I just watched this amazing movie for the first time yesterday. I haven't had time to put together a coherent post yet, but I just had to gush. The picture says it all: this movie kicks ass. Twentieth Century is up there with Design for Living as my favorite pre-code comedy. One of the things that definitely makes this movie pre-code (besides the living in sin subtext and the religious lunatic) is the amount of Carole Lombard lounging around dishabille. Typical pre-code cheesecake gambits abound including changing in front of the camera, losing the belt for that robe, etc. Walter Connoly and Roscoe Kerns are brilliant. Also: I'm now a total Barrymore fanatic.
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7 comments:
I had never seen this film either until this year. Loved it. Can't wait to read your thoughts about it.
This is the movie that made me fall in love with Jack. Easily one of my very favorites.
Is "Jack" what we are to call him? Nice. I like it!
That's what he was called in his day. Though rumor has it that non-friends that dared refer to him as Jack got the business end of his walking stick. *laughs*
If you want to see Lombard leg...well, take a look at this "Twentieth Century" publicity still banned for release by Joseph Breen's office:
http://community.livejournal.com/carole_and_co/62897.html
Wow, VP8, you weren't exaggerating at all. It's not just the vast amount of leg, but the fact that it's pretty clear she doesn't have anything on underneath the robe on top. The placement of Barrymore's hand, too!
There were some minor changes that they made to placate the office and probably repressing that publicity still was part of it. you can see them strategizing by making this still that they knew wouldn't fly, so that they could make the office happy by taking their suggestions.
Breen was definitely in place in the Hays office when this film was being moved through release but he was powerless to make most of the changes he wanted which was to remove all the references to religion. (Both Christians and Jews are mocked pretty openly in the script.) I imagine that if it had come out a few months later they would have had to remove the cheesecake and cover up the fact that Jaffe and Lily are living together without being married.
This looks great! Will definitely add to to-watch list!
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