Classics

In recent weeks I have watched quite a few film classics. With two of them, I was sure that I hadn’t seen them before, but I had and I could remember their stories quite well: The Philadelphia Story and The Night of the Hunter. I wish I had asked malorama before I went to see Die Nacht des Jägers, dann hätte ich bei seiner Minute besser aufpassen können.

Anyway, because of Fassbinder, who was a fan of the Douglas Sirk melodramas of the 50ties, I wanted to see more of his films. I had seen Imitation of Life and All That Heaven Allows a couple of years ago and this week it was time for Written on the Wind.

Imitation of Life is still my favourite Douglas Sirk film, though Written on the Wind is very good, too. A bit cartoonish, in a good way, which distracted me at first.

Below are three screen caps of the final shots of Written on the Wind. I think they look absolutely stunning. You can see Marylee Hadley (played by Dorothy Malone, who won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for her role as the spoiled, dipso-nymphomaniac daughter) with a portrait of her father in the back.

Resources:
Article on Fassbinder’s Angst Essen Seele auf (Ali: Fear Eats the Soul) which is a remake of Douglas Sirk’s All That Heaven Allows
Bright Lights Film Journal (#6, Winter 1977/78) devoted to Douglas Sirk incl. an interview

Earlier:
Fassbinder: In einem Jahr mit 13 Monden