|
|
Posted by frogman042 on 04/11/06 21:05
Frank R.A.J. Maloney wrote:
> Ursula 2.7T wrote:
> > Goro wrote:
> >> I'm a true to the heart sentimentalist in many ways and as such, I'm
> >> a huge Capra fan. Well, i should say that of the Capra I've seen
> >> (and wrt his reputation), i'm a huge fan. I've seen the mainstream
> >> popular tites:
> >>
> >> IT HAPPENED ONE NIGHT
> >> MR DEEDS
> >> IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE
> >> MR SMITH GOES TO WASHINGTON
> >> ARSENIC AND OLD LACE
> >>
> >> and now I'm looking to watch some of his other works. What are the
> >> recommendations of what I should see next?
> >>
> >> thx
> >> -goro-
> >
> > I'd recommend the following --
> >
> > * The Miracle Woman
> > * Lady for a Day
> >
> > I'm not a huge Capra fan myself, but I do like both of these movies I
> > just mentioned. Barbara Stanwyck is simply fantastic in The Miracle
> > Woman. And Lady for a Day is very feel-good without getting too
> > maudlin or overly sentimental. Good performances by Warren William
> > and May Robson in that one.
> >
> > I've also heard that The Bitter Tea of General Yen (another
> > Stanwyck/Capra flick) is good, but I've never seen it so can't say for
> > sure. But I'm betting that would probably be a good choice too.
>
> Last Friday night one of our local PBS stations showed _Pocketful of
> Miracles_ (1961). Either I was in an impatient mood or it's not a very good
> film, but I bailed after 20 minutes or so, bored to distraction by the
> pacing and the obviousness of the story. The only thing that worked for me
> while I did stick with it was Bette Davis as Apple Annie. Hope Lange was
> absolutely hopeless as Queenie and I could certainly while so many here
> dislike Glenn Ford. But then I didn't see the whole film, so what do I know?
>
> Now I read in the IMDb that it is a remake of Capra's 1933 film _Lady for a
> Day_, which I have not seen but which sounds like it would be more to my
> liking.
>
> Meanwhile, my record for liking Damon Runyon-based films remains pretty
> dismal. Films like _Little Miss Marker_ (and the Bob Hope version _Sorrowful
> Jones_) and _The Lemon Drop Kid_ are impossible. _Guys and Dolls_ is an
> interesting failure and that's about the best I can say for any Runyon
> property. But I haven't seen them all and I'm still holding out hope for _A
> Slight Case of Murder_, if ever I can score a copy.
>
> --
> Frank in Seattle
> ____
>
> Frank Richard Aloysius Jude Maloney
> "Millennium hand and shrimp."
IIRC (its been a long time since I read it), according to Capra's
autobio "The Name Above the Title" - Capra hated this version. At that
point he had lost control of the production and claims that the power
broker was the star, Glenn Ford. Ford brought in Hope Lange whom he
was seeing at the time and overrode Capra's objections. He knew it was
doomed and even though the immediate reaction was positive he felt it
was a failure and he was right.
One thing always puzzled me about people's impression of Capra, that he
is too sugary. I disagree. He has often shown the dark side of
average people, especially in his films of the late 30's. The mob is
easily swayed and fairly decent people assume the worst. He had no
problem showing that Washington contains corruption, that the press is
cynical and that most people are basically sheep. His message is that
one must maintain a constant vigil against these forces. I've never
seen how this translates to a syrupy view of life (yes, I know his
hero's are larger then life, but that still doesn't discount that he
shows the dark nature of most people in virtually all of his films),
especially when we don't see any Jeff Smith's running around but all
the other elements are there in the real world.
---Jay
Navigation:
[Reply to this message]
|