More ways to waste time

The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone (1961) - Original Trailer





Based on the novel by Tennessee Williams, starring Vivien Leigh, Warren Beatty, Coral Browne, Lotte Lenya, and Jill St. John.

The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone (1961) tells the tale of a fading American actress (played by a Pierre Balmain clad Vivien Leigh) who, en route to Rome, unexpectedly becomes a very rich American widow. Adrift and afraid, she decides to stay in the Eternal City. Where, against her better judgement, she takes a lover (Beatty). A lover who is bought and paid for.





Images from DVDBeaver

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More ways to waste time

It would be a crime not to explore the wealth that is Australian cinema. Each decade Australia manages to produce some of the most memorable films of the period (unfortunately the same cannot be said for its music). Along with the internationally well known Mad Max (1979) and the relatively little known, but highly acclaimed, Storm Boy (1976) these were the stars of the 70s:


Picnic at Hanging Rock (1975)


Sunday Too Far Away (1975)


The Chant Of Jimmie Blacksmith (1978)


My Brilliant Career (1979)


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The mononym

Capucine

In our house there was a rumor that Capucine had once been male. After a while, true or not, it became accepted as fact. It seemed the most logical way to explain away such perfection. And, she was perfect.

Men look at me like I'm a suspicious-looking trunk, and they're customs agents.





Walk on the Wild Side (1962) - Capucine in her role as the disillusioned prostitute, Hallie Gerard, with Barbara Stanwyck as her Madam, Jo Courtney.





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More ways to waste time

The Lady Eve (1941)




Henry Fonda and Barbara Stanwyck


The Lady Eve, co-written and directed by Preston Sturges. With Barbara Stanwyck, Henry Fonda, Charles Coburn, Eugene Pallette, and William Demarest. Everything a film should be - snappy lines, great costumes, fabulous sets, and most importantly entertaining. La Stanwyck is at her absolute loveliest.

In short, it is about a lady cardsharp who tries to con an eccentric scientist only to end up falling for him.




The good girls are never as good as they seem to be, and the bad ones never as bad.

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More ways to waste time

The Servant (1963)

Based on the short story by Robin Maugham, with screenplay written by Harold Pinter (1930 - 2008). Directed by Joseph Losey. Staring Dirk Bogarde, Sarah Miles, Wendy Craig, James Fox, and Catherine Lacey.

It is rare to find a film which is both elegant and tough; corrosive yet compassionate; visually exciting and yet meaningful; brilliant and profound. Rarer still is the film which deals with moral problems on any but a superficial level. And that is why The Servant is a masterpiece. - Alexander Walker, the noted Evening Standard film critic.




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More ways to waste time

Imitation of Life was the popular 1933 novel by Fannie Hurst, which was adapted into two successful films for Universal Pictures: a black-and-white film in 1934, and a colour remake in 1959.

Universal Studios, in their infinite wisdom, has both films available as a set. On the the list of must see films, both of these should be near the top.


Imitation of Life (1934)

In this Academy Award-nominated Best Picture, Claudette Colbert and Louise Beavers are superb as two women with young daughters who build a fortune together. But success doesn't save them from sorrow with the passing years.
Delilah's light-skinned teenager rejects her mother and her race, while Bea must choose between the man she loves and the daughter who loves him, too. Now all of them will pay the price of love in this spellbinding classic.



Imitation of Life (1934)





Imitation of Life (1959)

Lana Turner heads the outstanding cast with Juanita Moore in the second screen version of this emotionally-charged story about two widows and their troubled daughters.




Imitation of Life (1959) title sequence with Earl Grant singing.




Miss Mahalia Jackson sings Trouble of the World. This alone should be enough to recommend this film.


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Federico Fellini's 1983 film, And the Ship Sails On.

Simply put, a moving film, in part, about the loss of one's place in a changing world. Though the loss is mourned, it is accepted and adapted to without sentimentality.

Malice in wonderland

Sunset Boulevard

The whole place seemed to have been stricken with a kind of creeping paralysis - out of beat with the rest of the world, crumbling apart in slow motion.



Before I got distracted by The Boys in the Band news and Mr. Pearl, I wanted to highlight the 1950 classic Sunset Boulevard. Undoubtedly one of the finest examples of American film noir. Directed and co-written by Billy Wilder, it stars Gloria Swanson, William Holden, and Erich von Stroheim.

While some are amazed by what others haven't read, I am more amazed by what others haven't seen.


Praised by many critics when first released, Sunset Boulevard was nominated for eleven Academy Awards and won three. It is widely accepted as a classic, often cited as one of the most noteworthy films of American cinema. Deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" by the U.S. Library of Congress in 1989, Sunset Boulevard was included in the first group of films selected for preservation in the National Film Registry.


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Now, prop up your books incase of intruders...

The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie starring Maggie Smith, with Pamela Franklin as the ungrateful treacherous little bitch Sandy.















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