Something Random .... About me

If you know me really well, you already know this... For all others well now you will.

I LOVE old movies. Movies from the 1930's and the 1940's (early 50's) were my choice of movies while growing up. I add to my current collection all the time. People look at me strange and think that I'm completely off my rocker, but seriously I love them.

I know that they can be cheesey lines, questionable acting and easy to decipher plots, but that's not the reason I adore them so. I love the old Hollywood glamour of them. The sets, the makeup, the hair, the costumes and most of the time the stories themselves. There's something to be said about the simplicity of it all. Women were women and men were men. Though you can see racial stereotyping in almost all the movies, if you look back on the generation they were made in, hopefully you can see past that and enjoy it for what it is. So anyway here are a few of my favorites....

Till the Clouds Roll By (Semi autobiographical of Jerome Kern)- HUGE musical cast from Lena Horne to Judy Garland to old blue eyes. It's the story of the composer who created some of the most loved musicals of then and now, like Showboat, Fred and Ginger movies and on and on....Look him up he was amazing. (Sadly he passed away before the completion of his tribute.)


The Spanish Main (and The Black Swan) or Anything pirates with Maureen O'hara in it. She's one of my favorite red heads. I love her more than Rita Hayworth. She wasn't overly sexualized, but simply beautiful and classy. She acted in several movies even decades after old Hollywood glamour faded away.


Saving the best for last of course. I've watched every movie that they were ever in, and a few where they weren't together. FRED AND GINGER. How I simply adore them. (Trivia: Ginger Rogers won an Academy award for her portrayal of Kitty Foyle. A must see movie, she was glorious. I remember the whole story line to this day.) All in all they performed in 10 films together (9 RKO -one in technicolor and 1 with MGM- their last film), all of them magic. This has to be one of my faves (as with most fans) Swing Time. I love the duet of "A Fine Romance." (Trivia: composer was Jerome Kern) But for this post I will show off their dancing shoes.
SWING TIME-

CAREFREE


When asked about the films Ginger stated "try doing everything he does backwards and in heels..." hahahaha

Anyway if you're looking for something with old Hollywood glam or simply something that's different from the movies of the modern age, try some of these. They're lighthearted and take you back to a time where everything was simpler. Sometimes all we need is something that will make us smile.
Other recommendations:
Harvey Girls - Judy Garland
A Star is Born - Judy Garland
Tammy and the Bachelor - Debbie Reynolds
Robin Hood - Tyrone Powell
Penny Serenade - Cary Grant
Easter Parade - Judy Garland/Fred Astaire
Meet Me in St. Louis -Judy Garland
State Fair
An Affair to Remember
The Last Time I saw Paris - Elizabeth Taylor
Rebecca - Laurence Olivier
and more.....

So I'll leave you with a scene from one of my favorite movies. Judy Garland actually changed on of the lines in the song as she found it too depressing and magic.... it became one of the most loved Christmas songs ever.... ENJOY

Meet Me in St. Louis (How can you not love Tootie (Margret O'Brien)? The original goth girl always killing off her dolls with a fatal disease. And Judy Garland just emits gentleness in this scene on Christmas Eve. They know they are moving soon, leaving all they know behind and she is trying to comfort Tootie.)

Bunraku gets a release date for DVD!

If you're like me, you've heard alot about this movie, couldn't wait to see it but were disappointed by the red tape it seemed to have to fight through to get released. There were several "screenings" in Canada and several expos. But nothing for us here in the U.S. as well as other countries. So I was so excited to learn that there is a release date for Amazon.com of Nov. 1st for this movie. You can preorder it now so GO DO IT! :)

Here's the cast list:
Josh Hartnett The Drifter
Demi Moore Alexandra
Woody Harrelson The Bartender
Ron Perlman Nicola
Kevin McKidd Killer 2
Gackt Yoshi (as Gackt Camui)
Shun Sugata Uncle
Jordi Mollà Valentine
Emily Kaiho Momoko
Fernando Chien Killer 4

Trailer:

PREORDER IT HERE -Releases November 1, 2011 on DVD

In a hyperreal, hyper-saturated, hyper-driven dystopia, guns are banned upon pain of death and the sword is now king.

Nicola the Woodcutter is the most powerful man east of the Atlantic, a shadowy crime boss who rules with an iron fist with the help of his lady Alexandra, a femme fatale with a secret past, and nine diverse assassins and the Red Gang, a force not to be trifled with. His right-hand man is Killer #2, a cold-hearted, smooth-talking, toe-tapping murderer dressed in red and wielding a deadly blade without remorse. The citizens live in fear of this pack of wolves, and wait for the hero who can overthrow the tyrant.

One night, a mysterious drifter walks into the Horseless Horseman Saloon of the local insurgent bartender and desires two things: a shot of whisky and to kill Nicola. Soon, another stranger enters the bar, a samurai named Yoshi. Yoshi wants to avenge his father by taking back a talisman that Nicola stole from his clan. Armed with crossed destinies and incredible fighting skills and guided by the wisdom of the bartender, the two eventually join forces to bring down the corrupt and contemptuous reign of Nicola and set out on a journey, breaking bones and cracking heads in search for Nicola.

In an amalgam of samurai film, spaghetti western and chop socky and using a stylish blend of neo-noir, German expressionism and Russian futurism, characters in the world of Bunraku spin and ricochet against a backdrop that resembles a pop-up-book made of origami, ever-changing and whirring like a steam driven Victorian theatre set. It is a universe driven by pugilistic force, delivered in a brash style of amazing physical combat sequences.

note: Summary and cast list obtained at IMDB

Clash - out on DVD NOW

This came out a few weeks ago and I didn't blog about it. (*hangs head in shame... Sorry Johnny*) But better late than never. This was recently released on DVD in the US. Clash stars a Johnny Nguyen in it. He assures me that he doesn't have any sock lines in his smexy scenes...Watch this and/or buy it. You won't regret it. It's an awesome foreign action film ^ ^

A young woman named Trinh, codenamed Phoenix, is blackmailed by a major crime boss to steal a laptop from a group of Frenchmen in Vietnam. If she completes the task, the crime boss promises to return Trinh’s daughter to her. Trinh hires a team to assist her in the task, however, two members of the team secretly have their own agendas. Quan (Johnny Nguyen) is an undercover police officer trying to infiltrate the crime circle of Black Dragon. Cang Grenade is a gangster who looks to steal the laptop for his own personal gains. Things become more problematic for Trinh when she falls in love with Quan and must decide whether to save her daughter or make the right choice.
Buy it HERE or HERE

Warrior - In theaters SEPT. 9th

Go and see Fernando Chien in the movie Warrior out Sept. 9th. He plays Fenroy and is doing the DVD commentary for Warrior as well. I wish him the best of luck and of course me and my troop are going to see it. YOU SHOULD TOO! Make sure to go and 'LIKE' his Facebook page too. He's an awesome guy!

Fernando's Facebook

Vote for Warrior on IMDB

Two brothers face the fight of a lifetime - and the wreckage of their broken family - within the brutal, high-stakes world of Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fighting in Lionsgate's action/drama, WARRIOR. An ex-Marine haunted by a tragic past, Tommy Riordan returns to his hometown of Pittsburgh and enlists his father, a recovered alcoholic and his former coach, to train him for an MMA tournament awarding the biggest purse in the history of the sport. As Tommy blazes a violent path towards the title prize, his brother, Brendan, a former MMA fighter unable to make ends meet as a public school teacher, returns to the amateur ring to provide for his family. Even though years have passed, recriminations and past betrayals keep Brendan bitterly estranged from both Tommy and his father. But when Brendan's unlikely rise as an underdog sets him on a collision course with Tommy, the two brothers must finally confront the forces that tore them apart, all the while waging the most intense, winner-takes-all battle of their lives

Fast Five

GO SEE THIS MOVIE!! My friend Fernando Chien is in it....Fast cars, explosions, guns, hot bodies, seriously do you need anything else? LOVE