Happy 50th Anniversary, Night of Dark Shadows

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Revisiting more of the subtitles and the closed captioning for Scene 190:

...

(and it's interesting how after ... the action switches from the foyer to the corridor ... it's still considered Scene 190) as Alex makes his second scripted call to Quentin - and rather than what's scripted, Carlotta actually says, "No. Mr., Mr. Jenkins, please." - and that's mostly though not perfectly reflected in both the closed captioning -

- and the subtitles, though they jump ahead to Alex making an unscripted third call to Quentin

- which is also reflected in the closed captioning -

- and after Gerard angrily grabs Alex to stop him, Quentin appears on the stairs and delivers his scripted "Leave him alone," and as Alex pushes Gerard away, rather than deliver what's scripted Carlotta's next line is reflected in both the subtitles -

- and the closed captioning -

To be continued...

...

 

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Continuing Scene 190 with Grayson's script:

190    CONTD                                      CONTD   190

And that's when today's quote -

Page 89/Scene 190 - Alex: 'You didn't succeed, Quentin. She's still alive.'

- comes up, followed in the script by:

CARLOTTA            Please, Mr. Jenkins.                 (to Quentin)          who's            Shall I --                  what's                        QUENTIN                 (interrupting)            Wait a minute!  What are you            talking about, Alex?

And as far as the dialogue goes, while Alex' quoted line is delivered exactly as scripted, as we can see from Grayson's script, what Carlotta was scripted to say afterward is dropped (and who knows what exactly Grayson was referring to when she wrote "who's" and "what's" into her script?) - and just as in Grayson's script, Quentin's scripted "Wait a minute!" is dropped and in the film he simply asks "What are you talking about, Alex?"

And considering there are no descriptions or directions in this section of the scene, there's nothing to get into just yet when it comes to what's happening in the scene...

   And so far as "today's quote" goes, it was yesterday's, May 27th's, this time around.

 

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Some comments to revisit:

One of the few times when someone should have just barged in but Alex knocks!

I forgot to mention that Alex actually rings the doorbell several times when no one responds to his hammering on the door. But all of that is only after he finds the door locked. Though you're right, in the state he's in, it's surprising that he didn't just break the door down!! 

Though you're right, in the state he's in, it's surprising that he didn't just break the door down!! 

Ha!!  But I figure the Lyndhurst staff wouldn't have been too keen on having the film crew break the door!  (I remember when I first toured the house in 1990, the tour guide pointed out the broken floor tile in front of the foyer where Mrs. Johnson dropped the silver tray in the previous movie.)

(I remember when I first toured the house in 1990, the tour guide pointed out the broken floor tile in front of the foyer where Mrs. Johnson dropped the silver tray in the previous movie.)

I don't think I've ever heard that the tile floor was broken while shooting that hoDS scene. I bet the Lyndhurst staff were furious. Though DC got permission to use the house again for NoDS. I guess the National Trust for Historic Preservation figured the money MGM would pay to use it again was more than worth it. 

Has it been repaired?

Has it been repaired?

I really don't know.  I never thought to look at it the other two times I was there.  But as I recall, it wasn't serious damage.  Anybody just casually looking around wouldn't even notice it.  Just a cracked or chipped tile or two, I believe.

It may be a different case now, but if Lyndhurst did fix it, it was in recent years because I recall coming across a YouTube video a fan made while at Lyndhurst in which they included a shot of the chipped tile in the foyer.

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Revisiting more of how Scene 190 is scripted:

Continuing Scene 190, beginning with yesterday's quote -

Page 89/Scene 190 - Alex: 'Are you going to try and tell me that you don't know what you did tonight?'

- coming up, followed in the script by:

Quentin starts down the stairs toward him.

And that's when today's quote -

Page 89/Scene 190 - Quentin: 'I didn't do a damn thing. I've been painting all evening. Now, for the last time, what are you so hysterical about?'

- comes up.

And as far as any differences in the dialogue go, Alex actually says "Are you gonna try and tell me you don't know what you did tonight?" - and Quentin's actual reply is "I didn't do a damn thing. I've been painting all night. Now, what are you so upset about?", with the "for the last time" part dropped, "evening" changed to "night", and "hysterical" changed to "upset".

And as far as any any differences in the descriptions and directions go, ever since Alex tells Quentin that he didn't succeed, Quentin has actually been seen coming down the stairs -

- while also buttoning his shirt  - and I absolutely love the look of fascination and, dare we say, excitement on Carlotta's face as Alex asks Quentin if he's going to try -

- to say that he doesn't know what he did - and when it comes to Quentin's claim that he was "painting" all night, would the fact that he's buttoning his shirt betray the possibility that he might have been doing more than simply painting? 

   And as far as "yesterday's quote" goes, it was yesterday's, May 28th's, this time around, and "today's quote" is indeed today's, May 29th's, quote.

 

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Revisiting some more of the subtitles and the closed captioning for Scene 190:

...

After Alex does indeed deliver his quoted lines about Quentin not succeeding exactly as they're scripted and the subtitles completely reflect that, the closed captioning has -

- without addressing Quentin - and as indicated by all her lines following Alex being crossed out, Carlotta says nothing, Quentin then only replies to Alex by asking, "What are you talking about, Alex?" - but the subtitles have -

- without addressing Alex, as does the closed captioning -

- and Alex follows that almost exactly as he's scripted to say, "Are you gonna try and tell me that you don't know what you did tonight?" - but the subtitles have -

- with the "try and" and the "tonight" missing - and oddly the closed captioning has -

To be continued...

...

 

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The first of four stills to revisit from Scene 190:

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(Click here for a 765X556 version)

And as with a few other stills, the captioned version that appears in the NoDS Pressbook -

- though not only does the caption misrepresent what's really going on in the scene, it's cut off from some odd reason. And one might think in an official MGM publication something like that wouldn't happen. But obviously it did. And they couldn't even get the order of the actors right...

And obviously, given the Pressbook indicates it, this still is #7 in the NoDS Editor's Portfolio.

 

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The second of four stills to revisit from Scene 190:

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And this caption also misrepresents what's really going on in the scene. Who knows where someone got the ideas that Carlotta, Alex and Gerard are seeing Angelique's ghost when they're really just seeing Quentin? Too weird.

But anyway, this one was published as part of a NoDS article in 16 Spec Magazine, and that's the only place I've ever seen it...

I suspect the blame for the incorrect captions in the Pressbook and 16 Spec lies with someone at MGM, quite possibly the same person who incorrectly captioned other NoDS stills. But whoever is responsible for them, apparently they felt it was easier to make up an incorrect caption than it would have been to actually research what's really going on in the stills. 

 

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The third of four stills to revisit from Scene 190:

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(Click here for a 597X900 version)

And this also appears on page 110 of The DS Companion.

 

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The last of four stills to revisit from Scene 190:

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(Click here for a 599X800 version)

And while I've never seen this officially published anywhere, I have come across beige tinted copies of it that look to me like they are scanned from a magazine or book. Though, as is often the case, no one who has shared those copies has cited any source, though presumably the original scanner should have known a source, but either they didn't cite it or I may have just never come across that version that might have cited it...

 

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Revisiting yet more of how Scene 190 is scripted:

Continuing Scene 190, beginning with yesterday's quote -

Page 89/Scene 190 - Alex: 'You tried to drown Tracy!'

- coming up, followed in the script by:

Quentin stares incredulously at him as Alex continues.

And that's when today's quote -

Page 89/Scene 190 - Alex: 'It wasn't you, Quentin. It was Charles Collins drowning his wife all over again.'

- comes up, followed in the script by:

CARLOTTA    Mr. Collins, you're not going    to listen to this, are you?

And as far as any differences in the dialogue go, Alex actually says "Quentin it wasn't you. It was Charles Collins drowning his --" - and Carlotta's line is completely dropped in favor of Quentin cutting off Alex with an unscripted -

"Alex, you don't --"

And as far as any any differences in the descriptions and directions go, there nothing to get into so far as what's written in the script, but what's obvious from the capture above is that Quentin turns away from Alex after Alex brings up Charles.

And what's interesting about Grayson script is that she made notations for her dropped line. She wrote that when Alex accuses Quentin of trying to drown Tracy, Carlotta would laugh as if it's the most absurd thing she's ever heard - and quite possibly in addition to the dropped line, Carlotta would actually say "That's absurd" - and speaking of the actual dropped line, Grayson changed "listen" to "listening", which doesn't work with the way the line is written in the script, so apparently she also planned at least one other change but didn't write it down.

   And so far as "yesterday's quote" goes, it was yesterday's, May 30th's, this time around, and "today's quote" is indeed today's, May 31st's, quote.

 

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Revisiting even more of how Scene 190 is scripted:

Continuing Scene 190, beginning with today's first quote -

Page 89/Scene 190 - Alex: 'For God's sake, Quentin! Will you listen to me! She's at my place with Claire right now. Now you've got to get out of this house!'

- coming up, followed in the script by:

Quentin looks from Alex to Carlotta and then turns        away as if trying to clear his mind.  TRUCK IN ON HIS        CLOSE-UP as we see his total confusion.  HOLD FOR A 190    CONTD                                       CONTD  190        MOMENT as Alex ENTERS THE SHOT, putting his hand on        Quentin's shoulder.

And that's when today's second quote -

Page 90/Scene 190 - Alex (softly): 'All you have to do is come with me -- Tracy understands.'

- comes up.

And as far as any differences in the dialogue go, Alex actually says "For Christ sakes, would you listen to me! Now she's at my place right now. Now you've got to get out of this house!" - and then he adds a "Quentin" before delivering the second quote as scripted.

And as far as any differences in the descriptions and directions go, nothing happens as it's scripted - Quentin doesn't look from Alex to Carlotta nor turn away as if trying to clear his mind, mostly because he's already turned away and he doesn't turn back - and as is obvious in today's first capture, the camera doesn't truck in on a close-up of Quentin -

- because things remain in a 2 shot of Quentin and Alex, though we do see Quentin's total confusion - and the camera doesn't hold for a moment as Alex enters the shot because he never leaves it - and as we can see in today's second capture, Ales doesn't -

- put his hand on Quentin's shoulder, though he does move in closer to Quentin before he delivers his version of today's second quote.

Also, it's interesting that in a GP rated film they got away with John Karlen changing "For God's sake" to "For Christ sakes" - though not as interesting as an unscripted ad lib that he'll make in an upcoming scene...

   And so far as "today's" quotes go, they are indeed today's, June 1st's, this time around.

 

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More of the subtitles and the closed captioning for Scene 190, which continues to show that as seen in the film it has parts that are very different from how it was scripted:

...

First off Quentin actually says, "I didn't do a damn thing. I've been painting all night." - though the subtitles have -

- with "damn" and "all night" missing - but both lines are entirely missing in the closed captioning - and then Quentin asks, "Now, what are you so upset about?" - and the subtitles completely reflect that - and at least in that instance the closed captioning has -

- with just the "Now" missing - and after Alex informs Quentin that he tried to drawn Tracy, and after some silence between them due to Quentin's shock at what Alex has said, Alex starts off with, "Quentin it wasn't you. It was Charles Collins drowning his wife--" before Quentin cuts him off with something that's unscripted rather than Carlotta having a line after Alex has completely finished his explanation of what really happened - and with that in mind the subtitles have -

- though the closed captioning has -

- so take your pick of what Quentin actually says because it's hard to decipher because they're talking over one another...

To be continued...

...

 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Revisiting even yet more of how Scene 190 is scripted:

And continuing with more of Scene 190, beginning with Quentin's reaction to Alex telling him that Tracy understands:

Quentin turns and looks at him hard.  Then he turns to        Carlotta.

And that's when today's first quote -

Page 90/Scene 190 - Quentin: 'Where is Mrs. Collins?'

- comes up, followed by today's second quote -

Page 90/Scene 190 - Carlotta: 'I'm sure she's in her room, sir.'

- comes up.

And when it comes to any differences in the dialogue, Quentin actually asks "Where's Mrs. Collins?" - and Carlotta's response is simply "Well, I'm sure she's in her room", with addressing Quentin as "sir" dropped once again.

And when it comes to any differences in the descriptions and directions go, Quentin doesn't actually turn to look hard at Alex - he does, however, turn toward Carlotta, which then prompts Alex to turn to her as well - and can I just say that I absolutely love the butter wouldn't melt in her mouth look of innocence on Carlotta's face -

before she tells Quentin that she's sure Tracy is in her room!! And Grayson has a notation in her script that Carlotta should deliver that line with a where else would she be demeanor, which is exactly how it comes across.

   And as far as "today's" quotes go, they are indeed today's, June 2nd's, this time around.

 

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Wrapping up with the differences when it comes to the subtitles/closed captioning for Scene 190 - and yet again it has parts that are very different from how it was scripted:

...

Picking up where we left off, after Quentin cuts off Alex, Alex continues with, "For chrissakes, Quentin, listen to me! Now she's at my place right now." - though the subtitles have -

- with "chrissake" rather than crissakes, and "Now" missing from the beginning of Alex' second line - however, the entire first line is missing in the closed captioning and all that appears is -

- also with the beginning "Now" missing - And after Alex basically tells Quentin as scripted, "Now you've got to get out of this house!" and "Quentin, all you have to do is come with me --" and "Tracy understands." - and after Quentin then asks Carlotta, "Where's Mrs. Collins?" - and after Carlotta replies, "Well, I'm sure she's in her room",  the closed captioning acknowledges a sound as -

- though the subtitles do not - and then Quentin goes running up the stairs calling to Tracy - though interestingly enough we do not see Alex start up after him...

And getting back to that sound that the closed captioning acknowledges as a door closing, it's interesting that a sort of snapping sound is heard after Alex says that Tracy understands - but that sound isn't acknowledged. And after Quentin whirls around and calls out to Tracy after the supposed door closing sound, are we to presume that sound is what makes Quentin whirl around? The script doesn't indicate that there was even supposed to be such a sound. And as I said, the subtitles don't even acknowledge it, though that may hardly be an indication of anything because, as I've said many times already, the subtitles are quite picky when it comes to which sounds are and are not acknowledged.

Perhaps it's up to audience members to make up their own minds:

...

 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

A post worth revisiting:

Holy Hell, today's shot of Carlotta and Gerard is totally awesome!

For those who may have missed the 30th's installment, here they are so you'll know what was being talked about:

Page 90/Scene 190 - Quentin: 'Where is Mrs. Collins?

Page 90/Scene 190 - Carlotta: 'I'm sure she's in her room, sir.

   Of course the "30th's installment" was actually June 2nd's this time around.