Caption it #6: Deborah and the beer

So, guys, tell me...how would you call this pic? What is Deborah thinking? You know, whatever, just caption it!

I know you all are very creative people, but if you need some inspiration, check the previous comments of this game.

The 10 scariest scenes from old movies (I've managed to watch)

Boooooooooooo!!!...did I scare you? No? Bummer, this article explained me that I should.

Anyway, these are the 10 creepiest scenes from the somewhat scary movies I've been able to watch. You know I'm a coward.

10. Whatever Happened to Baby Jane: Joan Crawford gets a yummy lunch, made with lots of love from Bette Davis.

9. Suddenly, Last Summer: Elizabeth Taylor tells how her cousin Sebastian really died [sorry, the clip is not complete...but you know what happened to him]

8. Cape Fear (my review): The family is waiting for criminal Robert Mitchum to attack any minute.

[SCENE]

7. The Devil-Doll: Creepy concept, humans transformed in dolls and used to steal and kill...by Lionel Barrymore in drag.

6. Nosferatu: The whole movie is terribly scary, so I just chose the part when Hutter finds out that Orlok sleeps in a freaking coffin!

5. The Innocents: Deborah Kerr plays hide-and-seek with the creepy children she's in charge of...and someone or something appears on a window...

4. The Fly (my review): OMG, this film. I chose the ending, when the doctor is trapped and asks for help with his tiny voice.

3. Psycho: Anthony Perkin's horrible secret is revealed.

2. Wait until dark: Blind Audrey Hepburn thinks the fight with a sadistic criminal is over... (The moment starts at 01.17 in case you want to skip the explanation...oh, and you can check my stop motion version of this moment)

1. The Night of the Hunter: Robert Mitchum appears inside the house where Lillian Gish is protecting the children...and then he escapes screaming like a wild animal. Or a creature from hell.

(There's no video for this exact scene).

BONUS: My 7-year-old self picked this short film from Disney:

HAPPY HALLOWEEN EVERYBODY!

Darling Deborah Blogathon: The Naked Edge (1961)

OK, I confess it: I had no faith in this film. I didn't even know it existed, and that's saying a lot when Gary Cooper AND Deborah Kerr play the main parts.

Anyway, I did it for Sophie and her Darling Deborah Blogathon: I wanted to check a new movie from Miss Kerr.

First main idea: this movie is like Hitchcock's Suspicion and Shadow of a Doubt. You know, it follows a certain female character and how she starts suspecting that someone very dear is a criminal (her husband in this case). There are many things she starts to see that would confirm this suspicion, and we, like her, start feeling puzzled and scared.

The script was written by Joseph Stefano, you know, the same guy who adapted a novel for Psycho.

Someone killed Gary Cooper's boss and stole a lot of money. In the trial he accuses some colleague: he's sure because he chased him after he heard his boss screaming. This colleague goes to prison but the money never appeared. A year later Gary creates a super expensive company, with money, he says, he won gambling. Another year later, Deborah Kerr, her wife, opens a delayed letter. In it, someone is blackmailing Gary, saying that he wants money or he'll tell Gary committed the crime. [Deborah's suspicious mode: on]

The way the story is presented is very suffocating: the shots are close; the lighting is always dark, the music tense. Most of the scenes occur in closed rooms: offices, bedrooms, a crowded restaurant, a bookshop crammed full of books. The few secondary characters are vicious, gossipy people.There's no comic relief like in Hitchcok's movies.

And Deborah starts investigating. For example, she visits the prisoner's wife in the slums of London (yes, the movie takes place in that capital). And you have never seen London so poor and crowded like in that visit. The contrast with Deborah's expensive clothes and refined pose is shocking, powerful. The woman says her husband was innocent and that Gary was the real murderer. Deborah is impressed to hear her suspicions being shared for other person.

Director Michael Anderson used that effect in a very intelligent way. Now Deborah feels lost, in despair, scared. In a state of mind like that you start seeing everything distorted (like when Snow White escapes through the woods). Check that scene:

Other scene that caught my attention is when Gary and Deborah are discussing their situation. Well, they discuss their situation several times, but in this particular moment she says for the first time she has thought about killing herself. And when those particular words come out Deborah's mouth, the emotion surfaces and her voice trembles. That detail was so real and human that it impressed me:

As you can see in the clip, just like in Hitchcok's movies, the main actor had to play his part leaving place for doubts. Gary never gives a proper, solid answer. He just talks about receipts that are lost. And maybe that's the weaker point in Suspicion and in this one, the doubts rely in the ambiguity of information. Another weak parts are when Deborah and Gary discuss his guilt in a car, while the chauffeur listens to the conversation or in his office, without closing the door!

But I have to say the movie poster doesn't lie: the ending was thrilling and frightening. I think that's the main reason why I really liked this film. I think that the way directors wrap up their movies has a main importance in the way I remember them.

On a side note, it was funny hearing classic actors saying things like:

Gary: Could a woman live with a man sleep with him and not know he's a murderer?
Deborah: Do murderer's make love differently?

Gary: You can't be a littlle suspicious. It's like virginity, you either are, or aren't.

So, yes, I recommend this movie. It was very well filmed, has great performances and an exciting-very-Hitchockish-plot.
--------------------------

Click here to check the rest of the Darling Deborah Blogathon entries :)

If I Had to Keep 4 | Guest: Sophie

New series, guys:  If I Had to Keep 4. Basically, they are those 4 pieces of memorabilia that are the most special to you, those you would run to save in a fire or an alien attack. Those items you would keep above everything else.

Our first guest is Sophie from the lovely and always entertaining movie blog Waitin' On a Sunny Day. See what she would keep, next:

(Click to enlarge)

1. The first item I would keep is my old VHS of The King and I. My Aunty gave it to me as a Christmas present when I was 5 or 6, just after I had discovered and fallen in love with the film. It's been played hundreds of times and the quality isn't that good any more but this film was my introduction to classic film and Deborah Kerr so I won't ever get rid of it! 

2. The second item I would keep is my signed Greer Garson letter. The signature on photo is a pre-print but the signature on the letter is genuine. In the letter Greer talks about filming Blossoms in the Dust, so it must be from around 1941, and you can really hear her voice when you read it... it's wonderful! I would want keep this because Greer is my absolute favourite actress next to Deborah and I feel so lucky to own something that she sent to a fellow fan, albeit 70 years ago, who probably loved and admired her just as much as I do! 

3. My third item to keep would have to be my framed photograph of Deborah. My brother gave it to me for Christmas 4 years ago (I think) and it's been on my wall ever since. I was so thrilled when I received it that I actually sat and hugged it for a while - don't laugh! ;D I would save this because, besides it being a gorgeous photo of Deborah, my brother gave it to me which makes it all the more special.

4. The last thing I would keep is, you guessed it, another Deborah item. It's a beautiful autographed photo that I was lucky enough to win on eBay last year. It wasn't going for as much as the autographs without specific dedications but that doesn't bother me really; I'm just glad to have it and I will always cherish it!

Thanks a gazillion Sophie for this wonderful guest post! I hope you guys enjoyed this entry as much as I did! If you want to be part of this series, just send me an e-mail to kfercovic [at] gmail [dot] com. Have a great weekend! I love exclamation marks!

PS: Forgot to thank Clarabela & Sophie for helping me to pick the name of the series; and Becky for coming up with the definitive one :)

Caught a cold: sick people in classic films

Guys, just a quick post to apologize! The day of THE auction of the century I stayed up late and caught a cold. I was in bed since then, today is the first day I'm feeling a bit better. So, I decided to make a post of classic movies showing sick people...but people that recovers, not dying people like Camille or Beth in Little Women.

Just press play to go to the interesting part!

The Apartment: poor C. C. Baxter caught a cold!



The Shop Around the Corner: Mr. Kralik (James Stewart) visits sick Klara...


The Nun's Story: Audrey has TB and a cute monkey + Peter Finch to take care of her...

Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison: Drunk Mr. Allison scared Sister Angela and now he needs to save her...

I remember mama: One of the kids of a poor Norwegian family is sick and the hospital doesn't allow visitors...Mama Irene Dunne won't take no for an answer...


Sullivan's Travels: Joel McCrea caught a cold and is pissed off...

Which scene featuring sick people do you remember the most?

Why I love "Beloved Infidel" (1959)

Last night I saw (again) Beloved Infidel (1959; Henry King), this time with my mom. While I re-watched it I thought about why I like it so much, when it's not a very popular movie (Imdb users give it a 5.9). Plus it's about the relationship between Francis Scott Fitzgerald and Hollywood columnist Sheilah Graham, which should make me very bitter, since I've read some books about Scott and his wife, Zelda. 

Scott and Sheilah.

The Hollywood version of the couple.

I love it, first, because of the cast.

Gregory Peck and Deborah Kerr are superb as Scott and Sheilah. He, making so palpable the dichotomy between a sober person, in this case, a supportive, understanding and kind Scott and a drunk person. Drunk Scott is sometimes very annoying, and talks and talks and can be even funny. Drunk people sometimes are. But then he can be a violent, hurtful man, a man that has lost all the social filters and can't restrain himself. Gregory is so great at both.

And she, starting the movie as her elegant, witty characters. My mom thought I had chosen An affair to remember again. At the beginning, Sheilah Graham is a British reporter recently arrived to the States that --according to herself-- has many contacts with noblemen and the royalty. Is a woman that writes what she thinks about Hollywood actors and criticize them.

But when she meets Scott, all the masquerade melts and it's so touching, so human the way it does. This is one of my favorite scenes and contains a really powerful performance from both actors:

Heartbreaking, don't you guys think? 

Another thing I love from this movie, is the attention to the details in terms of the gestures and common little actions one makes everyday. Deborah passes some sheets and a pen to Gregory, so he can make some corrections. He starts writing a bit uncomfortable because he has no support for the sheets, so Deborah passes him a magazine, so he can write over it. You know, small things that make the performance more human. 

Deborah was great a little gestures. Sometimes she reinforces what she's saying with a little smile or a wink. Or she nods playfully. Gregory too, I noticed yesterday, that for example, when he was evaluating the idea of going to Malibu, he had his arms crossed and he drummed with his fingers against his ribs. It was a small gesture, that maybe audience wouldn't notice, but it meant that Gregory was really thinking in what his character was feeling.

Eddie Albert, as Bob Carter (a character based on Robert Benchley, friend of Scott) brings logic to the whole drama: he advices Scott and explains things to Sheilah. I tried to recognize him as photographer Irving Radovich from Roman Holiday, but six years after, he looked totally different. 

Watching this movie, you go like in a roller coaster. When Sheilah and Scott meet, things go fine for both: he's working in some scripts for Hollywood, earning money to support his mentally ill wife and their daughter. And she is enjoying her success. Their relationship is fun and constructive.

The script contains so many little scenes that are fun/interesting to watch, like their visit to a small book shop in which the owner gives Scott some hope about his decadent career or when Scott offers Sheilah to make a list of books to read together. So it's painful to watch how Scott is dragged to hell and how he tries to overcome his problems.

I know there are a lot of cheesy aspects in this Hollywood version of the story, especially the combination of the main song and the beach scenes, the main song and most of the romantic scenes...plus the score is very intrusive at some points. BUT they can be totally overlooked in my opinion. And the main song by itself is not that bad.

If you haven't seen this because of the reviews, give it an opportunity. Greg and Deb's performances deserve it.

Deborah & Sheilah.

I only have one doubt: have any of you read Sheilah Graham's book? I wish I could, it must be great, even when I don't really like the gossip columnist job she did.

On a side note, it's so, so sad to know the real background of this story the way it ended for the official Fitzgeralds. Zelda dying in a fire in a mental hospital. Her letters to Scott were so profound and beautiful, I'll transcribe some of them for you one of these days. 

 I'd love to know your opinion about this movie.

8 Classic Movies I can watch over and over...

...and I know I won't get tired of them. Ever. That means that if you visit me here in Chile there are a lot possibilities that we end watching one of these (I can be very convincing). And it's weird, because there are films that you really really love, but you wouldn't watch in every occasion. For example, I love Singin' in the Rain, but sometimes I go "Mmm, and have to watch all the musical numbers? And the whole thing with the star that doesn't have a god voice? It's OK, but not for now". Well, here are some films I can watch without over thinking:

Ben - Hur (1959) : Like many of the movies in this list, I've watched Ben Hur with my parents since I was a child. It's so cool. I mean, the classic story of revenge, perfectly done, with great performances and settings. And when you think that you just saw a great scene, a better one follows. My favorite part is, of course, the chariot race, such a terrific climax. We are all rooting for Judah and the horses are so beautiful (gosh, I'm such a serious reviewer)...and then Jesus (!!!) makes a miracle and saves Judah's mom and sister. So, yes, great film. *Patting William Wyler on the back*

An affair to remember (1957): I know that there are people who hate this movie because it's an official remake of Irene Dunne and Charles Boyer's Love affair. Official because both were directed by Leo McCarey, who decided to make an almost exact copy. But even when I like Charles Boyer a lot, I prefer Cary Grant, of course. And Deborah is one of my favorite actresses. And Cary and Deborah are great too at mixing comedy and drama. And Technicolor gives it a special atmosphere. 

And beyond comparisons, the story is so good and romantic and sad and funny at some points. And the old granny! My favorite scenes are when they meet each other in public places on the ship and everyone is staring and whispering, or this one when they plan the 6 months from now thing. Pay attention to the timing of both performers, how they cut each others lines out of emotion. Soo good.

The Searchers (1956) One of my favorite movies from John Wayne. It's so good that I even forgive the racist scenes with the Comanche woman. Another story of revenge, John Wayne looks the whole film for his niece, captured by...Scar. At the end he has to choose between his hate to Indians or little Natalie Wood. Great music, beautiful locations, Jeffrey Hunter, terrific script, memorable performance by Wayne. My favorite scene? I have a lot, but the ending is really special.  What a way to go, John Ford!

Roman Holiday (1951): This is the last movie I discovered from this list. Like two years ago. Even when it has a sad ending, the whole film is so entertaining and Audrey and Gregory give such honest performances. It has so many little memorable moments and makes you feel good. This was the tribute I made some years ago. *Patting William Wyler on the back again*

Hitchcock movies: Obviously, there are some of them I can't stand. Like The Paradine Case. But I LOVE most of Hitch's films. Some of my favorites are Rear Window, The Lady Vanishes, Rebecca, Spellbound, The Birds, Vertigo and Notorious, to name a few. Hitchcock = fun.

Yes, my Disney VHS collection :)

Disney movies: Yeah, I still watch my old VHS. I could watch them (and sing along the Spanish version of the songs) anytime. My favorite films are The Beauty and the Beast (by far), Pocahontas, The Lion King, One Hundred Dalmatians and Sleeping Beauty. Oh, I've recently discovered non-cartoons films produced by Disney, like Hayley Mills' Pollyana and The Parent Trap. Fun, fun, fun.

Gone with the wind (1939) What a movie! Magnificent! I love everything about it (although my least favorite character is Ashley Wilkes). I love even the minor characters, like Prissy (check "A day in the life of Prissy") and Belle Watling. Olivia de Havilland and Hattie McDaniel at their best (my favorite scene from them is when Hattie tells Olivia what happened with Clark after Bonnie died, while they go upstairs). Vivien Leigh and Clark Gable making history. The music by Max Steiner. Memorable scene after memorable scene. Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn. A classic. 

The Sound of Music (1965) I can't count how many times I've seen this movie. I saw it when the Von Trapp kids were my age, I saw it when I though Liesl was old and now I saw it and I think about the passage of time. Anyway, this movie is perfect IMO. A had a teacher who said he won't see it ever ever, because he knew it would be cheesy, but I just love it. 

The songs are perfect, the kids are perfect, Julie, Christopher & Eleanor are perfect, Vienna is perfect...You can watch it when you're sad, when you're happy, when you're bored, etc. One of my favorites scenes is when the kids are singing by themselves, very hungry and sad because Maria is gone, and then a voice joins, and it's Maria! I also love when they sing Edelweiss in the music contest (or when Christopher sings it). Oh the first scene in the mountains. And the ending. And, oh, when The Baroness is playing the most boring game ever with a ball...etc etc etc.

What are the films you can watch over and over and never get tired of?

 More lists :

• The 10 most handsome men from Classic Hollywood
• 10 types of annoying people to watch a movie with
• My top 10 Billy Wilder movies

Haiku # 6: "From here to eternity"

I wanted to try a funny haiku today (although, for Deborah, it wasn't fun to shoot)...Oh, don't forget to check who's who in The Scarlett O'Hara War...

From here to eternity (1953)

"Wait, dear, I'm drowning
and the sand is all over;
let's kiss on a bench"

This is an entry for the Best For Film Hollywood Haikus blogging competition. Enter now.

Heaven knows, Mr. Allison (1957): Mitchum & Kerr are terrific

Via: acertaincinema

Today I re-watched this great film directed by John Huston with my parents. If you, for some weird reason, haven't seen it yet, well, you should. Based on a novel by Charles Shaw, it's basically about the days that a marine (Robert Mitchum) and a nun (Deborah Kerr) spent together in a deserted island, only visited by a bunch of Japanese soldiers during the II World War. 

Why is it great? First of all, because of the large ensemble cast:

Well, maybe it's not large, but it's incredibly talented. Both were solid and believable players, that worked great together. Mitchum plays "Mr. Allison" in a way that you completely understand his honest affection for Sister Angela. You can see that he is a good man whose life hasn't been great but he has all the intentions to be nice and never complain about anything. And Deborah, as the nun, lets you see the girl behind her habit, a kind and full of life young woman that believes in what she's doing and thinks is ready to take her final bows.

This movie could have ended up being like Black Narcissus (1947), a melodrama that includes a "hey ya chick" macho character and nuns catfighting for him (yeah, I don't like this film). But here, the encounter of these special people is really well-managed on the screenplay and directionally speaking, showing it in a measured way, measured in terms of what they say with words to each other (he wants to marry her, for example) or what they say with their face expressions to the audience (she's kind of disappointed because he regretted declaring his love). 

That's why the scene in which he gets drunk is so powerful, because he completely speaks from his heart (why she has to be a beautiful nun?) and she runs away from the truth (if they're gonna stay there for so long, there's no point of staying a nun).

There's a beautiful trick in this movie. If the mentioned scene was the climax, what happens right after should be the ending: Sister Angela starts realizing that she would like to stay in the island with her "Mr. Allison". But they met by chance and so the unpredictable events in life decide whether they continue together or not. Besides all this, the movie contains great and tense action scenes, especially the one in which Mr. Allison enters in the Japanese base to steal food.

Fun stuff? Ok. I still haven't got Baby I don't care, Mitchum's biography, but here is what Youtube user SeleneBowie commented/quoted :

There are many other great stories in that book regarding Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison, including one where the crew get together to mislead the Catholic Legion of Decency who were checking that Deborah's nun was entirely respectable. "Bob and Deborah spoke their lines, then moved closer together, Mitchum sliding his hand under nun Kerr's breasts while she cupped his buttocks and they began to kiss with open-mouthed abandon."

"One time she [Kerr] was rowing a raft in open water during the tortouse-chasing scene, Huston constantly shouting, "Faster! Row faster!" The wooden oars split in half in her hands, and Kerr, in her damp nun's habit, screamed in fury , "Is that f---ing fast enough?" Mitchum, floating nearby, swallowed a gallon of saltwater laughing." 

Plus, Robert Mitchum found a new passion while filming in Tobago, as Youtube user BearfamilyRecords explains:

"In 1956, at the height of the short-lived calypso craze that saw Harry Belafonte top the charts worldwide, Robert Mitchum filmed two movies in the British West Indies, 'Fire Down Below' and 'Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison'. Calypso originated in Trinidad, and Mitchum filmed 'Mr. Allison' in Trinidad's sister island, Tobago. As his co-star, Deborah Kerr, remembered, "He possessed enormous musical knowledge and sense of rhythm. He'd mastered the West Indian songs with their complicated rhythms before a week was up in Tobago." By the time they'd finished filming 'Fire Down Below', Mitchum was singing calypsos at local clubs, and he continued to do so after he returned to the United States. Someone from Capitol Records heard him sing at the Polo Lounge in Beverly Hills, and signed him up. Over the course of several nights in the Spring of 1957, Mitchum recorded his classic calypso LP, 'Calypso - Is Like So...' Using his droll sense of humor, he made up new calypsos from older numbers he'd heard in the islands. The result? A lounge classic. We've revisited that LP, complete with its fabulous 'white man gone to ruin in the tropics' cover. "

Here's an interesting behind the scenes documentary clip (there are more parts available to see):

So, what are you waiting for?
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 More on Kerr, Mitchum & Huston :

• The proud and the profane (1956) in My Top 10 Average|Bad Movies with Terrific Actors
• Psst..need Classic Hollywood jewelry?
• Cape Fear (1962): Robert Mitchum you're scary!
• Day 18- Actor or Actress who should have won an Oscar
• Annas and the Kings (part 2) 
• Saw "The night of the iguana" on the big screen last night

My Top 10 Average|Bad Movies with Terrific Actors

After watching "The proud and the profane" the other day I thought: "with these actors they could have done a better movie". And then I thought: "hey, that's a good idea for a list!". I don't usually see movies that have low ratings and bad reviews, but I dared to watch some of these just because of the casting. Last thing: I would say that the top 3 qualifies as "bad" the rest is just "average":

10. Undercurrent (1946: Katharine Hepburn, Robert Taylor, Robert Mitchum): This movie starts OK (I got very interested), but ends ridiculously. Kate Hepburn marries an important guy (Taylor) with issues with a "bad" and missing brother (Mitchum). He talks about him so much that Kate gets interested. Finally, nothing is like it seemed and things get violent and creepy. The best of this film is this lovely theme by Brahms played all over the film.

9. Made for each other (1939: Carole Lombard, James Stewart, Charles Coburn): A couple marries the day after they met; Carole has problems with her mother-in-law because she disapproves her lack of housewife skills; then the couple has a baby that sleeps in the living room because the apartment is too small, etc. A not very well constructed movie, the main genre isn't properly suggested from the beginning which is disconcerting; the story is very basic (I mean, before the last 10 minutes their problems are not really that dramatic); the main actors are totally wasted, playing characters that don't have real chemistry. Has its moments though.

8. Once Upon a Honeymoon (1942: Cary Grant, Ginger Rogers): One of the two opportunities these two had to work together... in a film that doesn't make justice for such event. Ginger wants to have a better social position so she marries a German Baron. Cary, a reporter, is investigating this Baron because he's probably a Nazi. Ginger and Cary fall in love. There are some interesting and tense scenes, but overall this a forgettable movie.

7. Green Mansions (1959: Audrey Hepburn, Anthony Perkins): This movie was directed by Mel Ferrer, Audrey's husband at the time. The things you do for love. Audrey plays Rimma, the Bird Girl that lives in the jungle. Some natives believe she killed the son of the chief, so she has to hide with her "grandparent". She falls in love with Anthony Perkins, a prisoner of this tribe that was sent to kill her. They start a trip to visit the remains of her town, something that the grandpa was avoiding since always. It's not very well edited, the distances they cover don't feel right; most importantly, the story is not convincing and the ending is weird. Great song though.

 

6. The proud and the profane (1956: William Holden, Deborah Kerr, Thelma Ritter):  A disperse melodrama based on a novel that wants to be epic like "From here to eternity" and fails. Deborah Kerr is widower of a soldier. She wants to know all about his last minutes of life so she enlists to help. An aggressive Colonel with issues with his origins arrives to the base. Thelma Ritter, Deb's superior, founds the Colonel despicable but she manages to show him Deborah sunbathing on the beach. The editing is not very good and it loses tension half way trough the movie. The character of a chaplain is used to explain what's happening with the main characters and important info is given trough little characters that talk a lot. Everything gets more and more soppy and tragic. The end.

5. Dance, Girl, Dance (1940: Maureen O'Hara, Louis Hayward, Lucille Ball,  Ralph Bellamy): I didn't get it. Maureen wants to be a ballet dancer but she's stuck with a group of girls that dance in clubs. One of these girls, Sassy Lucille becomes famous and invites serious Maureen to dance ballet in her comical number just to laugh at her. Since her opportunity to meet an important ballet guy is lost after her teacher is run over (really), Maureen accepts. There are some characters that are not very well defined, at the point you don't know who they are. The ending is ludicrous.

4. Man of the World (1931: William Powell, Carole Lombard):  A con man (Powell)  falls in love with the nephew of one of the man he defrauded. This could have been great, but Carole's character was too good, simple and nice (and boring) for her and you forget the whole film after "The End" can be read on the screen.

3. Paris Blues (1961: Paul Newman, Joanne Woodward, Sidney Poitier, Louis Armstrong): Boring, boring, boring. Two girls go to Paris and fall in love with two musicians. They go to some endless jam sessions and talk a lot.

2. Man-Proof (1938: Myrna Loy, Rosalind Russell, Walter Pidgeon): Use it in case of insomnia. Myrna is in love with a terribly dull guy that marries Rosalind Russell playing an awfully plain character.

1. Bloodline (1979: Audrey Hepburn,Omar Sharif, James Mason, Romy Schneider): The worst movie I've ever seen. Avoid it. After Audrey's dad is killed, she becomes the president of a great company and the new target of...I don't know, some killer. I never liked Ben Gazzara as a “romantic” lead, he's so unattractive. The whole movie is awfully edited, it looks like a trailer: some scenes don't seem to have a real connection. It even has a flashback to early XX century that seems out of place. There are a lot of shocking scenes (sex and murder) that weren't really needed, and what's more stupid, they are repeated along the movie, when they could have been suggested. The story is really badly developed, at some points you really don't understand where it is going. Most of the characters are despicable and there are some plot holes (if you think that someone wants to kill you, and you have escaped from death in several occasions, would you go alone to dark and solitary places and expose yourself?). Well, the worst (and saddest) thing is to see great actors like Audrey and Omar Sharif in this... thing.

What do you think?  Do I need to re-watch any of these?

Psst..need Classic Hollywood jewelry?

Maybe you'd like to have "Deborah's Opal Affair" ( $170.00) ring from "An affair to remember"...

...or "Vivien's Southern Emerald" earrings ($155.00) from "Gone with the wind"...

...looking for a band? Maybe you'd like "Joan’s Diamond Stackable Band" ($270.00) from "Suspicion"...

Really, hollywoodroyaltycollection.com site is so much fun! They recreate jewelry used by Classic Actresses (and actors) in their films...and each piece is accompanied by interesting descriptions regarding the films and performers. The list includes: Barbara Stanwyck, Bette Davis, Carole Lombard, Ginger Rogers, Humphrey Bogart, Irene Dunne, Marlene Dietrich, Clark Gable and more!

Some of my favorites:

"Lombard's Champagne Wedding ring" ($145.00) from "Mr. a Mrs. Smith"... 

...and marvelous "Deborah's Pink Diamond Debut" ($150.00) from "The Hucksters"...

So go over there and share your faves with me :)

Look what I found today!

I love old magazines about cinema and this morning I found this treasure. It seems that "Sissi" was a Spanish magazine in which featured lots of comics and these:

(Click to enlarge)

Loved these mini bios (I know, most of you won't understand, but the pictures are so cool). There are a lot more in great quality, William Holden, Gregory Peck, Charlton Heston, Jean Simmons, Dick Borgade, etc etc:

Source: http://navarrobadia.blogspot.com/search/label/BRUGUERA-SISSI

(The link shows all the post with the label Sissi, so just press what should be "older posts" to found more bios).

This is my only post today because this afternoon I'll go to see the theater version of "My Fair Lady"  :) Tomorrow I'm gonna talk about a movie starring Ginger Rogers that I didn't like. See ya. 

Day 18- Actor or Actress who should have won an Oscar

Uhm, before I start rambling about the many Oscar injustices, let me say that I finished my internship and I'm officially a journalist. So, I'm officially a journalist.

Ok, now let's see...

People who should have won a real non-Honorary-Oscar but sadly didn't because life generally isn't fair...or because their contenders were too good 

(The titles below the pictures correspond to the best movies I've seen of each actor and it doesn't necessarily mean that they are Oscar-nominated roles.)

CLAUDE RAINS: Hello? Mommy's boy in "Notorious", the cop from "Casablanca"?

WILLIAM POWELL AND MYRNA LOY: Together: The Thin Man? Libeled Lady? Separated:  The Best Years of Our Lives? My Man Godfrey?

EDWARD G. ROBINSON: Key Largo? The Whole Town's Talking? Double Indemnity?

GLORIA SWANSON: Sunset Boulevard???

IRENE DUNNE: I remember mama??? The Awful Truth? Show Boat? My favorite wife? Penny Serenade?

JEAN ARTHUR: Mr. Deeds Goes to Town? The more the merrier? History Is Made at Night?

MARLENE DIETRICH: Witness for the Prosecution?? Morocco? Shanghai Express? Der blaue Engel? Blonde Venus??

CARY GRANT: WHAT?????

GRETA GARBO: Camille? Anna Christie? Ninotchka?

ROSALIND RUSSELL: His girl Friday? Auntie Mame? Picnic?

BARBARA STANWYCK: WHAT?????????????

CAROLE LOMBARD: My Man Godfrey? In Name Only? Nothing Sacred? To Be or Not to Be?

ORSON WELLES: Citizen Kane? The Third Man? Touch of Evil?

ROBERT MITCHUM: The Night of the Hunter??? Out of the Past? Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison? The Sundowners? 

MAUREEN O'HARA: The quiet man? How Green Was My Valley? 

MONTGOMERY CLIFT: A Place in the Sun?? From Here to Eternity? Suddenly, Last Summer? The Heiress??

DEBORAH KERR: SIX nominations and NO Oscar??

AVA GARDNER: The Barefoot Contessa? The Night of the Iguana?

LAUREN BACALL: To have and have not?

OMAR SHARIF: Doctor Zhivago? Funny Girl?