Around the World in 80 Days (1956)

This is a nostalgic movie for me personally, it's the first classic movie that I ever saw on the big screen. I was in 8th grade, not yet in High School. I saw it at The Gateway Theater in Chicago in the spring of 1990 with my family, and it was a pretty awesome experience.  April 22, 1990.

This was the period in my life when I started to fall in love with old movies.

I was about 14 years old at the time.

I remember it being a huge, long epic, with lavish location photography, sets and costumes. The music by Victor Young was great too, enjoyable. The opening scenes with Passepartou (Cantinflas) riding the penny-farthing bicycle and meeting David Niven, I'll never forget those scenes. And then they go on their adventure, all over the world, and eventually to America. I remember the young princess in the movie and my mom whispering to me that this is Shirley MacClaine. I had only known her for her 1980s movie up to that point.

And I didn't recognize all the cameo stars, but I did know Frank Sinatra.

Also, there was an actual intermission, and it was a nice break. And the end credits; I was in awe. I love animation and seeing that on the big screen was so cool.

Alot of people criticize the film nowadays and don't think it should have won the Best Picture Oscar. For me, this film was awe-inspiring and impressed me like none other I had seen up until that point.

Another think I really like about 80 Days is the intro with Edward R Murrow when he talks about how travel has evolved. Watching that sequence with the hindsight we now have 50+ years later is really interesting.

Cameos: Charles Boyer, Joe E Brown, Noel Coward, Buster Keaton, Robert Morley, and Marlene Dietrich. Directed by Michael Anderson and Kevin McClory.

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For more about this film:

Gerald has shared some memories of seeing this film when it was first released.

Read the post here at his blog, Laszlos On Lex

Steel Magnolias (1989) and Educating Rita (1983)

Last year I went to see the stage play of Steel Magnolias at a local repertory theater, and I loved comparing it with it's 1989 film counterpart. In the case of Magnolias, the film -- in my opinion -- is far better than the stage version. For one thing, there's no way you can top a cast like Sally Field, Shirley MacClaine and Julia Roberts. Also, I love how the movie breaks out of the beauty shop and explores the entire town and introduces the viewer to all the other people in the women's lives, including the suitor who charms Shirley.  And I loved Shirley's dog in the film; a nice touch. And this has got to be one of of Dolly Parton's best movie roles and the part suits her well.  A few years ago, another TV-film version came out starring Queen Latifah and Alfre Woodard and is on my to-see list.

Another stage play I saw recently was Educating Rita; I had seen the 1983 film version, one of the first movies I ever watched on a VHS tape. If you don't remember that movie, it's about a middle age professor (Michael Caine) who tutors a young, unschooled married hair stylist (Julie Walters) who dreams of becoming more cultured; in the process they change each other's lives (a premise reminiscent of Pygmalion or My Fair Lady). It's an inspiring tale, filled with witty dialogue and many references to great literature. The movie version is delightful - Caine and Walters are top-notch and deserved their Oscar nominations. And I like how the movie breaks out of the professor's office setting, taking you inside Rita's house and inside the saloons where the professor frequents. However, the movie feels dated, especially the synthetic music score. On stage, it's a different experience - only the two main characters; in the production I saw, the actors were outstanding, especially the actor who played Rita, a challenging part that she knocked out of the park. I hope she gets some local award recognition. Alas, this may be an example of where there play is actually better than the film.

The Apartment (1960)

Jack Lemmon plays an office worker who offers up his apartment to his boss and other upper management for their extra-marital affairs.

All goes well until he falls for his boss' (Fred MacMurray) ladyfriend, played by Shirley MacLaine.

In a small role is Jack Kruschen as Jack's doctor neighbor who helps MacLaine recover from swallowing too many sleeping pills. He was nominated for Best Supporting Actor.

Director Wilder took home three Oscars for this cleverly written movie, as he was also the producer and one of the writers.

For another review of this movie, see Emma's post at the All About My Movies blog.

Jack Lemmon in The Apartment