Movies I Watched in May

I love the packaging of this set (except for the fact that there's a picture of Carole and Clark Gable on the back and on the menu for Hands Across the Table when it's supposed to be Fred MacMurray).

This month I finally pulled out my Carole Lombard Glamour Collection dvd set and watched the four films on it that I hadn't yet seen. I've had it for over two years but kept putting off watching any of the films because I felt that if I did I would have to write a blog post on it. Believe me, I put off watching movies I really want to see for this reason all the time. But I was in the mood for some Carole so I just went ahead and watched it.

I also caught quite a bit of Clark Gable, who is TCM's Star of the Month, as well as his frequent co-star Joan Crawford. I definitely got a little misty eyed watching the documentary Clark Gable: Tall, Dark, and Handsome.

Another thing I accomplished was to finally watch the entire Back to the Future trilogy. Before this month I had only seen the end of the first one and the entire third one (three times). I am now working my way through the hours of special features included on the 40th anniversary Blu-ray set.

1. Laughing Sinners (1931) - Clark Gable & Joan Crawford
2. Possessed (1931) - Clark Gable & Joan Crawford
3. Chained (1934) - Clark Gable & Joan Crawford
4. We're Not Dressing (1934) - Carole Lombard & Bing Crosby, George Burns & Gracie Allen
5. Hands Across the Table (1935) - Carole Lombard & Fred MacMurray, Ralph Bellamy
6. After Office Hours (1935) - Clark Gable & Constance Bennett, Billie Burke
7. The Girl from 10th Avenue (1935) - Bette Davis & Ian Hunter
8. The Golden Arrow (1936) - Bette Davis & George Brent
9. The Princess Comes Across (1936) - Carole Lombard & Fred MacMurray, William Frawley 
10. Love Before Breakfast (1936) - Carole Lombard, Cesar Romero
11. And So They Were Married (1936) - Melvyn Douglas & Mary Astor
12. Cain and Mabel (1936) - Clark Gable & Marion Davies (my first of her films)
13. Varsity Show (1937) - Dick Powell, Priscilla & Rosemary Lane
14. Lucky Night (1939) - Myrna Loy & Robert Taylor
15. Strange Cargo (1940) - Clark Gable & Joan Crawford, Ian Hunter, Peter Lorre
16. Happy Land (1943) - Don Ameche, Harry Carey, Frances Dee
17. Adventure (1945) - Clark Gable & Greer Garson, Thomas Mitchell, Joan Blondell
18. Miranda (1948) - Glynis Johns, Margaret Rutherford
19. Pinky (1949) - Jeanne Crain, Ethel Waters, Ethel Barrymore 
20. Above and Beyond (1952) - Robert Taylor & Eleanor Parker
21. Mad About Men (1954) - Glynis Johns, Margaret Rutherford
22. *Smokey and the Bandit (1977) - Burt Reynolds & Sally Fields, Jackie Gleason (in theaters!!)
23. Back to the Future (1985) - Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd
24. Honey, I Shrunk the Kids (1989) - Rick Moranis
25. Back to the Future Part II (1989) - Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd
26. *Back to the Future Part III (1990) - Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd
27. *Sleepless in Seattle (1993) - Meg Ryan & Tom Hanks, Rosie O'Donnell
28. Ransom (1996) - Mel Gibson, Gary Sinise
29. Just My Luck (2006) - Lindsey Lohan & Chris Pine
30. *This Means War (2012) - Reese Witherspoon, Chris Pine, Tom Hardy 
31. Hell or High Water (2016) - Jeff Bridges, Chris Pine, Ben Foster

Favorite Film of the month: I watched a lot of great films this month but I have to say seeing Smokey and the Bandit on the big screen was a blast. I also really enjoyed Hands Across the Table.

Least favorite film: Although I love Carole Lombard, I'm going to have to say Love Before Breakfast. The Carole I know would not have put up with Preston Foster, whose character in the movie is a huge jerk. I'm pretty sure I had a look of disgust on my face whenever he showed up. Carole is gorgeous though and the Pekinese he gives her is absolutely the cutest thing ever (according to Carole and Co. it was Carole's best-known pet, Pushface).

Crawford's Clothes Closet

When Lucille LeSueur became Joan Crawford and burst onto the Hollywood scene, she immediately became a fashion sensation. When she appeared in that famous ruffled white dress in Letty Lynton, designed by Adrian, millions of copies were sold in clothing stores across the country (500,000 were sold by Macy's as soon as it hit the shelves). Crawford quickly put together her trademark look: bold brows, a wide smear of lipstick, and shoulder pads, setting a trend to over a decade.

Any actress who appears in public without being well-groomed is digging her own grave. ~ Joan Crawford

One of the reasons Crawford had to always look like a Movie Star when she went out was because she had some figure flaws. Her shoulders were much wider than her hips and the shoulder pads were able to hide that fact by highlighting them, so one's attention was brought to them on purpose. She also heavily relied on makeup to shape the contours of her face for the camera, and to hide her freckles.

A retouched photo of Crawford next to the original, circa BB (Before the Brows).

This photo really shows the difference between her hips and shoulder.

How cute are those wedges?!

In order to look like a movie star, Crawford had to dress like a movie star. She was obsessed with clothes and called them her friends. Therefore they had to be stored carefully. Everything was hung up and covered with plastic to keep them dust free. There were separate closets for hats, handbags, shoes (which were custom made and fabric covered to match each outfit), dresses, suits, and furs.

I look at them and I know that I'm a star.

    

Crawford's love of her clothes could easily be called an obsession. Just look at these astonishing tidbits:

• would change clothes up to 10 times a day
• traveled with around 35 suitcases
• had special wardrobe trunks for her diamonds and earring sets
• owned 16 fur coats at one point
• would have favorite hats copied in 12 different colors
• carried a hip flask of 100-proof vodka with covers made to match her outfits
• would give guests a tour of her closets

And we though this was her only problem!

Source

More money was spent on Crawford's personal wardrobe than on her movie wardrobes, with Adrian protecting her image with the glamorous gowns he designed for her both on and off the screen. And it was money well-spent, as Crawford's image is and always will be recognizable to millions.

Crawford with her luggage

Crawford's Five Fashion Rules:

1. Find your own style and have the courage to stick to it.

2. Choose your clothes for your way of life.

3. Make your wardrobe as versatile as an actress. It should be able to play many roles.

4. Find your happiest colors - the ones that make you feel good.

5. Care for your clothes, like the good friends they are!

Wearing a monogrammed suit at home

A couple more tips:

• Wear bright colors to "give them something to look at."

• "Underdress for a romantic scene, let your face and figure and your expression play the leading roles."

 

This post is part of The Joan Crawford Blogathon hosted by In the Good Old Days of Classic Hollywood. Be sure to read all of the other posts on this legendary (yet obsessive) actress.

Above Suspicion - From Book to Film

People by nature love comparisons. This brand is better than that brand. This tastes better than that.  Originals vs. sequels. Batman vs. Superman. You get the picture ;)

Which one do you like better, honey?

Comparisons especially abound when it comes to movies. Originals, remakes (which I hosted a blogathon on), sequels, trilogies... you name it, we compare it. One of the most controversial of comparisons when it comes to the film world is BOOK vs. MOVIE. In most cases, people will be strongly divided, usually depending on which version they encountered first. If you've read the book first and loved it, you will most likely be disappointed with the movie (though you may come to like it later, just not as much as the book). If you've seen the movie first, chances are the book will be so different it seems like a different story entirely, with only the basic plot and character names intact.

However, in rare cases, you will end up liking one or the other BETTER than the one you read/watched first. This was the case for me with ABOVE SUSPICION.

                  

Book (with film dust jacket) vs. Movie

Above Suspicion is the first book of well-known writer Helen MacInnes. Previously I have read three of her books (Horizon, Message in Malaga, & The Salzburg Connection) and enjoyed them immensely. She is a fantastic writer. Her stories are interesting, full of action and plot twists, and she describes the places and time so well you can imagine that you are actually there. You hear what the character hears, smell what they smell, feel how they feel. You are completely transported to another time and place.

When I learned that her first book, Above Suspicion, had been made into a film starring Fred MacMurray and Joan Crawford, I immediately wanted to see it, but I wanted to read the book first. I recorded the movie to my dvr and checked the book out from my local library. Unfortunately, the book didn't get read and the movie was accidently deleted. So when TCM aired it again I made sure I watched it - I could read the book later.

While the movie was interesting, it didn't quite match my expectations as how a MacInnes novel turned movie should be. Joan Crawford was extremely unbelievable as a newlywed (maybe if the film had been made in the 1930s or if this had been my very first Crawford film). She's the typical "wife wanting to help her husband," though with Crawford you would think it would be the other way around with MacMurray helping her. It is only near the end of the film, when Crawford must disguise herself as an elderly woman in order to leave Nazi Germany that she is more in her element. There are others who agree with me and of course those who think otherwise...

What the critics said:

Variety: Both MacMurray and Miss Crawford completely handled their roles, despite drawbacks of script material.  

New York Times: Joan Crawford...is a very convincing heroine.

Critic Howard Barnes for The New York Herald Tribune: There are so many floral, musical and cryptographical passwords in the film's plot that the whole show becomes a sort of super treasure hunt... Unfortunately, neither Joan Crawford nor Fred MacMurray looks quite bright enough to unravel the tangled skeins of this screen melodrama.

But I am getting ahead of myself. Here is the story in a nutshell: Set in the tension filled year 1939, A married couple takes their annual trip abroad/honeymoon. Because they are "above suspicion" they are asked to do a job for the secret service - locate a missing scientist by following a chain of contacts to ensure he is still alive.

The red rose hat, to help the next contact recognize them. Conrad Veidt (standing in back) died a few weeks after filming wrapped.

The book, a best seller, was loosely based on the life experiences of MacInnes and her husband, who served with the British Intelligence Center. While on their trips around Europe, MacInnes would write down her observations as well as predictions on Nazi activities based on what she read in the newspapers. It was her husband who encouraged her to turn it into a book.

 

MacInnes went on to write 22 more novels, nearly all successes due to the painstaking research that went into each one, combined with her own personal experiences. Three more of them were made into films: Assignment in Brittany (1943) starring Jean-Pierre Aumont and Susan Peters, The Venetian Affair (1967) starring Robert Vaughn and Elke Sommer, and The Salzburg Connection (1972) starring Barry Newman and Anna Karina.

 

I did not get a chance to finish the book unfortunately - it's been incredible busy recently - but I think Hollywood stuck pretty close to the book, just condensed. With the book the suspense can be built up more slowly and in more detail, which is something I like, if it's written well and her books always are. I think the main problem with the film for me is simply the casting. MacMurray is fine but someone a little more... helpless, but not too helpless, would have been a better fit than Crawford.

        

Crawford knitting behind-the-scenes and a patriotic "V for Victory" publicity photo.

To read a more in-depth post on the film, check out this great post from Silver Scenes. Here's a great little post about the book.

This post is part of the Beyond the Cover: Books to Film Blogathon hosted by Now Voyaging and Speakeasy. Be sure to read all of the other posts!

Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Final Recap