("Don't bother me. I am taking a rest for summer.")
("I'm going on vacation. Do you have a problem with 'dat?")
Monday, June 25, 2007
Going on Summer Break
As it becomes accustomed to all who write blogs here on Blogger, I am going on vacation and putting this on hold. I feel that after four months I've really pumped a lot of stories related to movies in the 60's. I'll write my next posting in about two weeks so that I can catch up on watching the actually 60's movies that I have. So see you later.
("Don't bother me. I am taking a rest for summer.")
("I'm going on vacation. Do you have a problem with 'dat?")
("Don't bother me. I am taking a rest for summer.")
("I'm going on vacation. Do you have a problem with 'dat?")
Friday, June 22, 2007
England Swings: Gambit
By the mid-60's comedy (as I said earlier) was on the decline and it took a brilliant idea to revive it: Combined the genre with mystery. One of those movies was Gambit. Released by Universal in 1966 the film was directed by Ronald Neame. Ironically, this is probably the only British movie in the 60's that was filmed in Hollywood (it was shot at the Universal sound stage in Universal City). The story begins with Harry Dean (Michael Caine) a British thief who wants to steal a very priceless sculpture and he needs someone to help him. He then chooses Nicole(Shirley MacLaine) a European girl who dresses in Asian clothing.
Harry thinks she is the right person but looks can be deceiving.
Herbert Lom plays Ahmad Shahbander-a Middle Eastern oilman who doesn't know he is being robbed by Dean. In case you are wondering the item that Caine's character wants to steal is a bust of Shahbander's dead wife which as he what Lom's character explains, she barred a close resemblence of Nicole.
I saw the movie last fall and it was good.
I heard that MacLaine chose Caine because after she saw him in The Ipcress File and not only she wanted him but the film's director Sidney Furie but he wasn't available.
In Caine's autobiography he explained in detail of coming to Hollywood for the first time to film this movie and that included many stories like meeting John Wayne and going to Las Vegas with Frank Sinatra and daughter Nancy (around the time as he explained, he was to marry Mia Farrow). Fast fact: MacLaine's character doesn't say a line of dialogue until 25 minutes into the movie!
Thursday, June 14, 2007
Musicals of the 60's: The Sound of Music
There is still debate over what was the best movie of the 60's. Some will say The Graduate, others will say Bonnie and Clyde, others will say Midnight Cowboy, Lawrence of Arabia, Easy Rider, or Blow Up. But for me this is an open and shut case: The best movie of the 1960's was The Sound of Music.
I'll give you my reasons why a bit later on. Based on the Broadway musical from Richard Rogers and Oscar Hammerstein (sadly, it would be their last as Hammerstein would die in 1960 just one year after the play opened), the movie version was produced and directed by Robert Wise and written by Ernest Lehman (the two were coming off filming the musical West Side Story; which won two Oscars for Wise and sadly, both men died recently in a two month span). They took the project to 20th Century Fox because they knew that the studio was in deep trouble after Cleopatra put them behind the eight ball. Fox president Darryl Zanuck along with his son Richard (who was vice-president) knew that The Sound of Music had to be the hit to get the studio back on track.
Based on the true story of the Von Trapp family-in which in 1938 they were besieged by the Nazis in Austria, the film stars Julie Andrews as Maria-a nun who becomes caretaker to the Von Trapp's.
Christopher Plummer plays the widowed father while Eleanor Parker (probably the most underrated actress of her time) plays his baroness and Charmain Carr plays the eldest Von Trapp sibling (Mia Farrow was first considered for the role).
There are two scenes that I like the most: The first was the puppet show and the other was of course the ending in which Maria (who marries Plummer's character) and the children escape Austria. That almost made me cry and you are aware that did happen as the real Von Trapp family left for Italy and then realizing that it was ruled by Benito Mussolini they set sail for America.
When The Sound of Music was released in March of 1965 it would go on to first set the record as the highest grossing American movie and became the first to make $100 million worldwide. In some cities in America it played for two years! David Brown, who was an executive at Fox joked about the movie as being "The Sound of Money" and the studio finally had the hit they needed to stay at an even keel. In the end, the movie won five Oscars including Best Picture. But one problem persisted: How could the Academy passed up Julie Andrews for Best Actress?
(Especially the opening scene in which they should of just thrown the Oscar at her) Just because she had won the award the previous year for Mary Poppins and since that she was taking over a role that she didn't perform originally (Mary Martin was the original Maria on Broadway). This applies the same for Best Actor of that year when Lee Marvin won when some were shouting it should of been Richard Burton for The Spy Who Came In From the Cold and Rod Steiger for The Pawnbroker.
There is one good reason why I pick this film as the movie of the 60's: It saved 20th Century Fox and although there would be more flops the studio would suffer in the next several years (Doctor Doolittle, Star! also with Julie Andrews, Myra Breckenridge) it was this movie that kept them from going underwater.
Sunday, June 10, 2007
Singers in 60's Movies
The movies in the 60's were filled not only with the usual stars, but some were coming from the music business. In this posting, we'll look at some of the artists that appeared in movies. This will exclude Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and (god willing) Elvis Presley. To do this I will give you a sampling and ranked it from 1 to 10:
Fabian in North to Alaska: 6
Does a good job as Billy-who plays John Wayne's sidekick. He also gets a chance to sing a song.
Frankie Avalon in Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea: 7
He gives an okay performance but Avalon performing the title song is why he gets a seven.
Bobby Darin in Come September: 8
Darin not only made his acting debut he just about stole the entire movie. As you know it was the movie that he met Sandra Dee. Darin performing "Mulipication" creates a Sinatra/Martin moment.
Tommy Steele in Half a Sixpence: 9
Tommy Steele was a popular singer from Great Britain during the 1950's and 60's. He recreated the role of Arthur Kips (that he played in London and New York) in the big screen adaptation of the musical comedy Half a Sixpence. Thanks to his presence the movie is an enjoyable one.
Glen Campbell in True Grit: 7
During the late-60's no singer was more hotter than Glen Campbell. In 1969 he made his first film in the Western with John Wayne True Grit. Did a good job if I remember. Campbell also sang the title song.
David Bowie in The Virgin Soldiers: 4
Released in 1969 and in the same year he had his first hit song "Space Oddity" David Bowie made his first film in a small role in the drama The Virgin Soldiers. This would be the beginning of more bigger roles for Bowie.
Well, that is it. See you soon.
Fabian in North to Alaska: 6
Does a good job as Billy-who plays John Wayne's sidekick. He also gets a chance to sing a song.
Frankie Avalon in Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea: 7
He gives an okay performance but Avalon performing the title song is why he gets a seven.
Bobby Darin in Come September: 8
Darin not only made his acting debut he just about stole the entire movie. As you know it was the movie that he met Sandra Dee. Darin performing "Mulipication" creates a Sinatra/Martin moment.
Tommy Steele in Half a Sixpence: 9
Tommy Steele was a popular singer from Great Britain during the 1950's and 60's. He recreated the role of Arthur Kips (that he played in London and New York) in the big screen adaptation of the musical comedy Half a Sixpence. Thanks to his presence the movie is an enjoyable one.
Glen Campbell in True Grit: 7
During the late-60's no singer was more hotter than Glen Campbell. In 1969 he made his first film in the Western with John Wayne True Grit. Did a good job if I remember. Campbell also sang the title song.
David Bowie in The Virgin Soldiers: 4
Released in 1969 and in the same year he had his first hit song "Space Oddity" David Bowie made his first film in a small role in the drama The Virgin Soldiers. This would be the beginning of more bigger roles for Bowie.
Well, that is it. See you soon.
Friday, June 8, 2007
Suspense Movies of the 60's: Deadfall
This month in June Turner Classic Movies is doing a special feature called "Screened Out" in which they look at the history of gays and lesbians on film. I looked through the stack of movies that they are showing and yet, they're missing one movie. And that leads to our next movie which is Deadfall. Released as the bitter summer of 1968 was ending, the film was based on a novel from Desmond Cory and written by Bryan Forbes; who also was the director. Michael Caine (in his first movie after finishing up his character of Harry Palmer in that era) plays Henry Clark-a jewel theif who loves to drink alcohol. As a result he's in rehab to kick his addiction. Then one day just as he is about to be released he meets a mysterious young girl in which she calls herself Fei Moreau (Giavonni Ralli). She comes up to Henry with a deal ("Deal. Or No Deal" as what Howie Mandel would say): Rob and steal possesions from her older husband Richard (Eric Portman) because he may be in Henry's league. He agrees and suddenly the three plan the robbery. Once the job is done they head to Richard's house in Spain. But it is here that the film turn to its ugly head: Not do they know it, but Henry and Fei start to love each other and then suddenly they see Richard come home with his "friend" Antonio. As the movie goes along Henry discovers the real truth and that is Richard is really a gay man who killed people for the Nazis and using Fei to hide his real idenity; who is also bisexual. Nanette Newman, who was the director's wife, co-stars.
Saturday, June 2, 2007
England Swings: Harold Pinter
In our next installment of the British movies of the 60's we're once again focusing on another individual instead of the movies themselves. This time we focus in on screenwriter Harold Pinter.
Born in London on October 10, 1930 Pinter was the son of immigrants from eastern Europe, most likely Poland. When he was a teenager after World War II Pinter began writing at Downs Grammer School by first taking poetry; which he continues to do to this day. While still in class Pinter appeared in the Shakesphere plays "Romeo and Juliet" and "MacBeth". Then in 1948 Pinter was called to serve for the British military but he refused and was later fined. Pinter left Downs Grammer School the next year. During the 1950's Pinter began in a string of acting school that took him not only in London but in Ireland. In 1956 twenty-six old Pinter married British actress Vivien Merchant and although they would have a son named Daniel the relationship was a rocky one especially after when Merchant's career began to take off in the mid-1960's (they would divorce in 1980 and in a bizarre twist Pinter married Antonia Fraser; who he had been seeing instead of Merchant and Merchant died just three years later from heart failure from alcohol). One year later, Pinter debuted his first play "The Room" in which Pinter wrote the play in just three days after it popped into his head. His next play "The Birthday Party" was a flop when it premiered in London that year but when it came to New York a decade later, it was a gigantic hit and Pinter won the Tony for Best Play. As the 60's dawned Pinter entered his next phase: Movies. In 1963 Pinter his first screenplay-which was The Caretaker which featured Donald Pleasence and in his first role Alan Bates.
That same year Pinter collaborated with exiled American director Joseph Losey (exiled because he was blacklisted) to write the adaptation of the Robin Maugham short novel The Servant.
The movie was a big hit when released that same year and it made the film's lead actor Dirk Bogarde a big star
and so did co-stars Sarah Miles (who like Merchant was also married to a writer-Robert Bolt) and James Fox. The next year in 1964 Pinter wrote the screenplay to The Pumpkin Eater; based on another novel and this time from Penelope Morimer. The movie was directed by Jack Clayton and it starred Anne Bancroft, Peter Finch, and James Mason.
In 1966 he wrote the screenplay to the spy drama The Quiller Memorandum, based on the novel from Adam Hall.
George Segal, Alec Guinness, Max Von Sydow, and Senta Berger co-star. The next year Pinter re-teamed with director Losey and Dirk Bogarde to write the screenplay to Accident.
The film was an even bigger hit than The Servant when released in 1967 and it co-stared Jacqueline Sassard and in his first movie-Michael York. Then Pinter closed out the decade by writing the screenplay to his own play The Birthday Party which stared Robert Shaw and Patrick Magee (John Steed in "The Avengers"). Since the 1970's Pinter has continued to write in plays and movies. In the early-1980's he received two Oscar nominations for writing the adaptations of The French Lieutenant's Woman and Betrayal (which was based on another of his plays). He even continues in his first love of acting as he played the father of Vivian Bearing in the HBO TV movie "Wit". In 2005 Pinter received the Nobel Prize for lifetime in writing. That same year Pinter, in a interview to Mark Lawson on BBC Radio 4's "Front Row" said that he was seriously thinking about retiring to focus on his political activism because he felt it was time to get the world back on track. Who knows what will happen next for him but Pinter really carved a small piece on British cinema in the 1960's.
Born in London on October 10, 1930 Pinter was the son of immigrants from eastern Europe, most likely Poland. When he was a teenager after World War II Pinter began writing at Downs Grammer School by first taking poetry; which he continues to do to this day. While still in class Pinter appeared in the Shakesphere plays "Romeo and Juliet" and "MacBeth". Then in 1948 Pinter was called to serve for the British military but he refused and was later fined. Pinter left Downs Grammer School the next year. During the 1950's Pinter began in a string of acting school that took him not only in London but in Ireland. In 1956 twenty-six old Pinter married British actress Vivien Merchant and although they would have a son named Daniel the relationship was a rocky one especially after when Merchant's career began to take off in the mid-1960's (they would divorce in 1980 and in a bizarre twist Pinter married Antonia Fraser; who he had been seeing instead of Merchant and Merchant died just three years later from heart failure from alcohol). One year later, Pinter debuted his first play "The Room" in which Pinter wrote the play in just three days after it popped into his head. His next play "The Birthday Party" was a flop when it premiered in London that year but when it came to New York a decade later, it was a gigantic hit and Pinter won the Tony for Best Play. As the 60's dawned Pinter entered his next phase: Movies. In 1963 Pinter his first screenplay-which was The Caretaker which featured Donald Pleasence and in his first role Alan Bates.
That same year Pinter collaborated with exiled American director Joseph Losey (exiled because he was blacklisted) to write the adaptation of the Robin Maugham short novel The Servant.
The movie was a big hit when released that same year and it made the film's lead actor Dirk Bogarde a big star
and so did co-stars Sarah Miles (who like Merchant was also married to a writer-Robert Bolt) and James Fox. The next year in 1964 Pinter wrote the screenplay to The Pumpkin Eater; based on another novel and this time from Penelope Morimer. The movie was directed by Jack Clayton and it starred Anne Bancroft, Peter Finch, and James Mason.
In 1966 he wrote the screenplay to the spy drama The Quiller Memorandum, based on the novel from Adam Hall.
George Segal, Alec Guinness, Max Von Sydow, and Senta Berger co-star. The next year Pinter re-teamed with director Losey and Dirk Bogarde to write the screenplay to Accident.
The film was an even bigger hit than The Servant when released in 1967 and it co-stared Jacqueline Sassard and in his first movie-Michael York. Then Pinter closed out the decade by writing the screenplay to his own play The Birthday Party which stared Robert Shaw and Patrick Magee (John Steed in "The Avengers"). Since the 1970's Pinter has continued to write in plays and movies. In the early-1980's he received two Oscar nominations for writing the adaptations of The French Lieutenant's Woman and Betrayal (which was based on another of his plays). He even continues in his first love of acting as he played the father of Vivian Bearing in the HBO TV movie "Wit". In 2005 Pinter received the Nobel Prize for lifetime in writing. That same year Pinter, in a interview to Mark Lawson on BBC Radio 4's "Front Row" said that he was seriously thinking about retiring to focus on his political activism because he felt it was time to get the world back on track. Who knows what will happen next for him but Pinter really carved a small piece on British cinema in the 1960's.
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