voteforgracie-IBTimes-India

I have recently found myself in love with the Coen Brothers, a directing duo with an unmistakable and original style. What really endears me to some new filmmakers is their clear love of film and utilization of it in their work. As it is with Woody Allen, so it is with the Coen Brothers. 

This film is more or less a conglomeration of practically every film Frank Capra ever made both in plot and in some of the shots. Norville is Gary Cooper and Jimmy Stewart in one package, while Amy Archer is Barbara Stanwyck meets Jean Arthur with some fast talking Rosalind Russell thrown in. 

Long John Willoughby's in Meet John Doe

Norville is pronounced insane versus...

The trial in Mr. Deeds Goes to Town

1. Gene Kelly wore a toupe???


Oh Gene, you still have the best smile any side of the Mississippi and I'm proud to attend the same University you did, this will just take me a second to get used to. Please don't hold it against me.


2. There is footage of Grace Kelly in her casket??

For me the world of online buying is still something exotic, a tangled web I don't care to get lost in. I've never bought anything off of ebay because I've always been too afraid that I'd become like one of those home shopping network addicts that starts compulsively buying until I have 5000 vintage magnets that I don't really need. As such I've never had many options in terms of buying memorabilia. One of the reasons that London is/was so wonderful is that I was able to actually go to bookstores and stalls that sold some wonderful old things where I could tangibly see the money pass from my hand to theirs and touch what you cannot touch on a website.

One of the wonderful things I bought is an edition of Cinegram, one of London's film magazines devoted to the 1939 film Love Affair starring Irene Dunne and Charles Boyer. It's kind of falling apart in my hands but I fell in love with it because I think the montage of images is just lovely and it also features a few write ups on its stars that are quite fun.

The great thing about a blizzard is that it provides the perfect opportunity to snuggle under many layers of quilts, catch up on my movie watching and make a dent in the 300 tea bags I brought home from Britain. I even have some corn for popping.

It also gives me an excuse to post clips from White Christmas.

I would make a list of my favorite holiday films but they have all been aptly covered from Christmas classics such as It's A Wonderful Life, The Shop Around The Corner and White Christmas to lesser known gems Christmas in Connecticut, The Bishop's Wife, Christmas in July and Remember the Night. You kids keep me creative.

Though I have been absent from the bloggersphere, I have found other outlets for sharing my love of the old and too oft forgotten. Over the fall semester I worked for a company called Raindance Film which is devoted to assisting independent filmmakers and a demystification of the industry. They post a weekly newsletter with tips and tricks of the trade, including a few articles I have written on film casting, twitter tips, etc. My favorite section is called amnesia, a category devoted to forgotten films that deserve a second look. A love of all things old made me a perfect candidate to write such articles, and I have become their resident "amnesia expert" a title I wear very proudly. Here are a few of my pieces that may be of interest:

Frank Capra: The Original Indie Auteur

Amnesia: The Trouble With Harry

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Hello lovely blogger friends! I have returned from my four month European adventure exhausted but far better for the experience.


For right now I leave you with this picture I took of Hitchcock's former flat at 153 Cromwell Road where he lived from 1926-1939. Though situated along a posh street in Kensington nestled between white columned elegance, the spirit of the former master of suspense still casts a special spell over the building. You can almost see Norman Bates' mother peeking through a window.