Top Ten Movie Blogfest

Just for fun this morning, I'm joining in on Alex Cavanaugh's Top Ten Movie Blogfest.

Check out my favorites then go here to find all the other blogs giving you their top ten pick today.

Thanks to Ninja Captain Alex's for creating this fun event.

I'm sure as I read everyone's lists today, I'm going to see lots of movies I didn't think of that belong on my list but here are ten of my all time favorites. I couldn't possibly rank them so I'm listing them in chronological order.

Bringing Up Baby (1938)

Katharine Hepburn and Cary Grant

No, I wasn't around when this was released, but I first saw it on the late show (does anyone remember the late show?) and have loved it ever since. One of the great screwball comedies from the 30's.

Philadelphia Story (1940) 

Katharine Hepburn, Cary Grant, and Jimmy Stewart

Another great comedy from before my time. 


African Queen (1951) 

Katharine Hepburn and Humphrey Bogart

What can I say? It's a classic.

Desk Set (1957)

Katharine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy

Okay, you got me. I love pretty much anything starring the Great Kate. This is my favorite of the Hepburn-Tracy films.
  

  Long Hot Summer (1958)

Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward

One of the great Hollywood couples, Newman and Woodward only made a few films together. This was the first and it's my favorite. 


Some Like It Hot (1959) 

Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis, and Jack Lemmon

The American Film Institute chose this movie as the greatest American comedy of all time and I'm certainly not going to argue.

The Music Man (1962)

Robert Preston and Shirley Jones

I enjoy musicals in general but there's no topping Robert Preston's Professor Harold Hill.

The Americanization of Emily (1964)

James Gardner and Julie Andrews

A World War II comedy-drama that just happens to star a couple of my favorite actors.

High Road to China (1983)

Tom Selleck and Bess Armstrong

I'm really not sure why this is one of my favorites but I never get tired of watching it.

Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day (2008) 

Francis McDormand, Amy Adams, and Ciarán Hinds

I enjoyed this movie so much, the following Christmas I gave the DVD to a half dozen friends. Francis McDormand is fabulous.

Okay, that's my ten.  Are any of your favorites on my list? Care to add a title or two?

Quotes for the Day: (I couldn't decide so you're getting two.) 

You know what your problem is, it's that you haven't seen enough movies - all of life's riddles are answered in the movies. ~ Steve Martin 

The length of a film should be directly related to the endurance of the human bladder. ~ Alfred Hitchcock

Cliffhangers and Sequels - Part One

It's May.  The end of network television's regular season.  And it seems that every scripted show is finishing the year with cliffhanger.

I'm not crazy about cliffhangers.

Many of us remember the summer of 1980 when the world held its collective breath wondering Who Shot JR, but the cliffhanger began way before someone put a bullet in JR Ewing on the TV show Dallas.  In the late 1800's, many novels were printed in serial format in newspapers and periodicals, and authors employed a variety of such devices to hold on to their readers' interest.  Early cinema included short serials that ended every episode with the hero or heroine facing some grave danger (from which they would miraculously escape in the opening minutes of the next installment).

For years, most TV cliffhangers were found in two part episodes.  You know, the ones that ended with "To be continued..." and left you screaming at the TV and tuning in the following week.  But is there truly a point to season ending cliffhangers?   I don't know about you, but I rarely spend the off season (summer for broadcast networks, winter for most cable networks) worrying about a character on a TV show.  Does anyone remember we left Jane Rizzoli bleeding out on the sidewalk in front of the police station last fall.  Okay, maybe now that I've mentioned it, but have you been counting the weeks until Rizzoli and Isles starts its new season so you can find out what happened?  Probably not.

Cliffhanger endings lose their effectiveness when too much time elapses before the next installment, between the set up and the payoff.  This is why they're less effective for feature films.  But what about films that are part of a series with a continuing story arc?  Lord of the Rings.  Star Wars.  Each movie has to include the set up for the next.  Sometimes the set up has a definite 'cliffhanger' feel to it.  (I was seriously annoyed when The Empire Strikes Back ended with Han Solo encased in carbonite and in the hands of the slimy Jabba the Hut.)

So where is the line between acceptable setup for a sequel and a true cliffhanger.  And how does this translate from TV and movies to books?  I'll take a look at those questions on Wednesday.  (When I will also announce the winner of last Friday's caption contest.)

In the meantime, what were some of your favorite or least favorite cliffhangers (TV or movie)?

I'm currently enjoying: Just finished Beautiful Lies by Lisa Unger

Groaner of the Day: Two cannibals meet one day. The first cannibal says, "You know, I just can't seem to get a tender Missionary. I've baked them, I've roasted them, I've stewed them, I've barbecued them, I've tried every sort of marinade. I just cannot seem to get them tender."

The second cannibal asks, "What kind of Missionary do you use?"

The other replied, "You know, the ones that hang out at that place at the bend of the river. They have those brown cloaks with a rope around the waist and they're sort of bald on top with a funny ring of hair on their heads."

"Ah, ha!" the second cannibal replies. "No wonder ... those are friars!"

(Oh, that's so awful.  I'm almost embarrassed.  Almost.)