Haines Logo Text
Column Archive
July 20, 2011:

SKIDOO

Bruce Kimmel Photograph bk's notes

Well, dear readers, I have, at long last, seen Skidoo. It was the one Otto Preminger film I’d never seen. I’d TIVOd it off TCM but it was full-frame and I could not watch it that way. So, up until last evening, I’d only seen the first two minutes of the film. And now, at long last, I can finally say I’ve seen Skidoo (Oodiks, spelled backwards). Back when Skidoo was made, Mr. Preminger was trying to be very hip, even though he was, at the time, in his mid-60s. One can see him on Playboy After Dark back then, wearing his Nehru jacket and fraternizing with the cute young gals, and grooving out to whatever music is being played. Up until Skidoo, Mr. Preminger had mostly been a serious filmmaker, with such great films as Laura, Angel Face, Where The Sidewalk Ends, Bonjour Tristesse, Saint Joan, Anatomy Of A Murder, Exodus, Advise and Consent, In Harm’s Way, Bunny Lake Is Missing, Hurry, Sundown and the like – with only the odd foray into comedy, like The Moon Is Blue. Mr. Preminger, in his effort at hipness and trying to be in with the in crowd, was experimenting with LSD, and the result is Skidoo, a film that looks like everyone involved was on LSD. There is, of course, LSD in the film and the “trip” sequences are hilarious and not in a good way. There’s pot, there’s long hair and hippies, there’s Groucho Marx as “God”, and there’s one of the greatest fright scenes ever put in any major Hollywood film – Carol Channing in her underwear, a scene so horrifying that I finally had to avert my eyes from the screen. The cast is quite interesting – Jackie Gleason, Burgess Meredith, Peter Lawford, John Phillip Law, Alexandra Hay, Miss Channing, Frankie Avalon, Michael Constantine, Mr. Marx, Nilsson (who did the score), Cesar Romero, Fred Clark, and many, many others.

That, however, is where the interest ends, because the screenplay is truly one of the worst ever written. Scenes go on and on and little makes sense. At the end, when the film finally runs completely out of steam, there’s a freeze-frame and you hear Preminger’s voice saying he wants you to meet the cast, at which point Mr. Nilsson sings the entire credit sequence in the film’s only mildly amusing and creative moment. Miss Channing borders on grotesque and she even has a musical number to perform, the title song. Mr. Gleason seems to be taking it all seriously – how he’s doing that is anyone’s guess. Perhaps Mr. Preminger really did feed everyone some LSD brownies. It was great to finally see it in its proper scope ratio and the transfer is okay. For connoisseurs of bad cinema, it is, of course, an absolute must – you will not see its like again.

I also watched a motion picture on Blu and Ray – the polar opposite of Skidoo – The Egyptian. I’ve always heard that the film was poorly received and that it’s really not well thought of, and that star Edmund Purdom had his career really hurt by this film, its reception and its reviews. The only problem with the scenario above is that I can’t really find much to back it up. I’d never seen it before, so I was very interested to finally catch up with it. Well, it’s not exactly a classic, let’s just get that out of the way. But it’s a very good film, one that held my interest, was beautifully directed by Michael Curtiz, gorgeously photographed by the great Leon Shamroy (who also must have been on LSD when he photographed Skidoo), and beautifully scored by no less than two brilliant composers – Alfred Newman and Bernard Herrmann. I found the script well-written, and I loved the performances of Jean Simmons, Peter Ustinov, Victor Mature, Michael Wilding, Bella Darvi (what a BAD girl she is in this film), Michael Ansara, Gene Tierney and lots of other folk. And then there’s Edmund Purdom. I don’t know what people’s problems with him in this film were, but I thought he did a great job. He’s almost never off the screen and he plays the part AS WRITTEN as well as it can be played. So, I think people’s problems with his performance had nothing whatsoever to do with his performance – I think it had to do with the character – he’s not exactly a hero or heroic or someone you root for. He’s kind of a wuss, he goes after the wrong gal, who is his ruination, then he ministers only to rich people – yes, he learns from all this and is redeemed, but for the bulk of the film the character is simply kind of dramatically inert.

The Blu and Ray is courtesy of Twilight Time, the company owned by our very own Mr. Nick Redman. They were handed a hi-def master made not too long ago and I’m happy to report it’s fantastic looking. It does look to me that it’s been cleaned up and polished and it probably looks better here than it did back in 1954. The grain is minimal and the opticals, while soft (as they should be) are also without too much grain, which leads me to believe that someone did some subtle grain removal – and it’s a poster child for how to do it. Some grain is left and the whole thing just looks splendidly splendid. The colors are accurate and eye-popping, the image is extremely sharp and detailed and even the opticals don’t bother much, because the dissolves are all cut in short – that is, they cut into them just as they start and cut out just as they end, which is why you see the shift from soft to sharp. The normal way to do opticals from the 1960s on, is that the entirety of the outgoing shot through the dissolve and the incoming shot’s entirety is all the optical. That means if your outgoing shot is seven minutes long and then a dissolve takes you into your incoming shot, which is eight minutes long, then you’ve got a fifteen-minute optical. I used to like when they cut in short because the optical only lasted a couple of seconds and you were right back to the real deal. The sound is robust and full, and the folks at Fox who supervised the transfer are to be commended for their stellar work. There is an isolated score track that sounds great, and a commentary track that I wouldn’t listen to if you paid me – I’d rather watch Skidoo again than listen to the two folks doing the commentary – I know them, they pontificate and preen, and it’s not for me. Highly recommended by the likes of me.

Prior to all that viewing, I’d gotten up early once again, and then CDs and helper arrived and she got everything boxed up and by mid-afternoon everything was shipped by the likes of her – Drango and Jason Graae’s CD. I did the four-mile jog, then went and had a sandwich and no fries or onion rings. After that, I picked up a couple of packages, did errands and whatnot, had a nice visit with Nick Redman, saw Lauren Rubin, who’s replaced Alet for the Gardenia show, and saw John Boswell, who picked up all his music.

Well, why don’t we all click on the Unseemly Button below because I must get my beauty sleep and I truly hope I get a really good night’s sleep, because I need it. So, let’s say Skidoo to this section, shall we?

Today, I hope to arise after a really good night’s sleep. I’ll do the long jog, I’ll eat, I’ll do errands and whatnot, and in the afternoon I’ll pick up all the elements and the hi-def master for Nudie Musical. Other than that, I hope to relax and recharge, not necessarily in that order.

Tomorrow, I’ve got a rehearsal with the thirteen-year-old, then I’m seeing a singer at the Gardenia, show-only. Friday and the weekend are semi-busy and then the following week is VERY busy.

Why don’t we all put on our pointy party hats and our colored tights and pantaloons, why don’t we all break out the cheese slices and the ham chunks, why don’t we all dance the Hora or the Frug, for today is the birthday of the errant and truant Miss Karen. So, let’s give a big haineshisway.com birthday cheer to the errant and truant Miss Karen. On the count of three: One, two, three – A BIG HAINESHISWAY.COM BIRHTDAY CHEER TO THE ERRANT AND TRUANT MISS KAREN!!!

Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, sleep in, jog, eat, do errands and whatnot, and pick up all the Nudie Musical stuff. Today’s topic of discussion: It’s Ask BK Day, the day in which you get to ask me or any dear reader any old question you like and we get to give any old answer we like. So, let’s have loads of lovely questions and loads of lovely answers and loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I Skidoo and hit the road to dreamland.

Search BK's Notes Archive:
 
© 2001 - 2024 by Bruce Kimmel. All Rights Reserved