Films, new and old.

T

TBN

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I'm positive I'm not the only one out there, but I often find myself nostalgically reflecting on the films of the past.

I watch a lot of movies, and I feel that many of the films of today are just missing some of the charm that older films possess.

I may simply be looking at the past through rose-tinted glasses, but films like North By Northwest, Vertigo, The Bridge On the River Kwai, Laurence of Arabia, and many more just seem to be better than anything I've seen in recent years.

What are you opinions on the state of the film industry today, and am I simply being overly indulgent in reminiscence? :)
 

I think that, the movies are of the same quality, just the content has changed and so have we.

I look back at those movies and remember the feelings they gave me, I think that's what we miss most. I don't think that it's the movies I think it's just we're expecting to get that feeling from so many years ago, and it doesn't come.

There's some movies that move me greatly, but none have ever given me the feeling that I had at the drive-in.
 
I think there's been a lot of recycling and not many new ideas unfortunately. Lots of remakes and cliches. It's kind of sad. It's interesting too that I can't really think of any actor or actress today that holds up the image of a quality performer. Nobody that had classic glamor or that air of sophistication. But times have changed, maybe I'm too stuck on the past hahaha
 

I agree. There are too many camera tricks and technological effects. A great film and great actor didnt need wizardry to be a classic!
 
Madge90 said:
I agree. There are too many camera tricks and technological effects. A great film and great actor didnt need wizardry to be a classic!
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I don't know, I feel that technology even if our generation doesn't appreciate as much, that many people do. One of the most recent classics that I can think of is Phantom of the Opera and it is just riddled with all these affects.
 

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When it comes to movies I am a musical nut! I don't know of many people my age (50) that LOVE anything with Doris Day in it and yet will also watch a day of the Frankie and Annette movies. To me the spirit of them just give you such an uplifting feeling that I can't find in the movies that are made today. And while I like movies, I'd prefer to watch an "oldie" to some of the new ones that are being produced today. Today's movies lately seem to be more related to vampires and werewolves than a story line that could actually happen to your every day person. While I do enjoy those types of movies, they just dont seem to have heart like those with Barbara Stanwych, Elizabeth Taylor, Rita Hayworth, Errol Flynn, etc. I would also love to see a huge return of the old epics.
 
They don't make films like they used to, nothing comes close to an old epic.

Today's films are flashy and big money but they lack the substance
 
I have to say there are great movies from decades gone and great recent films too. One of my favorites is The Hustler with Paul Newman, and it certainly goes back. But I also like some more recent films including Pulp Fiction, Lord of the Rings, Alien. And even more recent, Red Lights, with DeNiro, and Savages, a recent Oliver Stone film. What you have to consider is that the turkeys from the 40s and 50s and 60s are forgotten and only the good stuff is still around or remembered.
Ryder13
 
We watched a funny one last night on Netflix called "Rat Race". It had a bunch of stars but included Rowan Atkinson ("Mr. Bean"), John Cleese, Cuba Gooding, Jr., Jon Lovit and a bunch of other goofballs.

It had many very funny scenes, check it out!
 
Older all time favs from the '70's: Harold and Maude...appeals to my kind of warped sense of
humor:playful:
The Party ...Peter Sellers ..so goofy, it's funny.

All time favorite: Lonesome Dove..I love westerns and this is the best! All the characters were
excellent! There were many memorable scenes.
 
I'm a bit conflicted on this topic ... although I was a raging die-hard fan of Bogie for many years (had his complete collection of films as well as all the books on him - even a copy of the Black Falcon) I can still see the merit of a FEW new films.

I agree that many don't seem to have the substance, the emotion or the romance - it's an over-reliance on special effects, computer-generated effects and explosions, or at the other extreme filthy dialogue and general idiocy. There's no STYLE, no CLASS anymore - Cagney and Edward G., even on their worst days, had it all over Brad, Cruise and whoever else is supposedly a "star" now.
 
There's a Jack Reacher movie just came out and I can't seem to get my head around the idea of that dwarf sized Cruise playing the part of a
6' 4" blonde, blue eyed hero,this has totally dampened any enthusiasm I may have had for going to see it and shall wait for it to be on Foxtel
Having read all lee Childs books may have spoilt it for me as I loved the stories and had this Adonis like vision of a guy in my mind and Cruise just doesn't have any appeal at all to me but I daresay it'll be a hit with others
 
Tom would need contact lenses, a wig and some VERY thick socks to pull THAT off!

I have to admit though, sometimes I'm surprised. They came out with a "re-boot" of Star Trek a while ago, where it was supposed to be a prequel to the original series. Some young heart-throb was cast as Captain Kirk, and right away I thought "No, no way!"

But I watched it and surprise, surprise - I thought it was excellent. But it was excellent because he was channeling Bill Shatner - his voice, his mannerisms, his movement patterns, everything. So, I think I liked it more because he reminded me of the original than that it was a good movie in its own right.

... or maybe I'm just an old fart set in his ways. Yeah, that's my story and I'm sticking to it.
 
As a huge fan of the movie genre, I appreciate both old and new films. A simple and not well known film recently viewed was "Curve" with Clint Eastwood. Not only did Eastwood bring in an excellent performance, but the other members of the cast were excellent also.

I do have an affinity for old movies of the 60's. Anything directed by Alfred Hitchcock drew my attention, and James Stewart and Cary Grant were two of my favorite all-time actors. Recently, a close friend remembered that some time I mentioned my favorite movie, "Bell, Book and Candle." She searched the web and actually found a copy of the movie on dvd. It was my present this year for Christmas.

Astounded as I was that she found a copy, I was touched that she took the time to care and find an appropriate gift for me. What amazed me more was that someone realized the importance of film in my life.

Of course Hollywood has changed, as audiences became more sophisticated. There is a need for more intense drama, films of substance as times change. World War II brought with it a necessary relief from reality. Hollywood fulfilled that need for all. With the nation focusing on war, movies needed to be light and musical.

I will always appreciate film and film-makers. Going to the movies is still an American outlet that can rarely be subsituted by anything else.
 
If you have not yet watched this...please do as it is a couple of hours of pure entertainment. Because there is no dialogue you can concentrate purely on the acting.:)


 
I am partial to Science Fiction myself. I do like special effects as long as they are "believable" and done tastefully. Actually, some of the classic Sci-Fi and Horror films are great just because the special effects were so crude and they are funny to watch in comparison to today's high tech effects.
 
I used to go to the theater just about every Saturday afternoon when I was growing up. Most of us kids did that. It cost a whole 35 cents to get in, and you could see the movie over if you wanted to sit there that long. I happily watched most of the great ( and not so great) movies of the 50s. My absolute hero was Audie Murphy, but I also loved Randolph Scott, Joel McRea, Jimmy Stewart, Jeff Chandler, Alan Ladd, and most of the other stars of the era.
By the early 60s, I had a crush on Yul Brynner, and actually enjoyed some movies that didn't have horses in them. I think the movies of that era had a real story to tell, and did not rely on all the special effects that are possible now days with all the computer generated movies. Actually, Dracula (Christopher Lee) did a great job of terrorizing me, even with no computer generated effects. And even though they were scary, they weren't bloody and gruesome like the horror movies that are made today.
There are still some really good movies, though. One of my favorites is Frequency, and LadyHawke is another. Batteries not Included is one I can watch and never get tired of. Just like Heaven is another one I really like.
I enjoyed the original Star Trek, but after that one ended, just never got locked in to the newer ones. The prequel sounds like I would like it though, from Phil's description of it, so I may have to check that one out.
 

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