Thursday Movie Picks: Letters
1) The Color Purple
I've written many times over the weeping mess Celie and Nettie make me in this film, and when Mister pulls them apart and Celie yells "write"...honestly I think I may cry all over again.
2) Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri
Willoughby's letter to Mildred about how he paid for another month on her billboard was amusing, but the letter he writes to his wife before taking his own life is downright heartbreaking.
3) The Notebook
As much as I make fun of Spark's work, I actually really did like this. It's a nice sappy romance. And Noah wrote a letter every day for a year. That's commitment.
I haven’t seen The Color Purple since it came out way back in the 80’s and I need to revisit. I know Spielberg was shunned. 3 Billboards is excellent and I love this movie. Yes that scene was heartbreaking. The Notebook was meh for me except for the scenes with James Garner and Gena Rowlands. I wanted to kill the young ones for being so frustrating to get together.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure how the Notebook would hold up for me now, it's been so long since I've seen it myself.
DeleteNice choices though I can't say I love any of these films. I like Color Purple more than the source book but once was enough. Three Billboards is heavy going but full of good work. The Notebook is good when you want tortured romance but I'd default to Pride & Prejudice before I'd bother with this again.
ReplyDeleteI was amazed how many films pivot on a letter. I picked two big favorites and a good more obscure Cold War thriller.
A Letter to Three Wives (1949)-Three well to do suburban wives (Linda Darnell, Ann Sothern and Jeanne Crain) are preparing to chaperone a children’s outing to an island picnic when they receive a letter from their mutual fremeny Addie Ross that she won’t be joining them because she’s left town and in so doing has taken one of their husbands with her. Cut off from the world for the day each wife reviews her marriage wondering if she’s the one now husbandless. Incisive look at personal relationships was nominated for many Oscars (and should have garnered a few more) and won best screenplay and director for Joseph Mankiewicz.
This was one of my selections for Dell’s Girl Week a few years back.
https://dellonmovies.blogspot.com/2016/11/girl-week-2016-letter-to-three-wives.html
The Letter (1940)-The film opens on a pan of a sleepy night on a Malaysian plantation when the peace is shattered by a gunshot. A man stumbles out of the house and down the stairs followed by a woman (Bette Davis) emptying her revolver into him. She tells her husband and the law that the man, a family friend, was attacking her and maintains her innocence throughout a trial but suddenly the dead man’s Eurasian wife sends word through an emissary that she possesses a letter that holds secrets. Top notch drama contains one of Davis’s best most contained performances guided by William Wyler.
The Kremlin Letter (1970)-An unauthorized letter is sent to Moscow alleging the U.S. government's willingness to help Russia attack China. Former naval officer Charles Rone (Patrick O'Neal) and his team are sent to retrieve the missive. Going undercover they successfully reach out to Erika Kosnov (Bibi Andersson), the wife of a former agent, now married to the head of Russia's secret police (Max von Sydow). Their plans are interrupted, however, when their Moscow hideout is raided by a cunning politician (Orson Welles). Decent cold war thriller directed by John Huston loaded with familiar faces including George Sanders and Max von Sydow.
I recognized your first title from your post on Dell's blog. I still need to check it out. I haven't seen your other two either.
DeleteIt's amazing how they maintained Harrelson's presence in the movie via those letters. Yeah his letter to his wife made me cry :/
ReplyDeleteI agree!Both of those letters were great for different reasons.
DeleteI haven't seen The Color Purple as it's one of the few films by Spielberg from the past that I haven't seen.
ReplyDeleteThree Billboard Outside Ebbing, Missouri is a great choice while The Notebook is just OK though I'm not a fan of Nicholas Sparks at all.
BTW, as someone who lives in Georgia. I am very sorry that I live in a state that is run by morons and dumb-fucks. Women shouldn't be told what to do with their bodies (unless it's ass-implants).
I love The Color Purple, it's so powerful.
DeleteIt's not your fault your state representatives are morons. Mine are too,
Tyler likes The Color Purple.
ReplyDeleteThe Notebook was ok for me. Spark's books and adaptations are not for me either. I find the stories too sappy and characters too annoying.
ReplyDeleteExactly. I like romance in stories but I'm not huge on ones where the romance is the main point.
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