In this ongoing series on film classics of the last century, we've looked at THE LATE SHOW, SUMMER STOCK, THE FULLER BRUSH GIRL, The Net, Your Friends & Neighbors, Shampoo, The Player, Dick Tracy, How To Marry A Millionaire, Blow Out, You Only Live Twice, Sleeper, Diamonds Are Forever, Sleepless In Seattle, My Little Chickadee, Tootsie, After Hours, Edward Scissorhands, Christmas in Connecticut, Desk Set, When Harry Met Sally . . ., Who Done It?, That Darn Cat!, Cactus Flower, Family Plot, House Sitter, and Outrageous Fortune. Film classics are the films that grab you, even on repeat viewings, especially on repeat viewings.
And there are many films and many types we want to look at.
What about the melodramas?
The tear jerkers?
A number of you have e-mailed about that genre.
TEA WITH MUSSOLINI is a classic in that genre.
Need a good setting?
What about Italy?
And for drama, how about you give it a background of WWII?
And what's a good movie without Academy Award winner Maggie Smith?
And the always dependable Joan Plowright?
And, wait, there's more Lily Tomlin and Judi Dench!
And there's drama and sides chosen as some (Lily Tomlin) see what's coming and others (Maggie Smith) don't.
And there's dancing.
And dancing.
And, oh, yeah, Cher.
In her strongest performance since she won the Academy Award for MOONSTRUCK, Cher really delivers.
Repeating, her strongest performance since MOONSTRUCK -- which is truly saying something.
But Cher, Judi, Lily, Joan, Maggie, they're all in top form as they raise a small boy to adulthood and struggle against the Nazis.
Few directors could be so sure with this genre and this material.
But Franco Zeffirelli demonstrates a love for the (semi-autobiographical) material and delivers another classic (THE TAMING OF THE SHREW, ROMEO AND JULIET, THE CHAMP AND HAMLET being four other classic films he's directed).
