Hot Takes On Film

Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1961 US) based on the Truman Capote novel of the same name. Holly GoLightly(Audrey Hepburn) a troubled high priced hooker meets a writer (George Peppard) moonlighting as a gigalo. To be clear Hot Mess Holly is a hooker and not a socialite like IMDB said. She charged $50 to go to the powder room. Although, Capote said he saw her more as a Geisha. This is one of my favorites. Hepburn and Peppard play hot messes but they get each others brand of mess and can appreciate it. Oh that dress. What iconic! so wow! Hepburn, who can’t sing, was convinced to do a beautiful rendition of Moon River. The film won an Oscar for the soundtrack. Now let’s move to the 600 lb gorilla in the apartment next door, the racist yellow faced performance of an Asian neighbor by Mickey Rooney. Some broadcasters are taking out those scenes before airing it. I say do it. It adds nothing to the film and is soooo cringe. Unlike the racism jokes in Blazing Saddles, who broadcasters love to censor

  The African Queen (1951 US). Humphrey Bogart and Captain Janeway, whoops I mean Katherine Hepburn star in this classic about a spinster missionary who talks a river boat captain into taking a trip up the river and to destroy a German gunship. Based on the novel of the same name. Like a lot of films of the day they bickered a lot. I wonder if relationships at the time were like that. But they did get their poo poo together to survive the African river and the Germans and to fall in love. Eventually they stopped bickering. The implication throughout the film was that god was on their side for this mission because of Hepburn’s faith. This is one of my favorites. It was nominated for an Oscar in multiple categories and Bogie won for best actor. I’m really surprised though that director John Houston didn’t win in his category cuz that was a hard shoot. There was some criticism that the film shot in Africa, had no people of color in it. While that is true it did not have many people in it