It’s a Wonderful Life

Today’s post is from Cynthia at Harrington Library:

 

It’s a Wonderful Life (1946) directed by Frank Capra;  starring James Stewart, Donna Reed, and Lionel Barrymore 

 It’s a Wonderful Life is a film that many of us have seen dozens of times. It is a holiday tradition. The film deserves a fresh look.  The Great Recession gives the story of George Bailey (James Stewart), a selfless small town dreamer in big financial trouble, a fresh resonance.    Look carefully at the secondary characters.  Donna Reed as Mary Hatch Bailey exudes quiet strength with steel behind her softness.  Lionel Barrymore as crafty, manipulative, Henry F. Potter is George Bailey’s great nemesis and a villain you love to hate.  Henry Travers as Clarence sent to help George in his hour of despair provides sweetness and comic relief.  The strong secondary performances are a match for Stewart’s sensitive frustrated portrayal of George Bailey.  Watch it again, it’s a film better than you remember.

Arsenic and Old Lace

Today’s post is from Cynthia at Harrington Library:

Arsenic and Old Lace (1944)  directed by Frank Capra, starring Cary Grant, Priscilla Lane, Josephine Hull, and Peter Lorre

“Insanity doesn’t run in my family…it practically gallops” Mortimer Brewster

It’s Halloween and theater critic and confirmed bachelor Mortimer Brewster (Cary Grant) marries Elaine Harper (Priscilla Lane), the girl next door. Packing for his honeymoon Mortimer is horrified to discover the nature of one of his beloved Aunts’ (Josephine Hull & Jean Adair) charitable activities. The Aunts have been serving elderly bachelors homemade elderberry wine laced with arsenic. The Aunts see their work as permitting the men a peaceful escape from loneliness. Mortimer is concerned about the bodies in the basement. Further complications ensue when Mortimer’s older brother Jonathon (Raymond Massey) arrives with his companion Dr. Einstein (Peter Lorre). The zaniness continues to escalate in this black comedy as Mortimer tries to contain his family. Create a new Halloween tradition and enjoy Arsenic and Old Lace, the original horror spoof.

Immortal Beloved

Today’s post is from Susan at Schimelpfenig Library:

Immortal Beloved (1994) directed by Bernard Rose; starring Gary Oldman, Jeroen Krabbe and Isabella Rosselini.

Usually, I am an audio listener of historical fiction, but I happened to pick up this DVD and it was fabulous!  A letter addressed to “Immortal Beloved” was found among the papers of Ludwig von Beethoven when he died.  This is fact and the letter is currently in a museum.  In the movie, Beethoven’s assistant goes from place to place interviewing the women in the musician’s life in an effort to discover his “Beloved.”  We see by flashback what his life was like from childhood on and it is fascinating.

Of course his wonderful music is played throughout the movie, whether we see the musicians or it’s in the soundtrack.

Oh yes, we do find out who Beethoven’s mysterious “Beloved” is in the movie.

Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired

Today’s post is from Cynthia at Harrington Library:

 

Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired (2008) directed by Marina Zenovich

The main threads of Roman Polanski’s life are well known. Living alone on the streets in Poland after his parents died in the Holocaust.  Polanski’s tragic loss when Sharon Tate, his pregnant wife, was murdered by the Manson family in 1969. In 1977 Polanksi was arrested and tried for unlawful intercourse with a minor. He was also charged with supplying her with drink and drugs. Later Polanski fled the country to avoid prison and continues in exile to this day. The 1977 arrest and trial are the focus of this well structured and surprising documentary. Most of the principals appear in the film, including defense attorney Douglas Dalton, former assistant District Attorney Roger Gunson, and Samantha Gailey Geimer, the victim, who’s now middle aged with three children. Polanski appears only in clips from the era and his films. Dalton and Gunson, the attorneys, have not previously spoken publicly on the facts of the trial. The only missing principal is Judge Laurence J. Rittenband.

Make no mistake, what Polanski did was wrong and there is no defense for it. The central question of the documentary is: was justice served by the trial?  The behavior of Judge Rittenband is at best questionable. Both prosecutor Gunson, a straight laced Mormon, and defense attorney Dalton agree that justice was not served. Rittenband broke his word to both attorneys. He was more concerned with his personal reputation than in protecting the reputation and well being of the victim. Rittenbrand inappropriately discussed the case in progress with the press and other outsiders. Polanski met all the demands made by the judge until they became increasingly sketchy. Polanski pled guilty to the charge of unlawful intercourse. He accepted two psychiatric evaluations and then a third for 90 days observation in Chico State Prison. Ultimately Gunson and Dalton together would request Judge Rittenbrand’s removal from the case. Was justice served? Did Rittenbrand play a game of cat and mouse with Polanski? It is up to you to decide.

Good-Bye Mr. Chips

Today’s post is from Cynthia at Harrington Library:

Good-Bye Mr. Chips by James Hilton

Arthur Chippings comes to Brookfield, an English school for boys, as a young school master. Over the course of fifty years, Chips becomes devoted to his profession and his boys. Chips’ life is viewed in brief vignettes, each one illuminating his character. Hilton’s sentimental novella of an ordinary life well lived is a well written character study. If you are in the mood, visit this charming book.

Good-Bye Mr. Chips has also been made into several films versions, including one version with Robert Donat and Greer Garson, which is the best known version.

Pushing Daisies

Today’s post is from Cynthia at Harrington Library:

 

Pushing Daisies  starring Lee Pace, Anna Friel, Kristin Chenoweth, and Chi McBride

Pushing Daisies is the most original television show in a long time.  The eye popping color of the fantasy world of the denizens of The Pie Hole along with the excellent casting and writing of the show and complimented by Jim Dale’s narration create a unique world you will enjoy visiting. The premise of this black comedy is that Ned (Lee Pace), a gifted baker, who runs The Pie Hole also has another unusual gift, with a touch, he can bring the dead back to life. Ned’s problem? His gift does not come with a rule book and he has learned the limits of his gift by heartbreaking experience. Ned has been supplementing his income from The Pie Hole by helping Emerson Cod (Chi McBride) a private investigator solve murders. Ned’s life becomes hopelessly complicated when one of Emerson’s murder victims turns out to be Charlotte “Chuck” Church (Anna Friel). Chuck is Ned’s childhood sweetheart and when he brings her back to life he knows that to keep her alive he must never touch her again. Ned’s need to sacrifice his love to keep Chuck alive is the underlying force behind the series.

Curl up with a piece of pie and give this Emmy award winning comedy series a try.

Mad Men: Seasons One and Two

Today’s post is from Karen at Haggard Library:

Mad Men: Seasons One and Two (2007, 2008) Created by Matthew Weiner; starring Jon Hamm, Elizabeth Moss, and Vincent Kartheiser

Award-winning drama about the world of Madison Avenue advertising in the early 1960s. The series follows the life of the talented and charming Don Draper, who has not a few skeletons in his closet. The show features a slew of fascinating characters: Peggy Olson, the prim, proper and secretly ambitious secretary, Betty Draper, the trapped and unfulfilled housewife, and Pete Campbell, the ambitious young account executive.

It might not sound like much from the outset, but watch the first two seasons and see if you don’t become completely engrossed! The show has everything: excellent actors, great writing, fascinating characters, and intriguing story lines that will shock you, leave you guessing…and wanting more!

Season Three premiered August 16 on AMC.

Reclaiming the Blade

Today’s post is from Amanda, a patron at Harrington Library:

Reclaiming the Blade (2009); written and directed by Daniel McNicoll

En garde! Fencer’s Ready? Fence!

Swords are everywhere from King Arthur to Star Wars to The Pirates of the Caribbean. We see them in paintings and in statues. They are the tools of vigilantes from Zorro to Robin Hood to the Scarlet Pimpernel. In fact the Metropolitan Museum of Art has a large exhibit of swords.

Why are we so interested in swords and swordplay? That’s a topic covered in this short documentary that features Viggo Mortenson (Lord of the Rings), Karl Urban, and Bob Anderson, the master of stage combat. The documentary explores European and Asian sword fighting and discusses stage combat and the lost art of making swords. You will find out who the real person under Darth Vader’s mask is during those light sabre scenes!

Oh, and just so you know, when you get to the section on fencing, everyone knows the Épée is the superior weapon!

The Freshman

Today’s post is from Cynthia at Harrington Library:

The Freshman (1990) directed by Andrew Bergman, starring Marlon Brando, Bruno Kirby, and Matthew Broderick

 Clark Kellog (Mathew Broderick) starts on the adventure of his life when he goes to New York to attend film school. Arriving in New York, Kellog is fleeced of all his money and property by a small time crook (Bruno Kirby).  To get cash for his textbooks Kellog agrees to pick up a package for Carmine Sabatini (Marlon Brando) the head of an import/export family. Kellog assumes the package is contraband, but is unprepared for the actual contents. The package is unexpectedly difficult to deliver to the “gourmet club” which is the ultimate destination. Brando’s deadpan parody of his most famous Don Corleone role is comic genius. The climactic scene where wealthy people enjoy an unusual feast as Bert Parks serenades them is unlike any other. This offbeat comedy where nothing is predictable is just the pick me up for a hot summer’s evening.

Cranford

Today’s post is from Cecily at Haggard Library:

 Cranford (2008) directed by Simon Curtis and Steve Hudson

Set in England in 1842, the story of Cranford is one of a small market town that is dominated by an intricate network of single ladies.  Spinster sisters Deborah and Mattie Jenkins lead the gaggle of lace-clad gossipers in determining correct social rules and mores, and hold that their small town is the only place where people know the right way to do things.  Yet change is on its way.  The handsome, young Doctor Jenkins arrives in town and sets hearts aflutter, a retired Captain and his daughters move in across the street, and, worst of all, the railroad is inching closer with each day that goes by.

This film adaptation is based on three separate novels by Elizabeth Gaskell, and is a charming story with an ensemble cast that represents the best of BBC period pieces, such as Judi Dench, Michael Gambon, and Imelda Staunton.  It touches on the staggering changes that came to England in the mid-19th century on the heels of the industrial revolution, questions of class and equality of the sexes, and above all themes of love lost and found and the sweetness of friendship.  If you like “bonnet movies,” such as those based on the novels of Jane Austen, this a must-see.  Other adaptations of Elizabeth Gaskell’s novels include North and South and Wives and Daughters.