Track the Films You Watch (2005) - Page 11

Now that you've told us your choice of top films, what are the actors again? I'm pretty sure Marlon Brando is your #1, but who is the second - is it DeNiro?


I have at least one Hepburn/Tracy film poised in my queue for the next shipment!


Well, I'd say the opening 15 minutes, at least, are dripping with atmosphere. And the Spanish version isn't so wonderful once you lose Lugosi!


I've seen all the above films so far except DEVIL DOLL, and I have to agree that THE UNKNOWN was the best directed Browning movie I've seen so far.


I was going to bring this up. David Manners, who died only fairly recently, said he never recalled being directed by Browning, but actually Karl Freund! Since Freund directed THE MUMMY (which, to me is just as slow as DRACULA after the first 10 or 15 minutes) I wonder!

I've only seen the movie once, in a theater about 5 or 6 years ago, but I actually really enjoyed the subplot with the boyfriend. I thought it was a very funny caricature of the creative/pretentious Euro filmmaker set that Bertolucci was very much a part of. The character might have been based more on Truffaut than on anyone else, but perhaps I'm thinking that because it was played by Jean-Pierre Leaud, who was famous for starring in Truffaut's "Antoine Doinel" films.



Lots of great Bergman out there. There was a festival of his films in the DC area last summer, and I went to several of them. One that particularly blew me away was The Naked Night (also known as Sawdust and Tinsel, I think in the UK), which was an early film of his, from '53. I guess it hasn't been preserved too well over the years, since the print that was shown at the National Gallery of Art wasn't very good (as opposed to a few other great prints they showed, particularly The Virgin Spring, which was mind-blowingly perfect, maybe the best 35-mm print I've ever seen of any film). Hopefully it'll be restored in a nice DVD sometime. The Naked Night might be considered a sort of "hidden gem" in the Bergman ouvre, as I suspect that it hasn't been all that widely seen.

This rarely happens to me, but I just saw a movie I'm on the fence about - Vanilla Sky.

Usually it's a simple matter when I'm done watching a film to give it a or a , because either I clearly want to see the film again (and immediately add it to my to-buy list), or I have zero desire to do so. But every once in a while there's a film like this where I just can't decide. I kept going back and forth while watching it - I'd get into it, and then it'd do something that made no sense and pissed me off and my opinion would change. Now if the ending had been Blow-Upish, then this would be a no-brainer. But this actually had a clear ending that made sense and put all the film into context. I just can't decide if it's a film that I'd enjoy rewatching or not. I'm giving it a tentative since I'm not immediately going to go out and buy it, but I'm going to ruminate a bit, and I might change it to a in a few days.

Too bad there isn't a "sideways" thumb option

The Grudge (2004)

Viewed 2/14/2005 (first viewing)

American remake of the Japanese horror hit Ju-On. It's a creepy ghost story with a couple of decent scares, but Sarah Michelle Gellar is a rather ineffectual lead (not that she has much to do). No better or worse than the original.

out of


The Village (2004)

Viewed 2/14/2005 (first viewing)

M. Night Shyamalan's fourth outing caught a lot of flak, but I enjoyed it more than most. Difficult to discuss without spoiling it. Underrated.

out of

Since Mike has basically given us here the 12 films he considers to be the greatest ever, I thought I'd oblige by naming mine...only my list is made up of 13 titles:

1.THE OLD DARK HOUSE (James Whale, 1932)/BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN (James Whale, 1935) - 3/8
2.THE DISCREET CHARM OF THE BOURGEOISIE (Luis Bunuel, 1972) - 4
3.NORTH BY NORTHWEST (Alfred Hitchcock, 1959) - 5
4.HIS GIRL FRIDAY (Howard Hawks, 1940) - 5
5.CITIZEN KANE (Orson Welles, 1941) - 6
6.THE RULES OF THE GAME (Jean Renoir, 1939) - 3
7.THE PASSION OF JOAN OF ARC (Carl Theodor Dreyer, 1928) - 3
8. M (Fritz Lang, 1931) - 5
9. NOSFERATU (F. W. Murnau, 1922) - 4
10.A MAN ESCAPED (Robert Bresson, 1956) - 3
11. SANSHO THE BAILIFF (Kenji Mizoguchi, 1954) - 2
12. THE SCARLET EMPRESS (Josef von Sternberg, 1934) - 2

For the benefit of Joe Karlosi, I followed the films' titles by their directors' names, the year of release and the number of times I've watched them (since he obviously expects such thoroughness of me). Besides, since most of the ones he hasn't watched are, thankfully, available on R1 DVD, he may eventually choose to add a few of them to his increasingly impressive Netflix queue. Furthermore, my No. 1 choice(s) should leave no doubt as to where my cinematic tastes lie.

While my list of favorites would include practically all of the titles I've mentioned above, it would necessarily be a lot longer and I opted not to mention any here off the top of my head (unless pressed) in case I leave some of them out. Suffice it to say that my list would look a LOT different than yours, Mike...and Joe's too (given that we've discussed this topic often enough on another Forum).


Re: Last Tango In Paris

As I understand it (but I could be wrong), Jean-Pierre Leaud's character is supposed to have been a caricature of cine-verite` film-makers, which probably stems from a sense of betrayal Bertolucci felt towards his idol, Jean-Luc Godard, who had by that point - TOUT VA BIEN (1972) notwithstanding - completely abandoned mainstream film-making in favor of cinematic essays based on Marxist ideology; the fact that Leaud had by then already appeared in 8 of Godard's films was not lost on Bertolucci, I'm sure.

With regards to Maria Schneider, while I think that Brando's tremendous performance demanded an equally great one from his female counterpart, I too liked her better the second time around. Of particular interest to me is the fact that Schneider (whose father was noted French actor, Daniel Gelin) was Bunuel's second choice - after Isabelle Adjani turned him down! - for the female lead in his last film, THAT OBSCURE OBJECT OF DESIRE (1977); she actually did shoot some scenes for the picture but was eventually fired because her drug dependency was getting in the way of her performance.

Mike, I assume that you got that story from Brando's autobiography, "Songs My Mother Taught Me". While I don't have that book, I've read 3 books on Brando which, unfortunately, were published just after TANGO's release...which also goes to show how high a tide of critical and popular renaissance he was riding at the time after a decade of "lesser" pictures. However, that very sequence you describe illustrates all the more clearly what my beef is with the film: sheer pretentiousness, pure and simple. Marco Ferreri must have been close by when they tried to film that because Gerard Depardieu spends most of THE LAST WOMAN (1976) walking butt-naked in his apartment spouting existential philosophy and eventually chops off his honker in despair! Now that's entertainment!


Re: Spencer Tracy

While my favorite of the Tracy/Hepburn collaborations would be ADAM'S RIB (1949), I've watched all of them but Frank Capra's STATE OF THE UNION (1948). Have you watched that one by any chance, Mike? As for THE SEVENTH CROSS (1944), you're in for a treat: unjustly forgotten nowadays, it features a great cast and an excellent, intense performance by Tracy.


Re: Ingmar Bergman

I'm glad that your positive experience with WILD STRAWBERRIES (1957) has led you to seek out more of Bergman's films so soon. As for myself, I've watched all his major films except for SAWDUST AND TINSEL aka THE NAKED NIGHT (1953) and SCENES FROM A MARRIAGE (1973; which, as I said earlier, I should be catching up with soon). Furthermore, I've seen several Bergman interviews by now to know that he's always that direct in his answers.

Mario, you've inspired me to list what I "currently" feel to be the 12 "greatest" films (not necessarily my most favorites, though some of them obviously are also faves). What I find amazing is that your choices for #1 are none other than THE OLD DARK HOUSE and BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN -- and even "I" wouldn't consider a horror film as my Number One! I'm just trying to have some fun with you here for old time's sake -- but why did you put BRIDE as a tie with OLD DARK HOUSE? Is it because BRIDE is more readily acceptable as a #1 choice than TODH is? (heh heh ) .

Here are what I'd presently consider to be the 12 Greatest at this time, and of course this is now always changing as I see different films. After my definite #1 choice*, the rest are in random order:

1.) *BEN-HUR (1959)
2.) CITIZEN KANE (1941)
3.) ROSEMARY'S BABY (1968)
4.) DELIVERANCE (1972)
5.) AMERICAN GRAFFITI (1973)
6.) THE STING (1973)
7.) BUTCH CASSIDY AND THE SUNDANCE KID (1969)
8.) BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN (1935)
9.) JAWS (1975)
10.) THE EXORCIST (1973)
11.) PULP FICTION (1994)
12.) SONS OF THE DESERT (1934)

Hmmmm ... after constructing that list I've seen that things haven't changed as much as I thought they would. Of course, there are dozens more "great" films I've come to discover, but narrowing them down to just 12 produced the above results. I'd say 100 or so would be easier.

The films on the list I'd consider to be perfect - or, I should clarify, as perfect as a movie can be.

Love that music score! (plus they still were able to make great "remakes" back then)

I'm still curious to see the very controversial BIRTH OF A NATION, but do you think going with the Alpha version would be the best bet? In the meantime, I think it's avaliable on Netflix for me to rent, and probably from a superior source (didn't you say it was Image)?

Well, I already have COOL HAND LUKE on my list - and THE HUSTLER.

I have been unable to locate my EXORCISM disc! Guess I'm lucky!

Since BIRTH OF A NATION is so long, how will Alpha accomodate this?

Pfft! What's a top ten list without The Third Man?

I can also recommend The Seventh Cross and the fine performance by Spencer Tracy. Tortilla Flat though, I just don't know. Haven't seen it in years but I remember being very disappointed by it. I mean, Spencer Tracy as a Mexican? Ay! Sorry, just couldn't buy it.

Hangmen Also Die (1943)

Viewed 2/15/2005

Wartime intrigue picture by Fritz Lang. Set in Nazi-occupied Czechoslovakia, all hell breaks loose after the assassination of a Nazi officer. Unfortunately it never really catches fire (though it does pick up a bit in the second half). The unremarkable cast and overlength don't help. Worth a look for Lang fans.

out of


The Yakuza Papers: Final Battle (1974)

Viewed 2/15/2005 (first viewing)

Final installment in Kinji Fukasaku's gangster epic. After the police crackdown in Hiroshima, the remaining yakuza families take a stab at respectability by forming a legitimate political coalition. But old habits die hard and weary series protagonist Shozo Hirono, fresh out of prison, is caught in the middle.

out of

Open Water 1/2
The Core

Re: Spencer Tracy, etc.

I've only watched KEEPER OF THE FLAME (1942) once many years ago but, as far as I recall, it was quite good. As for the rest of your Tracy titles, I've never watched EDWARD, MY SON (1949) and THE ACTRESS (1953), though they get replayed on Cable TV quite often. With regards to Loretta Young, I've only watched THE CALL OF THE WILD (1935) and COME TO THE STABLE (1949) from the films you've mentioned and have THE STORY OF ALEXANDER GRAHAM BELL (1939) on VHS, taped off the TV. A question about the stuff you've been recording: are you saying that you've never watched GREED (1924), THE CROWD (1928), THE LADY EVE (1941), JOURNEY INTO FEAR (1942) and THE SPIRAL STAIRCASE (1946)? Man, I would have expected that of Mr. Karlosi but not you! In any case, I hope you get to them soon enough...


Re: Treeline Films

Thanks for bringing those Box Sets to my attention, Mike. There is some great stuff I've missed in there to be sure. Incidentally, last year my local DVD shop owner got a whole bunch of 2-Disc sets featuring 8 Westerns apiece and, while the video/audio quality left much to be desired in some cases, in other instances it was quite decent. I already rented two such sets and enjoyed them quite a bit. Besides, he also got 3 Horror Triple Features discs and the one I rented allowed me to finally catch up with A BUCKET OF BLOOD (1959) and HOUSE ON HAUNTED HILL (1959). So, although I don't plan on purchasing the Treeline sets, I'll certainly mention them to him and, given the ultra-affordable price they're going for, they should be quite enticing to him.


Re: Michael's Netflix List

I've watched THE VILLAGE (2004) only last month and, while I didn't think it was that bad, it certainly wasn't up to the level of THE SIXTH SENSE (1999) or even SIGNS (2002). I'm envious that your Netflix service allows you to watch such potentially intriguing but relatively obscure titles as IT (1927; which I'll eventually buy someday), THE MAN WHO CHANGED HIS MIND (1936) and TITANIC (1943). Furthermore, I have taped TOWN WITHOUT PITY (1961) off Cable TV and also intend to buy IN A LONELY PLACE (1950) and THE BELLBOY (1960) on DVD.


Re: HAXAN (1922)

Joe, I too am curious about what you'll make of this one...but I don't have too many high hopes since it is Silent; in any case, my ***1/2 review of it is posted on the IMDB.


Re: THE OLD DARK HOUSE (1932)/BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN (1935)

I first watched BRIDE in a heavily-cut version on late-night Italian TV in the summer of 1989. Just a few months later, the film was released on PAL VHS as a double-feature with the censored version(!) of FRANKENSTEIN (1931) - which I naturally purchased immediately and, basically, proceeded to wear the tape out in a the space of a couple of weeks (something which has never happened again since with any other film), hence BRIDE's ranking at the top of my list. THE OLD DARK HOUSE (1932) was a different story entirely: for the longest time, it was my "holy grail" film and I only managed to catch up with it on Satellite TV - and on my birthday, no less! - in 2000!! I taped the broadcast and having obviously loved it, I watched it again a few weeks later but, as it happened, by the end of the year I was intent on buying myself a DVD player and, then, seeing that the film was already available on disc, I naturally made it one of my very first purchases. I ended up watching it three times in one day (albeit two of them accompanied by the DVD Commentaries which, of course, don't count); considering how much I had been familiar with BRIDE by this time (not that I will ever tire of watching it), the freshness of THE OLD DARK HOUSE - coupled with its uniqueness and relevant obscurity amidst the Universal cycle of horror films, and the fact that James Whale himself felt closer to it than BRIDE (as suggested by GODS AND MONSTERS [1998], which I also watched around this time) - ensured that it replaced BRIDE as my favorite, even if I readily concede that the later film is the more accomplished one and remains, for me, the greatest in all of horror cinema.


Re: All-Time Greatest Films List


When I first started compiling "All-Time Greatest Films" lists in the late Eighties, they were always very conservative, comprising almost exclusively Hollywood films and featuring all the expected classics. In fact, such a list at that time would have looked something like this:

1.CITIZEN KANE (1941)
2.THE THIRD MAN (1949; to this day, my No. 1 choice for the greatest British film ever)
3.CASABLANCA (1942)
4.SINGIN' IN THE RAIN (1952)
5.GONE WITH THE WIND (1939)
6.THE MALTESE FALCON (1941)
7.THE GRAPES OF WRATH (1940)
8.NORTH BY NORTHWEST (1959)
9.IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE (1946)
10.STAGECOACH (1939)

With regards to your list, I've watched all of them (obviously) and while I would only disagree with PULP FICTION's inclusion (far from perfect, in my opinion), I'm not all that familiar with AMERICAN GRAFFITI (1973) having watched it only once (in Italian!) to pass any kind of judgment but, I suppose, one has to be American to fully appreciate it...just as my being European "allows" me to be more in tune with world cinema. I'm surprised with your inclusion of DELIVERANCE (1972) since I don't recall it ever creeping up into our discussions before; I hope you get around to watching John Boorman's equally magnificent POINT BLANK (1967; as close to arthouse cinema as American genre film-making ever got) when Warners decide to issue it on DVD, hopefully as part of their superb 2-Disc sets; I still kick myself to this day for not enquiring about its current DVD status when I met Boorman in Venice last September! By the way, I completely agree with your inclusion of SONS OF THE DESERT (1934) - arguably the lovable duo's most perfect film.


Re: Joe's latest (and upcoming) viewings

I'm glad you enjoyed JEZEBEL (1938) which, alas, I've only watched once myself several years ago. I suggest you also seek out Bette Davis' other two films with William Wyler, THE LETTER (1940) and THE LITTLE FOXES (1941), which are even better. Also, I'm looking forward to your reviews of THE HUSTLER (1961) and COOL HAND LUKE (1967; which, again, I've only watched once); the former is, together with HUD (1963), arguably Newman's best film.

While I was already aware that GOJIRA (1954) starred Akira Kurosawa's frequent leading man, Takashi Shimura, as I watched the Criterion DVD of Kurosawa's STRAY DOG (1949) yesterday, I was "shocked" to learn that Ishiro Honda (whom you may recognize as the director of most Godzilla entries) was a close personal friend of Kurosawa and in fact served as second unit director on the film! Who knows, maybe you'll put STRAY DOG on your Netflix queue someday because of this...

Mario, I'm going to address some things from your last post, but for some reason the print from your last message is a little screwed up.


While silent films aren't my preference, I've enjoyed some of them. As I always like to remind you and mike, I still don't think any sound version of PHANTOM has beaten the Chaney silent. I find THE UNKNOWN to be better directed by Browning than any of his sound films. Also, CITY LIGHTS is an excellent comedy. I'd try HAXAN out sometime.


I already have one of those two coming soon, but I'll get around to both. I'm currently really enjoying Bette Davis, especially in her earlier days.

That "screwy" print has, God knows why, been plaguing me for some time now and I have had to re-edit all my posts with the correct punctuations over and over which, knowing how long they usually are, is no mean feat! Here's hoping this one gets posted right the first time around...

That's great news about your upcoming Bette Davis DVD rental - and I'm keeping my fingers crossed for you on HAXAN (1922) as well...

By the way, you should thank your lucky stars that you gave a full **** rating to ON THE WATERFRONT (1954) - otherwise, I'd have had no choice but to hire some thugs and have them throw you off a rooftop. Looking forward to your reviews of this one and ADAM'S RIB (1949), too...

One thing about my rental experience with ON THE WATERFRONT was something I had feared for awhile now: it was the first Netflix disc that gave me a little trouble. The picture froze up at the start of the film, right after the credits finished and the action began. The only way to bypass the problem was to jump to the next chapter, but luckily for me the counter only said 3 Minutes (including the titles) so I didn't miss much, if anything. It could have been disastrous if this occurred much later!

I generally don't like puting used DVDs into my player, and most of these Netflix discs are scratchy and/or a little grimy. But so far, so good, and I still recommend the service overall. It's helped me decide which films I wish to own and which I'm glad I only rented. It saves big money on blind buys.

When Michael joins the conversation I'd like to discuss one very tiny quibble I had with ON THE WATERFRONT. It wasn't anything enough to disuade me from considering this a four star film, though.

The Hours

Why is there never a sharp stick to poke your eyes out when you need one?

For all intents and purposes, it IS flawless to me, too.

But it seemed to me that Brando's character was immediately shown to be already sensitive and good-natured right from when the film first began (of course, my DVD did freeze up, but I don't think I missed anything). I wonder if Kazan shouldn't have had a little more of an introduction to him as being more of a down and dirty punk first, before his turnaround. Either way, it doesn't hurt the film.

I understand the point of the film and didn't miss it, but wasn't the idea also that, at first, Brando went along with these guys in all their schemes and crooked plans until his conscious started to affect him? I'm saying you didn't get the chance to see him "going along with the bad guys" first.


I really like Shyamalan, and I do agree with you that THE VILLAGE is nowhere near as good as THE SIXTH SENSE or SIGNS were.... But I don't agree that it's a "bad" film, personally. I enjoyed the atmosphere and I think it worked well as a sort of extended Twilight Zone episode, and the performances were pretty good, most notably by Bryce Howard as the blind girl. She is portrayed in the film as one very tough, determined, independent blind girl, so I had little trouble in accepting that she could do all the things she pushed herself to do. 1/2 .

I'm glad you had some fun with Karloff's THE MAN WHO CHANGED HIS MIND. I agree that it's his most over-the-top performance, and it does match Lugosi's maniacal madness in THE RAVEN (1935).

Re: Joe's "problem" with ON THE WATERFRONT (1954)

First of all, I see that you have edited your IMDB review and inserted the correct surname for Brando's character. Besides, maybe it was an omission on your part but I can't understand how you failed to mention Leonard Bernstein's memorable score.

As regards your minor quibble with the film, as far as I remember, Terry was not actively involved in Friendly's gang but mainly hung around the outfit on account of his brother. His major "crimes" up to that point had been throwing a fight to benefit Friendly and getting paid to report for work at the docks and sit idle all day long. He was only involved in the Joey Doyle affair because he was on friendly terms with the victim and was "used" to lure him out into the open. In fact, he himself confesses this to Edie, Joey's sister: "It started out as a favor, who am I kidding? It was 'do it or else'. I thought they were just going to lean on him".

As a matter of fact, Joe, I thought you would have had more problems with any of the following "faults" mentioned below, extracted from David Shipman's book on Brando's films:

"It is brutally dishonest; overcomposed and over-hysterical, with too much of the action in for electrifying effect. You might wonder why, at the end, the men are so slow to support Terry when Friendly and his gang expect imminent arrest...even more blatant is the scene where Terry's teenage chum turns on him, killing all his pigeons...even more might you wonder about Charley's death, a harsh way to treat your right-hand man, even as a warning to his brother - especially if the latter is as unimportant as Friendly insists...you might also be curious as to why a truck tries to run Terry down before he has discovered his brother's corpse..."

While I have often wondered about some of these myself, I have to say that the following passage, taken from the same book, shook me a bit:

"The faults were generally overlooked, though later in 'Sight & Sound', Lindsay Anderson called it 'a bad film' and made a bitter and well-aimed attack on the Fascist implications of the final sequence - points which might have had more authority if he hadn't lauded at its expense a vastly inferior movie, FORCE OF EVIL (1948), directed by Abraham Polonsky (who had been blacklisted; Kazan, of course, was employed, successful and chic)".

While I have great respect for Anderson as a film-maker, I cannot share his lowly opinion of ON THE WATERFRONT - just as I can't agree with Shipman's views on FORCE OF EVIL, a film Leslie Halliwell praised as being "generally almost as hypnotic as CITIZEN KANE (1941)"! You might wish to give the latter a look since it is available on DVD through Artisan...

Heh Heh You caught me there. Fortunately, I'm often going over things I've written and am trying to correct errors or fine tune things.


Yes, you're right there - the music was quite good. I must have forgot to mention it, which is bizarre as I actually made a mental note that it was well done.


That's part of the advantage in seeing films more than once (which I certainly intend to do with WATERFRONT). Of course, there are some things people miss or overlook, and it's quite obvious to others. I recall when I had my love affair with KILL BILL VOL. 2 last year (seeing it multiple times) I was surprised when someone mistakenly thought that Elle Driver (Daryl Hannah) was Bud's (Michael Madsen's) sister (they aren't related) -- and it was from a reviewer who also loved the film!


No, none of those objections rang true with me. Not on first view, anyway.

First time viewings in Red
Out of


Raging Bull (1980) (10/10)
Scorsese’s brutally honest biopic on the violent, self-destructive life of boxer Jake La Motta DeNiro gives possibly his finest performance & the cinematography is a knock-out. A great film but one I can only revisit every few years or so.

Infernal Affairs (2002) (9/10)
The police force & a drug gang plant moles in each others camp in this suspenseful return to the great Hong Kong crime films of the 80’s & early 90’s.

Miller’s Crossing (1990) (9/10)
My favorite Coen film is this riff on the classic gangster genre

The Bachelor and the Bobby-Soxer (1947) (6/10)
Above average Cary Grant comedy co-starring Mirna Loy & Shirley Temple

Fighting Elegy (1966) (6/10)
Seijin Suzuki lampoons fascism in pre-WWII Japan

It Should Happen To You (1954) (5/10)
Average comedy has a down & out model getting her name on a billboard.

Torpedo Run (1958) (5/10)
Glenn Ford is the captain of a sub bent on the destruction of a Japanese Carrier.

Air Force (1943) (5/10)
Average flag-waver about the crew of a flying fortress.

The Court-Martial of Billy Mitchell (1955) (5/10)
Hum-drum military court-room drama starring Cary Cooper

La Commare secca (1962) (4/10)
Dreary film which investigates the death of a prostitute

Re: Infernal Affairs

I want to see this but my local video store only has one copy and its always out. Dammit, I miss the days when I was the only one renting foreign flicks.


Testament of Orpheus (1959)

Viewed 2/17/2005 (first viewing)

Jean Cocteau's final film has the director himself wandering through a dreamscape populated in part by characters from his previous films. A surrealistic delight, just don't try to make sense of it.

out of


The Long Night (1947)

Viewed 2/18/2005 (first viewing)

Grim noir has Henry Fonda holed up in his apartment and surrounded by the cops after shooting his girlfriend's smarmy admirer (Vincent Price). Good use of music by Beethoven.

out of


Elena and Her Men (1956)

Viewed 2/18/2005 (first viewing)

Light and fluffy romantic comedy from Jean Renoir. Ingrid Bergman is a much-desired princess; her suitors include a French general and a shoe magnate. Beautifully shot.

out of