Well, dear readers, you simply must check out the latest entries (there are two) in Juliana’s Journal. We promise to keep this more up to date from now on, every two or three days. Also, Mr. Craig Brockman assures me that the Ray Courts and Joe Allen Unseemly Photographs will be up by the end of this evening. Isn’t that exciting? Isn’t that just too too?
Last night I began watching the new DVD of Billy Wilder’s The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes. I’d only looked at a bit of the transfer, but I’m happy to report that after watching the first third of the film it’s really quite lovely, better than I’d first thought. It’s from the same source material as the laserdisc, but here it is much sharper with no artifacts and it looks gorgeous in its enhanced widescreen ratio. For those who are only used to today’s slick photography, you will have to get used to the heavy diffusion (very common to films of the late sixties and seventies) that was used by cameraman Christopher Challis. Just know that’s the way the film looked when it came out, so it’s an accurate representation on DVD. The film, despite the horrors inflicted on it, is still a bloody marvel – beautifully written and directed, with an extraordinary performance from Robert Stephens as Sherlock Holmes. Also good are Colin Blakely and Genevieve Page, and Clive Revill is a hoot and a holler as a Russian ballet manager. The travails of the film are fairly well known – similar to what was initially inflicted on Once Upon a Time in America – but, of course, the latter had a happy ending when the long director’s version was released one year after the bastardized version. No such luck for Sherlock. Originally designed by Wilder as a symphony in four movements and a prologue, two of the movements (stories) were totally removed by the distributor, as was the prologue. However, what’s left is cherce. The two shorn stories are included as extras, but it’s a mixed blessing – on of them only has audio, and the other only has picture. But, you can at least get an idea of what the film was supposed to be. There are also script and still excerpts from the prologue, and interviews with various and sundried people. If you haven’t seen it, check it out – it’s Billy’s best from his late period.
What am I, Ebert and Roeper all of a sudden? Quick Watson, the Unseemly Button.
Today I will not be shooting – the location is deep El Monte and so I’m glad not to be going, and tomorrow I will not be shooting because the location is near San Diego. I think we’ll be meeting with the writer today, and discussing the first two scripts, so that those shows can go into editing one week from today. So, I will be in the office all the livelong day with plenty of time to read your excellent posts.
The gardeners are already here, mowing away madly. Yesterday it was ninety-eight degrees, and today may be even hotter. What am I, the Home and Garden channel all of a sudden?
Today I feel like solving a mystery. Today I feel like BK, Consulting Detective. Perhaps I’ll solve the mystery of where in tarnation is everyone. Or the mystery of the disappearing paragraph.
I solved it. Here it is, the missing paragraph. What a fine consulting detective I am.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must go hither and thither and yon, I must lunch, I must dinner, and I must watch the rest of Sherlock Holmes. Today’s topic of discussion: Since we’re speaking of Mr. Sherlock Holmes – I love a good mystery. What are your favorite mystery books and films? I’ll get things rolling – I love Mr. Cornell Woolrich’s novels, especially Phantom Lady, The Black Angel and The Night Has a Thousand Eyes. I love Mr. Raymond Chandler – especially Farewell, My Lovely and The High Window (generally considered a lesser effort, but one I’m very fond of). I love Miss Agatha Christie’s The Murder of Roger Ackroyd. On film, as mentioned, I love Double Indemnity, and am also fond of Mr. Howard Hawks’ The Big Sleep, and I really like Mr. Hitchcock’s film of Mr. Knott’s play Dial M For Murder and also Terence Young’s film of Mr. Knotts’ play Wait Until Dark. I’m also fond of a couple of Mr. Rathbone’s Sherlock Holmes films, and for comedy/mystery you can’t beat The Thin Man. Your turn.