Tag: Romance

Valmont (1989)

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Historically, among the French aristocracy, love and marriage did not go together.  Marriages were made because of  wealth, status, etc.   Of course, there was a lot of heartache, cheating, and even… disaster. In such a world, marriage was a burden to be tolerated; lovers/mistresses were common.

At the opening, “innocent,” wide-eyed 15 y.o. Cecile de Volanges (Fairuza Balk) leaves the convent where she’s been studying/living since age 11.  Her mother has already arranged a marriage for her with a wealthy older man, Monseur de Gercourt (Jeffrey Jones).  It turns out that Cecile’s fiance is the (current) lover of Madame de Merteuil (Annette Bening), her mother’s “wise,” beautiful, and widowed cousin. No one notices that Cecile’s young music tutor, Danceny (Henry Thomas, the little boy from E.T.) is interested in her, too.

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At the Paris opera, they meet a former lover of Merteuil’s, Monseur de Valmont (a young Colin Firth).  He invites Merteuil to his aunt’s place.  Valmont goes to the country, as he knows that the lovely/naive young wife of a judge is visiting, Madame de Tourvel (Jennifer Tilly).

Valmont boldly decalres his love for her, but she says that she’ll stay true to her husband.  Wives who cheat are “weak” in her mind.  (Watch for a funny pond scene that is quite different from the one in Pride & Prejudice.)

When Merteuil comes to the estate, she proposes a cruel plan: she wants Valmont to seduce Cecile before her wedding night, as revenge against Gercourt.  The idea bores him, at first, but then she says that he can have her if the plan succeeds.

Cecile’s mother is angry/upset when she learns that her daughter has been receiving love letters from Danceny.  The girl confesses all to Merteuil- she loves Danceny and hates the thought of marrying the “old and ugly” Gercourt.  Merteuil double crosses Cecile and tells the mother.  The young lovers are separated, but Merteuil promises to help them be together.  That’s when the real drama begins!

The leads in this film are much more appealing/younger, and thus better suited, to their roles than Glenn Close and John Malkovich in Dangerous Liaisons, a fine film (I loved Michelle Pfeiffer’s interpretation).  You don’t want to miss the sizzling chemistry between Bening and Firth, as Roger Ebert pointed out in his review.   They are just fun to watch!  (This is my third time watching this film.  My mom likes it too, though the some of the characters are  “very naughty.”)

Wiseguy (Season 1, Part 2)

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Season 1, Part 2 of the unusual ’80s drama continues w/ the always gorgeous OCB agent, Vinnie Terranova (Ken Wahl), going undercover as a bodyguard to unstable billionairre Mel Proffit (Kevin Spacey) in Vancouver.  Proffit is into guns and drugs big time, we discover over this series of eps.

Fans of Spacey are in for a treat here, b/c aside from Mel’s drug dependency and eccentric ways, there are a FEW believable and touching moments, too!  Vinnie gets himself wrapped up w/ Mel’s stunning younger sister Susan (Joan Severance, a former model).  I was surprised to see such capable acting from a novice (too bad that she’s mainly remembered for her looks and skimpy outfits).

Mel’s most trusted associate (aside from Susan) is hitman Roger Lococco (Canadian actor William Russ; he later played the father on Boy Meets World).  Lococco, a Vietnam vet who operates according to his own code, is VERY intriguing.  Vinnie is mystified by him, yet feels like they’re connected somehow.  We eventually learn that Roger is MORE than what he seems.  Russ is a strong actor, so able to create a fine foil (or perhaps, frenemy) for Wahl.

We also see more of Agent Terranova’s field supervisor, Frank McPike (Jonathan Banks), in this arc.  He becomes vulnerable, and more likeable, after his wife asks for a separation.  McPike, who has a young son, gets a love interest.  Vinnie calls on The Lifeguard (Jim Byrnes) more often to discuss his true feelings, not merely business.  They finally meet each other!

Yes, this show has action: guns, fistfights, explosions, etc.  But what keeps me watching are the interesting (sometimes wacky, admittedly) characters that Vinnie has to deal w/ on a daily basis.  He gets involved in their lives, sometimes TOO much.  Though it’s set in the late ’80s, the show is not 100% gung-ho about the police, government, etc.  Vinnie admits in this story arc that he doesn’t want this type of life for long; he thinks of a wife, kids, and wanting to “worry about crabgrass.”  If there was a modern show like this, I’d probably tune in!

Here is my earlier review of Season 1, Part 1.

https://knightleyemma.com/2011/11/21/wiseguy-season-1-part-1/

All That Heaven Allows (1955)

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Did you see Far From Heaven, the 2002 film starring Julianne Moore, Dennis Haysbert, and Dennis Quaid?  Not only is that film intelligent and sensitive, it harkens back to an era of beautifully-made melodramas.  The director, Todd Haynes, was influenced by the work of Douglas Sirk, the director of All the Heaven Allows, starring Jane Wyman and Rock Hudson, now available on Netflix Instant Play.

Wyman stars as Cary Scott, a widowed mother (somewhere in her 40s) with two grown children living in suburban New York.  Her deep-thinking daughter Kay goes to Princeton and does social work in NYC; she also has a serious boyfriend.  Her jovial son Ned is finishing up college and looking toward launching his career.  The family home is spacious and finely decorated, so we know that the deceased Mr. Scott was a very successful man.

Since her kids pretty much have their own lives, Cary is feeling a bit lonely and wondering what she can do with the rest of her life.  Her best friend and neighbor Sara (Agnes Moorehead; she later co-starred on the TV comedy Bewitched) suggests she get out more to the country club.  Cary does date a bit; she spends time with Harvey, a mild-mannered older man (one of the few single men around).  But she’s still a vibrant woman, so he’s not quite right for her.

Feeling restless, she wonders if she should take up gardening as a hobby.  One lovely Fall day, she invites her handsome younger gardener, Ron Kirby (Hudson), to sit and share some lunch with her.  Ron’s deceased father had cared for the gardens of this community for years, but he has more plans for himself.  They tentatively become friends.  Within one year, Cary and Ron’s lives (and her views) will be profoundly changed by their evolving relationship.

From Here to Eternity (1953)

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I saw this film for probably the third time this past week.  (It’s my mom’s favorite.)  It boosted the careers of its stars: Burt Lancaster, Deborah Kerr, Montgomery Clift, Donna Reed, and Frank Sinatra (who provides most of the much-needed humor and optimism).  Wow, what a cast!   The film won 8 Academy Awards; it was nominated for 13.

Young Army Private Robert E. Lee Prewitt (Clift) comes to a new base for his assignment.  From his first day, many of the other men bother him about not fighting (boxing) in the company league; we learn that he was quite successful at it, aside from one (tragic) event.  Sergeant Milton Warden (Lancaster) tells the others to leave the guy alone.  Warden, who’s admired as a great soldier, likes Prewitt, though he calls him “hard-headed.”  Prewitt, no matter what insults or how much punishment he’s given, says he’ll never box again.

She’s not that into you…  but give her time!  Yes, that’s petite Donna Reed (post-It’s a Wonderful Life).  She plays “Lorene” (real name: Alma), a somewhat jaded dance hall girl who Prewitt wants to get close to.  Though he wants a relationship, Alma is hesitant because she wants to keep working to secure her future.  Reed, who’s character is tough and independent-minded, won Best Supporting Actress.

Warden has his life complicated by his intense attraction to Karen (Kerr), the wife of his boss, Captain Holmes.  Like Alma, Karen is more than what she appears to be- sublimating her great loneliness and sorrow by behaving scandalously.  (Above: Kerr and Lancaster share one the most famous kisses in Hollywood film history.  Sigh…)

To her surprise, Karen falls deeply in love with Warden, a simple man who’s content to be a humble soldier.

There is more to romance in this story; there are serious issues that arise.  The jovial Private Angelo Maggio (Sinatra) is bullied by the racist Sgt. Judson (Ernest Borgnine).  Maggio and Prewitt were great friends though opposite in temperment; they have fun and get into trouble together.  But there is a sense of foreboding throughout much of the film, as is fitting-  the story takes place on the island of Oahu just a few weeks before the attack on Pearl Harbor.

The Strange Love of Martha Ivers (1946)

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When the dir. of this film noir, Lewis Blackstone, complained to Lauren Bacall re: the “lack of interesting men in Hollywood,” she immediately recommended Kirk Douglas (her good friend from NYC theater days).  That is how Douglas got his 1st film role- starring opposite Barbara Stanwyck no less!  Stanwyck, known as a generous co-star, helped Douglas manuever through his 1st film.  He does a TERRIFIC job, as do his fellow 3 leads.

In 1928, strong-willed teen Martha Ivers is desperate to run away from her small factory town (Iverstown, PA)  and the domineering/wealthy aunt who’s in custody of her after her parents’ deaths.  A street-smart boy from the other side of the tracks (and close friend), Sam Masterson, is also planning to run away to join the circus.  Their plan is thwarted first by  local cops (under the thumb of the aunt) and then by Martha’s tutor, Mr. O’Neil (trying to ingratiate himself w/ the aunt).  Walter, O’Neil’s straight-arrow son, wants to win Martha’s friendship.  That stormy night, things occur that will change the course of  these characters’ lives forever.

Then we go forward to 1946, when a grown-up Sam (Van Heflin) drives into Iverstown to find “his people” (relatives).  While daydreaming, his car got dinged up, so he has to stop at a garage.   He meets a beautiful young woman Antonia “Toni” Marachek (Lizabeth Scott) sitting on the steps of his former house, now a boarding house.  She’s not sure if she should take the late bus to her parents’ house in the next town.  They commiserate re: the mistakes they’ve made in life, etc.

Sam, a drifter/gambler, is chagrined to discover that “scared little boy” Walter (Douglas) is now a DA w/ political ambition.  Walter is also married to Martha, who has expanded her aunt’s factory, created many jobs, and become a powerful woman in her OWN right.  Toni gets in trouble w/ the law, so Sam goes to Walter’s office seeking help.  Martha comes in while the men are talking; she is VERY happy/excited to see her old friend (and first crush) all grown-up.  She wants to speand some time w/ Sam.  Walter is wary of Sam, fearing that he knows the truth of what happened all those years ago.

This is a well-paced film that contains clever dialogue, intriguing characters, and plot twists.  The quick-witted/confidant Sam is a catalyst for change in the lives of the other characters, but he’s not always 100% sure of the right thing to do.  Martha and Walter’s relationship is complicated and (IMO) HIGHLY dysfunctional.  It’s fun to watch though!