05 March, 2012

The Movie Whore Flashes Back

I’ve been on an Alfred Hitchcock kick lately. I blame that atrocity “The Artist”.

…okay, “atrocity” might be a bit strong. It was a cute movie, just not award winningly cute! And really, is anything ever “award winningly cute”? Cute is not something to aspire to. They don't give awards for "cute". Something or someone is or is not cute, but if you are aspiring to be “cute”, you invariably turn out sad/pathetic and clearly “trying too hard”. Think of older women in “cute” teeny-bopper clothes. Don’t they appear to be trying too hard? Think of people putting stupid “clothes” on teacup dogs. Isn’t the dog merely “sad”?Well The Artist was cute, but not award-worthy. And it wasn’t even totally silent! Cheaters.

ANYway…
Watching The Artist inspired me to pull out my 4-DVD Alfred Hitchcock set – you know you bought it too, from the $9 bin at Walmart – and I watched his first thriller “The Lodger”. Black and white – check. Silent – check. Interesting storyline – check! Imagine that! A silent film can be riveting. It has a sort of Jack the Ripper feel to it, and you don’t know whodunit until the end.

But silent films only satisfy in small doses for the modern Movie Whore. It’s nice to watch a throw-back, but I do like having sound, and hearing the inflection… and a scream’s just not a scream without the scream!

Well just as one thing leads to another, The Lodger made me seek out Strangers on a Train, another black and white Hitchcock that I love. He comes up with the plan for what could be the perfect murder! Two strangers do the murder for the other person, and there’s no motive, so they’d never be caught! I don’t want to spoil it for you, because you really should see it. Suffice to say, there are no axes involved, but there is a madman. (teehee. Love a good “madman” plot.)

When I found Strangers on the Train, I also found Stage Fright right next to it. I couldn’t remember if I’d seen Stage Fright yet – I have, but it’s worth a re-watch. Both of these movies are black and white, but neither is silent. Now, Stage Fright has so many plot twists that by the time it ends you won’t know if you’re coming or going! And Alistair Sim. Ooo…Alistair Sim…He plays an awesome character. You know him as Ebenezer Scrooge, probably, but you’ll actually like this character.

Lest you think the Movie Whore has nothing to do but sit around eating bon-bons and watching movies all day, keep in mind that I’ve been out sick for several days so I couldn’t really do much. (Packed up most of my books, but that’s for another post.)

Finally, on Sunday, I put in my all-time favorite Hitchcock: Rear Window. If you’ve not seen it, you should. James Stewart is laid up with a broken leg and can’t leave his apartment, so he entertains himself watching the goings-on in all the apartments he can see from his rear window. The suspense is in wondering whether or not he was witness to a murder (chopped up body parts are assumed). There is the additional psycho-drama of seeing what actually happens behind closed doors. I mean really, how well do any of us know our neighbors? AND finally, it has the incomparably beautiful Grace Kelly.

This Movie Whore does love old classic movies. And what better way to spend your sick days, than watching old movies? Any other classic movie suggestions? What would you watch if you were home sick?

15 comments:

  1. I like classic movies AND am a fan of Hitchcock, but have missed all of these. Now I feel like watching old movies.

    I've enjoyed every Hitchcock movie I've ever seen, but never sought out any more. Lately, I have been trying to educate Kirsten on the old musicals lately.

    Singin' in the Rain
    The Bob Hope/Bing Crosby 'Road' movies
    The Producers
    Copacobana

    She loves them. I hope you're feeling better.

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    1. I've never heard of Copacobana - except the song, which will now be stuck in my head!

      If she's seen Singin' in the Rain and loves it, there's no need to see The Artist. It follows a (loosely) similar storyline.

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    2. I haven't yet decided if I even want to tackle the Artist. I'm sure I will eventually catch, but it just doesn't sound very good.

      Groucho Marx is in Copacobana. Not the other brothers, just him. It is a good one.

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    3. Save your money. Unless you are a film student or need a nap, The Artist is probably not worth it.

      Now I know Copacobana. I've not seen it, but have a friend very up on the Marx Brothers.

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  2. As for older movies, I am an Audrey Hepburn fan. Who isn't though, right? Maybe you're not, I don't know. Anyway, I just got my Audrey decal for my macbook and I'm so excited, I just want to go to a coffee shop and act like I'm doing something studious while pretending to drink coffee so I can show it off.

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    1. LOVE Audrey Hepburn. Breakfast at Tiffany's is one of my all-time favorite movies. I can practically recite it alonog with the movie. And how great is "Charade"!

      I definitely need to see more Audrey Hepburns, though.

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  3. Ah well... I'm not into horror movies so much - I would watch something like My Big Fat Greek Wedding, The Lord of the Rings, The King's Speech, Princess Bride... and so on and so forth.

    Recently I've been watching more TV shows than movies. I really like House MD and I watch The Mentalist - although it's not my favourite. My latest find was the series that BBC has put out called Sherlock. It's really good... so clever! Just love the way they've worked Sherlock Holmes into modern day. Really good stuff.

    And by the way, I went shopping and bought three of Bill Bryson's books that I haven't read yet. I thought about you... after that book packing post I can't help it. ;-)

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    1. I do NOT watch horror movies. Some Hitchcock's are classified that way, like Psycho, which I only watched because I was in a "film appreciation" class in college, but most of his are more psychological. There's no gore in Rear Window...or any of the others I mentioned above.

      But I like all the ones you mentioned too. Especially the new Sherlock series! Benedict Cumberbatch rocks that role. And the BBC brought new life to the stories, IMHO.

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  4. I'm not really into old classics, but the bin in OUR wal-mart is only $5.

    Also, the only Alfred Hitchcock movie I have ever seen is Birds. I watched it when I was 16 and it was absolutely horrifying.

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    1. We have a $5 bin too, but really a 4DVD set for just $9 was worth it.

      Totally agree about The Birds, though. I actually didn't make it through that one.

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  5. So, this post made me realize just how Hitchcock deprived I am. I've only seen two of his flicks, and that was when I was too young to really understand them. You know, at the age when things like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles actually made sense. Time to educate myself.

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    1. I recommend (obviously) Rear Window, then North by Northwest. I also own Vertigo. After I saw it, I just thought it was weird, but it stuck with me - I kept thinking about it at random times, so eventually I bought it.

      ...unless you prefer horror. Then you can't go wrong with Psycho!

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  6. One day I will come and help you pack and in the evenings we will watch all the classics that I can't at home. Hestia

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    1. When I have my own place, you can just come down for a classic-movie getaway weekend.

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I enjoy a good debate. Feel free to shake things up. Tell me I'm wrong. Ask me why I have such a weird opinion. ...or, just laugh and tell how this relates to you and your life.