Bringing Up Baby. Too much of a muchness w/r/t silly characters and storytelling contortions to keep the laughs coming. Of all the Cary Grant I’ve seen, this is the first straight-up goofy comedy role (sillier than in The Philadelphia Story). He’s got a knack for it, apparently. I love seeing a new side of an actor I know mostly for being dashing. Favorite Howard Hawks movies? Gotta take Scarface over The Big Sleep, and then this one after Gentlemen Prefer Blondes.
Scarface (1932). Ambition, bloodlust, cowardice. Good flick, especially after you get used to the 1930s-y acting. (My wholly uninformed but standing assumption is that the 1983 remake is far inferior.) I was pleasantly surprised with some of the tracking shots and felt proud when I figured out the X motif (spoilers!). The only other Howard Hawks works I’ve seen are The Big Sleep and Gentlemen Prefer Blondes.
The Big Sleep. It’s got a twisty-turny plot where every encounter turns up some new intrigue. Not bad, but I didn’t fall in love with this one. Out of the Past is still the reigning film noir champion for me.
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. It’s hard to adjust to the slower pacing of some of these old films, but it usually pays off. They really had a way with the dialogue. Also, I usually don’t like musicals, but I enjoyed the numbers in this one much more than I thought I would.
Mark Larson 