Cinefest: The 2000 William Ks
Stephen Cooke
Once again it's fallen upon me to tally and post the results of the annual
William K Everson Awards, handed out in a haze of cheap American beer
every year at Cinefest in Syracuse by the Montreal contingent (from
Concordia University and points east). Now this is a totally informal and
not-to-be-taken-seriously affair (please, no wagering!), sort of like the
Golden Globes, so read on and enjoy.
Best Actor
Clive Brooks for his portrayal of "classic cad" Sir Hubert Ware in The
Ware Case
Best Actress
Colleen Moore for her delightful Limehouse waif in Twinkletoes
Supporting actor
Peter Bull in The Ware Case (in a very tough race)
Supporting actress
Winnie Lightner squeaking out a victory for Playgirl
Script
Odor in the Court (believe it or not), edging out Life Begins at 40 and
The Ware Case
Cinematography
A three-way tie between James Van Trees' work on Twinkletoes, Milton
Krasner's lensing of Four Feathers and Rudolph Mate's solid visuals for
Professional Soldier.
Editing
Life Begins at 40 came out on top for its brisk pacing and a remarkable
climactic fight, thanks to Alex Troffey.
Best performance by an animal
Luke the Dog was the clear winner here, for butt-biting excellence in The
Cook, although (if I may insert a personal comment here) I think Napoleon
from The Thirteenth Hour would have walked away with this if more people
had bothered to get up in time to watch it. But I don't want to start
another Napoleon controversy on this newsgroup.
Best Score
Gabriel Thibideau's forceful playing during DW Griffith's Battle of the
Sexes really made the film come alive for the folks at Cinefest this year.
Director
Ernst Lubitsch did that voodoo that he do so well in So This is Paris.
Art Direction
You can go a long way with a cool-looking art deco apartment, as
demonstrated by Hans Dreyer in No Limit.
Best Short
Hands down: Fatty, Buster and Al (and Luke, of course) in The Cook. Or, as
I like to call it, The Cooke.
Visual effects:
No question; the impressive 3-D films from the 20s.
Worst film:
Most felt the wheezy Pygmalion retelling Lost and Won was the obvious
choice here, but perhaps only because no one bothered to stay up and watch
the Crime of Helen Stanley. Go figure.
Best film
Twinkletoes was the real discovery for the Montreal crowd this year, with
So This Is Paris a strong second placer. Again, on a personal note, I
thought Whom the Gods Destroy was a real stunner, plus it mentions
Newfoundland, for extra bonus points.
Best lines of dialogue (individual choices):
"They don't need marriage certificates...One rooster is enough." - Little
Miss Hoover
"What's the big idea?" (ad nauseum) - Yours Sincerely
"That's no emerald!" - The Midnight Club
"Many years ago, women weren't meant to think."
"What do you mean 'years ago'?" - Life Begins at 40
"Do you have laryngitis too?"
"No, just chocolate and vanilla." - F-Man
"You should know what bedrooms are like...you're always coming out of
them." - Playgirl
"My uncle was unique."
"Was that why he never got married?" - No Limit
"Those are my last pair of panties."
"What will you do?"
"Well, I won't be climbing any ladders today." - Playgirl
"Be quiet or I'll fine you five dollars for contempt of court!"
"Five dollars could never express the contempt I feel for this court!" -
Odor in the Court
"Baby requires a new set of footwear." - Professional Soldier
MISCELANEOUS CATEGORIES (totally subjective)
Strangest dance: Roscoe in The Cook
Worst program description: Wicked Darling
Film that could have ended in five minutes: The Best Bad Man
Best foursome: So This is Paris
Most annoying old lady: Allison Skipworth
Worst ending: Whom the Gods Destroy
Best queen: Billy Gilbert, Young Ironsides
Best modern dance: The Forbidden Fruit in So This is Paris
Best sardonic laugh: Bobby Clark
Best stunt: Tom Mix in Best Bad Man
Best costume: The slip with the heart over the crotch in No Limit
Most predictible plot: Lost and Won
Best cook: Roscoe
Best performance by an audience: Yaka Hula Hickey Doola
Best use of secret passageways: The Thirteenth Hour
Swimsuit competition: Max Davidson
Most creative animal wrangling: the hippoes in Four Feathers
Most stinging political comment: "America will feed anyone who doesn't
live near us." - Life begins at 40
Best pun: "I've never seen a girl look so hors d'oeuvre." - Follow the
Leader
Meanest looking grimmace: Big Mike, the Bartender in Wicked Darling
Best euphamism for laziness: "You big blister!" - Twinkletoes
Stephen Cooke
Halifax, NS
Robert Birchard
> Best film
> Twinkletoes was the real discovery for the Montreal crowd this year, with
> So This Is Paris a strong second placer. Again, on a personal note, I
> thought Whom the Gods Destroy was a real stunner, plus it mentions
> Newfoundland, for extra bonus points.
a.m.s. does not provide tax credits for Canadian content!!!! ;-}
--
Bob Birchard
bbir...@earthlink.net
http://www.mdle.com/ClassicFilms/Guest/birchard.htm
Stephen Cooke
On Thu, 16 Mar 2000, Robert Birchard wrote:
> Stephen Cooke wrote:
>
> > Best film
> > Twinkletoes was the real discovery for the Montreal crowd this year, with
> > So This Is Paris a strong second placer. Again, on a personal note, I
> > thought Whom the Gods Destroy was a real stunner, plus it mentions
> > Newfoundland, for extra bonus points.
>
> a.m.s. does not provide tax credits for Canadian content!!!! ;-}
Damn, guess I'll have to get rid of all these Mack Sennett/Mary
Pickford/Marie Prevost/Fay Wray/David Manners/Allan Dwan/Louis B. Mayer
films....
Charles Ogle wasn't Canadian was he?
:)
Stephen
Greta de Groat
someone i've always been curious about, but wasn't sure if any of her films
existed and never read anything about her so i was happy to see that this was
screened. I get the impression from the comments so far that she played an
Eliza Doolittle character. So what did you think of her performance?
greta
Stephen Cooke
I thought she was quite charming as the scrappy newsie who gets sent to
charm school and becomes a scrappy reporter (were there *enough* reporter
films at CineFest this year?). It was the creaky plot and lame villain
that earned Lost and Found the "worst film" award in the WKE awards,
although I personally thought Little Miss Hoover was even worse (raising
chickens for the war effort...oy!).
The lovely print and varied settings make Lost and Found worth seeing
though, not to mention Marie in ragamuffin mode (I see girls from the
local art college who *still* dress like that!).
Stephen
Christopher Jacobs
Stephen Cooke wrote in message ...
>
>On Thu, 16 Mar 2000, Greta de Groat wrote:
>
>> Can any of you Cinefesters comment on Marie Doro in Lost and Won? She's
>> someone i've always been curious about, but wasn't sure if any of her
films
>> existed and never read anything about her so i was happy to see that this
was
>> screened. I get the impression from the comments so far that she played
an
>> Eliza Doolittle character. So what did you think of her performance?
>
>I thought she was quite charming as the scrappy newsie who gets sent to
>charm school and becomes a scrappy reporter (were there *enough* reporter
>films at CineFest this year?). It was the creaky plot and lame villain
>that earned Lost and Found the "worst film" award in the WKE awards,
>although I personally thought Little Miss Hoover was even worse (raising
>chickens for the war effort...oy!).
>
I seem to be one of the few who found LOST AND WON one of the highlights of
the entire weekend, second in entertainment value perhaps only to Will
Rogers' LIFE BEGINS AT FORTY (and of course shorts like FLAMING FATHERS,
YOUNG IRONSIDES, and THE COOK). Marie Doro was quite good in the variation
on PYGMALION, DADDY LONG LEGS, and THE GIRL ON THE FRONT PAGE (which was
screened the night before). The predictable plot was more than made up for
by the nice 'teens Paramount "look" to the setting and photography, and
especially the peformances, including the delightfully Delsartian Mabel Van
Buren--contrasting with her more naturalistically underplayed cohort in
crime Carl Stockdale (who, incidentally, once lived in Grand Forks ND for a
time). The only other Doro film I've seen is THE HEART OF NORA FLYNN, a very
strong DeMille picture, and it's a pity more of her work doesn't survive.
The gorgeous 35mm print of LOST AND WON also helped, although in the case of
LITTLE MISS HOOVER it made the WWI-era curiosity merely more endurable.
Although I knew what to expect from reading a plot summary of that film in
advance, it was still the major disappointment of the bunch. Despite decent
production values and slick filmmaking skills, Marguerite Clark barely
exhibited the charm she conveyed in the much less technically proficient
SNOW WHITE.
--Christopher Jacobs
http://www.fargoweb.com/hpr/film.html
eric stott
started to "Emote". She stacked up well against Coleen Moore and
Priscilla Dean in the "Best imitation of a Street Waif" category.
Eric Stott
Stephen Cooke wrote:
>
> On Thu, 16 Mar 2000, Greta de Groat wrote:
>
> > Can any of you Cinefesters comment on Marie Doro in Lost and Won? She's
> > someone i've always been curious about, but wasn't sure if any of her films
> > existed and never read anything about her so i was happy to see that this was
> > screened. I get the impression from the comments so far that she played an
> > Eliza Doolittle character. So what did you think of her performance?
>
> I thought she was quite charming as the scrappy newsie who gets sent to
> charm school and becomes a scrappy reporter (were there *enough* reporter
> films at CineFest this year?). It was the creaky plot and lame villain
> that earned Lost and Found the "worst film" award in the WKE awards,
> although I personally thought Little Miss Hoover was even worse (raising
> chickens for the war effort...oy!).
>
Robert Birchard
> Can any of you Cinefesters comment on Marie Doro in Lost and Won? She's
> someone i've always been curious about, but wasn't sure if any of her films
> existed and never read anything about her so i was happy to see that this was
> screened. I get the impression from the comments so far that she played an
> Eliza Doolittle character. So what did you think of her performance?
Doro was okay--but to my mind not nearly as effective as she is in The Heart
of Nora Flynn. It is interesting to me that Chris Jacobs should consider Nora
Flynn a "strong" DeMille effort. Personally I think it is one of his lesser
films and the plot is not any better than the plot of Lost and Won; but seeing
films with the same players made by other directors gives one a sense of just how
good DeMille's work was in those early years.
Michael Gebert
> This is a multi-part message in MIME format.
> --------------5434A163B93D516FEFC470DF
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
> Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
How early are we talking? I just watched The Virginian and found it tough
going and cinematically pretty primitive (if there was a closeup in the
picture, I missed it). The Cheat, which is what, a year later, seems an
eternity later.
___________________________________________________
Michael Gebert, Writer | www.mindspring.com/~mgmax
Hey Republicans: Tired of seeing the White House occupied by a
gladhanding young Southern governor with a history of shading the truth
about his business dealings, draft dodging, drug use and bad boy
behavior? No, I guess you aren't.
Michael Gebert
mg...@mindspring.com (Michael Gebert) wrote:
> How early are we talking? I just watched The Virginian and found it tough
> going and cinematically pretty primitive (if there was a closeup in the
> picture, I missed it). The Cheat, which is what, a year later, seems an
> eternity later.
I guess I also saw Girl of the Golden West and found it much more
enjoyable than The Virginian, too, even without the arias. Does anyone
like The Virginian (I'm talking 1914, not 1929)?
Robert Birchard
> How early are we talking? I just watched The Virginian and found it tough
> going and cinematically pretty primitive (if there was a closeup in the
> picture, I missed it). The Cheat, which is what, a year later, seems an
> eternity later.
A couple of points:
The Virginian was DeMile's first picture as a director, (Yes I know he receives
credit as co-director on The Squaw Man, but he merely supervised the
production--Oscar Apfel directed the picture) and so one might cut him some slack as
a tyro.
Beyond that, although there may be no close ups (there are actually relatively
few close-ups in any of DeMile's work), the camera is much closer to the actors in
The Virginian than in most films of the period. He plays many scenes in
waist-length shots rather than using the American foregoround (mid-calf) or French
foreground (full length) shots that any director favored ca. 1914.
Also, there are beautiful light efects in even the earliest DeMille films. I
recall a wonderful shot by a windo in The Virginian, and a dramatic night scene with
the lighting coming from the campfire via a well-placed flare. (the smoke was a
little over-powering, but the idea was virtually unique for 1914 (although, yes
Griffith and Bitzer had done similar things at Biograph).
In his early films DeMille also takes time to explore character outside of
narrative constraints (i.e. the switching of the babies in The Virginian), and his
films seem much more human as a result.
And his actors are more naturalistic than many of the period (this was the
diference I was referring to between the Marie Doro of DeMille's Heart of Nora Flynn
and James Young's Lost and Found--Doro is about 80% better in the DeMille film, even
with equally weak basic material).
Girl of the Golden West is also VERY early DeMille; but I think if you see
films like Kindling, The Golden Chance (DeMille's masterpiece of his early period),
The Whispering Chorus, Old Wives For New, , The Cheat, and a dozen other films and
compares them to wht else was being turned out at the time by others, DeMille's work
shines.
Greta de Groat
Oliver Twist, Common Ground, or The Wood Nymph (all 1916) survive? Or what became of
her? Since a lot of folks didn't like Lost and Won, i hope that doesn't deter anyone
else from booking it, i'd sure like to see it anyway!
greta
Christopher Jacobs
Robert Birchard wrote in message <38D33E28...@earthlink.net>...
>Michael Gebert wrote re early DeMille:
>
>> How early are we talking? I just watched The Virginian and found it
tough
>> going and cinematically pretty primitive (if there was a closeup in the
>> picture, I missed it). The Cheat, which is what, a year later, seems an
>> eternity later.
>
> A couple of points:
>
> The Virginian was DeMile's first picture as a director
> And his actors are more naturalistic than many of the period (this was
the
>diference I was referring to between the Marie Doro of DeMille's Heart of
Nora Flynn
>and James Young's Lost and Found--Doro is about 80% better in the DeMille
film, even
>with equally weak basic material).
>
THE VIRGINIAN is also from 1914, when most films were cinematically pretty
primitive (with certain notable exceptions like TRAFFIC IN SOULS (1913) and
THE STAIN (1914).
Looking at DeMille's films from the year 1915 alone, from one picture to the
next it is not difficult to see him gradually gaining mastery over telling
an effective story through film as opposed to merely recording a staged
performance (he started out in the theatre). THE GIRL OF THE GOLDEN WEST was
a vast improvement upon THE VIRGINIAN made just a few months before, and THE
WARRENS OF VIRGINIA is a slight improvement upon GOTGW. THE CAPTIVE and
KINDLING are successively more sophisticated as are MARIA ROSA and CARMEN,
and the year culminates with THE CHEAT and THE GOLDEN CHANCE, which can hold
their own agains films made a decade later. By the time of THE HEART OF NORA
FLYNN, DeMille's filmmaking technique was smooth and slick, which when
combined with the original tinted nitrate I saw of it may have contributed
greatly to its impact on me--plus the fact that it was still in the period
before DeMille settled comfortably into the opulent sex comedies and larger
than life epics. It's not quite as good as THE GOLDEN CHANCE, but shares a
similar social outlook with that and the rougher-edged but even more
affecting KINDLING.
--Christopher Jacobs
http://www.fargoweb.com/hpr/film.html
this week: CASABLANCA and ELLA CINDERS !
Michael Gebert
certainly one of the few other films of that time that I had seen, and The
Virginian doesn't remotely compare in technique. Actually, I don't think
The Cheat does either-- it's pretty straightforwardly staged and filmed,
and it's the intensity of the acting (for which DeMille deserves some
credit too) that make it such a powerful film. But all in all I have yet
to see anything that suggests that DeMille was particularly innovative or
advanced in technique at any point in his career; what he mainly had, I
think, was good story sense and a strong sense of how to put a story (the
more lurid the better) across.
(Which are far from the least considerable skills-- Charlton Heston knows,
I'd rather watch the 56 Ten Commandments twice in a row than ever watch
The Robe or the 59 Ben Hur again....)
Bruce Calvert
HEARTS DESIRE (1917)
http://www.crosswinds.net/dallas/~bcalvert/hearts.htm,
LOST AND WON (1917)
http://www.crosswinds.net/dallas/~bcalvert/lostand.htm
THE WHITE PEARL (1915)
http://www.crosswinds.net/dallas/~bcalvert/white.htm
--
Bruce Calvert
Visit the Internet Silent Film Still Archive
http://www.crosswinds.net/dallas/~bcalvert/home.htm
Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/
Before you buy.
ChaneyFan
films like Kindling, The Golden Chance (DeMille's masterpiece of his early
period),
The Whispering Chorus, Old Wives For New, , The Cheat, and a dozen other films
and
compares them to wht else was being turned out at the time by others, DeMille's
work
shines.
I strongly agree on THE GOLDEN CHANCE which is an astonishingly mature film for
the period...one of the best teens silents I've ever seen.
===============================
Jon Mirsalis
e-mail: Chan...@aol.com
Lon Chaney Home Page: http://members.aol.com/ChaneyFan
Jon's Film Sites: http://members.aol.com/ChaneyFan/jonfilm.htm
pre...@my-deja.com
<Pine.GSO.3.95.iB1.0.100...@halifax.chebucto.ns.ca>
,
Stephen Cooke <am...@chebucto.ns.ca> wrote:
>
> On Thu, 16 Mar 2000, Robert Birchard wrote:
>
> > Stephen Cooke wrote:
> >
> > > Twinkletoes was the real discovery for the Montreal crowd this
year, with
> > > So This Is Paris a strong second placer. Again, on a personal
note, I
> > > thought Whom the Gods Destroy was a real stunner, plus it mentions
> > > Newfoundland, for extra bonus points.
> >
>
> Damn, guess I'll have to get rid of all these Mack Sennett/Mary
> Pickford/Marie Prevost/Fay Wray/David Manners/Allan Dwan/Louis B.
Mayer
> films....
>
> Charles Ogle wasn't Canadian was he?
>
> :)
>
> Stephen
>
No, but SH! THE OCTOPUS! broke all attendance records in Moose Jaw!
Mike S.
Stephen Cooke
On Wed, 22 Mar 2000 pre...@my-deja.com wrote:
> Stephen Cooke <am...@chebucto.ns.ca> wrote:
> >
> > Charles Ogle wasn't Canadian was he?
>
> No, but SH! THE OCTOPUS! broke all attendance records in Moose Jaw!
Hmmm...must be a glass Moose Jaw if they broke that easily...
Stephen
Wonders how it did in Medicine Hat.
David Totheroh
Stephen Cooke wrote:
Off the top of my head I'd have to say they found it a bitter pill to
swallow.
Beaver Lad
sincerely, A Fellow Canuck and Clive Brook Fan
=============================================
In article
<Pine.GSO.3.95.iB1.0.100...@halifax.chebucto.ns.ca>,
Stephen Cooke <am...@chebucto.ns.ca> wrote:
Stephen Cooke
Geez, sorry Beaver Lady!
;)
Stephen Cookes
On Thu, 23 Mar 2000, Beaver Lad wrote:
> Not Brooks - Brook! BROOK!! Aaaaaaaaaaaargh!!
>
> sincerely, A Fellow Canuck and Clive Brook Fan
> =============================================
>
> In article
> <Pine.GSO.3.95.iB1.0.100...@halifax.chebucto.ns.ca>,
> Stephen Cooke <am...@chebucto.ns.ca> wrote:
>
pre...@my-deja.com
<Pine.GSO.3.95.iB1.0.100...@halifax.chebucto.ns.ca>
,
Stephen Cooke <am...@chebucto.ns.ca> wrote:
>
>
> > Stephen Cooke <am...@chebucto.ns.ca> wrote:
> > >
> > > Charles Ogle wasn't Canadian was he?
> >
> > No, but SH! THE OCTOPUS! broke all attendance records in Moose Jaw!
>
> Hmmm...must be a glass Moose Jaw if they broke that easily...
>
> Stephen
> Wonders how it did in Medicine Hat.
>
Three times daily.
Mike S.
(sorry, Jeremy)