THE MOVIES OF MY LIFE PHASE ONE: Candidates for 1969

We’re now entering my Grade School Years with this Poll.  I’m still living on Norwood Avenue in Brooklyn, and I have some still-hazy-but-clearer memories of being taken to movies like Robin Hood (at Radio City Music Hall) by my parents.  I may have started seeing films at the legendary Valley Stream Drive-In, as one of my memories of that venue was watching Support Your Local Gunfighter and being grossed out by the Ketchup Flavored Potato Chips my natural father found for me to snack on, and that film was released this year.

Anyway, onto your choices:

SABATA

On January 9th, 1925, Lee Van Cleef was born.  If you’re even vaguely interested in the western genre, especially the Spaghetti Western subgenre, you are intimate with Cleef’s work.  Described by my guinea pig on The Honeywell Experiment as having ‘a face like a knife,’ I always will remember him for this little sidelong glance that was his trademark--a glance that is the very definition of ‘steely eyed.’  This is the first of a trilogy of films by the director of If You Meet Sartana, Pray For Your Death (which none of you voted for in the 1968 poll; try to do better this time), Gianfranco Parolini.  Sabata is considered a slightly lighter-toned version of Sartana, and I’m kinda intrigued to see what it’s like.

THE ITALIAN JOB

I saw the remake due to my love of all things Jason Statham, and seeing The Ipcress File recently made me curious to visit the original because of my growing love of 60‘s era Michael Caine.  Caine was hardcore cool during this decade, culminating in his positively frozen performance in the amazing crime thriller Get Carter.  Like Get Carter, this is considered an Essential Film by purists.  So I would really like to experience it for my own.

THE BED SITTING ROOM

This is a post-apocalyptic comedy based on a play co-written by Goon Show alum Spike Milligan.  I am a massive Goon Show* nut, who were the progenitors of the chaotic British comedy people of my generation and beyond love so much.  In addition to Milligan and fellow Goon Harry Secombe, the cast features Peter Cook and Dudley Moore (who two years earlier wrote and starred in one of my favorite comedies, Bedazzled) and Marty Feldman.  That’s a lot of comedic firepower, as you can see from the trailer it looks freaking weird, and I want to drink this one in.

SWEET CHARITY

Given my association with horror and grindhouse cinema, you’d probably be surprised to learn that I deeply love musicals.  I was in lots of community musical theater in my youth, although my less-than-golden singing voice assigned me to supporting roles.  An argument could be made that the cinematic musical went into hibernation in the mid-70‘s, and this was made by Bob Fosse during the Golden Age of The Musical’s last gasps.  Fosse directed two musicals I really enjoy, including the adaptation of Cabaret that managed to hew closer to the play the musical was based on, I Am A Camera, while retaining what made the theatrical adaptation so good, so I’m interested in seeing this one.  Plus, with Shirley MacLaine, it kinda plays up to my thing for redheads....

As always, please go to my Twitter Page and vote  You’ll have one week.

And then we’re on to the 70‘s.  God Help Us.

*--If you don’t know about the Goon Show, it’s a seminal comedy program that aired on BBC Radio throughout the 50‘s and featured Milligan, Secombe and Peter Sellars playing various characters serving as actors in a series of anarchic half hour plays. You can find a sample of a typical Goons effort here.

Seriously, check these things out.  You will not be disappointed.