tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3139769202527811820.post7573813595276011395..comments2024-01-01T23:38:43.414-08:00Comments on The Oncoming Hope: Blog Noir: "Laura", or, Mad Men Is So Anachronistictheoncominghopehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03471519506797609837noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3139769202527811820.post-2938475979151092512011-08-07T06:20:02.138-07:002011-08-07T06:20:02.138-07:00Thanks for stopping by!
I like your idea that Lyd...Thanks for stopping by!<br /><br />I like your idea that Lydecker misremembers Laura's lack of social intelligence, but I still need Tierney to do something to differentiate her real-life self from Lydecker's memories.<br /><br />But you're right, it's still a great movie.<br /><br />I dare say it's impossible to have any meaningful discussion of this movie without spoilers!theoncominghopehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03471519506797609837noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3139769202527811820.post-36535165619105821292011-08-05T16:27:09.309-07:002011-08-05T16:27:09.309-07:00Hi, coming here from your comment on film_flammers...Hi, coming here from your comment on film_flammers over at livejournal.<br /><br />I love this film, I absolutely adore it. But I would agree that Gene Tierney is the weakest link in the chain. I like Gene Tierney, but I do not consider her to be one of the greatest talents at the time. <br /><br />Pulling in your two comments - one, that how could Laura be so smart professionally and so dumb socially, and two, that Lydecker is remembering an idealized version of Laura - perhaps the "dumb socially" things is part of Lydecker's remembrances. Meaning, he didn't understand Laura's relationships, so what we see of Laura and Shelby is not at all what happened, and when she returned from being thought dead, everything changed fundamentally.<br /><br />Also, just for a giggle, I mean, Sex and the City is entirely about women who are smart professionally and pretty damn dumb socially.<br /><br />Isn't it hard to talk about Laura w/o spoilers????Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3139769202527811820.post-23844161547796473282011-07-24T06:01:03.606-07:002011-07-24T06:01:03.606-07:00I need to check out Leave Her to Heaven!
The plot...I need to check out Leave Her to Heaven!<br /><br />The plotting is fantastic indeed. It's just such a complex, psychological drama, and probably the first of its kind (Hitchcock goes on to mine this territory more effectively I think, but this is definitely the vanguard).theoncominghopehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03471519506797609837noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3139769202527811820.post-87104069839623389922011-07-22T11:41:16.718-07:002011-07-22T11:41:16.718-07:00I love Laura but I see your point about the Tierne...I love Laura but I see your point about the Tierney performance. I think by far her best work is Leave Her to Heaven.<br /><br />What MAY have happened here is that she was playing down (young and naive girl in the "big city"). It probably could have been better executed by a more capable screen actress but like I said earlier I see your point.<br /><br />BTW - GREAT BLOG!<br /><br />Thanks to your analysis I think I am able to nail what draws me to this picture so much. It is the plotting. The fact that we are learning about the female protagonist as she "was" but then there is the U-Turn and we the audience must deal with the fact that the romanticized version of Laura as we know her will probably fall away as we have to deal with her in the flesh and not as an idealized apparition.iluvcinemahttp://iluvcinema.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3139769202527811820.post-26696282983500864102011-07-20T14:09:39.999-07:002011-07-20T14:09:39.999-07:00@Ryan was it strictly necessary that they fall in ...@Ryan was it strictly necessary that they fall in love? I feel it would have worked easily well had they fallen into flirtatious banter but not "instant love"theoncominghopehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03471519506797609837noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3139769202527811820.post-24420249732291378432011-07-20T14:08:55.505-07:002011-07-20T14:08:55.505-07:00Yvette, I think you're right about the filmmak...Yvette, I think you're right about the filmmakers being aware of Gene Tierney's emptiness. Thankfully they kept her scenes short and didn't really give her key dialogue, so though she was a problem, she didn't stick out like a sore thumb.<br /><br />I can imagine she'd make a MUCH better villain, and I look forward to checking that out!<br /><br />Re: Mad Men, I love the show, but there are plenty people who hate it, and this is one of the only criticisms where I can sort of see where they come from. But I'd love to hear more about your experience!theoncominghopehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03471519506797609837noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3139769202527811820.post-55451109236631799552011-07-20T14:06:37.771-07:002011-07-20T14:06:37.771-07:00Hi Jade! Thanks for coming by. I really want to li...Hi Jade! Thanks for coming by. I really want to like Gene Tierney, because her looks are sooo charismatic, but her personality just...isn't. She doesn't have a charm to make up for lack of acting talent, no exciting quirks to detract from dullness. But as I said, the movie is so good that it can survive despite her, which says something about the screenwriter.theoncominghopehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03471519506797609837noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3139769202527811820.post-88158562153925845012011-07-20T09:07:14.969-07:002011-07-20T09:07:14.969-07:00I also never understood why Laura falls so fast an...I also never understood why Laura falls so fast and hard for McPherson. Tierney did not sell it and the script glossed over this. Apparently the two were in love because the rest of the plot dictated that they had to be.Ryanhttp://cantstopthemovies.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3139769202527811820.post-82567573325398444452011-07-20T07:43:48.572-07:002011-07-20T07:43:48.572-07:00Great critique. I think it basically agrees with m...Great critique. I think it basically agrees with mine. At the heart of this film is a woman who is, at best, an empty suit. (I don't think the film makers are oblivious to this point, by the way.) She's beautiful but that's it. But you know, the men aren't much smarter than she is. I think MacPherson will be happy with Laura because he is taking her at surface value OR else he sees her faults and is willing to put up with them BECAUSE of her beauty. <br /><br />Tierney was never a great actress. Except when she played the villain in LEAVE HER TO HEAVEN. There her on screen coldness worked for her. She was terrific. <br /><br />Her characters were all mostly fools about men.<br /><br />I worked in Manhattan in the 60's and I recognize some of what goes on in MAD MEN. Though I haven't seen the show lately, I thought they did a pretty good job portraying some aspects of the times.Yvettehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08919246184376538331noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3139769202527811820.post-49981491789920122762011-07-20T07:12:42.981-07:002011-07-20T07:12:42.981-07:00Hey this is Jade from the Poison Pen Cinema,
A fe...Hey this is Jade from the Poison Pen Cinema,<br /><br />A few things, I think Laura is a good film marred by Gene Tierney's performance. I have never been a fan of hers yet she does pop up in films I otherwise enjoy. I actually found Laura (the person) to be devoid of anything besides beauty to lend credence to why EVERYONE falls in love with her. Tierney felt detached and stubborn. She's a great example of issues of idealized women on film. There is not much beyond what everyone projects upon her and her beauty.<br /><br />In terms of Mad Men, I appreciate that show but there are some issues with race, gender and how it is utilizing the time period. I think Mad Men has fascinating characters but it is interesting how they are portraying the 1960s in New York.Angelica Jadehttp://poisonpencinema.wordpress.com/noreply@blogger.com