Sunday, June 06, 2021
Antifa Films and Me
- Commentary: Check out this post on reddit, which is the most complete listing of anti-fascist films I've yet found, from old to new. I came to this post when I did a bit of research for a movie that had been recently haunting me, Keeper of the Flame, and discovered it was considered anti-fascist. I wasn't sure what that meant, so I decided to do a little research to better understand the definition and evolution of anti-fascist movies. Along the way I discovered I already own a few, some of them fairly recent, some historical, some both.
The first thing I'm going to do is institute a new label category, "anti-fascist", and label the few movies I have that have been said to fit into that category. Excuse me while I absent myself. When I return, I'll append a short list of movies in this category I own and another of those I'd like to own, or, at least, watch.
Stand by, please.
Okay. Here is a list of the anti-fascist films I own at this time. They are all "classically" anti-fascist, by which I mean several people, well-known and not, agree that they are anti-fascist:- 1900
- American History X
- Citizen Kane
- Keeper of the Flame
- Meet John Doe
- Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
- Schindler's List
When I think hard, it occurs to me that there are good reasons for Oliver Stone's JFK to be on this list. In fact, what film production of Oliver Stone's doesn't belong on this list (assuming I own them)?
I think that might be a problem with the "anti-fascist" category. Ultimately, about half of all movies made in the U.S. can be classed as "anti-fascist", considering how fearful this country is of any hint of fascism; curious, isn't it, considering how close the politicians in this country often come to fascism, throughout its entire history, not just recently. In addition, the U.S. is not the only country that shudders at the hint of any fascism in its politics. Finally, everyone (including me) who has a bugaboo about fascism has a hard time defining it, owing, in part, to the many, varied, and not altogether unrelated definitions of fascism that exist throughout the world. Go ahead. Look up the definition(s). I dare you.
It's kind of like the category "drama". I discovered, to my unpleasant surprise, that I had classified probably more than half of everything I own as "drama". I went with it, when setting up my category lists, but, I don't know, maybe I need to rethink some categories. Maybe I need to delete some of them as so obvious they aren't needed. I mean, suppose I added the category "movie". Uh oh. As opposed to what?!?
More later. I'm running out of steam. I need to reheat myself.
Update: 7/30/21: It seems I've acquired another antifa film, A Special Day, although this film is considerably more subtle than the others mentioned above. I haven't watched it, yet, but from reading the Wikipedia summary (attached to the movie's title in the space where my write-up will, eventually, appear), I'm excited about it. Stay tuned.
Keeper of the Flame
- Commentary: This is a curious Tracey/Hepburn production, initially badly reviewed but its reputation improved greatly over time; just check out the Reception section of the Wikipedia write-up for it. That section is detailed in its explanation of the film being revived in the view of critics. I think its reassessment has a lot to do with the times we live in right now and the furor over anti-fascism that the recent Trump Presidency brought us.
When I initially acquired it, I wasn't thinking specifically of its anti-fascist slant. For some months I had been vividly remembering scenes from it without bothering to consider why those scenes continued to reappear in my memory. I'm quite sure, even without a specific memory of my first viewing, that I initially saw the movie before 2008 when my mother was alive and we had a streaming service that featured TCM, and haven't watched it since. I think, this time, my interest was revived by a wayward waltz, over the last few weeks, through all my Tracey/Hepburn and Hepburn movies, which ignited interest in those I either hadn't seen or didn't own. At any rate, a few weeks ago my interest in this movie became so great, and I found a price so low, that I decided to acquire it.
I'll write more about my reactions to this movie, later. Right now, I'm going to create a post (which will appear immediately above this one) about how it also triggered my interest in anti-fascist movies, of the early 20th century through now, and explore that, a bit.
More on this specific movie later, I'm sure, including my offense at the ending, where I attempt a stab at why it ended as it did and whether the ending was stupid, or merely inevitable because of the time in which it was made.
P.S. This movie is mentioned in the review I wrote for Undercurrent.
Actor Role Actor Role Actor Role Actor Role Spencer Tracy Steven O'Malley Katharine Hepburn Christine Forrest Richard Whorf Clive Kerndon Margaret Wycherly Mrs. Forrest Forrest Tucker Geoffrey Midford Frank Craven Doctor Fielding Stephen McNally Freddie Ridges Percy Kilbride Orion Peabody Audrey Christie Jane Harding Darryl Hickman Jeb Rickards Donald Meek Mr. Arbuthnot Howard Da Silva Jason Rickards
Here's a link to the Wikipedia write-up of the film.
Release Date: 1942
Directed by George Cukor.
Labels: anti-fascist, dramaD, katharine-hepburn, melodramaA, spencer-tracy, tracy-hepburn
The Best Man
- Commentary: This movie was originally listed in the post Movies I've Seen, Do Not Own but Can't Forget. Now I own it. First, let me append what I wrote when I was wishing to add this movie to my collection:
Temporarily "Out of Stock" and pricey, as of this writing on 5/8/2021.
Not Available for check out through local library system.
I have this thing for politically realistic stories and this is one of the most politically realistic plays/movies in existence. Bravo to Gore Vidal. Bravo to Henry Fonda and Cliff Robertson. The ending is clearly too idealistic to play out in real political life, at this time, anyway, and at almost any previous time, but I think of this movie during every election season (which, unfortunately, is all the time, in the U.S., now) and wonder, does anyone remember this movie? Have any of the hopefuls watched it? Does it, yet and finally, mean anything positive to any one of them? Some day I hope to be able to answer, unequivocally, yes.
There. That's done. More later.
This film included scads of actors playing bit, often named, parts. It is, after all, a film about a presidential convention and reflects the enormity of people and the bedlam of such an event. My Actor/Role table reflects only those actors who are likely to appear in another film in my collection.
Actor Role Actor Role Actor Role Actor Role Henry Fonda William Russell Cliff Robertson Joe Cantwell Edie Adams Mabel Cantwell Margaret Leighton Alice Russell Shelley Berman Sheldon Bascomb Lee Tracy Art Hockstader Ann Sothern Sue Ellen Gamadge Gene Raymond Don Cantwell Kevin McCarthy Dick Jensen John Henry Faulk Governor T.T. Claypoole Gore Vidal Senator at Convention Mahalia Jackson Herself
Here's The Wikipedia write-up on this movie.
Release Date: 1964
Directed by Franklin J. Schaffner.
Labels: henry-fonda, political5, presidential
