daccn

I am not a clerk
2002-09-14 07:16:03 (UTC)

movies I love

This is a list of movies I admire/love (in the order in
which they occur to me) with comments.

1. Napoleon (Abel Gance, 1927)

I remember falling head-over-heels in love with this movie
at age 15. Or with Albert Dieudonne's nose, at least (I have
this wierd thing for angular noses). It's a silent-screen
epic from France chronicling (sp?) Napoelon's childhood and
early career. It's not always subtle, but I have to admire
the scope of it...being caught up in the romancitism of the
Revolution, the capabilities of an extrordanary genuis. The
drama works so perfectly, and there's never a dull moment.
Dieudonne as Napoleon is wonderful.

2. Singin' In The Rain (1952, Gene Kelly/Stanley Donen)

A sentimental favorite. I saw this at a special screening
when I was 12, and loved it right away. It just exudes
happiness and creativity. It's my movie comfort food - it's
often where I turn when I feel upset or anxious or sad. And
I just love watching talented dancers dance.

3. Flesh and the Devil (1927 - Clarence Brown?)

The first silent movie I ever saw, and the one that got me
hooked on silent film. Somehow, it was different from every
movie out there - more like watching a dream than a
representation of "real" life. Greta Garbo's face is
fascinating, and somehow the heightened emotions don't come
off as campy and melodramatic.

4. Sunset Boulevard (1950 - Billy Wilder)

Norma Desmond has got to be one of the greatest characters
in movie history - ghoulish but moving in an odd way. It
unfolds like a film noir, but is much more gothic and
otherworldly. Black, very black - but it delights in its
blackness.

5. Double Indemmnity (1945 - Billy Wilder)

It keeps the tension going all the way through and the plot
is constructed and executed brilliantly. I can't say
anything meaningful about it (reviewers have called it
"trashy fun") but I am entertained whenever I watch it, and
I have seen it so many times.

6. Vertigo

I have a much longer entry on this movie from about a month
ago...if you're curious, look for it; it's among the first
three. The more I see this movie, the more I am in awe of it.

7. Notorious

I was bored by this movie when i saw it first, but when I
saw it again years later I was able to pick up on the
subtleties and tune in to the romantic plot of the movie.
Like "Vertigo," this movie isn't all about the suspense
aspect (although that is wonderfully executed), it shows,
gruesomely, how two people in love can hurt each other so
deeply, and continue to dance around each other insisting
that they haven't been hurt at all.

8. All About Eve

Good dialogue. Good acting. Cliched plot but it doesn't
matter. All that matters is Bette Davis standing on the
stage, putting out her cigarette with her shoe, snarling
"are you threatening me with legal action, Mr. Fabian?" This
never gets old.

9. Mr. Smith Goes To Washington

Good American values. lots of patriotism. And a real, human
story underneath about naivite (sp) facing corruption. This
movie is successful entirely because of James Stewart (he's
loveable) and Jean Arthur.

Enough for now...





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