Wednesday, January 04, 2012

The New Year's Movie Meme

I looooove reading about old movies, and was happy to find this blog, The Girl with the White Parasol. I am also happy to find a good meme to steal. If you play along, let me (and The Girl) know.

1. What is your all-time favorite Grace Kelly costume? The elegant LBD she wears to the cast party at the very end of The Country Girl. She finally gets to go all glam after wearing those off-the-rack outfits.

2. What classic film would you nominate for a remake? The Americanization of Emily (1964). The way the Iraq war was marketed to us with embedded reporters (remember poor David Bloom of NBC?) makes me think this is a story that could powerfully be retold for modern times.
 
3. Name your favorite femme fatale. Martha in Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf (1966). Though if she were here, I'm not sure she'd accept the title, saying, "I'm loud and I'm vulgar, and I wear the pants in the house because somebody's got to, but I am not a monster."

4. Name the best movie with the word "heaven" in its title. Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison (1957). Deborah Kerr is great as a nun who tries to reform and comfort soldier Robert Mitchum.

5. Describe the worst performance by a child actor that you’ve ever seen (since Laura gave me the idea). Cammie King as Bonnie Blue Butler in GWTW. Didn't even have to give this one a moment's thought.

6. Who gets your vote for most tragic movie monster? Frankenstein.

7. What is the one Western that you would recommend to anybody? Shenandoah (1965). Jimmy Stewart is a patriarch trying to keep his family out of the Civil War. The movie is kinda soapy, but Stewart is sublime.

8. Who is your ideal movie-viewing partner? For old movies? My mom.

9. Has a film ever made you want to change your life? If so, what was the film? It's from the 1970s, so I don't know if it qualifies chronologically as classic, but The Way We Were. I often (still) find myself tamping down the truest part of my personality to fit in, and I (still) always hate myself for doing it. I believe this is the 21st time I've mentioned that movie in this blog ...
 
10. Think of one performer that you truly love. Now think of one scene/movie/performance of theirs that is too uncomfortable for you to watch. Judy Garland. Love Finds Andy Hardy (1938). I hate how she's the talented ("I sing, you know") but plain girl in contrast to Ann Rutherford and especially Lana Turner, because I have read how much those comparisons hurt her in real life.

11. On the flip side, think of one really good scene/performance/movie from a performer that you truly loathe. June Allyson in Little Women. I know, I know! She's not even really very good in that.
 
12. And finally, since it will be New Year's soon, do you have any movie or blogging-related resolutions for 2012? Nope. Sorry. Here I've just met The Girl with the White Parasol and I feel I've let her down.

3 comments:

  1. Great answers! Maybe I'll swipe this for the weekend.

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  2. Love your answers. Thank you for the Bonnie Blue Butler - I forgot about her and that segment almost kills the movie for me. I too, never could really take June Allyson - she seems so nice I feel guilty not liking her.

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  3. I swiped this, too. I'm with you on Bonnie,but sadly I didn't think of her. I was too stuck in more recent films and really couldn't think of a bad child actor from the classics.

    Totally with you on Frankenstein, too.

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