I watched this movie with my family. It is certainly intelligent and I enjoyed it. But the themes are clearly for mature audiences. I think a better ending to the film *****SPOLIER ALERT***** would be that Frank stands up to Bernie like a man and there is blood. That would satisfy Georgie’s desire to have him grow into a man at last. And provide hope for their future. It is a movie after all.
Yes, thank you for the recommendation. I wondered which movie was first High Society or The Country Girl. I think from what I found The Country Girl was two years before. Quite different films and relationship between the characters played by Kelly and Astaire, but I enjoyed them both..
One of the last lines from Kelly intrigues me, she says that "I married you for happiness" I'm thinking (and hoping) that the ending means she realizes that there is much more to marriage than happiness.
Your first comment brought to mind a book read long ago: HOMO LUDENS, written by a Dutch (?) historian, as I recall, Johannes Huizinga. His premise was that only Homo saps plays. I still remember that I thought he was 100% wrong and utterly unaware that so many of God's creatures play. Do you know that book? I've always wondered if it takes an atheist like Huizinga to come up with such a silly idea.
Once again, I follow your recommendation and pulled up an old movie on Amazon Prime. Once again, it provides a great evening of entertainment for like four bucks. That was a more intelligent movie than 99% of what’s out there today. It is a smart movie written for a smart audience.
So let me get this straight: our grandparents dressed better than us, sang better than us and watched better entertainment than us. They spent $6.60 for a Broadway ticket and they smoked and drank to ridiculous excess. It was a time when the entire world admired the stylish and talented Americans who won the war. It is a crying shame that we managed to squander that kind of esteem.
The clothes are spectacular. A wadded-up suit on a hungover, unshaven Bing Crosby is still sharper than any man on the streets of NYC today. Otherwise, Holden and Crosby have perfectly draped suits as though they were born in them. I think they used texture in the clothes to make up for what they lacked in color. And the way that Grace Kelly fills a dress - I have no words for this.
That movie consisted mostly of three people talking to each other. I was genuinely surprised when Bernie kissed Georgie. My wife wasn’t. I think the movie is true to the reality of living with an alcoholic though mercifully I haven’t had to do this myself. In 1955 especially, I think every American knew what drunks were like.
So Grace Kelly, William Holden; I have heard of these great actors but I don’t think I’ve ever watched their work before. This is the second Bing Crosby picture that you pointed me to, I think its interesting that he has such charisma for an average-looking man. It seems that his singing voice was the major source of his fame.
On his Substack, Ted Gioia has a couple of great articles on Crosby. I especially like the one about how Crosby played a key role in the birth of Silicon Valley.
I watched this a while back when I “discovered” Holden and made it a point to watch all of his films. I was surprised by Bing, though, and I thought that he should have won an Oscar for his tremendous performance.
Donna, I've been trying to get Tony to watch this film for years, and for one reason or another we never got to it. I think Bing was tremendous in it. Grace Kelly (rightly) got the Best Actress award -- against very strong competition. Bing was up against Marlon Brando in On the Waterfront, and that was practically insurmountable competition. But this film showed what Bing could do in a very serious role. He more than rose to the challenge. I love the film.
I watched this movie with my family. It is certainly intelligent and I enjoyed it. But the themes are clearly for mature audiences. I think a better ending to the film *****SPOLIER ALERT***** would be that Frank stands up to Bernie like a man and there is blood. That would satisfy Georgie’s desire to have him grow into a man at last. And provide hope for their future. It is a movie after all.
Oh wow, this movie did not disappoint!
Yes, thank you for the recommendation. I wondered which movie was first High Society or The Country Girl. I think from what I found The Country Girl was two years before. Quite different films and relationship between the characters played by Kelly and Astaire, but I enjoyed them both..
One of the last lines from Kelly intrigues me, she says that "I married you for happiness" I'm thinking (and hoping) that the ending means she realizes that there is much more to marriage than happiness.
Dear Tony,
I'm looking forward to seeing the film.
Your first comment brought to mind a book read long ago: HOMO LUDENS, written by a Dutch (?) historian, as I recall, Johannes Huizinga. His premise was that only Homo saps plays. I still remember that I thought he was 100% wrong and utterly unaware that so many of God's creatures play. Do you know that book? I've always wondered if it takes an atheist like Huizinga to come up with such a silly idea.
Once again, I follow your recommendation and pulled up an old movie on Amazon Prime. Once again, it provides a great evening of entertainment for like four bucks. That was a more intelligent movie than 99% of what’s out there today. It is a smart movie written for a smart audience.
So let me get this straight: our grandparents dressed better than us, sang better than us and watched better entertainment than us. They spent $6.60 for a Broadway ticket and they smoked and drank to ridiculous excess. It was a time when the entire world admired the stylish and talented Americans who won the war. It is a crying shame that we managed to squander that kind of esteem.
The clothes are spectacular. A wadded-up suit on a hungover, unshaven Bing Crosby is still sharper than any man on the streets of NYC today. Otherwise, Holden and Crosby have perfectly draped suits as though they were born in them. I think they used texture in the clothes to make up for what they lacked in color. And the way that Grace Kelly fills a dress - I have no words for this.
That movie consisted mostly of three people talking to each other. I was genuinely surprised when Bernie kissed Georgie. My wife wasn’t. I think the movie is true to the reality of living with an alcoholic though mercifully I haven’t had to do this myself. In 1955 especially, I think every American knew what drunks were like.
So Grace Kelly, William Holden; I have heard of these great actors but I don’t think I’ve ever watched their work before. This is the second Bing Crosby picture that you pointed me to, I think its interesting that he has such charisma for an average-looking man. It seems that his singing voice was the major source of his fame.
On his Substack, Ted Gioia has a couple of great articles on Crosby. I especially like the one about how Crosby played a key role in the birth of Silicon Valley.
Please keep the recommendations coming!
I watched this a while back when I “discovered” Holden and made it a point to watch all of his films. I was surprised by Bing, though, and I thought that he should have won an Oscar for his tremendous performance.
Donna, I've been trying to get Tony to watch this film for years, and for one reason or another we never got to it. I think Bing was tremendous in it. Grace Kelly (rightly) got the Best Actress award -- against very strong competition. Bing was up against Marlon Brando in On the Waterfront, and that was practically insurmountable competition. But this film showed what Bing could do in a very serious role. He more than rose to the challenge. I love the film.