Cate Blanchett is going to portray Lucille Ball? I think she is a great actress and she did a great Katherine Hepburn. But Lucy? I have my reservations. Could end up looking too melodramatic and giving off the wrong mood like the upcoming Steve Jobs film.
Which leads me to...
Some Like It Hot (1959) - 8.5/10
It is like a great episode of I Love Lucy but where Lucy & Ethel are two guys instead trying to cross-dress, head to Florida, and hilarity ensues. What makes I Love Lucy hold up so well after 70 years is the rapid dialogue. Fred Mertz is probably one of the funniest characters in TV history. It is all about the smart, witty screenplay that clowns on marriage and each other. With Some Like It Hot, the music is upbeat and lively similar to watching I Love Lucy. Screwball comedy classic.
One of my favorite episodes of I Love Lucy is this episode in Season 6 called "Off To Florida." Season 4-6 is where I felt the episodes were the strongest. From Hollywood in S4 to Europe in S5 to Florida/Cuba in S6. The ones with Lucy tries to get into showbiz are too redundant. The Lucy-Desi Hour (aka We Love Lucy) was more miss than hits. By 1957, it got worse while 1955-1956 had most of my favs. Some Like It Hot is similar to those travel episodes of Lucy but done as a 2 hr film with a Three Stooges-style "drag" gag. Some James Cagney gangster stuff to bookend the story. And it shows gold digging for both sexes.
I read Marilyn Monroe was flakey on set but she did a wonderful job. Tony Curtis was great too. I laughed at their lines. But almost every response, facial expression, and nuance Jack Lemmon did in it is comic gold. He could be one of the funniest characters I've ever seen on film. This was an actor where my gen wasn't introduced to him or Walter Mathau until Grumpy Old Men. I think only Don Rickles could've done as well as Lemmon in this flick but not better.
Favorite scene - The scene switching between the kissing scene and tango scene. Then right after, Tony Curtis' character ask "How can a guy marry another guy?" Lemmon still dancing goes, "Security!" This is way before they legalized gay marriage in certain places but that line is still perfect just like the final line of the film which could be the best ever. I think of Lemmon's role is like Kevin Kline in In & Out without the Out part.
I enjoyed both Billy Wilder classics in Some Like It Hot and Sunset Boulevard. There are two Wilder movies I still want to see. First is One Two Three. For ADHD folks, I've read this movie moves fast. And the other is arguably one of his Top 2 films is The Apartment. My only complaint with Some Like It Hot is the print can be flawed. I saw it in the DVD copy too. I see black circle marks at least half a dozen times. Like Maverick, this film needs a restoration and remaster.
Well, nobody's perfect.
History Of The World Part I (1981) - 8/10
I love this movie because I love Madeline Kahn and Dom DeLuise in it. RIP to both & Gregory Hine. Mel Brooks is no Billy Wilder but I actually enjoy this movie a little more than Some Like It Hot. It might be my favorite Brooks film. It is hilarious because it is total farce on something universally known like world history. I didn't find Blazing Saddles all that funny but maybe because I am not big on westerns to see the inside jokes. I used to love Spaceballs as a kid and still think it is fun. But I didn't think it aged as well with the jokes like so many spoofs and the original source it tries to parody. Neither for Robin Hood: Men In Tights.
I borrowed this film from the public library maybe 3x. That's three weeks worth of watching the movie on loop almost every day for free. This and Some Like It Hot are two of my most borrowed comedies from the library. The movie moves fast too. It slows down with the witty dialogue towards the end but the musical stuff is still excellent and doesn't bore. The Jews In Space at the end pretty much inspired Spaceballs and the song for Men In Tights.
Favorite scene - Entire Ancient Rome scene especially inside Caesar's Palace (Las Vegas). Bea Arthur's scene is hilarious. "Aww, a bulls*it artist!" Dom's laugh is contagious. The next shot Caesar always had something in his mouth. "Did he just say big, fat pig? Do you think he meant me? Ohh.." And then "Kill him!" Kahn probably had the funniest line in that scene.. "Ah, but the servant waits while the..." And how she says, "Yes!" while picking for a midnight orgy. The second fav set piece is The French Revolution. Both had the longest screen time and both were easily the best written skits.
Unlike Some Like It Hot, the film isn't marred by blemishes. Mine is a DVD-rip in XVid and still looks excellent for not being HD. I enjoy my downloaded versions more because they are louder to listen to than my DVD copies and I pretty much got all my Top 100 favorite movies. "The only thing we don't got. Premature ejaculation. But I hear that's coming quickly."... "Even the little *** gets it."
The Fall (2006)
A second time review and I must say once you follow the dialogue closely and understand all the characters in the story, it is much better the second viewing. My gf wanted to see it last night. Throughout the film, I went a-ha! I get it now and the double meaning or why Lee Pace told the story that way. First time you see it, it isn't interesting or you are overwhelmed by the landscapes to notice the nuances. It moves faster too the second time and you appreciate the excellent acting. It truly is an underrated gem. I give it 8/10 for story and overall over the 7.5/10 I gave it earlier. Might even make my Top 100 favorites list. My gf said she liked it. Cute story about friendship between the injured stuntman and little girl and how the latter saved the man by meeting. Nice humor too. The ending montage with many if the silent star greats and their stunts is fantastic. Highly recommended.
