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Post by pupdurcs on Jul 4, 2018 16:13:13 GMT
Bringing it back to Clift and Brando for a sec....I'd argue that Clift might actually have at least as strong a collection of film classics as Brando from the late 40's through the 60's. Think about it. Red River A Place In The Sun From Here To Eternity Suddenly, Last Summer The Misfits Judgement At Nuremberg Those are SEVEN stone cold classic movies of that era. Clift's problem may be that his style was actually too understated for his own good. He's sharing screen time with massive movie icons in almost all these films, and their screen presences mostly feel bigger than his. John Wayne, Elizabeth Taylor, Burt Lancaster, Frank Sinatra,, Katherine Hepburn, Marilyn Monroe, Clark Gable, Spencer Tracy, Judy Garland etc. Well, if you ask me.. the only one of those where he was best in show in was.... A Place in the Sun. And that would be 6 classics... right? If you were to include The Heiress as part of the group, I'd take de Havilland easily. Red River (Wayne) From Here to Eternity (Kerr) Suddenly, Last Summer (Taylor + Hepburn) The Misfits (Monroe) Judgment at Nuremberg (Schell + Garland) But like I said, I'm no Brando fanboy or anything. I have my biases, but speaking for myself, I'd honestly take Charlton Heston over both. See how things work? Yep...The Heiress was the 7th classic, which I thought I included. Honestly, I kind of agree with you. I admire Clift's naturalism and truthfulness in performance, but I sometimes wonder if he was overrated in his day, and if some modern cinephiles (myself included) overrate him a bit now. A terrific actor, but his inability to fully dominate a picture has to be considered a weakness. In some ways, I think Clift may be the Ethan Hawke of the 1950's. Consistent, natural, believable.....but not blessed with that screen presence that centres the gravity of a picture and bends it to his will. |
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Post by pacinoyes on Jul 4, 2018 16:40:26 GMT
I think that's mostly right but of course Clift is a far better actor than Hawke (I know you weren't saying that), and Hawke this year gives his first different and first great performance imo in First Reformed because he isn't just reactive (he's always that) he actually has a screenplay that is so insanely focused on how his character reacts to things and also him to fill in the blanks he sees in himself.
Clift didn't do a movie for 3-4 years I think (?) which was unheard of back then - he essentially gave up that spot he had and then had the car accident so he was different there on - so it's hard to say what could have been with his being more at the center of films. People in many ways romanticize that about him and romanticized it about Dean who emerged as in those "missing" years of 55-56 almost in a way as a new Clift (or a Clift-Brando synthesis - he wasn't around long but he caused quite an impression especially with Clift MIA those years)
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no
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Post by no on Jul 11, 2018 5:40:47 GMT
Falling Down is a really good film
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Nikan
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Post by Nikan on Dec 1, 2020 19:03:46 GMT
Clicked because of Douglas, kept looking for the tale of Brando and Clift's rivalry... what a read, guys!
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