JACK'S BACK and this time it's personal!
DATE AND STATUS: Monday, September 3rd, 2012 and I'm happy, I'M NOT HAPPY, I'm happy
Of course I'm happy, I have everything I need, and then some, now, I'm not CRAZY HAPPY like I would be if I won a lottery, but there it is.
My nephew, Ian, and his beautiful wife Melissa, recently sent me a picture of their seven day old son, Bennett, gosh, newborns are beautiful, and they're so small, funny how fast they grow up.
I remember that alot of my friends who have had children say they could always see little changes in their child every day. WOW!, it must be amazing to watch that growth.
I never had any children of my own, and it is the one area of my life that does sort of bother me. I feel, having a child of my own would make me immortal, even when I die, at least a part of me would go on.
I don't think it's a crime to want to be remembered, after all, the pharaohs built the pyramids for that reason. But, having no children of my own doesn't mean that I won't be remembered. Far from it.
I am very blessed with many nieces and nephews, who I know will remember me. For all of them, I try to be the very best uncle that I can be and they tell me I am.
Sorry for being wistful, maybe it's because it's Labour Day, the end of summer. I'll try to change my mood by just getting into today's stunning suspense film, "Strangers on a Train."
I hope my write up can do this movie justice, and I shall try very hard not to be effusive, as I want this write up to propel you into watching this Alfred Hitchcock suspense/thriller/horror movie.
Right off, I have to say that I think it is pure genius how Mr. Hitchcock manages to link an ingenious plot with insinuating creepiness, and creepy is putting it mildly, mighty mild!!
You see there's this tennis star, Guy Haines (Farley Granger) who wants to divorce his unfaithful wife, (who wouldn't) Miriam (Laura Elliott,) so he can marry the elegant and beautiful Anne Morton (Ruth Roman.)
Okay, nothing new about this story so far, let's continue. While on a train to meet Miriam, Guy meets Bruno Anthony (Robert Walker), a rather forward stranger who has recognized Guy from gossip items in the newspapers that detailed his marital problems.
During lunch in Bruno's compartment, Bruno tells Guy about his idea for the perfect murder(s), he calls it a "Criss-cross": Bruno will kill Miriam, and in exchange, Guy will kill Bruno's father. "They can get away with it," Bruno claims because they are both strangers to each other. In other words they cannot be connected with each other, and there is no identifiable motive for the crimes.
The "criss-cross" murder dealt in "Strangers on a Train" indeed would have worked perfectly, except for the detail that only one of the strangers agrees to it. To me, the two characters Guy and Bruno can be viewed as doppelgangers.
Bruno's manner is pushy and insinuating, with homoerotic undertones. Guy, rightly so, is offended by the references to his private life, but inexplicably doesn't break off the conversation, which ends on an ambiguous note, with Bruno trying to get Guy to agree to the plan, and Guy trying to jolly him along, and get rid of him. I ask you, who among us hasn't done this?, Haven't you been polite to some crazy person to avoid a conflict with them, and then when you can, you rid yourselves of this person as soon as you can.
Guy hurriedly leaves the compartment, but leaves Bruno thinking he has agreed to the deal. When Guy accidentally leaves his cigarette lighter behind, a gift from Anne to Guy, Bruno pockets it. Bruno then heads to Guy's hometown and does murder Guy's wife, and then demands that Guy keep his half of the bargain.
Guy's problems start when his alibi falls through, and then his problems increase exponentially when Bruno makes repeated appearances into Guy's life. Bruno seeks to remind Guy that he is now obliged to kill his father, according to the bargain he thinks they struck on the train. As a plot, this has a neatness that Hitchcock must have found irresistible, especially since Guy has a motive to murder his wife.
Okay, so now you have the gist of the story, a plot made of ingenuity, and amorality. The perfect combination for such a suspenseful film.
It is the sense of two flawed characters, one evil, one weak, with an unstated sexual tension, that makes the movie intriguing, and halfway plausible, it also helps to explain how Bruno could come so close to carrying out his plan.
DATE AND STATUS: Monday, September 3rd, 2012 and I'm happy, I'M NOT HAPPY, I'm happy
Of course I'm happy, I have everything I need, and then some, now, I'm not CRAZY HAPPY like I would be if I won a lottery, but there it is.
My nephew, Ian, and his beautiful wife Melissa, recently sent me a picture of their seven day old son, Bennett, gosh, newborns are beautiful, and they're so small, funny how fast they grow up.
I remember that alot of my friends who have had children say they could always see little changes in their child every day. WOW!, it must be amazing to watch that growth.
I never had any children of my own, and it is the one area of my life that does sort of bother me. I feel, having a child of my own would make me immortal, even when I die, at least a part of me would go on.
I don't think it's a crime to want to be remembered, after all, the pharaohs built the pyramids for that reason. But, having no children of my own doesn't mean that I won't be remembered. Far from it.
I am very blessed with many nieces and nephews, who I know will remember me. For all of them, I try to be the very best uncle that I can be and they tell me I am.
Sorry for being wistful, maybe it's because it's Labour Day, the end of summer. I'll try to change my mood by just getting into today's stunning suspense film, "Strangers on a Train."
I hope my write up can do this movie justice, and I shall try very hard not to be effusive, as I want this write up to propel you into watching this Alfred Hitchcock suspense/thriller/horror movie.
Right off, I have to say that I think it is pure genius how Mr. Hitchcock manages to link an ingenious plot with insinuating creepiness, and creepy is putting it mildly, mighty mild!!
You see there's this tennis star, Guy Haines (Farley Granger) who wants to divorce his unfaithful wife, (who wouldn't) Miriam (Laura Elliott,) so he can marry the elegant and beautiful Anne Morton (Ruth Roman.)
Okay, nothing new about this story so far, let's continue. While on a train to meet Miriam, Guy meets Bruno Anthony (Robert Walker), a rather forward stranger who has recognized Guy from gossip items in the newspapers that detailed his marital problems.
During lunch in Bruno's compartment, Bruno tells Guy about his idea for the perfect murder(s), he calls it a "Criss-cross": Bruno will kill Miriam, and in exchange, Guy will kill Bruno's father. "They can get away with it," Bruno claims because they are both strangers to each other. In other words they cannot be connected with each other, and there is no identifiable motive for the crimes.
The "criss-cross" murder dealt in "Strangers on a Train" indeed would have worked perfectly, except for the detail that only one of the strangers agrees to it. To me, the two characters Guy and Bruno can be viewed as doppelgangers.
Bruno's manner is pushy and insinuating, with homoerotic undertones. Guy, rightly so, is offended by the references to his private life, but inexplicably doesn't break off the conversation, which ends on an ambiguous note, with Bruno trying to get Guy to agree to the plan, and Guy trying to jolly him along, and get rid of him. I ask you, who among us hasn't done this?, Haven't you been polite to some crazy person to avoid a conflict with them, and then when you can, you rid yourselves of this person as soon as you can.
Guy hurriedly leaves the compartment, but leaves Bruno thinking he has agreed to the deal. When Guy accidentally leaves his cigarette lighter behind, a gift from Anne to Guy, Bruno pockets it. Bruno then heads to Guy's hometown and does murder Guy's wife, and then demands that Guy keep his half of the bargain.
Guy's problems start when his alibi falls through, and then his problems increase exponentially when Bruno makes repeated appearances into Guy's life. Bruno seeks to remind Guy that he is now obliged to kill his father, according to the bargain he thinks they struck on the train. As a plot, this has a neatness that Hitchcock must have found irresistible, especially since Guy has a motive to murder his wife.
Okay, so now you have the gist of the story, a plot made of ingenuity, and amorality. The perfect combination for such a suspenseful film.
It is the sense of two flawed characters, one evil, one weak, with an unstated sexual tension, that makes the movie intriguing, and halfway plausible, it also helps to explain how Bruno could come so close to carrying out his plan.
To all appearances, Guy is the all-American stereotype, an athlete, unassuming despite his fame, conservatively dressed, he is a man of indeterminate sexual nature. Guy is an ordinary man caught in an extraordinary web of terror and lunacy and Granger is excellent as the harassed young man innocently involved in murder. Stewart Granger is soft, elusive, and convincing as he tries to slip out of Bruno's conversational web instead of flatly rejecting him.
Robert Walker's role has extreme colour, and he projects it deftly, and is flirtatious and seductive, sitting too close during their first meeting, and then reclining at full length across from Guy in the private compartment. The meeting on the train, which was probably planned by Bruno, plays more like a pickup than a chance encounter.
Roman's role as a pleasant, understanding girl is quite a change for her, and she makes it warmly effective.
The film includes a number of puns and visual metaphors that demonstrate a running motif of crisscross, double-crossing, and crossing one's double. In the film, Hitchcock draws gay characters so sharp yet subtle, perhaps too subtle.
Aside from its very evident approach as a crowd-pleasing popcorn flick, the movie is one of the original shells for identity-inspired mystery thrillers, in which natural human behaviour is the driving force behind the true macabre rather than supernatural elements. Even classic endeavors like "Fargo" and "A Simple Plan" seem directly fueled by this concept.
"Strangers on a Train." is fast, exciting, and woven with wicked style, this is a great story and you will not be sorry for experiencing it. It was first class all the way, and I'm glad I took the trip.
UPCOMING MOVIES FOR REVIEW:
"Elmer Gantry." Both Burt Lancaster and Shirley Jones received academy award nominations for their work here. I want to see if they deserved them, you know how the Academy can be.
"Adam Had Four Sons." This movie stars Ingrid Bergman and Susan Hayward, two of my favourites, and that is reason enough for me to watch this movie. But I bet I end up liking this movie for all sorts of reasons, and not just because of Miss Bergman and Miss Hayward.
"Blow Dry." For no other reason that when I saw the title of this movie in the television guide, it intrigued me.
"The Band Wagon." This film showcases the talents of Fred Astaire and Cyd Charisse, and they both have been described as being brilliant in this movie, after I watch it on TCM, I'll decide.
"Thief." This film stars James Caan and is reported to be one of Mr. Caan's personal favourites. Well, now it is time for us to decide if we want this movie to make our favourites list.
"An American in Paris." I love musicals, and this one gets great reviews from practically everyone, we'll see what I think very soon.
"The Opposite Sex." I saw the preview of this film and it looked an awful lot like the move, "The Women" a film that I cannot rave enough about. This version looks like it is musicalized, I can't wait to see it!
FILMS COMING SOON: Exodus, The Sand Pebbles, The Maltese Falcon! Giant! I really can't wait to see these movies, yeah folks, I'm excited!
I remember the first Hitchcock movie I ever saw, Rear Window. My childhood best friend and I watched it at an old theater in downtown Birmingham, Alabama. One of those theaters that has the organ that rises up from the stage for a show before the show you know? They projected it on the huge screen, and the old building and larger-than-life actors made it all the more scary! David and I are going to have to watch Strangers on a Train now! It sounds fantastic.
ReplyDeleteIt's great to know that you're reading my blog, I wasn't sure.
DeleteI have told many people about it, and have even sent it to them so they could try it out, sadly, I have received very few comments, but, the blog is still early, relatively speaking, that is.
Anyway, please keep reading my reviews, and thank you, your response is exactly the type of comment that bloggers like to receive, especially me.
Please give the boys a hug and kiss from George and I.
Regards to David, hope you are both well.
I liked this movie and will wach it again I'm sure. I liked the Hitchcockian flawed characters but it's not so creepy as The Birds or Psycho. Somehow the characters seem accessible. not exactly likable but at least like someone you may have met or heard of before. As usual the music adds considerably to the movie's charm, notably in the midway sequences. Although not his best work I guess, it is well worth the look
ReplyDelete