Best of 2012

Doug and Mary celebrate

    Today is New Year's Eve, a time of celebration for a new year, but also a celebration of what happened in the past year, so in honor of 2012 I made a list of movies I watched and books I read for the first time that I got the most enjoyment out of.  This year I watched a lot of silent movies and really started loving them.  Last year I watched a few, but this year I realized how awesome they are.

Movies:

Clara Bow and Antonio Moreno

It (1927):  Clara Bow is awesome.  I first saw this movie back around February or so and have probably seen it five times.  I even wrote a paper on the movie for my film class (I got an A-).  I love Clara Bow's expressions.  For example how mad she gets when her friend tells her about the social workers.  I also love her expressions as she gets ready for the night at the Ritz but doesn't have a thing to wear.  Bonus: the immortal line, "Just you wait, I'll take the snap out of your garters yet" is in this film.

Trouble in Paradise (1932):  This movie is hilarious. I wrote about this film in my Lubitsch and it is still awesome.  Bonus: Miriam Hopkins wears glasses when she pretends to be a secretary which I believe is one of the few times someone looks good wearing glasses in a movie.

Mantrap

Mantrap (1926):  Clara Bow in another awesome movie.  I love the scene where she just takes off in the boat and leaves her husband and potential new husband on the shore.  I love when she say that she "flirts only when its absolutely necessary."

The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920):  This movie is just so weird.  I think that's why I loved it so much the first time I watched it.  It just kind of fascinated me with those crazy sets and of course, Cesare.

Mary Pickford

Sparrows (1926):  My favorite Mary Pickford movie that I've seen. She is fantastic as she protects the children from the horrible old man.  The scene where the baby dies is great.  Mary Pickford provides proof that silent movie acting is often very underplayed and then all the more powerful.

The Mark of Zorro (1920):  Douglas Fairbanks is hilarious in this movie.  I love when he pretends to be the boring Don that does tricks with a handkerchief. "Have you seen this one?"  Of course the action is pretty exciting as well.

Our Modern Maidens (1929): If there is one random obscure super specific genre I love it's flapper movies, doesn't matter if it is a melodrama or a comedy. I will love it if it was made in the 1920s and stars Joan Crawford, Clara Bow, or Colleen Moore, so I love this movie.  Joan Crawford is exceptional in this film and beautifully underacts a scene at the end where she gives up her happiness (at least temporarily).  As a bonus, Douglas Fairbanks Jr. does imitations of John Barrymore, John Gilbert, and his dad as Robin Hood.

Bebe Daniels and Gloria Swanson

Why Change Your Wife? (1920): If you have only seen Gloria Swanson in Sunset Boulevard, you should definitely see this movie.  It is hilarious.  She is great when she is the dowdy housewife.  I also love Thomas Meighan as her husband.  Bonus: there is a great cat fight between Bebe Daniels and Gloria Swanson.

The Oyster Princess (1919):  I already wrote about this in my Lubitsch post, but it is seriously hilarious.

Davies as Lillian Gish

The Patsy (1928):  Marion Davies is great in this movie.  She wants to date her sister's boyfriend so she asks him for advice for the dating world and he tells her to get a personality.  Eventually she does imitations of Mae Murray, Pola Negri, and Lillian Gish, which are hilarious.  Marie Dressler also stars as her mean, but hilarious, mother.




Books:

"Pickford: The Woman Who Made Hollywood" by Eileen Whitefield:  This is a very solid biography of the great Mary Pickford.  It provides a fascinating look at her family, working in movies in the early days in New York and of course the start of Hollywood and her marriage to Douglas Fairbanks.  The end is very sad because of her alcoholism and reclusiveness, but the book provides a interesting look at one of the most popular actresses of all time and the first and only female movie mogul.

"Runnin' Wild" by David Stenn:  This is probably the best biography I've ever read. It is extremely well researched and you also get to know Clara Bow as a person, who was often funny, but had the worst personal life ever.

"Swanson on Swanson":  A great biography.  It was extremely interesting and had a lot of fascinating stories about Hollywood in the 1920s.

"Flapper" by Joshua Zeitz:  I love the 1920s, so I really loved this book.  It has detailed sections on the Fitzgeralds, Coco Chanel, and the flappers of the movies -Colleen Moore, Louise Brooks, and Clara Bow.  The book is very well researched and well written.

"Whatever Happened to Baby Peggy?":  Another great autobiography.  She writes about her Hollywood years, but the reader also gains insights into vaudeville and aspects of being a child star such as the pressure of being your family's sole support.

All five of these books helped me understand early Hollywood and the 1920s more and they were also all darn good reads.  Happy New Year!

Horror Staples: Useless Men

  For the month of October I watched 13 horror movies.  As this is more than I normally watch, I noticed something that was sort of prevalent.  Men telling women that they are hysterical, when the women are really trying to warn everyone about the monster. The men then ignore them and are in general unhelpful.  So in honor of Halloween here is an incomplete list of horror movie loser guys.

  Dracula (1931)

   While this does not exactly count, Jonathan Harker tells Mina she's just been dreaming about a creepy guy coming into her room.  Jonathan also doesn't listen to Van Helsing when he says Mina needs help.

  Una O'Connor in The Invisible Man and The Bride of Frankenstein
  In both movies Una tries to warn somebody about a man made monster.  The person being warned ignores the seemingly ridiculous Irish woman, so she as a sort of modern Sybil says, "I wash me hands of it, let you all be murdered in your beds!"

  Cat People (1942)
  Seriously Ollie is a class A idiot.  Irena tries to tell him about turning into a cat, but he just thinks she's crazy and imagining it all.  (The psychiatrist also qualifies.  He goes on about some childhood trauma she must have experienced whilst he woos her, the jerk.)  When she finally takes a turn for the better, he's all like oops I love the good old American girl better anyway.  Unfortunately Simone Simon does not get to sink her claws into him so he's around for:

  Curse of the Cat People (1944)

  Oh Ollie is also a terrible dad.  He's so afraid of having another family scandal that he squishes his daughter's imagination.  Happily he finally changes and learns that you can trust people even if they are mistaken and that you can help them through love not ignoring the problem.

  House on Haunted Hill (1959)
  Seriously that 'psychiatrist' gets on my nerves, babbling on about hysteria all the time.  What's worse is when the hero tells the heroine that she imagines seeing the creepy ghost.

  Carnival of Souls (1962)
  After Mary Henry thinks she sees The Man, a psychiatrist takes her to his office.  Basically he says she's the victim of hysteria.  She also tries to get help from her neighbor, but he is extremely useless and abandons her to the dead people.

I know there are other horror movies out there with similar dolts but to make a long story short, sometimes hysterical women have a point and even if they don't you shouldn't laugh them off.  You should take them to a psychiatrist who won't treat them only as a simple minded woman.

Happy Halloween!

Halloween Movie Meme from The Girl with the White Parasol

1. Who is your favorite movie witch?
The random lady at the Serbian restaurant in Cat People.  She is the first real hint we get that Irena isn't imagining things.  The way she says her line ("moya sestra") is great as well.  (I also really like Simone Simon in this movie, but it's debatable whether she is really a witch.)

2. What is the first movie you can remember being scared by?
The Ghost of Christmas Future from A Christmas Carol (the 1984 version with George C. Scott) really scared when I was a kid .  It was particularly freaky because my family would normally watch it with all the lights out with only a fire in the fireplace which gave an overall eerie feeling.  Also that music.

3. Name a classic horror film that would be substantially improved by better special effects.
There's a lot that I guess would be better with better special effects (such as Dracula and King Kong) but I sorta like that B movie feel and they pull it off.

4. Name your favorite Val Lewton film.
I have only seen two, but they are both amazing: Cat People and The Curse of the Cat People.

5. What movie villain or monster has the most frightening "stare-into-the-camera" moment?
Norman Bates in Psycho

6. What is the most irritating horror film cliche?
  I don't watch a lot of newer movies, especially horror.  One thing I am sure I wouldn't like is the immoral teens gradually getting killed that is such a staple now.

7. Are there any movies you refuse to watch alone?
  I really like watching movies alone, so I honestly can't think of any.

8. Picture an old childhood nightmare of yours. Now try to adapt it to film. Can it be done?
  Dentists, terrified me as a kid.  Actually they still scare me.  If there was a movie made about a psycho dentist, I would be scared silly.  There probably is a movie like that somewhere called something like "ATTACK OF THE KILLER DENTISTS!", but they I think you could make something really frightening.

9. Who's your favorite "scream queen?"
Fay Wray, the original

10. What is the most disappointing horror remake?
   I haven't seen many remakes, but Van Helsing is a terrible movie and it references the Universal classics Frankenstein, Dracula, and The Wolf Man.  Did I mention Van Helsing is awful? (By the way, I only watched it because my dad had it and for some reason my little sister wanted to see it.)

11. We've all seen our share of vampires, zombies, and werewolves on film, but are there any mythical creatures or monsters out there that you think deserve more movies (i.e. golems, changelings, the Minotaur, etc.)? 
    Kelpies or faeries from Celtic and English mythology.  Kelpies are demon horses that act calm until you get on their backs; then they drown you.  Faeries seem to always trick people into coming to the home of the Faerie Queen who then doesn't let them leave for years, although it only seems like one night.  Once the people get out though they normally turn to dust.

12. Along the lines of "Scary Mary Poppins," can you think of any non-horror flicks that could easily be adapted to fit the genre?
   I can see 42nd Street with Ruby Keeler as some sort of vampire ("What is this strange power she has have over producers, directors, even leading men? She doesn't have talent!") Ginger Rogers and Una Merkel could have been the stars of the first of a series of movies wherein wisecracking showgirls fight the supernatural.  I would watch it.  Also, Myrna Loy and William Powell as a sophisticated monster hunting couple, solving the sort of problems "Ghostbusters" does but with a taste of champagne.  

Prognosis: Vampire

After investigating Grant's Tomb

13. And now, just for fun, pick one movie monster or villain to be remade into a cuddly plush toy, just for you.
Frankenstein's Monster in James Whale's Frankenstein.

Favorite 5: Actresses (in rough order)

5.  Teresa Wright: Teresa Wright excelled at roles that were so appropriate for postwar America; a regular girl but with a core of iron and someone you could imagine as a best friend.  She worked with the best directors of her time and was respected by all.  Favorite Film Roles: "The Best Years of Our Lives", "The Little Foxes" and "Shadow of a Doubt".

The New Face of Post War America

4.  Irene Dunne: Great at melodrama and screwball comedy. What more could you ask for? Favorite Film Roles: "Love Affair", "I Remember Mama" and "The Awful Truth"

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3.  Ginger Rogers: the All-American girl, the working girl with several wisecracks up her sleeve.  Favorite Film Roles: "42nd Street", "Top Hat", and "Stage Door".

Rogers and Hepburn face off

2.  Myrna Loy: The perfect wife but so much more than that title would indicate.  Although it doesn't seem to be mentioned often, she also had a great airy voice that could say lines in such a lovely way.  Favorite Film Roles: "The Best Years of Our Lives", "The Thin Man" and "Libeled Lady".

Mr and Mrs Thin Man

1.  Clara Bow: the ultimate flapper and my all time favorite actress (at least she has been for several months.)  Also she had the saddest personal life I have ever heard about. (Read David Stenn's "Runnin' Wild")  Favorite Film Roles: "It" and "Kid Boots".

The One and Only It Girl