Original subtitles

UK Cinema History season 2 episode 11

our man in Havana directed by Carol Reed

and starring sir Alec

[Music]

Guinness hello and welcome to UK Cinema

history today we will be covering our

man in Havana from

1959 director Carol Reed and starring

Alec Guinness hello hi Bender how are

you today my

friend hey Eric I'm excellent great to

see

you yeah Don's room was running a little

long it's too bad it was very

fascinating to be able to hear from

those two filmmakers but um uh I'll

catch you she she she was good enough to

recorded so I can catch the rest of it

on replay luckily my thoughts exactly

and I think uh it I think we we got the

climax right before it left so I think

uh uh that that stuff with Distributors

was was fascinating but we got the end

of the story before we had to go hey

CA great to see you CA um I I I I I I

did the voice message you back but I

think Clubhouse cut off what I was

saying so uh um uh maybe we should try

communicating on Twitter I the the the

voice messaging here on clubhouse

doesn't seem to work very well well I

agree that the messaging here with voice

is a little bit uh tricky but I did get

your message uh and I'll give back to

you thank

you hello uh Sila is planning on uh just

uh uh uh future promotion uh doing a

room for for uh the U uh uh director uh

Von trier's uh birthday and so we do

have that to look forward to over in uh

his is that going to be that's going to

be musicus oranus or that's going to be

uh uh over in uh um osian poet there

Sila yeah we'll we'll we'll talk about

it later hello

hi just just trying to get the word out

for you bro

speaking of such things speaking of such

things um I felt a little uh like going

into uh withdrawal when uh CA stopped

doing Kura so uh I want to uh if

necessary I'll keep watching on my own

but Eric since you've seen more than I

have besides um akiru and yo Jimbo and

sanjuro and rashan and Seven Samurai

which we didn't watch in sealers but I I

I saw a long time ago um whatever K SS

would you most

recommend I think you have to see Ron I

think

uh it it is an absolute mustat um but um

to get a kind of a a good sense of the

entirety of his career he did a a Noir

called uh the bad sleep well that I I

would highly recommend um you know if

you high Bender were to start up a uh a

a uh a film room that was more random um

uh you know as opposed to being just uh

a UK Cinema history I would join that

just saying just throwing that idea out

there I I I definitely appreciate that

information CA would you have if it was

on Sunday

uh on Sundays

around maybe um 100 p.m. Eastern would

you have an interest in that

maybe yes I'm quite um I wouldn't say

addicted but I am very interested in

this type of um coming together for

films old and new I think we've covered

a lot of very good stuff so I'm I'm I'm

curious yes

so well and well go ahead you I was just

gonna say I've been thinking about it

I'm I'm hesitant for a time

commitment um I I mean I do prepare for

your room and for ca's room but I always

have in the back of my mind you know if

something goes wrong and I can't prepare

I can you know I can just be someone who

mostly listens but if I'm running the

room I feel I don't have

I don't have an escape Clause so um I'm

just kind of trying to see what's

happening with some client commitments

if um I'm going to be hired for um what

I'm going to be hired for I'll have a

better sense in a in in a couple weeks

uh I think and then maybe I could that

would help me decide but but thank you

uh for saying that that that means a lot

that uh Eric conceal it that you guys

would be open to to coming to that that

uh that is information I didn't have and

that definitely uh uh factors into it so

thank you for mentioning

it and I would be interested in just

having a different curator than myself

you know uh you know be able to

experience maybe some films a I haven't

seen or films that maybe I wouldn't

normally think of rewatching but

rewatching it in the light of doing a

room I'm going I'm going to get more out

of so uh so for for me personally you

know uh H uh uh I I would encourage it

now because there is a real lack of

these now it doesn't have to be like we

kind of got went with this book of the

month club type you know it could be it

could be uh anything you wanted really

because you'd be starting it from

scratch so just uh you know if the itch

ever ever ever comes uh and you decide

to scratch it I appreciate that I also

would have to be honestly I would think

about branding and um in a way that it

would grow or like I don't know if I

could do a bunch of C hour

films um unless I did like a a

miniseries that had a beginning and an

end separate from the I have to think

about it but but again I really

appreciate you asking and uh and

floating the idea I I definitely will

give it thought also related to that um

any luck with Leonard I really miss

Leonard and it's really kind of um

really kind of sad that we don't see him

anymore yeah we probably won't see much

of him until probably the middle of May

um I would think uh just I'm not this

isn't from one-on-one conversation is

just from following him on Twitter but

he's just involved with so much stuff

right

now between school and uh uh the

election that he's involved in and and

and I mean the the the the kid uh uh uh

uh on his Twitter is just just well you

know he's 19 years old he's got all that

energy in use and and all of that stuff

and so you know

but but um I do I do try to keep in

touch with him

go yeah please do please do stay in

touch uh because I don't wanna I don't

want to make him feel harassed so

otherwise I'd reach out to him too but I

don't want to feel especially if he's

busy with politics right now but I just

you know um just just so he knows that

he's missed and uh we we really would

love him to come back whenever it's

comfortable for

him and I'd like to see that the the the

understanding movies room come back as

well but again I I'm never I'm not going

to push anybody on their schedule you

know I'm not going to you know

like uh uh uh say Hey you know your real

life uh can wait uh uh uh it's the

internet that's

important well that's a little different

because running a room is more of a you

know

responsibility so it's um asking

somebody to come by come by as a visitor

uh is is I think less uh a less of an

ask if somebody is taking a break on

their room I I can understand that

that's it it is a bigger it's a bigger

burden and also you want to be

consistent about it week after week

whereas coming to visit when you can you

don't have to be consistent about it so

I wouldn't bug anybody who who has their

room on Hiatus about bring their room

back they know what they're doing

but um I'll hope I'll hope like you said

in miday after elections are over that

maybe we can see more of Leonard again

anyway thank you for thank you for

checking with him about

it oh yeah my I I I I I need as um many

Leonards in this room as possible I mean

the the the kid has such a vast

knowledge of film but uh speaking of

film Let's uh let's get to this one um

uh man in Havana from 1959 directed by

Carol Reed and adapted from his novel by

by Graham green um um I don't know as

much about Cuba as as certain other

members of this uh particular panel hint

hint uh but uh uh uh I do know that it's

about a 770 Mile Island about 60 miles

off our coast and that roughly takes up

the distance

between um Richmond Virginia and uh

Miami uh

Florida and I Know It produces some of

the best cigars in the world which I own

23 of I did own 24 of but now I'm I'm

currently uh in honor of this film uh uh

smoking the uh the the the

24th because I I these are the type of

events you save those for this is such a

beautiful cigar there's no spice at all

CA none whatsoever but um um instead of

going with AVR or order I kind of

thought maybe we would start with um uh

uh ca's observations as the one person

who I can say for sure has uh um uh seen

uh Cuba with his own eyes if that's okay

with you

H sure it's okay with CI

sure thank you I must

clarify that I sort with my own eyes yes

but at that point my eyes and other

parts of my body were only one year old

so I don't know if that counts

however if I ever have to tell anyone

what I am in terms of um where my heart

beats and my culture is that is always

Cuba I'm not I was born in New York but

I would never say I'm an American I

would also not say I'm a US American I

just I'm I'm Cuban

culturally um raised by my parents my

father being Cuban

and in the film

I cannot judge I cannot I can only go by

the impression we get either from films

or friends I have in Europe who have

been there or my cousins that have been

there

or recounts of my aunt and grandmother

when they were

alive what I

find interesting and unique

is speaking of the times before let's

say before the last 70 years this um

lifeless and a much

more

balanced come together that existed on

that island uh very very different times

so in this film I I see that again this

combination of the

foreigners mingling and

the the what do you call that

um the the feelings the vibrations of of

the Islanders

uh black or white although there are

quite strong

differences um there have always been

strong differences at least from a

sector of the

people

so I was quite I'm I'm very romantic

when it comes to memories of my father

and the person he was so when I see

something about Cuba and I think it is

believable which in my view this film is

believable the the the possibilities and

and

the um the satire behind

it I do get very um I I like it very

much so I like the film quite a bit it's

for me it's just interesting

entertainment a little bit of twist

there's a couple of things that I would

not find very good I think the the the

daughter is not a very good actress I

think there are certain situations where

I find she you know is

really I don't know she doesn't seem to

have but I don't that's just my feeling

um but I like the film very much yeah go

ahead Jo Joe Morrow is the name of the

actress by the way and uh she got the

part through one of those um uh uh

winning a contest to to to be in a movie

type uh contract so yeah

and I I agree with you 100% yeah the

other ones

specifically um house Baka I think was

his name the

German um of course Alec

Guinness and um Marino Hara there and

even sometimes I'm not so sure about

seura about his acting and his role but

um the acting is quite interesting it

flows quite well um I'll mention a

couple of other details perhaps later on

but right now that's all I would say to

that thanks for that Sila sorry I can't

keep my thumb off the mute button um

okay uh now we'll go in AVR order then

and we we we go with hi yes that's right

yazy because you because you were late

you get to go last so but that also

gives you the final

word um hi Bender uh your thoughts on

our man in Havana and had you seen the

film

before I had actually uh a long time ago

but all I remembered was uh this guy uh

makes stuff up um and I don't I didn't

remember I remember very little of it

because it was so long ago um but uh so

it was almost like seeing it fresh and

um I really like this movie and I also

am aware that it has flaws so um let me

let me go through some of the trivia

that I found interesting um and then

maybe uh a little talk a little later

about um uh my my personal feelings

about it but um there were basically two

guys at the time um in in the 50s

who were writing about their

experiences as British Intelligence

Officers in World War II one was Ian

Fleming who wrote the James Bond

novels um and the other was gram green

um who wrote this movie who wrote first

a novel called our man in herana and

then um uh wrote the screenplay for this

this film uh and in fact

uh the the first name of the main

character in this movie is also is also

James and he also has uh a double uh a a

zeroes a double an O

designation um and I don't know it would

take an Eagle Eye to spot this but

several times during the movie there is

a neon business sign next door to worm

mold's building which says

Bond but it's it's not referring to

James Bond it's referring the bond cloes

which was founded in Cleveland in

1914 and by the 1940s it was a largest

men's clo cloes um in business and uh

that sign Bond appears in most large

cities so but but I mean it's clearly

you know it's a parody of

of spy novels and um but you know I

think it's a I don't it's probably not a

coincidence that his first name is James

and there's the bond sign next to his

vacuum cleaner store um the uh uh

armanda ofana was the inspiration for

John lar K's novel for Taylor of

Panama and um and uh Taylor of Panama

was probably the inspiration for a

character Garrick in Star Trek Deep Deep

Space 9 our Kardashian spy who who is a

habitual liar and uh who makes his

living as a tailor on the on the space

station um as for um but going back to L

Harry alag Guinness of course who who

plays the title character in this movie

uh um he played George smiley

in the BBC versions of John L car's

Tinker Taylor Soldier Spy and Smiley's

people so um Guinness uh you know went

there to have

a an amazing career playing a spy um so

uh I thought all those kind of

connections are

interesting uh I loved Guinness in this

movie also by the way um last week we

did Dr shivago which Alec Guinness had a

a major role in and he

complained uh at the time that you know

um that David lean was making him act

like a statue I thought it was real

effective I mean his being just this

kind of straight ramrod it made him seem

so almost

superhumanly solid and and and strong I

thought it was very effective uh but it

was interesting that that he didn't like

being directed that way well he didn't

like being directed on this movie either

as it turns out I really really like

both of the performances but uh Guinness

wrote um that Reed wanted to play his

part differently from what he envisioned

uh this is quoting from What Guinness

actually wrote I had seen partly

suggested by V name um uh the

character's name um that uh an untidy

shambling middle-aged man with worn

shoes who might have bits of string in

his pocket and perhaps the new Statesman

under his arm exuding an air of

Innocence defeat and general

inefficiency when I explained this to

Carol um he said we don't want any of

your character acting what an amazing

thing to say altic we don't want any of

your character

acting play it straight don't

act that and that Guinness continues

that might be okay with some wooden dish

perhaps but was disastrous for me

mustn't act mustn't act I kept repeating

to myself

and didn't the director particularly a

world famous one like Carol is always

right or often

so which is which is an active way of

saying the director was dead wrong um so

I didn't pick up on any of that I I

loved Guinness um and I'm I'm just Eno

I'm I'm rediscovering how great Guinness

is uh with jaago and this and to I will

confess after this I went back and for

like the 15th time uh started rewatching

last holiday one of my all-time favorite

films and I'm by the way Eric I'm

formally requesting that you you add

that to to the list of films we cover um

I I it's it's it still holds up for me

and it's another great Alec Guinness

performance but anyway um so there's

that in terms of uh casting um the role

of

beus uh the the the other spy who comes

to help Guinness uh was offered to

Lauren bll uh but she turned it down

because of delays on shooting Northwest

Frontier in

London um Columbia pictures uh the

studio wanted to cast actors that would

be familiar to American audiences which

is why uh they got Marino Hera Burl IES

and Ernie

Kovac um and also made uh the daughter

American um Reed wanted the daughter

played by Jean seberg but she'd signed

on to make breathless so she wasn't

available so then um and here's again

sometimes Eric you and I have

conflicting stories I don't know who's

right I just know my source is IMDb

according to

IMDb uh Joe Morrow got the part because

she was she was recommended by Ernie

Kovac um and she was under contract to

Columbia at the time so she was

available and uh graah green later uh

said that

Joe Moore's performance wrecked the film

so CA you're not alone and thinking uh

her performance was problematic graem

green himself uh said she wrecked the

film I I her performance was definitely

problematic I don't know how much of it

was her how much of it was the way she

she was directed but I mean the thing

is again his character is doing

something really

huge and what's his motivation his

motivation is to make his daughter happy

so she can have uh essentially a Pony um

you know a horse um and you know you

want to have that firmly established so

it's believable that he would basically

risk the security of the entire you know

British Nation um for the sake of

letting his daughter ride a horse and so

her performance becomes important in

terms of solidifying the The credibility

of his motivation in doing what he does

and she just seems like uh disconnected

from anything except her her personal

little you know wants and desires so

she's not likable it's not clear why and

Country Club membership can't forget

that part it is so

important yeah yeah so so um so I

definitely think that Joe Morrow um Joe

Mor's character is a a a a [ __ ] in the

armor and her performance but again I I

think the director has to take some

responsibility uh as well but yeah that

that's definitely one of the issues with

film um just some other quick little

interesting tidbits I'm not going to go

for everything but just for initial

while we're talking about um people

involved Alfred

Hitchcock was interested in making a

film from Green Green's novel was a huge

best seller and um and uh it quickly

went up for bid but Hitchcock at least

according to my source IMDb Source

Hitchcock thought they they were asking

too much uh for the rights so he dropped

out and it went to um it went to Carol

Reid and became the third of course

green green green Green was also very

comfortable because they had already

made two films together beforehand uh

1948 uh uh green and and Carol Reed made

the Fallen Idol and in

1941 1949 they made their most famous

picture the third man

um and uh uh the the in some ways I

think the critics maybe were harsher to

this film because of a third man because

they they just felt it wasn't as

atmospheric um it wasn't as wasn't as

gripping and also um and I think there's

some validity to this that uh Reed

wasn't as adept

at managing the change the shifts in

mood because this is a really tricky

movie to make it's it's a comedy where

the hero ends up killing somebody and

not to mention killing a a person at at

worst of all for a lot of people as Eric

knows from his experience in a in the

Monday room who ends up killing a dog um

I mean you don't kill dogs in movies you

just don't do that that's like not just

in movies you don't do that period hum

are we're disposable but Trier warning

trigger

warning it's just it's box office poison

is what I'm saying no pun intended so

um there you know so it's a difficult

it's a difficult tight wire to walk and

arguably we didn't quite pull it off

especially the scene um

the gun the gun battle it's really

confusing what's going on does he mean

to murder this man does he mean to scare

him um because it looks like he's gonna

walk away and and then how should we

feel about that um in the novel I I

think he he 100% is killing this guy out

of Revenge because this guy killed his

friend but in the movie he seems so so

uh wishy-washy about killing him it just

kind of kills a lot of the impact the

other thing um I had issue with there is

it's not crystal clear in the movie why

we should care about whether this guy

dies or not because it's like he's just

an over spy doing his job he's not like

a Serial murderer he's doing his job and

um he dies they just take somebody else

to replace him but it wasn't unless

you're establishing that he's a rogue

agent or something um they're all just

spies doing their spy jobs so um I

didn't get this Rush of

satisfaction uh the the most

satisfaction was oh look Alec Guinness

is actually starting to earn his keep

except what is he really doing by

removing one person from a chessboard

who's going to replace the next day

but because the game is still in place

so so those are some of uh just I touch

on some of the things that um you know

that uh maybe didn't work so well um I

also want to mention um um I'm my jaw

drops at the speed with Which films were

made in this period because the gra

green novel came out like a year earlier

and then you a year after it's released

this film comes out it's made and it's

just out there it's like we're talking

about rashan uh um last week and how uh

uh

Cora made it like like two months after

he started shooting it was in theaters

I'm just astonished at the speed of

filmmakers back then um so um

anyway uh I I have other stuff to say

but I don't want to go on and on um but

that's some of the things I thought

about the film that were interesting and

uh thank you for letting me share them I

appreciate it I I would like to comment

very shortly just my opinion I think the

the obsession and the necessity of

distribution is very very different to

what it was back then so I think that

might be one of the several commercial

reasonings for these people being able

to uh bring these works out so quickly

because there was I have the impression

there was I don't you guys know more

about Cinema than I do but I have the

impression there was less paperwork to

do um back then today you you have to

make sure of so many things worldwide

that was not the case

before I I actually had the answer to uh

quite a few of these questions um number

one um Graham green wrote the novel with

Alec Guinness in mind and with Carol

Reid in mind for for a film adaptation

and he wrote the novel because he he

said he was not good at writing

screenplays but he was good at adapting

novels and same as the third man which

he wrote a novel with the with the idea

that the film would be made and so

before the novel was even published

Carol Reed was scouting locations in in

Batista's uh uh Cuba and in between of

course sell Castro had come to power and

uh Graham green had by the way he was

still an employed agent of MI6 at this

point these this was revealed in in um

uh 1991 but he had been in his capacity

uh for MI6 as a spy smuggling into to

the uh the northern

mountains of Kuba uh uh um medical

supplies to Castro's Rebels and so it

was so when uh it came time to uh hey

can we still uh film in Havana Castro

immediately said yes and as a matter of

fact he and Graham green remained

friends uh until 1968 uh

when uh Graham green stopped visiting

Cuba because of a Crackdown on his two

fav

uh uh uh reasons for being there which

was the readily available uh prostitutes

and uh

cocaine um which I'll get to that story

later uh but uh that also goes to Carol

Reid's version of Alec Guinness's story

about the performance which was that uh

Carol Reid was like Graham wrote this

part for you just read the

lines and be Alec Guinness because he

wrote this is this is Alec Guinness on

on screen and uh um what I think uh um

Guinness is getting at is that you can't

just be you on screen that that's not

how acting works and

um if you can if and that that quote was

actually from uh alag Guinness's

autobiography and and if he continue he

continues talking about certain

directors that he just doesn't think get

the acting process how the acting

process works and he doesn't cite read

by name but by it being in the next

paragraph right underneath that story I

think is his implication is that you

can't just tell an actor hey we wrote

this part for you just be you and they

because the F their question is well who

am I so anyway yazzy your thoughts on

our man in

Havana well a great satire and uh to

answer you said you have the answer to

everyone's question I want to say like

the if if we want to look at the the the

female characters if you want to say

like the uh Melee character she's uh I

know she's very shallow she's all that

that

explains first of all they all play to

the elements of satire if you want to

read the read the movie or consider it

as a satire in that case it's it's

obvious that these characters are very

shallow and there's they're

onedimensional there's no uh the like

depth to them uh because that's how they

can move the plot in the satiric form

and uh and I think about the

distribution the very quick distribution

we can say it it it was because of the

time like the whole movie is plays like

a micras of History so um uh even though

like you know a historical satire so if

you look at it that way then you can see

how important it is to release the movie

right before the Cuban Revolution

because the the the seeds were planted

everything was happening at that time

and right at the beginning of that

change I think it was necessary to

release the movie at that time and uh

yeah I think uh and again back to the

Millie character I think it was very

actually uh very funny if we want to see

it as you know it might sound really

ridiculous if like maybe reading too

much into it but Eric I told you that

how about like reading the the movie as

the banality of evil but seriously just

look at it that the

bureaucracy um uh recruiting hiring in

someone with no experience in a field

that is detrimental is so important

plays with people's life plays with

politics plays with this more important

like political diplomatic relationships

just recruit anyone and that person

accepts this accept this role why just

to answer to her daughter's financial

needs so I think they all and they all

are said very subtle with very

beautifully in the dialogues right at

the beginning like when uh uh uh waral

is talk uh waral is talking to her

daughter and wear that uh hat and

holding that umbrella and says like oh

do you see uh do you remember that clone

and I wish we all we all could be like

clones and she said oh yeah yeah yeah

you know what happened to the Clone

clown sorry clown she the clown fell

into the bucket of whitewashing that's

funny like like he he sees himself as a

clown right at the beginning and then I

think this is one of those times that

it's important to have actually the

knowledge of the writer because it plays

an important role in the know no and in

the character because just imagine I

think the movie is kind of the the the

plot the movie it always kind of play an

odd to Art to creativity to writers and

say like if you have that high

imagination if you have the power of

creativity you can fool people with that

you can be become your uh kind of your

characters you can create your own

character you can create your own

narrative so like this is exactly what

happens here and based on Graham

Green's actual life story like he was

someone constantly looking for

entertainment looking for something

constantly traveling not because he

wants the he wants a patriarch he wants

to work for MI5 he wants it no he just

wanted the money to travel to see the

world and find subject for his novels

for his writings and I think

that's that's the part of to see this

more than how can you as a Creator as a

writer

become a part of your own natur narative

or you can also see it as the how much

the bigger lie that you say it's more

believable to the point that you might

be part of that lie and live that lie

and believe it

yourself oh sorry about that I the hand

raising is glitching so I had to shut it

off for now now um if we have

trouble turn it back on but it's glitchy

so if you've received like three or four

messages saying I've invited you to

speak I only invited you once so no

worries it's just a a clubhouse glitch

um Hillary your thoughts on our man in

Havana and by the way thank you Yazi

it's so nice to have you

back I I love listening to Yazi talk

she's so passionate about everything and

she knowledgeable about movies and stuff

so knowledgeable um as rare you meet

somebody who's always read the book

along with seeing the movie uh and I

love those comparisons I um so y'all

know satire is my favorite kind of movie

especially social uh social political

satire so uh to to add on to the story

you were just about with Fidel um the

being friends and whatnot Fidel actually

was like yeah we're gonna need to see

this in Spanish and requested him to

send him a copy of the script in Spanish

so that he could make sure that that uh

Cuba was seen in a positive light and he

had some issues with some of the more

sedy underlyings of uh of you know the

back the back alley type things that

appear in the movie um but not enough of

an issue to say you can't make the movie

cuz come on he wanted the money I mean

you know it brought it brought a good

light so uh and I love that story

there's actually there's some pictures

and stuff online of him and Fidel

together uh just kind of hanging out it

just it's it's weird to think of

somebody like that you know just being a

normal guy you know hanging out with the

guys and stuff and I don't know it's

it's Fidel is a an interesting um study

in and of

itself but uh as for the movie I think

that I it's very sardonic and very dry

and very eloquently written and I think

a it went over the heads of probably

most of the people at the time who had

seen it because that that wasn't really

what we were doing then you know we we

were writing hero movies uh we were

writing uh political hero movies uh spy

Cloak and Dagger type things that showed

America as being always the triumphant

winner and uh and this was something

that uh it it allowed us to still say we

are smarter than bigger than better than

so of course we loved it um because it

wasn't American it was it was British

but uh so America still gets to say haha

you are all idiots um but it it had a

very uh trying to think of I want to

compare to

um not draget but kind of like that kind

of that kind of humor to it you know

that I loved so uh yeah I a big fan um

of this entire I think like this led way

two movies like uh the [ __ ] the one that

Inspector Gadget was based off of what

the hell is the name of that

movie

anybody no

okay sorry say it again what is

Inspector Gadget was based off of this

movie and I cannot think of it

it's damn it is it 54 no that's not it

I'll think of it in a minute it's a spy

it's a spy guy that had all the gadgets

and [ __ ] before James Bond oh arm Man

Flint thank you a

diver there's there's just there's

certain movies that have this uh that

dry you you just have to kind of be in

the heads space to be able to watch him

and this is one of them when I first saw

this my dad Loved These movies so when I

first watched this movie um he was

cracking up and I didn't find the humor

in it I'm like I don't I don't get it as

an adult going back I watched this uh a

couple days ago because I knew it was

coming up in the room

and I laughed the whole way through I

chuckled it was one of those things we

just like oh oh now I get it that's

[ __ ]

hilarious and it it's jokes kind of fell

flat for the rest of the for the rest of

the people that were watching the movie

with me okay but I liked it so yeah

that's all I have to say well I have a

lot more to say but that's all I have to

say for

now their clu sorry go ahead I just want

to jump and say uh first of all Hillary

it's so wonderful to have you in the

room all was a a tremendous treat I'm

going to quibble with one thing you said

which is that uh

Castro um and his minions checked the

script to make sure cuber was being

portrayed in a positive light it was

actually my understanding the the the

opposite um they wanted to show because

this is Cuba before the Revolution and

they wanted the film to portray the

harsh brutality of a regime before the

Revolution that I was but what I read

was misquoted then yeah cool I only

found it from one source so interesting

which makes a lot more sense yeah the

the the Batista regime uh and in fact

they made as I recall something like 38

changes to the script to make to make uh

Cuba seem seedier and worse um than the

original script uh and even so uh Castro

complained uh that uh uh it didn't

sufficiently show the H how brutal the

regime was but but you know they they uh

so so there was a it was a compromise

but uh so yeah uh and by the way uh

Castro himself visited theet in on May

13 1959

at Cathedral Square in Havana so he was

very well aware of this production again

Hillary so great to have you

here great to have you I haven't seen

you since last year I don't know if we

just haven't been in the same rooms or

what have you but or if uh you took a

Hiatus from Clubhouse but it is great to

see you back and uh uh uh I think this

is your first visit to UK Cinema hist

uh we appreciate you as a as a as a

voice of reason on the app and

definitely appreciate you coming what

were your thoughts on irand and

Havana and well we'll uh get back oh

there she is oh no she sorry guys I'm um

like yeah I had mans full hi good to see

you guys thanks for asking um and thanks

for holding space um I came in L at the

party but um I

uh sorry my brain is full of lots of uh

lots of thoughts um don't you hate that

basket you shift it over to for a minute

you know was I'm gonna blame blame it on

you Hillary you mentioned the the genre

and I was like that and I started to

think about the genre I was like oh that

reminds me of um did you you like uh

sorry to jump films here like Network

the the the

1970 mid-70s Sydney

lumit uh film 76 one yeah 76 thank you

thank you my disc I'll Co add my Haven

seen oh that's a good one yeah Patty

jski highly recommend yeah yeah that's

right yeah and then um the first one

that came to mind was um that you might

have seen Hillary is um Wag the Dog very

Lim Barry levenson film that was uh in

the 90s 97 I believe like

that do you is that typically what you

like is that one of your faves favorite

genres Hillary because those are I have

some yeah yeah okay I'll I'll make a

little short list because I I I enjoy to

so it I'll uh yeah I'll include that

when I follow up with you it

ask I I don't have anything thoughtful

say about um the filmm really other than

um that hasn't already been said and I I

did come late so I'm just I'm happy to

be here I did get your text and I I was

gonna return your call this afternoon

things just get getting crazy it's all

good I'm sure yeah I'm and

congratulations again it's all for you

thanks

guys well thank you for coming um I'm

going to uh uh start with uh just my uh

uh um uh uh thoughts on the film uh are

more

about why it's not as discussed I think

as as other films uh in this gen and I

think it has a lot to do with the

director being Carol

Reed because Reed is a guy who his

greatest achievement which is considered

the the matter of fact the BFI voted it

the uh the the the best British film of

all time in 1999

um the third man is if you ask a common

person on the street credited to Orson

Wells for some reason if you ask

somebody not gonna lie I'm glad you said

that because I thought the exact same

thing I really did I don't know why I

thought that but I thought the same

thing it was or Wells yeah if you if you

ask a random person on the street

they'll tell you Orson Wells directed

The Third Man and it got to a point

where Peter bogdanovich's introduction

and the Criterion version of the Third

man states that while Orson Wells didn't

direct it Carol Reed couldn't have made

the film if Orson Wells hadn't made

citizen Kan

beforehand which is ridiculous on its

face it's just it no it is it is just

simply you know uh a guy showed up on

the set for three days and became the

most memorable thing in the movie

because Harry lime is just such a such a

memorable character Orson Wells did

create the most famous line for that

movie The Cuckoo Clock uh reference but

he had nothing to do with setting up the

shots kol Reed shoots almost exclusively

with telephoto lenses uh whereas Orson

Wells shoots almost exclusively with

very wide angle lenses that's what he's

famous for Carol Reid is famous for H

using very high arching overhead shots

uh uh Orson Wells literally dug holes in

the studio to get his camera low enough

enough and would put ceilings on on on

on uh uh sets because uh uh the ceiling

was going to always be in in the

shot uh you know I mean the two are

completely Divergent and yet you have

somebody as emminent as Peter bonovich

uh playing into this legend that somehow

or another uh Carol Reed is not

deserving of being considered a great

director his exact words were this is

probably the best film made by a non

aour and that is on the introduction to

the Criterion

disc so I I I I I I I love hitting the

for for the underdog but when it comes

to I've had a really hard time hearing

you the wind in the background like

really hard time hearing

you I'm moving so give me just a moment

no worries also I would love it if you

did a room one night or not not in here

but like just a separate room on film

Styles and stuff because you are very

knowledgeable about that and I love it's

seems like everybody wants to do you

know the uh kuer and uh you know like um

those type of rooms that have been done

to death I'd love to do some like ORS

things like I didn't know about the

whole ceiling thing I can't think of a

single movie I've ever seen that

actually shows a ceiling unless it was

directly about like a painting all the

ceiling something like that directors

just don't do that because they have the

ceiling you know set stuff you don't

have a feeling so I've never noticed

that and I want to go back and watch

some or well stuff and see what I can uh

what I can

find well we rescheduled an Orson Wells

film uh uh for the end of the month uh

chimes at midnight so we'll be so uh

yeah tune in for that that'll be on the

just click on over we we've scheduled

all the way through May so um uh my

reasoning for that was because we're for

the 1944 and film we're doing Henry the

f and Henry the F doesn't make a lot of

sense without uh Henry ivth part one and

two and so and that's the only film

adaptation of it and it happens to have

an all British cast so it worked out but

uh yeah but I I I take up for Carol Reed

in this a

aour uh uh argument you know people say

well he had the three great films uh you

know uh uh odd man out the third man and

and and um uh uh um Fallen Idol uh but

uh that he didn't have a distinctive

directing style of his own or if he did

have a

direct uh uh directing style it was the

Dutch angle that is to you know to the

point where William Wier actually uh

sent him a level as a gift because uh he

he and joke that one of his um uh uh

legs on his tripod must be broken uh in

every single one of his films but when

we look at the the the three films that

green made with Carol Reed the Dutch

angle is very very important because

that is Carol Reed saying alienation you

are alienated you are seeing things from

an outsider's point of view because

because whether it's the character

whether it is you as an audience

alienation is the point and so when

people criticize this film because it

didn't have the

atmosphere of uh a third man or an odd

man out uh I think they're missing what

Carol Reed was trying to purvey in this

very dark comedy which is the I all in

the titles of these Graham green uh

adaptations odd man out Third Man it is

all about someone who is alienated from

society in one way shape or form but uh

uh to me uh this film doesn't work very

well anymore as a comedy and I'm saying

this as someone who hadn't seen the film

since the

1990s and remembered it as being a

rather a a funny comedy in the kind of

eing uh uh British comedy tradition with

Alec Guinness as as as a comic figure

but so much happened since then and

the central premise that seemed

extremely funny to me after we invaded

Iraq over weapons of mass destruction

that uh didn't exist based on the word

of a

spy who who who was just doing it for

the money this isn't a comedy anymore

this is real life and

um the um um actually the Wormhole

character was someone green based on a

real life Spy Who

uh is um uh known to history as Garbo

but was an but was a Spanish uh spy uh

uh who um his his real name was uh Juan

pulo Garcia um who uh became a member of

MI6 because he

un

unaffiliated uh began uh uh selling uh

information to the Nazis that was just

wrong and MI6 ended up picking him up

during World War too uh because uh his

his information uh false information to

to to the Germans was actually doing

more good for them than some of their uh

uh hired spies um and uh so uh you know

there was a serious real life person you

know another serious uh real life uh uh

uh person in in in both the the novel

and and the and the film uh is

uh uh is Gregory ason as pentes who of

course is based on on on oh I can't

remember the guy's name but Batista's

right-hand man who uh it wasn't a

cigarette case made out of human skin it

was a wallet made out of human skin and

he really did carry it around show it to

people and brag about it you know that

was legitimately true um but

interestingly enough Graham green at the

time that he was researching this uh uh

befriended both sides both the

bati and and and the Castro Rebels and

um while also working for MI6 who at the

time they didn't know Castro was going

to be a communist and a matter of fact

when this film came out no one knew that

Castro was going to be a communist he

hadn't made that decision yet he hadn't

aligned with the Soviet Union yet and uh

but the United States only knew that

Batista was a very pro-american regime

and uh uh so since MI6 was obviously on

the side of the British they didn't

really care uh whether or not uh uh uh

Castro uh was uh uh going to uh give uh

good trade deals to either the mafia or

or who was basically put in charge of

the secret police by by by by the

Batista regime at this point um or uh

American sugar Traders and and and

thought that you know perhaps cter would

be a good thing because they could

because they could open up better trade

with with with Cuba which is why they

had actually allowed uh green to to

smuggle medical supplies to him but uh

I'm going to tell him uh Tri trigger War

I'm going to tell my favorite story

about uh the time period in Cuba uh when

Graham green was writing uh this uh he

had a mistress in

Cuba I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm

sorry before you get to your favorite

story with the trigger warning can I

just say something about the the Doo and

the Tilted camera and I think you know

I'd be dis pointed if you

didn't if we get to the third Act of

when we get to the third Act of the film

like when the the butterfly effect of uh

uh vold uh these fabrication of reality

and these fabricated reports we start to

see the results of that the consequences

of that the tone of the film starts to

change like right before uh uh the uh

murder of the C uh that the the captain

Mortez the pilot everything like we

constantly hear that the the that theme

the song the music everything is more

comical that but then after that when he

starts seeing what he has

done results and the harm that he had

done and you know it wasn't just when he

starts seeing it when when it actually

happens then we start getting these more

you know the Cure scores become more

like darker the contrasts are darker and

then we begin to see these tilted camera

angles and it gives this for the moments

of suspense especially when he's walking

with Carter in the streets of Havana and

you know because we know the distress

that he's feeling you know and

everyone's dead his best friend is dead

and now he's worried about his life his

daughter's life and then we see a lot

lot of those so uh that's why like we

still have that uh aoral elements here

and I think it's played displayed

perfectly also because we don't need

them at the like first two acts why why

we we don't need that sense of unease

and you know the

psychological uh you know the psychology

of the protagonist is totally fine he's

a and he's like making up all these

stories and making money out of it and

Life is Beautiful Everything is exactly

where it's supposed to be for everything

is working out for him you know he's

vacuum cleaning everything in his life

but

then everything starts to

change so we see changes in like in

visual technical aspects of the film

everything like and I love at the

beginning like the use of split screen

when he's dreaming of the actual like

Bond life and that you know we see him

on the right side of the screen that

he's WR he's typing his story and on the

left side we see all this like he

portrayed as this Bond style with his

like fancy suit with lady with beautiful

ladies and and like and the in the

bathroom scene we see how he like

describes it with the VES is so funny

I'm so surprised they allowed him to get

away with that especially using n coward

who was in the news at that time for

having picked up homosexuals at

bathrooms that that J

land and and and they just and the

sensors never even said anything about

it that is that is amazing

uh just two quick things they didn't get

it one of the big one of the big

challenges of movie and why it doesn't

quite work um uh is you know you don't

normally start in one genre and then

switch gears into another genre um

that's not what we're trained to expect

and I don't think it entirely Works in

this case you start out as a comedy you

can't you know and it doesn't ever want

to entirely let go of being a comedy

given for example the ending which is an

entirely comedic and satiric ending um

it's it's a really difficult tight rope

to walk like I said earlier um I also

wanted to say um Regarding why the film

isn't a comedy uh because of real world

events

um not just that there really are people

who do that um because of course

misinformation is a Major Tool in the

Spy world but also

because from the other direction from

the other direction the film was too

accurate in terms of its lie because

he's basically saying he made up this

thing about Cuba harboring this this

huge weapon that's going to be a threat

to the West

and then Castro aligns with the Soviet

Union and you've got the Cuban Missile

Crisis which almost resulted in the

annihilation of the world uh through

thermonuclear war so this movie is

arguably prent is predicting the Cuban

Missile Crisis so um which is you know

an especially funny thing either so uh

there's this real tug OFW between comedy

and and tragedy in this movie um but

anyway um I just wanted to mention that

Eric please tell I'm dying to hear your

favorite story about Cuba no I'm sorry

I'm sorry something it it doesn't change

the genre and it doesn't even change the

style because satire is horatian satire

juvenalian satire and manian satire and

all these are satires each of them meant

to evoke different feelings like d Jango

and chain D Jango is a satire but is a

drama kind of satire it it's it doesn't

lose the consistency of the satire thing

all along it kept it keeps it but at the

beginning we see more irony than the

ending but it's still satire all

along I I will respectfully disagree

with you Jango and chain is a consistent

film and this film doesn't quite manage

it look at the beginning it's horatian

satire it provoked it's like kind of

like Dr Strange Love it's it meant to be

comical when when we get at the

beginning at the middle of the film it's

juvenalian satire it's kind of like it

starts with you know it it it meant to

makes us angry like why the the home

office why the politicians are believing

this why even the people on the in the

top of the hierarchy why the idiocy

still there why they don't see it and

then when we get to the ending it's

manian satire it's it's anger it's uh

it's the criticis is the critic of the

whole system is the critic of belief is

the critic of economy and um yep you can

go disagree but that's the proof yeah I

I do disagree but I respect your right

to have a a differing opinion from me no

no don't just disagree both can be

correct evidence like why don't you

disagree because that's that's how the

satire works well well I'm going to

defend I'm going to defend hi because

what he said was that that that that

it's not that the satire doesn't work

it's that he does think the shift in

tone as the film got gets gradually

darker that's how satire just just to

kind of put what just well I'm just

putting High's real you know as opposed

to to

arguing a false Point his real

point and it didn't work for him you

know uh which is which is fair enough I

shouldn't need defending I should be

able to State an opinion and you know

you can take or to leave it but uh

there's no need to argue about it all

right I'm going to tell my my my story

of of of of graham green and uh the man

uh with Cuban Cuba's largest penis yeah

so uh yeah Graham green very beloved in

Cuba because of course uh among British

writers he was really the only Catholic

uh who was covering Catholicism at the

time and he was also uh one of the few

uh writers who was consistently

traveling to uh uh Central and South

America you know uh uh and writing about

about them from a Catholic point of view

uh but uh to uh uh uh but while he was

re

researching this he did uh

smuggle the uh uh uh uh medical uh Goods

into into uh uh Castro's uh um uh Army

however uh uh uh once he was done with

that and he hit the streets of havannah

he picked up his his lover uh who who he

remained and would live with when he was

in Cuba up until 1968 and they went to a

a a a bar to watch live sex acts with

the uh a man who was advertised as

having Cuba's largest penis where who

would swing on a trapes uh on uh uh over

the audience uh uh naked and then

perform sex acts on stage with with

people in the audience who volunteered

and Graham green uh uh realized that

things had gone too far so he and uh his

lover uh uh exited uh uh very very very

quickly uh uh and spent the rest of the

night uh attempting to score cocaine uh

in in every corner of Havana because in

in in Green's words uh uh he couldn't uh

uh come down uh to having seen that uh

that's that uh uh Graham green uh had

what we now call uh an undiagnosed uh uh

uh case of of bipolar disorder and uh

depending on where he was in the world

he would self-medicate so when he was in

in in Asia he he used opium when he was

in the Americas he would use cocaine and

when he was in uh the uh uh Amer or when

he was home he would use whiskey so yeah

interesting yeah uh Revelation onto onto

the type of research that he did for for

this particular uh uh uh uh

film did did that make him a security

risk to his to his MI6 employers uh

seeing is I kept him employed until he

died in 1991 I guess he wasn't any more

of a security risk than any of their

other agents but um uh he was somebody

who could get the goods uh for instance

when he wrote The Quiet American uh in

Vietnam uh he was able to actually

because of his notoriety get an

interview with a translator with hoi Min

and he was uh simply uh uh you know uh

you know too too too valuable a resource

I guess for them to to to Really worry

about his security

status I guess in the Spy World it takes

all kinds and you're very open to a wide

range of of

employees it is also interesting to to

to to to uh uh yazzy's uh uh uh point

about uh uh the uh the satire that uh

green really seemed to have uh toned it

back a lot given what he knew of the

Real Havana uh you know this could have

been a much more and of course I've read

the novel as well a much more more more

cutting condemnation of of of of uh

Batista's regime and and uh uh and uh I

I wonder if some of that was just kind

of not wanting to blow the lid on his

his his his favorite playground which is

basically what he treated uh Cuba as you

know up until 1968 when they finally got

got around to cracking down on all of

that nonsense because uh when he first

went to Cuba and they asked him why he

said it was because uh everything that

we consider immoral is legal there you

know and so and and I wonder if there

was just kind of a because uh when you

read The Quiet American he does not pull

a single punch about southeast Asia when

you read uh you know uh uh uh um well uh

e even uh I can't remember that it was

at the comedians you know he doesn't

pull a single punch about Haiti but he

he had that uh but uh uh when when when

he comes out with his his his one on on

Cuba uh it it softel a little bit I I I

think uh personally and uh so um you

know uh now I think this personally I

agree with yazzy in terms of the tone of

this film it works for me it absolutely

works for me as a as a dark comedy with

uh lighter uh uh Comic characters uh it

it doesn't feel like oil and water and

and I I I didn't uh feel that transition

but to highest point I think that's a

matter of taste and I don't and I and

I've said this before I will have

arguments up to the

woo about technique and everything else

I don't want arguments about taste in

this room because we can't arbitrate

what people

like you know and I I I don't like that

concept because there H because for

there to be a right and a wrong then you

have to say this is a superior form of

uh and there are other rooms on

clubhouse that do this all the time you

know uh which and it irritates me there

and and I I just I'm not going to put up

with that here in this room argue in

terms of of uh anything you want in

terms of what works for you and what

doesn't work for you as long as you

start it with in my opinion or at least

it's implied then that's fine and I can

disagree with you but uh I'm but anyway

so I'll get off my uh get off my uh uh

high horse here but that's just how I

feel about

things I I I I just don't think that uh

um that is uh you know a good use of our

time especially uh you know when when

when talking about uh going on 70y Old

films so anyway I don't think film has

anything to do with it it's just let's

be respectful to each other the um and

you know saying something louder doesn't

doesn't really uh fix anything the uh

one other thing about the film that

didn't entirely work for me is

at the beginning the uh the

establishment of the British agency as

being um as inept as it is it's um we're

supposed to feel I mean it's a satire so

we're supposed to feel that MI6 is uh is

um well at the end of film we're

basically supposed to feel they're not

only inept but immoral and unethical

and

um I don't I don't feel that they did

enough to establish that at the start um

n coward

is not James Bond but he's not he

doesn't seem um I mean he seems kind of

out of touch but I don't know I just

felt like there was a little bit of a

disconnect um for me at least between

level of

ineptness established for

MI6 and then the extent to which they

were

Bamboozled um so um I just I I think I

would have preferred if the ineptness

and also the uh you know at the end um

Marina Hara talks about you know a lack

of loyalty and stuff like that and uh

lack of char essentially saying they

they lack character and I just don't

feel that was established sufficiently

at the beginning of a film so it took

the edge off a satire for me um I

appreciated the satire uh and I enjoyed

it but I wish it had been better

grounded just as um as I said earlier I

wish that the relationship with his

daughter had been more firmly

established to give him a

motivation to be that extreme and taking

such extreme actions to get money to

support her in the lifestyle she wanted

I I just um I just wish they had spent

more a a little more time and energy in

building the

foundations that the film stands upon uh

and I want to be clear I really really

like this movie and I love Alec Guinness

in it and it's an amazing cast um I like

this movie but I also am um trying to be

sensitive to what I perceive as its

flaws in part because you know I I I'm

involved with writing movies and I'm

always looking for what somebody does

right and wrong so that I I and others

in the room can learn from

it I'll have you know Eric that I have

licked many movies many many many movies

and only one of them was in good taste

but then I realized it was a fruit

rollup and not actually a film roll

but that said no movie really tastes

good so stop licking

them you can't tell me what to do I love

you so much have you have you have you

ever tried emultion I I tell you you

know once you try it you won't go back

um I I I want to give yazzi uh a chance

to respond because she's back channeling

me and I will so so I will but I I I I

I'm G to um uh uh uh uh disagree and say

that that that that that anness works

for me on uh not just on a satirical

level but here's where my mind went with

it you know when you start a job and

you're over your head

and everyone just seems to know

everything and then all of a sudden you

slowly realize that everybody here

doesn't know what the [ __ ] they're doing

either and they're just God describe the

year I turned 40 and every year since

it's such a relieving feeling yeah you

know that where you just realize that

yeah nobody else knows what the [ __ ]

they're doing anyway and I think what

the kind of over the topness of the

ineptness of of MI6 uh is is uh

uh uh there's a uh a way

around uh uh telling this story as

straight satire and there's a way around

this as being a light eing comedy and I

think that that they tread that uh very

very well because of the gravitas of the

actors being used Ralph Richardson an N

coward uh that you you that I got that

feeling at first okay well these are the

guys who know what they're doing and

then when you get the reiz realization

that uh nope nope they don't know what

the [ __ ] they're doing either it works

for me and so and it worked for me on on

that level but um uh I'm willing to open

up the the the room to the uh to uh uh

uh uh the the conversation did this feel

like a comedy to

you uh I said not when I was younger but

as adult it's hilarious like I I

literally watched it this week it is

very funny as an adult especially

because you know what was going on at

that time and you know how things

evolved and how things you know where

we're at today and we have a lot more

information about um you know those

experiences whatnot from that time

so yeah as an adult now looking back at

it [ __ ] hilarious I mean genuinely

chuckled out loud even a couple of times

uh would I label it a comedy no it's not

like um like airplane or anything like

that but there is so many like Easter

egg type jokes in there that you had to

know what was going on I mean you had to

have the inside on it or you're not

going to get it but here in the future

where we are uh we can look back at that

go oh that's

funny but I don't I don't see this as

having a lot of funny lines uh I think

it has some of the great lines and and

and I wrote down a few that I I'll share

before before the end but uh I I think

it has a lot of very very funny

situations you know Hassel Beer's

research is into the bless of cheese you

know that that that in itself is just

comic as hell the fact that the drawings

are of a of a of the of a uh of a vacuum

cleaner that's that that that that

that's comic in itself uh the the fact

that he puts snow on the mountains in

Cuba in the middle of summer is

hilarious I lived near Richmond Virginia

which is parallel to the northernmost

point of of Cuba and you barely get snow

in in in January there I I think that

that's

hilarious but it's situational I don't

think this is a a film where the comedy

comes out of the dialogue and and and

things like that and so it it to to to

me

and I'm gonna say the trigger warning

the funniest scene in this film to me

where I laughed out loud is when the dog

gets poisoned quite honestly on on a

very dark dark level that works for me

just as straight satire I did I I and in

the world of the film that works for for

me but uh um you know when we were

discussing the washroom scenes uh the

where where uh the first one with n

coward and then the second one uh where

where where it's obvious that they they

they think he's trying to pick them up

for for for for for for for a trist you

know and uh but then the fact is the

result of that is that that pilot gets

killed by whoever the other side is and

so you know it becomes dark because

there is a cost and so yeah so

I I I never want to say it doesn't work

for me as a comedy because these

situations are comic but I don't think

this works uh dialogue wise as a place

to for a lot of funny lines you aren't

going to go through and the the you know

my favorite line is the one that maren

Hera has um which I wrote it down here I

don't give a damn about men who are

loyal to the people who pay them to

organizations I don't even think all my

country means that much there are many

countries in our blood aren't there but

only one person would the world uh be in

the mess it is if we were loyal to love

and not countries you know that's a

great line and and and I really think

it's it it sums up uh uh a lot of the

theme themes of of the film uh and it is

being told during an absurdly comic

situation where he's having to uh come

clean and explain all of the

coincidences that have led her to

believe that he's actually uh the the

the

spy uh but uh but uh yeah uh uh I I

think it's a a different kind of Comedy

it's because it's not based on Rhythm

it's not based on on on uh setup gag

laugh setup gag it's not but it is an

intellectual a deeper kind of

Comedy Kathy thank you for coming to the

stage please go ahead oh I'm right I'm I

always join so late I'm so sorry so I

haven't seen this film in a long time

but my mom was a huge fan um so I

remember her saying to me cuz she she

grew up in like after the war and him

mom was like oh no you know even to the

Beatles we can't have that that's

inappropriate and she was like the 60s

kind of hippie kind of girl even though

she went to a Catholic school so she

gave me the best view and she was like I

remember this this film was um I thing

she said it was based on a book but they

didn't get the full rights for the story

so they created their own spin on it so

it went down as some kind of parody so

when you're saying there's no full

Rhythm that's just probably because

they're like right okay there's a great

storyline but what can we do with it and

we're going to get the best cast and

we're going to pull the best of what we

can get get out of it um but as I said I

I haven't seen this since I was a little

girl and I I can't even remember half of

it and I do have a funny fact about Alec

Guinness please tell us the funny fact

about okay so he was arrested for

homosexual acts in a public toilet and

fined 10 guies in the 40s

yeah which again makes those scenes in

in the restroom all all the more yes

they all knew you know who they were and

it was like it was at a time where they

were like right we're going to come out

and tell people who we are bit like the

Monty Python kind of vibe like putting

it in your face carry on kind of way but

it's like because it's done with comedy

that that's fine but then there's also a

cleverness to do it as well but yeah

anyway I that was my two pence I haven't

watched the film I never do and I'm so

sorry but I I I will watch it oh we love

having you here Cassy you know that oh

thank you I I am so sorry I keep missing

the room and I love Hillary Hillary's

the best

ever totally and I I can't express how

much I appreciate you saying that's my

two pant I've never heard that and I

told toally love it oh yeah that's a

very old I think it might be an English

saying like that's my two cents like are

they are they are they crooked

sorry are are the pens

crooked Pence oh no I said two

cents oh you said cents I thought you

said Pence okay oh no

well in for a penny and out for a pound

right no pennies penni and two pennies

we still have from like the 1940s and

they can and sometimes I'll look for

something to do with the kids let's find

the oldest dat of Penny but they're not

crooked they're made of copper um but

you can see the change it's I'm a geek I

love M you can see the Queen's portrait

over time change but I do have like even

older money than that no it's not

crooked um in fact no definitely not

I've I've still got a one pound note

which is my great great uncles's from

before the war as well I was been just

funny about that song that refers to the

Crooked

Pence that's all oh crooked Pence like

like Michael

Pence it's getting too complet it's

trousers as you as you all say across

the pond there oh no no is a funny thing

just briefly trousers I know what they

are yeah baggy trousers but that's

London in in Liverpool we say

pants uh I'd like to remind the audience

that hand raising is temporarily turned

off because of the a glitch so if you

want to join uh the conversation you

just have to tap tap unmute no it's not

it's I turned it back on oh well I'd

like to remind the audience that if you

want to

participate raise your and we'll see if

the can I just say really quickly I've

got the um the captions on and that just

come up and say Henry

raising uh no we we won't be raising

Henry until the last week of April when

of course we'll be doing Henry the fenry

Henry no no no won't go

there that's funny I dropped a bunch of

a one little on liners that I thought

were really worthy of quote uh in the

chat by the way

Eric I would like to share something so

that you all know what I was talking

about there was a crooked man and he

walked a crooked mile he found a crooked

six P against a crooked style he bought

a crooked cat which caught a crooked

Mouse and they all live together in a

little crooked

house crooked man cooked man is someone

who does things um Against the

Grain so Graham

Green Well it it could be Michael

Pence no but Michael Pence calls his

wife mother so he I don't think he's a

crooked ever um back to back to our man

in Havana however

um here's a here here here's something

that occurs to me as to why this film

doesn't get talked about uh uh the way

like a third man does or or or or or or

or uh and given the history around the

film and how much Graham green was right

I I I I I think there is something about

once the Soviet Union allied with Cuba

and and the Castro regime that anything

that showed Cuba as anything except the

enemy just kind of slipped out of our

Consciousness uh as a people and it is

to me it is surprising this didn't get

the kind of reappraisal from The Martin

scores of the world uh uh uh after the

Cold War was over or after the Iraq War

where so much of what happened in this

film happened in reality you know uh but

uh uh

any other ideas as to what you know I I

I think Kai would probably say it has to

do with the shift of tone but any other

ideas why a film like this has kind of

slipped through the cracks given this

cast this director this writer um a a

and the the historical importance and

just how much of this film actually

became reality any thoughts on that

Michael MO

not on that note but I just want I got

to jump off real quick but I want to say

I left the link if you guys want to

click on it real quick this is the book

this is for free you can download the

book right now read it have it own it

it's the link is in the chat

enjoy thank you Hillary it's always

wonderful love you guys bye and I love

you so much thank you Hillary uh hope to

join us next week for

sluth uh that'll be hosted by uh Shea

Bloom Sheila Bloom will be uh be be be

be our host with the most for the next

two weeks

I'm trembling

already you're always you're always

trending can can have we got a green

room

organized uh not quite yet we're working

on it um yazzy and I have uh been been

talking in chat look uh we we haven't

even come up with a title yet because

that's how we plann stuff no no may

maybe Call It The Green

Room it took us three years years to get

this rolling

[Music]

so H

maybe sometimes I I just sorry go ahead

I just wanted to say in terms of um uh

the comedic

element what I mention what doesn't work

it's not it's the shift in tone is one

thing the ever again I don't feel that

the underpinnings were sufficiently

built um but what uh one of the things

that worked for me best all the things

that were mentioned plus um I can't

emphasize how much I love Alec

Guinness's

performance um this is a guy who can

play really serious

roles but is a really skilled comic and

I don't think people talk enough about

Guinness's comedic

ility this is I mean it's almost like a

buster Keon in terms of his you're right

it's because he is like he is the one

who it's like the montypython kind of

vibe it's like it's like a little it's a

little slap in the face of what the

establishment wants so it's calling them

out without calling them out in the way

that they want people to so they they

can't do anything about it so they'll

never promote it but then like Alec

Guinness like he's so acclaimed because

he's

so he he he was so talented and

respected in every

way yeah he's awesome and I think he's

awesome in this movie um because he's

you know the CH as I said the

challenge excuse me challenge of the

film is the balancing of comedy and

drama he embodies that in his in his

body uh in his facial

expressions um I you just me at least

I'm watching I just sense

this this uh

mischievous

mischievous uh guy with his tremendous

sense of humor who's keeping it bottled

up to do this this kind of uh stonefed

performance that is effectively a long

joke

um um it's it's a balancing act to me

that he does a whole film and there's

tremendous comedic energy in that in

that balancing act so I just want to put

a word in and I think um my suspicion is

that Carol

Reed um depended a lot on Guinness's

performance

to be the anchor that pulls us through

the film um as uh to get us past the sh

the shift and um I think to a large

extent it does but not I would I would

suggest not to a sufficient extent um

for American audiences to fall in love

with a movie um because again shifting

genres is just not uh

something that's done very much

especially in comedies there's certain

expectations for comedies that this film

violates and sometimes you can sorry

about my throat sometimes you can break

rules and get away with it but it's

really hard um so that that's my susp I

think or he has a lot of that kind of

like obviously she could do comedy and

she could she was beautiful and then

like marily and Monroe was the same they

had a lot of talent but they were pigeon

hold and then when they did so they were

put into positions that were comedic but

also like cleverly place so it was

comedy on so many levels but also

appealed

Kathy please now you're from England you

know better than that Alec Guinness was

a prime comedian all think of all the

eing comedies that he made in the in the

in the 40s and 50s you know

I Lavender Hill mob you know uh I mean I

I think in England he's disgusted that

being a comic genius U you know uh Lady

Killers um uh kind hearts and Coronet I

mean you know

can you repeat that I had trouble

hearing you I I said OG Heen and um Mar

Monroe were placed in such positions

that people around the world with

different expectations or different

audiences would have that that's why

sometimes they might not come across as

popular in certain roles with certain

people so I was agreeing I was saying

like that for me or Heen I think she is

she's really funny but people don't some

people don't see that especially the

narcissistic shall we say old school

males we just like oh no she's just in

there for a bit of eye candy but it's

like no no no she had some amazing Lads

melin Monroe so I was talking about that

from a female

perspective yeah I just rewatched Robin

and Maran and she is uh funny from

beginning to end and that film

absolutely perfect and it's like uh yeah

I and Audrey he's a good metaphor

because her her her comic thing like in

Roman Holiday is is is the same kind of

Buster ke and Stone Face you know but

the Fe but the female equivalent yeah

yeah so it's like I'm playing dumb but

she isn't dumb it's yeah it's fantastic

and that's what that's to me they Alec

Guinness and those old school really

clever comedians they were playing the

long game they were like you know what

I'm going to go down in history for

having a go at you in the right way so

much so people will discuss this for

years and it'll all come out and there's

nothing you can do about

it and now a funny tie in between this

uh film and our our film next week

number one they both have the same

cinematographer Isel Morris who we whose

work we discussed on the inter

uh had he did all of Tony Richardson's

films uh as well and shot all of Carol

Reed films from the 50s and and

1960s uh but uh the other thing is that

one of the impetuses

for uh green writing this novel to make

it uh into a film with Alec Guinness as

his main character was uh the adaptation

in 1955 of his novel The Quiet American

about the uh uh uh French Indo China and

specifically Vietnam because he felt

that the director uh Joseph El maitz who

directed next week's film

sluth so yeah what a tiny tiny tiny

cinema world we live in had betrayed his

novel by adding a scene uh in a car at

the end where uh uh

we get a lecture about how America

really should in involve itself in in

the Vietnam War or the Domino affected

and blah blah blah communism you know uh

uh and little little American

flag I can all I can eat

is you know I I I do want to say this

for this cigar though how can you blow

and talk at the same

time I I must say this for

Cuban cigar I lit it an hour and 43

minutes ago and I still have about two

and a half uh Eric that's not you blown

the cigar please tell me that's not you

please tell me that's the outside wind

that's the outside wind um no but uh but

okay but uh back to uh uh what I was

saying is interesting that this can you

hear me better now yeah what's the

film The Quiet American Stars Audi

Murphy

and um Michael Redgrave it was in 1955

it was remade with uh Michael Kane

Redgrave who

amazing and uh um Brendan Fraser in the

Audi Murphy uh and I like the film a lot

that the Joseph makez version not the

Remake uh even though the Remake is much

more faithful to to to Green's novel uh

the casting of Audi Murphy as this kind

of gung-ho American uh uh naive kid

which is what you know the Bren Brendan

Frasier uh role in in the remake uh is I

think just absolutely perfect is just uh

be uh because when it's

malovic what is that malovic

no the director of

a no uh Herman movitz uh yeah

who's a brother wrote citizen but he he

was the director of things like All

About Eve and he did that disastrous

version of Cleopatra that

almost yeah but uh and next week's film

sluth uh which uh but U I'll leave the

those

details till next week but yeah

interesting time do you have like themed

films so you know when it's coming up to

Halloween or coming up to the festive

period absolutely and I just had an idea

for a theme I think we need to be uh get

some more uh uh information uh out there

on eling comedies uh so that people can

remember what a comic genius Alec

Guinness

was what about Laurel and

Hardy never not even on a

Sunday what you've never heard of Laurel

and no they're not English as all

I H I think one of them is oh yeah yeah

you're right Stan Laurel is technically

British yeah although he he he only

spent uh 14 years in England and uh

spent the rest of his life Amica Charlie

chap uh again I don't really consider

but never mind he he went he went to

school in Liverpool in my city and he

was half Irish um so for me he and he

always used to come back to Liverpool

and also to Ireland to visit the hunger

Strikers but anyway that's another

conversation

I wanted to um I wanted to um share a

couple of points just because I want to

hear your um opinion on that or

explanation or

whatever just three one connects with

what uh hi said before about

the director being

responsible when he's about to go for

the walk to meet the the agent and he

says good night to his daughter with the

umbrella and they have this little

conversation conversation about the

clown and

everything what is she doing picking on

her nose like she's nervous about

something and I don't understand what

that is she's not really picking into

her nose but there's something she seems

to be hiding when she's in bed turning

her face away and playing with some

section around her nose or mouth she

bought a saddle and Bridal for the

horse and she hadn't hadn't worked up

the guts to to ask him for the horse yet

okay the other one is that's just a

commentary I find those so-called

collection of little bottles quite ugly

but that's just my perception and what

is this Cuban couple who is shown at the

very beginning before the the title

comes in where the the man stands up and

he sees this woman and he she throws an

Apple at him and they keep coming up in

different

situations

together what do they have anything what

do they have to do with the

movie uh that is what Carol Reed used to

just call a bit of business and it

doesn't work in this film the way it

does normally in his films but yeah he

he he always would have these little

kind of he thought they were jokes but

uh he would just kind of intercut these

these types of things into the into the

film like meanwhile you know and you're

right it doesn't work in this

one the bottles are explain in the in

the book he collects novelty whiskey

bottles and then it pays off during that

game of checkers yeah yeah my my point

with that is that he seems to I

mean let me put it this way I I have

done some collecting and and I think

that these this drive to collect things

creates a passion for the objects as a

result we put them in a very nice place

these bottles were in a very weird table

exposed to

dust it was like that doesn't look like

like a collection for the except for the

matter that they're collected into one

spot but it looked very strange and then

um just one line that I liked um among

others when he when the Hassel Hassel B

I think is his name the German

doctor he says um I'm interested in life

you're interested in the person not in

life I found that um I like that

statement yeah and it is interesting

that he gives Hassel back all the great

lines you

know uh they can print sta itics can

count populations in hundreds of

thousands but to each man a city

consists of no more than a few streets a

few houses a few people remove uh remove

those and

uh uh the city no longer exists except

as a pain in the memory like the pain of

an amputated leg no longer

there and I must add something to the

whole

thing the

the experience of listening

to all of

you with your viewpoints with the the

explanation and

and viewing and symbolic and and camera

angles and there's so much information

that you provide for example in this

particular room today that when you see

this film

you must see it again there is so

much not to the point that I think I saw

another film because I recall I I could

make the references but I find it is

very profound to be able to see the film

then listen to a lot of things that were

said to the in the room and then watch

the film again and I think you recognize

and you discover a lot of layers to the

film that you can never see when you see

the film once on your

own CA I I'll give you something else to

to look for the next time you watch um

when the do sorry when the daughter puts

a saddle on her horse the saddle is

backwards I noticed that that I that I

noticed I said that doesn't look

right oh and also the the whole bottle

and the the checkers and uh the

everything it's because it shows that

there is no true intellect in the

characters you know the Shakespeare that

they read is the version of Shakespeare

for kids they don't play chess they play

checkers you know that that's that yeah

it's all shows that finality that these

the you know even love the love that

happens in the movie is so shallow it

just happens you know there's no depth

to it that's so it's because like they

send the character and yeah look we send

a woman as a secretary and her

intelligence and her knowledge is

ignored she's just there to be this

perfect beautiful woman to play as the

to to this man's you know Al also they

consider that let's send a woman so that

if the guy fails you know it doesn't

show what a failure The Establishment is

of sword well so they all played and

yeah the vapids and

all yeah and then and I it's good that

you mentioned that because I I kept

wanting to talk about well not talk

about mention the the view I had was

that I find she is absolutely marinara

is absolutely gorgeous and she plays her

part very

well but even though I see that there

are the rest and they caught each

other's

eyes nevertheless I don't see a a

development into them becoming together

at the end it just nothing nothing I see

nothing where something Sparks but in

the end they're together I say why are

they together yeah it's it's a classic

work romance isn't it yeah but it's so

undercovered nothing really

happens I totally agree um I didn't

mention that but that's another it's

another example for me of where the work

of creating a foundation to get the

emotional payoff just didn't happen um

maybe and I can

rationalize um that you know these

things were done because comedy speed is

part of comedy and you don't

wna I can I mean it's it's a tug and

pull on the one hand you want to get

things quickly to things quickly because

that's how Comedy Works you don't want

to spend too much on the on the setup

but in in my view I think they made the

wrong choice I think they should have

spent more time on the setup to make the

punchline really fly so but I I can

understand the choice they made it's not

like a mystery to me um comedy is a

delicate thing and uh

um I also I wanted to mention um uh Eric

you mentioned uh cigars uh Ernie Kovac

reportedly smoked 25 Cuban cigars every

day of of of a filming I don't know if

that's true or not but that's the story

that might be true but very very very

difficult to

do uh yeah cuz I'm just now putting mine

out from two hours ago so I there aren't

enough hours in the day well George

Burns allegedly smoked 10 or

11 um I smoke normally one or

two I don't recall the last day I smoked

three it's very difficult for me it is

also very difficult because I I just I

cannot abuse my pette like that but each

cigar when I smoke it properly and I

think most cigar smokers that are really

enjoying it do smoke it properly meaning

the

timing

means somewhat between 1 and 2 hours for

each

cigar I'm sorry how can you ever smoke

really smoke 25 cigars it's just it's

just it's just crazy I'll give scenario

especially Cubans smok you're smoking a

cigar and say okay Ernie you're up for

your scene he puts you know puts he

tosses a cigar away does a scene comes

back lights up

ah yes there we go that's the answer

yeah that that works that works but then

again I wouldn't call that smokiness as

you yeah and you would never relight a

Cuban cigar you know no because once

it's lit it's

ruined which uh I'm sure is utterly

fascinating to you

yesie no it's all it's this these these

things that you find like not experien

or not EXP enough they actually are and

in one very good visual explanation and

it's the scene that we see Hassel Becker

in his old military first world war

costume of sort I'm not saying like

uniform because for him at that point

it's a costume not not a uniform and he

sits there and he starts talking about

his war and his perception and

everything and I think it's show you

know the whole

you know the the the movie the the plot

is not interested

in in this you know in depth of the

character it is interested in or any

like personal motivation you know we're

looking at it completely wrong if we

look at it like that it's because it

wants to say War experiences at that

period of time and history if you want

to apply historical elements that you

were talking about to the film

your experiences with war like forever

changes your perception of

reality that's what it's all about and

all these characters yeah they're shells

of the real people or shells of the real

characters that's why everything seems

so so shallow and ban

out so when you say something like

you're entirely wrong if you look at it

this way um you just can't say things

like that in a in a film discussion room

uh can we can we let that rest please I

I didn't bring it up uh we we need to

have a civilized discourse here and I

I'm a comedy expert so you know please

think

about think before you say things like

that sorry Hi I don't understand what

you're talking about

I don't know did I say anything I don't

know

offensive

sorry all

right well I'm going to start uh moving

this room to a close because we've of

course gone longer than the actual movie

and plus we all know how I feel about

really really long rooms um so I'm just

going to go once around and last

thoughts on our man in Havana um we'll

just go in PBR order and hi

Bender um I just want to again um make a

plea for last holiday which features

another wonderful Alec Guinness comedic

performance uh which uh you know the has

some Echoes of this and some differences

and it's uh like 9 years earlier um and

uh it would make a nice pairing with uh

uh akiru which we saw not too long ago

um also speaking of

kurawa um since we did do rashan

recently um you know this is this has

some connections to that too in the

sense of competing views of reality uh

and that some uh one of the charms of

his film is that uh the

fantasy ends up winning over reality or

the fantasy overtakes the reality and

that's kind of a a little bit of a

rashan thing oh one other thing I just I

know this is not this is not a thing

about this movie but while I'm

mentioning

rashan I just wanted to mention um it

occurred to me after we talked talked

the baby at the end was saying the baby

comes out of nowhere and then it

occurred to me you know one of the

consequences potentially of a rape is a

baby so maybe

symbolically the baby is a logical

manifestation of of that story uh you

know with time Distortion because she

obviously didn't have a baby um right

after you know rap but anyway just just

a thought uh I will shut up

now yeah that that's a very interesting

uh connection to make um even if it

doesn't if even if it is

not implied intentionally by

Kurosawa I think the connection uh could

be made

um so

I like I said before I enjoyed the film

I believe

that as I mentioned to Eric before I

need to slow down in

my discussions about films because it is

I I just cannot keep up with them I

seriously seriously

seriously feel a necessity to

rewatch um kavaj

um Thomas

Moore

ikuru there are so many and and this

film even though I don't for me is not

something as interesting as belman think

are for me or mova and and Thomas Moore

and and kaju to me this is just you know

it's it's nice entertainment very well

done but you know it's not really what

shakes me but nevertheless when I hear

here especially hi Eric and yasi with

your different angles and historical and

and trivia

and

I I feel incomplete because I caught

maybe 20% of that on the film for many

reasons because I saw it only once

because I'm not really into Cinema on

that level because of many reasons but

that makes the time that I invest into

watching a movie and then trying to read

about it and then discussing about it

conduces me automatically to say well

now I have to watch it again because so

much happens in these rooms at least for

me that

I I feel I'm not complete unless I say

okay now I have more layers then I'm

going to go back out and watch it but

then I have to watch another one and

then another one and you people are too

much and I am too much so what to

do CA I hope that you reconsider because

uh I I Pro profoundly benefited from

your uh from your rooms uh especially

the the Kura rooms and uh you know just

the act of getting somebody to watch a

movie The otherwise wouldn't watch is by

itself really an immense thing and uh I

think we have wonderful

discussions and uh and you're an

invaluable uh contributor to it I I

think that you really

underestimate uh how much you bring to

these discussions and I don't I I just

um I don't think that you need to do

more preparation or worry about you're

not doing enough preparation I I think

you know um uh I mean there's certain

directors you'll pick

that I just don't feel aligned with so I

won't go to those series but I I I wish

You' Recons changing your approach

because I think what you did was working

really well for me at least and Eric

seemed to have a good time so I just um

I just ask you to to think twice about

it um I really loved what you I really

loved what you were doing with with the

F with your film

rooms well I I appreciate that very very

much um and maybe I should be a little

bit more

clear I don't

really I I really cannot stop uh because

to me this is important and that's why I

want to watch the movies again because

it is important and not not as a

complaint but as

as a comparison as to where I stand when

you mentioned a few days ago um give the

people what they want and I don't want

to have a discussion but just just to to

make the comparison so so you understand

what I'm coming

from this is an intrinsic necessity in

me to to without insulting anyone I

really don't care what people say

about many things I I need to be deep

about it I need to and and the the speed

with which we watched belman last year

was for several

people it was not too much but it was a

lot and most people have a regular job

and a regular life and on top of that

Clubhouse it's an additional life that

we have to carry um and and I just know

that the work that I did for almodova

and belman it didn't take anything out

of me in terms of you know I I waste too

much time no I enjoyed doing it and I

think it was necessary to do it but it

is so much and and every time comes more

so to make to to close it at least this

aspect what I am actually seriously

considering is just you know just

focusing a little bit more maybe just

one film per person because I stick to

this birthday uh system so maybe one

film instead of three or five I mean

Phil five films is a lot and you know

one person is born today and three will

be born tomorrow so it doesn't stop but

um I'm not going to stop I'm just trying

to figure out how to be more effective

for myself and also more concise so that

people don't need to get extra jobs to

buy extra time to be able to be in my

rooms well thank you for helping me

better understand uh uh where you're

coming from I appreciate

it and I think we're all agreed we need

more film rooms on

clubhouse I agree with that more light

and heavy both Yazi your final thoughts

on our man in Havana

nothing it's just that with cartoonish

characters you heighten the

absurdity the farsal beliefs and uh yep

and that's it and uh you know Philip

Ross the the the critic the thetion he

says that the satire is all we need for

the satire is uh the the institution as

long as there is social institutions

their and their cultural norms and their

belief systems there's something to be

laugh at it can be funny it can be

heartbreaking but what but at the end

what is necessary I mean the moral

outrage is going to transfer

into comedy into comic art and that's

Saturn an extra point an extra point

about reality my son is is a man or in

Havana she's in Havana right now

so yeah and that's the point where

reality

overlaps

this like when uh fantasy overlaps

reality that's also another element of

sat hopefully not in the part with the

uh with the prostitutes and the

cocaine no I really find important for

me at least I find very important how

how different points were made about the

importance of seeing this as the genre

that it is it doesn't matter what we

call it but just to because if I would

have seen the movie The that's what I

said a couple of weeks ago if I don't

have the context of comedy in terms of

government in terms of Cuba in terms of

montypython etc

etc the movement of Alec Baldwin uh I'm

sorry um yeah would not be comedic

because I don't have the reference point

so once I know what I'm supposed to go

by and the

references then I say wow yeah that that

that is a that is a very sharp criticism

otherwise I would say what is he talking

about and to that point I'm going to end

with a quote from uh uh uh Mr Green

himself uh on this exact issue uh he

said the sense of unhappiness is so much

easier to convey than that of happiness

in Misery we seem aware of our own

existence even though it may be in the

form of monstrous

egoism this pain of mine is individual

this nerve that winces belongs to me and

to no other but happiness annihilates us

we lose our identity so uh that that

that then we we will that that uh really

goes to both what you and uh yazzy were

both saying CA um uh scheduling note

again next week and the week after are

going to be uh sua's uh uh suggestions

which are it's going to be the

1972 uh version of uh sleuth starring

Michael Kaine and uh sir Lawrence

Olivier um so I'm looking forward to to

to to uh uh um both uh

uh Sila's talent in being able to run

the room and uh my being able to have a

couple of weeks where I can kind of

uh uh shun those responsibilities and

then we're g to uh finish off the month

uh this was a scheduling change uh with

uh Orson wells's chimes at midnight the

reason why is because it's now become

available uh in a in a in in a a semi uh

decent Trent uh so that uh people can

see it uh whereas before you would have

had to have gotten the DVD uh from

Criterion uh and I don't know how long

this window is going to last number one

and number two because uh when we move

to May when I'm doing 1944 in film one

of the films that we're doing is U

Lawrence Olivier's version of Henry V F

which I realized makes absolutely no

sense unless you uh have can also

discuss Henry IV which of of course

chimes at midnight is an the adaptation

of of Henry IV and so uh uh but that

that's going to be our our schedule for

the rest of the month um and again we're

scheduled all the way through May so um

the one thing we did uh we took a

Brighton Rock off the schedule I

rewatched it and I just don't think it

it holds up enough to sustain an

interesting room um Eric I just you said

Chimes of of midnight has a a window but

I'm not sure you mentioned where that

window is where where is it currently

residing what platform it is on

Criterion uh okay great that's all I

yeah it but it's it's also on uh uh uh

uh for I think 299 on YouTube right now

but the difference is that it's an

actually a decent print with good

sound um uh that that's available out

there before you could you could see it

uh but uh but it was it was a very very

bad version it had to do with the legal

rights to the film being tied up uh uh

um you know and had uh um it still needs

a restoration it's still not in the best

of shape but we can talk about that when

when we do that but uh that but you've

got three weeks um and as usual if

anybody has trouble tracking the film

down uh back Channel me and I'll will

send you a a link to the film that I

have for free I actually have it

downloaded on my cell phone uh right now

that's how easily available the film is

but for how long I'm not sure because of

course that's the problem with streaming

is they could change their minds next

week and and it's

gone I I'll watch it right

away very good I appreciate that hi and

I appreciate uh all of you being here

and all of our listeners on on on uh on

the Facebook uh we we appreciate you too

and I don't mention you uh often enough

but uh you know that that that's that's

actually the majority it turns out of

our audience so uh we we we appreciate

you as well and I really want to take

take a moment to say Yazi stayed for an

entire episode and we love her passion

and we love having our yazzy back and we

thank thank thank you so much and um

other than that I wish you all a good

night um uh wait is anybody else got any

uh rooms or anything that they want to

uh uh promote before before I close the

room

out tonight

in two

hours you are more than welcome if you

have time I will having I will be having

a short room as today's today is my

Angelo birthday so that would be it

thank

you well other than that I we'll see you

next week for CA episode on

1972's sluth and I wish you all goodbye

have a great

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