Myna foresees...

Halloween Coming!

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Burnt Offerings (1976)

Despite the strange requirements the Allardyce siblings, Arnold (Burgess Meredith ) and sister Roz (Eileen Heckart- thankfully not in a role that required crying), set for renting their vacation home, The Rolf family, desperate to get out of the city for the summer, decides to rent the large Victorian mansion in the countryside. Marian (Karen Black) convinces her husband that she alone will take care of the Allardyce’s elderly mother who insists staying on the property. Though skeptical, her husband Ben (Oliver Reed) packs up their son David (Lee Montgomery), and his elderly aunt Elizabeth (Bette Davis).

 Gradually Marian becomes possessed by the house and a malevolent force starts to consume the whole family. Marian begins spending more time in Ms. Allardyce’s private parlor and Ben, after randomly trying to kill his son, begins to have a former reoccurring nightmare involving a goulish chauffer. Various "accidents” occur which result in the death of everyone but Marian who becomes the old woman in the attic. With the house fully rejuvenated and glistening like new, the Allardyce siblings return and marvel at the house's beauty.

Burnt Offerings has some exciting and creepy moments, like each time Marian visits Ms. Allardyce’s parlor and the various times Ben becomes possessed or had his nightmares. At first I was expecting Arnold and Roz to turn on the Rolfs à la Skeleton Key but it turned out to be the house that needed victims.

Tonight on TCM!
Let's be Frank...enstein!

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Hey Pumpkin!

Halloween's Coming!

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Witchy Woman!

Halloween's coming!

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Days of Wine and Roses (1962)

Joe Clay (Jack Lemmon), is a hard-drinking public relations man in San Francisco. Though he gets off on the wrong foot when he first meets Kirsten Arnesen (Lee Remick) by mistaking her for a party girl attracted to men with money, he manages to win her over and get a date. Kirsten, who adores chocolate but doesn’t drink, is introduced to a Brandy Alexander (yum!) by Joe and is conveniently converted to a drinker. Once they are married and have a baby, Joe who is dissatisfied with how his career is turning out is still adamant about drinking and having a good time. He yells at Kirsten for not wanting to support him in this venture because of the baby. To appease him, she too starts to drink and months later she not only can match him drink for drink but she enjoys doing it on her own- so much so that she accidentally sets their apartment on fire.

Joe Clay (Jack Lemmon), is a hard-drinking public relations man in San Francisco. Though he gets off on the wrong foot when he first meets Kirsten Arnesen (Lee Remick) by mistaking her for a party girl attracted to men with money, he manages to win her over and get a date. Kirsten, who adores chocolate but doesn’t drink, is introduced to a Brandy Alexander (yum!) by Joe and is conveniently converted to a drinker. Once they are married and have a baby, Joe who is dissatisfied with how his career is turning out is still adamant about drinking and having a good time. He yells at Kirsten for not wanting to support him in this venture because of the baby. To appease him, she too starts to drink and months later she not only can match him drink for drink but she enjoys doing it on her own- so much so that she accidentally sets their apartment on fire.

After losing several jobs within the next 4 years, Joe realizes that he and Kirsten are alcoholics and sets out to put them on the wagon. They move in with Kirsten's father and help him run his nursery while staying sober for a month. But one night, as a reward for being so good, they go on a bender that ends up with Joe destroying the greenhouse and ending up in the hospital to dry out. This is where he meets Jim Hungerford (Jack Klugman), an ex-addict, who encourages him to join Alcoholics Anonymous. Realizing that he and Kirsten are doomed as long as she refuses to admit to her alcoholism, Joe makes the decision to turn away from Kirsten, reestablish his career, and raise their daughter on his own.

Anyone who has not seen this film should definitely do so! Lemmon is absolutely fantastic in this dramatic role. The controversial subject, something that must have seemed so new and raw to mass audiences when it first came out, is still completely absorbing today. You can’t go wrong with a film about people’s lives that completely come apart the way Joe and Kirsten’s do. And to think, Joe makes a complete turn around while Kirsten, who is the way she is solely because of Joe, is still fumbling in the dark and yet both, despite their past actions and decisions, are still able to elicit sympathy from people like me who have no idea what it’s like to be so utterly ruled by a vice.

Side note:

To ready himself for his role in Days of Wine and Roses, Lemmon went to AA meetings and watched alcoholics drying out in hospitals. He became so immersed in the straitjacket scene that director Blake Edwards had to shake him quiet for several minutes after the cameras stopped rolling.

Tonight on TCM! Redgrave is pretty awesome in this movie!

Dead of Night (1945)Guests at a country estate share stories of the supernatural. Cast: Mervyn Johns, Hartley Power, Roland Culver, Michael Redgrave Dir: Alberto Cavalcanti

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Julia Misbehaves (1948)

Julie Packett (Greer Garson) is an English dancehall actress who’s often broke but manages to get by with pluck, a positive attitude and charitable friends. When she learns of her estranged daughter’s pending marriage, one such friend graciously offers to deck her out and send her off to the wedding. When William Packett, (Walter Pidgeon) Julie’s ex-husband and his mother (Lucile Watson) learn of her invitation to Susan’s (Elizabeth Taylor) wedding, William hurries off to catch her halfway and convince her not to come. However, he doesn’t get his chance and Julie arrives before he gets back home and is warmly accepted by her daughter who secretly sent the invitation.
Julie sets about to make sure that Susan makes the right decision with her marriage while fending off her ex-husband’s new ignited passion for her. He left her once, who’s to say he won’t do it again.

Full of funny banter and some awkward moments, Julia Misbehaves is a fun little film. I am beginning to realize that Garson and Pidgeon were paired so often together for a reason- they had serious onscreen chemistry!


Tonight on TCM!
The Lady Eve (1941) A lady cardsharp tries to con an eccentric scientist only to fall for him.
Cast: Barbara Stanwyck, Henry Fonda, Charles Coburn, Eugene Pallette Dir: Preston Sturges

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Amanda's Survey!

Thanks to Amanda from A Noodle In A Haystack for coming up with this awesome survey!! If you wanna have some fun- you should take it and let her know!



1. What is your favorite movie starring William Powell and Myrna Loy, excluding all of The Thin Man films?

     I Love You Again

2. Name a screen team that appeared in only one film together but are still noteworthy for how well they   complimented each other.

Constance Bennett and Brian Ahern- Merrily We Live

  

3. Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers' best film together?

    The Barkleys of Broadway

4. Your favorite actor named "Robert"?

     Robert Montgomery

5. An actor/actress who, when you see one of their movies, you always wish that someone else was in his/her role?

I wish I could see how Bette Davis and Joan Crawford would have handled certain roles that helped their careers. Specifically, I would like to see Crawford in All About Eve and Davis in Mildred Pierce. I think either one would still be a fantastic film to watch.

6. An actor/actress that someone close to you really loves that you can't stand or vice versa?

Those close to me realize that to say Gwyneth Paltrow is an acting powerhouse is the quickest way to become a non-entity in my life. Slower but justifiable substitutes are Alan Cummings, Linda Fiorentino, and Jennifer Jason Leigh.

7. An actor/actress that you both agree on completely?

Most everyone I know agrees that Kevin Kline, Emma Thompson, and Cate Blanchett are phenomenal actors.

8. Complete this sentence: Virginia O'Brien is to Ethel Merman as...

Spencer Tracy is to Fredric March…is that right? Both are great dramatic actors, displayed wonderful comic genius, and were/are highly regarded in the history of classic cinema as spectacular leading men.

9. What is your favorite film starring Ray Milland?

Dial M for Murder.

10. You had to have seen this one coming: what is your favorite movie of the 1960s?

The Pink Panther. A family favorite.

11. An actor/actress that you would take out of one film and put into a different movie that was released the same year?

Because they are my ever-fluctuating favorites and because Joan Crawford was the queen of the face-slap, I would like to have seen Crawford play Bette Davis’ Kit Marlowe in Old Acquaintance. Davis (who in real life didn’t like Miriam Hopkins) shook Hopkins Millie Drake- Crawford would have taken it to a whole new level- probably Cagney style.

12. Who was your favorite of Robert Montgomery's leading ladies?

Though I love Joan Crawford, my favorite pairing with Montgomery was Norma Shearer and the best movie they ever did together, in my opinion, was Private Lives. The fight scenes are priceless!

13. You think it would have been a disaster if what movie starred the actor/actress who was originally asked to star in it?

Jean Arthur for Gone with the Wind- she was once Selznick’s paramour and was slated up to almost the last moment to be Scarlett O’Hara. Can you imagine? I can’t, I literally cannot. I love her but not for Scarlett.

14. An actor/actress who you will watch in any or almost any movie?

Fredric March

15. Your favorite Leslie Howard film and role?

Pygmalion for both the movie and role.

16. You have been asked to host a marathon of four Barbara Stanwyck films. Which ones do you choose?

Babyface, Sorry Wrong Number, Meet John Doe, and My Reputation- that was hard!

17. What is, in your mind, the nearest to perfect comedy you have ever seen? Why?

Arthur (1981). It’s full of witty repartee, especially from John Gielgud, it has several laugh-out-loud moments, and features a wonderfully vibrant and wise-cracking Liza Minnelli. Best of all, it’s a family favorite and hardly a month goes by without one of us quoting a line from it- mostly, “I’m going to have another drink, would you like another fish?”

18. You will brook no criticism of what film?

Inherit the Wind. March admittedly hammed it up and wonderfully so. He and Tracy are spectacular! The subject matter was enthralling. The dialogue, especially in the courtroom scenes is fantastic. Inherit the Wind is a well-rounded entertaining film.

19. Who is your favorite Irish actress?

Maureen O’Hara

20. Your favorite 1940s movie starring Ginger Rogers?

The Major and the Minor- confidentially, I haven’t seen yet but I know I am going to love it.

21. Do you enjoy silent movies?

Some. Especially if they contain John Barrymore or Marion Davies.

22. What is your favorite Bette Davis film?

Sooooo hard! The Little Foxes.

23. Your favorite onscreen Hollywood couple?

William Powell and Myrna Loy

24. This one is for the girls, but, of course, the guys are welcome to answer, too: who is your favorite Hollywood costume designer?

Adrian

25. To even things out a bit, here's something the boys will enjoy: what is your favorite tough action film?

Cagney’s The Public Enemy.

26. You are currently gaining a greater appreciation for which actor(s)/actress(es)?

Spencer Tracy and James Cagney

27. Franchot Tone: yes or no?

No. Good question too. I was just watching him in Man Proof and thinking about how uninteresting he is to me. My normal reaction to most films he’s in.

28. Which actors and/or actresses do you think are underrated?

Joan Blondell, Constance Bennett, Miriam Hopkins, Walter Brennan, Agnes Moorehead, and Geraldine Page.

29. Which actors and/or actresses do you think are overrated?

James Dean and Marilyn Monroe. I am always dubious of people who die young.

30. Favorite actor?

Fredric March

31. Favorite actress?

It changes constantly between Bette Davis and Joan Crawford.

32. Of those listed, who is the coolest: Paul Newman, Robert Redford, Steve McQueen, or Patrick Stewart?

Well Steve McQueen is known as the King of Cool but my money will always be on Newman.

33. What is your favorite movie from each of these genres:

Comedy:
The Thin Man Series

Swashbuckler:
Closest I have come to a swashbuckler is The Affairs of Cellini.

Film noir:
The Maltese Falcon

Musical:
Meet Me in St. Louis

Holiday:

Holiday Inn

Hitchcock:

Vertigo

 

Tonight on TCM!

This is the last Tuesday TCM will be featuring their star of the month Fredric March. Check out the great line up!

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