Cinema – MarlyK's Ramblings

Comfort Cinema

When I was a kid, my abuela often exclaimed that all she wanted to see was a “nice, sweet movie.” (One time she went to see a movie whose title in Spanish sounded promising: “The Sweet Cousins”. Unfortunately, it turned out to be French soft core porn.) Anyway, whenever she said that, I’d think, “Ay, abuela, how corny and boring!” As I recover from what appears to be a mild case of the virus, I’m beginning to see her point. I’ve tried to keep up to date with the news, but there’s only so much distressing information I can take, especially when all I want to do is sleep. So I decided to compile a list of movies that provide much-needed escape. I’ve tried to come up with titles the whole family can watch, regardless of age, but I’ve noted where there’s nudity or violence that might disturb young kids. One more thing: I enjoy watching Robert Osborne’s TCM intros before a flick, so I’ve included them where available.

“Sullivan’s Travels”

In the face of current events, many writers, artists and filmmakers feel a sense of inadequacy. “What good is my work in times like these?” they ask themselves. We’re not doctors or scientists. We’re not saving lives, like they are. It might even feel that telling stories and entertaining people are irresponsible endeavors, akin to playing the fiddle while Rome burns. I see it differently, having survived a difficult childhood thanks to the necessary escape that books and movies provided. When I felt lonely and powerless in those years that I still remember as the worst of my life, Fred and Ginger saved my life as they waltzed in luminous black and white. Rita Moreno expressed some of my own disappointment with America in a swish of skirts in West Side Story. I learned about surviving much bigger disasters than verbal abuse and mental cruelty thanks to For Whom the Bell Tolls. Cervantes made me laugh. Gogol and Chekhov took me to the Russian countryside.

I was stuck in a painful reality and all I wanted was to be transported to another time, another era, another place, and into someone else’s experience, someone else’s joy. So, don’t take lightly the ability to entertain and provide a rest stop, an imaginary shelter from life’s inescapably painful and terrifying moments. In the words of Joel McCrea in Preston Sturges’ Sullivan’s Travels, “There’s a lot to be said for making people laugh. Did you know that’s all some people have? It isn’t much, but it’s better than nothing in this cockeyed caravan.”

“Casablanca” Revisited

Voted #1 in the Writers Guild of America list of the 101 Greatest Screenplays, Casablanca is a classic that’s still as entertaining and moving as when it debuted in 1942. What can one possibly say about this beloved film that hasn’t been said already?

In Memoriam – Kirk Douglas (1916 – 2020)

Kirk Douglas, one of the last Hollywood stars from the Golden Age of the studio system, died this week at the age of 103. Kirk Douglas often played a particular kind of mid-century American man: unsentimental, fiery, hyper-masculine, street-smart and cynical. The kind of man with the soul of a scrapper, who knew how to throw a punch, fix a martini, and the value of a good suit. Like the actors of that long-gone era, he was recognizably Kirk in every role, yet his persona was malleable enough to handle a multitude of characters: shysters; men of integrity; mobsters; and weasels. Regardless of the role, he was always fun to watch. In his honor, I’ve compiled some clips of favorite scenes of his.

“Colossal” and Subverting RomCom Tropes

My boyfriend and I have a Saturday night tradition. We have a nice, home-cooked meal and afterward we watch a movie. Whether it’s a classic or a new one doesn’t matter — the only requirement is that it provide a satisfying cinematic experience. When the lights come on, you’re more than amused or distracted, you’re a little dazed, a little wobbly, and still immersed in that alternate reality the story created. One such movie was the Anne Hathaway-Jason Sudeikis vehicle “Colossal” from 2016, written and directed by Nacho Vigalondo. Every plot twist defied my expectations. What at first seemed like a sci-fi version of a rom com subverted genre conventions and turned out to be a deep exploration into this often-problematic genre. If you haven’t watched it yet, there are plot spoilers ahead, so you might want to read this after screening it.