The Tyrone Power Discussion Board
Movies for which Tyrone Power should have received an Oscar nomination...
Top of the list of course is Nightmare Alley -- I suspect we're all in agreement on that one. :) I had a look at the male lead performances that were nominated that year (1947) and Ty should not only have been nominated, he should have WON.
Agreed. That 10 minute (or so) scene very close to the end of the film where he's describing what a geek does (?) to his fellow hoboes is--and i know this might be sacriligeous to many--as good a piece of work as Olivier has ever done. Those 10 minutes or so, surely solidify his claim to being a superb actor *when* he was given the material to rise to.
Ronald Colman -- A Double Life {"Anthony John"} (winner)
John Garfield -- Body and Soul {"Charlie Davis"}
Gregory Peck -- Gentleman's Agreement {"Phil Green"}
William Powell -- Life with Father {"Clarence Day"}
Michael Redgrave -- Mourning Becomes Electra {"Orin Mannon"}
>>>I *worship* Ronald Colman (as well as the other gentlemen who were all wonderful) but the performance that should have won Colman the Oscar was Sydney Carton in A Tale of Two Cities. What a great movie.
TOO TRUE!!! And how, uhm, sexy was he in that role as well! (On the other hand, the Sydney Carton character is a true heartbreaker, IMHO.) (On a side note, the BBC did an excellent version in '89 with James Wilby. Have you seen that Peachtreegal? It's worth a look.)
>>There are two other Ty performances I consider top of the line Oscar worthy... actually there are bunches of them but these two in particular I think should have appealed to the Academy:
>>The Mark of Zorro -- Ty's performance in a triple role is flawless, plus he duels and dances! But maybe it was too much of a swashbuckler for the Academy. Not "serious" enough.
He outacts Flynn from *his* swashbuckler, big time. Many more subtlteties than Flynn's performance, in spades! Still, like comedic roles the AA would never give it to an adventure role, as you say! (Quite ridiculous of when you think of the likes of Chaplin, Grant, etc.!)
>>Witness for the Prosecution -- Ty's performance turns on a dime --
VERY well said! On a dime, indeed 
!!
in a way it's another multiple role. He's really good at this kind of thing. Stanton Carlisle is a multiple role too, as there are several Stans -- real Stan (seen only when alone or when he's been destroyed and maybe with Lillith the psychologist) and Stan the performer -- performing either before an audience or with people he wants something from (like Zeena and Pete and Molly). Perhaps something in Ty responded to the ambiguity of these kinds of roles -- he understood what it was like to be one thing to the public and another thing in private. Not sure why this didn't get a nomination but maybe a thriller again is not "serious" enough for the Oscar voters... Marlene Dietrich was sure she'd get a nomination too but didn't.
Weren't there people that were convinced this wasn't Dietrich?! If memory serves, there were 'disbelievers' for several years after that. Goes to show what chops she had as well when the right role came around. (Admittedly, she improved with age as well.)
Not sure if I agree with you 100% in regards to the ones below other than Abandon Ship, This Above All, Rawhide and possibly Eddy Duchin. The rest seemed to be more or less standard fare as far as his performances--or at least, the roles didn't require much stretching, etc. And it appears (to this viewer at least) that he was walking through "Diplomatic Courier." You hit the nail on the head as far he's performances in relation to each film.
Second Honeymoon is a bit more sophisticated than Thin Ice and he's clearly grown even after only a year from that film. He has that charming cynicism while keeping the character enormously likeable, that the former film didn't have either. Second H. is the most sophisticated of his 30's screwballs, I thought (despite not being nearly as good enough as some of the greats ala "Nothing Sacred", "The Awful Truth" etc.)
>>>Some other stand-out performances that deserved recognition
>>>Alexander's Ragtime Band. A "fluffy" musical... ok. But Ty gives a fervent performance as a man driven by music and ambition and love.
>>>Rose of Washington Square. A not so fluffy musical and an unusual role for Ty, even if he is playing again the charming rogue, because for once, he is genuinely small-time and a loser. He may try to fly close to the sun but unlike his other characters who manage it and then crash (see Nightmare Alley), Bart doesn't have a chance. He's just not that smart. But Ty makes you understand why Rose would fall for this dope and why she would stick with him no matter what.
>>>Thin Ice. It doesn't get more fluffy than this but a great example of Ty's ability to play comedy and light-hearted romance and he seems to having a marvelous time harrumphing in disguise as the "elderly" prince... hey, another dual role! There is a moment -- a reaction shot -- in this movie that is quite literally one of my all-time favorite Ty moments from his entire filmography. 
>>>This Above All. Heartfelt with a capital H, even if Clive is traumatized and bitter.
>>>Jesse James. I have some qualms about this movie overall but not Ty's performance, especially in the scene with his little son.
>>>Rawhide -- Ty's other western and I actually like it better than Jesse James. Tough, tense, compact, and for once Ty's good looks are not relevant as his greenhorn character (OK, he's 10 years too old for the role) has to rely on his brains rather than charm. Even Susan Hayward isn't impressed with him for most of the movie.
>>>The Eddy Duchin Story. One of Ty's most passionate performances (despite some really bad dialogue) and that "Merry Christmas! Merry Christmas!" scene is a gut-wrencher. Not to mention the jaw-dropping faux piano playing.
>>>King of the Khyber Rifles. Far from a great movie but I love Ty's performance as the half-Indian, half-English officer who hides his pain under a stoic, expressionless mask (except when he's alone). Maybe another one of those double roles? Also wonder who came up with the idea of making Alan biracial as the character in the original novel is not, and that would have been a fairly radical notion for a movie in the early 50s.
>>>Abandon Ship. If ever there was a character caught in a moral trap, it's Alec Holmes, and Ty does a great job playing a man who manages (barely) not to crack while fulfilling the cruel code of the sea. The moment when he throws hmself overboard is a shocker, even if you see it coming.
>>>The Sun Also Rises. Both Ty and Errol Flynn are too old for their roles, but overlooking that, they're both great. And although Flynn has the more showy role and thus kind of steals the movie (and it is one of the great swan song performances), Ty is rock solid and apart from his age, perfect for the role. The audience back in 1957 must have been stunned when their aging matinee idol was told (in a scene not in the book) that he was impotent -- that very word must have been a real jolt.
I could go on (and on) but I should stop. But Ty's filmography is an embarrasment of riches -- even if he himself thought a lot of it was just an embarrasment.
I really meant to include it as a favorite performance --
Diplomatic Courier. Another unique entry in the Power filmography -- a spy thriller. Ty is very believable as Mike, a diplomatic courier, and although his good looks make not one but two potential romances believable, you don't get the feeling that his appearance is something Mike thinks much about. He's all about the job and with this particular job, frustration and anger with all the double-dealing, trickery and treachery, and the death of an old friend.
>Agreed. That 10 minute (or so) scene very close to the end of the film where he's describing what a geek does (?) to his fellow hoboes is--and i know this might be sacriligeous to many--as good a piece of work as Olivier has ever done.
I don't think that's sacrilegious. Everyone who saw Olivier in the theater said that was where he was at his glorious best -- that by comparison he is relatively stiff on film. Though I'll always love him in movies like Rebecca and Wuthering Heights and a few others...
It's like Al Jolson in his movies (including Rose of Washington Square). He's definitely a force of nature but the movies are only a pale reflection of what he was like on stage.
Re Ronald Colman in A Tale of Two Cities:
>TOO TRUE!!! And how, uhm, sexy was he in that role as well! (On the other hand, the Sydney Carton character is a true heartbreaker, IMHO.) (On a side note, the BBC did an excellent version in '89 with James Wilby. Have you seen that Peachtreegal? It's worth a look.)
No, I haven't seen that one. I can't say that James Wilby has ever done much for me, though, but if I ever find the time I may get around to watching it.
>He outacts Flynn from *his* swashbuckler, big time.
Flynn's swashbuckler roles weren't as complex as Zorro, but then, were any of Ty's other swashbuckler roles that complex either? Zorro really is one of a kind. Anyway, I would never ever put down Flynn, because I kind of worship the guy and think he was a far better actor than most critics (and Flynn himself) gave him credit for. And he's sublime in The Sun Also Rises, although I suppose you could say in a way he was playing himself.
By the way, supposedly a remake of Captain Blood is in the works. Where in the world do they expect to find an actor to rival Flynn's grace, charm and athleticism? Half of it will be CGI, I bet. 
>Still, like comedic roles the AA would never give it to an adventure role, as you say! (Quite ridiculous of when you think of the likes of Chaplin, Grant, etc.!)
Alfred Hitchcock never won an Oscar either. Oscars are nice for a number of reasons but they are no certain indicator of greatness.
>>Marlene Dietrich was sure she'd get a nomination too but didn't.
>Weren't there people that were convinced this wasn't Dietrich?! If memory serves, there were 'disbelievers' for several years after that. Goes to show what chops she had as well when the right role came around. (Admittedly, she improved with age as well.)
I never heard that there were people who were convinced even after seeing the movie that it wasn't Dietrich (but that doesn't mean it didn't happen), but I can understand it, as I remember vividly that the first time I saw Witness -- back in the Jurassic Age -- I had no idea that the "Ducky" character (does she have a name?) was actually Dietrich. That movie has so many wonderful twists! 
>Not sure if I agree with you 100% in regards to the ones below other than Abandon Ship, This Above All, Rawhide and possibly Eddy Duchin. The rest seemed to be more or less standard fare as far as his performances--or at least, the roles didn't require much stretching, etc.
It's not "stretching" I'm talking about so much as his just being invested in the part. There are lots of little acting moments and bits of business (I love Ty and his hats when they're in his hands) that tell me he's not just walking through stuff, even if he's less than happy with the material. Untamed -- now THAT is walking through a role!
>Second Honeymoon is a bit more sophisticated than Thin Ice and he's clearly grown even after only a year from that film.
I've only watched Second Honeymoon once -- I know you're a big advocate for that one -- and eventually I'll get around to watching it again. Thin Ice, though, has that playacting with the disguises that seems to suit Ty's love of performance so well.
> He has that charming cynicism while keeping the character enormously likeable, that the former film didn't have either.
Cynicism is overrated sometimes. That said, Thin Ice offers a rather jaundiced though comically expressed depiction of politics, journalism, ambition and small-town insularism, and Ty's prince is pretty much tired of all the nonsense and cheerfully determined to go his own way, just as Sonja Henie's character is annoyed by the gossiping. Please don't get me wrong. Thin Ice is no masterpiece and it's fluffy to the max but it does like to make its jibes.
>Second H. is the most sophisticated of his 30's screwballs, I thought (despite not being nearly as good enough as some of the greats ala "Nothing Sacred", "The Awful Truth" etc.)
Second Honeymoon, whatever its charms, is not even close to the level of classics like Nothing Sacred or The Awful Truth. IMHO. Speaking of Nothing Sacred, I was just reminded the other day of what a wonderful actor Fredric March was when I rewatched (for the first time in many years) The Eagle and the Hawk. A really wrenching performance, and Cary Grant, in an early role that was very much not the suave leading man thing at all was very good too.
(Great post Peachtreegal :-)!)
>Agreed. That 10 minute (or so) scene very close to the end of the film where he's describing what a geek does (?) to his fellow hoboes is--and i know this might be sacriligeous to many--as good a piece of work as Olivier has ever done.
>>>I don't think that's sacrilegious. Everyone who saw Olivier in the theater said that was where he was at his glorious best -- that by comparison he is relatively stiff on film. Though I'll always love him in movies like Rebecca and Wuthering Heights and a few others...
AND RICHARD III...KILLER ROLE AND HE'S A KILLER IN IT ! (I CAN NEVER GET ENOUGH OF THE SCENE WHERE HE FORCES RALPH RICHARDSON AS BUCKINGHAM TO KNEEL TO HIM ONCE HE KNOWS HE HAS SECURED THE CROWN...BUT I'M DIGRESSING !
>>It's like Al Jolson in his movies (including Rose of Washington Square). He's definitely a force of nature but the movies are only a pale reflection of what he was like on stage.
YOU'RE DEAD ON WITH THIS NO DOUBT--MORE TRUE OF JOSLON THAN MOST STAGE ACTORS WHO MADE THE TRANSITION TO FILM, ONE WOULD IMAGINE.
>>No, I haven't seen that one. I can't say that James Wilby has ever done much for me, though, but if I ever find the time I may get around to watching it.
YEAH, CHECK IT OUT IF YOU GET A CHANCE. HE MAY SURPRISE YOU; IT'S A GREAT CAST AS WELL.
>He outacts Flynn from *his* swashbuckler, big time.
>>>Flynn's swashbuckler roles weren't as complex as Zorro, but then, were any of Ty's other swashbuckler roles that complex either? Zorro really is one of a kind. Anyway, I would never ever put down Flynn, because I kind of worship the guy and think he was a far better actor than most critics (and Flynn himself) gave him credit for.
YES, YOU'RE RIGHT ABOUT FLYNN NOT GETTING BETTER MATERIAL. GREAT SIMILARITIES WITH POWER IN THAT RESPECT. AGREED WITH THE COMPLEXITIES OF THE "ZORRO" AND THE LACK THEREOF OF THE ROBIN HOOD CHARACTER. POWER HAD THE TRICKIER ROLE AND ROSE TO THE OCCASSION. I STILL THINK POWER WAS A MORE COMPLEX ACTOR, THOUGH, EVEN THOUGH I, TOO, AM A FLYNN FAN. ONE OF MY FAVORITES IS A LITTLE KNOWN FILM OF HIS THAT HE DID IN THE LATE 40'S WITH ELEANOR PARKER WHERE THEY PLAYED DIVORCED PARENTS. HILARIOUS! "THE DAWN PATROL" IS ANOTHER GREAT ONE.
>>>And he's sublime in The Sun Also Rises, although I suppose you could say in a way he was playing himself.
>>>By the way, supposedly a remake of Captain Blood is in the works. Where in the world do they expect to find an actor to rival Flynn's grace, charm and athleticism? Half of it will be CGI, I bet.
WOW, HAVEN'T HEARD OF THAT! WONDER IF IMDB HAS ANYTHING ON IT (?)
>Still, like comedic roles the AA would never give it to an adventure role, as you say! (Quite ridiculous of when you think of the likes of Chaplin, Grant, etc.!)
>>>Alfred Hitchcock never won an Oscar either. Oscars are nice for a number of reasons but they are no certain indicator of greatness.
>>Marlene Dietrich was sure she'd get a nomination too but didn't.
>>>I never heard that there were people who were convinced even after seeing the movie that it wasn't Dietrich (but that doesn't mean it didn't happen), but I can understand it, as I remember vividly that the first time I saw Witness -- back in the Jurassic Age -- I had no idea that the "Ducky" character (does she have a name?) was actually Dietrich. That movie has so many wonderful twists!
I RECALL READING THIS (MORE THAN ONCE IF MEMORY SERVES) REGARDING DIETRICH'S BEING 'DOUBTED' THAT IT WAS HER. (I THINK SHE HAD TO 'PROVE' IT AS WELL, AT ONE POINT.) CAN'T FOR THE LIFE OF ME RECALL WHEN.
IT *DOES* HAVE MANY TWISTS--I THINK ELSA LANCHESTER AND CHARLES LAUGHTON STEAL THE SHOW !
>Not sure if I agree with you 100% in regards to the ones below other than Abandon Ship, This Above All, Rawhide and possibly Eddy Duchin. The rest seemed to be more or less standard fare as far as his performances--or at least, the roles didn't require much stretching, etc.
>>>It's not "stretching" I'm talking about so much as his just being invested in the part. There are lots of little acting moments and bits of business (I love Ty and his hats when they're in his hands) that tell me he's not just walking through stuff, even if he's less than happy with the material. Untamed -- now THAT is walking through a role!
>>>I've only watched Second Honeymoon once -- I know you're a big advocate for that one -- and eventually I'll get around to watching it again. Thin Ice, though, has that playacting with the disguises that seems to suit Ty's love of performance so well.
I DON'T THINK I'LL EVER BE CONVERTED IN REGARDS TO THIN ICE. A SOMEWHAT THIN FILM AS WELL, IT SEEMED. I DUNNO, HE REALLY SEEMS HIS (VERY YOUNG) AGE IN THAT FILM AS WELL WHEREAS IN "SECOND HONEYMOON" (AND "LOVE IS NEWS" TO A LESSER DEGREE) HE WAS MORE THE SOPHSTICIATE.
YES, WELL SAID ABOUT THE LITTLE TOUCHES HE WOULD IMBUE CERTAIN FILMS AND HIS INVESTMENT IN ROLES. I'M ASHAMED TO ADMIT THAT I HAVEN'T PAID MUCH ATTENTION TO THE USING PROPS AS YOU SAY, BUT WILL DEFINITELY DO SO NEXT TIME.
> He has that charming cynicism while keeping the character enormously likeable, that the former film didn't have either.
>>>Cynicism is overrated sometimes. That said, Thin Ice offers a rather jaundiced though comically expressed depiction of politics, journalism, ambition and small-town insularism, and Ty's prince is pretty much tired of all the nonsense and cheerfully determined to go his own way, just as Sonja Henie's character is annoyed by the gossiping. Please don't get me wrong. Thin Ice is no masterpiece and it's fluffy to the max but it does like to make its jibes.
>>>Second Honeymoon, whatever its charms, is not even close to the level of classics like Nothing Sacred or The Awful Truth. IMHO. Speaking of Nothing Sacred, I was just reminded the other day of what a wonderful actor Fredric March was when I rewatched (for the first time in many years) The Eagle and the Hawk. A really wrenching performance, and Cary Grant, in an early role that was very much not the suave leading man thing at all was very good too.
ABSOLUTELY NO DOUBT THAT IT WASN'T EVEN CLOSE TO THE SCREWBALL CLASSICS YOU MENTION ABOVE. BUT IN REGARDS TO TP'S COMEDIES, I DO THINK SECOND IS A SLIGHT CUT ABOVE.
HAVE YOU SEEN MARCH IN "DEATH TAKES A HOLIDAY" BTW?
>YOU'RE DEAD ON WITH THIS NO DOUBT--MORE TRUE OF JOSLON THAN MOST STAGE ACTORS WHO MADE THE TRANSITION TO FILM, ONE WOULD IMAGINE.
Jolson especially but there are others... Ethel Merman in particular.
>YES, YOU'RE RIGHT ABOUT FLYNN NOT GETTING BETTER MATERIAL. GREAT SIMILARITIES WITH POWER IN THAT RESPECT. AGREED WITH THE COMPLEXITIES OF THE "ZORRO" AND THE LACK THEREOF OF THE ROBIN HOOD CHARACTER.
The Scarlet Pimpernel is another double-role hero… I did like Leslie Howard in the movie but my favorite version is the Anthony Andrews/Jane Seymour one.
>"THE DAWN PATROL" IS ANOTHER GREAT ONE.
That’s a fine movie but I have a slight preference for the earlier version (the first feature directed by Howard Hawks), starring Richard Barthelmess (another favorite actor) and Douglas Fairbanks Jr. My preference probably has everything to do with Barthelmess.
>WOW, HAVEN'T HEARD OF THAT! WONDER IF IMDB HAS ANYTHING ON IT (?)
It’s listed there but only as a title, no info. I read somewhere that Philip Noyce is supposed to direct.
>I RECALL READING THIS (MORE THAN ONCE IF MEMORY SERVES) REGARDING DIETRICH'S BEING 'DOUBTED' THAT IT WAS HER.
Maybe some people thought she can’t act either?
>IT *DOES* HAVE MANY TWISTS--I THINK ELSA LANCHESTER AND CHARLES LAUGHTON STEAL THE SHOW !
Those two are world-class scene stealers The fact that Ty was so memorable in their company says a lot about him!
>I DON'T THINK I'LL EVER BE CONVERTED IN REGARDS TO THIN ICE. A SOMEWHAT THIN FILM AS WELL, IT SEEMED.
Well, of course it is. I think my word for it was “fluffy.” Sonja Henie is no actress though she’s quite appealing on film. But there isn’t much you can get her to do besides ice-skating. Darryl Zanuck instructed the scriptwriter of Henie’s first movie, One in a Million, to make sure she had as little dialogue as possible and to make that dialogue simple and direct.
>I DUNNO, HE REALLY SEEMS HIS (VERY YOUNG) AGE IN THAT FILM AS WELL WHEREAS IN "SECOND HONEYMOON" (AND "LOVE IS NEWS" TO A LESSER DEGREE) HE WAS MORE THE SOPHSTICIATE.
The young prince in Thin Ice has spent his entire life – to judge from the way he bamboozles the courtiers, diplomats and the press – learning that everyone is out for himself and he has fun tweaking their noses. In fact, the more I talk to myself about this movie, the more I begin to suspect there is something to it besides ice skating and a Cinderella story.
As for Second Honeymoon, guess what, I just rewatched it. Yes, it is on the surface more sophisticated – Ty and Loretta’s characters, Raoul and Vicky, are working on love the second time around; actually for Vicky it will be the third time as a remarriage to Raoul is literally a third one for her character – but as movie champagne, I still find it pretty flat and lifeless. The characters seem to fulfill a function more than have a life of their own, and it seems to me there really isn’t anything more to the story than what’s there on the surface. In fact, this is one of the very few movies where I sit there and look at Ty thinking about how good-looking he is, rather than concentrating on the character he’s playing.
>YES, WELL SAID ABOUT THE LITTLE TOUCHES HE WOULD IMBUE CERTAIN FILMS AND HIS INVESTMENT IN ROLES. I'M ASHAMED TO ADMIT THAT I HAVEN'T PAID MUCH ATTENTION TO THE USING PROPS AS YOU SAY, BUT WILL DEFINITELY DO SO NEXT TIME.
Hat and cigarettes and cigarette lighters are the things I’ve been noticing mostly – it’s not as easy as it looks to deliver dialogue, hit your marks, and handle props with the right rhythm.
>HAVE YOU SEEN MARCH IN "DEATH TAKES A HOLIDAY" BTW?
Death Takes a Holiday, and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and The Sign of the Cross, and Nothing Sacred, and the Barretts of Wimpole Street, and Les Miserables, and I Married a Witch, and Anna Karenina, and Anthony Adverse, and Mary of Scotland and The Buccaneer and One Foot in Heaven and The Best Years of Our Life, and Seven Days in May and Executive Suite and Inherit the Wind and … I’ll stop there.
>>The Scarlet Pimpernel is another double-role hero… I did like Leslie Howard in the movie but my favorite version is the Anthony Andrews/Jane Seymour one.
Isn't Andrews fantastic in that, yes !! Born to play it really and wonderful chemistry with Seymour; particularly the bittersweet scenes when he thinks she betrayed him. Those were sexy scenes to boot, IMHO. Andrews is great in "Ivanhoe". Another seductive turn by him; although he should have run off with Rebecca...*that* Rebecca at least . Wonderful cast as well.
>"THE DAWN PATROL" IS ANOTHER GREAT ONE.
>>That’s a fine movie but I have a slight preference for the earlier version (the first feature directed by Howard Hawks), starring Richard Barthelmess (another favorite actor) and Douglas Fairbanks Jr. My preference probably has everything to do with Barthelmess.
My favorite is "Broken Blossoms". Positively heartbreaking. What say you about that one?
>I RECALL READING THIS (MORE THAN ONCE IF MEMORY SERVES) REGARDING DIETRICH'S BEING 'DOUBTED' THAT IT WAS HER.
>>Maybe some people thought she can’t act either?
Yeah, poor Dietrich Some of her 30's performances left a lot to be desired. But she acquited herself admirably in this one.
>IT *DOES* HAVE MANY TWISTS--I THINK ELSA LANCHESTER AND CHARLES LAUGHTON STEAL THE SHOW !
>>Those two are world-class scene stealers The fact that Ty was so memorable in their company says a lot about him!
>>I DON'T THINK I'LL EVER BE CONVERTED IN REGARDS TO THIN ICE. A SOMEWHAT THIN FILM AS WELL, IT SEEMED.
>>Well, of course it is. I think my word for it was “fluffy.” Sonja Henie is no actress though she’s quite appealing on film. But there isn’t much you can get her to do besides ice-skating. Darryl Zanuck instructed the scriptwriter of Henie’s first movie, One in a Million, to make sure she had as little dialogue as possible and to make that dialogue simple and direct.
LOL. Well, as you say one can see why. she's fun to watch but after a film or two you're Sonjad out, so to speak.
>I DUNNO, HE REALLY SEEMS HIS (VERY YOUNG) AGE IN THAT FILM AS WELL WHEREAS IN "SECOND HONEYMOON" (AND "LOVE IS NEWS" TO A LESSER DEGREE) HE WAS MORE THE SOPHSTICIATE.
>>>The young prince in Thin Ice has spent his entire life – to judge from the way he bamboozles the courtiers, diplomats and the press – learning that everyone is out for himself and he has fun tweaking their noses. In fact, the more I talk to myself about this movie, the more I begin to suspect there is something to it besides ice skating and a Cinderella story.
>>>As for Second Honeymoon, guess what, I just rewatched it. Yes, it is on the surface more sophisticated – Ty and Loretta’s characters, Raoul and Vicky, are working on love the second time around; actually for Vicky it will be the third time as a remarriage to Raoul is literally a third one for her character – but as movie champagne, I still find it pretty flat and lifeless. The characters seem to fulfill a function more than have a life of their own, and it seems to me there really isn’t anything more to the story than what’s there on the surface. In fact, this is one of the very few movies where I sit there and look at Ty thinking about how good-looking he is, rather than concentrating on the character he’s playing.
It IS pure fluff, yes, and it's not a particularly good film. In fact, one can argue that it's downright mediocre. Still, Power rises above the material most of the time..if not all, and I do think the 1st 45 min. or so, he does some of his best comedy. As often as I watch Thin Ice, it still seems to me like you can see him working at it.
>YES, WELL SAID ABOUT THE LITTLE TOUCHES HE WOULD IMBUE CERTAIN FILMS AND HIS INVESTMENT IN ROLES. I'M ASHAMED TO ADMIT THAT I HAVEN'T PAID MUCH ATTENTION TO THE USING PROPS AS YOU SAY, BUT WILL DEFINITELY DO SO NEXT TIME.
>>>Hat and cigarettes and cigarette lighters are the things I’ve been noticing mostly – it’s not as easy as it looks to deliver dialogue, hit your marks, and handle props with the right rhythm.
>>HAVE YOU SEEN MARCH IN "DEATH TAKES A HOLIDAY" BTW?
Death Takes a Holiday, and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and The Sign of the Cross, and Nothing Sacred, and the Barretts of Wimpole Street, and Les Miserables, and I Married a Witch, and Anna Karenina, and Anthony Adverse, and Mary of Scotland and The Buccaneer and One Foot in Heaven and The Best Years of Our Life, and Seven Days in May and Executive Suite and Inherit the Wind and … I’ll stop there.
He was an actor that improved with age, I thought. He was brilliant in "Inherit the Wind."
