Tag: f1951

Sienna Shoes ‘The Red Shoes’ changed the world of film. It was deeply self-referential (a performance about a performance with the two enfolded) and had the extra advance of sometimes making the camera a dancer. So Gene Kelly tried his own ‘Shoes’. MGM refused to horse around with the camera but let him try on… Continue reading An American in Paris (1951)

Honorable I saw this series, pretty much all of it, on TeeVee when I was a kid. I can speak from the remembered experience then as well as my reaction on seeing the series again now. The role we expect film to take now is rather complex, but fifty years ago on TeeVee the very… Continue reading The Amos ‘n Andy Show (1951-1953)

Leeches Tom Cruise played an exaggerated version of himself in “Magnolia,” following a tradition set long ago. We liked to believe that the sex sirens we saw in movies the 30’s were really that way in life and probably they were. John Wayne followed, never playing anything but himself. And so is the case with… Continue reading The African Queen (1951)

Charlie’s Flowers I spent a goodly part of my life becoming an expert in the Alice material, so have had to work to temper this comment: My initial feeling on this project is one of utter despair, as Walt and company took something that was both fun and rich, and bleached all the richness out… Continue reading Alice in Wonderland (1951)