May your every wish come true

Happy New Year!

I’m back! Oh, if I had a dollar for every time I said that…

It’s a New Year and it’s a new attempt to rekindle some life into this blog of mine. This year, I’m going to simplify things: I will publish one post every Thursday and each month will have a theme. The theme for January, for instance, is New Year’s. By the end of the month this theme might be a bit of a stretch, but it’s still the beginning of the year, so I’m going to say it’s fine.

So, we’re going to start with Holiday Inn. Yes, it’s often considered a Christmas movie and, by now, you’re probably all Christmased out. But there are two New Year’s celebrations in the film, one of which is the finale, so I’d say it’s as much a New Year’s film as it is a Christmas film (if not more). Not to mention the fact that I watch this movie every Fourth of July – let’s face it: it’s Holiday Inn and it works for just about every holiday.

Holiday Inn (1942)

Paramount

Director:  Mark Sandrich

Featuring: Bing Crosby, Fred Astaire, Marjorie Reynolds, Virginia Dale, Walter Abel, Louise Beavers, and Irving Bacon

Plot in a nutshell: 

Tired of the hectic lifestyle as a performer, singer Jim Hardy (Crosby) decides to open an inn in Connecticut that will be open only on holidays. When Jim falls in love with his newest entertainer, the beautiful Linda Mason (Reynolds), things get pleasantly more complicated. And when Jim’s friend, dancer Ted Hanover (Astaire), begins to compete for Linda’s affection, things get even more complicated, although in a less pleasant way. As the threesome wend their way through a calendar of red-letter days, antics ensue and a score of Irving Berlin songs mark each holiday.

 Trivia:

- Irving Berlin got the idea for the film after writing the song "Easter Parade" for his 1933 show "As Thousands Cheer," and planned to write a play about American holidays, but it never materialized. He later pitched the idea to Mark Sandrich, who go the ball rolling for the film. (IMDb)

- It was a success in the US and the UK, the highest grossing musical film to that time. It was expected that "Be Careful, It's my Heart" would be the big song. While that song did very well, it was "White Christmas " that topped the charts in October 1942 and stayed there for eleven weeks.
- The success of the song "White Christmas" eventually led to another film based on the song, White Christmas (1954), which starred Crosby, Danny Kaye, Rosemary Clooney, and Vera-Ellen. It was a loose remake of Holiday Inn, with a plot-line again involving an inn, but otherwise different from the earlier film.

Thoughts on the film:

Although this is a classic movie with some great lines, some wonderful songs, and some fantastic dances, I can’t lie when I say that it isn’t my favorite. It’s a wonderful movie – don’t get me wrong! But I love Fred Astaire and I don’t like his character very much at all in this film. Ted is a manipulative, selfish, back-stabbing friend. And as much as I like Bing Crosby, I don’t think his character deserves the girl either. He’s also selfish and manipulative in his attempts to win Linda. Neither of the two friends seem to really care what Linda wants or thinks; they trick and scheme rather than actually talk it out. I get all excited every time I decide to watch this movie and then as soon as Ted arrives at the inn I remember how frustrating the next hour is going to be.

Favorite quotes/clips:

That being said, the songs really are wonderful. I love both scenes of “White Christmas” – they’re homey and romantic. It’s no wonder the song did so well when it had such a good send-off in this film. “You’re Easy to Dance With” is a really cute scene that I’ve always enjoyed. And I really like “Let’s Start the New Year Right.” For a holiday that’s pretty raucous, I like that the main song for the holiday is an intimate little number that Jim sings to Linda while they serve up dinner in the kitchen. As I said before, I love the firecracker scene. But that’s getting way ahead of myself. I’ll wait until July to elaborate on how it’s one of the best Fred Astaire solos of all time.

Oh, yeah. Deep blue.

No Christmas would be complete without a viewing of White Christmas. So, without further ado, let's look at the Sister number - both of them!





I love the part in the first one where the guys are talking about their eyes and the girls are, apparently, just standing on stage, smiling. What kind of a number is that? It's so silly! I love it!

May your days be merry and bright

This is such a nice picture! I have a hard time listening to this song without thinking of this version - with the bells and the pipe and the whistling. It's so classic!


Image source here.

New fish. Same hook.

So, I thought of an idea for a new segment today. I'm not sure how well it will work. And, to be honest, I'm not sure how often I'll do it, but it's worth a shot, right?

I was got the idea from listening to Marilyn Monroe's rendition of "Lazy" in There's No Business Like Show Business. Whenever I think of that song, I automatically think of Bing Crosby's rendition in Holiday Inn. I think it's kind of funny how the same song can be presented in so many different ways. Even when it's presented in a similar way, it can have a different effect. So, I thought I'd start a new series (that will be just as sporadic as my other series) that will compare songs covered by different performers. The trouble with this new segment is that I already have some songs in mind and two of them (today's included) involve a Marilyn Monroe song, which is pretty difficult to compare to anyone else because she kind of automatically makes everything sexy and that's hard to compare. And then I have a lot of Bing Crosby (today's included) which is also hard because he had a very particular style. But then, that's kind of the point. So, onward.

Today, I'll be showcasing two renditions of "Lazy" by Irving Berlin. The first, sung by Bing Crosby in Holiday Inn. This one is done in Bing's crooning style and is given an ironic, comedic twist. I never realized, listening to this version, how beautiful the tune is because I was too busy laughing at (and feeling sorry for) him in this montage. Just the same, this is a great version because this is one of the first scenes I think of when I think of this movie.

Bing, being lazy.

Marilyn, being lazy.

The second, sung by Marilyn Monroe in "There's No Business Like Show Business." I don't really understand why they threw the Donald O'Connor and Mitzi Gaynor into the mix, but since I like them together so much, I don't mind. Marilyn's delivery of this song is, obviously, very different. The way she draws out every word and every note makes the song much sexier and also, in my opinion, showcases the tune a bit more. While we are distracted by the way she's lounging on that couch, it fits so well with what's she's singing that I notice the song itself a bit more. But what I find funny about this version is that this song isn't necessarily sexy but Marilyn manages to make it so. P.S. I wish I could pull of Marilyn's outfit.



Both pictures were found on Doctor Macro.

Despite the fact that I've used Christmas in Connecticut for the logo, my choice is actually going to be White Christmas.


A successful song-and-dance team become romantically involved with a sister act and team up to save the failing Vermont inn of their former commanding general. (from IMDb)

Holiday Cheer: 6/10 Quite honestly, I've long argued that this movie is not strictly a Christmas movie. It can be watched at any time of the year. The Christmas part of the movie lasts for about 10-20 minutes in a two hour film. However, as the movie does begin and end on Christmas day, it counts!

Feel-Good feeling: 10/10 This movie is so fun and so funny. I laugh at the same lines every time and certain songs (cough cough "The Best Things Happen While You're Dancing" cough cough) make me feel all happy about life - which is perfect at Christmas time. Good humor, good romance, and good music blend together in a fantastic feel-good movie in time for the holidays.

Overall: 10/10. This movie is always a winner in my book. Definitely one of my favorite movies of all time.

Is everybody fine? That's fine.

Today's segment is about Old Hollywood and New Hollywood. But I've actually decided to temporarily change it a wee bit, if you don't mind. I think it's fascinating that there seems to be a whole musical sub-genre: the musical remake. Musical remakes made a surge in the 50s and 60s and I find it very odd. Sometimes the musical remakes were better than the originals because music and dancing have a unique power and sometimes the original was, in fact, much better than the remake. I wanted to give the Old Hollywood/New Hollywood segment a break, but rather than do away with it entirely, I'm going to discuss musical remakes vs originals for a little while and see how that goes. Let me know what you think!

So, to start off, I want to discuss one of my favorite movies ever: The Philadelphia Story (1940) which starred Cary Grant, Katharine Hepburn, and James Stewart. The musical remake, High Society (1956) starred Bing Crosby, Grace Kelly, and Frank Sinatra.

Tracy Lord
Katharine Hepburn vs. Grace Kelly


I think Katharine Hepburn is great in the movie. She's strong, willful, and beautiful. However, I have an easier time believing a bunch of men would fight over marrying Grace Kelly. She's so gorgeous. Sorry, Katharine.



C.K. Dexter Haven
Cary Grant vs. Bing Crosby


Okay, I have a few thoughts on this one. First off, I don't particularly care for Bing Crosby (he's okay) so I would definitely go for Cary Grant. I think alcoholism was a very good flaw for Grant's Dexter to have. I mean, that really can be a major issue and Cary Grant, as gorgeous and amazing as he is, would be an unappealing husband if he were an alcoholic one. But jazz? Really? Jazz as a flaw? I can imagine Tracy being scornful over her husband's obsession but I think divorcing him over such a thing is a little crazy. Then again, I wouldn't want to marry Bing Crosby in the first place - jazz or no jazz. He doesn't have the suavity of Cary Grant (who does?). In competing for the most divorce-worthy flaw, I'd definitely go with alcoholism over jazz and in competing for the most fight-worthy husband, I'd definitely go with Cary Grant.


Macaulay Connor
James Stewart vs. Frank Sinatra


This one is a little tougher because I love Frank Sinatra and I love Jimmy Stewart. I have to say, though, that I really think James Stewart was incredible as Mike (as evidenced, I suppose, by his Oscar). I love the scene when he comes to call on Dexter. I think it's one of my favorite movie scenes ever.



The Music
Cole Porter was brilliant. One of my very favorite songwriters. There are some great songs in this one too: "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?" "Well, Did You Evah?" Sometimes music can really do something that dialogue can't. For instance, you can see Dexter and Tracy's relationship when he's singing "True Love" to her. However, as much as I love Cole Porter and I adore his music, I think the dialogue and plot of this movie work so seamlessly, that the music isn't really necessary to drive the plot or the characters along.
But, I do love this song:



My decision? The Philadelphia Story. This probably doesn't come as much of a surprise as I did preface this post with, "this is one my favorite movies blahblahblah." But I do think High Society is a wonderful movie. When not comparing it to the original, it's fantastic. In comparison to the original, I'd take the original.

Thoughts? Do you agree? Disagree? I'm going to post a poll so that you can vote over which one you prefer and we can compare notes.

I really hope I didn't come off as mean or anything in this post. I'm always afraid that if I state a strong opinion I'll come off as pushy or nasty or something.

When what's left of you gets around to what's left to be gotten, what's left to be gotten won't be worth getting whatever it is you've got left.

Christmas is coming soon! I still can't believe it. In Florida, the weather is still balmy and it hardly feels Christmas-y. Anyway, in continuing the movie count-down (count-up?), and continuing in the Christmas theme...

#7 White Christmas (1954)

I love this movie! I've actually argued that it's not a Christmas movie, in that it can be enjoyed throughout the year owing to the lack of Christmas in the majority of the film (only the first five and last ten minutes really have anything Christmas-y to them). But nevertheless, I've been watching it lately in the hopes that it will put me in the mood for the holidays.

This movie has so many wonderful quotes, which is your favorite? One of mine is in the title.

There are still a few hours left to vote on the polls! So, go cast your vote before it's too late! I'm posting up my poll for this week under last week's polls.

The poll this week is:

"Oh, that's very funny! Oh ho ho! The crooner is now becoming the comic!"

Who would you pick - the crooner or the comic?