56. Bringing Up Baby

by Pat Perry

In 2007, Nathan Rubin memorably coined the term “Manic Pixie Dream Girl” to capture a familiar character/trope in romantic comedy: “that bubbly, shallow cinematic creature that exists solely in the fevered imaginations of sensitive writer-directors to teach broodingly soulful young men to embrace life and its infinite mysteries and adventures.”

There is probably no earlier or better example of this archetype than the character of Susan Vance (unforgettably played by Katherine Hepburn) in the legendary screwball farce Bringing Up Baby. From the first time we glimpse her, striding purposefully onto a golf course, till her final moments in Cary Grant’s rescuing grip as she dangles from a rapidly crumbling dinosaur skeleton, we know that Hepburn’s Vance is a force of nature, giddily marching to the strange rhythms humming inside her own, impenetrable brain – and absolutely the right match for Grant’s befuddled, deadly serious paleontologist.

If  “manic pixie dream girl” has come to be understood as a pejorative, it’s likely because this sort of pixilated dynamic is a tricky thing to pull off – often imitated, rarely duplicated. Two outright homages to Bringing Up Baby – Peter Bogdanovich’s What’s Up Doc? and James Foley’s Who’s That Girl? have had varying degrees of success (or, in the case of Foley’s film, no success whatsoever)  in convincingly capturing the enchantment that a madcap, free- spirited woman can have over a shy, serious, man who’s about to marry the wrong woman.

Read Full Post »

Life Itself, Mildred Pierce, The Postman Always Rings Twice, Out of the Past and Leave Her to Heaven on Monday Morning Diary (July 21)

Screen cap from the most chilling scene in John Stahl’s 1945 masterpiece LEAVE HER TO HEAVEN.

by Sam Juliano

It all comes down to generous gulps of Poland Spring, extended refuges into air-conditioned rooms and mental countdown towards one’s planned vacation.  Some of course are already on those vacations – beaches and resort amusements are very much a part of the daily itinerary.  Summer can be one’s eternal joy, but it comes with some baggage, especially if your region is prone to exceedingly high temperatures.  Since most regions so apply, one is usually engaged in a love-hate relationship with the season.

The Romantic Countdown continues to inch forward to the halfway point.  The high quality of the writing is a constant joy for readers, many of whom have been troupers in the comment threads.

Many thanks to our guardian angel Dee Dee for her continued work in revising the site sidebar.  Coincidentally enough her posters for the just started Femme Noir Festival at the Film Forum are highlighting some of my own recent movie-going as Lucille, Sammy and I took in two double features that launched the venture on Saturday evening and Sunday afternoon.  This past week we saw:

Read Full Post »