Movies I Watched in May

Robert Ryan, The Set-Up (1949)

******The Mating of Millie is on YouTube!!!!!******

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

1. The Big Trail (1930) - John Wayne, Marguerite Churchill
2. *A Woman's Face (1941) - Joan Crawford & Melvyn Douglas, Conrad Veidt, Osa Munson, Reginald Owen, Marjorie Main, Donald Meek
3. *The Set-Up (1949) - Robert Ryan, Audrey Totter, George Tobias, Wallace Ford, Darryl Hickman, James Edwards
4. *The Breaking Point (1950) - John Garfield, Juano Hernandez, Patricia Neal, Phyllis Thaxter, Wallace Ford
5. Roadblock (1951) - Charles McGraw & Joan Dixon
6. City Beneath the Sea (1953) - Robert Ryan, Anthony Quinn, Mala Powers, Suzan Ball
7. *House of Bamboo (1955) - Robert Stack, Robert Ryan, Shirley Yamaguchi, Sessue Hayakawa
8. *Men in War (1957) - Robert Ryan, Aldo Ray, Robert Keith, Vic Morrow, James Edwards
9. *Odds Against Tomorrow (1959) - Harry Belafonte, Robert Ryan, Ed Begley, Shelley Winters, Gloria Grahame
10. The Notorious Landlady (1962) - Kim Novak & Jack Lemmon, Fred Astaire, Estelle Winwood
11. Good Neighbor Sam (1964) - Jack Lemmon, Romy Schneider, Dorothy Provine, Edward G. Robinson
12. 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."

~ Nanette Newman in The Wrong Box. 

Aldo Ray, Men in War (1957)