canbelto

Klingsor, I think The Searchers is a classic because it epitomizes something about the American mythology of the lone pioneer. It's the Swan Lake of Westerns -- it had all the Western movie values rolled into one film. Manifest destiny, fight against Indians, importance of individuality, misogyny, isolation from society.

The second reason I think The Searchers is a classic is because it had the subtlety to question those very values listed above. Is Ethan really just a murderous racist? Is he isolated from society because he chooses to be, or because he *has* to be? It also lacked the "happy" ending of most Westerns -- Debbie is saved, but Ethan is still as isolated and alienated from society as ever.

How could I forget the Sound of Music. I know many people love this film, but it makes me want to barf.

We've done favorite movie romances, so I'm curious as to what you think are overrated movies. I have several:

1. The Philadelphia Story. I find this picture arch and annoying on repeated viewings, and none of the stars did their best work here, IMO. James Stewart was certainly better in a whole slew of movies, but he got his Oscar as Mike for reasons that still baffle me. Especially considering Henry Fonda's Tom Joad was also up for an Oscar that year. Grant's less delightfully sarcastic/wicked than he is in other movies, and Hepburn I found too mannered.

2. Jules et Jim. I'm stepping into hot water here, as I know how beloved this film is. But for me, I just couldnt get into it. I found that character of Catherine so unpleasant I literally couldnt stand to see her onscreen by the end of the movie. The back and forth menage a trois never really touched me -- I just found them all to be rather selfish and annoying.

3. Million Dollar Baby - sure it's good, and it has some touching moments, and Morgan Freeman is wonderful to watch as always. But I found Swank's performance as Maggie rather insincere and unconvincing, and why such an apparently gentle, salt-of-the-earth young lady is so determined to become a female Ali I found puzzling. Don't get me wrong, I liked the movie, I just didnt think it deserved all the accolades it got. I think Sideways was the better movie and should have won best picture.

I forgot to add that I found it kind of touching that Natalia Makarova described Osipenko as a "friend." I've known several ballet students, including one who studied at the Vaganova Academy, and she said that ballerinas are NOT friendly to each other, EVER. They might admire each other, but friends? No. Ballerinas and male danseurs is a different story. So the fact that Makarova and Osipenko remained friends is to me delightful.

Irina Dvorovenko as Scarlett. She has dark hair, green eyes, and is definitely a minx!

Alina Cojocaru as Melanie.

Irek Mukhamedov as Rhett.

Erik Bruhn as Ashley.

Thanks for all the replies on Osipenko. One thing I noticed in "Makarova Returns" is that Makarova pronounces Osipenko's name like: "Ah-si-pien-ka." I found that interesting.

Now that I'm in full confession mode, I admit I don't really enjoy "To Have and Have Not" either. I don't really get the vaunted Bacall/Bogart chemistry. Slim doesn't for a moment seem like a real person, just sort of a male fantasy. Again, I think this is one movie that benefited from the publicity of Bacall and Bogart's very public romance.

“Summertime” isn’t a big favorite of mine, IMO.  I thought it was a little overblown for a story that should be kept small scale (read Arthur Laurents’ original play and you’ll see what I mean).  But then I don't much care for those Love Starved Spinster roles that Hepburn had to play later in her career.

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dirac, what do you think of the Rainmaker? Hepburn isn't one of my favorite actresses (with exceptions of course -- I love her in Bringing Up Baby, for example) but I think it's the most touching of her "sad spinster" movies. I prefer it to African Queen, which I think is a good movie but nothing I'd watch again and again.

In Adam's Rib, I think the movie belongs to Judy Holliday, who really steals every scene she's in.

Vivien Leigh as Giselle

Laurence Olivier as Albrecht

Joan Crawford as Myrtha

Katie Holmes as Aurora

Tom Cruise as Florimund

Cate Blanchett as the Lilac Fairy

What spoiled them for me was the nightmarish aspect of their real-life relationship -- talk about "ick" factor -- which I can never forget, especially since Hepburn is described as an iconic independent woman.

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Helene, I'll never forget reading the chilling line in Hepburn's autobiography. After going on about how she basically changed EVERYTHING for Spencer, she said, "I never knew how he felt about me. He wouldn't talk about it." Talk about a screen persona being night and day from real-life: Tracy conveyed such decency onscreen, but offscreen he was an alcoholic, abusive mess.

Back to a more pleasant topic, another romance I love was the screen adaptation of Persuasion. Amanda Root was so soulful. I always think Persuasion was the most poignant of Austen novels, and Persuasion the film was every bit as touching as the movie.

I'm currently watching Waterloo Bridge. I just adore Vivien Leigh, and I love how it's also a ballet movie. They even have a Ninette di Valois-like figure that they call "Madam!"

I agree with Estelle about the "ick factor" in Lone Star.

I'm gonna pipe up and say that I never really liked the Hepburn/Tracy "romantic comedies." They always seemed a little too arch for my taste. I think the knowledge that in real life these two were lovers adds a bit to the comedies, but not enough for me. (By the way the real-life Hepburn/Tracy relationship was as much nightmare as romance. He was an alcoholic, and hit her and berated her.)

I've just gotten the "Glory of the Kirov" dvd and there are several excerpts with Alla Osipenko. She really intrigued me -- for one, she seemed very much like a "modern" Mariinsky dancer. Tall, long-limbed, flexible, with a more neoclassical style. In some of her off-balance poses she even looked like she could easily dance Balanchine. In documentaries (Makarova Returns) and biographies (Nureyev's) she also seemed like a very compassionate person, comforting Nureyev in the minutes before he was to be arrested by the KGB, etc. Anyone know anything about her career? Her main roles? What she's doing now?

I agree that some nudity in Romeo and Juliet might be appropriate. Maybe have Juliet's nightie come off her shoulder ever so slightly during an embrace. Another ballet where nudity might be appropriate is Kenneth MacMillan's "Mayerling." It's as R-rated as anything I've seen in ballet, and the "love scenes" are very violent. I could picture Rudolf tearing off Mary Vetsera's lingerie.

But then again, I think there's the "if it's not broke, why fix it?" situation with ballets like these. I've seen Romeo and Juliets that are plenty hot without any nudity (thinking of the moment in the Czinner film when Romeo and Juliet's hands first touch).

How is AA in the Kirov's video of LE CORSAIRE?

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AA is beautiful! Very glamorous, and she certainly knows how to make an entrance! (She literally leaps onto the stage and executes a series of high kicks.) Technically, she has a few weaknesses. For one, she's not a natural turner, not the way Gillian Murphy or Alicia Alonso or Natalia Dudinskaya were. Her thirty two fouettes are done very well, but you can kind of see her struggle. However, the overall adorable-ness of her Medora makes the video well worth watching. The video is well worth watching for a bunch of other reasons, including Elena Pankova's Gulnare, and Farukh Ruzimatov's Slave.

Ed, I love "In the Mood for Love." I love it mostly because it really seems to be like one's memories of a romance -- faded yet vivid reminisces, moments of quiet pain and unspoken rapture. I also love the way the camera lingers lovingly on every movement of Maggie Cheung. It makes her carrying a basket of noodles a moment of great beauty.

Another unconsummated romance is Brief Encounter. I love, just love, the final caress on the shoulder between the Alec and Laura at the train station. "Unfaithful" also shamelessly borrows from Brief Encounter.

Another difference is that while Diana guests extensively with other companies (giving her a worldwide exposure) Uliana AFAIK dances exclusively with her home company. As I adore Vishneva I'm very grateful that she chooses to "share the wealth" with so many companies (including the ABT). I wish I could see more of Lopatkina.

I wouldnt say AA was an "angry" Nikya. I'd say that she manages to convey Nikya's desperation and humiliation perfectly. Particularly in the betrothal dance -- with every arch of her back or flick of her hand, she makes you feel how degrading it is for Nikya to be forced to dance at Solor and Gamzatti's big party. I compare that to Isabel Guerin, who certainly is a very fine dancer. But she can't make you feel Nikya's pain the way AA can. Neither could Gabriella Komleva, or Svetlana Zakharova, although they were certainly fine Nikya's too. Alina Cojocaru could -- she like AA has this natural vulnerability and musicality. In fact, I think these two dancers have a lot in common

In the Shades act, AA strikes just the right balance between being otherworldly/remote and human. This is ballet Giselles have to strike this balance too -- IMO Carla Fracci was too remote, Lynn Seymour too human, and Natalia Makarova just about perfect. Like all great dancers I notice that AA inspires greatness in her partner too. Irek Mukhamedov in the video visibly awakens when Nikya the Shade lightly taps him on the shoulder. This is ballet at its best -- formal, classical, yet deeply personal and moving.

I think it would have been interesting to see AA dance the Kirov version (or the Nureyev version, which is practically identical to the Kirov version). Makarova's Bayadere has the reconstructed third act, which adds an element of revenge to Nikya's character. I've waffled back and forth on this but in the end I think Nureyev was wise to end La Bayadere at the Kingdom of the Shades act -- it is in many ways more touching, uplifting, and poignant. Nikya and Solor are reunited in spirit.

I must say that although I decry the man's politics, there are moments of great tenderness in Elia Kazan films, even though they arent "romances" per se. I love how Mitch and Blanche sit on the steps in "Streetcar Named Desire." Somehow the way they both convey such loneliness and sadness is really heart-tugging. I love when Julie Harris and James Dean kiss on the ferris wheel in East of Eden. And most of all, I LOVE the scene when Marlon Brando tries to get Eva Marie Saint to sip a beer.

Not Elia Kazan, but I also love when after Natalie Wood snubs James Dean in "Rebel Without a Cause," he whispers "I love you too."

And have I mentioned how much I love the scene in Lost in Translation when Bob touches Charlotte's ankle? Sometimes I think he best romances are always the unconsummated ones (Casablanca, Roman Holiday, etc.)

Ah, this topic could go on forever, couldnt it?

Ok, confession here: I've never actually seen any of Greta Garbo's films. I know she was the queen of doomed romance -- which ones do you recommend? Ninotchka? Camille? Anna Karenina? Queen Christina? Grand Hotel?

I forgot Before Sunrise/Sunset too. What lovely romances. Julie Delpy is so luminous in both films. I love the ambiguity of the ending. I of course hope Jesse and Celine live happily ever after ...

Aww, what a sweet love story. Here's to many years of wedded bliss for Wendy and David.

But I was surprised at the photos of Wendy. She looks much softer and prettier offstage. Onstage she has this magisterial, about Grecian-statue look about her.

For some "darker" romances, I think Midnight Cowboy is in a way a most touching love story. I started crying when Joe closes Ratso's eyes for the last time ...

Another "dark" romance - Farewell My Concubine. Again, the bond between two men.

For a love story between children, try "Forbidden Games." I have a friend that calls that "tears on demand."

Ok, time to gush, gush, gush. I agree her Nikya is divine. The only Nikya I've seen that comes close to Altynai's is Alina Cojocaru. In fact, these two wonderful dancers have a lot in common -- they both have this intrinsic lovability that permeates every plie and developpe. Altynai IMO combined the best of the old and the new Kirov style: she has the famous pure lines and aristocratic style, along with the long limbs and flexibility that are associated with the new generation of Kirov ballerinas. It's a shame so many of her roles were not filmed -- Giselle, Swan Lake, I would have loved to see her in those roles. My favorite moment of that Bayadere film: just before Nikya dies, she gives Solor a "how could you" look. Altynai's large exotic eyes make this moment unforgettable.

Historical: Natalia Makarova.

Nowadays: Irina Dvorovenko.

I havent seen Diana Vishneva or Alina Cojocaru, but I'd imagine that they are great Odette/Odiles too.

I wish I had seen Asylmuratova.