A Day Off...

I am off work today, so I decided to watch some of my classic movies on DVD. The trouble is there are so many choices and so little time. I'm definitely watching Send Me No Flowers, my favorite Doris Day movie. And I promised my friend Dawn, a review of it when I do.  And my other potential choices include The Awful Truth, The Lady Vanishes, and The Seven Year Itch. I think...I may change my mind later on. But I am off to watch Doris and Rock for now. Hopefully I will do a post of my fun filled movie watching day.

My Selections...

As I stated earlier about wanting to hear everyone's choices of what favorite films they would like to share with everyone else, here is my list of the 5 films I chose.

HIS GIRL FRIDAY (1940) Of course this would be here, as it is my favorite film of all time. I usually watch this screwball film 2 to 3 times a year and it never fails to entertain me. Cary Grant and Rosalind Russell are just perfection together and the film manages to throw in some serious scenes amid all the wisecracks and zany characters. His Girl Friday is definitely a must see film, if you're a fan of Cary or Roz or screwball films in general. Heck, if you wanna just enjoy a terrific and funny movie, then this is for you.

THE LADY VANISHES (1938) My favorite Alfred Hitchcock film, just ahead of Shadow of a Doubt and Rear Window. The master of suspense was still fine tuning his style and this combination of mystery, suspense and comedy works extremely well. Co-stars Margaret Lockwood and Michael Redgrave make a wonderful team with a strong supporting cast to back them up.

CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF (1958) Elizabeth Taylor sizzles as Maggie the Cat in this lush Tennessee William's melodrama. You can feel the temperature coming off the screen as Liz totally captivates all those watching her. She gets good support from Paul Newman, Burl Ives, and Jack Carson, but let's be real...Cat on a Hot Tin Roof would not be the same if it didn't have Liz in it.

THE THIN MAN (1934) Screwball meets murder in this delightful film that pairs William Powell and Myrna Loy, who act so comfortable with one another, you don't even view them as acting. Just watching them try to solve a murder and deal with assorted criminal and society types is a treat unto itself.

UNION STATION (1950) Taut little thriller with William Holden as a policeman trying to find a missing girl. Little known film that is extremely satisfying.

So there you have, the 5 films I would show to everyone to let them see how wonderful they are. Maybe this could turn into an ongoing type of thing, where I would chose a particular type of film or actor/actress and let everyone chime in with those favorites as well. But in the meantime, this is the kickoff post to get things rolling. Can't wait to hear everyone else choices. Just shoot me the email or comment and I will make a nice individual post of all those who respond.

Guest Programmers

Starting next month I would love to have everyone chime in with their choices as to what films they would present to viewers ala TCM's Guest Programmer monthly selections. TCM usually lets the person choose 4 main films and sometimes a bonus film. So let's make it 5 choices that you would show to friends, co-workers, family, anyone as to represent your favorite personal movies. And they don't have to be the the big classic well known films. They can be the smaller, lesser known films no one has heard of. Just shoot me an email at monty_hawes@yahoo.com with your choices and I will post them on my blogs, adding some photos and such. And if you could, give a little description as to why you chose these particular films. I guess I need to post my choices as well. I will do that my the end of the day. Talk to everyone later.

31 Days of Movies - Monty style

During next month, which also happens to be my birthday (the 31st) I am planning to watch at least one classic movie a day. That used to not be a problem but with work and other responsibilities and blogging, exercising, etc, there is not enough time in the day. But for next month I will try my very best to do it. Once upon a time, I use to watch 2 or 3 a day, so hopefully this will get be back into the flow of things. And I will try to post a review of the film I watch, if not I will at least mention it on my blog.  I sometimes feel like Cary Grant from Bringing Up Baby in the picture to your left. The first movie of the month for tomorrow night will be 42nd Street. I am taking a page from Nicole over at Vintage Film Nerd, who manages to see at least one classic film a day. My hats off to you Nicole. Keep up the good work as I do enjoy reading your blog.