Scene-Stealing Animals in Films

[cornershop15]

A companion thread for http://www.britmovie.co.uk/forums/br...g-animals.html (on TV)

There should be enough for both. My inspiration for this one:

Tinker, the ill-fated dog in Straight on Till Morning (1972) -Part 1

A tearful Rita Tushingham walks along London's South Bank one night and finds the bedraggled dog:


Corresponding image. The tag on his collar reveals his name is Tinker:


Unbeknownst to her, Rita is seen by the dog's owner (Shane Briant), who does nothing to stop
her running off with him. Back home, she prepares to give her new friend a much-needed wash:


One of my favourite images of Tinker, following his bath:


Rita Loves Tinker:


Come to think of it, Rita Tushingham was doing the stealing in this film!

That ribbon proves to be crucial to the story, as Shane Briant's character is a sadistic killer who hates anything that looks pretty and can't resist wanting to destroy it. When Rita returns the dog to his rightful owner the next morning, Shane appears grateful to have him back but privately feels disgusted by Tinker's new look and somehow betrayed.

Later, when alone with his 'best friend', he takes out his revenge in the most sickening way, which I'd rather not describe and hope no-one else will. Suffice to say, this had a terrible effect on me when I watched the film last week, but I will still treasure the happier moments, as included here, and look forward to posting more later.

Other Scene-Stealing Animals (in Films) that come to mind are Tonto, Judy Garland's dog in The Wizard of Oz, Kim Novak's Siamese cat Pyewacket in Bell, Book and Candle, and, obviously, Elsa and all the lions in Born Free.

I'm not sure about King Kong or animated dinosaurs, etc., but Orangey was real enough. He was the 'giant' cat who terrified his now miniature owner, The Incredible Shrinking Man, and, in a very different role, was emotionally reunited with Audrey Hepburn at the end of Breakfast at Tiffany's.

Incidentally, Tinker reminds me very much of the stray dog Michael Caine befriends in Alfie, another candidate for this thread. Could they be one and the same?

Dedicated to Steve Crook and fellow animal lover Susannah York, who sadly died a few days ago.

[CaptainWaggett]

My favourite cinematic animal is Monty from Obsession. Graeme undertook some rather cruel experiments which aimed to prove that it isn't psosible to train a cute doggie to pull the plug out of an acid-filled bath but his failure just underlines Monty's brilliance all the more

[Steve Crook]

I like Godfrey in Michael Powell's Age of Consent. Played by "Lonsdale" (he's in the credits) he's a very clever little dog

You can see him in the boat with James Mason in this clip





But his real scene stealing act is when Brad (Mason) leaves him tied up at the shack.
As soon as Brad is out of sight Godfrey slips out of his collar and then goes off to case a bit of mischief and mayhem.
Godfrey gets back to the shack just before Brad and slips his head back INTO his collar so that when Brad sees him, he's all innocent, sweetness and light

It's quite something to do a bit of scene stealing when the film also has plenty of the young Helen Mirren being naked

Steve

[HUGHJAMPTON]

Was Lonsdale Mr. P's own dog, Steve?

[Steve Crook]

Was Lonsdale Mr. P's own dog, Steve?

No. But Powell did have a couple of cocker spaniels, Eric & Spangle. They appear in contraband, The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp, I Know Where I'm Going! and A Matter of Life and Death.

Here they are in Colonel Blimp, in the back of the car as Barbara and Clive arrive home after their honeymoon.



If you watch carefully, as they run into the house and up the stairs, one of they raises a leg and "christens" the house

Steve

[TimR]

Following up on the Powell and Pressburger theme - I will add the magnificent hounds (deerhounds? Irish wolfhounds?) and the equally magnificent Pamela Brown in I Know Where I'm Going

[Steve Crook]

Following up on the Powell and Pressburger theme - I will add the magnificent hounds (deerhounds? Irish wolfhounds?) and the equally magnificent Pamela Brown in I Know Where I'm Going

Powell liked dogs (see Eric & Spangle above) and there are quite a few dogs in a lot of their films.
There are also quite a few birds of prey in their films

Steve

[cornershop15]

Thanks for your replies, all except one. Captain Waggett can't have approved of my opening post. A reply, complete with capture, five minutes after I submitted the thread? Don't believe that. Most disrespectful (as if I wasn't despised enough here)

Re: Erik and Spangle - In Black-and-White and Colour

In I Know Where I'm Going (1945):


And as they appeared in A Matter of Life and Death, watching Roger Livesey with his camera obscura:


Both originally posted at http://www.britmovie.co.uk/forums/ac...s-animals.html, from which Steve nicked my capture from Colonel Blimp!
(credit please)

Does no-one remember Tinker then?

[bruiser15]

Powell liked dogs (see Eric & Spangle above) and there are quite a few dogs in a lot of their films.
There are also quite a few birds of prey in their films

Steve

Like this magnificent Golden Eagle from the start of The Edge of The World



Also Cornershop15, it took me three reads of the posts in the thread to understand how CaptainW had so offended you to merit a wagging figure of doom. I too admire the resourcefulness of Monty in Obsession and the Captain was just showing via a bit of compare and contrast how it's fate linked with that of poor Tinker.

No one will think any the worse of you [or for that matter CaptainW] for mentioning a dog's fate in what is a drama. No such fate actually befall Tinker. His only fate was a pat on the head and an extra bowl of Pal at supper time. Hopefully the Captain has a thick enough skin to take the rebuff.

[TimR]

Powell liked dogs (see Eric & Spangle above) and there are quite a few dogs in a lot of their films.
There are also quite a few birds of prey in their films

Steve

Oh yes - like that marvelous scene in the prologue of A Canterbury Tale, where the falcon is released and turns into the spitfire.

[CaptainWaggett]

Like this magnificent Golden Eagle from the start of The Edge of The World

Also Cornershop15, it took me three reads of the posts in the thread to understand how CaptainW had so offended you to merit a wagging figure of doom. I too admire the resourcefulness of Monty in Obsession and the Captain was just showing via a bit of compare and contrast how it's fate linked with that of poor Tinker.

No one will think any the worse of you [or for that matter CaptainW] for mentioning a dog's fate in what is a drama. No such fate actually befall Tinker. His only fate was a pat on the head and an extra bowl of Pal at supper time. Hopefully the Captain has a thick enough skin to take the rebuff.

I still don't understand it Fortunately I do have a very thick skin though And I'm glad I'm not the only fan of Monty

[Steve Crook]

from which Steve nicked my capture from Colonel Blimp!
(credit please)

No credit because that isn't where I got it from. I did my own screen grab. Compare the two pictures, they're slightly different

Steve

[Steve Crook]

Like this magnificent Golden Eagle from the start of The Edge of The World

Oh yes - like that marvelous scene in the prologue of A Canterbury Tale, where the falcon is released and turns into the spitfire.

Yes and yes, and of course the eagle (& the falcon) from I Know Where I'm Going!
and in Black Narcissus, the old General (Esmond Knight) has a falcon on his wrist as he mounts his pony in one scene. There is also a hawk or buzzard seen at the top of the steps just before we meet Ayah.
Then there's also Luna de Miel (aka Honeymoon) - In the ballet El Amor Brojo there is a European Eagle Owl sitting behind the sorceress.

Steve

[cornershop15]

Apologies to Steve. I'll have a closer look at both later. What about the one of the black labrador on the beach in A Matter of Life and Death?

An Unwanted Diversion

[My replies to these two were longer than expected and so I've copied the text to a new message, with Part 2 of my tribute to Tinker following in the next post, which I still haven't finished.]

It took me three reads of the posts in the thread to understand how CaptainW had so offended you ...

Maybe you need to read them again, especially the first post, which Captain Waggett clearly decided to ignore. Unless s/he has enrolled in a similar course to SpeedLearn (as seen in The Prisoner), where you can absorb everything in ten seconds or whatever. Unlikely. I put a great deal of effort into nearly all my posts here and always hope, usually in vain, for a positive response. That was the exact opposite.

What's your interest in this anyway? You haven't had anything to say to me for than a year (I think our paths last crossed at the 'St. Andrew's Day' thread). Why should my previous post arouse your attention more than the 1, 000 + I've done since?

I still don't understand it Fortunately I do have a very thick skin though

Same here with the confused 'look', Captain. Like bruiser, you haven't bothered with me for a long while either, along with many other notables, such as Harbottle, Batman, Vincenzo and even ShirlGirl, for Heaven's sake.

I don't know what I'm supposed to have done to these fellow-members, all of whom I used to corresponded with regularly. There are worse people in the world than me. As they're unlikely to tell me, I'll take a guess that it's because my sense of humour has gone AWOL since my parents' decline/deaths. What can I say? "Sorry, but I don't do banter anymore?".

Bruiser15's final words about Tinker probably illustrate where I'm going wrong. I can't work out if he's making light of the dog's fate or my (over?)reaction to it. I'm afraid I don't have a very "thick skin", either with cruelty to animals or when it comes to people pretending I don't exist anymore.

Glad that's out of my system. And now for something completely different ...

[cornershop15]

Tinker, the dog in 'Straight on Till Morning' - Part 2

The next morning, Rita Tushingham takes Tinker back to owner Shane Briant. This is one of two moments here
where he looks straight to camera and occurs just before his lead snaps (Rita quickly replaces it with her scarf):


If there is to be a thread for Straight on Till Morning in Film Locations, I'd like to repost this:

Is this Hogarth Road, which the caught-off-guard Rita mentions on the DVD commentary?

Both are welcomed in by Shane Briant, despite knowing she's responsible for Tinker's disappearance:


Here's that second look to camera and is during the unspeakable scene where he is killed by his owner:


As if Tinker didn't look cute enough in the previous capture, the moment he tilts his head further
to one side as the insane Shane approaches him makes what happens next all the more shocking:

A sad and heartbreaking end but you can't help but love this animal every second he's on screen, which makes it odd viewing. So much love, so much violence? I don't know anything about Tinker - his real name - apart from this appearance but hope he had a good life. I'd like to think he's 'up there' enjoying himself nearly 40 years later.

I know Rita enjoyed working with this dog, who must have been very well-trained considering he was bathed infront of a camera crew, and would be interested to know Shane's views (isn't he member here, known as 'Briant'?), if he found it a traumatic experience to film that scene, etc.

Difficult to move on, after all that, but I'm finished with Tinker for the moment. I have just one more capture to show - again from the bathroom scene - which I will do when the thread needs a lift.

[Steve Crook]

Apologies to Steve. I'll have a closer look at both later. What about the one of the black labrador on the beach in A Matter of Life and Death?

What about it? It doesn't really do much.
When it's "barking" at Peter it isn't the dog we see that's barking. Its body doesn't move. A dog's body always moves as it barks, like a cow's body moves as it moos. A thing that film-makers do often neglect

When I went to that same beach I had an interesting experience.

I went to visit Saunton Sands on the north Devon coast (near Westward Ho! - the only place in the UK with an exclamation mark in its name). Saunton Sands is a very nice beach, about 5 miles long, with very extensive sand dunes behind the beach. The dunes may well have changed quite a bit since they were filmed in the beach scene in AMOLAD but I took a lot of photos of all the fixed landmarks so that I can sit down with them & the film & try to get a clue as to where they did film from.

I took a few "framing shots" in the hope that at least we'd be able to see where they were filming by seeing how far they were from each headland.

As I was walking back along the beach towards the car park, I took another look at one section of the dunes that looked particularly hopeful. "But no," I thought, "it wouldn't be the same after 50 years." So as if to help convince me, what should happen but a black dog came running towards me!


"Oh, I'd always hoped there would be dogs"

See the details and the other photos

Steve

[cornershop15]

More Scene-Stealers from Michael Powell films

Great stuff, Steve. I've just had a look at all the photos. I must have confused your picture
of the dog in A Matter of Life and Death with mine, again first seen at 'Stars and Animals':


As was this. Captain C.W.R. Knight as Colonel Barnstaple, with falcon, in I Know Where I'm Going:


I'm sure we haven't finished with the 'Stars and Animals' reposts! I wish I'd thought of the 'Scene-Stealing' ones at the same time.

[CaptainWaggett]

An Unwanted Diversion

[My replies to these two were longer than expected and so I've copied the text to a new message, with Part 2 of my tribute to Tinker following in the next post, which I still haven't finished.]

Maybe you need to read them again, especially the first post, which Captain Waggett clearly decided to ignore. Unless s/he has enrolled in a similar course to SpeedLearn (as seen in The Prisoner), where you can absorb everything in ten seconds or whatever. Unlikely. I put a great deal of effort into nearly all my posts here and always hope, usually in vain, for a positive response. That was the exact opposite.

What's your interest in this anyway? You haven't had anything to say to me for than a year (I think our paths last crossed at the 'St. Andrew's Day' thread). Why should my previous post arouse your attention more than the 1, 000 + I've done since?


Same here with the confused 'look', Captain. Like bruiser, you haven't bothered with me for a long while either, along with many other notables, such as Harbottle, Batman, Vincenzo and even ShirlGirl, for Heaven's sake.

I don't know what I'm supposed to have done to these fellow-members, all of whom I used to corresponded with regularly. There are worse people in the world than me. As they're unlikely to tell me, I'll take a guess that it's because my sense of humour has gone AWOL since my parents' decline/deaths. What can I say? "Sorry, but I don't do banter anymore?".

Bruiser15's final words about Tinker probably illustrate where I'm going wrong. I can't work out if he's making light of the dog's fate or my (over?)reaction to it. I'm afraid I don't have a very "thick skin", either with cruelty to animals or when it comes to people pretending I don't exist anymore.

Glad that's out of my system. And now for something completely different ...

I was amused before, now I'm completely baffled and actually rather miffed. Do you want people to reply to your posts or not? What part of your original post have I ignored and what is there in my post to offend anyone? I dislike cruelty to animals quite as much as you do (last time I ate one, Mrs T was PM ), so you'll be glad to know that Monty, after a brilliant piece of collar-slipping, is safe and sound at the end of the film

[bruiser15]

The reason I became involved in this thread was the mention of Michael Powell's interest in Birds of Prey, from which I duly posted a capture of my own from The Edge of The World. Raptors and their position within the eco-systems of Scotland being an interest of mine. You see my trade/profession/job is the care of animals both domestic and wild, both as a farmer and countryside ranger. Cruelty to animals in any form is vile. Luckily film makers are now controlled by laws, so we have come away from the days of say early westerns when horses were deliberately tripped by wires to bring them down often to there own injury and/or demise, unfortunately I know of many examples of real cruelty to animals filmed for the titilation of the viewing public [the Italian Cannibal movies for instance], Tinker would not have suffered any real trauma and only be rewarded for his good work.

My other reason for being involved was to point out you were being rude. Before I fall into that trap I will remove myself from this very personal thread for you.

[Steve Crook]

The reason I became involved in this thread was the mention of Michael Powell's interest in Birds of Prey, from which I duly posted a capture of my own from The Edge of The World. Raptors and their position within the eco-systems of Scotland being an interest of mine. You see my trade/profession/job is the care of animals both domestic and wild, both as a farmer and countryside ranger. Cruelty to animals in any form is vile. Luckily film makers are now controlled by laws, so we have come away from the days of say early westerns when horses were deliberately tripped by wires to bring them down often to there own injury and/or demise, unfortunately I know of many examples of real cruelty to animals filmed for the titilation of the viewing public [the Italian Cannibal movies for instance], Tinker would not have suffered any real trauma and only be rewarded for his good work.

Captain C.W.R. Knight, the falconer and austringer in I Know Where I'm Going! had "manned" a Golden Eagle which also appeared in that film. He toured the world with "Mr Ramshaw" and wrote a few books about his experience. Captain Knight was the uncle of actor Esmond Knight who appeared in quite a few of Michael Powell's films from 1931 - 1972.

I suspect that the golden eagle that we see in The Edge of the World was also Mr Ramshaw. When we see him pounce on the rabbit near the beginning of the film the falconer's jesses (leather straps on his legs) are visible. It would make more sense to use a trained eagle that would respond to a few basic requests rather than waiting for the chance to get a shot of a wild eagle.

Captain Knight's daughter, Jean Knight, trained the foxes that were used in Powell's film Gone to Earth so there was quite a long relationship between Powell and the Knight family and he often made use of their experience with various animals.

Esmond Knight's daughter Rosalind Knight also appeared in a few of Powell's films

Steve