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Post by Admin on Oct 21, 2020 19:59:04 GMT -6
What is your favorite 1950s Joan film?
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Post by davidmorrocco on Oct 22, 2020 7:56:51 GMT -6
Queen Bee 👑🐝 was not Joans favorite film to make, but I thought she really was “thee Joan Crawford” While I was watching it. I also would put the movie Sudden Fear on the top of my list too. Great story and fabulous acting. In both movies she was amazing.
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yvo
The Unknown
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Post by yvo on Oct 23, 2020 2:10:40 GMT -6
Sudden Fear for sure, I can re-watch that movie anytime, the cinematography is superb, and Miss Crawford of course.
I'm ashamed to say I haven't watched all of them, Queen Bee really was fun! I always wanted to read the book but never got around to it.
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Post by TJ on Oct 23, 2020 11:12:42 GMT -6
Autumn Leaves. A much underappreciated gem. Miss C is touching, tender and true. A happy and welcome detour from some of her scenery chewing habits displayed in Female on the Beach or Torch Song. But as always, beauty and art are in the eye of the beholder.
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jack
The Unknown
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Post by jack on Oct 25, 2020 13:41:01 GMT -6
Autumn Leaves. A much underappreciated gem. Miss C is touching, tender and true. A happy and welcome detour from some of her scenery chewing habits displayed in Female on the Beach or Torch Song. But as always, beauty and art are in the eye of the beholder. I couldn’t agree more with that sentiment. This film always makes me tear up. I think I’ve watched it more times than any of her films aside from Baby Jane. Miss Crawford can switch between bitch to sympathetic so seamlessly from film to film, and here she’s at her best when it comes to tugging at the audiences heart strings. Her chemistry with Cliff Robertson is also perfectly touching. I love her 50s films more than another decade, and this is my definitely my favourite. |
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Post by narnia7 on Oct 25, 2020 17:44:10 GMT -6
Sudden Fear, the scene where she finds out Palance is trying to kill her is iconic. And she doesn't even say a word.
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Post by Admin on Oct 31, 2020 20:08:17 GMT -6
Autumn Leaves. A much underappreciated gem. Miss C is touching, tender and true. A happy and welcome detour from some of her scenery chewing habits displayed in Female on the Beach or Torch Song. But as always, beauty and art are in the eye of the beholder. "Autumn Leaves" was one of the very first Joan films I ever saw; it remains one of my favorites (even thought I voted for "Johnny G" as my ultimate #1 favorite of the '50s) for the reasons you mentioned. A p.s. Joan is sometimes criticized (by superficial critics) for being more of a "star" than an "actress." I challenge said critics to actually sit down and view JUST the following '50s films---Harriet/Fear/Torch/Johnny/QB/Autumn---and then honestly claim that Joan was not a very good (if not great) actress. |
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Post by Admin on Oct 31, 2020 20:14:01 GMT -6
Sudden Fear, the scene where she finds out Palance is trying to kill her is iconic. And she doesn't even say a word. I may be exaggerating, but I think that scene is one of THE best in classic film history! The below is from my review of "Sudden Fear" on the BOE website back in 2005: The scene where Myra first listens to the recording and discovers Lester's perfidy is both fascinating and painful to watch because we're given no respite from the emotions that Myra's experiencing. Whole minutes go by in silence as we see Myra, often in close-up, reacting first in disbelief, then confusion, then sadness, then literal nausea, as she finally runs to the bathroom to throw up. The pure acting ability, and acting bravery, required to pull off such an uncomfortable scene is enormous, and I've never seen anything quite like it. Ever. Even in silent films, where similarly claustrophobic camera attention was necessarily paid to the actors' every expression.
Joan's acting skills are also evident in an earlier scene, when Lester hasn't shown up for a party in his honor and Myra goes to his apartment to find him---her awkwardly smiling look of utter love and submission and fear of rejection as she climbs the stairs and says to him "Without you I have nothing" is intimately and painfully nuanced. |
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Post by Admin on Oct 31, 2020 20:29:33 GMT -6
Sudden Fear for sure, I can re-watch that movie anytime, the cinematography is superb, and Miss Crawford of course. I'm ashamed to say I haven't watched all of them, Queen Bee really was fun! I always wanted to read the book but never got around to it. Speaking of reading/not reading the books: Years ago I started collecting books that I found on eBay related to Joan movies. So far, I have the following: Montana Moon, Old Clothes, The Understanding Heart, Our Dancing Daughters, Letty Lynton, Rain, Not Too Narrow...(Strange Cargo), Above Suspicion, Mildred Pierce, Humoresque, Daisy Kenyon, and Johnny Guitar. That said, of all of the previous, I have now, years later, only actually read "Mildred" and "Daisy" and part of "Johnny." I think Joan kind of spoiled me for the books!  I start reading them, expecting something Joan-based that I don't quite get from the book, then I get bored and put the book aside. (My ultimate goal, though, is still to read all of them. Especially the ones that were first big hits in Joan's era---sometimes she would read a best-seller and then seek to have it developed into a project with a role for herself; the idea of trying to read the book as Joan, or even another person of her time period, might have read it...) |
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yvo
The Unknown
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Post by yvo on Nov 5, 2020 3:54:37 GMT -6
I actually wanted to start a thread (maybe it's dumb) in vein of WWJD (what would Joan do) - I sometimes find myself fantasizing about how Joan would react to certain modern classics; Literature or film, of course in my mind she's in her mid 40s still and hungry for quality material to tackle.. |
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Post by Admin on Nov 6, 2020 23:47:26 GMT -6
I actually wanted to start a thread (maybe it's dumb) in vein of WWJD (what would Joan do) - I sometimes find myself fantasizing about how Joan would react to certain modern classics; Literature or film, of course in my mind she's in her mid 40s still and hungry for quality material to tackle.. Great idea! I just created a "WWJD?" thread under: The Life > Legacy > WWJD? joancrawfordbest.proboards.com/board/26/wwjd |
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Post by davidmorrocco on Feb 1, 2021 9:29:57 GMT -6
I watched Johnny Guitar this past weekend. Not my favorite movie, but I love Joan. Crawford wanted either Bette Davis or Barbara Stanwyck for the role of Emma Small, but they were too expensive. Claire Trevor was next in mind for the role but was unable to accept because she was tied up with another film. Finally, Nicholas Ray brought in McCambridge. Issues between the two women cropped up early on, but Ray was not alarmed – at first. He found it "heaven sent" that they disliked each other and felt it added greatly to the dramatic conflict. The reasons for the feud appear to date back to a time when Crawford had once dated McCambridge's husband, Fletcher Markle. According to some of the other co-stars, McCambridge needled Crawford about it. McCambridge also appears to have disliked that Crawford and Ray were in the midst of an affair. Crawford, on the other hand, disliked what she perceived to be "special attention" that Ray was giving to McCambridge. After filming, McCambridge and Hayden publicly declared their dislike of Crawford, with McCambridge labeling Crawford, "a mean, tipsy, powerful, rotten-egg lady".[Hayden said in an interview, "There is not enough money in Hollywood to lure me into making another picture with Joan Crawford. And I like money." Making things worse was that McCambridge was battling alcoholism during this period, something she admitted later contributed to the problems between her and Crawford. Crawford for her part said of McCambridge, "I have four children – I do not need a fifth." Later, Ray claimed that Crawford, during a rage, drunkenly threw McCambridge's costumes into the street. Crawford later laughingly admitted she had thrown McCambridge's own clothing into the street. Ray also said of that time, "Joan was drinking a lot and she liked to fight," but that she was also "very attractive, with a basic decency." I know Joan took Her son Christopher to Sedona, AZ for the filming. I hope he was kept away from the set and was off playing Cowboys and Indians with other children.
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Post by Admin on Feb 1, 2021 22:34:02 GMT -6
I watched Johnny Guitar this past weekend. Not my favorite movie, but I love Joan. Crawford wanted either Bette Davis or Barbara Stanwyck for the role of Emma Small, but they were too expensive. Claire Trevor was next in mind for the role but was unable to accept because she was tied up with another film. Finally, Nicholas Ray brought in McCambridge. Issues between the two women cropped up early on, but Ray was not alarmed – at first. He found it "heaven sent" that they disliked each other and felt it added greatly to the dramatic conflict. The reasons for the feud appear to date back to a time when Crawford had once dated McCambridge's husband, Fletcher Markle. According to some of the other co-stars, McCambridge needled Crawford about it. McCambridge also appears to have disliked that Crawford and Ray were in the midst of an affair. Crawford, on the other hand, disliked what she perceived to be "special attention" that Ray was giving to McCambridge. After filming, McCambridge and Hayden publicly declared their dislike of Crawford, with McCambridge labeling Crawford, "a mean, tipsy, powerful, rotten-egg lady".[Hayden said in an interview, "There is not enough money in Hollywood to lure me into making another picture with Joan Crawford. And I like money." Making things worse was that McCambridge was battling alcoholism during this period, something she admitted later contributed to the problems between her and Crawford. Crawford for her part said of McCambridge, "I have four children – I do not need a fifth." Later, Ray claimed that Crawford, during a rage, drunkenly threw McCambridge's costumes into the street. Crawford later laughingly admitted she had thrown McCambridge's own clothing into the street. Ray also said of that time, "Joan was drinking a lot and she liked to fight," but that she was also "very attractive, with a basic decency." I know Joan took Her son Christopher to Sedona, AZ for the filming. I hope he was kept away from the set and was off playing Cowboys and Indians with other children. One of the very first Joan movies that I ever saw. Her intensity made me a fan (as it turned out, for life). p.s. To see pics of Christopher on the set, visit the BOE website: www.joancrawfordbest.com/images1954.htm#Johnny |
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Post by davidmorrocco on Feb 2, 2021 8:48:56 GMT -6
Thanks, I just checked out the link to the photos of Christopher and the twins. I didn’t know that the girls were there too. Sometimes I wonder how she could manage to make a movie with differences with Mercedes and please the director and take care of the kids. Probably because she was strong, powerful, loving, harmonious, and healthy and I hope happy. I love her so much that I feel she’s a part of who I am.
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Post by tom on Aug 17, 2021 20:22:04 GMT -6
Sudden Fear for sure, I can re-watch that movie anytime, the cinematography is superb, and Miss Crawford of course. I'm ashamed to say I haven't watched all of them, Queen Bee really was fun! I always wanted to read the book but never got around to it. Speaking of reading/not reading the books: Years ago I started collecting books that I found on eBay related to Joan movies. So far, I have the following: Montana Moon, Old Clothes, The Understanding Heart, Our Dancing Daughters, Letty Lynton, Rain, Not Too Narrow...(Strange Cargo), Above Suspicion, Mildred Pierce, Humoresque, Daisy Kenyon, and Johnny Guitar. That said, of all of the previous, I have now, years later, only actually read "Mildred" and "Daisy" and part of "Johnny." I think Joan kind of spoiled me for the books! I start reading them, expecting something Joan-based that I don't quite get from the book, then I get bored and put the book aside. (My ultimate goal, though, is still to read all of them. Especially the ones that were first big hits in Joan's era---sometimes she would read a best-seller and then seek to have it developed into a project with a role for herself; the idea of trying to read the book as Joan, or even another person of her time period, might have read it...) Just saw this. What did you think of Not Too Narrow, Not Too Deep? I re-watched Strange Cargo last night, which I seem to enjoy more every time I re-watch, and was wondering if the book might fill in some of the things I did not get. Some of the IMDB reviews for Strange Cargo suggests that it may have been heavily edited to pass the censors, and so perhaps some of the things that do not add up are explained in the bool?!? Thanks. |
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I start reading them, expecting something Joan-based that I don't quite get from the book, then I get bored and put the book aside. (My ultimate goal, though, is still to read all of them. Especially the ones that were first big hits in Joan's era---sometimes she would read a best-seller and then seek to have it developed into a project with a role for herself; the idea of trying to read the book as Joan, or even another person of her time period, might have read it...)