Lang manages to make blue gardenia his own, and he does so not by transcending the banality of the material but by giving this banality a thematic dare i say, philosophical significance. Blue gardenia now im alone with you and i am also blue. It tells a pretty typical story about a murder, a guilty murderess, and a seedy journalist looking for a scoop. They are located in an office building so you have to enter the building to find them. Duncan grays rating of the film the blue gardenia duncan gray the first half hour is among the best work of langs american phase, a smart and welldrawn look at sexual tension and a predatorprey dynamic in ageofinnocence america.
Belindas open, relaxed presence and exacting attention to detail took every ounce of worry and stress off my shoulders and let me focus on the best part. The blue gardenia 2004 cast and crew deeply distraught that her gi exboyfriend plans to marry another woman, norah larkin anne baxter agrees to go out on a date with lothario harry prebble. Vintage sewing patterns for the snootiest fashionistas. I really cant say much about this linear plot without spoiling the ending for you. Classic hollywood film noir with a feminine twist, the blue gardenia stars anne baxter all about eve as norah larkin, a working girl who wakes up a murderess after passing out in the apartment of brutish playboy harry prebble raymond burr. The blue gardenia 1953 a telephone operator ends up drunk and at the mercy of a cad in his apartment. The blue gardenia is a 1953 film noir directed by fritz lang and starring anne baxter, richard conte, and ann sothern. One thing this film has going for itself is atmosphere. Believing her to be guilty, the reporter urges her to confess. A telephone operator kills in selfdefense but cant remember the details of the encounter. Not rated 1h 30min crime, drama, filmnoir 28 march 1953 usa. Norah contacts mayo pretending to be a friend of the murderess with information on the case and the two begin to fall in love.
Director fritz lang and cinematographer nicholas musuraca get busy when creepy artist harry raymond burr forces himself upon inebriated norah anne baxter, whom hes taken on a rebound date, in the blue gardenia, 1953. Oscars best picture winners best picture winners golden globes emmys san diego comiccon new york comic con sundance film festival toronto. Im really interested now in seeing the other two films in the socalled newspaper noir trilogy. An independent production distributed by warner bros. A central text for feminist film critics, the blue gardenia s ambiguous murder story is finally inextricable from its stark depiction of sexual politics in fifties america. Directed by fritz lang, i thought this 50s thriller was a nobrainer especially after seeing scarlet street and woman in the window on tcm.
The song was recorded for the blue gardenia by nat king cole who also performs the song in the film as a lounge singer. Faithfully is an album by american pop singer johnny mathis that was released on december 21, 1959, by columbia records and continues his trend toward covering ballads alongside an orchestra. The blue gardenia is a really good film noirmurder drama with norah larkin anne baxter being unable to remember if she killed harry prebble raymond burr. May 19, 2018 the blue gardenia is such a good movie, one of those worth seeing more than once. Director fritz lang and cinematographer nicholas musuraca get busy when creepy artist harry raymond burr forces himself upon inebriated norah anne baxter, whom hes taken on a rebound date, in the blue gardenia, 1953 view the tcmdb entry for the blue gardenia 1953. While his previous lps usually offered one or two songs that had not been previously recorded, that number on this project leaped to five, and although the other seven selections were established by other.
Blue gardenia by fritz lang anne baxter, richard conte. An enterprising journalist named casey mayo richard conte turns the mysterious blue gardenia murderess into. Norah anne baxter, a young woman working as a telephone operator, gets a breakup letter from her soldier boyfriend and goes out for a. May 12, 2018 a 1978 bombing and the1981 slaying of a mob figure outside the blue gardenia, gave the irondequoit restaurant a mafia hangout reputation.
Film noir starring anne baxter and richard conte addeddate 20140731 18. The notes and intervals are played over and over in the movie. Knowing only that the killer, who beat the man to death with a. As it all comes together, the blue gardenia is a good noir film that benefits from some great performances, sharp writing, and langs typically assured hand. Agatha christies marple the blue geranium tv episode. Like in many film noir thrillers, the pat conclusion seems wholly arbitrary, the. While the city sleeps and beyond a reasonable doubt. Peter bogdanovich, director classic hollywood film noir with a feminine twist, the blue gardenia stars anne baxter all about eve as norah larkin, a working girl who wakes up a murderess after passing out in the apartment of brutish playboy harry prebble raymond burr. Some of the longest scenes in the blue gardenia take place in the apartment shared by the movies three heroines, norah anne baxter, crystal. Although their appearances in the completed picture have not been confirmed.
The best view of the blue gardenia is that it is also a womans picture with anne baxter as the disillusioned heroine and murder suspect. Financed independently, the movie wasnt widely seen at the time of its release, despite being distributed by warner bros. The blue gardenia us 1953 the case for global film. Yes, there is a murder and there is a mystery but the plot and screenplay keep the veiwer rather bored. With anne baxter, richard conte, ann sothern, raymond burr. In the letter he tells her that he met an army nurse stationed in japan and plans to marry her. The blue gardenia anne baxter richard conte ann sothern 1953 a drunken woman anne baxter hits her blind date with a poker, then reads about his death in the paper. The blue gardenia is a 1953 film noir directed by fritz lang and starring anne baxter, richard. The blue gardenia 1953 the blue gardenia 1953 user. Oct 12, 2015 a telephone operator kills in selfdefense but cant remember the details of the encounter. Winners best picture winners golden globes emmys san diego comiccon new york comiccon sundance film festival toronto intl film festival awards central festival central all events.
After surprising casey with the revelation that she is the blue gardenia, norah realizes that caseys offer to help was a trick to get a story. If so then you already know what its like to watch the blue gardenia. The high point of the film is the interplay between the vulnerable baxter and burr at his smarmiest. Woman anne baxter hits blind date with poker, then reads hes dead. I recently completed a doctorate in film studies at trinity college.
Casey mayo, trying to develop a story angle, comes up with the idea of publishing an open letter to the blue gardenia murderess, to turn herself in with protection from the newspaper. He is never in a rush here, setting up all of the characters very precisely before finally dropping in the murderous hook in a rush of panic. The blue gardenia 1953 not rated 1h 30min crime, drama, filmnoir 28 march 1953 usa a telephone operator ends up drunk and at the mercy of a cad in his apartment. Later, after taking the drunken norah to his apartment and putting on a recording of blue gardenia, prebble tries to force himself on her. This movie, marketed as film noir, falls far short of the mark. Ruth lee jones born august 29, 1924 in tuscaloosa, alabama. What the blue gardenia seems to signal finally is the demise of film noir a genre which lang helped establish m 1931 and refine women in the window 1944, scarlet street 1945 and its possibilities of nocturnal passion and existential striving. Many people have told us how unique, special, and fun our wedding was. The next morning she wakes up with a hangover and the terrible fear she may be a murderess. The blue gardenia was anne baxters movie all the way.
At the restaurant, as norah drinks too much, prebble buys her a gardenia corsage from a blind flower vendor and the restaurant entertainer sings blue gardenia. It adds to ones appreciation of the film and to its dark character. The blue gardenia, while the city sleeps, beyond a reasonable doubt. And he stars in the lux radio theatre version of the blue. By 1926 he had completed 21 films, most of which are lost or exist in only.
Overview of the blue gardenia, 1953, directed by fritz lang, with anne baxter, richard conte, ann sothern, at turner classic movies. Meanwhile, newspaperman casey mayo richard conte, looking for an angle, invites the blue gardenia murderess to turn herself in to him. The trope of the haunting melody recurs in film noir of the classic era 19401959. Anne baxter richard conte ann sothern 1953 a drunken woman anne baxter hits her blind date with a poker, then reads about his death in the paper. She hailed from michigan city, indiana and was the granddaughter of worldrenowned architect frank lloyd wright. For many years, the blue gardenia was virtually a lost fritz lang film. A woman finds herself accused of murdering the stranger she went home with in this film noir. The blue lamp was an immensely popular british crime film and the winner of the bfa award, concentrating on interrelated episodes in the lives of several. Pity you couldnt point this out to those who watch the movie but dont know the music. Norah leaves, but is arrested by haynes and his men, who were tipped off by the diner staff. I was overwhelmed at the prospect of planning the perfect wedding.
The blue gardenia was a low budget film adapted from a story by vera caspary, a writer with real pedigree and a long list of hollywood credits including otto premingers laura 1944 and joe mankiewiczs a letter to three wives 1949. The blue gardenia is not exactly toptier fritz lang, but it is a testament to the fact that he can tell any story about any people and it will be good. A serial killer has been killing beautiful women in new york and the new owner of a media company offers a high ranking job to the first of his senior executives who can get the earliest scoops on the case. An impulsive telephone call leads to an accusation of murder. She and the reporter meet each other at the blue gardenia several times and gradually fall in love. The blue gardenia is a 1953 film noir crime film directed by fritz lang and based on a novella by vera caspary, starring anne baxter, richard conte, raymond burr and ann sothern. The blue gardenia is a 1953 film noir directed by fritz lang. Gardenia blue is a kind of safe, nontoxic side effects of natural edible pigment, dark blue powder, soluble in water, china in 1990 in the development of new food additives to use the health standards when it will be included in the production of protein, sugar and starch and other food, especially in the production of wine, the gulla blue is a pomegranate red and other complex pigment in the.
They go to the blue gardenia club, and norah drinks six strong cocktails polynesian pearl divers and gets completely drunk. The only clues are a lace handkerchief and a blue gardenia broken off at the stem which are found at the scene. Blue gardenia is the title of a torch song composed by lester lee and bob russell for the 1953 movie the blue gardenia in which a recording of the song serves as a crucial plot point. Discover what genre the blue gardenia, 1953, directed by fritz lang, with anne baxter, richard conte, ann sothern, belongs at turner classic movies. Norah anne baxter, a young woman working as a telephone operator, gets a breakup letter from her soldier boyfriend and goes out for a night on the town. Blue gardenia events is the best for any couple who needs someone that will understand their vision and work tirelessly to make that vision a reality. The blue gardenia 2004 stream and watch online moviefone. The blue gardenia is a good noir film that benefits from some great performances, sharp writing, and langs typically assured hand. She cant recall if she did but all the clues point to her direction as if she did. With dana andrews, rhonda fleming, george sanders, howard duff.
The blue gardenia marked sotherns return to films after a twoyear absence. Miss marple turns up at little ambrose to visit her friend and local reverend dermot. Making it all seem relevant is the featured song, more than just a theme, an integral part of the movie, sung by the enchanting man with the melodious voice, nat king cole, who makes a much too brief appearance as the piano man in the club called the blue gardenia. The blue geranium is a very good short story, what a brilliant screenplay to get a full length adaptation out of it, particularly one which is first rate. Released december 12th, 2004, the blue gardenia stars anne baxter, richard conte, ann sothern, raymond burr the movie has a runtime of about 1 hr 30 min, and received a score of out of 100 on. A telephone operator ends up drunk and at the mercy of a cad in his apartment.
The blue gardenia aficatalog american film institute. However, the still officially unsolved case and the film s plot bear little similarity to. With anne baxter, richard conte, ann sothern and special guset star. When i first got into film noir i devoured as many of these dark films as i could based on what was available on dvd and on television. The blue gardenia, where the patterns are always counted.
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