Rocky died yellow!
Over at the Vulva Determinists, Ms. Stroppy has asked folks to simply name their favourite fillums. I’ve joined in, but made a ballsup of my first attempt by naming Double Indemnity twice (in the great Sikh ”double-double” tradition).
Anyway, some folks actually agreed with some of my choices, with The Searchers and Double Indemnity getting some support. But, so far, I’m the only one to rank Angels With Dirty Faces in their top ten. But I really do rate it, especially the ending. Some people think the ending’s slightly ambiguous (did Rocky really die yellow?), but I don’t. Judge for yourself:
Oh yeah; don’t miss that little Warner Bros piece of social commentary from Pat O’Brien right at the end: “let’s say a prayer for a boy who couldn’t run as fast as I could” (you’ve got to see the start of the picture to get what he means…).
modernityblog said,
August 13, 2008 at 5:59 pm
Angels With Dirty Faces is great, remember the last line?
Jim Denham said,
August 13, 2008 at 6:14 pm
Mod: I presume you mean “let’s go and say a prayer for a boy who couldn’t run as fast as I could”, which I added to the piece (presumably) after you sent your comment. Yeah, it’s just great, isn’t it? Typical Warner Bros social commentary slipped in.
stroppybird said,
August 13, 2008 at 6:16 pm
“Vulva determinists”!
Hmmm. I think you pinched that from Will .
Now do you want to annoy me as well as most of the blogosphere
?
btw I thought when you said double double you meant you had started hitting the whiskey (at midday).
stroppybird said,
August 13, 2008 at 6:17 pm
I mean at this rate only the sweary Geordie will be talking to you !
Jim Denham said,
August 13, 2008 at 6:19 pm
That is already the position, Stropps. Oh, and Hak as well. And Sean.
So there: I’ve got friends!
stroppybird said,
August 13, 2008 at 6:21 pm
Well i’m talking to you, but in future the name of the blog is Stroppyblog!
Oh and not stropps, its Ms Stroppy to you Denham
Jim Denham said,
August 13, 2008 at 6:32 pm
Oooh. You can be very stern when you want to be, can’t you, Ms Stroppy? I know I’ve been a bad boy and I deserve to be punished. Do you speak German, by any chance?
modernityblog said,
August 13, 2008 at 6:36 pm
Ops, no Jim, my mind’s going.
I was thinking of the last scene (from memory) of White Heat “Mum I’m on top of the world” bamm
as a minor Cagney fan, I was seduced by one of his favourite films, Yankee Doodle Dandy, (noise of crude anti-Americans spitting in the background) which is very good
modernityblog said,
August 13, 2008 at 6:42 pm
I should add that Busby Berkeley’s Gold Digger are fun films too.
Jim Denham said,
August 13, 2008 at 7:00 pm
I agree, Mod: but even in those pieces of escapist nonsense, the Warner Bros, managed to work in some pretty powerful social commentary:
stroppybird said,
August 13, 2008 at 8:07 pm
‘Oooh. You can be very stern when you want to be, can’t you, Ms Stroppy? I know I’ve been a bad boy and I deserve to be punished. Do you speak German, by any chance?’
Hmmm, I thought it was Melanie Phillips spanking you that you wanted. Perhaps she could don a Luftwaffe uniform and tell you off in German.
If not you will have to make do with insults from wibblywobbly and John G
Jim Denham said,
August 13, 2008 at 11:10 pm
“Hit me, please”;
“No”.