Work has been pretty intense these last two weeks. Yesterday I actually did manage to watch two films for the John Barrymore day (Sherlock Holmes, 1922 and True Confession, 1937), but I had no time to write anything about them. Maybe more thoughtful posts will return, but for now, here is a brief look at what I watched today.
Somebody Up There Likes Me (1956), dir. Robert Wise
The first movie is definitely not much of a Steve McQueen vehicle – it is a Paul Newman picture. McQueen is uncredited, if I understand correctly, this was only his second picture. So it makes little sense to dwell on this one, but I did enjoy it. Newman plays a boxer named Rocky – but not that one, apparently (even though I was confused for a moment). Newman’s performance is a bit ridiculous (the accent, oh my…), but he still managed to charm me.
The Magnificent Seven (1960), dir. John Sturges
Now, this is a Steve McQueen classic! Maybe it is embarrassing to admit I have not seen it before today (but maybe nothing matters after I cam clean about not seeing The Great Dictator).
It is not only a classic Steve McQueen, cool guy performance, it is also, in many ways, a quintessential western and, in my opinion, one of the most fun ones. McQueen is a fantastic leading man, which I found interesting because I realized recently that, even though one might not think it to be so instinctively, leading men, GOOD leading men are hard to find (pay closer attention to leading men in movies you watch in the next weeks – you might notice they tend to be rather bland).
Also, that theme is very iconic and amazing, but the more often it played, the more it started to sound to me like Sims music.
Junior Bonner (1972), dir. Sam Peckinpah
Another one I enjoyed! This one is not a western, but it does have a country theme as it is all about the rodeo. But it is more introspective than flashy, a portrait of a small town and the people in it, the melancholy of their seemingly simple lives, and the real tragedies and hardships that actually go on in such „simple” lives. That is what I found most interesting about Junior Bonner. And it is a Peckinpah film. Who’d have thought.
Also, it was really nice to see Ida Lupino, I feel like we do not talk enough about her career post 1940s/1950s directorial efforts.
The Getaway (1972), dir. Sam Peckinpah
Another score for Steve McQueen! And Sam Peckinpah! Honestly, I was not expecting much from today, I though the movies might all be fine, but they turned out to be actually good and I enjoyed that all.
The Getaway is a heist movie in which McQueen is paired up with Ali McGraw whom he later married (I have no opinion on the relationship based just on what I saw on the screen today). And it is pretty entertaining, but also showcases quite a few interesting sequences and narrative choices which was fantastic to see. My biggest complaint is probably that the music was made by Quincy Jones, but you barely hear it! When I saw his name in the credits I was very excited but then it took ages to play and when it did it was only for what felt like few seconds at a time.
The Towering Inferno (1974), dir. John Guillermin
Wow, what a finish. I admit, I have been intimidated by The Towering Inferno for years, I cannot even guess how long it had been on my watchlist. But I… loved it? It feels gross to say but this might be my Titanic? I am speechless. I did not even care about the three-hour runtime.
And the cast (Faye Dunaway! William Holden! Jennifer Jones! Fred Astaire?! And… yeah.. O.J. Simpson…)! The film reunites Steve McQueen and Paul Newman, but this time both of them are main characters and get their due which felt like a very satisfying end to the day. I hope the rest of the month goes just as well.
Swingin' at the Seance 