Not a lot of movies this month. Finished season 4 of Only Murders in the Building and rewatched season 1 of The Mary Tyler Moore Show. Also watched It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown twice.
*Topper (1937) - Roland Young, Cary Grant & Constance Bennett, Billie Burke
The Saint's Double Trouble (1940) - George Sanders, Bela Lugosi
China (1943) - Alan Ladd, Loretta Young, William Bendix
The Arnelo Affair (1947) - Frances Gifford, John Hodiak, George Murphy, Eve Arden
The Turning Point (1952) - William Holden, Alexis Smith, Edmund O'Brien
*Stalag 17 (1953) - William Holden
*Love is a Many Splendored Thing (1955) - Jennifer Jones & William Holden
North West Frontier (1959) - Kenneth More, Lauren Bacall
Tiger Bay (1959) - John Mills, Hayley Mills
Alan Ladd: The True Quiet Man (1999) - The Hollywood Collection
Least Favorite Film: The only part about Fearless Fagan I didn't like is when they showed the lion being abused by his new trainer. It was hard to watch.
Favorite Movie: Hayley Mills was fantastic in Tiger Bay.
Favorite Quotes: (Hint - they're both Eve Arden)
I'm the repulsive type before I've had my morning coffee.
(After staying for breakfast) Thanks for the calories.
The Truth About Spring (1965) - John Mills, Hayley Mills, James MacArthur, David Tomlinson
*Anne of Green Gables (1985) - Megan Follows, Jonathan Crombie, Collen Dewhurst, Richard Farnsworth, Schuyler Grant
*Anne of Avonlea (1987) - Megan Follows, Jonathan Crombie, Collen Dewhurst, Wendy Hiller, Rosemary Dunsmore, Schuyler Grant
The Old Man & the Gun (2018) - Rober Redford, Casey Affleck, Sissy Spacek, Danny Glover
*Christmas Getaway (2019) - Bridget Regan & Travis Van Winkle
Least Favorite Film: The print quality was amazing but I found The Canary Murder Case to be somewhat clunky. It was filmed as a silent then changed to sound.
Favorite Movie: Not many new-to-me movies to choose from but my favorite was The Truth About Spring. It's not a Disney movie but with that cast it felt like one!
I feel like I have a screenshot of this blouse/sweater
combo from another movie somewhere but can't find it...
Please sign this petition for the preservation of the Internet Archive, an essential resource for Classic Movie bloggers.
Usually TCM's Summer Under the Stars is a heavy viewing month but this year's schedule didn't excite me. Of course at this point I've seen a great many of the films they showed already. What about you, did you find the lineup lacking?
*indicates a rewatch
State Fair (1945) - Jeanne Crain & Dana Andrews, Dick Haymes & Vivian Blaine, Charles Winninger, Fay Bainter, Donald Meek, Frank McHugh, Percy Kilbride, Henry Morgan
Margie (1946) - Jeanne Crain, Glenn Langan, Alan Young
Young Widow (1946) - Jane Russell & Louis Hayward
*She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1949) - John Wayne (& the John Ford Stock Company)
Ten Tall Men (1951) - Burt Lancaster, Gilbert Roland, George Tobias
*Clash by Night (1952) - Barbara Stanwyck, Paul Douglas, Robert Ryan, Marilyn Monroe
The Miracle Worker (1962) - Anne Bancroft & Patty Duke
Little Treasure (1985) - Ted Danson, Burt Lancaster
*Ocean's Twelve (2004) - George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Matt Damon, Julia Roberts, etc.
Love is Blind (2019) - Aidan Turner
And Then There Were None (2015 - Mini-Series) - Aiden Turner
Bethany Hamilton: Unstoppable (2018) - doc
Frank Capra: Mr. America (2023) - doc
Least Favorite Film: Ten Tall Men was a poor imitation of a late 1930s rollicking action/adventure Errol Flynn-type film. The first part of Little Treasure was good but then it was revealed that the female character's occupation was a stripper, so I had to skip some scenes.
Favorite Movie: I really enjoyed the two Jeanne Crain films.
Favorite Quote: "Fellow sufferers, are you plump? When you walk in the sun, does your shadow look like a crowd following you?"
This month I watched season 1-3 of Poldark (2015-2019). I really liked the first season. The second season was still fine but during the third I considered stopping as it was pretty much constant drama and revenge. There was also a marital r*pe storyline introduced for a side character - I fast-forwarded those scenes even though nothing was shown. The series has gorgeous shots of Cornwall. I really want to go there.
I really enjoyed all of the Bruce Brown surfing documentaries that aired on TCM this month. His commentary had me laughing out loud. The first one felt like watching someone's college home movies. I first watched The Endless Summer (1965) several years ago, so it was fun to see that again. I also want to watch The Endless Summer Revisted (2000) and A Life of Endless Summers: The Bruce Brown Story (2020). All three are on Tubi. I'm also finally read Gidget by Frederick Kohner. My brother found a copy that the real "Gidget" autographed!
* indicates a rewatch
*Berlin Express (1948) - Robert Ryan & Merle Oberon
*Quo Vadis (1951) - Robert Taylor & Deborah Kerr, Leo Genn, Peter Ustinov
*Artists and Models (1955) - Dean Martin & Jerry Lewis, Dorothy Malone, Shirley MacLaine, Eva Gabor
The Fastest Gun Alive (1956) - Glenn Ford & Jeanne Crain, Broderick Crawford
Ice Cold in Alex (1958) - John Mills, Anthony Quayle, Sylvia Syms, Harry Andrews
*Three Days of the Condor (1975) - Robert Redford & Faye Dunaway, Cliff Robertson
The Fabulous Journey to the Centre of the Earth (1977) - Kenneth More
The Makioka Sisters (1983-Japanese) - Yoshiko Sakuma, Sayuri Yoshinaga, Yuko Kotegawa, Keiko Kishi, Kuniko Miyake
*Corrina, Corrina (1994) - Whoopi Goldberg, Tina Majorino, Ray Liotta, Don Ameche
*Gladiator (2000) - Russell Crowe, Joaquin Phoenix, Connie Nielson, Oliver Reed, Richard Harris, Derek Jacobi, Djimon Hounsou
*Shallow Hal (2001) - Jack Black & Gwenyth Paltrow, Jason Alexander
Comeback Season (2006) - Ray Liotta
Slippery When Wet (1958) - had a couple shots of the real Gidget!
Surf Crazy (1959)
Barefoot Adventure (1960) - with narration recorded in 1990
Surfin Shorts (1960) - "Hangin' with Bruce" & "The Wet Set" + "America's Newest Sport" (1966)
Surfing Hollow Days (1961)
*The Endless Summer (1965)
Least Favorite Film: Well, The Fabulous Journey to the Centre of the Earth was a little on the corny side. I definitely prefer the Brendan Fraser and James Mason versions.
This month was Burt Lancaster month lol. A couple of Deborah Kerr movies and an impromptu rewatch of Run Silent, Run Deep led me to a From Here to Eternity rewatch (I just can't get with Kerr's "American" accent) which led to more Burt Lancaster. I also finally watched Band of Brothers. I covered up the screen a few times, especially in the Bastogne episode, but it was an excellent series.
* indicates a rewatch
Death on the Diamond (1934) - Robert Young, Madge Evans, William Demerest, Nat Pendleton
Singapore Woman (1941) - Brenda Marshall
Mission to Moscow (1943) - Walter Huston, Eleanor Parker
*Brief Encounter (1945) - Celia Johnson & Trevor Howard
I See a Dark Stranger (1946) - Deborah Kerr & Trevor Howard
Desert Fury (1947) - Lisabeth Scott, John Hodiak, Mary Astor, Burt Lancaster, Wendall Corey
I Walk Alone (1947) - Burt Lancaster, Kirk Douglas, Lisabeth Scott, Wendall Corey
Whispering Smith (1949) - Alan Ladd, Robert Preston, Brenda Marshall, Donald Crisp, William Demerest, Fay Holden
*Mister 880 (1950) - Burt Lancaster, Edmund Gwenn, Dorothy McGuire
*From Here to Eternity (1953) - Burt Lancaster & Deborah Kerr, Montgomery Clift & Donna Reed, Frank Sinatra, Ernest Borgnine
*Run Silent, Run Deep (1958) - Clark Gable, Burt Lancaster, Don Rickles
Good Morning (1959-Japanese) -
The Chalk Garden (1964) - Deborah Kerr, Hayley Mills, John Mills
Band of Brothers (2000) - Damian Lewis, Donnie Wahlburg, etc.
We Stand Alone Together: The Men of Easy Company (2001)
Deborah Kerr: Getting to Know Her (2000)
Least Favorite Film: Mission to Moscow was very much a propaganda film of it's time. I watched it for Eleanor Parker.
Favorite Movie: Once I got past the first few minutes I really enjoyed I See a Dark Stranger. It ended up being quite funny as well, which I wasn't expecting. I got a little teary reading Caftan Woman's post about it.
Favorite Lines: "Spanswick, Margery's on the line about the dance tonight. She wants to know whether to wear the backless blue or the frontless white?"
~ I See a Dark Stranger (1946)
"A man's got to settle down on first base and raise a family before you call him 'safe'."
~ Death on the Diamond (1934)
I came across this video of Lloyd Bridges singing on the Ed Sullivan show and had to share!
This month was apparently Robert Ryan month. I watched About Mrs. Leslie last month and then purchased the Franklin Jarlett biography about Ryan (I already own the J. R. Jones one). And then I kept seeing his films pop up on TCM and I had to watch them :) There's a man on youtube that has interviewed Robert Ryan's son Cheney several times about his dad's movies. I listened to the ones about The Set-Up and Odds Against Tomorrow. I finally read Pollyanna by Eleanor Porter. I have always had questions about the characters in the Disney movie and some of them were answered. I found it funny that in the book Mrs. Snow (Agnes Moorehead) is only about 40 and Aunt Polly just a little younger than that.
* indicates a rewatch
The Big Trail (1930) - John Wayne, Marguerite Churchill
*A Woman's Face (1941) - Joan Crawford & Melvyn Douglas, Conrad Veidt, Osa Munson, Reginald Owen, Marjorie Main, Donald Meek
*The Set-Up (1949) - Robert Ryan, Audrey Totter, George Tobias, Wallace Ford, Darryl Hickman, James Edwards
*The Breaking Point (1950) - John Garfield, Juano Hernandez, Patricia Neal, Phyllis Thaxter, Wallace Ford
Roadblock (1951) - Charles McGraw & Joan Dixon
City Beneath the Sea (1953) - Robert Ryan, Anthony Quinn, Mala Powers, Suzan Ball
*House of Bamboo (1955) - Robert Stack, Robert Ryan, Shirley Yamaguchi, Sessue Hayakawa
*Men in War (1957) - Robert Ryan, Aldo Ray, Robert Keith, Vic Morrow, James Edwards
*Odds Against Tomorrow (1959) - Harry Belafonte, Robert Ryan, Ed Begley, Shelley Winters, Gloria Grahame
The Notorious Landlady (1962) - Kim Novak & Jack Lemmon, Fred Astaire, Estelle Winwood
Good Neighbor Sam (1964) - Jack Lemmon, Romy Schneider, Dorothy Provine, Edward G. Robinson
The Wrong Box (1966) - Michael Caine, John Mills, Ralph Richardson, Peter Cook, Dudley Moore, Nanette Newman, Peter Sellers
Least Favorite Film: Don't get me wrong, the scale and scope of The Big Trail was immensely impressive, but some of the acting was definitely early 30s/cliche (especially the villain) and it's not likely I'll revisit it.
Favorite Movie: The Notorious Landlady and The Wrong Box were both really funny. I had a grin on my face pretty much the entire time on the latter - very ridiculous. Robert Ryan is very flirty and fun in City Beneath the Sea. I watched all three films on tubi (The Wrong Box just left but I'm sure it will be added again).
Favorite Line: "I'm in love with the back of your neck. I like the way your hair grows back there."
~ Patricia Neal to John Garfield in The Breaking Point.
(On noticing that Michael Caine has had to sell all his furniture) "Oh, I've always wanted an empty room of my own. Ours are so cluttered."
A few more rewatches than normal this month. I have a question mark beside Desperate Journey because I don't know if it's a rewatch or not. I have misplaced my 2013 & 2014 movie viewing list and so am unable to check and see if I watched it back then. A lot of Flynn's movies have the same cast (same with Bogart WWII films) and, when you've watched a bunch of a certain actor's filmography in a short span of time, they can become muddled.
* indicates a rewatch
*The Sea Hawk (1940) - Errol Flynn, Brenda Marshall, Claude Rains, Alan Hale, Flora Robson, Donald Crisp, Una O'Connor, Gilbert Roland
?Desperate Journey (1942) - Errol Flynn, Ronald Reagan, Alan Hale
They All Kissed the Bride (1942) - Joan Crawford & Melvyn Douglas, Allen Jenkins, Billie Burke, Roland Young
Millions Like Us (1943) - Patricia Roc
*So Long at the Fair (1950) - Jean Simmons, Dirk Bogarde, David Tomlinson, Honor Blackman
Wagon Master (1950) - Ward Bond, Ben Johnson, Harry Carey Jr., Joann Dru, Jane Darwell, James Arness
Kill the Umpire (1950) - William Bendix, William Frawley
The Killer That Stalked New York (1950) - Evelyn Keyes
*Young Bess (1953) - Jean Simmons, Stewart Granger, Deborah Kerr, Charles Laughton
*Dangerous Crossing (1953) - Jeanne Crain, Michael Rennie
About Mrs. Leslie (1954) - Shirley Booth & Robert Ryan
*The Detective (1954) - Alec Guiness, Peter Finch
Boy on a Dolphin (1957) - Alan Ladd & Sophia Loren, Clifton Webb
Gideon's Day/Gideon of Scotland Yard (1959) - Jack Hawkins, Anna Lee
*Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows (2011) - Robert Downey Jr., Jude Law, Naomi Rapace
*The Boys in the Boat (2023) - Callum Turner, Joel Egerton
The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare (2024) - Henry Cavill, Alex Pettifer, Henry Golding, Cary Elwes (in theaters)
STEVE! (martin) a documentary in 2 pieces (2024) - Apple TV+
Manhunt (2024-mini series) - Tobias Menzies, Anthony Boyle
Least Favorite Film: The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare. Don't get me wrong, I LOVED Henry Cavill in it. And it had Guy Ritchie's signature humor, shooting style, and score, buuuut... it was missing the magic chemistry that's in his Sherlock Holmes films and of course UNCLE. I knew it wouldn't be as good as those films but I was still hoping. My brother said it felt like they were trying to push some of the other actors into being the next big *star,* especially the lady who seemed to have the most screen time and lines. I hope I'll like it better on a second viewing now that I will go into it with lower expectations. My friend (who loved UNCLE but wasn't obsessed with it like me and has only seen it the one time) loved the movie though.
Favorite Movie: Melvyn Douglas was hilarious in They All Kissed the Bride. I kept imagining how it would have been though with Carole Lombard (she died before filming and Crawford took her place, famously donating her salary to the war effort). I watched it on tubi - blurry but watchable (unlike the one on YouTube).
Favorite Line: "Aw, come on, everybody likes hot dogs. Even the Queen of England!"
~ Melvyn Douglas in They All Kissed the Bride, referring to the time King George VI
and Queen Elizabeth (the Queen Mother) visited FDR at Hyde Park and ate hot dogs.
