Movie Review: Funny Face (1957)

Greetings, readers!

This is my last movie review for 2020. Itʼs so hard for me to believe! Even though parts of 2020 have crept along at a snailʼs pace, it seems like I just started with La Belle et La Bête (1946) a week ago. Iʼm ending with a musical that I hadnʼt see before, and in fact enjoyed quite a bit. Sit back, and enjoy my review!

My guarantee: On ALL of my reviews there are NO spoilers unless I give you warning. This is spoiler free!

Funny Face (1957):

The magazine Quality is the height of fashion. For a photo shoot, the company randomly chooses a bookstore and causes some havoc much to the distress of the young shop attendant, Jo Stockton. The photographer, Dick Avery, stays behind to help clean up and is surprised by this girl and her talks of philosephy, especially empathy. Later he convinces Maggie Prescott-, the head of the magazine, that this girl would be great for their new model. The only way that Dick can convince her is that in Paris she could meet famous philosephers. Once they get to France, feelings start breaking out, and in the sweep of the moment they canʼt find Jo. Will she be where they want her to be at the right time?

“Every girl on every page of Quality has grace, elegance, and pizazz. Now, what's wrong with bringing out a girl who has character, spirit, and intelligence?”

Genre: Musical, Romance.
Length: approx. 103 minutes.
Script: 10, no bad words at all.

“Anything you donʼt understand you call ʻsmall talkʼ.”

Crew: Directed by: Stanley Donen. Written by: Leonard Gershe.
Starring:
Audrey Hepburn as Jo Stockton. “I have no illusions about my face, I think itʼs funny.” 

Fred Astaire as Dick Avery.
Kay Thompson as Maggie Prescott.
Michel Auclair as Prof. Emile Flostre.
Dovima as Marion.
Robert Flemyng as Paul Duval.
Jean Del Val as Hairdresser.
Virginia Gibson as Babs.
Sue England as Laura.
Ruta Lee as Lettie.
Alex Gerry as Dovitch.
Iphigenie Castiglioni as Armande.

Costumes: 9, this movie is all about a fashion magazine, so there are lots of costumes. There arenʼt any that I dislike. There is quite a lot of pink, and I was scandelized by comments like, “Burn the blue!”, but they all are fun.
Costumes designed by: Edith Head.

Cinematography: 9, Iʼm conflicted on this. If there was a word that I would use to describe it, that word is “unique”. Iʼve never seen cinematography like this. There are so many colors and changes! My favorite scene was one in a “dark room” for developing photos. The red lighting the whole time was perfect. Another time in a “café” in Paris you could tell that it was many takes stitched together as the cinematography changed every time the angle was shifted. Overall, I enjoyed the creative take for our viewing pleasure.

“Trees have beauty, why donʼt you photograph trees?”

Cinematography by: Ray June.
Music: 8, my favorite songs were “Bonjour, Paris”, and “Funny Face”!
Music by: Ida and George Gershwin.

Notes: I caught a reference to another Audrey Hepburn movie, Roman Holiday (1953). WARNING: In this movie there are spoilers for the book Anna Karenina - by Leo Tolstoy. It is one of my favorite books, so I advise not seeing this until youʼve read it, or if you already know the plot.
Quotability: N/A, as I just watched it so recently. I do have the feeling that Iʼll be quoting this line at least, sometime in the future:

“Iʼm so tired, itʼs an effort for me to say Iʼm so tired.”

Content: 8, there is smoking and mild kissing. A character gets into an uncomfortable situation for a second, but everything is fine.
Originality: 7, does this follow the typical “romance” structure? Yes, but the setting is still fun.

Good For: Fans of the actors, musical lovers.
Age Range: This is a movie that would be fine for any age. There is nothing too scary for a little kid. There are some scenes in a “café” which is more like a saloon which has a smoky atmosphere, but thatʼs all that I can think of that would bother a kid.
Overall Score: 8.5.
Worth watching?: Oui, oui! It was cute and I had fun. I really liked the message on having empathy for other people.

Will I watch again?: Oui, again. My older sister only caught the last half, so Iʼll try to watch the beginning with her again. Then again, my dad only saw the first half and was bored, so if heʼs interested Iʼll watch the second half with him.

“This is my second and last encounter with you lunatics.”

For the blogathon:
I know that itʼs crazy that this is my fourth review of a Fred Astaire movie this year. Iʼve done: Royal Wedding (1951), Silk Stockings (1957), and Holiday Inn (1942). Itʼs not just that Iʼm on a kick, most have been for blogathons, and this one is continuing the tradition.

 This is my entry in Michaela of Love Letters to Old Hollywoodʼs The Third Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers Blogathon. It is hosted with best wishes for the other intended co- host, Crystal Kalyana, as she has been through some scary health problems and is currently in the ICU in a coma. Her family would appreciate it if you kept her in your thoughts and prayers.

Surprisingly, I have contributed to this blog party each year. The first time was a review of Fredʼs Letʼs Dance (1950), and last year I talked about Gingerʼs Monkey Business (1952), so it was Fredʼs turn again. Iʼve owned this movie for a long time but never watched it, so I wrangled my sister into enjoying it with me.

It could be said to be like the movie An American in Paris (1951), but I might just be thinking that because it features Americans in Paris and has one of the same songs. Note, while it is called Funny Face, it has a different story from the 1927 musical that also starred Fred Astaire.

If I really think about it I could make some connections between this movie and the one that I didnʼt like from this same year, Silk Stockings (1957). Because they are similar, do I not like this one? No. Why not? Well, Iʼm a little confused by that myself. It could depend on my mood. I watched this movie over two (accidentally spread apart) days, and on the first day I wrote down that I was “snorting” (I know, not a ladylike thing to do) so many times in the first 10 minutes by how ridiculous it was. On the second day, there were places that if I had been in the same mood I wouldʼve kept up the same mocking stance towards it. But I wasnʼt. I thoroughly enjoyed it the whole second time. Thinking about it, there were somethings that I normally would be insulted by, but it didnʼt matter to me.

“MC,” youʼre asking, “Why? Why do you like this better than Silk Stockings (1957)?”

Was it because I like Audrey Hepburn better than Cyd Charisse? I donʼt think that was too big a factor, but I could be mistaken. No, I think that Silk Stockings (1957) takes itself too seriously. Funny Face (1957) is just carefree. It is relaxed (or “chill” as I like to say), so I didnʼt mind anything that I would otherwise not cared for. For example, in the song “On How to be Lovely”, I would usually be groaning, but Kay Thompson and Audrey Hepburn seemed to be having so much fun, that I couldnʼt help smiling. Watching this movie was almost like going on a picnic; an enjoyable way to spend a day, leaving you with memories of laughter.

Itʼs not the most impressive role that Iʼm seen Fred in, but I liked it all the same. I canʼt think of anything bad to say about this movie, as Iʼm just so contented, that youʼll have to look somewhere else for a negative review. In the meantime, Iʼll be swaying along in time to the music to express myself.

Thanks to Michaela for continuing to host this! Check out all of the other entries HERE.

How are all of you doing? Are you tired of my Fred Astaire reviews? Does your mood affect your opinions when watching movies? Thanks for reading! For my next review, look in January 2021!

MovieCritic

Movie Review: Holiday Inn (1942)

Greetings, folks!

I hope that you are all going to have a lovely occasion. Did I say occasion? I meant day. Whoops, slip of the tong--er--hand. If you’ve been around my blog for awhile, you know that I love reviewing things for special occasions. It isn’t likely that I would randomly review a Christmas movie in July (my sister insists that it would work because “Christmas in July”...but no.) Today I’ll be talking about a movie that has so many holidays that I could chose to review it on, but I think I finally found the right one. Why? Read on!

My guarantee: On ALL of my reviews there are NO spoilers unless I give you warning. The main review is spoiler free, but later on there will be some spoilers. I will warn you in time, though!

Holiday Inn (1942):

Stage performer Jim Hardy is tired of having no breaks. He never has a day off and even has big shows on holidays! He decides to quit it all and buy up a farm, thinking that he’ll have free time whenever he wants it. Turns out he was wrong and it is a lot of work. His new brilliant idea is to only work on the holidays and have everyday off! He forms plans to open an inn that is only open on special occasions. Things are going well until he and his friend Ted Hanover both become attached to the same girl. The catch is that he knows who she is and Ted doesn’t. How long will he be able to keep his secrets and what will happen if they are known?

Genre: Musical, Comedy, Romance.
Length: approx. 100 minutes
Script: 10, absolutely clean as there are no bad words.

“Oh boy, do I go for those! Why they're great on... on ... or even plain!” 

(My whole opinion on food.)

Crew: Directed by: Mark Sandrich. Written by: Irving Berlin, Claude Binyon, & Elmer Rice.
Starring:

Bing Crosby as Jim Hardy.

Fred Astaire as Ted Hanover.

Marjorie Reynolds as Linda Mason.

Virginia Dale as Lila Dixon.

Walter Abel as Danny Reed.

Irving Bacon as Gus.

Louise Beavers as Mamie.

Shelby Bacon as Vanderbilt.

Joan Arnold as Daphne.

Marek Windheim as François.

John Gallaudet as Parker.

James Bell as Dunbar.

Leon Belasco as the Flower Shop Proprietor.

Bob Crosby's Band as Orchestra.

Costumes: 9, nothing indecent, and they are quite fashionable, all of them. I mean, I wouldn’t mind wearing one of them...

Costumes by: Edith Head.

Have you ever seen Fred were something so crazy? No, you haven't.

Cinematography: 8, it was classic cute old movie, but nothing too big. I had a bit of a dilemma when I started typing this review, as I didn’t remember if it was black and white or color. I watched it back near Easter so it was a long time ago, okay! I pretty distinctly remember color, but my older sister helped remind me. After that, I remembered how long it took me to coax my little sister into watching it, then once we started she yelled out, “Oh no! Not black and white!” because she rarely likes black and white. This one was approved by her, though.

Cinematography by: David Abel.

Music: 9, good songs, as expected from Irving Berlin! My favorite was probably, “I Can’t Tell a Lie”.

Music by: Irving Berlin & Robert Emmett Dolan.

Quotability: 6, I haven’t quoted it since seeing it, but after multiple rewatches I can image myself doing it.

“Dance yourselves into beautiful nervous breakdowns.” (Paraphrase)

Oscars won: 1: Best Original Song (“White Christmas”). We always associate the song “White Christmas” with the musical, again starring Bing Crosby, titled White Christmas (1954), but the song was actually released with the movie, 12 years before that! This is also the start of the famous song “Easter Parade”, which also got a film all to itself, but only 6 years later.

Content: 7, there is some smoking and some drinking where one character got highly drunk. There are some war scenes in a slideshow, but it is very brief. There is also a very controversial scene with the song “Abraham”, which might be offensive to some, as it has some “incorporating images and behaviors” (Source), that could be called racist. Sometimes this scene is completely cut when stations play the film. Personally, it was my least favorite.

‘“Then I had a drink.”

“A drink? Boy, you were fractured!”’

Originality: 9, this was a bucket of fun! You have some classic Hollywood set ups in there, but it just adds to the fun. An Inn that only specializes in holidays? Never heard of it before!

Good For: Fans of the actors, watching on any of the mentioned holidays.

Age Range: This is acceptable for any and all ages. Little kids will love the dancing, as will older people, I’m sure!

Overall Score: 8!

Worth watching?: Yes! Ever since I’ve learned that this was the origin for “White Christmas”, I’ve wanted to see it and it didn’t disappoint! The numbers were fun, and the actors worked so well together. I'd never seen anything with Marjorie Reynolds before, so I liked that. My sisters and I keep talking about how strange it was to have a movie where we don’t like Fred Astaire’s character. Don’t get me wrong, he isn’t unlikeable, we just like Bing Crosby’s character so much better! The dancing and singing were top notch, as per usual!

Will I watch again?: I now want to make it a tradition where I watch this every year, on one of the many holidays. The fun thing about this movie is that it’s not necessarily Christmas, so there are many chances to watch it.

“You sound sweet, but you don’t make sense.”

For the blogathon:

This movie features the holidays: Christmas, New Year’s, Valentine’s Day, Lincoln’s birthday, Washington’s birthday (those two are now combined into President’s Day), Easter, Independence Day, and...

Thanksgiving!

This is my entry in Sally of 18 Cinema Lane’s A Blogathon To Be Thankful For!

There are four categories in this blogathon, and this is the one that I am participating with: Write about a movie or television show episode that either revolves around Thanksgiving or features, at least, one scene taking place on Thanksgiving.

I really love the idea of Sally hosting this because Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays! It is all about being grateful, so how awesome is that? And food, it also involves food. I like this because so many people jump to Christmas after Halloween and tend to forget about it, which is really sad! I celebrate Christmas for a long time afterwards, and not so much beforehand. I know all holidays this year have been different, but it’s good to remember what we’re thankful for.

Alright, time for me to talk about the Thanksgiving scene in here!

Each holiday is proceeded by a short (30 seconds max.) animated feature on a calendar. For Thanksgiving, it has a turkey jumping back and forth between two dates, Thursday the 20th and Thursday the 27th, showing that this was supposed to take place in 1941. This is a fun detail because in all three years of 1939, 1940, and 1941 there was a lot of controversy going on about what date Thanksgiving should be on. From 1863-1938 it had always been the last Thursday of the month, but in 1939 there were five Thursdays instead of four, and President Roosevelt changed it to the week before the last. This stirred up a lot of trouble with people being dismayed over the “breaking of tradition” until finally in 1941 FDR signed a law that it would be the fourth Thursday in November.

(Credit to Cricket magazine and my sister for my expertise on this.)

Okay, from now on SPOILER ALERT. I’m going to be talking about near the end of this movie, so if you haven’t seen it, read no further!

This isn’t the most cheerful part of the movie. Unlike all of the other holidays, Jim is alone for this one. Except for loyal Mamie, of course! He has closed down the inn and let Hollywood start making a movie about it. He has lost Linda as she is off making movies and is overall feeling sorry for himself. He is working on writing the song, “Plenty to be Thankful For”, which is quite the opposite of his current mood, and he keeps making pessimistic comments in reply to the lyrics.

Also, these two kids were adorable.

Mamie brings him a Thanksgiving feast, but he doesn’t really eat, just pushes his food around. Mamie gets tired of his moping and finally tells him to go after Linda, saying:

“You could melt her heart right down to butter, if you'd only turn on the heat!”

There you have it! A huge thank you to Sally Silverscreen for hosting this! Make sure to check out the other entries HERE.

Tell me, what is your favorite holiday movie (for any holiday)? What is your favorite Bing Crosby movie? What about Fred Astaire? Thanks for reading, and happy Thanksgiving in advance!

MovieCritic

Movie Review: Roman Holiday (1953)

Salutations!

I hope that all of you are doing well! Today it's time for another review (because that is my main goal around here but it doesn't always happen)! I'll be talking about the first movie I saw a famous actor in. Are you ready to go on a vacation, or holiday? Maybe watching this movie will be enough of one. Enjoy my review!

My guarantee: On ALL of my reviews there are NO spoilers unless I give you warning. This is spoiler free!

Roman Holiday (1953):

"Best thing that I know is to do exactly what you wish for a while."

After traveling to countless events in different countries without a break, Princess Ann is sick of it all. Hearing her schedule for the next day she breaks down believing that she can't handle it anymore. She decides to run away from it. A journalist, Joe Bradley, finds her and takes care of her but once he learns that she is the princess he decides to make the biggest story of his career. What will happen on this Roman holiday?

"Life isn't always what one likes, is it?"

Genres: Romance, Drama.

Length: approx. 118 minutes.

Costumes: 9, they won Best Costumes at the Oscars that year. And really, can I have all of Ann's wardrobe?

Costumes by: Edith Head.

My favorite:

Script: 10, no bad language!

Crew: Directed by: William Wyler. Written by: Ian McLellan Hunter, John Dighton, & Dalton Trumbo.

Starring:

Audrey Hepburn as Princess Ann. "Trouble? You're not what I'd call trouble."

Gregory Peck as Joe Bradley.

Eddie Albert as Irving Radovich.

Paolo Carlini as Mario Delani.

Hartley Power as Mr. Hennessy.

Margaret Rawlings as Countess Vereberg.

Tullio Carminati as General Provno.

Harcourt Williams as Ambassador.

Claudio Ermelli as Giovanni.

Paola Borboni as Charwoman.

Alfredo Rizzo as Taxicab Driver.

Laura Solari as Hennessy's Secretary.

Gorella Gori as Shoe Seller.

Cinematography: 9, it is pretty lovely. Plus, it was entirely filmed in Rome!

Cinematography by: Henri Alekan & Franz Planer.

Music: 8, now, I couldn't hum the score for you if I was asked, but watching it at certain moments I was thinking how well it went with the story.

Music by: Georges Auric.

Quotability: 7, it isn't the most quotable movie that I've ever seen, but not all films have to be, you know? I can see myself saying this line a lot (and even though it was used in annoyance in the film I'd be saying it with contentment.):

"Everything we do is so wholesome."

Oscars won: 3: Best Actress (Audrey Hepburn), Best Story, Best Costume Design (Black-and-White).

Content: 9, the only thing that stuck out to me was that there was some smoking. There could have been some suggestive moments but they kept everything perfectly decent. There was a time when one character thought that another was drunk, but the person wasn't actually.

"You know, people who can't handle liquor shouldn't drink it."

Originality: 10, since then this story idea (a princess runs away from her duties and someone finds her who thinks of a plan to make money) has been used, but this is one of the earliest that I can think of.

Good For: Fans of the actors, anyone needing a break or vacation.

Age Range: It's perfectly acceptable for any and all ages, but depending on the person if they are older they might find the story more interesting.

Overall Score: 9!

Worth watching?: Yes! I'll talk about this more in a minute, but this has such great characters and motivations and everything. Plus, it's a classic and lovely story.

Will I watch again?: I feel that it's one of those movies that grow on you every time you watch it. The first time I wasn't that invested, but this time I thoroughly enjoyed myself so I'm excited for the next time I watch.

For the blogathon:

Wait, MC, this is for a blogathon? Yes, half of the things I do around here are for blogathons. The blogathon this time is the Atticus and Boo Blogathon hosted by Taking Up Room. 

For those of you who don't know, Atticus and Boo are two famous characters from the book To Kill a Mockingbird - by Harper Lee. When they made a movie adaptation of the book in 1962 they cast Gregory Peck and Robert Duvall in the respective roles. This blogathon is celebrating those two actors!

Atticus Finch is my favorite role that I've seen Gregory Peck in, so I know that I wanted to participate. As I mentioned in my intro, I'm joining in with the first movie that I ever saw him in, Roman Holiday (1953)! The only other movie that I've seen him in is Moby Dick (1956) and I was really impressed with his talent, so I'm looking forward to seeing more movies with him. He may be on his way to becoming one of my favorite actors.

This time around watching Roman Holiday (1953) I was struck with how much it is his, Joe Bradley's, story. Of course all of the events happen because of Ann and she is our leading lady, but so much is determined by Joe. He is such a good character with helping people naturally before he knows their identity. In this rewatch he stole the show.

Thank you Rebecca for hosting this! Please go check out the other entries HERE.

Thanks to all of you for reading! Have any of you seen this movie? Tell me your favorite movies with Gregory Peck and Audrey Hepburn! I wish the best for all of you!

MovieCritic

Movie Review: White Christmas (1954)

Hello!

Merry Christmas! As it is the third day, I think it's about time I review a Christmas movie! Today I will be reviewing one that is very nostalgic, one that I have been watching for as long as I can remember!

My guarantee: On ALL of my reviews there are NO spoilers unless I give you warning.

White Christmas (1954):

"Vermont should be beautiful this time of the year with all that snow."
After World War II ends, a former private, Phil Davis, convinces a former captain, Bob Wallace, into becoming a "dynamic duo" singing act. "For an old friend in the army" they end up helping the Haynes sisters, Betty and Judy out of trouble. Judy and Phil work together to try to get Betty and Bob to fall in love. They end up in Vermont where Phil and Bob's former major general owns an inn and is feeling down. They bring their show up to bring in some business and try to cheer "Old" Tom up.

Genre: Musical, Christmas.

Length: approx. 120 minutes.

Costumes: 7, There are some "skimpy" ones in the show biz, but other than that they are great.
Costumes by: Edith Head.

My favorite: It has changed so often! My favorites used to be all of Judy's dresses, but currently they are all of Betty's dresses!

Script: 9, "Once I figure out what that means I'll come up with a crushing reply."

Crew:
Directed by: Michael Curtiz.
Produced by: Robert Emmett Dolan.
Written by: Norman Krasna, Norman Panama, & Melvin Frank.

Starring:
Bing Crosby as Bob Wallace. "You're a lonely, miserable man."

Danny Kaye as Phil Davis.
Rosemary Clooney as Betty Haynes.

Vera-Ellen as Judy Haynes.
Dean Jagger as Major General Tom Waverly.

On the left.

Mary Wickes as Emma.

Anne Whitfield as Susan Waverly.

Johnny Grant as Ed Harrison.
Percy Helton as Train conductor.
Herb Vigran as Novello.

Cinematography: 8, there aren't a lot of outdoor scenes, but the set scenes are pretty impressive.

Cinematography by: Loyal Griggs.

Music: 10! On of my favorites is "Snow!"

Music by: Irving Berlin.

Quotes: 9,
'"How much is 'wow'?"
"Somewhere between 'ouch' and 'boing'!"'

Oscars won: It didn't win any, but it was nominated for Best Original Song for "Count Your Blessings Instead of Sheep."
Notes: Though the movie title is "White Christmas" the song first came out in the movie Holiday Inn. It won an Oscar there.

This is probably one of the most famous scenes!

Storyline: 8, there is smoking, and a few suggestive things.

Good For: Musical lovers, Christmas movie fans.

Overall Score: 8.5

Bonus thoughts: As I said that my taste in costumes has changed, so has my taste in songs! My favorites are now "eh", and my old least favorites are now my actual favorites.

Well, there you have it! Have you seen this movie? Any thoughts on it?

Thanks for reading, and Merry Christmas!

MovieCritic