Marilyn Monroe photos

Decided to post some photos of Marilyn on this day marking her tragic death...

Marilyn Monroe's 48th Anniversary

Today marks the 48th anniversary of Marilyn's tragic death back on August 5th, 1962. Let's remember her today by watching a film or reading a book or posting a blog about her. She was a true film icon. One of the biggest and best.

Photo of the day - None But The Lonely Heart

Saw None But The Lonely Heart last night and it was very good. A departure for Cary Grant as he was very dramatic and held his own with the great Ethel Barrymore. Review coming soon.

My Top 10 Favorite Leonardo DiCaprio FIlms

 It's been two years since I originally wrote this post and I have seen two more films of Leo, so I decided to update my top 10 list of my favorite films of his, since he is one of my favorite modern actors. The two new films added are Shutter Island and Django Unchained. But I couldn't cut any of the previous films from the list, so I just expanded it to a top 12.  So here we go. I may update this yet again after his new film, The Great Gatsby hits theaters this summer.


12. SHUTTER ISLAND (2010) - Finally saw this a few months ago and I liked it. Set it in 1954, Leo plays U.S. Marshal Teddy Daniels, who is sent to  Shutter Island, a hospital for the criminally insane, to investigate the disappearance of  a murderess. Loaded with a solid supporting cast including Ben Kingsley, Mark Ruffalo, Max Von Sydow, Michelle Williams, Emily Mortimer, Patricia Clarkson and Jackie Earle Haley. Directed by Martin Scorsese (the pair's 4th collaboration). 

11. REVOLUTIONARY ROAD (2008) The long awaited reunion between Titanic co-stars Leo and Kate was a totally different type of film. A stark drama that is heavy on the dramatics but features solid acting from both leads. It's a plus that the film is set in the always trendy 1960's.


10. THE QUICK AND THE DEAD (1995) A decidedly off beat western from director Sam Raimi that has Sharon Stone entering a quick draw contest to get closer to the man (Gene Hackman) who killed her father. Leo plays the cocky but super fast kid, named The Kid. He later turns out to be the son of Hackman. Also co-starring Russell Crowe and Gary Sinise, this is a very entertaining film.

9. CATCH ME IF YOU CAN (2002) The powerhouse pairing of Leo and Tom Hanks drive this fact based story about Frank Abagnale Jr., a young con artist who successfully impersonated an airline pilot, doctor, assistant attorney general and history professor, cashing more than $2.5 million in fraudulent checks in 26 countries before being caught by FBI agent Carl Hanratty (Hanks). The 60's are beautifully caught in this colorful and lively film.


8. WHAT'S EATING GILBERT GRAPE (1993) A terrific performance by Leo as the mentally challenged Arnie Grape, brother to Johnny Depp's Gilbert powers this stong and powerful movie about family life in a small town that is really a must see film.

7. DJANGO UNCHAINED (2012) - Quentin Tarantino's epic western gives Leo one really terrific role as plantation owner Calvin Candie who confronts recently freed slave Django (Jamie Foxx) and German bounty hunter Dr. King Shultz (Christoph Waltz) who plan to rescue Django's wife Broomhilda (Kerry Washington) from Candie's clutches. Leo gets to shine in a rare villainous role and it's a doozy. He should have at least been nominated for an Oscar here.

6. GANGS OF NEW YORK (2002) Here is the first pairing of Leo with legendary director Martin Scorsese and they certainly bring it. Gangs is about as violent as you can get but there is a strong story to go with it. Leo may get overshadowed by Daniel Day Lewis excellent performance as Bill the Butcher, but he still makes an impact all his own.


5. THE AVIATOR (2004) For Scorsese and Leo's second film, they scored with this terrific story based on the life of Howard Hughes, director, aviator and recluse. Leo should have won an Oscar for his performance as Hughes, but alas no such luck. Co-starring the likes of Cate Blanchett, Kate Beckinsale, Alan Alda, John C. Reilly, Jude Law and Alec Baldwin.


4. THE DEPARTED (2006) Scorsese assembled a dream team for this Boston set mob caper of Leo, Matt Damon, Jack Nicholson, Mark Wahlberg, Alec Baldwin, Martin Sheen, and Ray Winstone. Everything fell into place and The Departed makes for one of the best crime films ever made.

3. BLOOD DIAMOND (2006) Leo plays Danny Archer, a South African smuggler who befriends a local fisherman played by Djimon Hounsou to find this very large diamond and to rescue Hounsou's son. Amid the crackling action scenes, which are frequent, there is a story about friendship, family, and love amid the chaos. Leo and Djimon make quite an effective pair too.


2. TITANIC (1997) You knew this film had to be on my list. Leo is positively electric as Jack Dawson, the stowaway who steals Kate Winslet's heart. You may scoff at the sentiment and some of the dialogue, but to this day I still love this film.

1. INCEPTION (2010) A mind bender like no other. Leo, once again, gives a star making performance as a thief who specializes in dreams and has to do one last job before reuniting with his kids. Cool visual effects and an intelligent story with a solid cast which includes Ellen Page, Joseph Gordon Levitt, Michael Caine, Ken Watanabe, Marion Cotillard, and Cillian Murphy.


So there you have it, my top 10 favorite Leo films. Please note I have yet to see Shutter Island, so that may make the list at some point in the future.

Summer Under The Stars - Steve McQueen August 3rd on TCM

The king of cool is on display today on TCM as part of their summer under the stars. Steve McQueen, a true movie icon, will be featured all day long in such classics like Nevada Smith, The Magnificent Seven, Never So Few, The Cincinnati Kid and of course Bullitt. Enjoy.

Myrna Loy as Mrs. Blandings: Choosing paint colors clip

Myrna is hilarious in this scene as she tells the contractors what kind of paint she wants for her new home.

Happy Birthday Myrna Loy (1905-1993)

In honor of Myrna's birthday, here are my favorite films of her.

1. THE THIN MAN (1934)
2. THE BEST YEARS OF OUR LIVES (1946)
3. AFTER THE THIN MAN (1936)
4. MR. BLANDINGS BUILDS HIS DREAM HOUSE (1948)
5. LOVE CRAZY (1941)
6. LIBELED LADY (1936)
7. THE BACHELOR AND THE BOBBY-SOXER (1947)
8. DOUBLE WEDDING (1937)
9. CHEAPER BY THE DOZEN (1950)
10. MANHATTAN MELODRAMA (1934)

As you can see, Myrna represented the screwball comedy genre well.

Fun Summer Movies - The Goonies (1985)

Summer Release Date: 7 June 1985. Starring Sean Astin, Josh Brolin, Corey Feldman, Keri Green, Martha Plimpton, Jeff Cohen, Jonathan Ke Quan, Anne Ramsey, Robert Davi, Joe Pantoliano, Mary Ellen Trainor, John Matuszak.

Can you believe it's been 25 years since this seminal summer favorite first opened in theaters? Time surely flies. I was 15 when this movie first came out. And all me and buddies knew about it was that Steven Spielberg was the producer, it was featuring Short Round from Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, and it was about kids with a treasure map, booby traps, pirates, and a crime family led by an old lady. We were standing in line opening day and the movie did not disappoint.

Of course every fan knows the story by hard: a group of kids on a rainy Saturday afternoon find an old treasure map and embark on a treasure hunt. Hoping to find some treasure so they can save all their homes from greedy land developers. Two brothers: Mikey (Sean Astin) and Brand (Josh Brolin) are two exact opposites. Mikey believes in the treasure map and wants to go on an adventure while Brand is more sensible and since he's stuck baby-sitting Mikey, no dice. When Mikey's friends Data (Ke Quan), Chunk (Cohen) and Mouth (Feldman) come over, the group manage to tie up Brand and off they go.

The adventure begins when our group encounters Ma Fratelli (Ramsey) and her two criminal sons, whose restaurant is the starting point of the treasure map. Things quickly get exciting when Brand catches up with our young adventurers. And let's not forget the two girls who end up tagging along: Andi (Keri Green) and Stef (Plimpton). Soon booby traps, pirate ships, last minute escapes, and a deformed brother of the Fratelli's names Sloth, who wears a Superman t shirt and has a hankering for some derring do ala Errol Flynn all add up to a terrific good time.

After viewing The Goonies in theaters during the summer of 1985, it quickly became a favorite of mine on HBO and then actually owning the VHS copy. I still watch my DVD copy from time to time, because it reminds me of a time when movies like this were fun and exciting and pure. No CGI or crazy effects, just good old fashioned movie making.

Notes:

While not a typical Spielberg massive blockbuster, The Goonies was one of the summer's biggest hits with about $65 million in North America. It would go on to become one of the biggest home video sellers by the end of the year.

The story was written by Spielberg and newcomer Chris Columbus, who would later go on and direct Home Alone 1 & 2, Mrs. Doubtfire and two Harry Potter films.

"Shit" or "bullshit"is uttered 19 times, not counting the line "Holy S-H-I-T!"

The pirate ship was entirely real. All the shots were filmed in the ship. After the film, it was offered to anyone who would take it. No one wanted it, so the ship was scrapped.

When the Fratelli brothers argue Anne Ramsey really slaps Robert Davi. She was told to hit him as hard as she could.

Cyndi Lauper co-wrote the theme song "Goonies R Good Enough", and shot a music video that features a cameo by the film's executive producer Steven Spielberg.

The late Corey Haim auditioned for the role of Mouth, but the role was given to Corey Feldman instead. At the time neither Corey knew the other Corey, but they met up again on the set of The Lost Boys (1987) and they became best friends. The duo would go on to star in seven movies together in the late '80s and early ' 90s. In the movie License To Drive (1988), Corey Feldman auditioned for the lead roll of Les Anderson, but that roll was given to Corey Haim.

The Goonies Oath that was cut out goes as follows: "I will never betray my goon dock friends / We will stick together until the whole world ends / Through heaven and hell, and nuclear war / Good pals like us, will stick like tar / In the city, or the country, or the forest, or the boonies / I am proudly declared a fellow Goonie."

Summer Under The Stars on TCM - Julie Christie on August 2nd

TCM just kicked off it's annual Summer Under The Stars festival today with Basil Rathbone. For anyone new to this, TCM selects 31 actors and actresses for the month of August and for each day chooses a specific actor and plays nothing but their movies all day long. This is the 8th edition of this very popular theme that has continued to grow and grow. I will pick and choose at random some of the stars that will be featured this month and chose actress Julie Christie to get things started. Julie is of course most famous for her role as Lara in the classic film Doctor Zhivago. That film will be played along with Far From The Madding Crowd (1967), Billy Liar (1963), Darling (1965), Shampoo (1975), and others.

Rosalind Russell - Classic Movie Goddess for August

Let me just begin by saying while Roz is not currently ranked in my top 25 favorite actresses of all time, she is still a personal favorite of mine. Mainly because of one reason and one performance in one film. Her portrayal of ace reporter Hildy Johnson in my favorite film of all time His Girl Friday, is just awesome. Her back and forth banter with her boss and ex-husband Walter Burns(played by Cary Grant) makes the movie a dream to watch over and over again. I've seen other films of Russell like The Women (in which she was sensational in that one as well), China Seas, Auntie Mame, My Sister Eileen and others but for me it's His Girl Friday. If and when I get to a list of my favorite film performances her Hildy Johnson will be ranked pretty high let me tell you. So all this month sit back and enjoy my personal views on Roz and my reviews of several of her films and tons of pics and other trivia stuff. Here are some choice quotes of Roz as Hildy from His Girl Friday.

Bruce Baldwin: [Concerning Walter] I like him; he's got a lot of charm.
Hildy Johnson: Well he comes by it naturally his grandfather was a snake.

Hildy Johnson:Now, get this, you double-crossing chimpanzee: There ain't going to be any interview and there ain't going to be any story. And that certified check of yours is leaving with me in twenty minutes. I wouldn't cover the burning of Rome for you if they were just lighting it up. If I ever lay my two eyes on you again, I'm gonna walk right up to you and hammer on that monkeyed skull of yours 'til it rings like a Chinese gong!

Walter Burns: Sorta wish you hadn't done that, Hildy.
Hildy Johnson: Done what?
Walter Burns: Divorced me. Makes a fella lose all faith in himself. Gives him a... almost gives him a feeling he wasn't wanted.
Hildy Johnson: Oh, now look, junior... that's what divorces are FOR!