Movie Thread

[Tricycle Rider]

Because of the recent Oscars I've been reading up on Faye Dunaway having previously known very little about her, she was one person Bette Davis never wanted to work with again. (And that's taking Davis' toxic relationship with Joan Crawford into account.) Here's a short Johnny Carson clip where Davis talks about Dunaway. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XkqFhfMqz9M&feature=youtu.be

And here's an article a guy wrote back in the late 90s about one of Dunaway's stays at a posh hotel.

https://andrewtobias.com/a-stars-suite-is-born/

Faye Dunaway may have been brilliant on screen or stage, but she's probably not someone I would want to know IRL. (That could be said of many actors, though, sometimes I wish I didn't find out what they are like off-screen, it ruins the illusion.)

[Alpe d'Huez]

I often got the feeling through the years Faye got shafted by the industry on more than a couple occasions, and blowback for speaking her mind on it. What happened with the great Bette Davis, I don't know, we'll never know. Same with who she really is.

Here's a corollary story. I met a guy who worked in the film industry for many years. One of the key people he said he'd work with any day is Meryl Streep, because of her professionalism, work ethic, and kindness. But if you read up on Streep, you'll also find she has a reputation of either ignoring her fans, or even treating them like obstacles in the way. So, one's thoughts on her would obviously depend on who you talk to.

[movingtarget]

Because of the recent Oscars I've been reading up on Faye Dunaway having previously known very little about her, she was one person Bette Davis never wanted to work with again. (And that's taking Davis' toxic relationship with Joan Crawford into account.) Here's a short Johnny Carson clip where Davis talks about Dunaway. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XkqFhfMqz9M&feature=youtu.be

And here's an article a guy wrote back in the late 90s about one of Dunaway's stays at a posh hotel.

https://andrewtobias.com/a-stars-suite-is-born/

Faye Dunaway may have been brilliant on screen or stage, but she's probably not someone I would want to know IRL. (That could be said of many actors, though, sometimes I wish I didn't find out what they are like off-screen, it ruins the illusion.)

I don't think she was a great actress. With her it was more about being a star. She hit the ground running with Bonnie and Clyde which was one of hers and Warren Beatty's best films but ended up being in a lot of rubbish and getting paid too much to do so. A lot of people couldn't stand her and her diva antics. She was also good in Chinatown. Her last good role was probably in the Mickey Rourke movie Barfly where she wasn't very convincing as an alcoholic. The film was a mediocre adaptation of some Bukowski stories. Rourke's career was going south at that point as well even though he was in some decent films in his comeback. Rourke's story would provide sobering reading to any young actors wanting fame and glory in Hollywood.

[Alpe d'Huez]

Interesting article on most demanding stars (and directors) to work with:

http://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/most-demanding-hollywood-stars.html/?a=viewall

Regarding Dunaway in Bonnie & Clyde, that very last shot of her, the look on her face during the quick cuts; just a few frames, but worth a million bucks. Hollywood magic at it's best right there.

[patricknd]

Interesting article on most demanding stars (and directors) to work with:

http://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/most-demanding-hollywood-stars.html/?a=viewall

Regarding Dunaway in Bonnie & Clyde, that very last shot of her, the look on her face during the quick cuts; just a few frames, but worth a million bucks. Hollywood magic at it's best right there.

I think the same thing about her in network, when Beale is starting his rant, a they cut back to her for a few seconds and at a time you see the look of almost lustful pleasure build on her face.

[Tricycle Rider]

Dumbest thing ever... when I was a kid I "branded" (with just a black marker, mind) one of my dolls with the fleur de lis because Faye Dunaway made the branding seem so cool in The Three Musketeers.

(It's only much later that I had found out what that kind of branding actually meant/means.)

[movingtarget]

Interesting article on most demanding stars (and directors) to work with:

http://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/most-demanding-hollywood-stars.html/?a=viewall

Regarding Dunaway in Bonnie & Clyde, that very last shot of her, the look on her face during the quick cuts; just a few frames, but worth a million bucks. Hollywood magic at it's best right there.

A lot of critics said that was a seminal moment in 60s film history. The violence of the final scene. A very good film.

[movingtarget]

Interesting article on most demanding stars (and directors) to work with:

http://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/most-demanding-hollywood-stars.html/?a=viewall

Regarding Dunaway in Bonnie & Clyde, that very last shot of her, the look on her face during the quick cuts; just a few frames, but worth a million bucks. Hollywood magic at it's best right there.

I think the same thing about her in network, when Beale is starting his rant, a they cut back to her for a few seconds and at a time you see the look of almost lustful pleasure build on her face.

Forgot about Network, another great movie but what a cast. William Holden, Ned Beatty, Dunaway, Peter Finch, Robert Duvall and so on. She was utterly believable in that role, it's a shame she didn't play more of those types or parts. She had some great scenes with William Holden who was probably the only sympathetic character along with Finch who was great as someone who basically had a breakdown on national TV, he deserved his posthumous Oscar.

[Tricycle Rider]

Behind the Candelabra - wow, what did they do to Rob Lowe's face? They must have all been laughing once he got out of the make-up chair, well, except for Rob Lowe himself... his face was so tightly pulled back any attempt at making a facial expression might have cracked his make-up. Michael Douglas looked creepy, Matt Damon looked like he had gotten out of a boxing match, and I didn't even realize it was Debbie Reynolds who was playing Liberace's mother. The make-up department must have had a blast with this gig.

I thought this was an interesting movie, it certainly had a lot of star power. (In addition to the aforementioned it also had Scott Bakula, Dan Aykroyd and Paul Reiser.) It's hard to say whether the story was all true because Liberace's lover seems to have lived a messed up life (the story is based on his book and he's currently serving time in prison), and if Liberace were still alive he'd probably still be denying everything. But if there's one thing that can't be denied is that Liberace was very, very gay - just looking at him and his wardrobe I don't know how any woman could have thought otherwise.

[Alpe d'Huez]

As a boy, I think he was the very first person I ever heard of as being gay. He was always strange, and I think my parents told me he was gay, even though Liberace was in the closet to the end. After one look at him, I got it, understood what they meant. (Not that it matters, but I'm straight and always have been. So I didn't have some pre-teen gaydar going on.). Thus, I can't imagine anyone alive who thought he was straight. Clips of this film remind me some of Mommie Dearest, which we were just talking about.

Funny how time has passed, and it seems like he never needed to come out of the closet, because he was never "in" the closet, really. Sort of like Boy George. Did anyone ever really think that guy was straight? Now, mercifully, no one cares.

Rob Lowe is quite good in the TV show Code Black. I think what makes it work is that he's allowed himself to somewhat show his age in it. He's 52 in real life, and looks and acts close to it in the show. I mean that in a good, adult way.

[Tricycle Rider]

As a boy, I think he was the very first person I ever heard of as being gay. He was always strange, and I think my parents told me he was gay, even though Liberace was in the closet to the end. After one look at him, I got it, understood what they meant. (Not that it matters, but I'm straight and always have been. So I didn't have some pre-teen gaydar going on.). Thus, I can't imagine anyone alive who thought he was straight. Clips of this film remind me some of Mommie Dearest, which we were just talking about.

Funny how time has passed, and it seems like he never needed to come out of the closet, because he was never "in" the closet, really. Sort of like Boy George. Did anyone ever really think that guy was straight? Now, mercifully, no one cares.

Rob Lowe is quite good in the TV show Code Black. I think what makes it work is that he's allowed himself to somewhat show his age in it. He's 52 in real life, and looks and acts close to it in the show. I mean that in a good, adult way.

If you talk to the really, really old women Liberace must have seemed like a mother's dream come true for their daughters- he seemed nice and sweet, was rich, and he took good care of his own mother. And Liberace had apparently said in his own biography that Sonja Henie was his one and only true love, and he was never able to replace her - hello, old ladies (if you're still alive, that is) - how many more clues did you need?

Rob Lowe was all right during his "brat pack" years (didn't really care for them myself at the time), and then there was some kind of a hiccup about his sexual proclivities... but I thought he did really well in the West Wing.

Not familiar with Code Black, but as long as he can stay away from under-aged 16yr. old. girls I'm all right with him having been given a second chance as an actor.

[Echoes]

Happy Birthday to Danielle Darrieux, aged 100 today!

I will always remember her performance in Julien Duvivier's Marie-Octobre. An indoor film which really highlights the actors' skills more than anything and a real thriller. Masterpiece of French cinema and an all-star cast.






Edit: it's on YT with ENG subs: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z5VrJJqAIVU

[sir fly]

Underground
When Father Was Away on Business
I Even Met Happy Gypsies Subs

[sir fly]

The Final Lap in Monza



Wanted to put a link to the download but it's removed, so try to find the full movie by yourselves.

[Tricycle Rider]

The Conversation (1974) - Widely praised by the critics, but while I don't mind slow movies at all this one was just a little too slooooooooooow for my taste. I almost gave up about 90 minutes into it, but decided to tough it out till the finish.

Love Gene Hackman, but this is not a movie of his I'd like to tackle again.

[movingtarget]

The Conversation (1974) - Widely praised by the critics, but while I don't mind slow movies at all this one was just a little too slooooooooooow for my taste. I almost gave up about 90 minutes into it, but decided to tough it out till the finish.

Love Gene Hackman, but this is not a movie of his I'd like to tackle again.

it was slow but I didn't find it boring like some films or tedious. I liked it a lot. He made some good movies around that time. Scarecrow, Downhill Racer, French Connection and this one. His last great performance was probably the Unforgiven where he played a real mean SOB.

[Tricycle Rider]

it was slow but I didn't find it boring like some films or tedious. I liked it a lot. He made some good movies around that time. Scarecrow, Downhill Racer, French Connection and this one. His last great performance was probably the Unforgiven where he played a real mean SOB.

I like a lot of Gene Hackman movies, but The Conversation was just, well, it wasn't quite the stinker called The Prophet's Game (with Dennis Hopper and Stephanie Zimbalist) I watched the other day.

The Prophet's Game is serial murderer thriller, but it's one of those where you go - people are getting killed, should I be laughing? It was that cheesy.

I guess even Dennis Hopper had to occasionally do what it takes to pay the bills.

[movingtarget]

it was slow but I didn't find it boring like some films or tedious. I liked it a lot. He made some good movies around that time. Scarecrow, Downhill Racer, French Connection and this one. His last great performance was probably the Unforgiven where he played a real mean SOB.

I like a lot of Gene Hackman movies, but The Conversation was just, well, it wasn't quite the stinker called The Prophet's Game (with Dennis Hopper and Stephanie Zimbalist) I watched the other day.

The Prophet's Game is serial murderer thriller, but it's one of those where you go - people are getting killed, should I be laughing? It was that cheesy.

I guess even Dennis Hopper had to occasionally do what it takes to pay the bills.

I don't think Dennis Hopper was acting in Apocalypse Now !

[Tricycle Rider]

I don't think Dennis Hopper was acting in Apocalypse Now !

If wiki is to be believed Hopper had quite the interesting life. Five marriages, excessive drug use, apparently he really wanted the role of psychopath Frank Booth in Blue Velvet because he claimed that role reflected his real life. (Have seen Blue Velvet when it first came out, but can't remember a thing from it.)

So yeah, at times he may not have just been simply acting, but he did stay mostly busy throughout his career. (As aforementioned, some of his movies were great, some were real stinkers. He even won the much-prized Razzie award for his turn in Waterworld, that flick I haven't seen.)

[movingtarget]

I don't think Dennis Hopper was acting in Apocalypse Now !

If wiki is to be believed Hopper had quite the interesting life. Five marriages, excessive drug use, apparently he really wanted the role of psychopath Frank Booth in Blue Velvet because he claimed that role reflected his real life. (Have seen Blue Velvet when it first came out, but can't remember a thing from it.)

So yeah, at times he may not have just been simply acting, but he did stay mostly busy throughout his career. (As aforementioned, some of his movies were great, some were real stinkers. He even won the much-prized Razzie award for his turn in Waterworld, that flick I haven't seen.)

Forget Waterworld that was a dog. Kevin Costner made a few. I heard that The Postman was also awful, didn't see that one. Blue Velvet was a good movie. One of David Lynch's more straightforward ones ! Too bad Hopper became "Mr rent a psycho" as he was pretty much nuts in most of his movies. One movie he directed in South America was never released as the studio couldn't make sense of it and Hopper was supposed to be stoned for the entire shoot. He was unemployable after that until the eighties when he made a comeback sort of like John Travolta did with Pulp Fiction after going missing for a while. Hopper made some good movies after his comeback but he was just as well known for his photography which was pretty highly regarded. I think the last good movie I saw him in was The Indian Runner with Vigo Mortenson.