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Daily Archives: May 7, 2013

Top Hat (1935)

Posted on May 7, 2013 | 10 comments

Top Hat
Directed by Mark Sandrich
1935/USA
RKO Radio Pictures
Repeat viewing
#93 of 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die

[box] Dale Tremont: How could I have ever fallen in love with a man like you! [Dale slaps Jerry, then storms off]

Jerry Travers: She loves me.[/box]

Jerry Travers (Fred Astaire) is a famous song and dance man who is scheduled to star in a show produced by Horace Hardwick (Edward Everett Horton) in London. Fashion designer Alberto Beddini (Erik Rhodes) has hired lovely Dale Tremont (Ginger Rogers) as a sort of social mannequin to show off his gowns. Jerry and Dale meet and Jerry is immediately smitten. Horace’s wife Madge (Helen Broderick) is in Venice and wants to try her hand at a little matchmaking. The sparks fly when Dale mistakes Jerry for Madge’s husband and the two arrive in Venice.

“Cheek to Cheek”

The silly comedy of errors is a structure on which to hang some glorious dancing, art deco sets, gorgeous gowns, and snappy dialogue. Most of the cast of The Gay Divorcee comes back and is funnier than ever. I particularly like Erik Rhodes’s conceited Beddini, who always refers to himself in the third person.

Fred Astaire was Irving Berlin’s favorite interpreter of his songs and he sings plenty of them here. “Cheek to Cheek” is the standard coming from this film but I have a huge soft spot for “Isn’t This a Lovely Day”. The dance to that one, in which Rogers starts out by mimicking Astaire’s movements, is the essence of joy. In my view, a practically perfect picture.

“Isn’t This a Lovely Day”

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Posted in 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die, 1935

Being John Malkovich (1999)

Posted on May 7, 2013 | 8 comments

Being John Malkovich
Directed by Spike Jonze
1999/USA
Gramercy Pictures/Propaganda Films/Single Cell Pictures
First viewing
#961 of 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die
IMDb users say 7.8/10; I say 7.0/10

[box] Craig Schwartz (in John Malkovich): You see, Maxine, it isn’t just playing with dolls.

Maxine: You’re right, my darling, it’s so much more. It’s playing with people![/box]

This was a well made picture but it just wasn’t for me. Puppeteer Craig Schwartz (John Cusak) lives a vaguely eccentric but unexciting life with his wife Lotte (an unrecognizable Cameron Diaz) and a menagerie of animals. Craig starts work at a strange company owned by Dr. Lester (Orson Bean) and located on the 7 1/2 floor of an office building where the ceilings are about four feet high.

While working there, Craig becomes infatuated with Maxine (Catherine Keener), who is definitely not interested. Then Craig discovers a portal that will take anyone into the mind of actor John Malkovich for 15 minutes. Craig and Maxine parlay this into a paying business but the enterprise doesn’t last long after Lotte discovers she can’t get enough of being inside the actor, especially when he is inside of Maxine. Craig finds a way to win Maxine and fulfill his ambitions, while Lotte bides her time.

I must start out by saying that I would pay money not to spend any time in another person’s head, so the concept of the film was not too intriguing to me. I have to admit the story was very inventive, with oddball characters and situations at every turn, but I kept having the feeling that it was a big joke on the audience. I hate movies that laugh at me. After watching the supplements on the Blu-Ray, I feel I may have a better handle on what the film makers were possibly trying to communicate about celebrity and escapism. The most reassuring point was in the interview with Malkovich in which he said that Generation Xers tend to respond to the movie while baby boomers (me) do not.

I was very impressed by the acting in this film, especially that of John Malkovich, who was required to play several different parts while also playing himself. Everybody else was also very good. I like John Cusak in almost everything he is in. The music was nice.