A couple weeks back I watched The Ten Commandments for the millionth, billionth, trillionth, gazillionth time.
A brief synopsis.
Yul Brynner loves Anne Baxter who loves Charlton Heston who loves Yvonne De Carlo.
Meanwhile, Edward G. Robinson loves Debra Paget who loves John Derek.
No wonder it's a film about faith.
and i love yul brynner.
ReplyDeleteyou know, this reads kinda like a poem. :)
Well, standing, I did manage to rhyme millionth and billionth and trillionth.
ReplyDeleteIt reads like the playlist of the conservative Christian right, Kirk. To this very day.
ReplyDeleteYou also rhymed gazillionth.
@Limes--Really? Charlton Heston, for sure. I don't know about the rest.
ReplyDeleteI was afraid the "ga" in gazillionth might disqualify it as a true rhyme.
Oops, miscue. I don't know anything about any of those actors on this subject. I simply meant if one looks at any pack of conservative Christian righties, there's always all the sordid little undercurrents swirling. They covet. A lot. I believe coveting titillates them. And they're always so compellingly sorrowful and ashamed when they're revealed as what they are.
ReplyDeleteI gave you high marks for gazillionth, Kirk. But then, I believe you called me a free thinker, so others might not count it. ;~}
kirk, your comment sparked a rambling rap poem that i may post, when i get it down. rhyme ain't the only time.
ReplyDeleteTen commandments? Here in Las Vegas they still contest the number of deadly sins? Only seven? How many do you want?
ReplyDeleteWV - loder up! I'll take a truck full of deadly sins!
@LimesNow--Maybe I should have used the names of the characters they played, in which case Mr. and Mrs. Pharaoh (Yul and Anne) were definitely pagan conservatives.
ReplyDeleteEdward G. Robinson? He played an Isrealite who ended up siding with the Pharaoh. He may have been the first neoconservative.
@standing--I look forward to reading it, standing.
Poems don't neccesarily have to rhyme these days, huh? I guess I still have a fourth grade understanding of poetry.
@Once Known as Badger--What happens in Las Vegas, stays in Las Vegas.
The Ten Commandments is a silent movie with sound. Yes, I know DeMille made a true silent version in the '20s, but all you have to do is watch the hammy acting in the 1956 version and listen to the dialogue (which I imagine on cards) and it's a silent movie.
ReplyDeleteBrynner and Heston were never accused of underplaying anything. I love it when Yul strikes a pose every time the camera is on him. Those guys were definitely old school when it came to acting. Perfect for DeMille.
I guess subtle acting's kind of hard when you have the Red Sea parting, the ground swallowing people up, etc. I always liked the final scene with Yul where he's about to plunge the sword into Anne Baxter, but she asks first to see Moses blood. Yul resignedly throws his sword on the ground, and plops down on his throne, a disgruntled pharoah if there ever was one. I feel kind of sorry for him.
ReplyDeleteThanks for commenting, El Postino. I find your blog very interesting.