May. It's a Wrap

Another shut-in month is coming to a close in this dread COVID-19 season. We're trying to keep you entertained without new movies in theaters. Here are a dozen key posts from the month that was in case u missed 'em.

• Down With Love - Costume designer Daniel Orlandi shares his memories of working on this one of a kind romantic comedy and 60s riff
• Nightmare Alley - The fine original demands rediscovery. The remake might be interesting
• How to Build a Girl -Beanie Feldstein's star vehicle reviewed
• Over & Overs: Anatomy of a Murder - this courtroom drama so rewatchable?
• The New Classics: Two Days One Night -sublimely truthful Marion Cotillard
• Hot Emmy Contest -Lead Actress in a TV Miniseries? Super competitive!
• Loretta vs Roz - Two friends vied for Best Actress 1947
• 5 Things I Learned from Bob Mackie - Costume Designer Daniel Orlandi shares career advice for young movie professionals
• Introducing Kathleen Turner -On one of the all time great film debuts

Most Discussed

• Smackdown 1947 - Gentleman's Agreement vs Crossfire. Celeste vs. Gloria
• Smackdown 1981 Maureen Stapleton (Reds) has unexpected competition!
• Did Hepburn deserve four Oscars? And if so for which films? 
• Who Will be Next to the Triple Crown - Eddie? Hugh? Laurie? Denzel?
• Ryan Murphy's Hollywood Unintentionally our three part / three author rundown divvied up neatly into Mixed / Con / Pro in that order.

COMING IN JUNE
New films Shirley and King of Staten Island, The 2002 Supporting Actress Smackdown (Chicago, The Hours) revisit, Paul Thomas Anderson's 50th Birthday, the quarter century anniversary of Todd Haynes's [safe], and maybe a little Ray Harryhausen for his centennial. Any other requests? 

Mizoguchi's women

by Cláudio Alves

Last time we talked about Japanese cinema, we were looking at the history of the Best Costume Design Oscar. Among the five pictures from Japan nominated for that awards, we find Ugetsu, the only Kenji Mizoguchi film to ever receive any sort of recognition by the Academy. Considering some of the director's best films are currently available online thanks to platforms like the Criterion Channel, Kanopy, and HBO Max, it seems like a good time to highlight more of his cinematic mastery. After all, there's much greatness in Mizoguchi's exquisite cinema beyond the sartorial splendor of Ugetsu…

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P.S. I'm off to read "The Brick Foxhole"

by Nathaniel R

We hope you loved listening to the Smackdown Podcast and discussing various 1947 movies this month. It means a lot when you watch, vote, listen, and share these events. Another round of applause to our returning guests Dana Delany (she previously guest-starred on "1973"), Angelica Jade Bastién (she previously guest-starred on "1941"), and the newbies, actor Patrick Vaill (Netflix's upcoming Dash & Lily) and lyricist Tom Mizer (The Marvelous Mrs Maisel S3). Dana wanted to send a note to listeners that she was sorry for accrediting the direction of To Kill a Mockingbird to Richard Brooks rather than Robert Mulligan... the names just got jumbled because it was Richard Brooks who wrote "The Brick Foxhole" which she was also discussing.

I was so into this conversation that now I have ordered a copy of "The Brick Foxhole" to understand Crossfire in a fully homosexual way. I didn't know until the panel educated me that the movie changed the issue from Homophobia to Anti-Semitism! 

Up next in our supersized Smackdown summer: "2002" on Wednesday June 17th  -- Chicago, The Hours, Adaptation, About Schmidt -- and "1957" on July 6th, so queue up Peyton Place, Witness for the Prosecution, Sayonara, and The Bachelor Party.

THE FULL 1947 CONVERSATION ICYMI
At the bottom of this post 👇 or on iTunes.

1947 Discussion

Smackdown '47: Anne, Ethel, Marge, Celeste Holm and noir goddess Gloria Grahame

IT'S HERE! Welcome to the Supporting Actress Smackdown, a summer festival in which we investigate Oscar shortlists from years past. 1947 was a fine cinematic vintage and Oscar made room for a ghostly judge's wife, a countrified mother of 15, a jaded dance hall girl, a single New York City fashion editor, and a righteous rock of a mother in the Supporting Actress race. What's most historically interesting about this particular set is that it's a who's-who of character actress superstars of the 1940s. Get this: all but one of them won this category and received multiple nominations within an eight year span from the mid 40s to the early 50s.

THIS MONTH'S PANELISTS
Here to talk about these five nominated turns and the movies and Oscars of 1947 are, in alphabetical order: critic Angelica Jade Bastién (Vulture), actress Dana Delany (China Beach, Desperate Housewives), lyricist and librettist Thomas Mizer (The Marvelous Mrs Maisel), and actor Patrick Vaill (Broadway's Tony-winning revival of Oklahoma), And, as ever, your host at The Film Experience, Nathaniel R. Let's begin...

1947
SUPPORTING ACTRESS SMACKDOWN + PODCAST  
The companion podcast can be downloaded at the bottom of this article or by visiting the iTunes page...

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Review: The High Note

by Chris Feil

Are VH1 Movies That Rock still a thing? The kind of movie that the VH1 programming gods connected through the vague thematic tissue of music, casual comfort viewing meant to be consumed on repeated Sunday afternoons, structured flawlessly to pause for snack breaks? It’s as if those gods had carved The High Note from gold for how much the film embodies that vibe.

The film centers around a music icon Grace Davis (Tracee Ellis Ross) and her assistant Maggie (Dakota Johnson). As Grace attempts another relaunch of old music, Maggie’s music producer ambitions clash against Grace’s tried-and-true formula for success - and the star’s wariness that her assistant might be using her coattails. But Maggie begins to grow her producer chops (and a little romance) with a fledging singer songwriter (Kelvin Harrison Jr.), and struggles to balance her goals with her loyalty to her demanding boss within an uncrackable industry...

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