It's Delightful

As you know, my friends, I rarely watch a movie made after 1965.  I occasionally make an exception, which is how De-Lovely, a musical starring Kevin Kline and Ashley Judd, ended up at the top of my Netflix queue.  It's about the life and unusual partnership of Cole and Linda Porter.

Before you young folks hop on the comments and say "Who is Cole Porter?" and I have to lay on my chaise longue and sniff smelling salts, Cole Porter was a composer and songwriter who wrote musical scores for Broadway and Hollywood from the 1920s to the 1950s.  If you think you don't know any of his songs, watch the movie anyway -- I think you'll be surprised.

The film includes musical performances by Elvis Costello, Diana Krall, Natalie Cole, Sheryl Crow, and many more.  But for me, the showstopper was Alanis Morissette's rendition of "Let's Do It, Let's Fall In Love."

Set in Paris, Venice, and New York in the Jazz Age and Hollywood in its heyday, the De-Lovely is a feast for the eyes and the ears.  I thoroughly enjoyed it. 

Just What the Doctor Ordered

I've been sick with a cold this week, so I'm spending my days napping, drinking tea, and watching movies. A Day at the Races is in heavy rotation. A friend gave it to me for Christmas and it never fails to make me laugh.

"You must forgive him. He doesn't spell very well." It kills me every time.

What I'm Reading: Harpo Speaks!

"It's my favorite book" my friend said.  "Just read it.  Trust me, you'll love it."  As she handed her copy to me, an index card that said "My favorite book" fell out of it.  So I borrowed Harpo Speaks!, and now it's one of my favorite books, too.

I've tried to explain in detail to people exactly why it's such a wonderful book, and I've failed every time.  So I will simply say that every page of Harpo Speaks! is laugh-out-loud funny, and that Harpo Marx was that rare individual who had the wisdom to appreciate and enjoy things as they were happening to him, not just in rose-colored retrospect.  Somehow, even an impoverished childhood in Brooklyn in the early 1900s seems like an amazing adventure when Harpo tells it.  And I suppose to him it was.

Plus, as a bonus, I got to walk around for a few days saying "Exapno Mapcase" at frequent intervals.   I think it got on my cat's nerves a little.

Poster for Harpo's 1933 tour of the USSR.  Harpo decided that his name in cyrillic looked like "Exapno Mapcase."

Just read the book.  Trust me, you'll love it.


 

Anything Went

Last night I watched Anything Goes, starring Bing Crosby, Donald O'Connor, Mitzi Gaynor, and Jeanmaire.  There was a lot of talent on that screen, but the movie itself was just... meh. 

The costumes by Edith Head were gorgeous, though.  So that was something.

The musical numbers were mostly annoying.  The only thing that saved a few of them was the presence of Donald O'Connor.  I may not be the best judge, however.  I'm still harboring a resentment against Cole Porter for rhyming the words "nina" and "neurasthenia."