On the Town With Aubrey Reuben
Where All the Stars Shine Brightly!
December 28, 2013
12-13-13 Cast member Stevie Holland and director Richard Maltby. Jr.
at the opening night of "Love, Linda" at the York Theatre at Saint
Peter's Church. 619 Lexington Avenue. Thursday night 12-12-13
Film Society of
Lincoln Center is presenting The
Discreet Charm of George Cukor December
13-January 7. Edward,
My Son, USA, 1949, is an absorbing tale of
an amoral businessman, who rises to great wealth
and influence, and whose wayward son can do no
wrong in his father's eyes. Arson, adultery,
alcoholism and suicide all play a role in this
powerful film, which details the life of the son
(who never appears on screen) from 1919 - 1941. Spencer
Tracy and Deborah
Kerr are
the splendid leads in this wonderful film.
Dinner at Eight,
USA, 1933, is an all-star production, with many
of the finest actors of the time in Hollywood.
It is a delight to watch. Every actor is
terrific. Lionel Barrymore is
a shipping owner in financial difficulties. John
Barrymore is
a washed up actor. Wallace
Berry is
a crude wealthy businessman, whose wife Jean
Harlow is
his equal. Add Marie
Dressler, as an aging, former famous
actress, who delivers the immortal, final line
of the film, and you have one of the most
entertaining films produced in Hollywood during
the 30s.
A Double Life,
USA, 1947, is about an actor (Ronald
Colman in
an Oscar winning performance) playing Othello on
stage, who, obsessed with the role, becomes a
psychologically disturbed, jealous murderer off
stage. It is a fascinating, well acted film,
with a deep knowledge of the Broadway theatre
experience. Theatre fans, in particular, will
enjoy this film.
Gaslight,
USA, 1944, is a melodrama, starring Ingrid
Bergman (in
an Oscar winning performance) as a wife, whose
husband (Charles
Boyer) is trying to convince her that she is
going insane. The cast is superb, with Angela
Lansbury in
her first film as a frisky housemaid. The
suspense keeps the audience on the edge of their
seats.
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Let's Make Love, USA, 1960, is about
a famous billionaire (Yves Montand),
who is informed that he will be satirized in an Off-Broadway revue. He
attends a rehearsal and is attracted to the leading lady (Marilyn
Monroe). Pretending to be an actor, he is hired to play himself in
the show. The two stars are charming in this silly musical. This was
Monroe's last musical performance.
A Star
is Born, USA, 1954, is a marvelous film, which shows Judy
Garland at her finest in
acting, singing and dancing. It's a heartbreaking story of the rise of
an unknown singer (Garland) in Hollywood and the fall of her husband (James
Mason), who was once a major actor in film. It is a realistic
portrait of Hollywood at that time. Garland was nominated for an Oscar,
after a four year absence from the screen. It is one of the best
musicals ever made with glorious production numbers, an intelligent
story (by Moss
Hart), featuring a brilliant cast. Who could ask for anything more?
MoMA is presenting Our
Town: Baltimore December 12-24. I
Used to Be Darker, by Matthew
Porterfield, USA, 2012, is about a young runaway teenager from
Northern Ireland, who gets into trouble and flees to her aunt in
Baltimore. We see her watch the tension in the family between her aunt
and uncle, who are separating, and their teenage daughter, who is
unhappy with the situation. The problem with the well acted film is that
we don't understand the point of it. Problems caused by divorce affect
all concerned, but this is nothing new. There are scenes where the
actors play a lot of loud Rock and Roll type music, which is annoying.
Liberty Heights, by Barry
Levinson, USA, 1999, is the director's fourth film about his growing
up in a Jewish section of Baltimore. It takes place in 1954, and we
witness the antisemitism, and the racial intolerance between black and
whites, and the political changes, that are about to take place. The
director evokes the atmosphere perfectly, and the acting is first rate.
It's a realistic film, which leaves a deep impression on the viewer.
12-10-13 Cast members (L-R) David
Costabile. Amanda Quaid. John Ellison Conlee at the opening night party for
"The (Curious Case of the) Watson Intelligence" at Heartland Brewery. 625
Eighth Ave, Monday night 12-09-13
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