Nightcap 12/4/16 Silence the novel, director bad behavior, The Unseen Film Awards are coming ,Sweet Charity on stage, and Randi's links

MR. BLUE SKY from Patterson + Reckinger on Vimeo.
One of the bigger bits of news was the positive reaction that leaked out concerning Martin Scorsese’s SILENCE. It’s appeared on some award lists and within the small circles I move in its a source of great anticipation.

I’m so excited I picked up not only a copy of the first version of the story from 1971 (a review is coming) but also the original novel by Shūsaku Endo. I tore through the novel in a little more than two days, reading it in every available moment. When I was done I was deeply moved and affected by the story. I’m hoping for something similar from the new film. Based on my reading of the book and looking at the trailer I think it there is a god possibility. I do know based on the trailer movie audience are probably not aware of what they will be getting.

I await the chance to see how it plays out.
--
At the risk of  getting beaten up I'm going to state that a couple of recent "discoveries" of bad behavior by big name directors and the fire storms that have followed have me kind of shaking head, not because the revelations that Hitchcock abused Tippi Hedren or that the butter scene in LAST TANGO was rape, rather that weren't the people screaming aware of it before?

I am not making light of either instance, rather I'm simply stating that in both cases what happened was pretty much well known. Hitchcock was a twisted individual and the stories, even about Hendren have been wildly reported. As for the filming of LAST TANGO stories of what happened have been bouncing around for the last four decades. Indeed the "revelation" was from an interview from 3 years ago and admissions had been made even earlier. If one needed proof of trouble with the film  you simply have to realize that Maria Schneider was broken by the film.

I am bothered by what happened in both instances...and I equally shocked that until Twitter and Facebook whipped it up to a recent frenzy so many film experts never noticed the tragedies before.
--
--
This being award season, I wanted to announce that we will be having the Second Annual Unseen Films Awards. The ballot will be going out to all the members of the Unseen Films family with the award toward the end of the month.
--
Earlier this week I saw an Off Broadway scaled down version of Sweet Charity with Sutton Foster in the lead. It was an interesting way to experience the play because the smallness of the theater made it play less like a show and more like life. The practical up shot of it was the underlying blackness of the story (these are people on the fringes of society) was in your face. It was incredibly sad. Most interesting is that Charity didn’t come across a plucky never say die heroine but rather as an incredibly dim young lady who can neither catch a break nor get out of her own way.

I’m curious what is going to happen to the show if it moves to Broadway since the intimate staging of the show with four rows in each side of the small stage is going to be lost. A traditional stage is going to swallow this small scale production alive
--
And Now Randi's links

Actors reveal their worst on stage flubs
Tiny Tree
Lady with the Long Hair
Great Pecan Pie Mystery
Lights Camera Lexi
Media History Digital Library
Digital archive of Photoplay magazine
A knock in space
A nine minute preview of GREAT WALL
Actor ticks you'll never unsee

PICTURES at an EXHIBITION - Full Performance from Patterson + Reckinger on Vimeo.