In the final scene of Burton and Taylor, the BBC’s recent television film about Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor, the pair share a mournful tête-a-tête in Taylor’s dressing room. “We’re addicts Elizabeth, you and I,” he says. “Love is not a drug,” she counters, wearily. “Isn’t it? I don’t know,” he replies. Burton and Taylor […]
The Girl with Dark Eyes: ‘Portrait of Jennie’ (1948)
Portrait of Jennie is a dream. Or rather, it seems to spring from that narrow space between sleeping and waking, where the wisps of dreams still cling to you and blend seamlessly with reality. You don’t really watch this film; you drift along with it. Struggling artist Eben Adams (Joseph Cotten) is alone and lonely, […]
Through the (Feminist) Looking-glass
And now for something completely different: a review of one of my favourite film books. Enjoy! “A woman’s intelligence was the equivalent of a man’s penis: something to be kept out of sight.” So writes Molly Haskell in From Reverence to Rape: The Treatment of Women in the Movies: a fusillade of feminist film criticism that’s […]
Love, Laughter and Lubitsch: ‘Trouble in Paradise’ (1932), ‘Design for Living’ (1933) and ‘Ninotchka’ (1939)
Red roses, paper hearts and pink, pudgy teddy bears. Valentine’s Day may have come and gone, but fear not. For those of you still in a romantic mood, might I suggest the work of legendary writer-director Ernst Lubitsch? Sly and sophisticated, the German émigré’s films offer an irresistible concoction of wit and intelligence- all delivered […]
Love is for the Very Young: ‘Splendor in the Grass’ (1961)
A gushing waterfall. Teenagers kiss, the torrent of their adolescent passion barely held in check. Abandon all hope of subtlety, all ye who watch this movie. Deanie Loomis (Natalie Wood) and Bud Stamper (Warren Beatty, in his screen debut) are high school sweethearts living in claustrophobic small-town Kansas in the late 1920s. It’s the sort […]
Extra! Extra! Read all about it!: Journalism at the Movies
Late nights, fast talking and even faster typing. To celebrate me making it through my first month of journalism school, here is a fleeting look at the fourth estate on film. His Girl Friday (1940) The gold standard of newspaper comedies. Wily editor Walter Burns (Cary Grant) is horrified when his star reporter and ex-wife, […]
Intermission
My apologies for the dearth of new posts. I’ve just begun a postgraduate degree in Journalism and while I am having a great time, it’s quite clear that school work will occupy every nook and cranny in my brain for a while. So bring up the house lights. Stretch your legs. Go buy some more […]
Shades of Grey: ‘The Searchers’ (1956)
I’ve been working my way through a few Westerns recently: Red River, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, The Naked Spur, Stagecoach and The Wild Bunch. Not because I particularly enjoyed any of them, but because- just like spinach or Brussels sprouts- they’re good for me. Show me a saloon, saddle or tumbleweed and I […]
All About Charlotte: ‘Now, Voyager’ (1942)
The untold want by life and land ne’er granted, Now voyager sail thou forth to seek and find. -Walt Whitman My favourite shot of Bette Davis appears about a third of the way through Now, Voyager, when she steps out onto a ship’s gangway. The camera glides from her sleek heels to chic hat, its […]
Tales of Terror: ‘The Haunting’ (1963), ‘Dead of Night’ (1945) and ‘Cat People’ (1942)
Horror thrives on explicit shock, terror on lingering disquiet and dread. This in essence is Ann Radcliffe’s famous distinction between fright and fear. Mrs. Radcliffe was the undisputed mistress of Gothic fiction- when it comes to spooky and scary, I consider her an expert. The Haunting, Dead of Night and Cat People have a few […]