I do have a life contrary to popular belief :D
This week I watched The Great Ziegfeld for the first time. This spectacle of a movie won the Best Picture Oscar in 1936, which is shocking to me. This movie doesn't seem like it's from the mid 30's at all. The effects are truly impressive with moving stages galore.
My luck with old movies has been very mixed and in general pretty disappointing. I wasn't expecting much from this movie, but I was pleasantly surprised. I found myself entertained by the cocky Florenz Ziegfeld Jr. as he peddled his show acts and built his Broadway empire. It's always amazing to me how imaginative some people can be and Ziegfeld's creations were huge. As he says in the movie, 'the stairs need to be higher, always higher.'
The movie of course has its flaws, but even those I found amusing. All the women in old movies are complete jokes, always flinging themselves into the arms of men and acting like complete fools...but then again I guess not a whole lot has changed...
One flaw I couldn't look past was the movie's ending. Let's just say it was over dramatic and laughable which I don't think is what the directors were going for. Nevertheless I would still still give the film a 3.5 out of 5 because the movie is over 3 hours long and I made it all the way through without too much complaining.
Hopefully the rest of the 30's movies are as enjoyable, although I'm not going to hold me breath.
Check out my movie inspired snack Vindaloo Popcorn Mix over at HTIC. I promise it won't be another 4 months before you hear from me again!
