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Hollywoodland

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Watching The Artist the other night made me think that the character was a cross between Rudolph Valentino and Douglas Fairbanks Sr.  Technically, it was a joy to watch but the movie struck me as a bit hollow in the end, as it was one cliche scene after another, right down to the final dancing sequence a la Astaire and Rogers.

A lot of debate here over the director Michel Havanavicius' Lithuanian roots.  The name couldn't be any more Lithuanian.  His family was part of the Jewish diaspora, given what little biographical information I have found on him.  Litvaks are spread far and wide, and every year meet up in Druskininkai for the annual Limmud.

Anyway, the movie had me drifting back in my imagination to the Silent Era with such films as The General and The Thief of Baghdad.  I keep meaning to read Gore Vidal's Hollywood.
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  1. avrdsMarch 5, 2012 at 6:09 AM

    A bon bon of a movie.

    Hollywood might be fun to read here sometime.

    ReplyDelete
  2. James FergusonMarch 5, 2012 at 7:20 AM

    Enjoyed Hugo much more, but then it was a homage to early French cinema. Trip to the Moon is a gem,

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4dTVfSJoj04&feature=fvwrel

    ReplyDelete
  3. avrdsMarch 5, 2012 at 3:51 PM

    I wanted to see Hugo in 3-d, and it was here for quite a long time, but never made it. I'm not much of a movie goer -- one or two a year maybe. And I always go for the odd balls or political ones.

    Trip to the Moon - WOW!

    ReplyDelete
  4. James FergusonMarch 5, 2012 at 10:44 PM

    You would enjoy Hugo in 2 or 3D. It is a lovely homage to a bygone era.

    ReplyDelete

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