Wednesday, June 17, 2020

The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly: Watching 70s Movies

JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: One of the things we've been doing at my house is watching movies. We're not streaming new and popular shows from one of the subscription services - for some reason, we all seem to do that kind of viewing individually. (I recently saw the first season of SPACE FORCE and loved it.) Instead, we've started having themed movie weeks, viewing mostly films that can be rented from Amazon for the low, low price of $3.99. Which works out to about a buck per person, which is a pretty good deal for an evening's entertainment.

Let me explain, for those of you who don't know, who "we" are:  1) me, of course, former empty nester who was living happily alone until  2) the Smithie aka the Maine Millennial broke up with her bf and returned home mid December, followed by  3) Youngest in March when her university closed down and 4) Guest Son, her friend and classmate who needed a congenial place to stay.

I promise, the presence of all these young people is relevant, because in the past week and a half, we've watched three films from the seventies, and I've been tasked with the job of cultural translator and historian. What have we seen? For Train Week, we rented The Taking of Pelham 123 (1974) and Silver Streak (1976.) For the start of Plane Week (and yes, I suppose we're setting ourselves up for an Automobiles Week, just to complete the set) I insisted we begin with the ur-plane and disaster movie, Airport (1970). Airport is the one with Helen Hayes and Dean Martin, not the one with Karen Black and Charleton Heston. (We won't even mention the one with Jack Lemmon and Lee Grant.)

Let me tell you, it is a trip rewatching these golden oldies. The first two I must have seen when they were broadcast on TV some time in the eighties, but I was old enough to remember going to the theater with friends to see Silver Streak. (Mom drove.) Each one of these films had some very revealing things to say about the times in which they were made, each one had a few surprisingly progressive touches, and each one had some wincing moments. 

Airport: It's the divorce revolution! Black people can be professionals, but women should mostly be wives. Boy, you can tell 1970 was when the no-fault divorce movement swept America. Two of the three main male characters have marriages on the rocks; one is clearly going to throw over his wife in favor of his pregnant gf at the end, and the other has a civilized discussion that hits on almost every cliche people were spouting about divorce at the time. "It's better for the kids!" It was clear the zeitgeist of the moment was "Divorce is going to make everyone a lot happier!"

I was pleasantly surprised by the inclusion of so many African-American actors in professional roles: doctor, air traffic controller, stewardess, business exec, etc. Now, none of them had more than a couple of lines, so take it with a grain of salt, but it was nice to see.

There's also a female executive, but sadly, she quickly gets positioned as Bert Lancaster's love interest and cheering section. At one point, she makes him a sandwich. Really. The women in Airport pose a kind of anti-Bechdel test - not only do they never have a conversation with one another (except for a quick line or two between stewardesses) none of them exist except in relation to male characters, save Helen Hayes, who is awesome and totally deserved the Oscar she won for her appearance. At 70! You go, girl.

The Taking of Pelham 123. New York City is a bankrupt hellhole, it was really hard for women moving into male workplaces, hello, casual Asian racism. First off, this is a fantastic movie, and everyone should see it. Secondly, none of the kids recognized the version of New York shown here. At one point, the subway hijackers demand a ransom of one MILLION dollars (shades of Dr. Evil in Austin Powers) and the mayor moans to his aide the city can't afford to pay ten dollars. New York looks grubby, grungy, and while they don't show Times Square with its peep shows and hookers, you kind of feel like you can smell it. For millennial and Gen Z-ers who have only ever seen the polished, sanitized, rich version of NYC, the movie might as well have been set in 1880s London.

There are very few women in the flick other than hostages credited as "The Mother," "The Secretary," etc. Even the wonderful Doris Roberts is only "The Mayor's Wife." But there are a few great moments with an (also unnamed) black female TA dispatcher, who is the first woman to work in the department. And she is getting sh*t from her boss, the other guys, and probably the higher ups as well. She just puts her head down and does the job. Women who moved into traditionally male spaces really earned their pay.

Then there's the scene in the beginning, which introduces us to Walter Matthau's character and gives us a tour through the TA nerve center by having Matthau give and actual tour to visiting executives from the Tokyo Metro. They bow. Repeatedly. They smile. They take pictures. They don't have buck teeth, but its a near thing. Matthau thinks they can't speak English and refers to them as "monkeys" to another TA employee. (My kids and I: !!!) It's played for a reverse laugh at the end of the tour when they all thank him and comment in perfect English, but it really doesn't redeem what came before. 

Silver Streak (1976). The sexual revolution is here, baby, but the smart and attractive women still need to be rescued.  Blackface.
Gene Wilder as a sex symbol? Yep, and he makes a great one for the mid 70's; funny, smart, kind and he appreciates a funny, smart, kind Jill Clayburgh. They hook up, as we say nowadays, and the movie emphasizes that it's all good, clean, consensual fun. Of course, since they're two of the three leads, they fall in love.  

 Sadly, Clayburgh is kind of wasted in the rest of the movie, where she gets held at gunpoint, manhandled by the bad guys, and generally sits around helpless until Wilder and Richard Pryor rescue her. This is the first of several movies Wilder and Pryor made, and honestly, they have much better chemistry than Wilder and Clayburgh. Every scene they have together is a winner until...

That scene. To evade the police, Wilder borrows clothing from Pryor and a shoe polish guy, and  - you see where this is going - polishes up his face. Is it funny because he's clearly playing a clueless white guy's idea of a black dude? Is it okay because Richard Pryor is helping him? I don't know - the one thing I can say is that it's very uncomfortable to watch in 2020.

There you have it, dear readers; a cultural tour of the 70s. Have you seen any old films recently? How well do they hold up?

94 comments:

  1. There’s not been much movie-watching around here that hasn’t been science fiction . . . lately we’ve binge-watched “Star Trek” and “Star Wars,” all of which we’ve enjoyed. But I’m still working on reading through my teetering to-be-read pile of books . . . .

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    1. Joan, I seem to swing between wanting to spend every evening all evening reading, and cozying up with the fam in front of the TV, watching movies. Maybe I have a binge personality?

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  2. Wow, I remember watching both Airport and Silver Streak when they were both originally released. Good choices! I never saw The Taking of Pelham 123, though.

    Now, despite the lockdown and being stuck at home, I have NOT watched a single movie.
    I gave up Netflix last autumn when they hiked the monthly price to $13.99 and I realized that I had not watched a single show for over 6 months. I have an Amazon Prime account which includes Prime Video but again have not watched anything for at least 4 months.

    Julia, if you 70s disaster films is next on your list, I suggest you watch The Towering Inferno. Cheesy but it was memorable with all those big-name stars (Steve McQueen, Paul Newman etc.). And if you want to watch a 70s tearjerker, then Brian's Song absolutely left me sobbing.

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    1. OMG, Grace, Brian's Song. My mother used to substitute teach a lot back in the 70s, and one day she was filling in for a teacher who had, for some reason, left Brian's Song to be shown to EACH of her classes. My mom spent the whole day sobbing in the back of the classroom.

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    2. That is so weird Julia. I also saw Brian's Song in grade school for the first time.

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  3. We enjoyed watching "The Taking of Pelham 123" recently, both versions - I prefer the older one. Others we liked were: "It Happened on Fifth Avenue," "Topper," and "The Magnificent Seven." I remember watching the Topper TV series. We're recording mostly from Turner Classic Movies and FX Movie Channel. And "History Detectives" has proved to be really interesting!

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    1. Katharine, we watched both versions as part of train week and much preferred the 1974 movie. The delightful subtlety of the ending..."Gesundheit."

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    2. Loved that too - he shuts the door, then hears a familiar sneeze.... :)

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  4. All the cringes at things we mostly didn't think were cringeworthy back then.

    Nope, haven't been watching old movies. We're making our way through The Great, which is historical - kind of - and bawdy, irreverent, and well acted.

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    1. Oh, Edith, we have Hulu and I've been very tempted with The Great. Is it too bawdy to watch comfortably with my kids, though? We all kind of squirm when sex comes on the screen, because all parties would like to imagine the other doesn't know what's going on...

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    2. Julia, that is perhaps the funniest thing I've heard today. Maybe you could look for Leave It to Beaver reruns?

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    3. There is a LOT of sex, mostly with clothes on... So you might feel uncomfortable. And it's clearly stated at the front of each show that it has an occasional connection to real history, so if anyone is likely to get all serious, it won't be the show for them. You could watch the first episode alone and see how you like it?

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  5. I haven't really watched many movies from the 70's as of late. But I think I'd also have a different view of them than most people here. I'd watch them (and presumably enjoy them) for what they were. I wouldn't be watching to see how they'd fare against modern sensibilities. I typically don't do that kind of thinking when I'm watching something for entertainment purposes.

    Just last night I watched the 1984 movie The Last Starfighter, which is one of my favorite movies. When I was 13, I could think of nothing more exciting than to fly off into outer space with Catherine Mary Stewart. 29 years after the movie came out, I actually got to meet her which was absolutely fantastic. But I will say that if you look back NOW at the movie, her role in the movie was nothing more than the supportive girlfriend. It doesn't take away from my enjoyment of the movie but I think it also demonstrates that I'm not blind to realities either.

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    1. Jay, we weren't viewing them with an eye to stacking them up against modern sensibilities - it's more like, oh, so that's happening. In some ways, these older films are doing things better than modern ones - less reliance on special effects and more on storytelling. Another thing we all noticed and liked: the older movies were often more subtle, not bashing your head with everything you're supposed to get, and the set up for characters and situation is given more time, which makes the viewer more invested in the characters.

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  6. Julia, I haven't been watching movies either, but absolutely loved your descriptions and commentary! You should be a movie critic.

    The only thing I'm watching right now is FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS, second time around. It is so excellent that I must proselytize! The characters are amazing and lovable, and the show is a master class in developing conflict. John and I both love it.

    And your pandemic household sounds like so much fun!

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    1. We're trying to schedule fun, if that's not an oxymoron. Friday Night Family Movie, Wednesday is game night, and we've just added in Tortilla Tuesday (we somehow have wound up with something like 100 tortillas of differing sizes, and we need to eat them!)

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  7. Oh gosh, 70s movies... fascinating to look at them from the current viewpont and with millenials. I remember loving Silver Streak - the train crash at the end?! Feels different after 9/11. Richard Pryor and Gene Wilder, what a pair. Poor Jill Clayburgh. But I'm not sure I could sit through it again.

    From an earlier era, Mae West movies are a fascinating look at pre-code era films ... boy oh boy was she ahead of her time. Public Television is running a fascinating documentary about her. Highly recommended.

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    1. OMG, I wrote a paper on her when I was a senior in college. She was quite a character!

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    2. Hallie, a friend keeps posting movie clips of Mae West, both to Facebook and Instagram. She had such pizzazz!

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  8. No movie watching here at all. If I said that a 90-minute-or-so commitment seems too long these days, what would that say about me? I prefer the TV-show-episode approach that requires no more than about 45 minutes at a time...

    That said, if I were to watch an older movie, I would likely go back further than the '70s to the era of Katherine Hepburn & Spencer Tracy -- Adams Rib (1949), for example. Or, I would troll through my DVD collection of Meryl Streep or Helen Mirren movies -- I never get tired of seeing those two great actors at work.

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    1. Amanda, I loved Adam's Rib. I also loved Desk Set too. Tracy and Hepburn were so great! And of course, Guess Who's Coming To Dinner?

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    2. Agreed, Tracy and Hepburn movies are worth watching. And I was also a big Cary Grant fan.

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    3. Love the Tracy and Hepburn movies! It's fascinating that a lot of those classic forties and fifties movies have far meatier roles for actresses than the films from the "liberated" seventies.

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    4. Julia - what an interesting observation about women's roles in those movies!

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  9. Movie alert: KNIVES OUT is now on Amazon Prime! Their version of 'free' for their subscribers. For those of you who, like me, missed seeing it in the movie theatre back in the 'olden days' when we went to movie theaters... it's so much fun, especially if you're tuned into all the tropes and cliches of murder mysteries. I couldn't begin to explain to you the solution, but as with any good puzzle mystery, it hardly matters. You'll think it's going to go the way of "And Then There Were None"...

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    1. Yay, thanks for the alert, Hallie! I can finally use my Amazon Prime membership to see a movie I missed and wanted to watch.

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    2. And look for the Agatha teapot in the library somewhere near the end of the movie! So fun.

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    3. Edith, I was looking so hard for it I nearly missed the denouement!

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    4. Edith, I also heard about the Agatha teapot cameo from Leslie Budewitz. Good thing I can pause and rewind the movie.

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    5. I didn't know about the Agatha teapot! I saw this in the theater late in its run with a friend and we were all alone (!) which enabled us to kibbitz and make guesses all the way through. I really want to see it again, if only to pause and take screen shots of that AMAZING house decor. I came out of the theater thinking I definitely needed to up my game in my office...

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    6. I've seen Knives Out twice, in the theater with Gigi, and at home with Rick, and I didn't see the Agatha teapot! Now I will have to watch again... Such fun.

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  10. Hi Julia, I agree with Roberta, your criticism of those movies sounds spot on! It is interesting to revisit old favorites to see how they hold up in light of today's values. So many films captured the subtle and not-so-subtle racism of their times. But, I think in the '70's, the film arts were trying to be more inclusive.

    My husband has been watching more tv and more movies than I have during this time. Mostly, I've been reading and that has really been fine. Although I've always loved movies and tv, it just hasn't been satisfying right now. I can reread books that I love and have always been able to re-watch movies and tv that I've loved, but not now. So, a few times a week, we'll watch something together, Bosch and Hamish on Prime or an NCIS episode. That's about it.

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    1. Judy, I'm finding that's true for me to a certain extent. A lot of the movies we've been watching I've already seen, sometimes more than once, and I'm almost equally reading new books and rereading beloved older ones. And no serious drama - I don't want to deal with anyone's grief or heartache!

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  11. Our viewing has consisted mostly of TV shows. We just finished "The Confession" on Amazon Prime with Martin Freeman and Imelda Staunton (yes, Dolores Umbridge). Not really a mystery, but more crime drama centered on one man (Freeman), his actions, and the impact.

    I tend to stay away from older films because I know they will be full of cringe-y moments. I don't need my childhood memories sullied. :-)

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    1. Lol! There are some I'm smart enough to not look at, Liz - usually comedies. I remember loving all the Wilder/Pryor movies when I was young, but I'm afraid to rewatch See No Evil, Hear No Evil because I'm pretty sure what seemed funny back in 1989 is just going to look like horrible ableism in 2020.

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  12. Hallie, I just watched Knives Out the other night! It's so good, love the twisty plot. Daniel Craig as a chicken-fried Southern gentleman, though. Hmm. I tried hard to spot the Agatha teapot everyone said was in a shot, but I never could see it.

    I'm surprised Steve and I have never seen Silver Streak. Gene Wilder was my Hollywood crush, and Jill Clayburgh was his. Hmm, again. Sounds like a coming attraction at the Maslowskis'.

    Julia, I agree with Roberta! You do a bang-up job of movie critique.

    It isn't from the 70's, but I took my three daughters, who are basically from two different generations in many ways (ages 49, 35, and 32 now), to see Mona Lisa Smile. I highly recommend this for the historical aspect. They could not believe how women were in the 50's. At the end of the film is a montage of black and white shots of women from that era. I can remember a lot of it, since I am definitely a Baby Boomer, and we had a great discussion after the movie. Mad Men gives another view of that same time period, but not as much from a woman's viewpoint.

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    1. Karen, good suggestions! My girls might very much like Mona Lisa Smile - they grew up with stories of their grandmother, who was almost kicked out of her college because she got pregnant (after marriage) and who, as a young widow, had to get her father to sign her mortgage because an unmarried woman couldn't get the credit for one.

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    2. Julia, when I filed for divorce in early 1974, the lawyer told me to go, that day, to apply for a store credit card in my own name, while I was still married. That remains the single best piece of advice I've ever been given. Because without a credit rating, I also could not have had utilities or phone in my name, let alone buy the car I purchased a couple years later.

      It's hard to believe that a mere 50 years ago women were still not allowed to buy a home alone, or to get birth control if they weren't married. But I'm here to tell you, that is all true. And we were expected to wear skirts every single day to work, and nylons, and a whole lot of other rubbish.

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  13. It's time for our annual James Bond movie fest, plus golden oldies like Blazing Saddles and Smokey and the Bandit.

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    1. Excellent choice for a movie fest, Margaret. We have all the old James Bond movies - maybe I should suggest that for our household. I'm looking forward to seeing the new one, but I'm not sure if I'll feel safe going back into a theater in November, so I'll probably have to wait until it hits a streaming platform.

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  14. I haven't been watching many movies, although the original Mary Poppins is on my list, having been talked into watching the remake by Deb. Deb and I caught Knives Out in the theater, and thought it was a hoot. And if you' like modern remakes, I recommend Kenneth Branagh's version of Murder on the Orient Express.

    As to '70s movies, I've got to to say that Smokey and the Bandit was a guilty pleasure when it first came out--great fun, but not something you'd admit to enjoying. I watched it again a few years ago, and it's even more cringe-worthy, and yet, somehow, still fun. You'd probably have to explain a LOT about that movie to your modern housemates.

    And then, of course, there's Die Hard. It's from 1988, so not a '70s movie, but such a mirror of the times. I hear there's a special 30th anniversary Christmas edition out there.

    How is Jaws holding up? Anybody?

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    1. I saw jaws not too long ago and I think it has held up pretty good. Although maybe that's just because my son and I were waiting for all the things we quote and then making fun of Richard Dreyfuss. Not sure how he has held up.

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    2. Gigi, we watched the 1974 version of Murder on the Orient Express as part of Train Week, and it was amazing. One of those "everyone in Hollywood got on board" movies you never see anymore (probably due to the demise of the studio system.)

      We watch Die Hard every Christmas Eve!

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    3. Pretty much everybody is in the Branagh version, too, Julia. And I'm happy to hear about Jaws, Judi. Richard Dreyfuss was cute back then.

      Since we're giving well-deserved love to Gene Wilder, has anybody seen the Gene Wilder/Harrison Ford buddy western The Frisco Kid?

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  15. We haven't watched any movies lately, old or new. I'm with Amanda I think, preferring a series that I can string out or binge watch if so inclined. There is a third season of Marcella out now. Since we couldn't remember much of anything about the first two -- except we really liked them -- we started over from the beginning. So this has been binge watch week. We finished S1 yesterday, will start on S2 today. In case you think I've turned into a sloth, you are correct. I do walk Penny every morning, and I do cook our dinners and make our bread. The house is tidy and fairly clean, bed made, kitchen sterile. But once the quotidian tasks are completed, you will find e curled up in my chair watching mindless TV. Schitt's Creek is our newest daytime favorite.

    And Governor Cuomo's daily press conference is never missed. We arrange our day around this.

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    1. Ann, dinner, bread, clean and sanitized sounds like more than enough work for a day to me! Remember, it's not sloth, it's "self care." :-)

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    2. It is interesting that Schitt's Creek is so popular in the US. Catriona M was also binge watching and loving it. A Canadian TV show with mainkynCanadixn stars is usually not so popular!

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    3. And of course auto correct is NOT working when I posted my above reply while on the phone....grrr!

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  16. I also just watched Space Force and loved it! While I came for the snark, it was the warmhearted approach to the characters I ended up liking the best.

    While I saw Knives Out at the theater back in the olden days, I watched it again once it was "free" on Amazon Prime and really enjoyed it the second time around, too. Since I knew whodunit, and since I was home alone watching it, I caught a lot more of the subtle notes. And now I may have to watch it a third time to look for the Agatha teapot.

    The movies I've watched have almost all been ones I've seen before. I seem to switch back and forth between dystopian, end-of-the-world movies (Contagion, World War Z, Signs, War of the Worlds, On the Beach) and feel good happy movies (The Holiday, Notting Hill, Hoosiers, Field of Dreams). I also just finished re-watching all 10 seasons of Stargate SG-1, a fun sci-fi show.

    Silver Streak was one of my favorite movies when it came out. I watched it again a couple of years ago and found it still made me laugh, just because Richard Pryor and Gene Wilder are so funny, but it did have a few cringeworthy moments. I haven't seen the others since they came out so this might now be my schedule for the rest of the day!

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    1. Cindy, I usually love all those end-of-the-world movies, but am off them right now. Maybe it's the discover that the real end-of-the-world-as-we-know-it is such a combination of boring and stupid...

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  17. No purposeful movie watching around here. Spending non-working hours reading with the TV as background noise. Oldies? Hmm, what would I consider? Hmm, okay I'm stumped. Why would I think that if I lived through those times (60s, 70s 80s) that a movie produced then would be an oldie, it can't, can it? Am I am oldie? Oh... sigh.

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    1. Don't worry, Deana, even if you lived through it all, they'll still look like oldies and you'll feel very modern.

      One of the things I pointed out to the kids was how fast and thoroughly fashions changed in the seventies. In Airport, women have shellacked hair, the men are in suits, and even the "mod" clothing is very constructed and formal. Silver Streak, made just six years later, looks like it came from a different planet - loose hair, soft, informal clothing, entirely different sillouettes.

      It made me realize what an unchanging fashion moment we've been living in the past few decades. There are very few items of clothing I had in 2000 that I wouldn't feel completely comfortable wearing right now. You certainly couldn't say that between 1960 and 1980.

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  18. I rewatched It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World a couple months ago. Still hilarious!

    Speaking of the 70's, I've been rewatching The Mary Tyler Moore Show on Saturdays via my DVD collection. I'm loving revisiting the characters and laughing. There are occasional moments that make me laugh because of how dated they are. Like Mr. Grant bragging about how a friend of his has a phone in his car, which obviously makes him super successful.

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    1. We collected a lot of classic TV shows as DVDs over the years, Mark, and I can't believe we don't have any Mary Tyler Moore. I did make my kids watch the whole Chuckles' Funeral episode via YouTube. I don't think that kind of character-based humor ever gets old.

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    2. The Chuckles funeral episode is amazingly funny.

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    3. The Chuckles episode is a classic.

      And that's just it. So much of the show is timeless because the laughs come from the characters. Yes, there are occasional references to things that are now dated, not to mention the fashions and decorating. But the comedy itself is still laugh out loud funny.

      MTM was one of 5 shows I was going to allow myself to buy when they first started releasing TV on DVD. It was the one that took the longest to come out, but I've bought so many series on DVD and Blu-Ray now it isn't even funny.

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  19. 70s movies, oh my. I vaguely remember those three, Julia, and I remember thinking The Taking of Pelham was good. We watched Die Hard at Christmas, which was 1988, and as Gigi says above, is a fascinating cultural snapshot. And besides, Bruce Willis. And Alan Rickman.

    I think the last movie we watched at home was Knives Out when it came out on Prime. We have been embroiled the last few weeks in Fortitude, because we tend to only watch together on weekends. It's very dark and very gory but I have loved it regardless. And besides, Stanley Tucci in Season 1, and Dennis Quaid in Season 2. And lots of other fabulous actors, especially the female governor and the two female police officers. Parminder Nagra is in S2 as a baddie doctor and she's wonderful, as always. Which makes me wonder how Bend It Like Beckham has held up, from 2002. There's a fun film for your movie nights, Julia, if you do sports films!

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    1. I haven't proposed any sports theme yet, but we have Bend It Like Beckham and the kids have always loved it.

      The Smithie and I watched the first season of Fortitude and LOVED it back when it first came out (or thereabouts.) One episode into the second season, she moved in with the bf, and it just wasn't as much fun to watch alone, so i didn't get any further. Maybe I can persuade her to reup! It really is SO dark and twisted, but brilliantly acted. And the scenery!

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    2. It's SO good!! And SO cold!!!!! We have two episodes left of S2. Looking forward to those on Friday night. My friend who watched all 3 seasons promises me that it all makes sense in the end... But you're right, I can't imagine watching it alone.

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    3. Looks like I'm going to have to check out Fortitude.

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  20. Julia, I love the descriptions of the movies you've watched. After Automobile Week, you might try Boat Week. One of the blockbuster disaster movies of the '70s was The Poseidon Adventure, complete with lots of "star" actors, the main one of whom I remember was Shelley Winters. Then you can include Jaws - "we need a bigger boat" - and move on from there.

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    1. I hadn't even thought about Boat Week, Mary, but you're right, it would be terrific. I actually rewatched the original The Poseidon Adventure last year, and was impressed by how well it stood up. There's something about those big budget disaster movies of the 70s - they couldn't rely on spectacular computer generated sfx, so they stuffed the cast with big names and developed backstory drama for everyone.

      And yes, Shelley Winters, getting to play against type when she announces, "I was a champion swimmer in college," and saves the team!

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    2. And you could watch Overboard! Goldie Hawn.

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    3. Karen, yes, Overboard with Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell is a favorite of mine. Although it's not from the 70s, The Perfect Storm is a great boat movie, too. Oh, and one of my all-time favorite boat movies is Captain Ron with Kurt Russell, Martin Short, and Mary Kay Place. It's hilarious!

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  21. Julia, I meant to say, I loved Doris Roberts. She was fabulous in anything she did, but my favorite was Mildred Krebs in Remington Steele. I'd love to watch that series again.

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    1. Deborah, I have the entire series on DVD from my mother's collection. I hope to get around to watching it someday. I saw it as it aired but not since then.

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    2. Remington Steele! There's another classic that's well worth getting on DVD. One of the original "will they or won't they" couples.

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    3. Oh yes, I had a huge Pierce Brosnan crush while watching that show. Not so much when he became James Bond.

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    4. Grace, I think he does better in roles where he's allowed to have that Irish twinkle. he had to take himself too seriously as Bond.

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    5. Yes, I so agree, Julia. He's been lovely in the Mama Mias.

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  23. if you watched Airport, then you just gotta watch Airplane!! The 70s had a lot of disaster movies - did you watch The Towering Inferno yet? We've been watching new movies on Roku, youtube, or getting dvds from our library - we've been able to pick up material for a month, and the library reopened June 8 so we are enjoying all their good stuff again.

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    1. Pauline, we've all seen Airplane, of course, and I think we're going to watch it next. I told the kids the gags in Airplane are much funnier once you've seen the original movie it was spoofing.

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  24. Slightly OT, but good . . . In response to the uproar over the temporary withdrawal of GWtW,
    a media-savvy friend was asked for recommendations:
    Andy Ross If you wanna talk movies just from 1939, the same year as "Gone With The Wind" you have: The Wizard of Oz, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, The Women, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Ninotchika, Another Thin Man, Son of Frankenstein, Stagecoach, Of Mice and Men, Hound of the Baskervilles.

    Larger scale classic era: Casablanca--which is a better film than Gone with the Wind, Rebecca, Notorious, Double Indemnity, Sunset Blvd., The Maltese Falcon, Now Voyager, Arsenic and Old Lace, The Palm Beach Story, A Matter of Life and Death, Top Hat, The Bandwagon, Singing in the Rain, Literally any Universal Monster Movie, Rope, Rear Window, North by Northwest, King Kong, Duck Soup, A Night at The Opera, A Face in the Crowd, Kiss of Death, The Treasure of Sierra Madre, Key Largo, It Happened One Night, Kiss Me Deadly, The Grapes of Wrath, A Hard Day's Night, Citizen Kane, Suspicion, Cluny Brown, The Awful Truth, Bringing Up Baby, Dial M For Murder, Call Northside 777, Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House, Easter Parade, Million Dollar Mermaid, The Best Years of Our Lives, The Bishop's Wife, Christmas in Connecticut, Leave Her to Heaven, Laura, The Innocents, The Haunting, House of Wax, Abbott and Costello meet Frankenstein, Godzilla, And Then There Were None, the list goes on and on and on. LITERALLY there is a channel that is dedicated to airing classic movies and gives you context to understand and appreciate them. It's called Turner Classic Movies, look it up people.

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    1. LOL! Mary, I'm letting you curate my movie viewing from now on!

      We don't have TCM (no cable!) but I've noticed a lot of wonderful old movies are available for free in their entirety on YouTube.

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    2. No TCM in Canada ...and no cable for me, either!

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  25. Julia, what a great tour of the 70s, the decade I graduated from high school, graduated from college, and got married. A major decade for me, as well as movies. The movies you've provided for our tour are all such classics. I do have to admit I might prefer the Denzel Washington, 2009, remake of The Taking of Pelham, but with loving both Walter Matthau and Denzel, it's close. Gene Wilder is another actor I consider brilliant in anything he did, and his partnership with Richard Pryor was a great one, as well as his collaborations with Mel Brooks. My son and I are wild about Mel Brooks, and I might need to line up a Mel Brooks movie night with Kevin when I can get him home again for a couple of days.

    My movie watching or Netflix or Amazon watching has been a mix. Husband and I watched Knives Out on Amazon the other night. We had seen it at the theater, but he suggested we watch it again. I was absolutely delighted and surprised that he wanted to watch it again, and so we did and enjoyed it. I missed the teapot, again, but I plan on watching it again for that and for the Gordon Lightfoot song Sundown that comes in when Ransom takes Marta away from the Thrombey estate for a drink and something to eat. I also, by myself, finally watched the third season of Ozark, and I thought it was excellent. I've taken a break from Vera, but I think I'm on season five there, and I'll resume it again soon. I'm going to suggest watching Space Force to my husband, but I'll watch it with or without him.

    I rather have an itch for some older comedy movies that include The Burbs, with Tom Hanks; Throw Momma from the Train, with Billy Crystal and DeVito; True Lies, with Jamie Lee Curtis and Arnold Schwarzenegger; any Mel Brooks; The Decoy Bride, with David Tennant and Kelly Macdonald; and so many more favorites.

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    1. Kathy, if you're looking for older comedies and you like Billy Crystal,, you've got to add City Slickers to that list. It's hysterically funny, and has a scene involving a horse that still makes me laugh just thinking about it.

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    2. Julia, I love the City Slickers movies. I started to list it, too. Jack Palance as Curly is one of my favorite parts of it, and the horse scene is hilarious.

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  26. We watched Knives Out this weekend. We loved it! Great plot. It is interesting to hear a British Southern accent. I remember Michael Caine’s in 70s movies was quite broad. Being exposed to Benoit Blanc and then Bushrod Whacker on Acorn’s Dead Still I feel like I need to rename our son!
    There are a lot of awful movies from the 70s. Earthquake anyone? Or Hotel? I think we used to refer to them as potboilers. But I still rewatch Jaws. That is a classic and you can make fun of the mayor and his clothes. Also Young Frankenstein. We still quote lines from that movie. The Sting was good and brought Scott Joplin music back. But I couldn’t tell you when I saw it last. TV-wise I focus on series and new movies on Amazon, Netflix, and Acorn. Netflix had a neat movie called The Healer I can recommend. And absolutely watch Dead Still on Acorn. Great characters, Victorian mystery in Dublin, and humor!

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    1. Pat, I've heard a lot of friends suggest Acorn, and I think I may have to try it, despite wanting to draw a line against adding still more subscription services. But I love British series, so it may well be worth my while.

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    2. Acorn has the Miss Fisher Mysteries. Kerry Greenwood's books are better than the TV series, but the series is worth watching if only for the fashion and the sets. Also, I enjoyed Brokenwood - a NZ production reminiscent of Midsommer Murders.

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  27. My husband convinced me that our kids just HAD to see Airplane . . . We had to keep covering the youngest's eyes or ears! And there were definitely some moments we had to, um, explain and process with them. Hoping most of it went over her head . . .

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    1. Sarah, that reminds me of when we bought the DVD of that great family film, Billy Elliot. The actors use very thick northern accents. It wasn't until the third time we saw it that Ross and I realized the characters weren't saying "foogin" all the time...

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  28. A wonderful array of choices. I am the Hitchcock aficionado; my default station is TCM. I have a soft spot for Eddie Muller on Noir Alley. We just finished 2 seasons of THE MISSING on Netflix.

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    1. Connie Sue, I think I need to try that series. I've seen Tchéky Karyo in other films and loved him in everything.

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  29. while doing online school I have been watching Midsomer Murders - up to season 19 now

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  30. Real fast note - when you get to watch oldies in the theater or without interruption through Netflix or some other streaming channel, do you know where the commercial breaks are going to be? No? I know where almost all the breaks will be when watching contemporary movies but not oldies.

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  31. How did I miss this? We love 123, truly suspenseful. We are watching old movies, for some reason :-) from the 30s and 40s. We just watched Woman in the Window with Edward G Robinson and Joanne Bennett. It is absolutely fascinating, and I would love to know what you all think. as for 70s movies, I remember really disliking silver streak, but I could not have told you why. wasn’t Star Wars in 1976 or so? We are going to have to look at our playlist. It might be fun to see some of those! for current TV, we just watched Quiz, about the couple who may or may not have tried to rip off the British quiz show you who wants to be a millionaire. Loved it.

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  32. Thanks for this post and the inspiration! We are going to have a family movie club on Thursday nights. We picked themes (Sports, Alien Encounters, and Animation were the winners), and each pick one movie in the theme. This will be a lot of fun.

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