tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2309362817539389132.post2028219642581881915..comments2024-03-24T08:18:33.058-04:00Comments on Conversations Over Chai: The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956)Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger13125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2309362817539389132.post-47290465438556999032015-07-26T10:31:17.229-04:002015-07-26T10:31:17.229-04:00Oh, he will. He liked your RD book, and he's l...Oh, he will. He liked your RD book, and he's looking forward to the 50 songs' one.Anu Warrierhttp://anuradhawarrier.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2309362817539389132.post-63481703311531441942015-07-25T09:28:18.247-04:002015-07-25T09:28:18.247-04:00I remember details of a lot of other films, includ...I remember details of a lot of other films, including Hitch's. This one, for some reason, I drew a complete blank.Anu Warrierhttp://anuradhawarrier.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2309362817539389132.post-66242462653956773702015-07-24T23:16:23.858-04:002015-07-24T23:16:23.858-04:00I remember most details of these films. Hitch is o...I remember most details of these films. Hitch is one of he very few Holly directors I watch..and with passion :)<br /><br />Que sara sara was taught ti us in school. I used to sing it from the time I was in Class I. I always had my set of lyrics.. or the Pancham way Da Da da..Anirudha Bhattacharjeenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2309362817539389132.post-20933609442465567842015-07-24T11:22:34.439-04:002015-07-24T11:22:34.439-04:00I think it is because it is really not as taut as ...I think it is because it is really not as taut as his other films. The earlier version is far shorter, and is apparently the better one - you heard right. I haven't watched it, so I don't really know. I'm woefully aware that, like you, having watched this one, I may not be the best person to compare the two versions. But it is available, so I might watch it one day just to satisfy my curiosity. <br /><br />I did like this film a lot; I definitely wasn't bored, and while I was watching the film, everything looked plausible. That is the mark of a great film-maker, to make you believe what you see.Anu Warrierhttp://anuradhawarrier.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2309362817539389132.post-6844275194958013402015-07-24T11:18:28.187-04:002015-07-24T11:18:28.187-04:00I'm totally in awe of people like your friend....I'm totally in awe of people like your friend. I do store assorted trivia in my mind, but these guys have an almost-encyclopaedic knowledge about films. <br /><br />I wish Criterion (or someone like that) would come into India in a big way. NFDC is doing a decent job with parallel/art cinema, releasing cleaned up, sub-titled versions of various films, but I wish someone would do that with mainstream films as well. Good films from various languages, not just Hindi. Make complete prints from VHS if need be (the original prints of many films are sadly missing), clean it up, sub-title it and release it. I'm sure so many film lovers would buy them. :( <br /><br />Looking forward to the SD book. Your latest one will reach me on the 16th - can't wait. :)Anu Warrierhttp://anuradhawarrier.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2309362817539389132.post-78258923324153127772015-07-24T07:25:32.329-04:002015-07-24T07:25:32.329-04:00Anu,
Lovely review of a film I am also very fond o...Anu,<br />Lovely review of a film I am also very fond of. I liked the quip "the clueless American". I liked Hitchcock's other bumbling hero, Cary Grant, more because his English was quite English, I was sometimes put off by James Stewart's Yankee accent, in spite of his endearing vulnerability.<br />Hitchcock retains some element of whodunnit till the end, unlike <i>Frenzy</i> or <i>To Catch A Thief</i> where you knew it right at the beginning. But his mastery was still in creating the suspense and edge of the seat ending. This movie has somewhat longer climax than the brevity of ending in some of his great films. Is that the reason why it is not regarded among his great movies? While on this, I have read somewhere that the earlier British version of the film of 1934 was superior. As a non-expert I don't subscribe to the view, because having been hooked to 1956 version, I found it difficult to go through the older version. I would welcome your expert view, in case you plan to review the older version, too. That would encourage me to see it again.<br />AKSongs Of Yorenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2309362817539389132.post-12588190195479183562015-07-24T00:05:52.501-04:002015-07-24T00:05:52.501-04:00Hehe... I too have Criterion copies , esp of films...Hehe... I too have Criterion copies , esp of films by Hitch. I am a Hitch freak btw - another matter than I have been pigeonholed as an India expert, esp music, that too the Burmans and Kishore :) - , and I have multiple copies of his films, including some Criterion. Ditto for some films of Wilder and Chaplin. The Criterion copy of Double Indemnity also has the TV version, something I feel is unique. My friend Gourab Roy Chowdhury (he is on facebook, but rarely does he write) has a terrific collection of Classic Holly and World. I conduct a fundoo film quiz every year, and one of my questions last year was the two endings of Topaz. He not only answered it - literally sleeping - , but also showed me the third ending of the film ;). And all were DVDs , and not pinched from the net / youtube.<br /><br />I'll check the review of To Catch a Thief. I have mentioned this film in the book on S D Burman which is in the pipeline.. should be there next yearAnirudha Bhattacharjeenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2309362817539389132.post-19826837499150168452015-07-23T14:11:20.180-04:002015-07-23T14:11:20.180-04:00What you say is so true - you remember the climax ...What you say is so true - you remember the climax (I actually didn't even remember the son being captive; just Doris Day at the piano), not much else. I knew I had watched this film before, but honestly, there was not that instant recollection while watching the film. Just plain blank.Anu Warrierhttp://anuradhawarrier.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2309362817539389132.post-86782127704553162532015-07-23T14:09:51.435-04:002015-07-23T14:09:51.435-04:00I did review To Catch a Thief. http://anuradhawarr...I did review <i>To Catch a Thief</i>. http://anuradhawarrier.blogspot.com/2013/02/to-catch-thief.html <br /><br />Very many Hollywood directors also do not know how to frame exotic locales. Just see them filming India, for example. <br /><br /><br /><br />I watched the extended version of <i>Suspicion</i> (which I also reviewed), with lots of DVD extras. That I got from Netflix. I'm not sure if it is a Criterion copy though. I own a few Criterion copies of films, none of them Hitchcock. Besides, I collect my films - so go away. You aren't getting your hands on them. :)Anu Warrierhttp://anuradhawarrier.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2309362817539389132.post-73558629433631208752015-07-23T14:04:34.543-04:002015-07-23T14:04:34.543-04:00It's funny; I hadn't watched it for years ...It's funny; I hadn't watched it for years myself. It was interesting to watch it again, because I had no memory of it, but I doubt I would watch it any time soon.Anu Warrierhttp://anuradhawarrier.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2309362817539389132.post-34493827883988234962015-07-23T08:24:33.876-04:002015-07-23T08:24:33.876-04:00I remember my mother singing Que Sera Sera when I ...I remember my mother singing <i>Que Sera Sera</i> when I was very small (in <i>her</i> version, the last verse became <i>Now I have children of my own; they ask their mother, "What shall I eat?"</i>). I never realised until many years later - when I first saw this film on DD - that it was actually from a film, and that too a Hitchcock one. :-) Have seen this since (my sister gifted my parents a 16-DVD Hitchcock box set some years back, and I leapt at it even before my parents could watch it)... but somehow, the finer details of the story never stay with me. Not like, say, <i>The 39 Steps, The Lady Vanishes</i> or <i>Rear Window</i>, all of which I can pretty much recall most of. The climax, yes, and Doris Day singing while her son is held captive. But the rest tends to slip away.dustedoffnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2309362817539389132.post-17229027513456534482015-07-23T00:37:15.514-04:002015-07-23T00:37:15.514-04:00I love all the films Hitch made in the 1950s. I me...I love all the films Hitch made in the 1950s. I mean I know them deeply enough :). Even the lighter ones, like the film you have discussed , or To Catch a thief, mainly because of the outdoor shooting. Specially nice about them is that Hitch captures the locale without being obsessive . As if the places are being filmed by someone who has been living there for years. He must have taken special care to ensure that the places do not look glossy - something our filmmakers will never learn. <br /><br />Try laying our hands on the Criterion copies. They give lot of funda on behind the scene happenings. And when you are through, pass them to me :DAnirudha Bhattacharjeenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2309362817539389132.post-59658267648959605322015-07-23T00:09:35.827-04:002015-07-23T00:09:35.827-04:00You know, I was quite obsessed with this film as a...You know, I was quite obsessed with this film as a kid. I don't even know how many times I saw it, but I had parts of it memorized. However, somehow that interest didn't last. I don't think I've seen it since I was in middle school. So it's quite odd to see your screen caps and your plot commentary. I wonder if this appealed to me at a young age because of the kidnapped child factor or just because I loved Doris Day's performance/singing. Besides the ending, which is masterful, I don't know if I would enjoy watching it now. P.S. This was the film that made me terrified of taxidermy ;)Filmi~Contrasthttp://filmi-contrast.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.com