Tag Archives: Fred Astaire

1962 Films, Comedy, Fred Astaire, Jack Lemmon, Kim Novak, Richard Quine, Thriller

The Notorious Landlady-1962

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The Notorious Landlady-1962

Director Richard Quine

Starring Kim Novak, Jack Lemmon, Fred Astaire

Scott’s Review #1,390

Reviewed August 16, 2023

Grade: B+

If viewers can overlook The Notorious Landlady (1962) ‘s messy nature and intermittent schizophrenic pacing, the film is enjoyable.

It’s not platinum status, but it’s a decent enough flick, especially for Kim Novak and Jack Lemmon fans, who were big stars. This is the third and final film that the duo starred in.

Like the film, their chemistry fluctuates, but it is appealing to see Novak in a comic role, whereas the genre is familiar territory for the funny Lemmon.

After her husband mysteriously disappears, Carly Hardwicke (Novak) finds renting a room in her lovely London apartment impossible because everyone assumes she’s responsible.

American diplomat William Gridley (Jack Lemmon) is new to the city and desires to live with Carly. It doesn’t hurt that Carly is easy on the eyes. William becomes smitten with her, unaware of her troubles.

When his boss, Franklyn Ambruster (Fred Astaire), learns what Gridley has stumbled into, the two men try to clear her name. A series of lies and misunderstandings catapult events into a compelling mystery.

Even though neither William nor Carly is British, the foggy locale works well and provides a foreign mystery. They reside in a courtyard-type home, from which neighbors can see in or out to other apartments. This comes into greater play towards the end of the film.

This is just one example of Alfred Hitchcock’s influence on 1954’s Rear Window, which director Richard Quine heftily borrows. He’s wise to do so since he secured Novak, fresh from her role in Vertigo (1958) two years earlier.

Shit, even the title ‘The Notorious Landlady’ borrows the title of the 1946 Hitchcock masterpiece, ‘Notorious.’

There’s also a secret locked door that Carly references and forbids anyone from entering, adding suspense and foreboding.

Despite the tepid chemistry between the stars, I ultimately enjoyed their romance. It’s a hard sell that the gorgeous Carly would fall head over heels for the everyman William, but she does.

They win me over during a dramatic scene where an attempted romantic dinner of steaks goes awry, and instead, a massive fire erupts. The burgeoning lovers cling together in a sweet embrace that cements their appeal.

The tension is supposed to be about whether Carly murdered her husband and has designs on William. Red herrings like kitchen poisons and the like make an appearance, but I was more interested in the impending mystery of said husband than really believing she’d want to kill William.

The last act introduces a threatening character, an unexpected villain, and a race to save another character in dangerous peril.

A courtroom scene also adds to the tension.

The central storyline is satisfying, edge of your seat, and suspenseful. I assume Quine was going for it.

The Notorious Landlady shifts genres a whopping three times in the story! The tone is all over the place: first, romantic comedy, then suspense and drama, and finally, slapstick.

During the finale, when Carly and William race to a retirement community and scramble to stop an out-of-control wheelchair, I half expected Laurel & Hardy or The Little Rascals to make a cameo.

Poor Fred Astaire has little to do and struggles to be relevant compared to Novak and Lemmon’s characters. At times, I even forgot he was still in the film.

The Notorious Landlady (1962) is an entertaining vehicle and a must-see for fans of Novak or Lemmon eager to see a largely forgotten film that offers something fun.

1957 Films, Audrey Hepburn, Comedy, Fred Astaire, Musical, Musical Comedy, Romantic Comedy, Stanley Donen

Funny Face-1957

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Funny Face-1957

Director Stanley Donan

Starring Audrey Hepburn, Fred Astaire

Scott’s Review #1,375

Reviewed July 7, 2023

Grade: B

The results of Funny Face (1957) are mixed, and the word ‘cute’ pops to mind on more than one occasion.

On the one hand, audiences are served a sophisticated look at the fashion industry and the sleek style of Paris, France, in the 1950s. The outfits and set design are fab, revealing the cultured and colorful modeling world, while the makeup and hairstyles match the time with fragrant gusto.

The screenplay is riddled with plausibility issues bordering on offensiveness and silliness. It also provides a good look at the patriarchal mindset of the time. The message is twofold: The fashion industry and Hollywood equally embraced these norms when the film was made.

In a word, the overall film is dated.

New York City fashion photographer Dick Avery (Fred Astaire) is tasked with finding a model for a new assignment. Discouraged, he is struck by the beauty of Jo Stockton (Audrey Hepburn), an intellectual bookstore employee he photographed by accident.

He convinces Jo to accompany him to France, where he continues photographing her against Parisian backdrops. At the same time, they scramble to pull together a fashion show along with crusty Maggie Prescott (Kay Thompson), a fashion magazine publisher.

Dick and Jo fall for one another, only to find hurdles to overcome along the way.

The musical numbers are plentiful but second-tier. Bouncy songs like ‘Funny Face’ and ‘On How to Be Lovely’ are decent but not memorable. The highlight is ‘S, Wonderful,’ which appears during the finale and perfectly wraps the Paris experience and the film in a shiny bow.

Comparisons can be made to An American in Paris (1951), not just because both are set in Paris, use the same tune (S Wonderful), and were composed by George Gershwin. There’s more buried beneath the surface that ties the two films together.

Both lead characters, Jerry and Jo, wind up with the wrong partners, who are, in reality, inappropriate for each other. Jerry should be with the comparable Milo, while Jo should be with the dashing and artistic Flostre (Michael Auclair). Instead, Jerry chooses the waifish Lise while Jo lands the ancient Dick.

Astaire is old enough to be Hepburn’s grandfather, which makes the romance odd.

Of course, Milo and Flostre are made to be the foils in An American in Paris and Funny Face. They are merely obstacles to be overcome by the preferred couple.

Another irritant is the demeaning nickname that Dick calls Jo, ‘funny face.’ Hardly a dog, Hepburn is quite beautiful, although the film makes the audience assume she is wrong for the modeling world. She fits right in, looking perfect in every dress or costume she dons or photograph she appears in.

A better casting choice would not have been classically beautiful singers or actors such as Barbra Streisand or Bette Midler, though admittedly, neither had surfaced at that point.

Though shot on a soundstage, Funny Face rebounds from implausibility with gorgeous ariel views of historic Parisian landmarks that envelope the glitter of the theme.

Shots of the Eifel Tower, Arc de Triomphe, and the broad Champs-Elysees are robust and made me rewatch this sequence again.

In parallel, the Greenwich Village, New York City setting, where other events in the film take place, is an intelligent choice to define the artistic and bookish characters.

The opening titles of Funny Face (1957) are creative and polished, reflecting the maturity of the subject matter and style of the 1950s.

With no chemistry, Hepburn and Astaire carry the film as best they can with a dated and tame screenplay.

Oscar Nominations: Best Writing, Story, and Screenplay-Written Directly for the Screen, Best Costume Design, Best Cinematography, Best Art Direction-Set Direction

1959 Films, Anthony Perkins, Ava Gardner, Drama, Fred Astaire, Gregory Peck, Science Fiction, Stanley Kramer

On the Beach-1959

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On the Beach-1959

Director Stanley Kramer

Starring Gregory Peck, Ava Gardner

Scott’s Review #1,179

Reviewed September 19, 2021

Grade: A-

On the Beach (1959) is a film that showcases a grim subject matter but remains relevant considering the period in which it was made. The Cold War era kept most people on edge with the threat of nuclear war as they rolled into the 1960s.

The lavishness of the 1950s turned into a more distrustful time as countries gained modern technological advances, making nuclear weapons a real possibility.

The film was not met with much praise or popularity at the time.

Indeed, people were content in the cinematic bubbles of nice, comforting films that largely emerged during the 1950s, but On the Beach was a fantastic discovery decades later.

I suppose people expected a sweeping epic romantic adventure, but they received a harsher tale. It’s not nearly as dark as it could have been.

The black and white cinematography is highly effective at relaying a cold and stark world that is left for the film’s characters. Another success is that the film is set in the future, 1964 to be exact, while the film was made in 1959.

The film is hardly a downer. While the subject matter of nuclear disaster and devastation sounds heavy, there is as much romance as social storytelling. The romance between Peck and Gardner is compelling and the best part of the film experience.

As the story begins, we learn that World War III has already occurred, leaving Australia the only remaining safe place for survivors. However, wind currents carrying lingering radiation are headed their way, condemning those on the continent to certain death.

When the survivors receive a strange signal from San Diego, California, Commander Dwight Towers (Peck) must embark on a mission with Lieutenant Peter Holmes (Anthony Perkins) to see if humanity still has hope. They leave behind Moira (Gardner) and Mary (Donna Anderson), the women they love.

Director Stanley Kramer knows his way around a message movie. In 1967, he directed the racially significant Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner, starring Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn.

The romance between Dwight, Moira, Peter, and Mary is my favorite aspect of the film. Dwight has lost his wife and two children, so out of loneliness, he falls for Moira, who has never married and has no one. Their soon-to-be doomed romance is fraught with complications as they tenderly cling to each other, knowing their time is limited.

Peter and Mary, on the other hand, are married with an infant young daughter. A significant conflict the couple deals with is whether to take suicide pills rather than get sick and die a slow and painful death.

There is enough chemistry between Peck and Gardner to keep the viewer engaged, but it’s tough to watch Perkins, a known gay man, play a macho father figure with a newborn. For some reason, it’s also hard not to see Norman Bates from Psycho (1960). I half-expected Peter to attack Mary in the shower with a butcher knife.

Still, the acting is good.

On the Beach states a powerful message in its conclusion. Ultimately, within just a few days of the shifting winds bringing the toxins to Australia, the last pockets of humanity are dead.

Melbourne’s empty, windblown streets are filled with dramatic music over a single powerful image of a previously seen Salvation Army street banner that reads, “There is still time .. Brother”.

Indeed, there is.

This leaves the viewer pondering their fate and the terrible dangers of nuclear war. Decades later, On the Beach (1959) still frightens and teaches about the ravages of world conflict and the plea for a peaceful society.

Oscar Nominations: Best Scoring of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture, Best Film Editing

1953 Films, Ava Gardner, Cyd Charisse, Fred Astaire, James Mitchell, Julie Newmar, Madge Blake, Musical, Oscar Levant, Robert Gist, Vincente Minnelli

The Band Wagon-1953

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The Band Wagon-1953

Director Vincente Minnelli

Starring Fred Astaire, Cyd Charisse

Scott’s Review #549

Reviewed December 15, 2016

Grade: B

The Band Wagon, made in 1953, is a second-tier MGM (Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer) production- and by that, I mean it is not as stellar as other musicals of its time.

It lacks the majestic appeal of similar musicals like An American in Paris and Singin’ in the Rain.

Directed by Vincente Minnelli- a legendary music director of the 1950s, and starring Fred Astaire, The Band Wagon tells the story of a washed-up movie star trying to revive his career on Broadway.

He meets opposition from his co-star and prima ballerina, Gabrielle, played by Cyd Charisse, ironically, an actress who appeared in Singin’ in the Rain.

The Band Wagon is a fun movie, but it is not nearly as good as the film mentioned above. Instead, it is a pale imitator. While other musicals of similar style can be watched numerous times, The Band Wagon is a one-and-done affair.

The story starts slowly but gets much better towards the end.

The film has a few memorable musical numbers, notably “That’s Entertainment.”

Oscar Nominations: Best Story and Screenplay, Best Scoring of a Musical Picture, Best Costume Design, Color

1974 Films, Adventure, Dabney Coleman, Disaster, Faye Dunaway, Fred Astaire, Jennifer Jones, O.J. Simpson, Paul Newman, Robert Vaughn, Robert Wagner, Scott's Top 100 Films, Steve McQueen, Susan Blakely, William Holden

The Towering Inferno-1974

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The Towering Inferno-1974

Director John Guillermin

Starring Paul Newman, Steve McQueen

Top 100 Films #43

Scott’s Review #194

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Reviewed November 15, 2014

Grade: A

The Towering Inferno (1974) epitomizes the disaster film craze heaped on audiences throughout the 1970s (Airport, Airport ‘75 and ‘77, The Poseidon Adventure (1972), and Earthquake (1974) to name a few).

I am (guilt-free) a huge fan of this 1970s movie genre, though some certainly look down on it, I am not one of them and feel The Towering Inferno is one of the greatest.

The film is enormous and has such a sense of adventure and danger.

The grand film tells of the trials and tribulations of an enormous cast of characters trapped inside an inferno-flamed skyscraper – led by Paul Newman and Steve McQueen (fun fact- the two actors reportedly despised each other).

An incredible skyscraper is erected in San Francisco, at one hundred and thirty-eight floors it is professed to be the tallest building in the world and incredibly state-of-the-art. At the ribbon-cutting ceremony, an elaborate party is held atop the building overlooking the gorgeous Pacific Ocean.

Due to faulty electrical wiring, the building catches fire and the cast of characters faces one challenge after another to escape the grips of death.

The stellar cast features stars like William Holden, Faye Dunaway, Fred Astaire, Robert Wagner, Jennifer Jones, and O.J. Simpson in addition to Newman and McQueen.

The film is quite a soap opera style- numerous characters are introduced, many having affairs with each other or suffering some sort of conflict.

Wagner having a torrid office romance with his secretary played by then up-and-coming star Susan Flannery is deliciously sexy and I yearned to know more about both characters.

Holden’s son-in-law is responsible for the faulty electrical system yet blames his father-in-law for cutting budgets.

Another subplot involves Astaire’s character attempting to swindle Jones’s character but then falling in love with her. The plots are so melodramatic that, given the period of the film, it has a definite primetime television soap opera style to it- think Dallas or Dynasty in a state of peril.

I enjoyed the enormous cast and trying to guess who will be killed off next and in what elaborate way the film will burn them to death is a joy to watch- several victims fall or jump to their deaths, which eerily (and sadly) bring back morbid images of jumpers from the World Trade towers on 9/11.

The beginning of the film shows a dedication to firemen everywhere and the film has a definite moral and heroical quality to the firemen sent to rescue the people in the building. They are portrayed as heroes and intended not to be forgotten amid all the drama encompassing the story. This is admirable.

The special effects are elaborate and quite impressive- the glass elevator rescue scene is amazing! The beautiful set designs are a treat to watch as each lobby, apartment, or lounge in the skyscraper is exquisitely designed at the height of the 1970s style.

Every sofa or carpet featured is plush, colorful, and sophisticated. The skyscraper, made of glass, is an amazing element of the film, and the aerial views of the building, especially while ablaze are impressive, to say the least- remember- 1974 was long before CGI. I am assuming small replicas of the building were used, but what an achievement from a visual perspective.

The effects certainly champion the syrupy story elements.

My only small gripe with The Towering Inferno is, assumed to be 138 stories high, the action taking place at the top of the tower- the rooftop as well as the party scenes on the top floor- do not feel that high- The scenic outlook overlooking the water and some land feel about twenty-five stories high, not one hundred and thirty-eight.

Some find The Towering Inferno (1974) to be nothing more than schmaltzy drama- I say schmaltz was never done better.

Enjoy this feast of a big film.

Oscar Nominations: 3 wins-Best Picture, Best Supporting Actor-Fred Astaire, Best Original Dramatic Score, Best Song-“We May Never Love Like This Again” (won), Best Sound, Best Art Direction, Best Cinematography (won), Best Film Editing (won)