Oh, it sets your senses in a whirl

So, my themed list for this month is going to be: favorite actresses who sing in movies. Note: not favorite singers, but favorite singers in the movies. Thus, some people may be lower on the list because they're not in many movies or I don't like the songs they sing in the movies they're in, etc. I'm still debating whether or not singing in the credits count. I haven't decided yet.

In the meantime, here is 16-20 in my list:

The Sopranos
I love these singers, but I don't always enjoy listening to their songs. I appreciate the fact that they made the movies more high high brow and I appreciate their contribution to film, but I'm just often not in the mood to sit through their numbers. However, I want to include them because they were a significant contribution to the musical genre and were immensely talented. Besides, I do like some of their songs. It's just that when we get into the long, lyrical ballads I get a little immature and skip forward. Ironically, my favorite songs of theirs are often the less classical sounding pieces.

Kathryn Grayson
Favorite song: "I Hate Men" from Kiss Me Kate

Ann Blyth
Favorite song: "Baubles, Bangles, and Beads" from Kismet (song clip starts at 1:42)

Shirley Jones
Favorite song: "Many A New Day" from Oklahoma

Jane Powell
Favorite song: "Goin' Cotin'" from Seven Brides for Seven Brothers

Irene Dunne
Favorite song: "Smoke Gets In Your Eyes" from Roberta

Deanna Durbin was amazing as well, but I've only seen in her one film. I am working on that!

I'll never pinch you again...

I have been entirely too negligent on this blog. My apologies. I am not yet entirely convinced that many people read this (which is mostly my fault, I realize) so I lose the urgency of a regular blog. At any rate, here I am, back to blog some more!

It Started With Eve (1941)

Thank goodness for Netflix! Several of the movies I now love are due to Netflix. The movie I got the other day was very enjoyable. It was part of a Deanna Durbin collection. I had never heard of her before, but I figured that any actor or actress with a movie collection has to be worth looking into so I checked out a film with a very interesting plot line. It definitely did not disappoint!

Here is the aforementioned plot: When the rich Jonathan Reynolds (Charles Laughton) lies on his deathbed, his son, Johnny (Robert Cummings) fears the worst. And when Johnny's father begs to meet his son's fiancee, Johnny is anxious to comply. Unfortunately, the fiancee is out shopping, so Johnny, in an act of desperation, asks the coat-check girl, Anne (Deanna Durbin) to play the role. Complications (and comedy) ensue, however, when the father starts getting better!

This movie was very enjoyable. The plot was fun and surprisingly light (surprising only because it dealt with the imminent death of an old man). The characters were very likable. I found myself cheering for Mr. Reynolds, hoping he'd be able to sneak a cigar without his doctor finding out, and loving Anne and her clever, kind personality. A couple of drawbacks to the film, however slight, were that the romance between Anne and Johnny was a little underplayed. I was more on board with the friendship between Anne and Mr. Reynolds than I was with the relationship between her and his son. The other thing, was that this was a musical... of sorts. It wasn't the sort of musical I'm used to with a clever score by Gershwin, Porter, Berlin, or Kern. Deanna Durbin is a classical singer and all of her songs were operatic. This is not a drawback, really, it just surprised me.

I highly recommend the film, in any case. Deanna Durbin is an endearing and adorable actress. The ending is perfectly happy and the movie is, overall, very enjoyable.