Old Movies: Revisited

[Small White Car]

A month or so back there was a thread here about old movies and if people liked them. I admitted to not really liking anything before 1980 in that thread and didn't think much of it.

Later, I was talking about it with my wife and she said: "Uhm, what's your favorite musical?"

Oh my god!
Mary Frick'n Poppins came out in 1964!

It's alright, little birdie. He didn't mean to forget us.​

How could I have missed that? I also still enjoy The Cat From Outer Space (1978), Batman (1966), and all the Looney Tunes cartoons from the 40's and 50's.

How did I forget about these? I'm not sure. And what's going on here? Hmmm...they're all films made for children.

I think, primarily, my aversion to old films is that the pacing is so much slower than modern films which are made for our ever-dumbing society. Children's movies have never had that problem since they were always trying to keep the attention of attention-wandering young minds.

So what I'm saying, I guess, is that I'm a moron, but I felt the need to correct the record. But I don't know if it's just me...Snow White is still amazingly watchable. How many other films from 1937 hold that honor in your mind?

So I guess I'll ask, do you find it easier to watch old children's films than old regular films?

 

[Goliath]

Not me. I'm a big fan of film noir from the 40s and 50s.

I have...uh...

*Counts*

Jesus Christ, I have over a hundred of them in my DVD collection!

Not all of them are classics, by any means, and I've only watched a lot of them once, so far. But I find the best of them are endlessly re-watchable.

Other genres from that period, though--not so much. There's something (or rather, many things) about film noir in particular that I like a lot.

 

[Harvey]

I would agree with Camelopard about classic film noir, though I'm younger and haven't seen (nor own) nearly as many titles. One day.

My favorite decade when it comes to American cinema is the 1970s, which despite being known as "New" Hollywood seems to be pretty old these days. There's something about the aesthetic of the period and the weaker grip of studio control that allows to me enjoy just about anything produced then.

 

[Jetfire]

3 Classics...

Blood And Sand
Gilda
& Covergirl

 

[Zachary Smith]

Old films = "slow pacing", huh? Try 1940's "His Girl Friday"
It's free on Hulu.

Try "Duck Soup" from 1933

"Frankenstein" from1931 is only 70 minutes long!

Nothing "slow paced" in any of these babies. BRILLIANT movies, the bunch of them.

 

[Small White Car]

Old films = "slow pacing", huh? Try 1940's "His Girl Friday"
It's free on Hulu.

Try "Duck Soup" from 1933

"Frankenstein" from1931 is only 70 minutes long!

Nothing "slow paced" in any of these babies. BRILLIANT movies, the bunch of them.

I'm probably remembering 'Thunderball' most of all when I said that. I'm willing to give anything else a try!

 

[Mistral]

Old films = "slow pacing", huh? Try 1940's "His Girl Friday"
It's free on Hulu.

Dang, beat me to it. Topper is another fine old flick. And Henry Fonda in Mr. Roberts . Really, there are many great old movies-you just have to sample a few to find what appeals. As for the kids movies-they tend to hold up even better because kids don't really change from one generation to the next-only their toys are different. The themes of learning about the world remain constant.

 

[Goliath]

Gilda

Ahh, Gilda--the movie with the best one-word line ever:

"Me?"

 

[Jetfire]

Gilda

Ahh, Gilda--the movie with the best one-word line ever:

"Me?"

 

[The Boy Who Cried Worf]

I generally prefer films made after the demise of the Hays Code as well, but there are a few older films that rank as my favorite.

Bridge on the River Kwai(1957)- Just an amazing look into the psychology or war, its participants, and what length devotion to duty can lead you to.. Guinness and Hayakawa are amazing. And one of the great movie lines ever, "Madness! MADNESS!".

Manchurian Candidate(1962)- Very daring for its day. An interesting message that the Right was a paranoid danger to the country and that the Left was an international menace seeking world domination. And is that implied incest from Jessica Fletcher!

Treasure of the Sierra Madre(1948) - People remember it for the misquoted line, but this one of the best portraits ever of the madness that the search for gold can lead a man to. Bogart was perfect in the role of the beaten down loser with nothing left to live for.

 

[Zachary Smith]

Gilda

Ahh, Gilda--the movie with the best one-word line ever:

"Me?"

Don't forget the incredible set-up question to that line:

"Gilda? Are you ---"

Anyhow, we ALL know who to blame . . .

They don't build'em like THAT anymore . . . *whew*

 

[sojourner]

1980?!?! But, but, that discounts all of Mel Brookes' good films! All of Clint Eastwood's early works! Heck, 2 out of the 3 best Star Wars films!!! Charlie and the Chocolate Factory! Our Man Flint! Every Connery Bond film! Jaws! Forbidden Planet!

If you can't find any films before 1980 that you like you are doing one of two things. Not looking at the right films or purposely forgetting.

 

[scotpens]

I appreciate any good film from the silent days to the present. Good movies are good movies, and crap is crap.

What I can't figure out is why so many younger people these days dislike musicals. Is it because it's “unrealistic” for characters to break into song and dance? Well, how realistic are today's action flicks, with physically impossible stunts that can only be performed with the assistance of CGI? Or is it because musicals are seen as “gay”? Well . . . they are, but so what?

(And Gene Kelly, one of the greatest stars of American movie musicals, was pretty butch.)

. . . I also still enjoy The Cat From Outer Space (1978), Batman (1966), and all the Looney Tunes cartoons from the 40's and 50's.

How did I forget about these? I'm not sure. And what's going on here? Hmmm...they're all films made for children.

The classic Warner Brothers cartoons of the 1940s through the early ’60s were definitely NOT made for children!

Those cartoons were released to theaters and shown along with the feature films, short subjects, newsreels and trailers. They were made to entertain audiences of all ages, and were full of topical jokes, puns, and other gags that would have gone over the heads of young kids.

The notion that cartoons are strictly for children began in the early 1950s when the movie studios started releasing their old cartoons to television, and cheaply produced limited animation was created to fill the Saturday-morning “kiddie ghetto.” But even some of those “children's” cartoons were pretty hip -- Rocky and Bullwinkle and Beany and Cecil come to mind.

3 Classics...

Blood And Sand
Gilda
& Covergirl

Yes, I see you're a big fan of the incomparably talented and gorgeous Rita Hayworth. You have excellent taste.

 

[Harvey]

I saw Deliverance for the first time today--as terrific as it is terrifying. It could never be made today, given the subject matter and the number of stunts performed by the cast instead of stunt men.

 

[sojourner]

^Nah, they make worse than "Deliverance" for cable television these days, it would be pretty easy to get made. CGI would replace both stuntmen and the actors for some stunts.