God Speed: Paul Newman (1925-2008)

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Work: My Classic Film Nest

I am by nature a nester. I settle into a spot, make it all nice and cozy and I nestle in as happy as can be. When the company I work for moved offices in March of this year, I had a difficult time with the transition. After 4+ years of perfecting my desk-nest, I had to give it up forever for a new, bare and foreign cubicle. I knew if I was going to make the transition unscathed I had to nestify my cube, FAST! So within 30 minutes of my arrival to the new office, my new cubicle was decked out with tchotckes, notes, doodads and of course, Classic Movie Paraphernelia! Since then, the area has become less foreign and more of a comfort zone. And whoever stops by will for sure know I'm a classic film fan.

I thought it would be fun to take you on a journey of all the classic movie images I have posted in my work area. So I snuck into work early one morning and took some snap shots (lest I be ridiculed). Please enjoy!

First of all there is my Classic Movie Posters Calendar. It's been a permanent fixture in my work area for almost 5 years! I even have my 2009 calendar ready and waiting. And behold! September features Metropolis (1927)!

A few of the older calendars had preview layouts on the back with all the posters in mini-form. Being the resourceful person I am, I didn't let them go to waste and promptly cut them out and used them to decorate various parts of my desk area.

What would my desk be without Norma Shearer? This is a little clip that is pinned to my corkboard. It's from an issue of Parade and Norma's presence is purely coincidental because the tiny article was about Clark Gable. The caption reads "Gable with Norma Shearer: Good actor, bad breath".

Other people grace my cubicle too. I love this picture of Marilyn Monroe, it's by far my favorite of her. She looks elegant and vibrant. And that picture of Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn staring into each others eyes, classic! My picture of Robert Mitchum was defaced however and is missing (see my post about the incident). Oh woe is me.

I tend to chuckle to myself when I see that great picture of Irene Dunne pulling on Cary Grant's hair. Grant's expression is priceless. I kept the old Harvard Film Archive schedule so I could hang that image at work and see it everyday. And what TCM fan doesn't love Edward Hopper? Represent!

I like to keep mementos from outings, especially when I go see films at theaters. The image at the top is a cut-out from an old HFA schedule and its of Dick Powell and Lizabeth Scott in Pitfall (1948) (see my previous post about that movie). The other picture is of Ludivine Sagnier (I LOVE HER!) in A Girl Cut in Two (2007). It's a cut-out from a Kendall Square Cinema schedule, where I saw the film recently. Yes, I watch contemporary films! Foreign ones too!

And then there is the obligatory Audrey Hepburn photo. This was a blad from BEA that a co-worker picked up for me. It's quite gorgeous and adds a bit of style to a bookshelf that holds books about dinosaurs, dragons, ducks and poop!

Metropolis (1927)

There can be no understanding between the hand and the brain unless the heart acts as mediator.

My friends Kevin, Haze and Lisa accompanied me last night to the Harvard Film Archive to watch a free screening of the great silent epic Metropolis (1927) (some sites list it as 1926). It was quite a treat to see this monumental film up on the big screen. However, that was dampened by my disappointment in the audience reaction to the viewing. I believe that if most of the people in that audience had voted on my poll which asks "What do you think of Fritz Lang's Metropolis (1927)?" they would have chosen "Weird! Hello? Have you seen it?" as an option. I noticed that a couple people left in the middle of the movie while others stayed to gripe and moan about the over-the-top elements of the movie. I for one was tremendously irked by the negative reaction. Sure it's over-the-top. It's a silent film people!

I find solace in the fact that most of the people in the audience were probably required to be there and they obviously did not understand the background, history and impact of the film in order to enjoy it fully. I didn't enjoy Citizen Kane (1941) until I studied it in a film class as an undergrad and I hated The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001) until I read Tolkien's books and got what the hell was going on. And if I didn't appreciate Metropolis' impact on history and culture and didn't enjoy futuristic art deco style, allegory, social commentary and biblical references, I probably would have bolted from the theater as soon as "The End" appeared on screen, as so many did yesterday evening. Knowledge is indeed power. Even if it only extends into the power of enjoyment.



On a more positive note, watching Metropolis last night reinvigorating my strong interest in this movie. I highly recommend that you read the Wikipedia entry on this film. Usually entries on this site are bare-bones, but this one contains a lot of interesting content as well as links to other sources. And Metropolis fans, like myself, can look forward to the complete film being released after an original print was discovered a couple of months ago in Argentina. One website claims, a new release on DVD and Blu-Ray may be on the market as soon as next year! Huzzah!

In the meantime, please vote on my poll to let me know what you think of Metropolis. Also, please feel free to share your thoughts in the form of comment entries on this blog (I love reading those!).