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jodyphilip
Reviews
Remember My Name (1978)
Brilliant
Geraldine Chaplin's perfect performance dominates the film. I've known a lot of disturbed people and she is spot on, down to the most minute gesture.
I grew up in the 1970's and this movie portrays the look and feel of that time really well, not like the modern imitations-this was really how it was and captured so well. Most people were slim, lots of cigarettes everywhere, and discount stores looked like yard sales with stuff heaped together rather indiscriminately. The interior of home of Tony Perkin's character is also very authentic, of course, because it was filmed in the 1970's, but also because it was just a typical California house, not representing anything else.
Tony is pretty good in that his true self-serving nature is slowly revealed. Jeff Goldblum is very young in this movie but he still turns in a good performance, as do the rest of the character roles....except for Ms. Berenson. She's an appealing person, but among the other strong actors she falters. This may be my favorite suspense film of all time because it's so close to real life. No gore, thankfully.
The Picasso Summer (1969)
Yvette: yes Albert: no
I'll never understand Albert Finney's apparent popularity. His average looking face is usually frozen in a slight smirk, and he's only slightly more animated during one scene when he comes back drunk to their hotel room.
Yvette is both beautiful and authentic, although why she would be married to fussy Finney is a question not explored.
The big problem is this movie has too many moving parts: travelogue? Ode to Picasso? Or the story of a conflicted marriage? The cartoon sequences seem garish, almost frightening.
Just like in A Light in the Piazza, Yvette is a lovely focal point as she wanders ( alone ) the streets of southern France, and those are my favorite scenes.
Light in the Piazza (1962)
I love this movie
I've probably watched it 10 times and it's still enjoyable. Yvette was at the height of her beauty and the idea that she could fall gracefully into a comfortable Italian life seems perfectly believable. The rest of the cast is excellent, but Yvette rules the film. Is it realistic? No. It's a delightful fantasy. It's also a depiction of a time period that has vanished, unfortunately. To me this movie screams for a sequel. Too late now because that world is gone, but seeing Yvette as a young Italian matron, her beauty and innocence causing mayhem for everyone, then all is resolved and forgiven by a new baby as beautiful as its parents. Sigh.