As a moviegoer for
more than 70 years, I’ve seen some great movies, some not so great, some really
bad ones, some trying but failing to be deep and meaningful, some reveling in
their shallowness. I was born the year The Wizard of Oz and Gone with the Wind
were released. My mother started taking me to the movies shortly after that. I
saw some movies that were definitely not PG rated. I can still remember being
afraid of The Thing and delighting in An American in Paris.
Many times I disagree
with the critics. I don’t call them and tell him what I think of their reviews,
so now that there is an internet for anyone to babble on, I add my voice. I’m
sure there are many of you who will disagree with my assessments. Some of you
will agree. I hope to hear from all of
you.
Get out your delicate hankies, manly handkerchiefs or just
plain tissues. It’s time for tearjerkers. I have never been sure why we subject
ourselves to the inexpressively sad movie. The fact that we do says something
about our humanity.
What makes us cry? For me, loss and courage are the
triggers. Sometimes cruelty will cause tears, but most often it causes anger.
Almost all the holocaust films make me cry with anger. I’ve only included two
here.
Sometimes a good cry cleanses our hearts. Sometimes we find
ourselves watching a film that we didn’t suspect was sad. I hate it when that
happens. Sometimes, in order to watch a superior film, we have to pay a small
price.
The list is long and varied and in no particular order. Try to keep a dry eye as you read.
Elephant Man (1980): David Lynch directs this saddest of all
sad movies. John Hurt plays the title role with Sir Anthony Hopkins, Anne
Bancroft, John Gielgud, and Dame Wendy Hiller filling out the cast. I’m sure
there was a puddle full of tears under my seat. It is even worse knowing that
it was based on a true story.
Brian’s Song (1971): James Caan stars as Brian Piccolo, a
Chicago Bears football player with cancer. Billy Dee Williams is his friend,
Gale Sayers. A true and sad story.
Sophie’s Choice (1982): Meryl Streep at her usual best plays
Sophie—who was forced to make a terrible choice during the holocaust. Kevin
Kline plays the love interest.
Imitation of Life (1959): The cast includes Lana Turner, John
Gavin, Sandra Dee, and Mahalia Jackson. Two single mothers raise their
daughters. Jackson’s daughter resents the fact that her mother is black, while
she is much lighter. Sadder than it sounds.
The Champ (1979): Jon Voight, Faye Dunaway and Rickie Schroeder
(Golden Globe winner) head up the cast for this weep fest. Voight, a retired
boxer, must go back in the ring to earn money for a custody battle.
Terms of Endearment (1983): How can you lose with a cast that
includes Shirley MacLaine, Debra Winger, and Jack Nicholson? This film cleaned
up in the Oscars: Best Picture, Best Actress (MacLaine), Director (James L.
Brooks), Best Actor (Nicholson). Two hankies at least.
Life is Beautiful (1997): The second holocaust film stars
Roberto Benigni (Oscar winner), his real-life wife Nicoletta Braschi, and
Giorgio Cantarini. Incarcerated in a concentration camp, Benigni pretends it’s
all a game for his young son. With a tank as the grand prize, the boy is
delighted to play along.
Brief Encounter (1945): This movie is about impossible love
between Trevor Howard as a middle-aged doctor and Celia Johnson as a suburban
housewife. The two meet on a train platform and start a love affair. Ending it
is another matter.
Dead Poets Society (1989): Robin Williams (nominee for Best
Actor) is an unconventional teacher who uses poetry to inspire his students.
Sounds harmless, doesn’t it?
Gone with the Wind (1939): I know, I know, but I did cry.
A Star is Born (1954): This is the Judy Garland and James Mason
version. There were also movies made in 1937 and 1976. As much as I like Kris
Kristofferson, the 1976 version was not very good.
Ordinary People (1980): Robert Redford’s directorial debut
earned him an Oscar for this film about a terribly dysfunctional family. Mary
Tyler Moore plays a repressed wife who mourns the death of her favorite son
while barely tolerating the existence of her living one. Timothy Hutton plays
the living son and Donald Sutherland is the father. This film also won Oscars
for Best Picture, Best Supporting Actor (Hutton) and Best Adapted Screenplay.
The Red Pony (1949): Based on a John Steinbeck story, this
unbearably sad film still haunts me. Robert Mitchum, Myrna Loy and Peter Miles
star. Not for children.
Phar Lap (1983): This film about an Australian race horse has
but one decent human being in it. This horse gave everything and was probably
murdered by gambling interests.
The Yearling (1946): Another teary story about a boy and his
deer. This one takes place following the Civil War when times were tough and
food hard to come by. Gregory Peck and Jane Wyman play the parents.
The Way We Were (1973): My daughter and I had to sit in the
first row and literally had tears in our ears from having to tilt our heads
upward. Even from that angle Redford was beautiful. The movie sort of lost its
way, but everyone I knew cried. Imagine, putting a cause over Redford. Unthinkable!
Bambi (1942): Everyone cried during this cartoon, right? Don’t
deny it.
Hugo the Hippo: Not many of you have seen this cartoon. I hate
to admit that I cried. My young son was rather embarrassed. I don’t blame him,
but…
Little Women (1933, 1949, 1994): I prefer the 1949 version with
June Allyson, Peter Lawford, Margaret O’Brien, Elizabeth Taylor, Janet Leigh
and Mary Astor. This is a great classic film based on a classic book.
Separate Tables (1958): The film centers on a group of lonely
people at a remote English hotel trying to connect. With a cast including Burt
Lancaster, Deborah Kerr, Rita Hayworth, David Niven (Oscar winner), Dame Wendy
Hiller and Rod Taylor, one wonders what the problem was.
The Old Man and the Sea (1958): Oscar nominee Spencer Tracy
stars as the old man who fights the sea and a huge marlin to a Quixote finish.
Dances with Wolves (1990): Oscar winner as Best Director, Kevin
Costner is a Civil War veteran with nothing to live for until he is sent to the
frontier. He makes friends with wolves, Indians and a very special horse.
Needless to say that most are taken from him by cruel acts of men.
