1949
Directed by William Wyler
Olivia de Havilland is definitely one of my favorite actresses of all time. I have mentioned this before but I love that she doesn't need to be the prettiest person in the room during her performances. This is pretty unusual for actresses during this era (here's looking at you Joan Crawford). She is fantastic at playing emotionally damaged women. On a entirely separate and shallow note, I never really care what Montgomery Clift is up to. He is just so nice to look at.
Anyway, this film is follows Olivia de Havilland, who is a plain spinster who is constantly verbally abused by her father. Montgomery Clift comes along to woo her because of her large inheritance. If this was a movie now, he would probably fall in love with her along the way, she would find out about his motives, a sad song would play during their estrangement, then he would make a big speech at the end and they would fall into each other's arms. Spoiler: none of this happens.
In addition to the outstanding actors, you also have William Wyler directing who almost never disappoints. This film is flawless; even the score is amazing. Watch it!
RATING: *****
Interesting Facts:
Montgomery Clift thought de Havilland was a horrible actress and didn't want to work with her.
Olivia de Havilland won an Oscar for her performance. Take that, Clift (I really can't get mad at you).
I love her so much. So underrated by people who aren't into film, I think. No one talks about her as much as Marilyn or Audrey and she is so much more talented!
ReplyDeleteIt is an interesting story arc, isn't it? You would think that Clift's character would come around and victory for young love but instead the father turns out to be right. You do not see that kind of movies anymore.
ReplyDeleteAgreed Rachel. And definitely. I had forgotten about this one.
ReplyDeleteI was going to write about how I didn't see the point of this at all, that it was Dirty Dancing without the dirty dancing. I was also going to add that the two leads (and supporting cast) were so likeable and engaging that it was an enjoyable watch nonetheless.
ReplyDeleteBut, oh, what an ending. You're all taking it here as discovering that Morris was the bad guy all along, and probably he was. But it's still ambiguous and I think that that makes it even better. The nagging doubt that maybe her heart has turned so to stone that she is cruelly twisting the knife in her true love (regardless, deep down she does actually still love him.
Incidentally, I just noticed that Ms dH is actually still alive. 101 and even made it through the worldwide celebrity cull of 2017.
I cannot picture you watching/enjoying Dirty Dancing haha. And she is?? That's awesome.
DeleteA guilty pleasure perhaps, but I think dirty Dancing is great. Every scene a classic. Really.
DeleteWhen I was a kid, my best friend's sister and her best friend would watch it every Saturday evening together.