I can't seem to stop singing wherever I am

It has been a while since I mentioned my film list. I actually watched this batch of films more than a month ago, but I wanted to finish my list before I posted again. But that has proved more difficult than I anticipated. I have one more film left, The Jazz Singer (1927), which is not available on DVD, and I cannot find it at any store. I have finally tracked down a copy that a professor has, but I have not been able to make time to arrange a viewing (she won't let me take it off campus).

Anyway, here is the last group of films I watched last month:

63. STAGECOACH (1939)

68. AN AMERICAN IN PARIS (1951)

100. YANKEE DOODLE DANDY (1942)

73. WUTHERING HEIGHTS (1939)

55. THE SOUND OF MUSIC (1965)

44. THE BIRTH OF A NATION (1915)


(I saved this batch until the end for a reason . . .)


Stagecoach - A number of Westerns appear on the film list, and John Ford is a master director. But I found this one to be just ok. It was nothing special, and John Wayne is simply not a good actor. If you want a great John Ford/John Wayne film, stick with The Searchers.

An American in Paris - The best way to appreciate Gene Kelly's Singin' in the Rain is to watch this boring, plotless Gene Kelly film full of drawn-out musical numbers. Yes, Kelly is extraordinarily talented, but this film does not even pretend to have a plot.

Yankee Doodle Dandy - I was not expecting to like this, since I am apparently anti-musical, but I did like it. James Cagney gives a wonderfully fun performance.


Wuthering Heights - Overacted. Melodramatic. Yawn.

The Sound of Music - This is one of those films that I have always been embarrassed about not having seen. And again, much to my surprise, I enjoyed it quite a lot. Julie Andrews is simply lovely. Of course it is very cheesey, and the Nazi stuff provides some sappy melodrama, but I am very glad I finally saw it.


The Birth of a Nation - This is a tough one to deal with. In terms of film history, it is one of the most important films of all time. Made in 1915 by D.W. Griffith, Birth of a Nation represented a new style of filmmaking, breaking new ground in terms of scope, plot development, character, special effects, etc. It was the culmination of the first 20 years of filmmaking, and it was the first blockbuster.

But it is also viciously racist, showing how the Ku Klux Klan saved the South from the savage black people (who are played by white actors in black-face). Since I am studying film, I am glad I saw it, but it is a very hard film to watch.


So I hope to watch the last film on my list within the next couple of weeks.