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- 2026 Shakespeare Reading Project: Much Ado About Nothing
- “I don’t represent anything.” — Liz Phair
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- “Some syllables are swords.” — Metaphysical poet Henry Vaughan
- “To me, music is no joke and it’s not for sale.” — Ian MacKaye
- “All I need to make a comedy is a park, a policeman and a pretty girl.” — Charlie Chaplin
- “As a cinematographer, I was always attracted to stories that have the potential to be told with as few words as possible.” — Reed Morano
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- “It’s just one of the mysteries of filmmaking that sometimes you do something that you don’t even think it’s important, then it turns out to be.” — Lili Horvát
- “Ballet taught me to stay close to style and tone. Literature taught me to be concerned about the moral life.” — Joan Acocella
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Tag Archives: Leo McCarey
April 2018 Viewing Diary
Elvis Presley: The Searcher (2018; d. Thom Zimny) New 2-part HBO doc about Elvis. Grateful it exists now. Long overdue artistic redress. I reviewed for Ebert. Morvern Callar (2002; d. Lynne Ramsay) Re-watched in preparation for her latest, You Were … Continue reading
Posted in James Joyce, Monthly Viewing Diary, Movies, Television
Tagged Coen brothers, Costa-Gavras, documentary, Elvis Presley, Finnegans Wake, France, Handmaid's Tale, Japan, Jared Padalecki, Jeff Bridges, Jensen Ackles, Joan Blondell, Leo McCarey, Margaret Atwood, Martha Coolidge, Mervyn LeRoy, Norway, politics, Robert Duvall, Sebastián Lelio, Supernatural, women directors
8 Comments
Make Way for Tomorrow (1937); Director: Leo McCarey
Peter Bogdanovich, during one of his many conversations with Orson Welles, asked Welles if he had ever seen a little-known film that was a flop in its original release, Make Way For Tomorrow, directed by Leo McCarey. And Welles exploded, … Continue reading
End of Summer Movie Quiz: My Answers
Dennis Cozzalio presents: Dr. Smithâs Lost in the Space at the End of Summer Movie Quiz. I live for his seasonal quizzes! I have answered (in my typical fashion) with images and Youtube clips rather than just words. It’s been … Continue reading
Posted in Movies
Tagged All That Jazz, Bob Fosse, Cyd Charisse, Dana Andrews, Eminem, Ewan McGregor, Howard Hawks, Jim Carrey, Joan Crawford, John Travolta, Lance Kerwin, Leo McCarey, Liza Minnelli, Maggie Cheung, Marlene Dietrich, Nicole Kidman, Oliver, Only Angels Have Wings, Paul Thomas Anderson, Ralph Macchio, Rita Hayworth, Running on Empty, Saturday Night Fever, Sidney Lumet, Strait Jacket, The Darjeeling Limited, The Double Life of Veronique, Wes Anderson, Zodiac
11 Comments
Archie Leach day: “Me jujitsu too!”
The Awful Truth has been described as a “tuning fork” for other comedies, and it’s obvious why. The tone of this film is so light, so crazed, so assured – the laughs come like clockwork – you know you are … Continue reading
Archie Leach day: The Awful Truth
Sylvia Scarlett was the first inkling of the success that was to come – but the movie itself was a flop. The Awful Truth was an enormous success and it made Cary Grant a huge star.
Posted in Actors, Movies
Tagged Cary Grant, Irene Dunne, Leo McCarey, Sylvia Scarlett, The Awful Truth
Comments Off on Archie Leach day: The Awful Truth
Cary Grant in “Affair to Remember”: A Method Performance
This is a re-post of something I wrote a while back. It has to do with the history of acting, of the method acting style, of Stanislavsky’s teachings, and how I think Grant fits into that continuum. It’s very in-depth. … Continue reading
Posted in Actors
Tagged Actors Studio, Anton Chekhov, Cary Grant, Deborah Kerr, Eleonora Duse, Leo McCarey, Marlon Brando, Meryl Streep, Robert De Niro
14 Comments
The “Tuning Fork” of The Awful Truth
The Awful Truth has been described as a “tuning fork” for other comedies, and it’s obvious why. The tone of this film is so light, so crazed, so assured – the laughs come like clockwork – you know you are … Continue reading
Irene Dunne: Laughing While Singing
I’m posting this for my dear friend Kate – who had not seen the wonderful Awful Truth until recently. I was so excited for her to experience it. I told her when I was in Chicago that she reminds me … Continue reading
Posted in Actors, Movies
Tagged Cary Grant, Irene Dunne, Leo McCarey, Ralph Bellamy, The Awful Truth
9 Comments
The “Broad-Minded Marriage” in The Awful Truth
The Awful Truth has been described as a “tuning fork” for other comedies, and it’s obvious why. The tone of this film is so light, so crazed, so assured – the laughs come like clockwork – you know you are … Continue reading
Posted in Movies
Tagged Cary Grant, Irene Dunne, Leo McCarey, Ralph Bellamy, The Awful Truth
9 Comments