Lanning : ) (binky013)

Suspicion Unrated

Walter, this is another one where I wish I'd written the script. Maybe my favorite Hitchcock, but I have to agree with him when he says he'd rather have had it end with Grant murdering Fontaine -- the way the book it was based on ended.

As is, the "happy" ending is a little too quick and not quite convincing, although given the constraints of having to have a "happy" ending, I think Hitchcock came up with a decent finish.

I really don't believe that Grant was checking out poisons that couldn't be traced because he wanted to kill himself due to his shame. The character really is without shame, and bordering on amoral. And to have Fontaine voice the realization of Grant's wanting to kill himself is just too unbelievable for me.

Still, the edge of your seat non-stop guessing game is masterful. Really one of Hitchcock's best jobs.

Rise of the Planet of the Apes PG-13

Wow . . . Walter, if you haven't seen this one, it's a must. I would guesstimate that CGI is five years or less away from perfect, lifelike renderings of just about anything. The apes still look a bit fake, but they are close to perfect.

Oh, and if you haven't seen the original Planet of the Apes with Charlton Heston, it's a must-see as well -- maybe even before see this one -- a perfect combination. Of course the whole plague that kills all the dogs and cats that emerges from the first five films is kind of tossed by the wayside with this new one, but a really good writer could work that in (and/or around it) when the next new sequel/prequel comes out. Viva screen writers : )

Sunset Boulevard Unrated

From a writing standpoint, kudos for this script.

There is something about getting old, in Hollywood, that is imminently topical. In this movie about making movies, the notion of growing too old to draw an audience echoes a kind of universally unspoken nightmare for everyone who becomes a "star."

How ironic that this really was Gloria Swanson's swan song. After this it was all a path to obscurity for her with mostly TV parts until the end. Her melodramatic acting style is almost so over the top that you might be tempted to laugh in some scenes, but the fact that her character's story is so sad keeps you from doing so. Swanson would have had my vote for the Oscar.

William Holden is so good in this; dying young is one sure solution to the problem of aging. My favorite player is Cecil B. DeMille as himself. He completely and sympathetically understands the aging star's tragedy.

In Hollywood, how old is too old? An interesting commentary on a problem that must plague many Hollywood industry folks even to this day.

Okay, here's a question for everyone who might want to think about it: In literature, when a narrator continues to speak after death, is that an artistic problem, or, in this case, is that perhaps a commentary on art and immortality?

The Taking of Pelham One Two Three R

Excuse me, do you people still execute in this state?

For me personally, the best Robert Shaw performance ever. No one scarier than Mr. Blue, I kid you not. He asks this of Matthau right before he . . . Don't want to give it away. It's an electrifying scene.

As if his work in The Laughing Policeman just the year before was a tune-up, Matthau appears again as the dogged cop dutifully dealing with the bad guys. This is for me, his most memorable dramatic role. He and Shaw, as adversaries, give a performance for the ages. I miss them both.