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The good thing about holidays is that, after a few months of not watching anything on the Lists, I can find the time to start again. Yay!
Sleeper
Woody Allen stars as a guy who is frozen unknowingly, and is awoken 200 years later in a police state by an underground revolution that needs him to help them overthrow the evil dictator. In trying to avoid being killed, he finds himself meeting and falling in love with Diane Keaton, playing possibly the worst poet ever, and inspiring her to also fight the state. Sort of.
It's a curious film, largely physical comedy, sometimes almost surreal, and only occasionally dialogue-based. I didn't really get the feel that Allen was entirely comfortable with the film - maybe it was the whole futuristic setting, or just the fact that he was operating in a completely different comedic style to that he usually works in. And sometimes it doesn't work (the Streetcar scene comes to mind). But when the film works well, it really works well - the scenes where he pretends to be a robot in particular were quite wonderful, or his Miss USA programming, or his escape with the flying pack. Add to that some wonderful bits of dialogue (the "Did they have no hot fudge?" scene was great) and you've got a pretty enjoyable film. I have some reservations about it - certainly it lacks much of a structure, and at times comes across almost as though they're making it up as they go along - but overall I enjoyed it.
The Shop Around the Corner
I think this is the first Ernst Lubitsch film I've ever seen, and on the strength of it, I'm looking forward to seeing others. James Stewart and Margaret Sullavan star as co-workers who despise each other but don't realise they have fallen in love with each other as anonymous penpals. Then, when Stewart discovers the identity of his penpal and starts to see below the surface of his co-worker, he starts to plot to win her over.
I was surprised to find the film list in the Passions list only, as it definitely deserved a placing in the Laughs list. The film was terribly funny at times, with characters that may be been broadly drawn, but still instantly recognisable. I also appreciated the fact that, while there is never any doubt who the film's main characters are, most of the shop's other staff were kept constantly in the picture and offering their own contribution to the comedy.
As for the romance, I've never been terribly convinced by the romantic comedy, where I usually feel like we're supposed to simply accept the the two leads are "meant" to be together because they're played by [Insert Male Movie Star Name] and [Insert Female Movie Star Name]. And while I do think that this film does fall into that trap a bit, and certainly not enough time is given to developing the romance and their changing attitudes to each other, Stewart and Sullavan certainly had some incredible chemistry that did make it work. I really enjoyed The SHop Around The Corner - it was a true delight to watch.
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