Movie Night: "Gilda". (Charles Vidor, 1946)

[cubanmiamiboy]

...no need for an extensive review here, so let's just remember this...

-"Gilda...are you decent...?"

-Me...? Sure...I'm decent..."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rVI0A4DTVgg

[miliosr]

As justly famous as the "big band" version is, I actually prefer the "guitar" version:

Rita Hayworth is at her most ravishingly beautiful starting at the :59 mark. And that melancholy look she has on her face starting at the 1:30 mark -- gets me every time.

[papeetepatrick]

I just read that Hayworth and Ford co-starred in 5 movies. I see what her appeal was, although she's never captivated me the way some of the other big diva types have; people talk about her vulnerability (I've never read a bio, and don't know much about her), and Kim Novak, who worked with her in 'Pal Joey' with Sinatra said she was one of the 'sweetest people she'd ever met, and who had no idea whatever of how to protect herself' (may not be perfect quote). I do like this movie though, and Glenn Ford was marvelous when young in a lot of things--tough.

[cubanmiamiboy]

What I find interesting about Hayworth-(at least in this film)-is some sort of fresh, spontaneous approach that I don't see in other actresses of the era. From the way she moves, dances or even how she wears her hair-(loose, without the stiff, permed/hair sprayed usual do's of her contemporaries)-there's something very interesting in her projection. I'm also attracted to her deep voice, which I think gives her a distinctive allure.

Still...I'm always in owe of the over-done, impeccable beauties, a la Tierney or Turner.

[ballet_n00b]

She's my favourite, I just love her. Gilda is a movie I don't actually watch very often, I prefer my Rita in movies like Cover Girl and You'll Never Be Rich.

[dirac]

She's my favourite, I just love her. Gilda is a movie I don't actually watch very often, I prefer my Rita in movies like Cover Girl and You'll Never Be Rich.

I agree, ballet_n00b. Except for the glove strip I don't have much use for the movie. I find the sexual double standard and the misogyny deeply oppressive, and I don't like to see a goddess like Rita get kicked around and kick herself around. I like Cover Girl a lot. I tend to prefer You Were Never Lovelier to You'll Never Get Rich, but they're both good, although unfortunately Columbia wouldn't spend the extra cash to shoot them in color. In her later years those were the movies Hayworth spoke of wit hmost affection. I have mixed feelings about The Lady from Shanghai but you do come away feeling that you've seen something.

[canbelto]

Rita Hayworth is someone I've actually read quite a bit about. She was born Margarita Cansino, and from a very early age was a dancing act with her dad. They specialized in sexy, Latino dances. Apparently this inappropriate relationship wasn't confined to the stage -- her father was sexually abusive. When she went to Hollywood she dyed her hair red, got electrolysis on her hairline, and changed her name to avoid looking Latino. Unfortunately, she seemed drawn to abusive men and unhappy relationships. She married 5 times, each time a disaster. She had a drinking problem, and she also had early onset Alzheimer's disease. Her drinking problem combined with early onset Alzheimer's contributed to several public meltdowns, including one at an airport.

Despite all this, Rita Hayworth apparently maintained a reputation as a sweetheart with a sense of humor. She said that except for the films with Fred Astaire most of her films made her laugh. She sometimes went to parties without any makeup, and left unrecognized because her shy and sweet demeanor didn't scream "movie goddess."

[dirac]

Hi. canbelto.I'd say Hayworth's dancing skills were considerably broader than "sexy Latino" might suggest. Hayworth made an early marriage with her manager/agent, not unusual for an actress, and Orson Welles and Aly Khan looked good on paper at the time. Aly's first marriage lasted over a decade. Dick Haymes, well.....

She said that except for the films with Fred Astaire most of her films made her laugh. She sometimes went to parties without any makeup, and left unrecognized because her shy and sweet demeanor didn't scream "movie goddess."

Hayworth liked "Cover Girl" in retrospect, too. She wasn't exactly unnoticeable without makeup - in casual photos she still looks incredible, a true beauty -- so if she wasn't recognized I expect it was because she didn't want to be. I saw a photo of her with Aly Khan when she was heavily pregnant and with a minimum of makeup she looked exactly as glowing as pregnant women are supposed to look and hardly ever do. It should have been a charmed life, but it wasn't. Fortunately, she left us a legacy of her grace and beauty.

"Tonight and Every Night" isn't much of a movie but she does a wonderful samba number in it.

[canbelto]

Hayworth was a highly trained dancer, but at first her vaudeville act with her father consisted of the kind of sexy Latino dances. I think Astaire said she was his favorite partner, due to her sweet nature and natural talent.

She looked gorgeous even when she was far gone from Alzheimer's, but many people did say that she never ever acted like a "movie star" -- she was quiet, shy, unassuming, sweet.

[sidwich]

I think Astaire said she was his favorite partner, due to her sweet nature and natural talent.

Astaire always publicly demurred on the question of who his favorite partner was, but he always spokely highly and fondly of Rita Hayworth. The Cansinos major influences and idols to the young Astaires in their vaudeville days (along with the Kalmars and the Castles).

And yes, Rita Hayworth did seem to have a tragic knack for terrible relationships with men. Still, her colleagues always seemed to have great affection for her. I can't remember who said it, but I remember one of them saying that other stars might be happy to go through the motions and pick up a paycheck but Hayworth managed to believe every dumb line she ever had to say in a movie.

[dirac]

Hayworth was a highly trained dancer, but at first her vaudeville act with her father consisted of the kind of sexy Latino dances.

Yes. I just wanted to make the point that her range and her father's training were broader than that.

The two names that come up most frequently in reports of Astaire's private comments on the subject are Hayworth and Barrie Chase.

[yiannisfrance]

I love Rita Hayworth, especially in "Gilda". She has a certain quality, an element of sensuality which with her vulnerability makes her very appealing. And she is never vulgar on film. Her "Put the blame on Mame boys" is justly famous and memorable and belongs to the most dazzling moments of eroticism in the history of films.

Rita Hayworth's presence fills up the screen and you can see why she became such a huge star and symbol of eroticism around the world.

In many ways, people always identify Hayworth with Gilda and this is for sure the one film movie fans mention in connection with Rita Hayworth. She did make other important films, but this is the one which lingers in people's memories.

From her other films, I did like "Blood and sand" directed by Mamoulian, her two Astaire films and also "Cover girl" with Gene Kelly". And I think she was most believable as Carmen opposite Glenn Ford in "The loves of Carmen" by Charles Vidor who also directed her in Gilda. And she proved a fine actress once more in one of her latter parts in "Separate Tables". On the other hand, I am not crazy about her one collaboration with Orson Welles in "The Lady from Shanghai". Somehow, I find it impossible to relate to this film.

She is a very moving actress in my mind, more so if one feels her vulnerability in interviews. This has nothing to do with Marylin's vulnerability, to give an example, but rather something to do with a girl who became a love goddess, perhaps without wanting to be one, and found herself imprisoned by that image and by the reflexion of that image from the men's gaze on the private Rita Hayworth who could not live up to their fantasies.

[papeetepatrick]

Rita Hayworth's presence fills up the screen and you can see why she became such a huge star and symbol of eroticism around the world.

I can't quite, except in 'Gilda'.

And she proved a fine actress once more in one of her latter parts in "Separate Tables".

That cast is an embarassment of riches. I only saw it about 2 years ago. I think the other performances are more interesting in themselves, as Deborah Kerr's and Wendy Hiller's, Burt Lancaster's and the stunning (whether young or old) Gladys Cooper. Hayworth's performance is an interesting addition, but to me, primarily as it stands out in relief to the other, more naturalistic, actors. She comes across as very precious and artificial (I don't mean this as a criticism, but rather as a chracterization of the style, maybe it needed to be and she wasn't always like this, but there is something about her speech that always slightly irritates me, whereas with Barbara Stanwyck, that funny way of speaking with barely moving the lips and teeth at all I find very effective and natural.)

On the other hand, I am not crazy about her one collaboration with Orson Welles in "The Lady from Shanghai". Somehow, I find it impossible to relate to this film.

Yes, I don't care for this either. I even like his 'The Stranger' better, although Welles said they cut it up too much. Which also happened with other films like 'Touch of Evil'.

She is a very moving actress in my mind, more so if one feels her vulnerability in interviews. This has nothing to do with Marylin's vulnerability, to give an example, but rather something to do with a girl who became a love goddess, perhaps without wanting to be one, and found herself imprisoned by that image and by the reflexion of that image from the men's gaze on the private Rita Hayworth who could not live up to their fantasies.

I don't doubt any of this, I just haven't researched her because she's never captivated me especially (and I like far more vulgar, as is well-known, to the point of seeking them out). One thing I'll add is her strange performance in 'Pal Joey', where she is too vulnerable for that kind of tough-as-nails part. I'm sure all the extremely explicit lyrics of 'Bewitched' are not left in the film, and they're not even all on the original B'way cast album with Vivienne Segal, although Ella sings them in the Rodgers and Hart Songbook. The problem, though, is more that she looks faded and older, not just older. I don't know if Vivienne Segal made any movies, but her performances onstage and esp. in Pal Joey are legendary, and I've heard a number of people say how much they wish she'd been cast here. It's a good movie anyway, though, with Sinatra in one of his best parts (it's easily Sinatra's movie, as is 'Young at Heart', even though Doris Day is excellent in this, and 'Guys and Dolls', in which the others can't sing. You didn't hear his cigarettes that much back then) despite leaving out a number of songs, as usual for film adaptations. As a musical star, she's much better as a dancer when younger, as in 'Cover Girl', which I agree with everybody is very charming, and her dancing very polished and pro.

[dirac]

Quote

I love Rita Hayworth, especially in "Gilda". She has a certain quality, an element of sensuality which with her vulnerability makes her very appealing. And she is never vulgar on film. Her "Put the blame on Mame boys" is justly famous and memorable and belongs to the most dazzling moments of eroticism in the history of films.

Rita Hayworth's presence fills up the screen and you can see why she became such a huge star and symbol of eroticism around the world.

Thanks, yiannisfrance. Hayworth has a sweetness and reserve you don’t always find in sex bombs. It’s worth noting that in “Put the Blame on Mame” she doesn’t take off more than a glove. She wasn’t much of an actress but was impossible to dislike even when not at her best.

When she came back to movies after the split with Aly Khan she was not the same. Whether that had to do with her private problems or not I have no idea – sometimes it happens after a long absence. Also, with the bloom of youth slightly off she had to rely more on force of personality and acting chops, which were insufficient. I think if her marriage had worked out she would have been pleased to retire.

[Quiggin]

The movie "Pal Joey" really doesn't have much to do with the play or with the Pal Joey to Pal Ted - or Dear Friend Ted from ex-pal Joey - letters of John O'Hara that were the play's original basis. San Francisco was a weak substitute for Chicago, and Sinatra was not really about to play the part of a heel - even Broadway audiences in the early forties were uncomfortable with the characters. "Some Came Running" was a harder, better movie for him and closer to being an original thing.

The Goddard Lieberson Lp of "Pal Joey" did contain lines such as "horizontally speaking, he's at his very best" and "I was reading Schoepenhauer last night - zip - and I think Schoepenhauer was right." - perhaps racier ones weren't. For "Connecticut Yankee" Lorenz Hart supposedly was writing and passing new verses up to Vivien Segal as she was singing them, so there may be more material for "Take Him" and "Terrific Rainbow".

"Gilda" and "Lady from Shanghai" are in some way companion movies - done at roughly the same time, Shaghai much harder. As pure cinema though, "Lady from Shanghai" is far superior, full of stunning "iconic" images. There's the brilliant scene in the house of mirrors with everyone followed by a train of reflections - in a way a static critique/paraody of standard montage cutting. At the same time corny but effective radio dialogue is running counterpoint underneath. "Killing you is like killing myself ... but I'm pretty tired of the both of us," says Everett Sloane whose fresh image emerges out of the maze of reflections. "Lady from Shaghai" has some of the bitterness of betrayal of the late Sternberg films - and of Maltese Falcon. It far outdoes "Vertigo" in its depiction of the real San Francisco of the period - in comparison "Vertigo" seems to limit itself to red velvet hotel lobbies and tourist spots (though there is a wonderful glimpse of the original Podesta Baldocchi florist shop from the alleyway behind).

I remember my aunt, who worked at a charity where Rita Hayworth would do occasional fund raising, saying that sometime in the seventies Hayworth discovered that she and Glenn Ford were living in the same canyon district, Benedict Canyon perhaps, and Ford had become fascinated with her in a way that made her feel a little uncomfortable.

[papeetepatrick]

The movie "Pal Joey" really doesn't have much to do with the play or with the Pal Joey to Pal Ted - or Dear Friend Ted from ex-pal Joey - letters of John O'Hara that were the play's original basis. San Francisco was a weak substitute for Chicago, and Sinatra was not really about to play the part of a heel - even Broadway audiences in the early forties were uncomfortable with the characters. "Some Came Running" was a harder, better movie for him and closer to being an original thing.

Yes, except that he does come across as a heel. That was always effortless with him, and when he 'isn't quite one', as in 'Young at Heart', that's when it strains credulity a bit, and they give him plenty of cigarettes and bad moods even given that family he's married into. Yes, 'Some Came Running' is always touching despite (or possibly even because) of a certain mawkishness. Shirley Maclaine was at her best in that and in 'The Apartment' IMO.

The Goddard Lieberson Lp of "Pal Joey" did contain lines such as "horizontally speaking, he's at his very best" and "I was reading Schoepenhauer last night - zip - and I think Schoepenhauer was right." - perhaps racier ones weren't. For "Connecticut Yankee" Lorenz Hart supposedly was writing and passing new verses up to Vivien Segal as she was singing them, so there may be more material for "Take Him" and "Terrific Rainbow".

Nice story about Segal and the lyrics. I was thinking of things like 'worship the trousers that cling to him', but I hadn't remembered even 'After one whole quart of brandy', but that's probably on there. I had the LP as a kid, but have since lost it, and it was already old then. I think I remember Sondheim talking critically about Hart's lyrics and is (I believe) well-known to admire Hammerstein more. What I was thinking of in 'Bewitched' that I thought would have annoyed Sondheim, but which I find uncanny is 'I've sinned a lot...I'm mean a lot...but now I'm sweet seven-teen a lot..' That never fails to crack me up. A far cry from 'a lark who is learning to pray', granted but then we've already discussed Sondheim's occasional faux pas as in 'the world was just an address, no better than all right'. Hammerstein at his best with 'You've got to be taught before it's too late, before you are six or seven or eight...to hate all the people you're relatives hate...' Still quite impressive.

I remember my aunt, who worked at a charity where Rita Hayworth would do occasional fund raising, saying that sometime in the seventies Hayworth discovered that she and Glenn Ford were living in the same canyon district, Benedict Canyon perhaps, and Ford had become fascinated with her in a way that made her feel a little uncomfortable.

Well, that would need some more detail, as they'd only known each other for 20 years or so, made 5 movies together, and if he got fascinated, she should hardly have been surprised. And even flattered, you know, esp. since she obviously was at least tough enough to tell him 'well, that was on the screen'. Whatever. It doesn't sound too serious, although a bit overdue; the only thing remarkable from what you report is that the 'fascination' came so late. It was certainly common enough for leading stars to work on their love scenes off the set.

[miliosr]

When she came back to movies after the split with Aly Khan she was not the same. Whether that had to do with her private problems or not I have no idea sometimes it happens after a long absence. Also, with the bloom of youth slightly off she had to rely more on force of personality and acting chops, which were insufficient. I think if her marriage had worked out she would have been pleased to retire.

I agree. When she came back after the 3-4 year layoff, something was missing. Like you say, dirac, maybe it was the collapse of her third marriage or encroaching middle age or even incipient Alzheimer's (which would so devastate her later in life.) (Much testimony exists that, as early as Pal Joey [and perhaps earlier], Hayworth was struggling with Alzheimer's, which -- sadly -- no one knew about or understood at the time.)

[Quiggin]

It doesn't sound too serious, although a bit overdue

He was phoning her late at night or something like that and it was creeping her out - I don't remember the details and only wanted to suggest the contours of the situation.

I've sinned a lot...I'm mean a lot...but now I'm sweet seven-teen a lot..

Yes I remember all of those fun lines. We originally had only Rodgers & Hammerstein musicals in our house - how I wished my parents had checked the classical music box on the Record of the Month Club membership card. Only the Bruno Walter Brahms symphonies (but no Mahler) had slipped through, which my father would play in the mornings to wake us up and to which we dutifully brushed our teeth. But discovering Lorenz Hart - Richard Rodgers secret-til-then earlier partner - so irreverent and with occasionally brilliant interior rhyme schemes, felt so liberating after years of the well-constructed Sound of Music and South Pacific and Mr Roberts (not a musical but in the same vein and done at every little theater). "Guys and Dolls" on scratchy Decca vinyl was a welcome later addition to our very short play list.

John Kobal did a nice interview in "People with Talk" with Vivienne Segal when she was living in Los Angeles - also with Arletty I think - but I can't find a table of contents online to be sure.

[miliosr]

Happy 100th to Margarita Carmen Cansino a.k.a. Rita Hayworth -- born this day in 1918!

Here's clip of Hayworth dancing "The Dance of the Seven Veils" from 1953's Salome (choreography by Valerie Bettis and costume by Jean Louis):

 

[miliosr]

Happy 101st birthday to Rita Hayworth!

 

[dirac]

In the Astaire clip she looks like she's dancing with her dad. (No, not Mr. Cansino.)