TCM: The Greatest Movie Channel

[voiceover]

Timothy Dalton was my first (& subsequently, most-loved) 007.  He was the best & most perfect Mr Rochester (in the best & most perfect version of Jane Eyre), so naturally my fangurl heart followed him to the franchise I'd never much cared for.

His is the Intense!Bond; arguably the best actor to ever take on the role.  He's not the wiseacre he replaced in the series, but when he gets to take his shot, he's all bull's-eye: "Nothing to declare!" he shouts, as he sleds past Customs on the Bond Girl's cello ("You couldn't have played the violin???") case.

And a musical aside: all due respect to Shirley Bassey's title covers, but my favorite 007 tune ("If You Asked Me To") is sung by Patti LaBelle over the closing credits of License to Kill.

It crossed my mind during my monthly rewatch of 1937's The Prisoner of Zenda that the leads in that classic might have, in another time, been perfectly cast as Ian Fleming's characters.

*Ronald Colman as 007, natch.  His King/King's cousin was as close to Bond as he'd ever get.

*Douglas Fairbanks Jr as The Clever Villain.  His role in PoZ is my personal favorite, and he should've been cast as this character type more often.

*Raymond Massey as The Cruel Villain.  What a spin *he might've put on "No Mr Bond. I expect to you to die!"

*David Niven (the inspiration for the source material) as Q.  Sorry: James has to be sexy.  As fond as I am of Niven the Actor & Niven the Author...just...no.

*Mary Astor as Villain's Mistress-becomes-Bond Girl.  Because we know about the diary, honey.

*Madeleine Carroll as Love Interest-Bond Girl.  She'd've proved waaay more interesting than any of the others (excepting Diana Riggs and Eva Green).

*C. Aubrey Smith as M.  Because he'd already played countless versions of him.

[ruby24]

Just watched The Prisoner of Zenda (1937). What a great movie! Loved it. Ronald Colman was terrific and Douglas Fairbanks Jr was such a scene-stealer (I've seen him in other things but this is the first thing I've seen him really stand out in- he was awesome as the villain).

I love adventure movies like this and The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938). Does anyone have suggestions for more of these kinds of movies? 

[voiceover]

John Gilbert in Bardelys the Magnificent (1926) and Louis Hayward's Man in the Iron Mask (1939).

The chase scene at the end of Bardelys is jaw-droppingly terrific in a "How'd they do **that??" kind of way.

And Louis Hayward is a charmer in whatever he does.

[Tom Holmberg]

9 hours ago, ruby24 said:

Does anyone have suggestions for more of these kinds of movies? 

"Scaramouche" (1952)  While it's not totally a successful Flashmman movie "Royal Flash" (1975) is a fun parody of "The Prisoner of Zenda" (The Flashman books are worthwhile reads, as long as you aren't offended by their political incorrectness)

Edited September 6, 2019 by Tom Holmberg

[Tom Holmberg]

Coming up n TCM on Sat. night at 11 pm (CST) (repeating, Sun. at 9 am) is Ray Milland in "The Big Clock," a great noir-ish murder mystery, with Henry Morgan as a cold killer and a sleazy Charles Laughton.  Most of the action takes place with Milland trapped in a NY skyscraper.

On Thurs. Sept 12 at 7pm (CST) TCM's Bond marathon returns with what is arguably the best made Bond film (at least before the recent "Casino Royale".  Don't blame me, Bond fans agree.) "On Her Majesty's Secret Service."

Edited September 6, 2019 by Tom Holmberg

[Rinaldo]

1 hour ago, Tom Holmberg said:

"Scaramouche" (1952) 

This has a legendarily long sword fight. And also from 1952...

As you liked The Adventures of Robin Hood so much (and quite right too), let me recommend The Story of Robin Hood and His Merrie Men. This is one of the excellent live-action adventure films made by a Disney unit in England in the 1950s. (It's already been shown on TCM [at which time I enthused about it here], so they won't repeat it even if they do continue to have the occasional Disney evening. But it's worth searching out elsewhere.) I wouldn't rank it equal to the earlier film, but it's still great fun and it structures the familiar episodes differently (the archery contest comes quite early) and has a different conception of Marian (almost "one of the guys") and different points of emphasis.

[Was-MArsenault]

So my mom and I were talking about who her favorite James Bond was, and she said Sean Connery. Surprisingly, she said that she doesn't like Roger Moore and has never seen any of the Bond movies starring him.

[Tom Holmberg]

25 minutes ago, MikaelaArsenault said:

Surprisingly, she said that she doesn't like Roger Moore and has never seen any of the Bond movies starring him.

I think people tend to like the Bond they first started watching, so it's basically age-dependent.  I like Connery, but agree Dalton was the best actor (he just had lousy scripts).  "OHMSS" is my favorite Bond film, followed by "From Russia With Love." Both follow the books and don't have all the gizmos.

[Was-MArsenault]

8 minutes ago, Tom Holmberg said:

I think people tend to like the Bond they first started watching, so it's basically age-dependent.  I like Connery, but agree Dalton was the best actor (he just had lousy scripts).  "OHMSS" is my favorite Bond film, followed by "From Russia With Love." Both follow the books and don't have all the gizmos.

And what's strange is that TCM isn't even showing all of the Bond films and are only showing the ones with Connery, Moore, and Brosnan.

[Rinaldo]

21 hours ago, Tom Holmberg said:

I think people tend to like the Bond they first started watching, so it's basically age-dependent.  I like Connery, but agree Dalton was the best actor (he just had lousy scripts).  "OHMSS" is my favorite Bond film, followed by "From Russia With Love." Both follow the books and don't have all the gizmos.

I think your first sentence is true to a great extent, but it's still possible to see gradations. I was a teenager when Bond started, so Connery will always have a special resonance in the role for me. I also very much like Pierce Brosnan, partly because I thought when I first started watching his TV series, "That's someone who should play James Bond." And, despite a few years' delay when NBC screwed him over by renewing the series (when even its fans were ready to let it go), he finally did play Bond and that made me happy. Roger Moore always seemed like a placeholder, as in "We need a good-looking suave Brit to keep the series going; he'll do as well as anyone, I guess."

I agree that Dalton was the best actor, as such, to play the role. George Lazenby was surely the worst, and yet for me, as for you, On Her Majesty's Secret Service is my favorite of the series (partly because the rest of the casting is so good! Telly Savalas! Diana Rigg!!!). Among its many good points, it has four separate chase scenes, all stunningly well edited.

And my next favorite (again we're thinking in sync) is From Russia with Love. Good suspense structure, and again terrific casting (Robert Shaw! Lotte f'in Lenya!!!).

Edited September 7, 2019 by Rinaldo

[LilWharveyGal]

I'd probably rank Russia higher overall, but OHMSS has my absolute favorite theme song.  I love it so much I played it at my wedding (which ended much better than Bond's).

[Tom Holmberg]

34 minutes ago, Rinaldo said:

I agree that Dalton was the best actor, as such, to pay the role

It always seemed that Dalton was in a different movie from the rest of the cast.  I've always said that the Bond films are more ritualistic than the Catholic Mass.  There are so many obligatory scenes that they hardly had time to tell a story--this was esp. true during the Moore run.  "OHMSS" and "FRWL" pretty much avoid this flaw.

[Suzn]

On 9/6/2019 at 1:42 PM, Rinaldo said:

I think your first sentence is true to a great extent, but it's still possible to see gradations. I was a teenager when Bond started, so Connery will always have a special resonance in the role for me. I also very much like Pierce Brosnan, partly because I thought when I first started watching his TV series, "That's someone who should play James Bond." And, despite a few years' delay when NBC screwed him over by renewing the series (when even its fans were ready to let it go), he finally did play Bond and that made me happy. Roger Moore always seemed like a placeholder, as in "We need a good-looking suave Brit to keep the series going; he'll do as well as anyone, I guess."

I agree that Dalton was the best actor, as such, to play the role. George Lazenby was surely the worst, and yet for me, as for you, On Her Majesty's Secret Service is my favorite of the series (partly because the rest of the casting is so good! Telly Savalas! Diana Rigg!!!). Among its many good points, it has four separate chase scenes, all stunningly well edited.

And my next favorite (again we're thinking in sync) is From Russia with Love. Good suspense structure, and again terrific casting (Robert Shaw! Lotte f'in Lenya!!!).

That's pretty much my choices, too.  I liked the simpler early movies with Sean Connery, in addition to liking him,  but I thought Pierce Brosnan was a perfect fit for the character.  I didn't care for Roger Moore and I I don't think I've even seen any of his.

[Milburn Stone]

OT, because we didn't see it on TCM, but...we streamed The Purple Rose of Cairo tonight. Oh my God. We had remembered liking it a lot when it came out. It's better now. Funny, inventive...and heartbreaking. Mia Farrow was magnificent; the final, long-held closeup of her is the stuff goosebumps are made of. Woody Allen got an Oscar nomination for best original screenplay, which was deserved, but Mia absolutely should have been nominated for best actress for this role.

[ratgirlagogo]

On 9/6/2019 at 2:42 PM, Rinaldo said:

On Her Majesty's Secret Service is my favorite of the series 

If it had starred Sean Connery I believe it would be almost universally considered to be the best Bond film.  It has this shocking emotional punch that was very unexpected and would have been even greater with Connery in the role.  And as you said - Diana Rigg!! who is the only actress who could have plausibly played the character who plays the role in Bond's life that she does in this film (whew! that was a hard line to write to avoid spoilers!😀)  Plus "All the time in the world" is one of the best Bond songs and for once, emotionally important in the film.

I love Timothy Dalton as Bond but those films unfortunately are weaker and have some silly things (sliding down in the snow on the cello, etc.).

Edited September 8, 2019 by ratgirlagogo

[Sharpie66]

Born in ‘66, I grew up watching Roger Moore’s Bond in the theaters, but his best film (Live and Let Die) pales in comparison to the best of the other Bonds. (Caveat: I have not seen any Dalton Bond films.) For me, “my” Bond is Brosnan, with Craig a close second and a slightly trailing Connery for third. Goldeneye was the film that made me believe that the franchise could recover from the debacle that was the Moore era, and even when Brosnan’s films got a bit ridiculous, his charisma really held the films together. Craig made me believe the franchise can modernize and endure as long as it wants to—Casino Royale is the best Bond film ever, IMO. 

[Lokiberry]

Just finished watching Bunny Lake Is Missing. And what a strange, creepy film it was! I was absolutely convinced it was going one way, right up until Keir Dullea opened the trunk of his car and then you could have knocked me over with a feather.

Carol Lynley had such an other wordly quality to her. I've mostly seen her on tv. She did really well in this particularly considering that she had so many scenes opposite Laurence Olivier.  

[roseha]

On 8/19/2019 at 10:37 PM, AuntiePam said:

Watching the Buster Keaton documentary now.  Did he really save that actress from going over the waterfall?  No tricks?  Those stunts are unbelievable. 

I'm a long long time Buster fan from way back - in fact it was discovering him in a Silent Clowns series that led to my love of other silent films, and while I unfortunately missed seeing the documentary, I guess you are referring to the end of Our Hospitality?  I read that he actually "saved" a life size doll standing in for the leading lady, his first wife Natalie (who was also pregnant at the time so not likely to do any stunts anyway)!  Although Buster did perform that stunt himself, as he apparently did all of them, aside from a pole-vault he couldn't manage in College.

I think my fav of Buster's features are Sherlock, Jr. and the not-to-be-missed last independent feature, Steamboat Bill, Jr. with its father-son conflict humor with the wonderful Ernest Torrance and the near apocalyptic hurricane finale.  If TCM shows that one any time soon I do recommend it!

[ruby24]

The Circus (1928) was great! I had never seen this one before, it was one of the big Chaplin films I was missing. That tightrope walk was crazy.

[Tom Holmberg]

10 hours ago, Lokiberry said:

I was absolutely convinced it was going one way, right up until Keir Dullea opened the trunk of his car

Yes, this movie could have gone in any direction up until the end. I think you know something weird is going on, but what that is remains unknown until the end.

[Charlie Baker]

An interview with the new Silent Sundays host.

Jacqueline Stewart

[ruby24]

I have a question about Greed (1924). I'd like to watch it but I'm put off by the length, plus I don't enjoy stills being spliced into a movie (I could never stand that about 1954's A Star is Born and I know this one is a full two hours worth of that).

I know there used to be a two hour version out there before the restoration. Is the 4 hour one the standard now or would it be worth watching the old version?

[roseha]

9 hours ago, ruby24 said:

I have a question about Greed (1924). I'd like to watch it but I'm put off by the length, plus I don't enjoy stills being spliced into a movie (I could never stand that about 1954's A Star is Born and I know this one is a full two hours worth of that).

I know there used to be a two hour version out there before the restoration. Is the 4 hour one the standard now or would it be worth watching the old version?

I saw Greed at the Museum of Modern Art in New York a long time ago, this was before any stills were added to stand in for the many deleted scenes.  I found it totally compelling without the stills, though I believe Erich Von Stroheim disavowed that version, however I don't know how I'd react seeing the action pause for two hours worth of stills.  For what it's worth I was able to follow the story in the two hours, though I should add that I did read McTeague in college (and for once, I thought, the movie was better!)   By the way Zasu Pitts will be a revelation for anyone who has only seen her in comedy.  So short answer, maybe start with the 2 hour first?

[voiceover]

On 9/6/2019 at 11:37 AM, MikaelaArsenault said:

And what's strange is that TCM isn't even showing all of the Bond films and are only showing the ones with Connery, Moore, and Brosnan.

Lazenby's is tonight, and Dalton's run back-to-back Thursday the 26th.

On 9/8/2019 at 12:52 PM, ratgirlagogo said:

I love Timothy Dalton as Bond but those films unfortunately are weaker and have some silly things (sliding down in the snow on the cello, etc.).

How can anyone who's a fan of Jungle Girl movies, not get behind sledding on a cello?  Wasn't something like that featured in Jungle Girl Goes to Anchorage?

[Was-MArsenault]

1 hour ago, voiceover said:

Lazenby's is tonight, and Dalton's run back-to-back Thursday the 26th.

How can anyone who's a fan of Jungle Girl movies, not get behind sledding on a cello?  Wasn't something like that featured in Jungle Girl Goes to Anchorage?

Oops. I forgot about Dalton.

[ratgirlagogo]

22 hours ago, voiceover said:

How can anyone who's a fan of Jungle Girl movies, not get behind sledding on a cello?  Wasn't something like that featured in Jungle Girl Goes to Anchorage?

Oh, I AM  a ride or die fan of such things of course.  But Jungle Girl films like so many other films I favor are B-movies - and Bond films are supposed to be A films by definition.  Like I said, I love Timothy Dalton as Bond and I get shirty when people sneer at him.  I think he's the best thing in his 007 films.

[Rinaldo]

5 hours ago, ratgirlagogo said:

Bond films are supposed to be A films by definition. 

Yes, but A films that (at least in the early decades) took pride in including 2 or 3 deliberately groan-worthy lines per movie, as part of the deal with the audience. On Her Majesty's is, I say again after last night's re-viewing, top of the line. But we still had "This never happened to the other fella" (straight to camera), "He branched off," and "He had lots of guts." So a dopey action premise doesn't seem far off-brand.

Another thought after seeing it anew: I hope someday TCM gives us Diana Rigg Month. Even if it means sitting through A Little Night Music.

Edited September 13, 2019 by Rinaldo

[Tom Holmberg]

4 hours ago, Rinaldo said:

On Her Majesty's is, I say again after last night's re-viewing, top of the line

I always thought Lazenby was adequate as Bond (not taking account of his off-screen personality). Not great, but not the joke many people considered him.  He had a tough job following Connery (even Connery, in "Diamonds are Forever" had a tough job following Connery).  If Connery had only made "Dr. No" I think we'd look at him differently..

[Athena]

I felt sorry for Lazenby as I did think OHMSS is a decent Bond flick. I never could warm to the Roger Moore films so I would take Lazenby over Moore. I have always liked Timothy Dalton's Bond since he was doing something very different than all the other Bonds except maybe Daniel Craig comes closest to his style. I like Brosnan and early Connery as well. 

[benteen]

I've heard it said that if Connery had done Her Majesty's Secret Service it would have been an incredibly well remembered James Bond movie.  This wasn't a shot at Lazenby but just a general observation.

[Milburn Stone]

24 minutes ago, benteen said:

I've heard it said that if Connery had done Her Majesty's Secret Service it would have been an incredibly well remembered James Bond movie.  This wasn't a shot at Lazenby but just a general observation.

I need to see this again. The one and only time I've seen it from start to finish was in London, in its premiere engagement at a movie theater in Leicester Square. (As I recall.) We sat in the balcony. (There were balconies!) The theater was filled. I remember feeling how cool it was to see a British-made blockbuster with a British audience in a British theater. It made the intrinsic experience of the film somehow different, even though rationally, it was the same film playing in the U.S.

[Rinaldo]

2 hours ago, benteen said:

I've heard it said that if Connery had done Her Majesty's Secret Service it would have been an incredibly well remembered James Bond movie.  This wasn't a shot at Lazenby but just a general observation.

Well, as Ben M said in his framing comments last night, a lot of Bond fans do rank it very highly indeed, and it is well remembered. The question is whether Lazenby detracts from it (I guess some think yes; I don't) and whether he indeed deserves some credit for its quality (Ben said "you have to give him credit"; I'm not so sure, but he certainly doesn't hurt it badly).

1 hour ago, Milburn Stone said:

The one and only time I've seen it from start to finish was in London, in its premiere engagement at a movie theater in Leicester Square.

I too have seen a new Bond movie at the Leicester Square Odeon! But it was two titles later in the series, Live and Let Die. After the preliminaries (previews? short subject? can't remember), there was a break while ladies with ice-cream trays roamed the aisles, and a theater organ swiveled up from the pit to play a little medley.

I had seen another premiere engagement there earlier in the summer I spent in London (that was A Touch of Class, not as memorable). So I had a basis for comparison: not only did the organist play different selections each time, but after his big finish, as the instrument spiraled back down, he modulated expertly into the key and mood of the feature that was about to start -- for example, giving us fragments of the 007 theme as he merged into the UA logo.

Another thrill was that the singer of "Live and Let Die" within the story, Brenda Arnau, was an actress I had seen on the West End stage just days before, in the musical Two Gentlemen of Verona.

[Milburn Stone]

13 minutes ago, Rinaldo said:

I too have seen a new Bond movie at the Leicester Square Odeon! But it was two titles later in the series, Live and Let Die. After the preliminaries (previews? short subject? can't remember), there was a break while ladies with ice-cream trays roamed the aisles, and a theater organ swiveled up from the pit to play a little medley.

Didn't you feel you "got" the Bond films in a whole new way from that experience? I know I did. British films to me (in my callow youth) were kitchen-sink dramas and small comedies, like Georgy Girl. I didn't think of the Bond films as British films! Until I saw OHMSS at the Odeon. Then I could feel the whole audience's pride, like they were saying, "Nobody makes bigger films than us Brits. Nobody!"

[ratgirlagogo]

9 hours ago, benteen said:

I've heard it said that if Connery had done Her Majesty's Secret Service it would have been an incredibly well remembered James Bond movie. 

Yes, in fact I said it just a few posts above.

On 9/8/2019 at 3:52 PM, ratgirlagogo said:

If it had starred Sean Connery I believe it would be almost universally considered to be the best Bond film. 

Edited September 14, 2019 by ratgirlagogo

[One4Sorrow2TooBad]

 Once again those asshats at Comcast keep raising the price for people to have the  TCM channel. They lost me about 12 years ago  when the package I had was about $35.00 plus taxes etc...  Now ,I think you have to be in the package that runs $100.00 or more plus taxes etc...

[roseha]

12 hours ago, One4Sorrow2TooBad said:

 Once again those asshats at Comcast keep raising the price for people to have the  TCM channel. They lost me about 12 years ago  when the package I had was about $35.00 plus taxes etc...  Now ,I think you have to be in the package that runs $100.00 or more plus taxes etc...

I don’t know if this helps you, but TCM is included with Youtube TV and with Sling if you pay for the Hollywood Extra.  Both have DVR at least most of the time I think (apparently there are occasional exceptions though not in my experience).

[Spartan Girl]

So watching the original Sabrina last month then rewatching the remake today made me realize just how awful the remake really was in watering down the character. The whole point of the movie was showing how much confidence she gained, and Audrey Hepburn had it in spades, especially in the ball scene. Julia Ormand's version? She was still the same mousy chauffeur's daughter, just with better clothes! Ughhhh...

[Rinaldo]

Yes, anyone thinking about remaking an Audrey Hepburn movie had better be damn sure they're improving it, or it's hopeless. (Well, any movie really, but Hepburn is to my mind a special Nonrecurring Phenomenon.) They tried it with Charade, though that fact is barely remembered now. They threatened to try it with Two for the Road, but fortunately that idea fell through. As some wag said, the only way the Sabrina thing makes sense is if it was made first with Julia Ormond, and then decades later Audrey Hepburn came along.

[Wiendish Fitch]

57 minutes ago, Rinaldo said:

Yes, anyone thinking about remaking an Audrey Hepburn movie had better be damn sure they're improving it, or it's hopeless. (Well, any movie really, but Hepburn is to my mind a special Nonrecurring Phenomenon.) They tried it with Charade, though that fact is barely remembered now. They threatened to try it with Two for the Road, but fortunately that idea fell through. As some wag said, the only way the Sabrina thing makes sense is if it was made first with Julia Ormond, and then decades later Audrey Hepburn came along.

I've always felt kind of bad for Ormond, because she was one of those actresses the powers that be tried mold into the latest "It Girl", or "The Next So and So", and it kind of sank her career for a while. She bounced back admirably (she's done pretty well for herself), but I think it was still an unfair thing for her to deal with.

There will never be another Audrey Hepburn. Or Katharine Hepburn. Or Ingrid Bergman. Or any of the greats of yesteryear. They were unique, that's why they're great.

Edited September 15, 2019 by Wiendish Fitch

[mariah23]

2 hours ago, Spartan Girl said:

So watching the original Sabrina last month then rewatching the remake today made me realize just how awful the remake really was in watering down the character. The whole point of the movie was showing how much confidence she gained, and Audrey Hepburn had it in spades, especially in the ball scene. Julia Ormand's version? She was still the same mousy chauffeur's daughter, just with better clothes! Ughhhh...

My mother LOVES the remake.  Don’t ask me why because I still don’t get it.  

[One4Sorrow2TooBad]

2 hours ago, Spartan Girl said:

So watching the original Sabrina last month then rewatching the remake today made me realize just how awful the remake really was in watering down the character. The whole point of the movie was showing how much confidence she gained, and Audrey Hepburn had it in spades, especially in the ball scene. Julia Ormand's version? She was still the same mousy chauffeur's daughter, just with better clothes! Ughhhh...

+1000, the original blows the remake all to hell. Yes, AH had the "it" factor in spades, as did Bogie and Bill Holden. 50 years from now, people will know who Bogie is, not so much with "Greg" who?

[Rinaldo]

This suggests a possible game for movie lovers: Can someone think of a reasonably well known movie that should be remade? That is, a good idea that wasn't dramatized right (maybe due to censorship restrictions), or for which a better cast now exists, or some other factor?

One that comes to mind for me is Guys and Dolls. I guess there are those who like the movie we have, but a lot about it seems "off" to me (three of the five leads miscast, and half the score omitted or replaced), and the show is such a classic that it deserves better. With, for once, a cast of real music theater people who know how to make this stuff land.

[Spartan Girl]

I said already that Freaks should be remade, if only to have the revenge of the freaks shown in all its glory, and have the story focus more on them.

That Hamilton Woman is on right now, and wow, finally I hear Vivian Leigh speak in her own accent. It's kind of funny seeing her and Olivier on screen together knowing how it would end up. I just read a book about the Chateu Mormont and among the many old Hollywood stories was how Viv checked in post-split from Olivier, going on and on to the staff about "my Larry."

[Lokiberry]

13 hours ago, Rinaldo said:

This suggests a possible game for movie lovers: Can someone think of a reasonably well known movie that should be remade? That is, a good idea that wasn't dramatized right (maybe due to censorship restrictions), or for which a better cast now exists, or some other factor?

One that comes to mind for me is Guys and Dolls. I guess there are those who like the movie we have, but a lot about it seems "off" to me (three of the five leads miscast, and half the score omitted or replaced), and the show is such a classic that it deserves better. With, for once, a cast of real music theater people who know how to make this stuff land.

It burns me up every time I see Marlon Brando mumble his way through Luck Be A Lady while Frank Sinatra is forced to to stand by in silent horror.  Who thought that was a good idea?

As for movies that might benefit from a remake: how about Cat On a Hot Tin Roof?  

[Tom Holmberg]

13 hours ago, Rinaldo said:

Can someone think of a reasonably well known movie that should be remade?

A good movie shouldn't be remade. Would there be any point to remake "Casablanca"?  Nobody's going to make a better version. There are some "bad" (or poorly made) movies which could be remade into better movies.  This doesn't include (necessarily) movies based on books, esp. classics. Often you can get multiple movies based on the same book that are equally good.

[mariah23]

14 hours ago, Rinaldo said:

This suggests a possible game for movie lovers: Can someone think of a reasonably well known movie that should be remade? That is, a good idea that wasn't dramatized right (maybe due to censorship restrictions), or for which a better cast now exists, or some other factor?

One that comes to mind for me is Guys and Dolls. I guess there are those who like the movie we have, but a lot about it seems "off" to me (three of the five leads miscast, and half the score omitted or replaced), and the show is such a classic that it deserves better. With, for once, a cast of real music theater people who know how to make this stuff land.

What about The Lost Weekend with the novel’s reason for his alcoholism?

[meowmommy]

16 hours ago, One4Sorrow2TooBad said:

+1000, the original blows the remake all to hell. Yes, AH had the "it" factor in spades, as did Bogie and Bill Holden. 50 years from now, people will know who Bogie is, not so much with "Greg" who?

Probably an unpopular opinion, for me, Audrey Hepburn was great, Bogie not so much.  He just doesn't work as a romantic lead, IMNSHO (maybe with the small exception of his work with Bacall due to their natural chemistry).  And the 30 year age difference might be a man's wet dream, which is why we see it so often in movies, but doesn't do much for me.

William Holden did very well in his role, but I do like Greg Kinnear.  That was just such a high bar to clear.

[Rinaldo]

2 hours ago, Tom Holmberg said:

A good movie shouldn't be remade. 

Yes, that was exactly my point.

People keep trying to remake good movies, and I proposed (and I don't claim to be original in this) that attention be turned to movies that didn't get it right the first time.

Among the suggestions so far, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof and The Lost Weekend make an interesting pair, because the deleted implications are similar in both.

Camelot is a dreary movie, but rather than try to remake it, I hope someone someday gets the rights to The Once and Future King and makes a movie of that, with no singing. T.H. White dealt with the Lancelot-Guenevere story with considerable subtlety, and the dialogue he wrote seems highly actable. 

[Charlie Baker]

There was some talk of a Guys and Dolls remake a few years ago with Channing Tatum and Joseph Gordon-Levitt, but so far it hasn't happened.

In unrelated news, Ben M has a new, evidently recurring gig with CBS Sunday Morning. His first piece is on Irwin Winkler.

A Life in Movies

[Tom Holmberg]

46 minutes ago, Rinaldo said:

People keep trying to remake good movies,

My general rule: Any remake starring Denzel Washington is probably going to be bad.