Play Misty for Me & Eastwood Questions

The Movie Rating System Implementation?

The system was instituted in November 1968 and is voluntary; however, most movie theater chains will not show unrated domestic films and most major studios have agreed to submit all titles for rating prior to theatrical release. The Production Code spelled out what was acceptable and what was unacceptable content for motion pictures produced for a public audience in the United States.

Where was it filmed?
The setting for Play Misty For Me was Carmel, California. Eastwood was very firmiliar with this location because he lived there during this time and eventually was Moyor of the city from 1986 to 1988.

Carmel-by-the-Sea; Background: Often called simply Carmel, is a small city in Monterey County, California. It was founded in 1902 and incorporated in 1916. Situated on the Monterey Peninsula, the town is known for its natural scenery and rich artistic history. In 1906, the San Francisco Call, which was a newspaper in San Francisco, devoted a full page to the "artists, poets and writers of Carmel-by-the-Sea", and in 1910 it reported that 60 percent of Carmel's houses were built by citizens who were "devoting their lives to work connected to the aesthetic arts." Early City Councils were dominated by artists, and the town has had several mayors who were poets or actors.


Who is Jessica Walter?


-Born Januruary 31, 1941-

A graduate of New York's High School of the Performing Arts and the Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre, Walter's extensive theater credits include productions both on and off Broadway. On Broadway, she has appeared in Peter Ustinov's "Photo Finish" (which earned her the Clarence Derwent Award as Most Promising Newcomer), "A Severed Head", "Advise and Consent", "Night Life" and Neil Simon's "Rumors". Her off-Broadway credits include roles at Playwrights Horizons and in Tartuffe, opposite Ron Leibman, at the Los Angeles Theater Center. Walter's feature films include Play Misty for Me (1971), which earned her a Golden Globe nomination, and the comedy Slums of Beverly Hills (1998). She has also appeared in The Group (1966), The Flamingo Kid (1984), Grand Prix (1966), Tapeheads (1988) and PCU (1994), among other films. Walter received an Emmy Award for Best Dramatic Actress in the television series "Amy Prentiss" (1974). She also earned Emmy nominations for her guest-starring roles in episodes of "Trapper John, M.D." (1979) and "The Streets of San Francisco" (1972). Walter has starred in several series, miniseries and television movies.




















Sources:
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0910055/
http://www.mpaa.org/
http://ci.carmel.ca.us/carmel/index.cfm

Midterm Summary

The range of masculine personae in the first half of the course show a perhaps unexpected range—from traditional extreme of Bogart to much more vulnerable masculine, expressive persona of Stewart before the war.

   After the war the range becomes more narrow, we see more emphasis on the more traditional male persona—even in Stewart, where it becomes almost pathological
  We're moving now into the latter part of the twentieth century.  By sixties and seventies shifting gender roles were recognized, though we could say it had been happening since WWII (as woman cabbie in Big Sleep suggests).  Post-seventies masculine personae are famously supposed to be more sensitive, yet in many ways Eastwood persona even more extreme than our previous extreme in Bogart. He’s certainly much less communicative in general.
      At least Bogart is willing to talk—as Sam Spade says in the MF
When Gutman, the fatman, asks him:
"You're a close-mouthed man?"
"No, I like to talk."

"Better and better. I distrust a close-mouthed man. He generally picks the wrong time to talk and says the wrong things. Talking's something you can't do judiciously unless you keep in practice. Now, sir. We'll talk, if you like. I'll tell you right out. I'm a man who likes talking to a man who likes to talk."

Somewhat unexpectedly, however, Dave Garber in Misty isn’t exactly uncommunicative when he needs to be, but it doesn’t solve his problem.

Sad News

I have some sad news to relay:  one of our class won’t be joining us when we reconvene this week.  I’m not clear on the details, but unfortunately Jorge Carrillo died suddenly last week.  I didn’t know Jorge well, but I recall his smile (as I suspect others do as well).  In fact, I distinctly remember him smiling the last time I saw him last Thursday. Please keep Jorge’s family and friends in your thoughts.

pivotal scene in Vertigo

I didn't get a chance to ask after the film last Tuesday, but I presume the scene that Prof. Kaufmann alluded to (the one Hitchcock and his advisors weren't sure whether or not to include) was the the one where Judy writes a note for Scottie, describing what really happened in the tower.
I'm curious what everyone thinks about this. Was it a cop out to use this device to explain the plot instead of letting it unfold naturally? Did it re-engage audiences that might have been losing interest because of the slow pace? Had those of you watching the film for the first time figured out what was going on, or was this a revelation for you?

Capra's Trilogy

Frank Capra, one of the greatest directors in American film history was the creator of a quasi-trilogy in the late 1930s and early 40s with his films Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936), Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), and Meet John Doe (1941).

In the making of these films, the director, Frank Capra, strove to create a character who was an exceptional American. In doing this he created his own version of the American dream which film critics have since labeled “Capracorn.” Capra’s creation of this American dream really began with Mr. Deeds Goes to Town and was reinforced with his following two films. While these films aren’t officially a trilogy, it very well could have been. In Mr. Deeds Goes to Town the lead man, Longfellow Deeds, was played by actor Gary Cooper. When Capra became the director of the project his intention was to have Cooper be the lead in his next film as well, which was originally going to be titled Mr. Deeds Goes to Washington, but Cooper was not available at the time. Capra then borrowed Jimmy Stewart from MGM to be the leading man in this second movie and changed the title to Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. However, the leading actress remains the same in both films with Jean Arthur playing the roles of a hot-shot reporter and a senator’s aid (Edgerton).

All three of these Capra films represent the dreams of the common man. The plots of these films each have the leading actor being granted an opportunity that what the masses of common man would love to be given. Mr. Deeds goes to town has Longfellow Deeds being given the opportunity of wealth when he inherits $20,000,000. In Mr. Smith Goes to Washington we find Jefferson Smith, played by Jimmy Stewart, suddenly granted the opportunity of status and position. Likewise, Meet John Doe gives John Willoughby "John Doe", played by Gary Cooper, a sudden chance at fame. In each case the hero is able to make his way past the temptation of selfishness that comes along with wealth, status, and fame because he accepts his role as the conveyor of the beliefs and concerns of the American masses (Gallagher).

Additionally, this trilogy of films provides an "acquisition of awareness" within the leading actors. Deeds, Smith, and Doe all appear in the beginning of their respective films as thirty something year old men who have apparently never had any social pressures or any type of attention from women. As the plot develops the hero discovers himself by discovering that he has happened to be chosen as the spokesperson for the needs of the common man and true American ideals, such as decency, fair play, and equality. Lastly, each of these films focuses on a certain act of speech in order to confirm the hero's discovery of their true purpose. Deeds' speech comes in a courtroom, Smith's on a Senate floor, and Doe's in an attempt to prove that he is not a forgery (Gallagher).

Works Cited

Edgerton, Gary. "Capra and Altman: Mythmaker and Mythologist." Literature Film Quarterly (1983): 28-35.

Gallagher, Brian. "Speech, Identity, and Ideology in "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington"." Film Criticism (1981): 12-22.

Hitch & fine art

Fine art often served as inspiration for Hitchcock. He incorporated it masterfully in many of his films. The scene created by Salvador Dali for Spellbound is extraordinary. To read further on this subject, check out hitchandalma.tripod.com/art.htm

Stewart's Gaze

A reiteration of the different extremes of the male gaze.  In the first we have the open, naive "tourist" gaze of Mr. Smith taking in his first sight of Washington; in the second we have the intense, acquisitive stare of obsession.

  The first is usually associated with feminine or youthful countenance's--both outside the conventionally masculine definition (even if the youth is a boy); the second presents a more typically traditional image of the masculine gaze.

The two gazes also display the youthful, naive prewar and tortured (and sometimes torturing) postwar Stewart personas.