“Movies are a complicated collision of literature, theatre, music and all the visual arts.”
The weatherman was right: it’s cold. When I went to bed last night, it was 16°. Right now it’s 27°, the high for the day. Earlier this morning we had snow flurries, but the sun appeared and chased the flurries away. The sun, though, is really just an ornament, something pretty but useless.
I still think of Sunday as a day of rest. After breakfast, I came home, got comfy, grabbed another cup of coffee and finished reading the papers. An early afternoon nap is on my to do list. I’m already yawning.
I am not fond of westerns. High Noon and She Wears a Yellow Ribbon are the only two I’ll always watch. There are a few others I might watch like Shane or Butch Cassidy but only if nothing better is on TV. Mostly I shy away from westerns. I blame my childhood for this. For years all I watched were western TV shows. On Saturday morning, when I was young, it was The Cisco Kid, Roy and Dale, Sky King, Gene Autry, Hopalong Cassidy, Annie Oakley and my personal favorite, The Lone Ranger, to name just a few. At night, it seemed as if every station aired a western or two. If I started a list here, it would extend for most of the page. I was westerned out by the time I reached high school.
Some of my favorite movies are old ones in B&W. I will always watch Gunga Din, Arsenic and Old Lace, Psycho (though I still hate the shower scene), To Kill a Mockingbird and my personal favorite, Casablanca. There are more, but these are the ones which popped into my head. Oops, Dr. Strangelove just popped in.
I will watch any of the old science fiction movies. Some are quite good though they are far outweighed by the bad ones, the ones I also love to watch. The good ones include The Invasion of the Body Snatchers, The Thing, Them and all the classics made in the 30’s.
I own several of these movies, but I still always watch them when they appear on TV. Most times they’re on Turner Classic Movies, one of my favorite channels. If I notice one of them is listed, I make sure I have plenty of popcorn. Every now and then I add Good & Plenty, my favorite matinee candy when I was a kid.
Explore posts in the same categories: MusingsTags: Hopalong Cassidy, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, Television
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January 23, 2011 at 2:11 pm
You not watching the Playoffs? I guess when you get booted by the low life of Harlem it’s not much fun to watch. I’m pulling for Pittsburg but surprised that the best teams NE and New Orleans didn’t show up for the dance. Incredible season. New guys are showing us up Kat!
January 24, 2011 at 12:15 pm
Z&Me,
I watched the Jets get beaten and thanked God for his intervention. Go Steelers!
I wonder too what happened. Maybe the stress fracture?
January 23, 2011 at 2:22 pm
We´ve had around 32F all day and I have enjoyed every minute of it 🙂
Westerns has never been any of my favorites, but all the rest of the movies You mentioned are favorites of mine 🙂 Especially the SciFi movies have always been favorites of mine. Any movie that Mel Brooks have made belongs to my favorites too 🙂
Have a great day now!
Christer.
January 23, 2011 at 2:24 pm
I really have to use more different words when I write 🙂 All sentences looks almost identical 🙂 🙂 🙂
January 24, 2011 at 12:16 pm
Christer,
It is 13° here right now! I have an appointment otherwise I’d stay home.
Scifi are my favorites as well!
January 23, 2011 at 2:39 pm
The paintings of Frederick Remington are beautifully mimicked in some of the scenes in She Wore A Yellow Ribbon. Great movie!
January 23, 2011 at 2:56 pm
Another great John Ford western where he does the same is Fort Apache. My favorite of the “Ford Trilogy”.
We saw the latest version of True Grit and found it far better than the John Wayne offering. Although, when Wayne grabs the reigns and yells “Fill your hands, you sonofabitch.” is still one of the greatest scenes in filmdom.
January 24, 2011 at 2:16 pm
John,
I’m giving Fort Apache a thumbs up as well. I had forgotten about it when I was thinking about my list.
I always thought that was the perfect role for an aging John Wayne.
January 24, 2011 at 2:15 pm
Mark,
I agree that it is a great movie. Here I am not a fan of westerns and a take him or leave him attitude about John Wayne, but I love that movie.
January 24, 2011 at 8:22 pm
Mark,
I’ll have to watch the movie again as I’d recognize the Remington’s.
January 23, 2011 at 5:37 pm
No “Seven Brides For Seven Brothers”??? I am beyond stounded, I am astounded!
Cheers
January 23, 2011 at 9:37 pm
Minicapt,
It’s true. I admit it. Seven Brides for Seven Brothers made no list of mine.
January 23, 2011 at 11:24 pm
I love 1950s sci-fi, the lower the budget the better! & I echo John above: The new TRUE GRIT is really worth watching.
January 24, 2011 at 12:33 am
Buzz,
I’m with you in loving those scifi movies with quality of no importance. The low budget ones are the most fun to watch.
January 24, 2011 at 6:42 pm
Hiya Kat.
I am a fan of certain westerns but a John Wayne fan I ain’t.
Some of the very best imho, are “Once Upon A Time In The West” (if you are lucky to see it uncut which is not possible on the DVD), “The Outlaw Josie Wales”, the other 3 Sergio Leone’s with Clint Eastwood just to name a few.
TV Westerns of the 50/60’s were not that brilliant if watched today.
January 24, 2011 at 8:08 pm
Hi Pierre,
I only like John Wayne in She Wore a Yellow Ribbon; otherwise, like you, I am not a fan.
Why do they cut the movie for the DVD? Usually you get everything, including the director’s cut and so much more.
My friends and I watched a DVD of children’s programs from the 50’s, all the shows we watched. One show and I’m sorry but I forget the name was my friend’s favorite. We watched it for about three minutes which was two minutes too many. It was just awful.
We were watching the birth of a new medium so we had no expectations.
January 25, 2011 at 4:21 am
Hi Kat,
In the case of “Once Upon A Time In The West”, it was a very long movie. When I first saw it eons ago I was so impressed I remembered everything about it. It turned up on TV some years later & was totally butchered. Steven Hawking would never make head or tale of it.
When it surfaced on DVD one vital scene featuring Jason Robards was gone leaving the anyone mystified how he was shot. An amazing cast included Charles Bronson, Claudia Cardinale & Henry Fonda in the most evil role he ever played. Music was by the genius Ennio Morricone
January 25, 2011 at 11:35 am
Hi Pierre,
Because I am not such a huge western fan, I missed that movie entirely. Too bad they took out so many scenes. If it ever appears on TV, I’ll watch it mindful that it has been cut.