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Post by helrunar on Mar 30, 2020 13:51:20 GMT
Seems curious that folks don't discuss Berkeley Square. Last night I started watching this early 1950s remake which is in somewhat better condition that the print of the 1930s film that's available: www.youtube.com/watch?v=rcJ_rVQP3Tg&list=WL&index=207&t=82sIt would be great if a restored version of the Leslie Howard film could be released. While reading HPL's letters to Clark Ashton Smith and Robert Barlow a couple of years ago, I noticed that there were a couple of other films that Lovecraft did claim to enjoy. He seems to have gone to the movies more often than I had realized. H.
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Post by Knygathin on Mar 30, 2020 15:53:20 GMT
... While reading HPL's letters to Clark Ashton Smith and Robert Barlow a couple of years ago, I noticed that there were a couple of other films that Lovecraft did claim to enjoy. He seems to have gone to the movies more often than I had realized. H. What films were that? I had a quote from Lovecraft somewhere, in which he argues that films cannot bring about genuine weird atmosphere, not as effectively as literature can by triggering our suggestive inner thoughts, that film is too tied down into the visual mundane world. I wonder if he liked King Kong? I seem to remember that Clark Ashton Smith mentioned King Kong, and he was flabbergasted by how they could have created the monsters. I may have ignored King Kong as a child, arguing that the animation was jerky (in relation to modern productions), but as you mature you realize it is a magnificent film. As a story it is a commonplace audience-pleaser, so I imagine Lovecraft on that account found it lacking and unsatisfying. A giant gorilla isn't exactly the most interesting supernatural story-element, and The Beauty and the Beast we all already know of.
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Post by Jojo Lapin X on Mar 30, 2020 17:19:38 GMT
I wonder if he liked King Kong? I am pretty sure he mentions seeing KING KONG in the Arkham House SELECTED LETTERS, but I am unable to locate the passage.
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Post by andydecker on Mar 30, 2020 17:24:41 GMT
Never saw Berkeley Square. I checked the plot. Sounds interesting. I think the only movie I remember with Leslie Howard is Gone with the Wind. Always thought him strange for the part. What did she see in that guy?
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Post by Jojo Lapin X on Mar 30, 2020 17:36:14 GMT
What did she see in that guy? Money! I have not watched the film recently, but I believe it is fairly faithful to the wonderfully nasty novel. As is the case with WUTHERING HEIGHTS, GONE WITH THE WIND is popularly believed to be a love story, but it is anything but. It is the tale of a young lady who will go to any lengths, including murder, to achieve her ambition of marrying rich and carrying on with the lifestyle she is accustomed to, but the annoying Civil War keeps getting in the way.
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Post by Swampirella on Mar 30, 2020 19:01:12 GMT
What did she see in that guy? Money! I have not watched the film recently, but I believe it is fairly faithful to the wonderfully nasty novel. As is the case with WUTHERING HEIGHTS, GONE WITH THE WIND is popularly believed to be a love story, but it is anything but. It is the tale of a young lady who will go to any lengths, including murder, to achieve her ambition of marrying rich and carrying on with the lifestyle she is accustomed to, but the annoying Civil War keeps getting in the way. The perfect synopsis!
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Post by Swampirella on Apr 1, 2020 18:03:12 GMT
Since Sunday I've been working my way through all 3 seasons of One Step Beyond; it was before my time but I'm still a little surprised I hadn't heard of it yet. No monsters or vampires, but a lot of eerie happenings. All are available on You-know-where...
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Post by dem bones on Apr 1, 2020 18:25:15 GMT
Since Sunday I've been working my way through all 3 seasons of One Step Beyond; it was before my time but I'm still a little surprised I hadn't heard of it yet. No monsters or vampires, but a lot of eerie happenings. All are available on You-know-where... There were at least two tie-in anthologies, stories adapted by Lenore Bredeson. Got one at last November's pulp fair.
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Post by Knygathin on Apr 2, 2020 7:21:03 GMT
Since Sunday I've been working my way through all 3 seasons of One Step Beyond; it was before my time but I'm still a little surprised I hadn't heard of it yet. No monsters or vampires, but a lot of eerie happenings. All are available on You-know-where... I watched the episode in which a skier falls down a deep ravine and breaks his leg. His old acquaintance is about to help him up, but while struggling with this the injured man teases, humiliates, and debases him in emotional ways. Finally he decides to drop down the rope on the injured man, and leaves without helping him. This is a very interesting situation. Morally. Under the Law, I assume he would have been sentenced for murder. But technically he doesn't really kill the man, he simply leaves him to his own destiny. What would you have done? The temptation to just leave him there would have been great, but I suppose I still, grudgingly, would have helped him out. But had it been my unquestionable obligation to do so? What is the balance of the scales? Would my soul have suffered if I didn't? Yes, I think I would have suffered, I don't think I would have been able to clean it off afterwards, it would have gnawed at my insides. To actively kill someone for having teased, or reviled you, is obviously going too far. A very self-destructive and unbalanced act, that your soul, and life, will suffer for. But refraining from helping out? This is slightly different. It is a grey-zone. Or, is it still glass-clear, is it still murder, ... morally?
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Post by Shrink Proof on Apr 2, 2020 9:12:27 GMT
What would you have done? The temptation to just leave him there would have been great, but I suppose I still, grudgingly, would have helped him out. But had it been my unquestionable obligation to do so? What is the balance of the scales? Would my soul have suffered if I didn't? Yes, I think I would have suffered, I don't think I would have been able to clean it off afterwards, it would have gnawed at my insides. It would depend on who the man was. There are a number of politicians who I think it would be quite acceptable to leave down there, having explained to them that providing a rope and assistance would be entirely wrong. After all, doing so would take away the incentive for the trapped man to heal his broken leg alone and climb out of the ravine by himself. As the said politician has so often stated himself in his speeches, people should stand on their own two feet and not look to the hardworking taxpayer for support...
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Post by Dr Strange on Apr 2, 2020 10:18:41 GMT
Morally, making a distinction between "killing" and "allowing to die" doesn't make much sense to me - instead, what really matters is motivation and intent. In this case, it seems fairly clear that Man A wanted and intended his action (or lack of action) to bring about the death of Man B.
Psychologically, I'd be interested in knowing why Man A decided to go up a mountain alone with Man B if he was only a few insults away from wanting him dead.
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Post by Swampirella on Apr 2, 2020 11:27:35 GMT
Since Sunday I've been working my way through all 3 seasons of One Step Beyond; it was before my time but I'm still a little surprised I hadn't heard of it yet. No monsters or vampires, but a lot of eerie happenings. All are available on You-know-where... I watched the episode in which a skier falls down a deep ravine and breaks his leg. His old acquaintance is about to help him up, but while struggling with this the injured man teases, humiliates, and debases him in emotional ways. Finally he decides to drop down the rope on the injured man, and leaves without helping him. This is a very interesting situation. Morally. Under the Law, I assume he would have been sentenced for murder. But technically he doesn't really kill the man, he simply leaves him to his own destiny. What would you have done? The temptation to just leave him there would have been great, but I suppose I still, grudgingly, would have helped him out. But had it been my unquestionable obligation to do so? What is the balance of the scales? Would my soul have suffered if I didn't? Yes, I think I would have suffered, I don't think I would have been able to clean it off afterwards, it would have gnawed at my insides. To actively kill someone for having teased, or reviled you, is obviously going too far. A very self-destructive and unbalanced act, that your soul, and life, will suffer for. But refraining from helping out? This is slightly different. It is a grey-zone. Or, is it still glass-clear, is it still murder, ... morally? Personally I consider it murder & wouldn't have been able to leave the man. But then again, I love & agree with Shrink Proof's assessment also! That episode was "The Haunting" in case anyone's interested. The murderer was plagued by an aura of coldness on his wedding day which caused "some trouble".
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Post by Shrink Proof on Apr 2, 2020 13:28:26 GMT
Personally I consider it murder & wouldn't have been able to leave the man. But then again, I love & agree with Shrink Proof's assessment also! Thanks. More seriously, in my previous life as a doctor I often encountered folk who were either abusive or violent or otherwise obnoxious to me and/or others, even when they were seriously ill. As well as the professional (and legal) obligation to just get on and treat the patient in front of you, the approach that seemed to work best was to focus on The Most Urgent Problem rather than on the person. If The Most Urgent Problem was their illness, that got dealt with before anything else. If The Most Urgent Problem was that they were throwing furniture around, that was what was sorted first. Whichever, the key was that I was controlling the situation. And their behaviour wasn't.
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Post by Swampirella on Apr 2, 2020 23:48:03 GMT
Just watched this that somebody recommended on social media. I was quite disappointed, to be honest.
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Post by helrunar on Apr 3, 2020 1:15:57 GMT
Was it filmed at Avebury, Miss Scarlett? I loved the serial Children of the Stones, filmed out there circa 1976.
There's a pub in Avebury that has a sign on it that reads "world's only pub inside a stone circle." I keep wondering if they keep having manifestations as the punters bellow for their pints.
cheers, Hel
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