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dames
mrs. parker and the vicious circleJennifer Jason Leigh
drips acid as the booze-addled poet and theatre critic for the New Yorker whose
way with words couldn't save her from a bitter end. Fabulous hats and a barrage
of bon mots marked the lunches of Mrs. Parker and her entourage of equally
acerbic friends who lunched and sparred at the New York's Algonquin Hotel in the
1920s. [us]
all about eve
Bette Davis, quintessential dame, stars in this story of Margo Channing, a
glamourous stage star who realizes she's about to be usurped by her
too efficient assistant, Eve. Eve weasels her way into Margo's life with a
hard-luck story, but her real motives are to steal Margo's fame, position, and
boyfriend. Watch it for the rapid fire dialogue and startling innuendos. [us]
passion fish
When a bitchy soap opera star is paralyzed in an accident, she retires to the
inherited family spread in Louisiana to wallow in self-pity and inflict misery
on all around her. Finally, no-guff nurse stands up to the bitter debutante, and
the seeds of painful mental recovery and a unique friendship are planted. [us]
the african queen
She may start out as a wallflower, but by the time Katherine Hepburn
convinces Humphrey Bogart to bomb a German gunboat she's a full-fledged dame.
This classic flick is the story of a bible-thumping spinster and hard-drinking
captain escaping Africa during WW1. Snappy dialogue, and loads of sexual tension
make the story, which features mainly Kate and Bogie's characters and is set on
a small boat, zip by. [us]
to have and have not
It seems impossible, but Lauren Bacall was only 19 when she made her film
debut opposite Humphrey Bogart in To Have and Have Not, a Casablanca-like film
based on the novel by Ernest Hemingway. Bacall turns in a fabulous performance
as an American stranded in Martinique during WW1. She steals the show from the
hard-bitten Bogey with lines like "You do know how to whistle, Steve? Just put
your lips together and blow." [us]
adam's rib
This chestnut is one of many films in the infamous on and off screen
partnership between Katherine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy, and often considered to
be the most successful. The dueling couple stars as a husband/wife team on
opposite sides of a murder trial that questions whether men and women should be
judged by the same laws. During the rapid fire arguments some interesting
questions are raised about equality and justice. [us]
the spitfire grill
Perry, an ex-con, becomes the subject of much speculation and gossip when she
takes a job at a small grill in an even smaller town. Tough cookie, Hannah runs
the grill, and isn't worried about Perry's past, but local busybody/businessman
Nahum Goddard sends his wife (played by Marsha Gay Harden) in to keep an eye on
Perry. As expected, strong bonds form between the three women. Excellent
performances by the female leads keep this emotional drama from becoming
maudlin. [us]
school of flesh
A May/December role reversal, French style. She has polish, financial power,
and social standing. He has youth, looks, and a troubled past. Flesh stands out
for placing a fortysomething woman, Dominique, at the heart of this story about
a muted obsession with a much younger bartender. Despite the slightly twisted
nature of the affair and her obvious despair, she never gets trapped or buried
by it. Low on action and fireworks, it's a nuanced dissection of an
unconventional relationship. [france]
corrina, corrina
Whoopi Goldberg stars in this quiet story of a university-educated 1950's
housekeeper who falls in love with her employer and his young daughter. Issues
of race are dealt with not as monumental social events but as they pertain to
the leads. Ultimately, relationships and family are more important than "what the
neighbours think." This occasionally slow moving film, is always good-hearted
and although she's considerably toned-down, Goldberg is amusing. [us]
sunset boulevard
This classic tale of Norma Desmond, darling of the silent screen, who clings to the idea of a comeback, features the classic line "I'm ready for my close-up Mr. DeMille." Gloria Swanson made this picture her own, portraying the fine line between beloved star and pitiful has-been. This film is fascinating for its contrast of the possibilities for men and women in the film industry---De Mille (played by himself) is the most powerful man in Hollywood while well into his seventies, while Norma is a washed up pariah while only in her fifties because she doesn't want to fade into the woodwork. And don't get us started on William Holden's character… [us, 1950]
eight women
See the grande dames of French cinema let loose in this cheeky homage to vintage
thrillers, musicals, and soap operas. Of note are Catherine Deneuve and Danielle
Darrieux as the matriarchs, Emmanuelle Béart as the maid, Fanny Ardant as the outsider,
and Isabelle Huppert as an absurdly uptight aunt. When the patriarch of the home is
mysteriously murdered, the octet find themselves trapped in a country house suspecting
each other of the deed. Features dark secrets, glamorous outfits, bitchy backstabbing,
lesbian subtext, and campy song-and-dance numbers. [france, 2002]
desk set
It's 1957 and the patriarchy is in full thrust at the swank Manhattan offices
of the Federal Broadcasting Corporation. Information wonk, classy dame and all
around dynamo Bunny Watson (Katharine Hepburn) runs the Reference Department
like a Swiss watch, only funner. At FBC, all of the indignities suffered by
women in the 1950s workplace are played out for us; today's sexual harrassment laws are
shattered, but the girls triumph in the end by employing that timeless gem of truth that
empowers still: don't make yourself too available. A visual feast for retro lovers.
Great fun. [usa, 1957] ~ reviewed by nancy brown
funny girl
We follow Fanny Brice from teenage chorus girl wannabe in pre-depression Vaudville to
the top of the 1930's show biz heap, the Ziegfeld Follies. A
mother's love shepherds the ugly duckling girl prodigy past the jeers and
digs of the neighborhood coffee klatch to give young Fanny the drive and
chutzpah to elbow her way into the theatre and onto the stage. Omar Sharif
plays her worldly gambler husband, Nicky Arnstein. Sometimes charming, sometimes
schlocky musical numbers, the kind you'll have stuck in your head for days!
A young, young Barbara Streisand is fun to watch. [usa, 1968 ] ~ reviewed by nancy brown
being julia
In Being Juila, Annette Bening, like her character aging 1930's theatre star Julia Lambert, is a clever, witty, beautiful tour de force. Not content
with quietly approaching the "age where there are no good roles for women" Julia creates her own: randy lover, adoring and concerned mother, and thoughtful
mentor, without ever relinquishing the role of super star. This sparkling film gallops along like a 1930's jalopy, and Bening (who gloriously looks her age) is a
delight to watch from beginning to end. [UK/US, 2004]
friends with money
Four friends, three with money, one without struggle with relationships and fulfillment in modern-day L.A..The ease and chemistry of this phenomenal cast (Jennifer Aniston, Joan Cusack, Catherine Keener, Frances McDormand) makes the movie feel like your best (and worst) girlfriends riffing on a Saturday afternoon. The film focuses on Jennifer Aniston's character, a loser who smokes a lot of pot to make it through her days as a housecleaner. The others both condescend and try to help, while ignoring their own issues. [us, 2006]
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