Monthly Archives: August 2013
Movie Quote of the Day – Spellbound, 1945 (dir. Alfred Hitchcock)
John Ballantine: I don’t believe in dreams. That Freud stuff’s a bunch of hooey.
Dr. Alex Brulov: Oh, you are a fine one to talk! You have a guilt complex and amnesia and you don’t know if you are coming or going from somewhere, but Freud is hooey! *This* you know! Hmph! Wiseguy.
Oscar Vault Monday – The Champ, 1931 (dir. King Vidor)
God I love this film. It’s so sweet and melancholic, as are most of Vidor’s films. If you read last week’s post, you’ll notice this film was released the same year as Skippy, however since that film was released before August of 1931, it was part of the 4th Academy Awards and The Champ, which was released in the fall, was considered for the 5th Academy Awards. This is because for the first six years, the Oscar year was August 1st – July 31st, until 1934, when it was changed to January 1st – December 31st, as we now have it. The Champ was nominated for four Academy Awards, winning two: Best Actor Wallace Beery (won; tie, more on this later), Best Story Frances Marion (won), Best Director and Best Picture. The other films up for Best Picture that year were Arrowsmith, Bad Girl, Five Star Final, One Hour With You, Shanghai Express, The Smiling Lieutenant and winner Grand Hotel.
Movie Quote of the Day – The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, 2007 (dir. Andrew Dominik)
Jesse James: Go away.
Robert Ford: Used to be nobody could sneak up on Jesse James.
Jesse James: Now you think otherwise?
Robert Ford: I ain’t never seen you without your guns, neither.
Jesse James: Can’t figure it out: do you want to be like me or do you want to BE me?
Robert Ford: I’m just making fun is all.
Movie Quote of the Day – Junebug, 2005 (dir. Phil Morrison)
Ashley: Were you born in Chicago? I was born right here. I’ve lived here all my whole life. My favorite animal is the meerkat. Do you know what they are? They’re so cute. I’ve got this little charm bracelet with meerkats on it. Did you have lots of boyfriends? I bet you did. Did you ever try out for cheerleading or anything? I tried out, but I didn’t make it.
Madeleine: I was born in Japan.
Ashley: You were not!
Movie Quote of the Day – The Mask of Zorro, 1998 (dir. Martin Campbell)
Alejandro Murrieta: Do you surrender?
Elena: Never, but I may scream.
Alejandro Murrieta: I understand. Sometimes I have that effect.
Movie Quote of the Day – Black Hawk Down, 2001 (dir. Ridley Scott)
Sergeant First Class Norm “Hoot” Gibson: See you’re thinking. Don’t. ‘Cause Sergeant, you can’t control who gets hit or who doesn’t or who falls out of a chopper or why. It ain’t up to you. It’s just war.
Movie Quote of the Day – Outbreak, 1995 (dir. Wolfgang Petersen)
Casey Schuler: How many brain cells did I kill?
Sam Daniels: How many? About a billion.
Casey Schuler: Oh, now I’m only as smart as you.
Sam Daniels: What can we give him to kill his sense of humor?
Movie Quote of the Day – Take Shelter, 2011 (dir. Jeff Nichols)
Curtis: God damn it! You think I’m crazy? Huh? Is that what he told you? Well, listen up! There is a storm coming like nothing you have ever seen! And not a one of you is prepared for it! You think I’m crazy? Hey, I’m talking to you, Russell! Huh? Lewis! You think I’m a thief? Sleep well in your beds. Because if this thing comes true, there ain’t gonna be any more.
Movie Quote of the Day – Unbreakable, 2000 (dir. M. Night Shyamalan)
Elijah Price: Now that we know who you are… I know who I am. I’m not a mistake! It all makes sense. In a comic, you know how you can tell who the arch-villain’s going to be? He’s the exact opposite of the hero, and most time’s they’re friends, like you and me. I should’ve known way back when. You know why, David? Because of the kids. . .They called me Mr. Glass.
Oscar Vault Monday – Skippy, 1931 (dir. Norman Taurog)
I first saw this movie during that crazy month of February in 2011 when I watched 131 films in 28 days. That was a good month. Jackie Cooper, the star of this film, died just a few months after I watched it. Skippy was inspired by a very popular comic strip from the era by Percy Crosby. I could see how the film today might be a tough watch for modern audiences. It’s a bit rough as it was made during the sound transition and it shows aspects of American life we try to forget existed (although they still exist). I mean by this, child abuse and classism. Only one of the parents int he film (from the wrong side of the tracks, natural) appears to be what we would call abusive, most of the adults treat the kids rather harshly. This can be jarring in an era where, if you saw someone talking to their kid they way they do in this film, you’d probably interfere. Skippy was nominated for four Academy Awards, winning one: Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Actor, Best Director (won) and Best Picture. The other films nominated for Best Picture that year were East Lynne, The Front Page, Trader Horn and winner Cimarron.
the diary of a film history fanatic 