I forgot to say that Joan Bennett's role in "Suspiria" was much better/more significant/bigger than her measly token appearance in "House of Dark Shadows."  Too bad the DS movie didn't give her more to do.  I would recommend "Suspiria" to anyone interested in Joan Bennett.

Also -- I referred above to "Elena" Marcos ... but it may have been "Helena" Marcos (guess I'll have to watch the movie again to find out for sure  )


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O.T. - "Wicker Man" update

Also, I just thought I'd mention here -- crossing over from another thread that some felt was getting too off-topic (and I'm quite sure Luciaphil won't mind if I bring this up here) -- that the new proposed "Wicker Man" movie has apparently not been made, although as of last December hopes were still high that "Chase the Laddie" (note that the title has been changed) would be filmed.

Ewan McGreggor has expressed interest in a small role -- very appropriate casting, that would be, as he's Scottish and would seem to have the right persona for a "Wicker Man" type of movie (of course, the first thing I ever saw him in was Jane Austen's "Emma," but I wasn't deceived) ...

The proposed new movie, which is the brainchild of my favorite Dracula, Christopher Lee, would also star Sean Astin, Leanne Rymes, and Christopher Lee, as well as the great Vanessa Redgrave.  It is not to be a sequel per se, but a similarly themed and located film.

Let's hope something comes of this rather than the completely unnecessary remake with Nicholas Cage.

I did watch this a second time over the weekend (don't ask me why I get obsessed with these things). While interesting to watch, "Suspiria" is hardly going to end up on my favorite movies list ... And while I have enough commentary to write a review, I'll just briefly comment on the one more aspect of Joan Bennett's role, since that's the primary interest here ...

In addition to my earlier comments, I would also add that my second viewing reinforced my view that, while sometimes a shade mechanical, Miss Bennett did have her characterization nailed down.  She was one of the highlights of the movie (another favorite was the good Herr doctor -- not the psychiatrist).  Her final scenes -- glimpsed behind a half-open doorway --  as Madame Blanc (i.e., "White", but ironically the "Black Queen" of the coven) her body convulses as the spirit entity of Elena Marcos (unless it's some other entity) possesses her, and she demands repeatedly, "She must die, die, die!"

It was really a very creepy scene and Miss Bennett was disturbingly realistic in it. (She may have had some practice with all those seances at Collinwood!)

Take it from me, stay in school, be a professional student.  Work stinks!  Oh, to be a carefree student again in the joyous, never-never-land of academia!

On the other hand, it might be advisable to at least decide what you want to be before you reach 40 ...

Speaking from the school of hard knocks,

Vlad

Does anyone here have the DVD? Did they clean it up at all?

According to various sources I've checked, the DVD print is flawless; according to some reviews, the Anchor Bay release is perhaps the best "transfer" (I think that was the term) ever done.

By the way, I thought most of the performances were fairly stylized, Bennett's included.

That may be a very ... um ... charitable way of explaining it! 

I hope to watch this again over the weekend and will keep your thought in mind ... I would like to think that every aspect of this film was as deliberate as the lighting and set design were.  And it's possible.  Having done some more reading and checking up on this, it's clear that everything that happens does have meaning, even if it's lost on 95 percent of the viewers ... I've done some preliminary checking into Thomas de Quincey, whom I'm only vaguely aware of as a tangential figure of the English Romantic period ... but my feeling would be that Argento may have taken a breath of inspiration from his essays, but that's the extent of it.  Still, it gives an added depth to have some understanding of what he's about ... (reminds me of some theatre productions of a British director I worked with, the more obscure the meaning the better -- "Aunt Dan & Lemmon", Stephen Berkoff ...) but the point being that challenging works tend to leave people either hot or cold ...

Joan Bennett's performance did have a rather "rehearsed" air about it, as is suggested in your description of her reciting a lengthy piece of exposition ... her movements had a rather "planned" look rather than appearing completely natural, so I see where you may be getting your idea that the director wanted a stylized feel to the acting.

I do also see a Hitchcockian attention to detail and symbolism, so a stylized approach to the acting would not be out of place.

What I thought was odd about the re-emegence of Barnabas was that he asked Aristede for help when Aristede was passed out on the ground himself! Why would he ask Aristede for help anyway?  *I'm a few episodes behind, but didn't Barnabas know what he was doing the whole time?  Or was that just part of the act??

It didn't make much sense, and the only thing you'll hear later is Barnabas telling someone of his ordeal and saying he had seen someone, he thought it was Aristede, as he was stumbling from the tomb ...

I don't have a DVD player yet, but I'm looking into them. My big concern is that I have a VCR, which I'm not getting rid of. Like Gothick, I tape far too much for that and I'm still unclear as to how you connect the VCR and the TV and the DVD player. I know it can be done. I just don't know how.

BTW, Consumer Reports looks at DVD players in their March 2003 issue.

I have been advised to hold off on purchasing a DVD player until they put out the versions that you'll be able to use for recording (on disc).  Who knows how long that will be, though -- and I suppose the price will be a least double, and then take 3 to 4 more years before becoming affordable ... at which time some other technological advancement will be on the horizon, promising to make DVD players as antiquated as manual typewriters ...
 [tongue]

Love seeing Judith and Charity getting to be friends, I wonder if they continued this.  And I can't wait to see what Judith has planned for Greggy-poo!

You haven't seen this before, CassandraB?

Re:  Judith's revenge -- you are in for a treat!

      

(Excuse the overkill on the smileys -- I just discovered the hidden cache!)