For Classic Film and TV Cafe’s 5 Movies on an Island Blogathon, the task is to write about the five classic movies we’d want to have if stranded on a deserted island. (Happily and absurdly, we are allowed to assume we have electricity, a projector, big screen, and popcorn.) We are asked to identify our criteria as well as our choices and, because this celebrates National Classic Movie Day, we are to list classic films only.
Criteria: To create my list, I’ve distinguished between “great” movies (those I feel are particularly powerful in theme, style, historical importance, or the like) and “favorite” movies (those I just enjoy the hell out of for whatever reason). Then, I’ve nuanced “favorite” further, in order to differentiate films I have enjoyed but don’t need to see again and those I could watch forever. It’s the latter category of which my list of five is composed. Finally, because this is a noir blog, I’ve created two lists of five: (1) my all-time always-watchable cherished five classics; and (2) my all-time always-watchable favorite five noirs.
Note: Because there are almost no contemporary films I’d choose for my desert island five (general or noir), this was a little easier for me than it might be for some. I’m sorry to lose Cold Comfort Farm (1995), I suppose, as it delights me every time I watch it, but since we get through the 70s, I’m cool.
MY FIVE CHOICES:
- Holiday (1938). Dir. George Cukor. Stars Katharine Hepburn, Cary Grant, Lew Ayres, Edward Everett Horton. Romantic comedy about wealth and its psychological burdens. Hepburn and Grant do acrobatics, Ayres plays the piano, and Horton is delightful as always.
- Ball of Fire (1941). Dir. Howard Hawks. Stars Barbara Stanwyck and Gary Cooper. My favorite screwball comedy, a tale of desire between a gangster’s moll and a nerdy professor.
- All About Eve (1950). Dir. Joseph L. Mankiewicz. Stars Bette Davis, Anne Baxter, George Sanders. Behind the scenes of the theater in all its vicious, desperate glory.
- Some Like It Hot (1959). Dir. Billy Wilder. Stars Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis, Jack Lemmon. Gloriously queer prohibition-era ride. Lemmon steals the film, but everyone’s great.
- Young Frankenstein (1974). Dir. Mel Brooks. Stars Gene Wilder, Marty Feldman, Teri Garr, Madeline Kahn. Incomparable homage-parody of James Whale’s original Frankenstein (1931). Yes, I’m calling it a classic.
As soon as I typed all of this, of course, I wondered if I wanted to substitute Metropolis (1929) or Born Yesterday (1950) or the true classic Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975). I resisted.
Then I cringed at the politics (especially the sexism/objectification of women and the glaring whiteness) of these choices. They speak of the white male dominance of Hollywood and its standards, of course. But I’ll be on an island away from patriarchal dominance, right?
MY FIVE NOIR CHOICES:
- Scarlet Street (1944). Dir. Fritz Lang. Stars Edward G. Robinson, Joan Bennett, Dan Duryea. Downtrodden everyman falls for bad girl Kitty and pays for it. You’ll never stop hearing “Jeepers, I love you, Johnny.”
- The Big Sleep (1946). Dir. Howard Hawks. Stars Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall. So what if the plot makes little sense? I love every twist and turn, and especially Bacall.
- The Strange Love of Martha Ivers (1946). Dir. Lewis Milestone. Stars Barbara Stanwyck, Kirk Douglas, Lizabeth Scott, Van Heflin. Stanwyck is more disturbed than Phyllis Dietrichson in Double Indemnity (1944) and equally fatale.
- Night and the City (1950). Dir. Jules Dassin. Stars Richard Widmark, Googie Withers, Gene Tierney, Francis L. Sullivan. Widmark at his best in a London tale of a crooked guy who wants to make something of himself and fails at every turn. Tierney is wasted but Withers and Sullivan are stunning.
- The Big Combo (1955). Dir. Joseph Lewis. Stars Richard Conte, Jean Wallace, Cornel Wilde. Sadistic crime lord vs. determined cop, with a wilting femme between them. Awesome secondary characters, including Lee Van Cleef and Earl Holliman as Fante and Mingo as well as Helene Stanton as the burlesque gal Cornel Wilde uses and discards.
I feel a mite guilty for omitting Gilda (1946), but watching Ford’s Johnny torture her is just plain hard to watch. The ending is unearned. And the dubbing of her voice for “Put the Blame on Mame” is an unnecessary insult.
It’s also odd to have to leave out actors I adore (Robert Mitchum, for example) and important directors. But five is a small number and I’ll have to watch these few films over and over. So I’ll stand by my choices…for this post at least.
May 16, 2016 at 3:37 AM
HOLIDAY is a favorite in our family and ranks just a hair below BRINGING UP BABY. BALL OF FIRE and SOME LIKE IT HOT are great picks. Both are smart, funny, and hold up well with repeated viewings. By the way, I’m a fan of COLD COMFORT FARM, too. Darn blogathon rules!
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May 16, 2016 at 3:40 AM
I watch Holiday when I’m in a mellower mood than when I watch screwball comedies. 🙂 thanks for commenting!
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May 16, 2016 at 8:42 AM
Cheers to Ball of Fire! It appears on my list, as well! I think it’s an amazing movie, just like Some Like it Hot – I can’t judge the other ones yet… 🙂
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May 16, 2016 at 12:08 PM
Both of those lists are highlights of screenwriting and get a standing ovation from this quarter.
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May 16, 2016 at 3:29 PM
Many thanks, glad we are in accord!
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May 16, 2016 at 3:26 PM
You have a very impressive list here. I was so close to adding “Martha Ivers” to my list. I just can’t get enough of that compelling Film Noir. I love “The Big Sleep” is an excellent choice too.
Don’t forget to read my contribution to the blogathon. Here it is below.
https://crystalkalyana.wordpress.com/2016/05/16/five-movies-on-an-island-blogathon-national-classic-movie-day/
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May 16, 2016 at 4:32 PM
Amazing choices. I really adore these choices. Such great movies.
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May 16, 2016 at 5:24 PM
Ball of Fire is my favorite screwball comedy, too! And I really, really love Joan Bennett’s fierce in Scarlet Street (she makes Edward G. Robinson wear an apron and paint her toenails!). Both are great lists!
Don’t forget to read my contribution to the blogathon! 🙂
Cheers!
Le
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May 16, 2016 at 7:08 PM
Love Ball of Fire and Some Like it Hot! My noir list would be High Sierra (even though it’s not a hard-core noir), The Maltese Falcon, Nobody Lives Forever, Laura, and The Postman Always Rings Twice.
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May 16, 2016 at 7:41 PM
I haven’t heard of Nobody Lives Forever. Going to go look it up! Thanks for commenting.
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May 17, 2016 at 5:21 PM
It’s one of my favorite films. It has John Garfield and Walter Brennen. TCM shows it every once in a while. It reminds me a little of High Sierra because part of it is set at a beach house so it’s all bright and sunny. They also visit a Spanish mission, which is cool.
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May 17, 2016 at 6:31 PM
Awesome, I need to see more of Garfield’s work.
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May 18, 2016 at 7:15 PM
He’s one of my favorite actors. His last film “He Ran All the Way” with Shelley Winters is another good Noir.
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May 16, 2016 at 9:34 PM
Interesting choices, I’ve never seen anyone include “Ball of Fire” among their top five films, so you’ve given me the desire to watch it again and see just what makes it so special.
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May 16, 2016 at 11:03 PM
Everyone always chooses The Lady Eve for Stanwyck and Bringing Up Baby or The Awful Truth. Ball of Fire is so charming and sweet. I love it’s silly gentleness.
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May 16, 2016 at 10:05 PM
Holiday is a favorite of mine too! All About Eve-check! It’s fun seeing everyone’s lists.
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May 16, 2016 at 11:01 PM
I agree — and so many choices!
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May 16, 2016 at 10:15 PM
oh my gosh, I cannot believe I left Some Like It Hot off of my list!!! Love All About Eve and Ball of Fire as well… great choices… difficult decisions!
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May 16, 2016 at 11:01 PM
Terribly difficult. Each list I read has at least one I’d forgotten or was close to including!
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May 16, 2016 at 10:37 PM
Fantastic choices on both lists. I didn’t even consider misogyny or any of the other ills inherent in classic movies. I choose to ignore them in regular life so I guess they won’t bother me on an island.
Aurora
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May 16, 2016 at 11:00 PM
Glad you like my lists! Thanks for commenting.
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May 16, 2016 at 11:46 PM
I can’t think of anyone I’d rather be stranded on a desert island with than Mel Brooks. I love that you picked “Young Frankenstein.”Life has to be good if Mel and company are on hand.
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May 16, 2016 at 11:49 PM
Well put. I so agree.
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May 16, 2016 at 11:54 PM
I love “Holiday” and especially the warmth of the playroom. And I was delighted to see you include “Young Frankenstein!” The cast is absolutely perfect and the look a spot-on tribute, indeed.
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May 17, 2016 at 12:32 AM
Glad we share good taste!
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May 17, 2016 at 2:38 AM
I’m with Le (above). Lang’s Scarlett Street–truly a classic. Great lists here 🙂
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May 17, 2016 at 6:39 PM
Great to see Holiday on your list. I’ve had Ball of Fire on my Watchlist for ages. Maybe you’ll be the inspiration to finally scratch it off. I especially enjoyed that the Noir choices featured Night and the City.
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May 18, 2016 at 2:29 AM
Love Holiday, so underappreciated. Ball of Fire is a very sweet and innocent screwball comedy I just adore. Love both Widmark and Withers in Night and the City. Only thing I forgot was Out of the Past!
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May 22, 2016 at 1:28 AM
Scarlet Street is a great pick, and I briefly flirted with including it in my own list. You can’t help but identify with poor downtrodden Robinson, and Joan and Dan are priceless as always. I saw Woman in the Window many years ago at a college screening, then started looking for anything of Lang’s. That got me very interested in film noir.
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May 22, 2016 at 2:00 AM
Oddly, when I first saw Scarlet Street I didn’t much like it. I preferred Robinson in tough roles. Now I adore it. Thanks for reading and chatting!
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