In Contention

Tag: Ronald Neame

  • LIFE WITHOUT OSCAR: 1953 and 1954

    Catch up with the idea behind this series here.

    Did you guys see that USA-Algeria game today? I mean, talk about a life without Oscar. How can anyone think of movies while the World Cup is going on? Can we start a petition to give Landon Donovan the Jean Hersholt award this year? I suppose not everyone has the fever so let’s talk about some films that should be burning up your Netflix queue.

    1953’s big prize went to “From Here to Eternity,” a serious film that few probably argued about then and warrants uninspired admiration today. 1954 gave us “On the Waterfront,” another serious film that briefly brought the Academy back to social drama before awarding more shitty, bloated epics later in the decade. So what should have gotten some love?

    1953 – “Tokyo Story” (Yasujiro Ozu)

    Yasujiro Ozu is one of the few directors I can think of that actually got better with age. The films made in the twilight of his career show a maturation of technique that rivals all masters of the medium, but they also show a maturation of storytelling that favors simplicity, as if he’s realized that life is too short to bother with anything but the heart of the matter. People can’t seem to stop talking about how “Toy Story 3” made them cry, but I can watch the last five minutes of “Rudy” with zero context and cry. “Tokyo Story” made me want to call my parents and tell them I love them, and that is the real power of the movies.

    (more…)

  • Ronald Neame (1911-2010)

    It’s inevitable, but somewhat depressing, that most of the obituaries cropping up for British filmmaker Ronald Neame, who passed away yesterday in Los Angeles aged 99, mention “The Poseidon Adventure” at the top. (And look, I’ve only gone and done it myself.)

    As a director, writer, producer and cinematographer, Neame’s résumé is considerably more scattered and interesting than that hoary slab of big-studio Velveeta — including trick-laden DP duty on “Blithe Spirit,” Oscar-nominated script work on David Lean’s “Brief Encounter” and “Great Expectations” and a good run of unflashy but considered directorial efforts.

    Second to “The Poseidon Adventure,” Neame might remain best-known for directing Maggie Smith to her Oscar-winning (and career-best) performance in “The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie,” but on the less tony end of the scale, he had a knack for peppy comedy, including two delightful capers with happily mismatched star duos, “Gambit” (Shirley MacLaine and Michael Caine) and the particularly underrated “Hopscotch” (Walter Matthau and Glenda Jackson).

    (more…)