Harbottle

Quartet (1948) Delightful film featuring four short stories by W. Somerset Maugham, my favouries being "The Kite" and "The Colonel's Lady".

Wee Sonny MacGregor

I'd agree with that. "Trio" was pretty good also. Somerset Maugham was very popular at one time but Willy seems to have gone completely out of fashion since his death in the mid 1960s.

Harbottle

Trio and Encore in the "to watch" pile [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/tongue.gif[/img] Not seen any of these films for ages so a joy to get hold of them [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/thumbsup.gif[/img]

theuofc

Hi, Harbottle,

Those two segments had great casts with the likes of Mervyn Johns in The Kite and Ernest Thesiger in TCL. Actually all four had some fine actors. The "Alien Corn" segment was only Dirk Bogarde's second or third film depending on how one looks at the release date of several films he made in 1948. It was a good effort and his first brush with playing the piano. His second experience at the piano in "Song Without End" was one he himself says was a torture learning to simulate and partially play Liszt. And he would agree with some viewers that it was a "Song" that truly never seemed to end. All in all, not a happy Hollywood studio experience for him. Moreover, his leading lady, ex-model Capucine, was gorgeous, but she couldn't act.

Best,

Barbara

John Llewellyn Moxey

I am glad you enjoyed the movie. It was a blast to Direct, because of a great script, cast and crew...John

MrDrakesDuck

I love that sequence when WWIII breaks out in the living room. [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/clapping.gif[/img]

"I thought I had to shoot Germans, not chew 'em"

MrDrakesDuck

First time I saw <span style="color:#3366FF">The Ghost Train </span> I thought Askey was insufferable. [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/thumbdown.gif[/img]

Watched again a few years later & thought he was brilliant. [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/laugh.gif[/img]

Arthur must be an acquired taste.

"I thought I had to shoot Germans, not chew 'em"

Steve Crook

The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (1943) on BBC4 as a part of their "War on Film" season this weekend.

Wonderful to see it as always and BBC4 show the film without any nasty DOGs (Digital Onscreen Graphics) identifyling the channel and doesn't stop for ad breaks, even in a film as long as Blimp.

There were a couple of minor blips where the digital signal froze. But generally a very good transmission.

The whole season had a good introduction with a 2 hour documentary. Plenty of good discussion about films made during the war and in the years since. It wasn't just about films with lots of people shooting each other but they also cover other films that are set in the war, like Blimp, and show how the war affects people even if they're not directly involved in the conflict.

A good documentary technique showing a time-line every so often to put everything in context of events happening in the real world as well as various movies made in that year. Lots of clips and examples, including many P&P films. They showed posters and other things from some that they didn't use as examples - like the HMSO booklets from OOOAIM & Silver Fleet. I spotted clips from Lion Has Wings, 49P, Blimp, AMOLAD, BN & Ill Met, some of them very brief in montage sequences.

They had a round-up of the 10 or so "talking heads" that had been interviewed in the documentary, asking them which was their favourite film. Two nominated Blimp & two said AMOLAD.

Now it's time to watch The Colditz Story and A Bridge Too Far

Steve

Steve Crook

PaPAS

Steve Crook

The Man Who Never Was (1956)
Another one in BBC4's "War on Film" season this holiday weekend.

A very well told tale based (fairly closely, as far as we can tell) on a true story.
Directed by Ronald Neame and scripted by Nigel Balchin based on Ewen Montagu's book. Montague even gets a cameo part as an Air Marshal
Good performances all round, every one of them seems ideally cast. But an outstanding performance from Gloria Grahame as the girl who loved and lost. On the verge of over-the-top, but always just pulling back from excessive, especially in the confrontation with the Irish agent.

Steve

Rob Compton

Another outing for the always enjoyable "The Lady Vanishes" - the 1930's Hitchcock version. I'd forgotten how witty and sharp the script was

rgds
Rob [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/tongue.gif[/img]

Steve Crook

Especially with the great Charters & Caldicott.
[because the hotel is full, Charters and Caldicott have been forced to share the maid's room]
Caldicott: They might at least have given us one each?
Charters: What?
Caldicott: The room at least.

Charters: If only we hadn't missed that train at Budapest.
Caldicott: Well, I don't want to rub it in, but if you hadn't insisted on standing up until they'd finished their national anthem . . .
Charters: Yes, but you must show respect, Caldicott. If I'd known it was going to last twenty minutes . . .
Caldicott: It has always been my contention that the Hungarian Rhapsody is *not* their national anthem.

Although my favourite of theirs is in Night Train to Munich (1940)
Charters: I bought a copy of Mein Kampf. Occurred to me it might shed a spot of light on all this... how d'ye do. Ever read it?
Caldicott: Never had the time.
Charters: I understand they give a copy to all the bridal couples over here.
Caldicott: Oh, I don't think it's that sort of book, old man.

Steve

julian_craster

'The Man Who Never Was' on BBC4....

A superb film, with a BAA winning screenplay. Casting and direction were first rate.

Q : Who provided the voice of Winston Churchill? (A: below)

The scene with the father in the hospital was excellent, and I soon
forgot that Clifton Webb wasn't a British actor, a rare achievement
for a Hollywood star in a British film !

Nice to see Cyril Cusack pop up as a taxi driver as well


A: Peter Sellers !!!

Steve Crook

And most appropriate as his character was supporting the Irishman who was working against the Brits.

Steve

Ambrosia

Want to start a new g [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/eek.gif[/img] ky thread on ancient indet's [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/rotfl.gif[/img]

It is cruel to discover one's mediocrity only when it is too late.

DB7

Theirs is the Glory

A re-enactment of the battle for Arnhem bridge made shortly after the war using real locations and veterans of Operation Market Garden. Despite some understandably wooden acting and large amounts of narration the film stands up as an interesting contrast to A Bridge too Far; and many of it's strongest scenes including the soldier killed attempting to retrieve what turns out to be a canister of new berets make it to the later film.