A delightful (82-minute) screwball (with a super-weird title). The movie made me wonder: was Molly Ringwald the reincarnation of Ginger Rogers?! She’s great here. It even features a scene where she competes in a dance contest!
recently rediscovered that this is the perfect movie, and i say that without a hint of irony. i watched it twice last week and then read the screenplay front to back. my mom told me she caught it on hbo (that’s something parents still do, catch things on hbo) and i almost cried. strikes the perfect balance of genuine heart and complete nonsense. the extended sequence at mamie-claire’s house is (again, genuinely) a feat in cinema. “five feet to the left and unhappy”
50s beatnik downtown jazz witches. Jack Lemmon is a tom-tom playing warlock. Kim Novak walks around barefoot on shag carpet in black capris. Jimmy Stewart is the charming and befuddled object of her affections. It’s Christmas. And there’s always snow on the ground. Seriously what more could one possibly want in a movie. Feels like the TO CATCH A THIEF of witch movies. Or maybe a grownup version of BEDKNOBS AND BROOMSTICKS.
Aka. DDLJ. Sweet funny engrossing love story featuring two of the most good-looking and charismatic people to ever do it. Amazing music sequences. Kajol. Lata Mangeshkar. Shah Rukh Khan. Plus the Bellamy is straight up Gaston from B&tB. It’s awesome. I laughed. I cried. It’s a perfect gateway into Bollywood.
It’s fun and wacky and feels like living inside the movie. And it’s full of SoCal wish-fulfillment. (And unlike some Pynchon it’s never a grind to read.)