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The Man Who Knew Too Little: an Underrated Bill Murray Gem
The Man Who Knew Too Little (1997) received a 41% on Rotten Tomatoes. It was panned by critics as only moderately funny. Experts claimed it was undeserving of the talents of Bill Murray, relied on...
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My Own “Awakener”: Mae West’s Writing
As I was reading the bios of Kate Bolick’s awakeners in Spinster, writers whose independence had inspired her own, I inevitably began to consider my own awakeners. Which literary women had encouraged...
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A Cinematic Argument for Gun Control: The Ale & Quail Club
The Palm Beach Story (1942), Preston Sturges’ rom-com about love & money, features many screwball moments. But few would deny that the screwiest are with the trigger-happy Ale & Quail Club. I...
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Mae West Quote of the Month: No Evidence
Lady Lou (Mae West) is the heroine of She Done Him Wrong (1933), the hilarious Oscar-nominated, pre-Code movie based on West’s play, Diamond Lil. The film opens in a Bowery bar in the Gay Nineties....
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A Legacy of Self-Amusement: Drew & John Barrymore
Charlie’s Angels (2000) is the epitome of how seriously Drew Barrymore takes herself: the hair flips, the silly punk rock past of her character, action sequences so absurdly, self-consciously...
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Top 10 Characters in Teaching Films & Shows
As the school year begins, I’ll be returning again to my favorite educational films–some inspiring, some hilarious. Here are the characters and performances I consider award worthy. THE TEACHERS: 5...
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Female’s Heroine: 1933’s Amy (of Trainwreck), Samantha Jones, or Don Draper?
Given its plot synopsis, I expected Female to be shocking: a promiscuous executive casually sleeps with men until she finds the right guy. But I didn’t expect to gasp at its daring. A few of the...
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Mae West Schools the Teacher
A prim school teacher & Mae West. Almost a century later, this coupling seems inspired. But in 1932, nobody knew that. West was a vaudevillian, not a movie star. Her role as Maudie, an ex of the...
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The Sexy Men of the Highlands: The Three Stooges?
Having spent Saturday at the New Hampshire Highland Games & Festival, I’ve got bagpipe music still ringing in my ears, and tartan on the brain. I witnessed feats of strength that included FLIPPING...
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Falling for Charles Coburn, Matchmaker Extraordinaire
Has there ever been a Cupid more charming than Charles Coburn? He smartens up the debonair Henry Van Cleve (Don Ameche), ensuring he doesn’t lose his lovely wife, Martha (Gene Tierney) in Heaven Can...
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5 Holiday Meal Planning Fears on Film (aka, It Could Be Much Worse)
5. The Meal Scars Your Company: Better Off Dead (1985) Take comfort in the quality of your cooking after watching (a) Lane’s (John Cusack’s) mother boil bacon just days before her holiday feast and (b)...
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5 Classic Film Costume Ideas–& What They’ll Be Mistaken for
Inspired a fashion blogger’s posts on Halloween options, I started thinking about potential costumes from classic film. I have recs for those of you stuck for ideas. Sure, your peers who don’t know the...
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Mae West: Making an Impression
Mae West always gets her guys (emphasis on the plural). And once she gets them, they stay. In her classic She Done Him Wrong, Lou (West) is en route to visit an ex in prison. Her companion on the...
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Joel McCrea: Stalling Director Preston Sturges
This essay is part of Cinema Maven’s Symbiotic Collaborations blogathon, featuring wonderful director/star pairings. Click here for all the great entries. When I was a kid, my sisters and I used to...
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Mae West Quote of the Week: Religion vs. Jewels
“You know it was a toss-up whether I go in for diamonds or sing in the choir. The choir lost.” The line would be funny regardless, but West does so much with it: She pauses in between the sentences...
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Big Fish: A Kettle of Oscar Snubs
Director Tim Burton’s beautiful Big Fish was shut out of all Oscar nominations in 2004 but for original score (which it didn’t win). The director’s work is often dismissed as creative, but too weird,...
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Mae West’s Klondike Rebellion
There’s something terribly wrong and terribly right about Klondike Annie’s (1936) odd musical tribute to Asian sensuality. It’s one of the few moments of the film when Mae West seems somewhat genuine....
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Which Will Rogers Clip Should Poli Sci Fans See?
I keep thinking of one of Will Rogers’ famous lines as I observe the loopholes the GOP leadership is exploring to oust Trump: “If stupidity got us into this mess, why can’t it get us out?” (Don’t you...
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Schoolboy Fantasies: The Mannequin in Film
One Touch of Venus (1948) is a combination of myth and the classic Pygmalion tale: What if a window dresser kissed a statue of the love goddess, and instead of getting institutionalized, became an...
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Top 4 Lazy Evening Films on Netflix
So you feel like doing nothing tonight, just want a film to make you smile? Here are four movies now on Netflix that I dare you to watch without grinning. 4. Bowfinger (1999) Steve Martin, a conniving...
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