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OPERATION CROSSBOW
(BLAKE EDWARDS, 1959)
NOT RATED
2 HOURS 4 MINUTES

Very amusing military comedy, helped out immeasurably by the presence of Cary Grant. Tony Curtis also is fine in one of his better roles. Good harmless fun, very entertaining. It is a little overlong however.

This weekend we watched a plethera of movies. Only one of them being a new movie. However with most of the movies, there was an underlying theme with them. You see Click, Benny & joon, Multiplicity, and Runaway Bride deals with self discovery. I know this sounds odd, particularly when you think about the types of movies these are. Lets walk through these.



Runaway Bride

A woman who is the butt of jokes because she has a long string of men she has left at the alter. While a writer investigates the story, she is about to marry and leave her 4th husband. The writer falls in love with her and finds himself the 5th in line of men left at the alter!

This movie, is all about her self discovery. She gets into these relationships and changes herself to whatever the man wanted. She was a cameleon who didn't even know who she was or what she liked or wanted. Eventually she discovered who she was, and that paved the way for the end and the "happy ending."

This is one of my mother's favorite movies. I have a very clear memory, though I cannot remember from what year, of waking up very late at night--post-midnight mass--one Christmas Eve, looking out into the living room, and seeing my mother watching this movie and wrapping Christmas presents. It soothed me, and, without saying anything, I went back to bed.

No, it's not actually a Christmas movie per se, though the majority of it is set in December, 1941. The holiday meal they share is New Year's Eve, and it gets interrupted by, you know, Japanese fighter planes. Still, it's how I always think of this movie, and it still soothes me.

Which, incidentally, is my great argument against people who insist that children must believe in Santa. Waking up that night and seeing Mom out there wrapping the presents made me feel safe. Mom was protecting me, and that meant more to me than a houseload of Santas.

As for the movie itself, it's wonderfully funny. Cary Grant and Tony Curtis are both such entertaining performers, and they play off one another so well here. (Man, I wish the space bar on my keyboard would stop sticking.) Cary Grant is mostly playing the straightman here to Tony Curtis's wacky lieutenant out for all he can get--including the lovely Nurse Duran.

Actually, it's rather hard to say if any one person is getting all the straight lines. They're almost like normal people in that regard. Yes, it's a nearly-fifty-year-old military comedy, and yes, it's quite predictable in places. (Oh, and yes, it's primarily based on assorted true events that happened all over the Pacific.) But it's worth checking out, if you're so inclined.

As with most movies from different era, the attitudes are quite different. Feminists would hate this movie, if they saw it today. Hollywood would never make it now in first place, unless roles were reversed and men were made to look like sex objects. That would meet PC double standards. Nonetheless, agendas aside, there is lot of good humor in here; the story is interesting, and you get well-known cast with Cary Grant, Tony Curtis, Dina Merrill, Arthur O'Connell, Gavin MacLeod and Marian Ross. The latter went on to be big names on television more than movies, MacLeod on "Mary Tyler Moore" and Ross on "Happy Days." This was Happy Days on a ship, at least when some attractive women board the vessel. Grant has the best lines in the film - speaking lines, that is. Good entertainment. Lots of laughs before the PC made it impossible to laugh at anything, including ourselves.

First I want to have a brief rant about the fact that my parents went to see "Waitress" without me last night. Stupid anniversary date!

"Stay" is a very interesting movie that's a bit complicated and messy but very rewarding. It's also one of the most visually stimulating movies in recent years. The cast is superb, with Ewan McGregor, Naomi Watts, and the incredible Ryan Gosling all delivering in their respective roles. The story is pretty simple at first til you get to the twist at the end-then it makes you question the whole thing. I like to just accept the simplest explanation, which makes the whole thing very rewarding and likeable, although I'm sure there are people who delve a lot deeper and find more meaning to it. I highly recommend this movie to anyone who likes "different" movies. Stick with it and I think you'll be pleased.

"Operation Petticoat" is another Cary Grant movie, from later in his career. Grant is a bit gruffer and more serious than usual as a submarine captain, but as the movie goes on he (along with the movie as a whole) becomes more likeable and funnier. I was a little bored at parts but about 45 minutes into the movie things really start to pick up. The women add a new dimension to the story of getting a submarine ready to return to war, and the supporting cast is great, especially Tony Curtis. Overall, I liked it a lot and it's a good one to rent.

One of my all time favorite movies. Cary Grant and Tony Curtis provide the perfect comedy tandem for this light hearted war movie. This Blake Edwards directed movie, one of his first hits, really sets the stage for his almost slapstick style while still being a smart comedy. Like all good movies, there are flaws, but they merely add to the charm of the movie. Cary Grant glides through this movie almost effortlessly and Tony Curtis really defines his glib personality throughout. The rest of the cast shines as well (Joan O-Brien, Gavin MacLeod, Dick Sargent, etc). It is interesting to note, that much of the movie is based on real events (pink submarine, the toilet paper letter, etc).

The first is a complete and utter bore. It's not until the woman come on board the sub that it gets interesting. Cast is charming. Blake Edwards direction is adaquete.

:fresh: 20,000 hilarious laughs under the sea

60/100. Older comedies sure are different when compared to your typical comedies today. The first half of the film was a little slow and I was afraid that I wouldn't "get" the comedy from this 50s movie- but it picked up with the arrival of Tony Curtis' character and the crew members began to get themselves into wacky situations. Most of the situations were the result of Tony Curtis' actions- his interaction with Cary Grant's character is what saved me from giving this movie a splat/thumbs down.

From the pig situation to the engine repairman's experiences with the older nurse (engine wouldn't work properly since there was no valve part to replace, so the nurse used her garter as a makeshift valve- and it was disturbing to watch it get pummeled)- and the pregnant island women with their goat- and Tony Curtis' whole persona in getting the submarine parts it needed - even the pink paint ended up being pretty funny- I couldn't imagine it being anything other than corny, but it worked. It just felt like chaos and the captain couldn't help any of the situations.

There was no profanity or nudity (except for the tattoo on the guy's chest), like in most comedies today. This is no masterpiece, but I enjoyed it and I got a few laughs. I would characterize this as being a "goofy" movie, but nothing like the Scarey Movie franchises or Meet the Spartans. This movie was OK.