tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5030627662498151745.post7708497975195299459..comments2023-12-26T05:26:08.512-05:00Comments on The Cinematic Spectacle: 1953 CinSpec AwardsJoshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08596682195753811295noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5030627662498151745.post-46021103448139484232014-09-17T00:10:38.558-04:002014-09-17T00:10:38.558-04:00Oh, that would've been interesting. Monroe cou...Oh, that would've been interesting. Monroe could've done very well in noir. Still, she did have some great roles after Niagara.<br /><br />I agree on Grahame, who gives probably her best performance in The Big Heat.Joshhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08596682195753811295noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5030627662498151745.post-39433917100206330552014-09-12T14:06:03.679-04:002014-09-12T14:06:03.679-04:00Intriguing fact about the role of Debbie in Big He...Intriguing fact about the role of Debbie in Big Heat. Lang had initially requested Marilyn Monroe for it having worked with her in Clash by Night. She had moved quite a bit forward in the year between that and the pre-production of this and Cohn wouldn't pay what Zanuck wanted for her. Clash ended up being her last loan out.<br /><br />Had she done this along with Niagara it makes you wonder what direction her career might have moved in. Niagara shows that she was suited to noir, perhaps she would have been happier in those roles since they required a different type of persona than she developed. <br /><br />I can't imagine anyone being better in the part than Gloria Grahame but it's a fascinating could have been.joel65913https://www.blogger.com/profile/14526657073681774683noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5030627662498151745.post-2026184882671032472014-08-26T00:52:26.899-04:002014-08-26T00:52:26.899-04:00Awesome picks! From Here to Eternity used to be my...Awesome picks! From Here to Eternity used to be my Best Picture winner too. In fact, all 5 of my nominees I watched only days before posting my ballot. This year did turn out to be very good, as films like Wages and Pickup are two of my all-time favorites now.<br /><br />I love that you give Grahame the win in lead, but I've just never seen her character as the true lead/co-lead. To me, all of the ladies are supporting in The Big Heat. I was very close to giving Ryan the win as well, but I went with Sinatra, since I already gave Ryan a win for Crossfire. Ritter is my Supporting Actress runner-up, but Reed is right behind at #3.Joshhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08596682195753811295noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5030627662498151745.post-23706922488269752072014-08-25T11:32:40.778-04:002014-08-25T11:32:40.778-04:00As I've been working through these years it st...As I've been working through these years it strikes me how much stronger one year can be versus the preceding or the following one as opposed to just looking at the decade as a whole as I usually do. Of course that's always been so and remains the case but going year by year it stands out. This is a good year especially compared to '52.<br /><br />Picture:<br />From Here to Eternity-Winner<br />The Hitch-Hiker<br />Kiss Me, Kate<br />Pick-up on South Street<br />Wages of Fear<br />Wages, Pick-up and Hitch-Hiker all tell their tense streamlined stories well and Kate is a peak in musical precision but Eternity runs many story threads simultaneously and keeps each compelling.<br /><br />Director:<br />Henri-Georges Clouzet-Wages of Fear-Winner<br />Sam Fuller-Pick-up on South Street<br />Ida Lupino-The Hitch-Hiker<br />George Sidney-Kiss Me, Kate<br />Fred Zinneman-From Here to Eternity<br />Five great pieces of work. Zinneman juggles many stories expertly. Pick-up and Hitch-Hiker are Fuller and Lupino's most adroit directorial efforts while Sidney pulls together all the skills and resources at his disposal to make a near perfect version of the stage hit but Clouzet created a relentlessly nerve jangling pulse pounder that never lets up until it finale. That's nearly impossible to do so while I think the scope of Eternity is greater the direction of Wages is tighter.<br /><br />Actor:<br />Montgomery Clift-From Here to Eternity-Winner<br />Alec Guinness-The Captain's Paradise<br />Edmond O'Brien-The Hitch-Hiker<br />Spencer Tracy-The Actress<br />Richard Widmark-Pick-up on South Street<br />In a film filled with assured performances Clift blows them all away and everyone else in his field. Only Widmark is close to his degree of skill.<br /><br />Actress:<br />Gloria Grahame-The Big Heat-Winner<br />Susan Hayward-The President's Lady<br />Audrey Hepburn-Roman Holiday<br />Marilyn Monroe-Gentlemen Prefer Blondes<br />Jean Simmons-The Actress<br />Hepburn is a gossamer pixie surely scoring points for being the new kid on the block but she was better elsewhere. MM is a comic genius in Blondes and Simmons a charmer in her gentle tale. The President's Lady is my favorite Hayward performance. Famed as the inheriter of the Davis/Crawford go big or go home style roles her subdued, tender work as Rachel Jackson shows that her talents were more varied than her reputation suggests, she's my runner up. I saw you had Grahame in supporting but to me that position is held by Jocelyn Brando & Jeannette Nolan in Big Heat and Grahame's work is the best by any actress this year.<br /><br />Supporting Actor:<br />Brandon de Wilde-Shane<br />Frank Lovejoy-The Hitch-Hiker<br />Tommy Noonan-Gentleman Prefer Blondes<br />Robert Ryan-The Naked Spur-Winner<br />Frank Sinatra-From Here to Eternity<br />Sinatra is excellent in Eternity but I don't know if anybody can best Ryan at his most manipulative, it's a close call but I chose Ryan. The performance I find the most enjoyable and one that's usually ignored in favor of the dymanic duo in the leads is Noonan's clever reading of the snook in Blondes. Rather than playing him like an idiot but instead with a lovelorn naivete he seems more ardent suitor than foolish pigeon.<br /><br />Supporting Actress:<br />Kay Kendall-Genevieve<br />Jeanette Nolan-The Big Heat<br />Donna Reed-From Here to Eternity-Winner<br />Thelma Ritter-Pick-up on South Street<br />Jane Russell-Gentlemen Prefer Blondes<br />If the lead in Blondes had been played by anyone but MM Jane Russell's Dorothy would have stolen the picture right from under her nose, she's a total delight. Equally splendid is the enchanting Kay Kendall in the part that brought her to prominence in her regrettably short career and Nolan's Lady MacBeth act is a viperish triumph. But it came down to Donna Reed's silk & sandpaper Alma and Thelma Ritter's played out Moe. Both were deserving but since I chose Thelma previously I'm going with Donna for Eternity.joel65913https://www.blogger.com/profile/14526657073681774683noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5030627662498151745.post-28187321480176630252014-04-01T15:19:36.985-04:002014-04-01T15:19:36.985-04:00Yay! It was my pick for Best Picture until I saw m...Yay! It was my pick for Best Picture until I saw more releases from '53, so I hope you enjoy it.Joshhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08596682195753811295noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5030627662498151745.post-63450465782019252712014-04-01T11:53:27.300-04:002014-04-01T11:53:27.300-04:00Wow really? Now I've got to see FHTE just for ...Wow really? Now I've got to see FHTE just for that! Thanks Josh.ruthhttp://flixchatter.netnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5030627662498151745.post-80800833651564959372014-04-01T00:16:38.361-04:002014-04-01T00:16:38.361-04:00That just means you have even MORE great films to ...That just means you have even MORE great films to watch! :D Sinatra won a deserved Oscar for that film. Hope you get to check it out.Joshhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08596682195753811295noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5030627662498151745.post-88345411235443630492014-03-31T13:18:04.952-04:002014-03-31T13:18:04.952-04:00Heh, another year I missed out on as I haven't...Heh, another year I missed out on as I haven't seen a single film here. I didn't even know Sinatra was in From Here to Eternity! That's one on my still-to-watch list :Druthhttp://flixchatter.netnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5030627662498151745.post-30782372556175935232014-03-28T11:53:10.755-04:002014-03-28T11:53:10.755-04:00Glad you love those picks! The Naked Spur is the f...Glad you love those picks! The Naked Spur is the first Mann western I've seen, so I've got some catching up to do. :)Joshhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08596682195753811295noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5030627662498151745.post-87270284273153632492014-03-28T04:34:56.616-04:002014-03-28T04:34:56.616-04:00Love Wages of Fear for best pic, and nominations f...Love Wages of Fear for best pic, and nominations for Naked Spur. <br />A pity the Anthony Mann/James Stewart westerns tend to get overlooked, because they really are classics of the genre, especially "The Naked Spur" "Winchester 73" and "The Man from Laramie ". Chrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09395044055566348346noreply@blogger.com