tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post150516006618844009..comments2024-02-10T04:53:42.121-05:00Comments on Tales of the Easily Distracted: On How Crime Does Not Pay - Even in the MoviesDorianTBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01357778472575080022noreply@blogger.comBlogger29125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-57374661192703452013-03-02T20:11:37.914-05:002013-03-02T20:11:37.914-05:00Reading about 'Seven Times Seven' reminded...Reading about 'Seven Times Seven' reminded me of a couple of British films. 'Two Way Stretch' also hinges on the thieves (in this case, including Peter Sellers) escaping from prison, doing the robbery then breaking back into prison. The other film, 'The Big Job' has the crooks hiding the loot in a tree which they return to after they get out of prison only to fid it's now in the yard of a police station. Both are lots of fun.ferksterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09834844398289276061noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-87508423873417295322013-01-16T11:05:56.635-05:002013-01-16T11:05:56.635-05:00I need to get a hold of THE ITALIAN JOB and WHO...I need to get a hold of THE ITALIAN JOB and WHO'S MINDING THE MINT (looks like the WB Archives will be getting more of my business!). I just watched TOPKAPI for the first time, thanks to a library copy, and loved it. Dorian and I have discussed this film in the past. Peter Ustinov just steals the film! By coincidence on my Twenty Four Frames FB page, I just listed my top five favorite heist films (Topkapi made the list). May want to check it out. Making lists, for me, is a never ending thing because they are constantly in flux, especially as you find a new film you have not seen before. Anyway, a great and entertaining post, Vinnie! John/24Frameshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14719659042858962026noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-77341018529015550712013-01-12T12:08:43.205-05:002013-01-12T12:08:43.205-05:00Hey, gang, Dori here: Vinnie wrote another great c...Hey, gang, Dori here: Vinnie wrote another great caper movie review last summer during our BEST HITCHCOCK MOVIES (THAT HITCHCOCK NEVER MADE) Blogathon: namely, David Mamet's THE SPANISH PRISONER! Indeed, I'm surprised Vin didn't mention it here. By all means, read the link below, and feel free to comment on it now. Here's the link:<br /><br />http://40yearoldfanboy.blogspot.com/2012/07/on-importance-of-jumping-only-to-right.htmlDorianTBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01357778472575080022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-2095119153679383982013-01-11T11:13:21.802-05:002013-01-11T11:13:21.802-05:00Hey, Dawn, Happy New Year to you and yours, too! ...Hey, Dawn, Happy New Year to you and yours, too! Vinnie and I are happy to have you joining Vin's caper movie conversation! I really like the choices you suggested, especially the original 1968 THOMAS CROWN AFFAIR. Not that there's anything wrong with the 1999 version, a favorite of my dear late mom - she was a big Pierce Brosnan fan, bless her! I agree that BONNIE AND CLYDE counts as a seminal caper movie. We hope you'll check out the 2001 version of OCEAN'S 11, too; it's really fun, and has affectionate tips of the hat to the 1960 original!DorianTBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01357778472575080022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-31923908033758701082013-01-11T07:03:52.068-05:002013-01-11T07:03:52.068-05:00I love a great classic caper film and you have lis...I love a great classic caper film and you have listed some of my favorites, but.. Bonnie and Clyde, is my all time favorite. I'm a huge Fay Dunaway fan and loved every movie she was in .. which reminds me of another favorite, sexy caper film .. Thomas Crown Affair.<br /><br />I have not yet seen George Clooney's version of Danny Ocean. I may have to get my hands on a copy of that film. After reading your awesome post, I'm in the mood for a good caper film.<br /><br />Happy New Year Vinnie and Dorian!!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09421976438809816553noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-59137276167682240012013-01-09T20:25:31.935-05:002013-01-09T20:25:31.935-05:00Hey, Chick, Dorian here: I had a feeling a soigne...Hey, Chick, Dorian here: I had a feeling a soignee gal like you would enjoy our caper movie post! And who wouldn't be tempted to case the joint with swells like Audrey Hepburn and Peter O'Toole, a.k.a. "The Finest Man Who Ever Breathed," according to the wacky 1967 version of CASINO ROYALE? :-D Thanks for joining in our caper film cut-ups!DorianTBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01357778472575080022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-71752233341630665922013-01-09T20:09:28.114-05:002013-01-09T20:09:28.114-05:00Oooh - I LOVE the caper movie!! And especially the...Oooh - I LOVE the caper movie!! And especially the caper movie featuring the rich and well dressed and bejeweled. One of my favorite light-hearted capers is "How To Steal a Million." The only thing that gets me to take my eyes off the young and beautiful Peter O'Toole is Audrey Hepburn's to-die-for wardrobe. Hmmm - after reading this, I feel like casing the joint....FlickChickhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17351624749230610755noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-30619945292450397602013-01-06T13:06:07.123-05:002013-01-06T13:06:07.123-05:00and Poor Richard Conte ended up playing the sap in...and Poor Richard Conte ended up playing the sap in both, the guy that made it all fall apart. Did he whistle at on of frank's girls or something, and given this Sisyphusian punishment? <br />"Henceforth, he shall be in all my films, but he shall play a boob." Vinnie Bartiluccihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12031831695722239873noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-29342224792068202982013-01-06T13:02:00.141-05:002013-01-06T13:02:00.141-05:00Hey, Page, Dor here: Vinnie and I love your sugge...Hey, Page, Dor here: Vinnie and I love your suggestions! I'm thrilled to have Vin in the spotlight this time around! I assure you that I've always encouraged my sweet smart hubby to post his witty writings here at TotED, and I'm tickled pink that he's finally done so! <br /><br />In fact, Vinnie and I have periodically collaborated here with double-feature blog posts ever since our FLICO SUAVE post back in 2010! Feel free to check out the Team Bartilucci team-up that started it all:<br /><br />http://doriantb.blogspot.com/2010/10/flico-suave-analysis-of-suaveness-in.htmlDorianTBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01357778472575080022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-29634541169155212972013-01-04T17:44:08.673-05:002013-01-04T17:44:08.673-05:00Hi Vinnie!
So glad you got to do a review for us. ...Hi Vinnie!<br />So glad you got to do a review for us. : )<br /><br />Who doesn't love a great caper? You mention Bonnie and Clyde which was a classic and with that I think of Butch Cassidy and The Sting in this genre. Great review and it's obviously left us thinking of our favorite roles, films and scenes.<br /><br />Now, as far as Raffles. I would love to see the character brought to the big screen again and Will Smith is an interesting choice. I'll have to think on that one as I don't see Smith taking on such an iconic character but then again, I'm perfectly fine with Will Smith retiring from acting all together. You bring up Ocean and Clooney with his modern day version then the two sequels which were pretty damn good. Better than the original Ocean's Eleven? I would say, yes! : ) <br /><br />Back to Raffles. I would love the see a modern day version of The Sting AND To Catch A Thief.<br /><br />I already told Dor, Happy New Year but the same to you Vinnie and keep writing if Dorian is willing to give you the space in between her wonderful posts.<br />Page<br /><br />Pagehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15063277863578004836noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-84882187308626533462013-01-04T14:23:23.763-05:002013-01-04T14:23:23.763-05:00Jeff, thanks for your enthusiastic comments! Vinn...Jeff, thanks for your enthusiastic comments! Vinnie and I are so glad you joined the conversation here Team Bartilucci's movie heist post! And thanks ever so much for including TotED among the VERSATILE BLOGGER Award! It's a busy weekend here with our day trip to NYC, but we're looking forward to catching up with everyone. Congrats to all, best of luck to your family, and have a wonderful weekend!DorianTBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01357778472575080022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-69546717724897465612013-01-04T09:11:47.542-05:002013-01-04T09:11:47.542-05:00Very nice and detailed overview of the caper genre...Very nice and detailed overview of the caper genre, Vinnie! I'm glad you threw a nod in the direction of LOCK, STOCK AND TWO SMOKING BARRELS, one of the better latter day heist flicks. There's also ASSAULT ON A QUEEN which, while not entirely a good movie, also features an elaborate heist gone wrong.<br /><br />By the way, Team Bartilucci, I've sent a Blogger of the Year 2012 Award your way. See here -<br /><br />http://thestalkingmoon.weebly.com/5/post/2013/01/happy-new-year.htmlJeff Flugelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06127134815672151999noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-84811137736650505522013-01-03T10:45:37.120-05:002013-01-03T10:45:37.120-05:00Glad you enjoyed Vin's awesome caper movie pos...Glad you enjoyed Vin's awesome caper movie post, Ruth, as well as his clever usage of "flummery"! We of Team B. are suckers for witty words that one doesn't hear every day! :-DDorianTBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01357778472575080022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-18525149481975658842013-01-03T10:40:54.558-05:002013-01-03T10:40:54.558-05:00Becky, I can well imagine Bette Davis being peeved...Becky, I can well imagine Bette Davis being peeved by THE LETTER's "The Guilty Must Suffer" ending - but I loved it anyway, because Bette is so darn terrific!DorianTBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01357778472575080022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-21223124156336585042013-01-02T23:14:15.790-05:002013-01-02T23:14:15.790-05:00It was either that, or codswallop.It was either that, or codswallop.Vinnie Bartiluccihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12031831695722239873noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-44648951787069438062013-01-02T21:17:55.454-05:002013-01-02T21:17:55.454-05:00Great overview of heist movie genre! I've just...Great overview of heist movie genre! I've just added "Who's Minding the Mint" to my must-see list.<br /><br />Also, I love that the word "flummery" was used.Silver Screeningshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04955048716754142299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-69882321586708450402013-01-02T19:52:42.097-05:002013-01-02T19:52:42.097-05:00Good stuff, Vinnie, good stuff! I saw most of tho...Good stuff, Vinnie, good stuff! I saw most of those movies YEARS ago but not since -- I'll have to re-view and see what I think now that a few years (A FEW -- haha!) have gone by. I am always interested in the Hollywood phenomena you describe as The Guilty Must Suffer. One of my very favorite movies is The Letter with Bette Davis. She just HATED the stupid ending they put onto that story. You probably know the actual ending of Maugham's story had Leslie Crosby get away with murder. But in the 40's she had to be punished! Bette tried, but failed, to get the real ending. <br /><br />The funny part about The Letter's ending is that: Bette had to be punished, so she saw a knife and deliberately walked out into a dark alley, putting herself in harm's way for some unknown reason, and got stabbed. But that means that the Chinese wife and her fellow stabber had to be punished too. So they are arrested in a 3-second scene where a policeman just happens to pass by. Bette was right -- it was stupid!ClassicBeckyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03591715859057540467noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-10144422371469827822013-01-02T17:47:49.839-05:002013-01-02T17:47:49.839-05:00Hey, everyone, our longtime friend Jason Simos put...Hey, everyone, our longtime friend Jason Simos put in his two cents about WHO'S MINDING THE MINT? Here's what he had to say:<br /><br />"Happy New Year!<br /><br />Thx so much for hepping people to WHO’S MINDING THE MINT? I was lucky enough to see it on 16mm in summer camp (?!) after having watched the butchered version on the (still-beloved) THE 4:30 MOVIE.<br /><br />I have watched it on video since then and am deeply fond of it. I particularly love when Buono 'goes down with the ship,' and of course, the a cappella musical accompaniment that alternates with the score.<br /><br />Best,<br />Jason"<br /><br />You're most welcome, Jason! All of us here at Team Bartilucci HQ hope you and yours have a truly Happy New Year, too!<br />DorianTBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01357778472575080022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-54593387274371824642013-01-02T16:51:04.979-05:002013-01-02T16:51:04.979-05:00Michael, I'd love to see Brad Pitt and Catheri...Michael, I'd love to see Brad Pitt and Catherine Zeta-Jones in an upcated Boston Blackie film, especially if it's playful and the women don't all turn out to be evil - just one or two evil gals, to keep things lively until the good gal clobbers the evil vamp! :-)DorianTBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01357778472575080022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-91799122277223886222013-01-02T16:41:27.634-05:002013-01-02T16:41:27.634-05:00Actually I seem to recall Rochelle Hudson in MEET ...Actually I seem to recall Rochelle Hudson in MEET BOSTON BLACKIE being a good girl (part of that select sorority of women . . . all the way up through Gail Russell's Penelope Worth, Carrie Fisher's Princess Leia, Elizabeth Shue's Dr. Emma Russell and Julia Roberts' Tess Ocean . . . who fall for bad boys). But your wish for a Boston Blackie movie made me think of the relationship between Brad Pitt and Catherine Zeta-Jones in OCEAN'S 12. Maybe an updated version of the character could play along similar lines. Michael Whttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11808166630399508232noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-40359818311506016422013-01-02T16:21:21.051-05:002013-01-02T16:21:21.051-05:00Michael, Dorian here: we love us some affable Gen...Michael, Dorian here: we love us some affable Gentlemen Thieves, including Boston Blackie and The Lone Wolf (both available on DVD now, I believe!). My only complaint about Boston Blackie was that the women in those films always ended up being bad gals! I'd love to see a Boston Blackie film in which the bad gal squares off against the good yet smart and tough gal, with our heroine emerging victorious and the wicked woman in the slammer, perhaps being thrown in mud or the like, and they'd make beautiful music together ever after! Yeah, I know, I'm a sucker for romance, within reason! :-)<br /><br />Vinnie and I both love TOPKAPI - in fact, I wrote about TOPKAPI here at TotED back in April 2012, and you responded with a delightful reply! It's OK, even Vinnie and I don't always remember all of our blog posts! :-) But this would be a swell time to reintroduce our TOPKAPI post to new readers, especially since TOPKAPI will be showing it on TCM as part of 31 DAYS OF OSCAR on Tuesday, January 22 (which would have been my dear Mom's 87th birthday) at 10:15 p.m! Here's the link:<br /><br />In fact, we'd love to have you read that post; we hope you'll enjoy reading it as much as we enjoyed writing it! Feel free to put in your two cents! Here's the link:<br /><br />http://doriantb.blogspot.com/2012/04/topkapi-go-schmo.htmlDorianTBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01357778472575080022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-64742277074143168762013-01-02T13:54:53.359-05:002013-01-02T13:54:53.359-05:00If we're going to talk about remakes and updat...If we're going to talk about remakes and updates dealing with gentlemen bandits then how about new versions of The Lone Wolf, or Boston Blackie?<br /><br />(Although, concerning the latter, Chester Morris left behind some pretty big shoes to sneak around in. The closest anyone ever came to him, in my opinion, would've been Daffy Duck in "Boston Quackie".)<br /><br />Vincent! All this talk of heist movies and not ONE MENTION of TOPKAPI. For that you deserve to have "les flics" set on you (French police are always more appropriate for this sort of thing), but Ege Ernart must be in charge.<br /><br />But certainly the secret of a "personable" heist film is in finding thieves that at least arouse sympathy in the audience (if not outright empathy). As an example: certainly no one was cheering for Gian Maria Volonte' in FOR A FEW DOLLARS MORE. But, by comparison, by the time Soderbergh's OCEAN'S 13 came out, you were no longer interested in the heist. Rather, you wanted to find out what was new with Danny and Rusty and Reuben and the rest of the gang. You come to like the "gentleman bandit" as a definite character and not simply as the means to blow a vault.<br /><br />(Besides, in regards to RAFFLES, who can't help but like a thief that gets Olivia de Havilland as a girlfriend?)Michael Whttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11808166630399508232noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-16610963640974459922013-01-01T21:59:53.594-05:002013-01-01T21:59:53.594-05:00Java, Vinnie and I are pleased to hear you're ...Java, Vinnie and I are pleased to hear you're a fan of RAFFLES, too! Is David Niven ridiculously suave and likable, or what? And yes, as an avid fan of Danny Kaye in general and Danny's version of THE SECRET LIFE OF WALTER MITTY in particular, I'm hoping Ben Stiller and Company will make a terrific remake. But if it isn't, I'll just have to hope that THE SECRET LIFE OF WALTER MITTY will come out on DVD/Blu-Ray to coincide with his 100th birthday! :-) Glad you dropped by to talk caper movie with us; drop by any time!DorianTBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01357778472575080022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-35041576183239881862013-01-01T21:55:24.635-05:002013-01-01T21:55:24.635-05:00I posted some pics of the filming of the new Mitty...I posted some pics of the filming of the new Mitty some time back. The cast looks very promising, but they don't say who's playing who yet, save for Stiller.<br /><br />My greatest hope is the release of the new film will bring us a nice new release of the original. <br /><br /><br />http://vbartilucci.tumblr.com/search/danny+kaye<br /><br />Vinnie Bartiluccihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12031831695722239873noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-67105970891073261492013-01-01T21:42:19.925-05:002013-01-01T21:42:19.925-05:00Watched RAFFLES just the other day! David Niven c...Watched RAFFLES just the other day! David Niven can do no wrong onscreen, which makes him a successful thief. I would not mind a remake of that film.<br /><br />Speaking of remakes, did you know that Ben Stiller is remaking The Secret Life of Walter Mitty? It due out this year.<br />JavaBeanRushhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05653117187583244224noreply@blogger.com