This is a film I’d NEVER heard of, BUT was curious to see (since it has both Hepburn and Mitchum). It was shown on TCM last week and is directed by the famed Vincente Minnelli (husband of Judy Garland and father to Liza). Minnelli does a VERY good job w/ a domestic drama mixed w/ film noir, which is NOT something you’d expect if you know his more well-known works (Meet Me in St. Louis, Father of the Bride, Gigi). He also directed The Bad and the Beautiful, which shows the dark side of Hollywood.
Hepburn is cast against type here, which fans (like me) may enjoy, and even some haters will be pleasantly surprised to see. She plays Ann Hamilton, the quirky/single daughter of small-town professor, Dink (Edmund Gwenn from Miracle on 34th Street). Ann prefers playing w/ her dog and tinkering in her home chemistry lab, eschewing ideas of marriage pushed upon her by cranky housekeeper, Lucy (Marjorie Main) and eager academic, Prof. Bangs (Dan Tobin).
Alan Garroway (Robert Taylor) chats with Ann Hamilton (Katharine Hepburn) at her home.
[1] Call it Film-Noir. Call it Mystery/Suspense. Call it Psychological Thriller. Call it what you may…I call it: absorbing drama.
It moves very deliberately… and the facts are revealed one by one, in true mystery fashion, until the fantastic, thrilling ending.
[2] Hepburn gives her usual intelligent performance, showing a vulnerable, feminine side that is very appealing. There is a scene in a fitting room where she is absolutely stunning. The scenes between her and her father, played by Edmund Gwenn, are delightful and realistic…
[3] As others have noted, the plot has “Rebecca-esque” qualities, but a character completely its own.
-Various IMDB comments
One night, Ann’s life is changed when she meets Alan Garroway (Robert Taylor), a suave/dapper inventor who was meeting w/ Dink. It turns out that his company helped win WWII w/ a cutting-edge missile guidance system. Ann is struck by him at first sight; it’s obvious that he is interested, too. Soon, they’re married and off to DC! Ann meets his (high society) friends, gets a new/stylish wardrobe, and learns that her new husband is more complicated than she thought.
Her father (Edmundf Gwenn) looks on as Ann (Katharine Hepburn) receives roses.
Film Trivia:
BOTH Taylor and Mitchum were younger than Hepburn.
In Minnelli‘s autobiography, he says that Mitchum was very uncomfortable in the role of the sensitive Michael.
Katharine Hepburn and Robert Mitchum did NOT get along during the filming. One day, Hepburn told Mitchum, “You know you can’t act, and if you hadn’t been good looking you would never have got a picture at all. I’m tired of working with people like you who have nothing to offer.” (OUCH!)
NOTE: This review contains SPOILERS for the latest season of the streaming series. Fun fact: My dad also doesn’t like “sorry” (like Claire).
“I will not yield!” Frank (Kevin Spacey) declares to Congress.
“You don’t want me to stand for something,” Frank states to the viewer late in season five. ‘You just want me to stand.” But, uh, reality would beg to differ. We increasingly want politicians to push back against the bland, corporatist kind of politics Frank and Claire represent, to elevate outsiders. House of Cards is a show about the ultimate insiders, and it can’t overcome that central fact. -Vox
Frank’s “war on terror” has deadly consequences for ICO-inspired Joshua Masterson. With a little help from Asst. Dir. Green (FBI), Underwood had stashed the homegrown terrorist in an underground/high-tech prison. Frank tells Green “to get rid of the asset.”So, did you think that Frank was upset re: the reaction of the Millers’ teen daughter at the funeral? It’s like that girl saw through Frank, though she was SO young and grief-stricken (b/c of her father’s murder).
Frank (Kevin Spacey) and Claire (Robin Wright) drink a toast.
…the name of Frank’s secret society can be traced back to Greek mythology. “Elysian Fields” is said to be a true paradise where gods who are gifted immortality are sent. Basically, only the most favored gods got to go to this place and live out their endless lives in bliss. This is especially fitting for a reference point because on House of Cards, Elysian Fields is essentially a place for important men (and only men) to hang out together in the woods. -Bustle
It was one of the most talked about ep of the season, as I learned from Twitter (and later on- few articles). Viewers wondered: “Is that real!?” once it was revealed that prominent men were behind the masks at the weekend retreat (or shall we call is “glamping?”)
Marc Ursher (Campbell Scott) and Will Conway (Joel Kinnaman)
Will Conway, the Republican presidential candidate was clearly modeled on Obama (w/ a side of Kardashian-level status on social media, as we saw in S4). We learn that he has PTSD, which he keeps hidden from even Marc Usher (Campbell Scott- still slim and handsome) and retired Gen. Brockhart (Colm Feore- one of Canada’s best theater actors). The CEO from Pollyhop, also Conway’s old pal, knows about the PTSD.
Marc finds out what’s up when Conway loses his cool on a small jet, demanding that pilots let him fly (“I’m going to be the president and you’re going to flip me those motherf****ing controls!”) This rant is caught on tape, then later leaked to the Underwoods. The tall telegenic family man is a damaged individual (after serving in Afghanistan after 9/11).
Eric AKA Augustus Underwood (Malcolm Madera) comes to the White House.At the peak of Frank’s unpopularity, it seems that Eric [who role plays Confederate soldier Augustus Underwood- Frank’s grandfather] is just about the only person left who truly believes that the man could make a great president… -BustleEric never openly states why he thinks Frank could be a good president; I think it’s his youthful naiveté. Eric and Frank get closer over his visits; he starts working as a personal trainer (his day job). Over talking about the world and laughing about how Eric actually made up Augustus’ backstory, the two become fast friends (something rare/unexpected for Frank). Things eventually get VERY intimate (which I expected) and also a BIT scary (nope, did NOT see that). Secretary of State Catherine Durant (Jayne Atkinson) decides to testify to the senatorial investigation into the President’s misdeeds. She goes to the White House and delivers the news to her frenemy Frank (VERY bad idea). “You need to take a fall,” he says, before pushing Cathy down a flight of steps. She’s alive, but won’t be testifying any time soon. Poor Cathy- she was one of the FEW good characters on this series! Jane Davis (Patricia Clarkson) in the Oval Office.
Something terrible always happens when I go to a party.-Jane tells Claire
…I’m more interested now, going forward, with how this murder [Tom Yates’] will wind up compromising Claire since Mark Usher knows about it and – perhaps Jane Davis too! The two people Claire’s now relying on to steer her forward have a big advantage over her, and she doesn’t fully trust them. -Mark Fowler (IGN)
Some of you on Twitter thought that Miss Davis was NOT a believable character. Is she a war profiteer? She has created this unassuming personality, BUT under it all, is a force to be reckoned w/, no doubt.
Claire turns more to Jane over time, shutting out LeeAnn (Neve Campbell), who is worried re: her old friend Aiden Macallan (Damian Young). It took me a BIT of time to figure out what was going on w/ Mac! I felt bad for the guy, even though he was NOT the most exciting character.
Tom Yates (Paul Sparks) and Claire (Robin Wright)
Stamper has never made peace with killing Rachel Posner – shouldering the responsibility for Barnes’ death is his penitence. –The Telegraph
Lisa (Rachel Posner’s girlfriend) turned to drugs, and also became a threat, BUT Doug (Michael Kelly) decided NOT to kill her. The story of Anthony Moretti being bumped off the organ donor list, then dying to save Frank, is found out by Sean, Seth, and Claire. Back in S2, then VP Underwood murdered Washington Herald reporter, Zoe Barnes, by shoving her in front of a metro train. Over dinner, Claire and Frank share their plan w/ the ever-loyal Doug: “We need you to implicate yourself in the death of Zoe Barnes.”
Tom, don’t cheat on my wife. –Frank tells Yates (after seeing photos of him w/ a White House tour guide)
Yates’ death cannot be considered a surprise. He had persisted in writing thinly-disguised accounts of the Underwood’s double-dealings and, as his ill-considered interview with a journalist early in the season confirmed, had a big mouth to boot. Applying patented Underwood logic, he had to go. -The Telegraph
Now, I was NO fan of Tom Yates (Paul Sparks), BUT I was troubled by his death. Claire poisoned him; like Lady Macbeth, there is “blood” on her hands now. Did she ever love Tom? We see that Tom became possessive over time, which she was turned off by (duh).
Claire (Robin Wright) as the Acting President
Hauled before young/upstart Arizona Congressman Romero (James Martinez) and his House Intelligence Committee, Underwood snaps and says he is resigning- WHOA!
In real American politics, the Congressional Progressive Caucus is composed of 75 representatives, led by co-chairs Rep. Raúl Grijalva (a Democrat from Arizona) and Rep. Mark Pocan (a Democrat from Wisconsin). There’s a good chance Alex could be loosely based on either of the co-chairs of the caucus or any of the 75 representatives who are members, though the the House Of Cards showrunners have not indicated that there’s any real inspiration behind the character. -Bustle
What is this job?-Angela asks her boss
Not what it used to be. –Tom Hammerschmidt replies
Perhaps the biggest surprise in this is that Frank has himself become a leak to Tom Hammerschmidt as the Washington Herald, revealing insider secrets to add press interest on the crumbling administration and justify monitoring of the entire White House and its staff… –Screenrant
Frank will walk away from it all, so that Claire will step in as the new President, and pardon him for his crimes. Then, in the private sector, Underwood will become a source of power, working in tandem with his wife, to “own this house.” It turns out that Claire will NOT be pardoning him too soon!
If she doesn’t pardon me, I’ll kill her. -Frank states in his last monologue
But while he’s thought of every possibility, like the constitutional loopholes he took advantage of to get here, there’s one eventuality not accounted for; while Frank is functioning on a higher sociopathic level than seemingly anyone else in Washington D.C. and able to connive his resignation and transition of power, he doesn’t consider his wife’s fury. –Screenrant
Claire also breaks the fourth wall (NOT a total surprise, as it had been hinted at before). I think MANY of you enjoyed those moments. Did you notice how Claire’s outfits became more conservative, buttoned, and (somewhat) militaristic as the season went on?
When I work on a play, I think about where I’m doing it and figure out what the pulse of that city is. In this case, it’s D.C., it’s politics—and it’s also structural politics. They’d understand this idea I’d have. So I identify the place and then I figure out how to get the play into the laps of the audience, so it’s not an intellectual thing that they can just sit back and let wash over them—it feels visceral. It feels like it’s a play for them.
-Liesl Tommy, Director
Director Liesl Tommy grew up in segregated Cape Town, South Africa, before immigrating to Boston at age 15 w/ her family. She has located her Macbeth in some unnamed, majority-Muslim (note the hijabs) country in North Africa. This is a land troubled by civil war in the modern-day. The three “witches” are mysterious foreign operatives, lead by Hecate (who has a Russian accent a la Putin).
If you’re familiar w/ the play, you’ll quickly notice that several of the originally male characters have become female: Duncan, Donalbain, Ross, Young Lennox, one of the (here only a teen) assassins, Macduff’s child, and the Doctor. This production is also influenced by House of Cards; you’ll note how Macbeth’s monologues/asides are done. (In 2013, Kevin Spacey and Robin Wright explained that they modeled their Frank and Claire Underwood roles after the ultimate power couple, Macbeth and Lady M.)
I think this production will appeal more to those who are NOT so familiar w/ (or invested in) Shakespeare. As you may know, I’m NOT one of those folks (LOL)! In my opinion, there are some effective scenes, BUT as a whole, there is a LOT missing. Sometimes the energy gets low, such as the extended dance number and coronation scene. It could’ve been much shorter (as was noted in Washington City Paper).
Above all, Macbeth offers a glimpse of the tragic themes that seemed to obsess Shakespeare—the corrupting currents of power and ambition, the inevitability of time, the toxic intimacy of husbands and wives, blood that will have blood. All of these themes can be said to equivocate, extending the play’s resonance beyond its specific context and Shakespeare’s life and times to shed insight on our own.
-Drew Lichtenberg, Literary Manager
In the lead role, Jesse J. Perez is comfortable w/ The Bard’s language, BUT there is something missing in the way he expresses the words.
Though he may be committed and driven, Jesse J. Perez embodies Macbeth with volume and gesture, but little else. If he is to stir and unsettle, Macbeth must convincingly reveal his inner battles — between right and wrong, between strength and weakness, between ambition and cowardice. It is found in the subtleties of the language, its music, and the expressive spaces in between. Perez misses these opportunities, choosing instead a broad and agitated brush.
-Kate Wingfield (Metro Weekly)
Nikkole Salter does a fine job as Lady Macbeth; the audience seemed to like her performance. Her Lady M is an alpha female, for sure! The way she interacts w/ her husband make their marriage seem like one of convenience, NOT passion (as I’ve usually seen portrayed onstage and film). Salter has command of the language, which contributes to an exciting presence.
As one watches the appealing earnestness and latent dark energies (seen to great effect when he turns into a ghost) of McKinley Belcher III’s Banquo, the friend so cruelly betrayed by Macbeth, it’s hard not to wonder what he might have done with the title role.
-Kate Wingfield (Metro Weekly)
It took me a few minutes, BUT I recognized Belcher from PBS’ Mercy Street. Now that may NOT be the most interesting show, BUT his character is a pretty interesting/conflicted man. As for Corey Allen, his Malcolm is VERY effective. This is a leading man in the making, no doubt!
It’s an interesting take on Macbeth the story, but it has a crippling effect on Macbeth the character. Tommy has replaced the godhead (or, at least, the Meddlesome Fortunetellers) with Uncle Sam, but Shakespeare wasn’t interested in puppets.
By amputating the supernatural elements, STC has grounded Macbeth on the human plane, which was its intention. Attempts to make the man “resonate” with 2017 theatergoers, however, rob him of his twisted, fatalistic nobility. This is the worst character Shakespeare still liked, not some banana republic placeholder.
–Brightest Young Things
Indian-American actress Anu Yadav (who I saw last year in The Who and The What at Round House Theatre) is part of the company; she plays an assassin and maidservant to Lady Macbeth. Later on, I saw in the playbill that Lady Macduff was also played by a South Asian actress- Nilanjana Bose.
Myra Lucretia Taylor (who was interviewed recently on WETA) provides some (much needed) humor as the Porter.In another small role, the Doctor, she brings gravitas. Taylor is obviously comfortable w/ Shakespeare’s language!
…“Singles in America” study that I do with Match.com, we ask them, “What must you have in a relationship?” And, “What’s very important?” And they must have somebody they can trust and confide in. They must have somebody who respects them. They must have somebody who makes them laugh,which actually is very important biologically.
-Dr. Helen Fisher (Biological Anthropologist)
…Sharon Horgan and Rob Delaney can communicate so much with raised eyebrows or a sour expression.
Catastrophe has given this couple so many chances to wash their hands of one another, but one of the show’s underlying strengths is that they so clearly don’t want to. Because they’re connected in so many different ways…
-AV Club
Sharon (Sharon Horgan) and Rob (Rob Delaney) with their son in the ER.
Rob Morris (Rob Delaney) and Sharon Norris (Sharon Horgan) are back for Season 3 of their irreverent, funny, yet still romantic, comedy. By this time of life- Rob is 40, while Sharon is 44- the romance is in the commitment; thissomething that Dr. Helen Fisher noticed from an esteemed Chinese relationship expert, NOT unlike herself. In America, we value falling in love, BUT in China, they focus on the long-term.
Mia (Carrie Fisher) talks on the phone with her son Rob.
Fisher appears in only a handful of episodes overall, her appearances are extremely memorable.
-Collider (on actress Carrie Fisher’s last performance)
The themes and events in this season are the darkest yet, though there are still laughs to be had (no matter if the viewer is single, married, or something in between). In the first episode, Sharon wonders what exactly happened w/ that younger man in the Season 2 finale. She thinks of returning to her teaching job. Rob is still a stay-at-home dad, BUT financial reasons could compel him to get back work.
Rob (Rob Delaney) is shocked by his own behavior to one of the other parents.
Their families and friends are going through some issues of their own. Sharon’s younger brother, Fergal (Jonathan Forbes), moves his family to Spain (where his wife is originally from). Sharon’s close friend, Fran (Ashley Jensen), is feeling lonely and insecure re: aging. Fran’s ex-husband, Chris (Mark Bonnar) is one of the MOST quirkiest, BUT also most loyal/dependable, friend characters in modern TV. I esp. LOVE how he is there to listen to Rob, BUT doesn’t judge. There is a LOT more going on (including some notable guest actors), so do check this show out yourself! (FYI: Season 4 has been confirmed.)
Ali (Adam Bakri) and Nino (Maria Valvarde) share a picnic on a hill.
[1] We get a rare glimpse into an era at the onset of the formation of the Soviet Union. Also, the interaction between two religions, Islam and Christianity, is carefully portrayed and interesting to observe for that time period and location.
[2] The culture of the East was well-depicted… revolution and fight for independence scenes, despite of low budget [$20 million], are well executed- impressive and tragic, as they should be.
[3] My only concern is that movie is really short- only 1.5 hours. Way too little to show such a complicated time period of Azerbaijani history… You just cannot help but wish for story to slow down and take its time to show more details…
-Excerpts from IMDB reviews
Bakri and Valvarde with director Asif Kapadia.
This little gem of a film is now streaming (Netflix). If you liked The Promise, or are interested in some of its themes, then you will enjoy this (smaller, yet well-done) love story. The director is British Asian (or South Asian, as we say in US) and a recent Oscar winner- Asif Kapadia. Amy premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in 2015; it focuses on the troubled life of singer/songwriter Amy Winehouse. The film was an international box office hit and is the highest grossing UK documentary of all time.
There is only one word to describe the cinematography and music- AMAZING! The composer is Italian- Dario Marianelli; he worked on some very good films, including: V for Vendetta, Atonement, and Pride and Prejudice (2005 big screen version). The screenplay writer (Christopher Hampton) may also be familiar; he worked on Dangerous Liaisons (1988), The Quiet American, Atonement, and A Dangerous Method. Hampton adapted Kurban Said’s book Ali and Nino, which I had come across MANY years ago, BUT haven’t read. (There is a VERY interesting story re: the author of the book, too, if you want to look that up.)
Ali (Bakri) and Nino (Valvarde) dancing at a ball after a graduation.
The desert doesn’t ask for anything, doesn’t give anything and doesn’t promise anything. -Ali explains why he loves the desert landscape
The cast here is multi-national and multi-ethnic: Adam Bakri (who is a Palestinian Arab) plays Ali Khan (meaning: ruler) Shirvanshir, the handsome/cultured son of a Muslim nobleman. Maria Valverde (who hails from Spain) is Nino, the petite/wide-eyed princess from a Georgian Orthodox Christian family. Nino’s father is played by American film/stage actor Mandy Patinkin. Ali’s father is Iranian actor Homayoun Ershadi; he can be seen in The Kite Runner and The Queen. These veterans lend gravitas to the film, along w/ strong supporting characters (several of whom hail from Turkey, as does the cinematographer).
Ali’s father laments that though his family has been here for hundreds of years and is well-respected, they have no political authority (Russia was in charge). Though Ali and Nino have different religions and backgrounds, they move in the same small circle of upper-class society in Baku, Azerbaijan (an area rich w/ oil). Nino’s family is originally from Tblisi, Georgia; her father is in Baku on business.
Knightleyemma 