Love Affair

I think I prefer the remake with Deborah Kerr & Cary Grant  An Affair to Remember but I’m not sure. Take my poll and let me know which version you prefer. Enjoy!

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0031593/

I Remember Mama

A beautiful and touching film about the goings on in a Norwegian immigrant family in 1910 San Francisco. I Remember Mama was nominated for 5 Academy Awards in 1949, but did not win any.

Irene Dunne  is absolute perfection in the role of Mama Hansen. Ms. Dunne was nominated in the best actress category.

Ellen Corby is both sad and hilarious as the spinster sister that has finally caught a man played by Edgar Bergen in his first role without his dummy Charlie McCarthy.

Barbara Bel Geddes (better known for her role as the matriarch of the Ewing family in Dallas)  is wonderful as the eldest daughter and the storyteller here. Both Corby and Bel Geddes were nominated for the best supporting actress oscar.

Oskar Homolka was nominated for best supporting actor for his role as the gruff but kind Uncle Chris.

 

 

 

 

This film also stars Rudy Vallee and Philip Darn and is for sale on tcm.com.

I Remember Mama is not a comedy but as with any movie about the everyday life of a family it has more than a few humorous moments. The funniest scene has to do with the parents having to chloroform a sick cat and botching the job.

Please watch this movie with the whole family and you’ll be very glad you did.

Weekly Film Ramblings

I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the first week of TCM’s 31 Days of Oscar. I have watched some good movies and some that were ‘eeehhhhh’. Let’s get started.

Anthony Adverse was boring at best. Olivia de Havilland was beautiful; other than that, all I can say is, what a waste of Claude Rains.

Then there was a little 1929 musical called The Love Parade starring Maurice Chevalier and Jeanette MacDonald; like most musicals, so contrived and silly, just an excuse for the stars to break into song. I had to turn it off.

As I’m writing this, I’m watching 1958s Separate Tables. I can’t quite make my mind up about this film. It feels a bit like a 50’s soap opera.

Deborah Kerr’s performance as a plain, emotionally unstable spinster was spectacular as was David Niven as the aging major she secretly loves. This movie won 2 Oscars one of which went to Mr. Niven for Best Actor.

However, I really dislike movies that don’t tie things up at the end.

The Ghost and Mr. Chicken

I don’t want to hear it! I know this is a REALLY silly movie with terrible acting. It wasn’t even nominated for any Oscars (imagine that)! But we enjoy it;  our family watches The Ghost and Mr. Chicken (1966) every Halloween. We laugh at the same jokes every year.

You can head over to this website to read a little of the history on the studio house where the movie was filmed. http://www.thestudiotour.com/ush/backlot/street_colonial_2.html

Supposedly, Andy Griffith is the one who suggested expanding on an episode of The Andy Griffith Show entitled “Haunted House” from 1963. Don Knotts is, as usual, absolutely hilarious as the terrified Luther Heggs. Grab your popcorn and enjoy!

The Ghost and Mrs. Muir

Movie #4 in our ghost line-up is a lovely film and the second in our list to star Rex Harrison; The Ghost and Mrs. Muir;

about an independent widow and her young daughter (played by Natalie Wood) who move to a house by the sea. The house is haunted by Captain Gregg. Eventually, Lucy Muir (played be Gene Tierney) must choose between love with a ghost and love with a live man (played by George Sanders). 

 

The Ghost and Mrs. Muir was filmed in the Carmel/ Monterey area, and nominated for an Academy Award in 1948 for best cinematography. 

It is considered a romantic comedy. It is definitely romantic, but its comedic moments are very subdued which adds to its charm in my opinion. Check out this link for more info. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0039420/awards

or better yet, watch The Ghost and Mrs. Muir for yourself and see why it made my list.

Topper

A delightful film about a married couple, the Kerbys, killed in a car accident and trying as ghosts to do a good deed for their uptight banker friend, Cosmo Topper, by improving his boring, henpecked existence. The casting was wonderful though I thought that Constance Bennett and Billie Burke were the best part of this movie, but then again they usually are. I can’t really think of anything I didn’t like about this film, it was a great ride all the way through! Some people may be offended at the HUGE amount of drunk driving and car accidents and deaths caused by drunken driving; mores were quite different in 1937 (although I definitely do not approve). 

“Topper” was nominated for 2 Academy Awards in 1938:                                        Best Actor in a Supporting Role: Roland Young
Best Sound, Recording: Elmer Raguse

It probably would have been nominated for a special effects Oscar if there had been such an award in 1938; its special effects were considered very advanced for the time.

I really suggest you go to IMDB by clicking on the link and checking out their extensive info on “Topper”  http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0029682/  According to their site, “Topper” was the first movie to be colorized in 1985, however I’ve never seen that version. What do you think about colorized movies? Take my poll and let me know. I didn’t really care for all of the Topper sequels; “Topper Returns” etc., nor the Topper television series.

 I found this movie for sale on dvd and the colorized version on vhs at ebay.com. I could not find it for sale on TCM.

TCM’s 31 Days of Oscar

Every year around Oscar time, Turner Classic movies does 31 Days of Oscar. Beginning Feb. 1st and for 31 days, TCM shows only Oscar-winning films. I printed out their schedule and boy is my dvr going to be working overtime!