The Deer Hunter

The Deer Hunter, 1978
The Deer Hunter



I can't remember who recommended this movie to me, or what the movie is really about for that matter. Honestly, I picked it this week because I was able to DVR the movie when it was on Showtime. I don't  think the movie will be completely awful, but I can't help but to think it's going to seem like such an incredibly long movie.

After having watched the movie:
(Possible spoilers below)

I was really surprised by the cast in the movie, not because I think the talent from this movie leaves something to be desired but because I didn't realize how many amazing actors were part of the cast. I also have to say that I don't know what I was thinking, or which movie I thought I was watching, but never had I imagined I would see a deer being shot - Even if it's in the leg of a deer.

The deer was the easy part, I hated having to watch Nick, played by Christopher Walken, go so far downhill and gamble with his life so easily. If I had been Michael, I don't know that I could ever even pretend to take part in the bet. Actually after witnessing all the trauma during the time I spent in the country during the war I would never go back to Vietnam. I also have to admit that I wasn't even a little excited to see Christopher Walken in the movie. It's not that I hate him; I just don't like the way he always seems to talk in a cadence. He did however win over points with me when he decided to cover Lady Gaga's song, Poker Face.

There were a couple of things that once I read them online, I had to call shenanigans on. I've worked on a movie with a 'live gun' before. There are so many precautions taken in oder to insure the safety of everyone on set. Only a trained person from the Props Department and the actor will handle the gun, and prior to shooting the scene there is an entire crew safety meeting where everyone is told about the gun and typically a blank is shot to let the crew know what to expect. I couldn't believe Robert De Niro suggested putting a real bullet into the gun when filming the Russian Roulette, of course it was checked to make sure there weren't any bullets in the gun when the actors had to actually pull the trigger. Personally I don't think it was worth it. I don't think we needed to add another sense of realism to the scene. And as if adding a bullet to the chamber of a gun wasn't enough the actors were actually slapped. Yeah, those aren't 'stage slaps the boys received.

Final thoughts: This is the kind of movie that's going to stick with you. It's not going to leave you feeling warm and fuzzy, but instead vulnerable and a little closed off. After reading a lot of the stuff Michael Cimino had the cast and crew do for the movie, no one could argue that he didn't have a pretty solid handle on this gig. Actually at this point, I'm a little intimidated by him. If I were an actor, there's no way I would want to continuously film the Russian Roulette scenes and get slapped in the face each time, or even have to jump thirty feet from a helicopter so many times in just two days. This is easily considered a great movie and rightfully so, it's just not something you would want to watch repeatedly.

OFFICIAL COUNT 96 DOWN 269 TO GO

Next up: Kiss Kiss Bang Bang

Poltergeist

Poltergeist
Poltergeist (25th Anniversary Edition)



I've only seen this movie on TV, and if you've seen the movie Showgirls (on DVD) and have also caught it on VH1 then you know it's almost two different movies. Well, I added this movie to the list and 365 Movie Challenge, because I had only ever seen it on TV and I wanted to make sure I had seen the same movie everyone else has. I'm just curious to see how different it is from what I had seen on TV.

After having watched the movie:
(Possible spoilers below)

I don't think I could have put together a better Saturday to watch this movie. During the day I had planned on trying to catch up on the week, I had a lot of writing to do and I definitely had to better organize my Netflix queue. Honestly though, I never imagined just how many days I would spend trying to catch up. It's almost become an unexpected theme with the 365 Movie Challenge. I have to admit though, I really enjoy doing the 365 Movie Challenge, so it completely caught me off guard when I realized it was almost five o'clock and I had spent the whole day writing and reading about the movies that I had watched earlier in the week. In fact, I'm spending Tuesday trying to do the same thing I did on Saturday.

Saturday night The Boyfriend and I ordered out for dinner and set ourselves up for a 'scary movie night.' For what feels like six billion years I've been trying to tell him how amazing the episode I Am Six, from  Paranormal State was when I first saw it. Here's the deal though, I don't really scare easy and I love ghost stories. Which means, I eat things like Paranormal State up! I don't know if it was that when I first watched I Am Six that I was up late at night, alone in the big house I shared with my roommates or if it was just a really scary episode. I'm fairly certain it's because it was just a really scary episode. So naturally I felt like we needed to start the night with Paranormal State; as a way to build up to Poltergeist.

When we got to it, the movie Poltergeist was great. I didn't think it was scary, but I think if I had seen it when I was nine or ten years old I would have been a little scared. For a long time though, snowy TVs have always scared me as a kid. Not necessarily because of the movie, but because my Grandpa had always told me that I shouldn't sit too close to the TV or I would hurt my eyes. I think it's a perfectly scary movie for kids around the age of twelve, because it's scary enough to spoke them without traumatizing the kids same time.

Final thoughts: I don't really think there are a lot of great stories from set to share from this movie. Actually the best part of the movie was watching the movie at home with The Boyfriend. I still can't shake the idea that the movie is perfectly crafted for a twelve-fourteen year olds slumber party.

OFFICIAL COUNT 95 DOWN 270 TO GO

Next up: The Deer Hunter

Mommie Dearest

Mommie Dearest, 1981
Mommie Dearest (Hollywood Royalty/Special Collector's Edition)



I remember watching part of this movie as a kid with my own Mother, who thankfully is nothing like Joan. Honestly, aside from the local news stations, I think Lifetime is the only channel my Mother has ever really known. I can remember being about nine or ten years old watching movies on Lifetime on Saturdays in the winter with my Mom, and in the rare chance that I'm in Ohio for more than a week visiting I still try to talk her into watching another movie on Lifetime with me just for old-times sake.

I only vividly remember watching two parts of the movie, the infamous wire hanger scene and the earlier scene with Christina and Joan by the swimming pool. I had a hard time understanding why this girls Mom was so mean and nasty to her children, and all my Mom could say was that she wasn't always a very nice lady. That was enough for me, I didn't need any other explanation.

Years later though, I want to revisit this movie and watch it again this time with friends. I'm curious to find out if there's a more underlying explanation as to the source of some of Joan's wild rants that I was just to young to pick up on when I watched the movie for the first time.

After having watched the movie:
(Possible spoilers below)

I got to watch this movie with my friends, Wil and Kristen and I got really excited to watch the movie with both of them when I realized neither of them had seen the movie before. I think because I had seen parts of the movie before, it didn't really shake me or disturb me too much to watch Joan berate these Christina and Christopher at the drop of a hat. I noticed during the movie at times both Wil and Kristen had a difficult time watching parts of the movie. At one point Wil even said, "I've never slapped a bitch, but I'd certainly shake one."

After watching the movie in its entirety, years later, I think the scene that is most upsetting is still when Joan continues to bully Christina into practicing her diving form, and later challenges her to race just to prove to her daughter that she is a better swimmer. Although, there are many moments throughout the movie when you kind of stop and think, "these poor children."

As far as the box office is concerned, when the movie was released no one took it seriously. In no time at all people started taking Ajax and wire hangers into theaters in order to "participate" in the movie the same way audiences continue to do to this day with The Rocky Horror Picture Show. Which certainly came as a big shock to Faye Dunaway, who believed her performance to be Oscar worthy at the time. Many years after the fact, or at least until offered a book deal, Faye Dunaway absolutely refused to discus the movie in interviews. Which kind of makes me hate her a little. It's also one of the many reasons why I absolutely adore Susan Sarandon though. Susan unlike Faye, is able to say, "Yeah, I made that one really bad movie" share a story or two about it and move on.

Final thoughts: I don't think this is a movie for anyone who is very sensitive about the subject matter. Joan is at times both mentally and physically abusive to her children; she beats with Christina with a wire hanger in the middle of the night. However, from a purely Cult-Classic perspective, this is a movie I think everyone should see at least once. And on a more personal note, it has successfully painted Faye Dunaway in a new light, and I'll admit I'm a little less excited about watching Bonnie and Clyde as a result.

OFFICIAL COUNT 94 DOWN 271 TO GO

Next up: Poltergeist

P.S. I perhaps should have mentioned this earlier, but I had known for some time the movie is based off of the book Christina Crawford wrote also titled Mommie Dearest. In the book, from my best understanding, there are more tales of Joan's wild and outlandish rants and from Christina's perspective. It's one that I have wanted to read for some time, and I think after watching the movie the book may warrant a special trip to the book store.

What I learned on my day off: Don't go sailing around Mexico with ladies from Shanghai

The Lady From Shanghai, 1946
The Lady from Shanghai



I picked this movie at random, because I knew I would be purchasing my Nintendo Wii this week and for the first time would be able to stream my watch instantly queue to my TV. Basically, I scrolled through the list of movies on my queue that had an option to watch instantly and this was the first one that really caught my attention, and honest to God, sounded like it would make for a diverse week.

After having watched the movie:
(Possible spoilers below)

I don't think I could have selected a better movie to add to this weeks list. I had no idea the movie would turn out the be Film Noir, and certainly never expected the kind of story that I got along with the movie. I don't really even know where to begin with this movie. I thought it was done so well and even though I wasn't prepared to watch a who-done-it movie, it was perfect to watch on my day off. A little side note, Film Noir is quickly becoming my new favorite genera.

This movie is black and white; however it's a different kind of black and white movie than 8 1/2. It's kind of difficult to explain, but 8 1/2 was always intended to be an 'art film' which is why the cinematography is different then a movie like The Lady From Shanghai. Although by no means do I discredit the way this movie was shot, because I think it was done rather well and had more than a couple of spectacular shots near towards the back-end of the movie. I'm speaking specifically to the scenes shot in the fun house and the maze of mirrors. I was really upset and felt robbed when I later found out that the studio made the decision to edit out more of the final scene that Orson Welles had intended to be in the finished product.

Of course one of my favorite aspects of 365 Movie Challenge is writing and sharing some of the things I learn about the movies after I've watched them. For instance I would have had no idea that this movie was made when Welles was in a rush to get $55,000 and was able to quickly talk producers into making the movie from the book If I Die Before I Wake. Or that actor, Everett Sloane, never relied on crutches. Instead Welles was just certain that Sloane, who was a radio star, moved awkwardly on film and gave him crutches to conceal any awkward movements. Although saving the best story from the production of the film for last, this above all is the perfect example of the kind of stories I like to hear from production. It's the kind of office prank that usually happens on set or in the production office. It's a little silly, a little bit of a power play, but in the end is harmless because no one was really hurt during the process.

Nearing the end of production of the film, Welles expressed to Columbia and specially Executive Jack Fier, that he would need a complete set repainted over the weekend. Executives being Executives, they declined Welles request for budgetary reasons. Repainting an entire set would require that union crews come into work on the weekend, thus requiring triple their pay rate. Finding this to be completely unacceptable, Welles along with a few friends broke into the paint department that weekend in order to paint the set themselves. I'm sure they kind of cleaned things up once they were done, and left the set with a banner that read, "The only thing we have to fear is Fier himself." Of course when the union painters came to work on Monday and found an entire set to have been repainted, like any union they refused to work, threw up a picket line and refused to work until the painters were paid for the work that was done. Which, was exactly what Fier had tried to avoid. I mean, could you imagine coming into that kind of mess on Monday morning. I would have been furious. In order to calm things down, Fier did what any Executive would have done in this case. He agreed to the painters demands, paying them the money they 'earned' and sticking Welles with the tab. But Fier did one better, in addition to paying the painters he paid them to paint another banner that read, "All's well that ends Welles."

Final thoughts: I don't want to really discuss much of the plot of the movie, or some of the events that happen, because it is a who-done-it. Although I will say that the movie is certainly worth watching and is much better than a lot of the poor press it initially received.

OFFICIAL COUNT 93 DOWN 272 TO GO

Next up: Mommie Dearest

X2: X-Men Unite!

X2, 2003
X-Men Trilogy (X-Men/ X2 - X-Men United/ X-Men - The Last Stand)



I have to say, I'm pretty excited about watching this movie largely in part because I really liked X-Men a lot more than I had ever anticipated.

After watching the movie:
(Possible spoilers below)

I wasn't even a little disappointed with this movie. I'm sure there may have been a few die hard X-Men fans who maybe didn't like it as much as I did, but that seems to go without saying. Now that I've at least seen the first two movies, I feel a little more connected to the story but I'm just barely inside the gates.

I have to say though, as I'm starting to think about this next feature film that I'm going to be taking on, this movie had to have been in production for what seems like years. Our shooting schedule for the low, independent budget I'm about to take on is eighteen days. It took about that same amount of time to film the fight sequence between Wolverine and Yuriko. That's insane to me! I can't wrap my mind around what it would have been like to try to match continuity for something we shot six months ago. Only because my sister's birthday is six calendar months after mine, do I very vaguely remember what I was doing six months ago. The shooting schedule really shouldn't be too big of a surprise though, because it was clearly set to be a summer blockbuster. (The movie would actually be entered into The Guinness Book for World Records for having the widest film release. The movie opened on 3,741 screens on the same day.) I'm just sayin' that kind of time and resources would be nice to have. Just what kind of time and resources did they have exactly? The replica of the President's desk in the Oval Office, it took two months to build. Two months! For a desk that isn't in a big chunk of the movie.

The second movie like the first required a lot from the actors as well, which makes me appreciate them more for their dedication to the series. Remember all the time it took to put Rebecca Romijn into full costume? Five hours. Which to put into better perspective for those who aren't familiar with the industry, a typical day for any production (both cast and crew) is twelve hours. Which means for the first five hours of her day, Rebecca Romijn was in makeup. Which means there was roughly an hour before lunch when she could be on set and ready to shoot. And although I never found any actual number, it can be safely assumed that then removing all the makeup took more than 30 minutes at the end of her day. Luckily for her, this time she wasn't required to wear the same kind of contact lenses and her eyes were done digitally in post production.

Aside from Rebecca though, there were a lot of other actors who I think also deserve a lot of credit for their time spent in makeup, performing various stunts, and filming sequences that took weeks to complete. Alan Cumming, who played Nightcrawler, spent ten hours in makeup specifically for the scene in the church where his skin and makeup is visible from the waist up. Kelly Hu had to grow out her fingernails in order to glue the claws into place that she wore as Lady Deathstrike. I think that would have been the most difficult part for me. I would have been so afraid that I was going to break a nail, and nothing hurts more than having a nail rip/break off too far into the bed of the nail. I cringe just thinking about it.

Final thoughts: I loved this movie. I thought it was a lot of fun and I didn't think it was too campy or over the top. Having known nothing previously about the X-Men series, I thought those who wrote and drafted the story did an amazing job bringing in new characters without just completely forgetting about characters from the first movie. At this point it's a little hard to say which movie I liked better, because both turned out great and having watched them both only once and nearly back-to-back I can safely say that I just liked both movies a lot. Although I have to say I thought the addition of Nightcrawler was brilliant. I think I even said (out loud) "Of course" when he rescued Rogue from being sucked out of the jet. Well played X-Men, well played.

OFFICIAL COUNT 92 DOWN 273 TO GO

Next up: The Lady From Shanghai

It just so happens I love Netflix again

Yesterday I got to put some of my hard earned money to great use. I finally bought a Wii and now have the ability to stream Netflix TV and Movies instantly to my TV. I can't even begin to tell you how excited I am about this great little feature. Okay, I do feel a little silly about it though because it's not exactly the newest technology, but whatever. I don't have to watch instantly on my computer anymore!

This little feature has made me fall in love with Netflix all over again.
(But I won't be taking back what I said about it in my LA Confidential post because that was bogus)

8 1/2

8 1/2, 1963
8 1/2 - Criterion Collection



I realized by accident that the movie was made by Federico Fellini, which already makes me a little more hesitant to watch the movie. I feel like it's going to be too artsy-fartsy and not much fun. I also feel like I'm not going to make friends after I have to write about watching the movie, because everyone likes to pretend that everything with Fellini's name on it is absolutely stunning. Which a lot of it is, but come on people he's not the end-all and be-all of filmmaking.

After having watched the movie:
(Possible spoilers below)

Well I kind of hate to say it, because I want to have friends after writing this, but this movie was too long, and not much fun. It took me three days to finish watching the whole thing, because it was too much to watch all at once. I got bored. Say what you will about my attention span, because I have already beat you to the punch, my attention span is the amount of time it takes to boil water.

The only thing I really liked about the movie, and again this kind of falls back on the fact that I'm jonesing to work on a period-piece, was being able to see all the wardrobe. I blame it really on film school, because there was a moment when instead of thinking about the characters and what they were doing in the movie I started thinking about the wardrobe and how seamlessly it fit with the movie. It's no wonder the film went on to win an Academy Award for costume design for a black and white film. The film that won the award for colored film that year was Cleopatra, which I'm now very excited to watch as it is also part of the 365 Movie Challenge.

I don't know what was really so wonderful about the rest of the movie though. It was shot nicely, sure but I'm going to stick my neck out for this one and say that it's kind of hard to mess up a black and white picture.

Still don't agree with me? Here's the way I see it, once photoshop and digital cameras became available everyone was so excited to have to opportunity to edit their pictures. How many times have you yourself clicked the black and white, or sepia options, just to see if the image is any better without all the yellows, green, blues, and pinks? And then once Sin City hit the silver screen everyone wanted at least one black and white picture of themselves, their family, or pet with at least one pop of color in the print. It was almost as if black and white pictures were suddenly a luxury or lost treasure. Don't get me wrong though, I love quality black and white photographs. I just think they're more forgiving and a little easier to work with than colored photography. And as cliche as it may be, some of my favorite black and white photographs are from Ansal Adams. Specifically his photographs of bare trees.

I realize this is a little off topic, and I don't really know where it came from, but when I was in middle school I would draw small bare trees when I was bored in class. I couldn't resist. I had to include one of my favorite Ansal Adams pieces in the post.

Final thoughts: This movie is absolutely an artsy film. If you show up to a coffee house, you know the kind I'm talking about, having seen this movie you'll have something to talk about. Just be aware that once you start the conversation you're going to be in it for a while, so have something smart to say. Other wise, this movie is kind of like Metropolis. In order to really appreciate the movie for what it is, you're probably going to have to be a bit of a film-snob or at least be interested in film as an art form. And while I like to think that I am able to see film as an art form, it's the only way I really saw this movie. It's not something I would be able to watch on a cold Saturday afternoon, in-fact I will probably never watch it again. However all of that being said, I am glad that it was part of the 365 Movie Challenge because it was just a little more exposure to Italian filmmaking.

OFFICIAL COUNT 91 DOWN 274 TO GO

Next up: X2: X-Men United

THE BIGGEST PROBLEM WITH NETFLIX: L.A. Confidential but thats off the record, on the QT, and very hush hush.

L.A. Confidential, 1997
L.A. Confidential (Two-Disc Special Edition)



I don't really know what this movie is about and I don't think I've really heard a lot of people talk about it. I'm cautiously optimistic though because I'm intrigued by the cover art.

After having watched the movie:
(Possible spoilers below)

I was originally scheduled to watch this movie during week 8 of the 365 Movie Challenge, and finally in week 14 I was able to watch the movie. That's right, six freakin' weeks later. Here's the deal, I'm a little stubborn and after numerous false hopes courtesy of Netflix I refused to just go to Blockbuster to rent the movie. You see mysteriously the movie was moved from my number one spot in my queue to number two, then hit a 'Very Long Wait' status. I lost track how many times it showed 'Available' at night only to log back into my account and the status of the movie was once again changed to 'Very Long Wait.' I ask you Netflix, how does the status of a movie change so quickly in as little as seven hours?! This went on nearly everyday for 6 weeks. So naturally, if Netflix had any serious competition I would have been online, on phone, and sending e-mails threatening to switch movie providers so fast their heads would spin.

This and of course the company then started taking their time shipping out DVDs to me has made me want to scream! Come on people, I have a 365 Movie Challenge and I'm tired of always being one movie shy of completing the week. Something like that does a lot of damage to an overachiever's psyche. Not to mention the fact that I've been trying to get ahead because I've accepted another feature film job in October.

So naturally with all the fuss that seemed to spark around LA Confidential, I started to associate the growing resentment I had for Netflix and the 'Very Long Wait' statuses with the movie. Which means by the time I finally received the movie, I was expecting a lot from it. I'm talking Avatar quality.

The movie wasn't exactly Avatar status, but it was good. I don't think it was entirely worth the six week wait that I had to go through, but that's because I can be a little impatient. It's a great 'good cop, bad cop' movie and certainly worth all the money that was spent during production, I'm just not one to watch a lot of those types of movies repeatedly. In-fact, it's probably one of the best 'good cop, bad cop' movies that I have seen. Just for the record though, The Departed is most definitely at the top of my favorite 'good cop, bad cop' movies.

I have to admit though, I did really like all the production design and work that the art, makeup, hair and of course the wardrobe department did for the movie. It was probably my favorite thing the movie had to offer. I really only have one major complaint though about the wardrobe, and that's that a lot of them men went without wearing hats. Until Kennedy became president, it was uncommon to see men in business dress without a hat. I don't know, I mean I know it's small and kind of silly but I guess I'm just dying to work on a great time-period production.

There's just another really interesting thing that I think is worth noting. I learned about this after reading about the movie on the internet, and I kind of wish I had known these things before I had watched the movie. As it turns out, a lot of the events in the movie were based on things that really happened. For instance the, "Bloody Christmas" incident reportedly happened, as well as the arrest of real-life gangster, Mickey Choen, which would spark a gang war for control of the rackets within the city.

Final thoughts: This is a boys movie. If you really like 'good cop, bad cop' stories then this is going to be right up your alley, but for me the best part about the movie was finally receiving it from Netflix and getting to see the production design, hair, makeup and wardrobe from the movie.

OFFICIAL COUNT 90 DOWN 275 TO GO

Next up: 8 1/2

Week 14 Announced

The titles for week 14 are:

X2, 2003
X-Men Trilogy (X-Men/ X2 - X-Men United/ X-Men - The Last Stand)



Poltergeist, 1982
Poltergeist (25th Anniversary Edition)



Mommie Dearest, 1981
Mommie Dearest (Hollywood Royalty/Special Collector's Edition)



The Deer Hunter, 1978
The Deer Hunter



The Lady From Shanghai, 1947
The Lady from Shanghai



All Quite on the Western Front, 1930
All Quiet on the Western Front (Universal Cinema Classics)



Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, 2005
Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang (Widescreen Edition)

American Beauty

American Beauty, 1999
American Beauty (Widescreen Edition)



I know this movie is kind of a big deal, but I don't know why. I remember watching the Academy Awards the year it was nominated, which of course brought along even more hype for the movie. It was also the first time I realized Thora Birch had grown up and isn't the same actress I remember from Now and Then. And say what you will about Now and Then, but as a girl I loved that movie.

After having watched the movie:
(Possible spoilers below)

This movie was a lot more mature than I ever expected it to be. I watched the movie with Wil and during the movie his roommate, Matt, came home and did a few things in the kitchen. I didn't realize Matt spent as much time in the kitchen as he had, but it was long enough to recognize what we were watching. Matt tends to be a guy of few words so it surprised me when he talked to both Wil and myself about the movie once it was over. I didn't realize it at the time but when Wil and Matt first watched the movie, when it was first released, that neither had their drivers license, and both agreed that it was a different movie for them to watch as a teenager then later as an adult.

It made me wonder what the first movie that I watched and first made me realize movies could be on a deeper level, and I couldn't come up with an answer. Sometimes I have a tendency to over think things, and it bothered me at first that I didn't know which movie did that for me. I thought about it more when I got home that night and realized that the movie that changed things for me, or at least the first serious movie that I watched as a teen and didn't really understand the subject matter of was The Cell. I know I've said that I don't remember if I watched the movie in theaters or if I had just seen a trailer for the movie, but at this point there is still a part of me that feels like I saw this movie in theaters. Don't judge me, I obviously didn't realize what I was going to be watching when I went to see it and my parents were never one to censor the things I watched. Music was really the only thing that had ever been censored, and I can't say that I really disagree with my Dad's choice to block out hip hop and rap music.

Anyways I thought American Beauty was an incredible movie, and like I mentioned earlier, I understand how it might seem like two different movies to someone who doesn't really understand the subject matter. It was a little darker than I thought it would be, but when Wil spilled the beans and told me the movies writer, Alan Ball, also wrote Six Feet Under and True Blood it all made sense. Which if I really had to come up with one problem I had with the movie, I would have to say that the movie felt a lot like the first season of Six Feet Under.

I was surprised though to find out that both Jane and Ricky weren't tried and prosecuted for Lester's murder after recording what would appear to be incredibly incriminating evidence against both of them. Apparently a similar version of the script had been created, but it was later decided to take the film in a different direction. I'm not really surprised, because  it's common to have multiple versions of a script before shooting and even while in production.

Final thoughts: I was happy with the movie. I thought it was done well and the story was great, though it was kind of dark. I think this movie is certainly one that should stay shelved until the viewer is really old enough to understand how complex these characters are. I don't often agree with a lot of the ratings that movies are given today, because I think the rating system is bias and outdated but this movie (based on its subject matter) certainly earned an R rating.

OFFICIAL COUNT 89 DOWN 276 TO GO

Next up: 8 1/2

How to Marry A Millionaire

How to Marry A Millionaire, 1953
How to Marry a Millionaire



I'm not really trying to suggest that the movie be remade, I mean I haven't even seen the movie yet. I just can't help but to feel like within ten years someone is going to try to remake this movie. Pause for a minute to realize just how silly that seems, because I haven't even seen the first one. Okay, back into things, if it were to have been remade in the late 1990s or earlier part of 2000s I'm sure someone like Jennifer Lopez would have been cast in the lead. And yeah, I realize JLo is isn't blonde and is Latin to boot, but things like The Wedding Planner and Monster in Law make her seem like a smart choice. However, if it were to be remade today, I imagine someone like Katherin Heigl (barf), Kristin Bell, or Kate Hudson would be the leading lady this time around. I don't know, maybe I should try watching the movie first before I dreaming up a remake.

After having watched the movie:
(Possible spoilers below)

Apparently my talks about a remake for this movie isn't too far off, as Wil told me a remake has been talked about for a while now. I feel like the key to remaking this movie would be retaining the classy aspect the movie had when it was first made in 1953. I think it would go over great if it had the same kind of glamour as something like Gossip Girl or maybe even a bit of Cougar Town, after all the characters in the movie aren't in college or in their twenties.

One of the things that I liked most about the movie was Marilyn Monroe. I actually thought she was a major asset to the movie despite what a lot of people have said about her abilities as an actress. I mean, I'll even admit that she is no Meryl Streep but I this role seems like it was made for her. Marilyn's role was playing a beautiful, slightly stupid, girl who thinks the only thing holding her back from getting married to a man who earns at least six figures a year is her glasses. Her character reminds me of the girl that everyone is friends with in high school because she is so nice and welcomes everyone to sit with her at lunch, but has a hard time making a 'C' in her Algebra II class.

And one last thing about Marilyn Monroe, because she died young we have this idealized persona of hers we all remember the same way we do about James Dean. This doesn't mean every young starlet should run off to the nearest tattoo parlor to get Marilyn tattoos all over their body - Megan Fox. The only real exception I'm willing to make are a few of the pictures Lindsay Lohan did for Vanity Fair.

Final thoughts: The more I think about it, the more in favor I am for a remake to be done. Of course with one stipulation being that I would want to be able to work on the movie. I thought the movie was a lot of fun, light hearted, and easy to watch. It's something that I would watch again and again and I'm thinking about even buying it on DVD, which is kind of out of character for me.

P.S. The final scene of the movie at the burger joint is absolutely my favorite part of the movie; the movie ends on such a great note.

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