What Was The Last Movie You Watched?

[Fading Fast]

I never got a Columbo or bumbling vibe off of Robinson's Keyes -- merely that he is whip-smart, as you say, and utterly dedicated to his work. You can't imagine him having a wife and kids, for example (and that lack might be why he takes Walter, MacMurray's character, under his wing).

I've mentioned before that after this film, Robinson got in touch with James M. Cain, the author of the novel, and asked him to write another story -- maybe a novel, maybe a screenplay -- featuring Keyes. Now that would have been something!

Fair point on the bumbling, but I've always felt that Robinson as Keyes intentionally plays down how smart he is / acts like he's not on to something when he is - in a Colombo-like fashion - and that he uses that "innocence" to make people not worried he's on to them and, thus, willing to give him more information than is in their best interest (like Columbo does).

Robinson, clearly, knew he had captured lightening in a bottle with the Keyes' role and was smart to go to Cain. I still need to read "Double Indemnity." I read Cain's "Mildred Pierce" last year and thoroughly enjoyed it.

 

[LizzieMaine]

And another great character role for Edward G. Robinson. I too happened across the film last Saturday night, and started to say, "Robinson was miscast" -- but then he appeared next to Vincent Price as the Master Builder, and I found him as believable a sycophant as any mini-tyrant could ever want. The same actor who was parodied as Little Caesar could also play an ancient Egyptian, a milquetoast husband, and a college professor, and do them all superbly.

That role was important to Robinson in that it signalled to Hollywood that he was officially off the blacklist: when C. B. DeMille, one of the pillars of the Hollywood Right hired him, it told other producers that Robinson was now politically acceptable to work on the American screen. But his career never fully recovered from the tarring it took from HUAC, or from the humiliating public groveling he'd had to do in order to return to the industry's good graces.

Which is a pity because he was one of the most talented performers of his generation, and the kind of actor who relished the chance to break away from his familiar persona. I greatly regret that he didn't get the chance to play Dr. Zaius, as originally planned, in "Planet of the Apes," because as good as Maurice Evans was, Robinson would have done it better.

 

[Worf]

It is a well-beloved movie for many. I know I thoroughly enjoy it. Is it melodramatic? Perhaps. But it's an epic in so many ways - from the locations (Egypt) to the extras (a cast of thousands) to the costumes. The story itself is incredibly dramatic, as well.

http://www.vox.com/culture/2017/4/15/15243480/ten-commandments-movie-of-week-passover-easter

Well... only because it's from YOU... I read the article. Makes sense to some I suppose. I watched it as a kid too but I saw it recently as an adult and found it un-watchable. Stodgy, stiff, overly dramatic and completely devoid of heart. Heston provides more honest emotion in 1 minute of "Ben Hur" than all of "The Ten Commandments". Hell, I prefer DeMille's "Samson and Delilah" to this thing, it never fails to raise a tear. And George Sanders tearing up the scenery as the "Saran" and Samson's sworn enemy is cheap at twice the price. But to each their own. Glad you had a good time.

Worf

 

[Doctor Strange]

Gotta say, growing up Jewish in the sixties, The Ten Commandments was essentially the only religious epic we had. Samson and Delilah didn't get big roadshow re-releases, Huston's The Bible is a bit of a misfire, and the assorted little films about David, Solomon, Ruth, Esther, etc., don't amount to much.

Is it stolid, old-fashioned (even by fifties standards), overlong and overcooked, too melodramatic? Yes! But the costumes are dazzling, and if Heston's portrayal of Moses isn't anything to write home about, there are all those other folks chewing the scenery - Robinson, Price, Derek, Carradine, Hardwicke, DeCarlo, Anderson, Strode (playing two different characters!), Brynner... and Anne Baxter, whose turned-up-to-eleven Nefretiri is so insanely overheated throughout it's a wonder that she didn't spontaneously combust. And while the much-ballyhooed parting of the Red Sea doesn't live up to the hype these days, the depiction of the plagues - especially the green mist slaying the firstborn while the Hebrews are having their proto-Seder - are memorably done.

It may be nowhere as a good a film as Ben-Hur (De Mille is nowhere near as good a director as Wyler)... but I like it much, much better. And part of that is because while Judah Ben-Hur is a Jewish prince... he's following Jesus by the end of the picture, which is not an ending we in the Jewish community could appreciate!

 

[Fading Fast]

Gotta say, growing up Jewish in the sixties, The Ten Commandments was essentially the only religious epic we had. Samson and Delilah didn't get big roadshow re-releases, Huston's The Bible is a bit of a misfire, and the assorted little films about David, Solomon, Ruth, Esther, etc., don't amount to much.

Is it stolid, old-fashioned (even by fifties standards), overlong and overcooked, too melodramatic? Yes! But the costumes are dazzling, and if Heston's portrayal of Moses isn't anything to write home about, there are all those other folks chewing the scenery - Robinson, Price, Derek, Carradine, Hardwicke, DeCarlo, Anderson, Strode (playing two different characters!), Brynner... and Anne Baxter, whose turned-up-to-eleven Nefretiri is so insanely overheated throughout it's a wonder that she didn't spontaneously combust. And while the much-ballyhooed parting of the Red Sea doesn't live up to the hype these days, the depiction of the plagues - especially the green mist slaying the firstborn while the Hebrews are having their proto-Seder - are memorably done.

It may be nowhere as a good a film as Ben-Hur (De Mille is nowhere near as good a director as Wyler)... but I like it much, much better. And part of that is because while Judah Ben-Hur is a Jewish prince... he's following Jesus by the end of the picture, which is not an ending we in the Jewish community could appreciate!

It's really cool to learn how much our different home environments impacted our impressions of these films growing up. I grew up in a no-religion household with a anti-religion dad (and a few modestly religious distant relatives who diffidently tried, on the one or two times a year I'd see them, to spark an interest), so these films were fun, distant spectacles to me. Depending on how young I was, I didn't even know the basic Judeo-Christian origin stories, so early on, these movies were just stories to me like "Robin Hood," "The Hurricane" (a really good, rarely discussed movie) or "The Hunchback of Notre Dame."

And I watched them by myself on an ancient B&W TV - they weren't "family" or "Easter" events - just another Saturday or Sunday afternoon or evening "old" movie that I loved watching. Without a historical timeline yet in my head, Robin Hood and Ben Hur could have been 100 years apart - it was all fantasy until I learned better. That said, "Ben Hur" was the standout for me of the "Bible stories" as a kid - probably because of the chariot race, but also, its story just seemed more complete and compelling to me than the others. But as a kid, "The Sea Hawk" or "Gunga Din" were more my speed in the epic genre.

As I got into my early teens and began to learn about these religions, these movies would, literally, come back to me as I was in class or reading about them in a book. I'd have "epiphany" moments (as stupid as it seems), "oh, that's (!) who Ponticus Pilot was" / "That's why the parting of the sea meant more than just being a really cool event." I had learned the Hollywood version of Christianity before learning the real one. Now I rarely watch these movies other than twenty minutes snippets here or there because they just never sang to me like so many others that I will watch again and again. But based on the above, I will sit down and watch "The Ten Commandments" the next time I can.

 

[EngProf]

"The Ten Commandments" may not be a great movie, maybe not even a good movie, but like some others here it was something I saw with my parents when I was a kid, so I watch a little bit of it each year and have some good family memories.
I'd call it more "spectacular" than substantive, which I suspect even old CB would admit. (As an adult I marvel at the historical revelation in the movie that the ancient Israelites and Egyptians could communicate easily, since they both spoke perfect English.)

 

[Otter]

That reminds me, I really need to watch The Life of Brian again. "He's not the Messiah, he's a very naughty boy ! "

 

[Zombie_61]

...And while the much-ballyhooed parting of the Red Sea doesn't live up to the hype these days...

I've never seen The Ten Commandments simply because "Biblical epics" aren't my thing, but I should make the time one of these days for one specific reason. One of my English teachers in high school was Mr. Johnson, a short, round, balding man who claimed to have worked as an extra on a number of movies. He said his "claim to fame" was being quite visibly adjacent to Charlton Heston's Moses in The Ten Commandments, leading a mule either into or out of the parted Red Sea (I can't recall which), so I'd like to see if I can spot him.

...Which is a pity because he was one of the most talented performers of his generation, and the kind of actor who relished the chance to break away from his familiar persona. I greatly regret that he didn't get the chance to play Dr. Zaius, as originally planned, in "Planet of the Apes," because as good as Maurice Evans was, Robinson would have done it better.

I agree about Maurice Evans' performance, but would like to have seen what Mr. Robinson would have done with the role. Surely you know this Miss Lizzie but, for anyone who doesn't, Mr. Robinson declined the role because he had heart problems and didn't think he could endure the rigorous daily routine of having the ape makeup applied and then having to wear it and act in it all day.

 

[AmateisGal]

The Dressmaker with Kate Winslet. It's quite a different film - rather quirky in some areas, heart wrenching in others. I enjoyed it immensely.

 

[Doctor Strange]

While We're Young, written/directed by Noah Bumbach. I'm not a fan of all of Bumbach's films, but I really liked this one.

A NYC couple in their mid-40s, Ben Stiller (with his usual schtick tamped WAY down) and Naomi Watts, become friends with much younger married Brooklyn hipsters, Adam Driver and Amanda Seyfried, after they show up at a course Stiller's teaching on documentary filmmaking; Driver's also an aspiring documentarian. Stiller is fascinated by these engaged young folks. Stiller and Watts find themselves rejuvinated doing things with the young couple, living in a more improvisational way, and feeling increasingly out of touch with their contemporaries who are now largely focused on having babies. They help Driver with his latest project and introduce him to Watts' father (Charles Grodin), a more famous/successful documentary maker. But everyone's feelings and motivations are more complicated than they first seemed...

While this story takes place in Bumbach's usual privileged New York world (these same improbably gorgeous/successful characters could easily show up a Woody Allen or Whit Stillman movie), the film's points about relationships, careers, maturity, etc., all ring true. Recommended.

 

[Worf]

Gotta say, growing up Jewish in the sixties, The Ten Commandments was essentially the only religious epic we had. Samson and Delilah didn't get big roadshow re-releases, Huston's The Bible is a bit of a misfire, and the assorted little films about David, Solomon, Ruth, Esther, etc., don't amount to much.

Is it stolid, old-fashioned (even by fifties standards), overlong and overcooked, too melodramatic? Yes! But the costumes are dazzling, and if Heston's portrayal of Moses isn't anything to write home about, there are all those other folks chewing the scenery - Robinson, Price, Derek, Carradine, Hardwicke, DeCarlo, Anderson, Strode (playing two different characters!), Brynner... and Anne Baxter, whose turned-up-to-eleven Nefretiri is so insanely overheated throughout it's a wonder that she didn't spontaneously combust. And while the much-ballyhooed parting of the Red Sea doesn't live up to the hype these days, the depiction of the plagues - especially the green mist slaying the firstborn while the Hebrews are having their proto-Seder - are memorably done.

It may be nowhere as a good a film as Ben-Hur (De Mille is nowhere near as good a director as Wyler)... but I like it much, much better. And part of that is because while Judah Ben-Hur is a Jewish prince... he's following Jesus by the end of the picture, which is not an ending we in the Jewish community could appreciate!

Homer! (In the Baseball FAN sense of the word)

Worf

 

[Doctor Strange]

Just puttin' my POV out there, bro. The Ten Commandments is surely a mess, but it's very entertaining mess that still manages to tell its inspirational story amidst its overkill. I mean, if you really want to see this material botched - precisely because it doesn't go for the lusty bombast and camp of De Mille - check out Ridley Scott's recent Exodus: Gods and Kings.

I'd much rather watch Anne Baxter going, "Moses, Moses, Moses! You impossible, adorable fool!" anytime.

So let it be written. So let it be done.

 

[vitanola]

You could argue that that subtext is even more pronounced in the 1925 silent version, with Ramon Novarro (who actually was gay) and Francis X. Bushman (who wasn't.)

The 1925 version was, I think, a better film in every way, save for the lack of color. The chariot race scene puts the Canutt version to shame, I think.

 

[vitanola]

I mistakenly believed (or rather fervently hoped) that they'd finally stopped showing this turkey. But it seems they showed it on Saturday rather than Sunday, as was the usual time slot. What ARE the ratings for this hunk of junk? Why do they insist on showing it? It's not like it's "The Wizard of Oz" or "It's a Wonderful Life", two annual showings that at least have some cinematic value.

Worf

The "Ten Commandments" is a wonderful film. It's 1923 version is, at least.
No Heston fretting and strutting his hour upon the stage! Rod LaRoque, Richard Dix, Estelle Taylor, and Leatrice Joy are better up to the task, besides which the epic portion occupies only the first third of the film, a much better arrangement than the overblown 1950's turkey.

 

[Benzadmiral]

While We're Young, written/directed by Noah Bumbach. I'm not a fan of all of Bumbach's films, but I really liked this one.

A NYC couple in their mid-40s, Ben Stiller (with his usual schtick tamped WAY down) and Naomi Watts, become friends with much younger married Brooklyn hipsters, Adam Driver and Amanda Seyfried, after they show up at a course Stiller's teaching on documentary filmmaking; Driver's also an aspiring documentarian. Stiller is fascinated by these engaged young folks. Stiller and Watts find themselves rejuvinated doing things with the young couple, living in a more improvisational way, and feeling increasingly out of touch with their contemporaries who are now largely focused on having babies. They help Driver with his latest project and introduce him to Watts' father (Charles Grodin), a more famous/successful documentary maker. But everyone's feelings and motivations are more complicated than they first seemed...

While this story takes place in Bumbach's usual privileged New York world (these same improbably gorgeous/successful characters could easily show up a Woody Allen or Whit Stillman movie), the film's points about relationships, careers, maturity, etc., all ring true. Recommended.

Hard to imagine that Ben Stiller and the gorgeous Naomi Watts are now considered old enough to play characters "rejuvenated" by "young folks." Sounds cool, though.

 

[Julian Shellhammer]

Kubo and the Two Strings - stop motion animated film. Technically extremely well-done, but for me the most fun was the dialogue, full of asides and one-liners, between the Monkey and the Beetle, voiced respectively by Charlize Theron and Matthew McConaughey. From the same company that brought us Boxtrolls, Coraline, et al.

 

[MisterCairo]

With our youngest out at "messy church", my wife and I introduced our ten year-old to Casablanca, the 75th anniversary edition blu-ray. She thoroughly enjoyed it, and expresses interest in the film industry.

 

[green papaya]

THE FIGHTING SEABEE's starring John Wayne

 

[Worf]

"Old Boy" - What a ride and a prime example of great Korean cinema! Rough, rugged and with more twists and turns than the Nurmbenring (sp).

Worf

 

[Doctor Strange]

Tale of Tales - gorgeously shot film of three little-known, but very old fairy tales (from the first-ever fairy tale collection, published in Renaissance Italy). Made in Italy using mostly real locations, in English with an international cast. Fascinating... but this is some pretty strange, disturbing stuff.

DESPITE BEING "FAIRY TALES", THIS FILM IS EMPHATICALLY NOT SUITABLE VIEWING FOR LITTLE KIDS!