Old movie fans, Gregory Peck
- Thread starter rchawk
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Great voice. Commanding presence. I always liked him in McKenna's Gold and Old Gringo.
My father told me a story about WW2 after we watched this movie together back in the early 60's.
My dad was a B-24 pilot out of Italy in '44. He returned from a particularly rough mission over Reggensberg and when offered his customary post flight shot of whiskey, he took the glass and gave it to hisGround Crew chief. An hour later dad was called into his commanding officer's office and "officially dressed down" because he fratrinized with an enlisted non-com. Dad kept his mouth shut, as the Col. had rank and was nothing short of a West Point prick (dad's words, not mine). Dad never talked much aboutWW2 but he did talk about this.
My dad never understood a lot of the rules of the USAF, and left as soon as he could after flying his 50 missions. He understood the reason why there was a military...he just never understood their thought process.
BTW, dad survived WW2, his favorite Col did not.
My Grandpa was a B-24 pilot out of Grottaglie in '44. His was one of the original crews of the 449th to fly over. I never got to talk to him about it a whole lot, but the stories I did hear were pretty good. Probably one of the reasons I like Twelve O'Clock High so much. I know he loved Memphis Belle as well. CSB.
One of my Dad's favorite movies. He was a WWII vet and loved any film about bombers and DC-3's.
His other favorite was John Wayne in "The high and the mighty". One of the few Wayne flicks that his family would not release to video until just a few years ago.
Battleground was very authentic looking. The hand-to-hand fighting in the snow was extremely well staged and acted. Excellent performances from Van Johnson, Ricardo Montalban & James Whitmore.
12 O'Clock High, The Big Country, Horatio Hornblower and The Guns Of Navarone constitute the Gregory Peck Starter Set.
No offense, but there is something wrong with you.
I know what you mean...but I'm telling ya...you're missing out on some of the best movies and actors ever. 40's through 60's are my home run eras. Peck, Bogart, Wayne, Grant, Liz Taylor, Burton, Harrison, O'Toole, Gable, Heston et al...fantastic era for actors all in their prime.
80's movies are indeed hard to watch. I'm contemplating my collection (maybe 600 or so movies, probably more)...I doubt a tenth of them are from the 80's, and many of them weren't even hits (Top Secret! and Real Genius for example).
How much of that is nostalgia for you?
I do think that a lot of the stories are better in the older movies and that many current movies are simply rehashes of older movies.
But it takes me a long time to get into the older movies, even the "really good" ones are robotically acted with bad camerawork. I don't necessarily think people now are better actors, but it's a style thing. In current movies people are much more likely to assume the role and make it look/feel natural. In the older movies they are clearly acting and delivering affected one-liners over and over; it's not a natural voice or delivery. It's almost like they haven't quite figured out the transition from radio just yet.
I think technology plays a lot into what you are perceiving. HDTV, camera/sound and movie processing improvements...all make the sensory aspect of modern film-making more...accurate I'll call it. It really does in a lot of instances makes you feel like you are there watching it all occur.
Back then, they had to effectively make up (invent) a lot of it as they go to get the shot.
One thing also... being labeled a great movie is always in the eye of the beholder. There are movies from back then that I just plain don't care for the subject matter at all, exactly the same as today. One man's The Thin Man series is another man's latest Will Ferrell escapade. Hollywood suffered the same maladies as it suffers from today - they just didn't have the entire history of film to draw from they do today.
I'm not saying your views are bad...I'm saying keep digging is all. Usually, the type of movies you like today are in some fashion there from 70 years ago. They might not always be what are terms classics or great movies. They might have some wooden acting. But usually, there's a reason why many people like them, and that usually is some sort of subject matter crossed with great performances that make them viewed as such.
Myself, I'm a fan of Warner Brothers "documentary" films of the war years. Air Force and Action in the North Atlantic are great examples. I like the film noire of the late 40's into the 50's. I like Bogart's movies from the 40's...Action in the North Atlantic, The Big Sleep, The Maltese Falcon (fantastic), Casablanca. I love the Hitchcock movies from early in his career. Just about anything with Orson Welles in it from say late 30's to 1960 is fantastic - Touch of Evil should be in every human being on the planet's Top 10 list. Movies like Grapes of Wrath, Stagecoach, Seargent York...the acting in them is not necessarily perfect and the film copies you see sometimes are a bit aged, but they have performances in them and movie techniques used that you can see in films of today.
I think as you get older, you'll start to find more of these types you like, except move it forward say 18 or so years...probably start from say the 60's and 70's...more for your era.
I watched a bit of "Ensign Pulver" before work today, and noticed a very young Jack Nicholson in it. That's what my movie watching experiences are like for me...those little flashes of history that tend to make a movie for me.
Back then, they had to effectively make up (invent) a lot of it as they go to get the shot.
One thing also... being labeled a great movie is always in the eye of the beholder. There are movies from back then that I just plain don't care for the subject matter at all, exactly the same as today. One man's The Thin Man series is another man's latest Will Ferrell escapade. Hollywood suffered the same maladies as it suffers from today - they just didn't have the entire history of film to draw from they do today.
I'm not saying your views are bad...I'm saying keep digging is all. Usually, the type of movies you like today are in some fashion there from 70 years ago. They might not always be what are terms classics or great movies. They might have some wooden acting. But usually, there's a reason why many people like them, and that usually is some sort of subject matter crossed with great performances that make them viewed as such.
Myself, I'm a fan of Warner Brothers "documentary" films of the war years. Air Force and Action in the North Atlantic are great examples. I like the film noire of the late 40's into the 50's. I like Bogart's movies from the 40's...Action in the North Atlantic, The Big Sleep, The Maltese Falcon (fantastic), Casablanca. I love the Hitchcock movies from early in his career. Just about anything with Orson Welles in it from say late 30's to 1960 is fantastic - Touch of Evil should be in every human being on the planet's Top 10 list. Movies like Grapes of Wrath, Stagecoach, Seargent York...the acting in them is not necessarily perfect and the film copies you see sometimes are a bit aged, but they have performances in them and movie techniques used that you can see in films of today.
I think as you get older, you'll start to find more of these types you like, except move it forward say 18 or so years...probably start from say the 60's and 70's...more for your era.
I watched a bit of "Ensign Pulver" before work today, and noticed a very young Jack Nicholson in it. That's what my movie watching experiences are like for me...those little flashes of history that tend to make a movie for me.
Gentleman's Agreement.
Another fine "social conscience" flick - this one about antisemitism in post-WWII America.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0039416/
Another fine "social conscience" flick - this one about antisemitism in post-WWII America.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0039416/
It's a matter of taste, of course.
Having said that, you're simply wrong
Seriously, I know what you mean, and it's true of a lot of actors. Generally, I think they were transitioning from the stage rather than radio. Some movies are essentially stage plays with a camera or two set up to photograph the actors.
And some actors aren't nearly as good as they're cracked up to be. Gary Cooper is a shining example. He was a personality and a movie star, not an actor. I'd put Clark Gable in the same general category. And yes, Bogart in a lot of his movies.
That's one reason "Citizen Kane" was such a revelation. It was made by a twenty-something radio guy who didn't know enough not to follow the rules.
But your brush is too broad. A lot of the classic movies are classics because they were just damned good movies. The one that comes immediately to mind for me is "Treasure of the Sierra Madre," in which Walter Huston gives what has been called the best performance ever by an American actor. (Of course, it was his son, the director of the movie, who called him that, but he had a point).
Now if you want to see REALLY BAD movies, sit down for a marathon of '70s flicks. They are, as a group, horrible in all respects, and terribly self-conscious in the process.
12:00 High and To Kill a Mockingbird were classic performances, but I agree that he was great in Moby Dick. I agree that many old movies can be hard to watch, and that's where the truly great actors separate themselves. Heston was not an excellent actor. He had strong roles, but emoted. Gable and Bogart could assume a character with genuine sincerity. Liz Taylor could only play certain roles and was carefully selective during her career.
I have several movies I watch from time to time, and these include 12:00 High and To Kill a Mockingbird. But a movie doesn't have to be great to be entertaining. I DVR'd and watched last night, for the 2nd time in the last 2 months, a 2014 production: Stalingrad. A Russian-made movie based on the WW2 battle in which a German officer and a Russian officer come to terms, along with all the terrible things that happened in what was the most savage battle in history. I have an interest in that story but I recommend the movie if you enjoy WW2 history.
