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Showing posts with label movies music and books. Show all posts
Showing posts with label movies music and books. Show all posts

Thursday, April 18, 2024

Remember When the Language of Romance in Movies was Corny and Sweet!

American movies and even TV shows these days no longer have innocence. By that I mean … I remember when there was once something called “censorship” and the entertainment industry was bound by certain rules that required all who were involved in writing script for movies and television shows to keep the dialogue “clean” and nudity was not just discouraged but forbidden! If in the movie, an actor and an actress were dating or pursuing a relationship, it was not necessary for them to appear in bed together for the viewing audience to understand that they were interested in each other. 

Where I Find Old Movies to Watch

I love my Pluto.tv subscription because they have lots of old movie channels. These channels show movies that were made when censorship rules were deemed important to strengthen the moral fabric of our citizenry. I love old movies. I especially love old movies which star Elvis Presley.

Entertainment Trivia About Elvis Presley

Just a little trivia I picked up a while back. I heard that Elvis did not like the fact that his fellow countrymen were going off to serve their country in the military and he was back home making silly movies. So finally he was approached by the military, asked to join, and his service to the country would be entertaining the troops. Elvis didn’t like the idea at first because that wasn’t his idea of serving his country. But the military officials convinced him that his performing for the troops would do wonders for their morale. So Elvis agreed and joined the military. He did not see combat but he did do wonders for lifting the spirits of the troops.

For you Elvis buffs, if that’s not a true story, feel free to call me out on it!

Back to the point of this article.

Delightfully Wholesome Sweet Talk in “G.I. Blues”

Thanks to the wonders of the remote control, one never has to linger on any one channel for an extended period of time. You would think a person has A.D.D. (Attention Deficit Disorder) when they get a remote control in their hands. So I’m clicking through channels searching for something to keep me entertained and landed on one of the channels for old movies and immediately stopped when I saw Elvis Presley dressed in a military uniform.

The name of the film is “G.I. Blues” (1960). I didn’t watch the entire movie but I stayed on the channel long enough to catch this exchange between the leading man (Elvis Presley) and the leading lady (Juliet Prowse). These are probably not exact quotes but it’s close enough to the exact dialogue.


In this scene, Elvis Presley gets into a cable car with the lovely Juliet Prowse so that it can take them up into the sky and they can have a picturesque view of the mountains, etc.

Ms. Prowse gets in first. Mr. Presley follows behind and the door is closed. Before they take off Elvis asked Ms. Prowse if the cars ever get stuck when they get up high and the occupants just have to wait for a long time until someone comes to rescue them.

Ms. Prowse responds something to the effect: “Oh that seldom happens. So you needn’t worry. These cars are quite safe.”

To which Mr. Presley responds: “Oh I wasn’t worried. I was just kind of … hoping!

🙂 Don’t you just love delightfully wholesome sweet talk like that? 🙂

Have you ever seen the movie “G.I. Blues”?




Tuesday, February 27, 2024

Books and Movies: The Beginnings of Science Fiction

Science fiction is a very popular book genre.

But sci-fi wasn’t always accepted as “real writing”.

Sharing an interesting fact about the beginning of science fiction; how it developed into a recognized and respected form of 20th-century literature. 


Though science fiction enjoys a wide audience of readers today, it’s not the type of story that suits my reading preferences. Would much rather watch a well-done film adaptation of a sci-fi novel. Why? Because a lot of the language in sci-fi books is too complicated for me. (Everybody’s brain works differently.) But to see an apocalyptic catastrophe on the big screen? I totally get it! Additionally, extreme relief washes over me to know that the event is just a product of a writer’s detailed research and his or her overactive imagination. Whew! So it’s great that science fiction book writers have a loyal fan base because, later on, their novels might be made into fantastic movies!

If you are a sci-fi book fan, this information likely comes as no revelation, but it was news to me! According to 
Kingsley Amis, there are three literary works thought of as precursors of OR that in some way created an opening for the Sci-Fi genre to find its way into the hearts of book lovers:
  1. Voltaire’s Micromégas;
  2. Shakespeare’sThe Tempest; and
  3. Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels.
Jonathan Swift’s Lilliputians? OK. I think a land of little people sounds like science fiction. But François-Marie Arouet, aka Voltaire, and William Shakespeare? Writers of sci-fi? Not so sure that I agree. At any rate, Amis published his survey of science fiction in 1960.

REF: Amis, Kingsley W. New Maps of Hell. New York: Ballantine, 1960.

Other Links of Interest:

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Original Source


Thursday, February 15, 2024

Book or Film Adaptation: Classic Thriller: Night of the Fox by Jack Higgins

This post is a recommendation of three (3) books written by British author Jack Higgins (1929 - ), who is aptly described as "...one of the best-selling authors of popular thrillers and espionage novels."  I thought the excerpt from one of those books was a great way to pique your interest. 



“Rommel.” Hitler smiled a ghastly smile that was almost one of triumph.
“So, the Desert Fox wishes to play games.”
“I’m almost certain of it.”
“The people’s hero,” Hitler said. “We must handle him carefully, wouldn’t you say?”
“Or outfox him, my Fuhrer,” Himmler said softly.
“Outfox him. Outfox the Desert Fox.” Hitler smiled delightfully.“Yes, I like that, Reichsfuhrer. I like that very much indeed.”
♦ The dialogue above is extracted from Night of the Fox, a novel by Jack Higgins.


Almost everybody knows Harry Patterson better known as Jack Higgins. He is an international bestselling suspense thrilling author who is among the world’s most popular writers. He is remembered by many for his novel, “The Eagle Has Landed” (1975); but his book “Night of the Fox” (1986) is equally as impressive. Though his books are a work of fiction, the writer’s efforts to research the historical events on which the plots are based were painstakingly real. For example, part of his research involved actually meeting with and reviewing the diaries of a woman who was trapped in Jersey during World War II.

The book,
“The Eagle Has Landed”, was adapted to film (1976) which also starred a few of my favorite actors: Michael Caine, Robert Duvall, and Donald Sutherland disguised as Polish airmen. It was a plot to kidnap Sir Winston Churchill.  Intense!

“Night of the Fox”, was also made into a movie (1990) which starred two of my favorite actors, George Peppard (as American officer, Col. Harry Martineau) and Michael York (as high-ranking German officer, Field Marshal Erwin Rommel, the “Desert Fox”).

The book “The Eagle Has Flown” is a sequel to “The Eagle Has Landed”. Fans of novels by Higgins consider it worthy as a classic thriller, however, it was not adapted to film.

Nevertheless, if you are compiling a private library of WWII suspense thrillers, this 3-in-1 would be a great addition!

Jack Higgins: Three Complete Novels: The Eagle Has Landed (1975); The Eagle Has Flown (1991); Night of the Fox (1986)


Image credits: Photos found at Wikipedia. General Field Marshall Erwin Rommel in December 1943; and Bundesarchiv Bild 146-1977-119-08, Erwin Rommel with Adolf Hitler. Book cover at Amazon.



Original source

Tuesday, January 30, 2024

‘The Secret Garden’ Review: It’s as Lovely as You Remember | NYT (Reblog)

Are you in the mood to watch a delightful family movie?  

This is a novel by Frances Hodgson Burnett that has been adapted to film several times and I have watched various versions at one time or another, from my childhood to my adulthood. I know the main character in the story is the little girl but I am inclined to recommend you watch the film adaptation which stars Colin Firth because I am a huge fan.  Any movie with him is worth watching.  Here is the link to a wonderful movie review published via the New York Times (NYT).  "This version, featuring Colin Firth as the haunted uncle, hits the same notes as the 1911 novel and previous films, and that’s fine for this uncertain moment."



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Related or Similar Links:





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Thursday, January 11, 2024

Movie Gem: Bollywood: Mary Kom (2014)

Priyanka Chopra as a boxer? Get real! No way!

Those were my initial thoughts. By the time the movie was over, I was eating my words. 

PC worked it! She was super awesome playing the role of a real-life female boxer, Mary Kom.

Loyal fans of Priyanka Chopra-Jonas will appreciate this enthusiastic Bollywood movie review of the film about a real-life Indian female boxer called Mary Kom.




Tuesday, December 19, 2023

Movie Review: The Day After Tomorrow (2004)

Fans of Jake Gyllenhaal and sci-fi movie lovers will enjoy this film. I remember listening to a review by one of the critics that made me laugh. Paraphrasing his words, basically, he said:

  • “This is a typical storyline. Something devastating or catastrophic is going to happen on earth. And of course, the one who knows what it is, what to do, and tries to warn others is the very person that nobody listens to!!



This is a lighthearted movie review of a 2004 sci-fi film. Even though it’s 15 years old (as of 2019), it’s still relevant today. Plus! Fans of Jake Gyllenhaal, who want to know what he looked like as a teenager, will love this movie!

What the Official Movie Critics Said

Several official critics had a lot to say about “The Day After Tomorrow”. I remember a review by one of the official critics that made me laugh. Paraphrasing his words, he said:
  • “This is a typical storyline. Something devastating or catastrophic is going to happen on earth. Of course, there is one person who knows what it is, what to do, and tries to warn others is the very person that nobody listens to!!

What This Unofficial Movie Reviewer Says

If you believe in climate change, you’ll understand the storyline. What’s going to happen is there is going to be a drastic change in the weather and there will be freezing cold temperatures. Cold enough that people will die. If you believe in cryogenics, people won’t die. They’ll be instantly frozen. They can be thawed out later.

The Day After Tomorrow – Official® Trailer

Watched this movie and don’t want to spoil it for those who may not have seen it. (Although you might guess The End through the “hints” woven in between the lines of this discussion.)

Most Memorable Movie Scene

For me, there was only one memorable scene in the movie; a scene worth remembering because I love libraries.
In this scene, there is a group of people in a room in a library. It’s getting really cold! They have to do something to stay warm and since they’re in a library, they start burning books, grabbing any book within their reach and throwing it in the fireplace. They get ready to grab this one book and the man holding on it to refuses to let it go!
He goes: “You’re not burning this book!” He spills out his various reasons why “The Book” must not be destroyed.
Some debate and try to reason with him. Others are about to physically struggle to take the book away from him. Someone yells out that they have found an alternative set of books. No doubt every American would love to burn them! This is not one book. It is a set and has volumes upon volumes upon volumes. The group consensus is: “Yeah! Let’s burn those!!”
To me, that scene was totally hilarious fiction. The scene was also realistic. You could almost visualize that scenario actually happening in real life. If you’re an American taxpayer, you know you’ve thought of burning the U.S. Tax Code.

My Unofficial Movie Rating?  3.5 out of 5 stars and I’m being generous.

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Links of Interest:
We need better laws to protect the rights of future frozen cryonicists: Cryogenics is facing legal trouble with body preservation — Quartz



Content first published at RationalMind.club.





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Monday, December 11, 2023

Two (2) Cary Grant Movies to Watch During the Christmas Holiday

At one time, Cary Grant (1904 - 1986) was one of Hollywood's main leading men. He was certainly one of my favorite actors. He has been acting since the 1930s but most of the movies I remember watching when I was growing up were released in the late 1940s and the 1950s. 


Watching old movies is one of my favorite things, especially during the holiday season. Christmas is not until December but I hope no qualms about starting the celebrations as soon as the autumn season is officially declared. The last week of September is usually the first week of the fall season. Here are my 2 picks for Cary Grant movies to watch for the Christmas season.  It's best to watch in December.

Image credit:  Amazon.com

Movie #1:  The Bishop's Wife (1947), leading lady, Loretta Young Cary Grant is an angel from heaven named Dudley. He came down to earth in response to the Bishop's prayer for guidance and in the process of performing his ministerial angel duties, ends up spending most of his time with the bishop's unhappy wife. The answer to the bishop's prayer lies in him realizing that in the performance of his duties as bishop and a husband, he had somehow misplaced his priorities. All he needed was to put back on the right path. It's a warm and fuzzy feel-good kind of movie that is best watched during the Christmas holiday season. 


Movie #2:  An Affair to Remember (1957), leading lady, Deborah Kerr What happens when two (2) lovers make an arrangement to meet at a certain place, on a certain date, at a certain time, with the intention to get married and living happily ever after … only one of the lovers does not show up at that certain place and time, as per the arrangement? Another love story and a real tear-jerker! My favorite part of the movie was where Deborah Kerr started crying but she took her handkerchief and started wiping the tears from Cary Grant's face. He gently took the handkerchief away from her and started wiping her years. She was the one crying. Not him! It was a love affair to remember. I remembered it and have rewatched the movie more than once. It wasn't a Christmas movie but that touching love scene happened during a Christmas holiday.

Vintage Christmas Cary Grant!!!
vintage christmas pictures


Saturday, November 11, 2023

Celebrities We All Admire: Do You Heart Bruce Lee?

I heart libraries. One time I checked out a book from the library about the incomparable Bruce Lee. That was when I realized that several people in my house heart Bruce Lee. That book got passed around. My sons loved that book! Had to pry it loose from their fingers so I could return it to the public library. Must admit. It was a great book! But then, everything about Bruce Lee is spectacularly awesome!! Don’t you agree?



Saturday, September 16, 2023

Old But Gold Movies: Review: “There Will Be Blood” (2007)

“There Will Be Blood” (2007) is a movie starring Daniel Day-Lewis.  He won an Oscar for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role. If you are a fan, then you will love the actor but you will hate the character he played.  Oh my!  What a horrible awful awful man!!  You never want to meet someone like that in real life!  If you know someone like that then surely you must go in the opposite direction every time it looks like you're going cross paths.  If I were keeping a list of movies I hate, this film would be at the top of the list.

I HATED THIS MOVIE!!!


If you are a loyal fan of Daniel Day-Lewis (Sir Daniel Michael Blake Day-Lewis) then you have probably seen this movie. It’s not a recent film. It was released 10+ years ago. The movie is 
“There Will Be Blood”.

I don’t care for all of the movies where Daniel Day-Lewis is the star, even if he is a “Sir”. But I do know that he always gives 200% whenever he gives a performance.

This film won 2 Oscars. One award was for Best Achievement in Cinematography: Robert Elswit. The other was given to Daniel Day-Lewis for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role.

He was good! He played his part well. He was so good that I HATED HIM!!

I HATED THIS MOVIE!!!

If I met any of those people in real life I would run away from them!

I only liked 2 characters: the adopted son (of Daniel Day-Lewis) and the girl he fell in love with.

As for the character played by Daniel Day-Lewis and that preacher he was always butting heads with?

I HATED BOTH OF THEM! I HATED THEIR GUTS!!

So was there blood? If you have not seen the movie, I don’t want to spoil it for but … yeah! Blood was definitely shed.

Sean Fennessey, a writer for The Ringer, a publication that covers sports, pop culture, and tech, provided a succinct description of this film in his movie review:

Never crawl out? Never??

What a relief to know that it was just a movie and not a historical account of real events.

So relax. If you are pursuing the American dream … dream on!

♦ Original Source.





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