Richard Quine

[Monkey Ballz]

Seen about ten of Quine's films, found them all interesting enough to watch more than once. Never met a single person - male, female, old, young - who didn't like Bell, Book & Candle.

But the one I find most interesting is Strangers When We Meet. Makes a potent double-feature with the also undervalued No Down Payment. Both explore the transitional aspects of the post-WWII economy/real estate/nuclear family milieu to great, sometimes troubling effect, though they do so in tellingly different ways. There's a kind of dreamy undertow in both films... the suburbs used to be a place where honest working class people could afford to live peacefully, aspirationally, and we can see and experience that, generations later and bittersweetly, in both films. But there are elements of unease - a few too many drinks, unfaithful husbands, bored wives, PTSD, hyper kids, etc. - without resorting to the moronic simplicity of the last thirty years of post-Sundance "SUBURBS = BAD" finger wagging.

NDP has, I think, the better cast (one of the best ensemble casts of the 1950s -- especially the women) and the better script. But it's more conservative; as handsomely well-made as it is, it could still work as television drama or even a stage play. SWWM on the other hand compares to Antonioni or Michael Mann's use of architecture and space to express its themes (sometimes almost too literally). Like those later films, the characters in Quine's movie often seem lost or overwhelmed by their built surroundings. This risks being overly schematic, but Quine balances the emotion and ideas in a way that is just as affecting as Ritt's more traditional work. I Love them both.

Now, who owns Strangers When We Meet and why isn't it on Blu-ray?

[domino harvey]

Seen about ten of Quine's films, found them all interesting enough to watch more than once. Never met a single person - male, female, old, young - who didn't like Bell, Book & Candle.

Hi

[swo17]

Now, who owns Strangers When We Meet and why isn't it on Blu-ray?

Sony/Columbia I believe, and a perfect fit for Indicator I should think

[domino harvey]

It was inexplicably left out of Sony’s Kim Novak collection on DVD, though, so I’m not sure what is going on with it

[The Fanciful Norwegian]

It's not listed on Sony's site for repertory bookings (or on the site for Park Circus, which handles their non-U.S. bookings). It's jointly copyrighted by Quine and Douglas's production companies so maybe there's a snag there.

[therewillbeblus]

I don't care much for Bell, Book & Candle either, but Strangers When We Meet seems like the kind of movie any boutique label should be interested in, so I'd hope someone would get around to it eventually if there isn't too much red tape

[Monkey Ballz]

Seen about ten of Quine's films, found them all interesting enough to watch more than once. Never met a single person - male, female, old, young - who didn't like Bell, Book & Candle.

Hi

I've never met you... and now I don't want to.

[reaky]

Another viewing of Quine’s magisterial Strangers When We Meet, followed as ever by bewilderment that there isn’t even a bare-bones blu-ray release, let alone the deluxe edition it deserves. You’d think an intersection of Brief Encounter, The Fountainhead, Douglas Sirk and Mad Men with stars of the calibre of Kirk Douglas and Kim Novak would have been released long ago, but no.

[domino harvey]

It Happened to Jane Blu-ray coming from Via Vision next month

[domino harvey]

Seen about ten of Quine's films, found them all interesting enough to watch more than once. Never met a single person - male, female, old, young - who didn't like Bell, Book & Candle.

Hi

I've never met you... and now I don't want to.

I revisited this recently and enjoyed it more than I recalled. I found the garish use of purple and green lighting interesting, and I liked that essentially every act of magic on screen could be explained away as a coincidence if you needed to do so. I did think Lemmon was pretty bad in this as the gay-coded brother, though— Wilder really has to be credited with seeing the ability within this guy as an actor because man he is always so broad (and honestly, annoying) in these early roles!