally, I believe both of these movies should be essentials on TCM not for the political reasons but for the acting which is top level from everybody in both films.
Anne
Besides that however, nobody plays a mean, nasty, disgusting louse like Charles Laughton. He can be so slimy you want to climb into the film and kick him across the screen. Then he can also be sweet and funny like in Witness for the Prosecution with tongue in cheek, or pitiable when his selfish and thoughtless niece wants his help when he just found out he's dying, and she says she doesn't care because he's old.
A&C is just loaded with big named stars but the best part is seeing Walter Pidgeon and Gene Tierney in a clinch while having an on-going 'back street' affair, although neither is married, but Walter rarely gets to be the lover boy and I loved the scene with them. Hank Fonda is again the strong, immovable rock. I wonder if he got tired of always being so good. Franchot Tone either had a really good make-up man, or he was quite sick while playing the dying Pres. I never liked Hank's wife in The Best Man, but thought both Edie Adams and Cliff Robertson were great as the crooked politician and his 'go for the gold' wife.
Personally, I believe both of these movies should be essentials on TCM not for the political reasons but for the acting which is top level from everybody in both films.
Anne