one christmas is a 1994 american made-for-television drama film starring katharine hepburn ( in her final film role ) , henry winkler and swoosie kurtz .

it is based on the 1983 short story " one christmas " by truman capote about a young boy who reluctantly leaves his alabama home to spend christmas with his estranged father in new orleans .

the film originally premiered on nbc on december 19 , 1994 .

one christmas ( film )

katharine hepburn ' s last film is a weak adaptation of truman capote ' s one christmas .
corrupt corporate executive : henry potter , one of the most notable examples in film .
there are no featured audience reviews yet . click the link below to see what others say about one christmas !
there’s a christmas carol ( 71 / 72 ) which jumped from television to film and actually won an oscar .
clooney and crosby , one of the film ' s two romantic pairings , had a 25 - year gap between them .
for number 6 , it ' s back to the true classics , and this oft - forgotten one is the finest of all the older traditional christmas films . the bishop ' s wife is everything great , fun , and magical that a holiday movie should be . and the christmas decorating scene remains one of the single best moments of any christmas film .
it’s not a silly thread to make . silly thread to make was the meryl streep one . like we haven’t had one hundred of those already ? lol
more comedy in the number 4 position , and a second entry by steven spielberg to boot . 1941 is not just one of the best christmas films , but one of the best comedies ever made . this is for laughs for the grownups , and not quite a
family film .
like the 1983 original , christmas vacation is based on a short story , “christmas ’59 , ” written by john hughes for national lampoon in december 1980 . its literary predecessor is paid tribute to when clark is trapped in the attic and pulls out a box of old home movies , including one labeled “christmas ’59 . ” ( eagle - eyed viewers might notice that when clark is watching the film , it actually says “christmas 1955 . ” )
in pottersville , george convinces himself that a stiff one will clear him right up .
take it to the bridge : george almost takes a high dive leap from one .
in this family film short , a nearly all marionette cast perform a dramatization of
the night before christmas
and a performance of the nativity .
in addition to footage from the frank capra classic actually appearing in the film , christmas vacation has another fun tie to it’s a wonderful life : frank capra’s grandson , frank capra iii , is christmas vacation ’s assistant director .
crosby was 51 at the film ' s release , and clooney , 26 .
old maid : mary becomes one in the georgeless universe because of how she never married .
the penultimate pic pick at number 2 is one of those films set during the christmas season , with repeated references to the holiday backdrop as a counterweight contrasting the thematic and tonal qualities of the rest of the story . brazil is a work of genius on every level , magnificent as a sort of
un - christmas
christmas film about the power of imagination as it battles the power of oppression and hopelessness .
: well , uh , i ' m an angel . a christmas angel .
8 . in a way , stanley kubrick is to thank for christmas vacation .
of course , i must mention black christmas . canadians honoured it anyways… . .
what the hell , hero ? : george gets a comic one from mary when he refuses to give her back her robe , but a graver one later when he takes out his frustrations on the children . then mr . welch delivers one to him in the shape of a fist .
before being “triple dog dared” into licking a frozen flagpole as one of ralphie’s friends , schwartz had made his film debut in the richard pryor and jackie gleason comedy ‘the toy . ’
the film ' s co - lead rosemary clooney is george clooney ' s aunt .
though the holiday season is usually packed with christmas - themed movies , christmas vacation was one of only two that were released in 1989 . the other was john hancock’s prancer . johnny galecki , a . k . a . rusty griswold , starred in both .
you are forgetting about the bishop’s wife , which also lost to gentleman’s agreement with miracle on 34th street . it definitely feels like a christmas movie to me . the problem is , most christmas movies are comedies . i love a christmas story and muppet christmas carol , but i can’t imagine either movie winning a bunch of awards .
from disney comes the rather unusual holiday film , one magic christmas . the story follows an angel who ' s assigned to help a working mother find the christmas spirit , and to do so he enlists the help of her daughter . mary steenburgen and harry dean stanton lead a somewhat eclectic cast . and the plot too has its share of quirks , with the angel teaming up with santa claus , and the use of a christmas wish to bring back the dead . the tone shifts so wildly that it ' s hard to tell what kind of film you ' re in half the time ; fantasy , comedy , tragedy . still , one magic christmas manages to come through with some heartwarming moments .
in addition , chief eventually becomes fully communicative in the novel while muttering only one phrase —
juicy fruit
— in the film . this explains how mcmurphy is able to bring chief along on the fishing excursion in the novel , a detail not explained in the film .
1944 : have yourself a merry little christmas - - meet me in st . louis
maybe they are not good enough ? ? but some christmas movies are really good .
peter and david met nick park at the national film and television school when he was working on his student film a grand day out . he joined aardman full time in 1985 .
tony award - winner idina menzel’s career traverses music , stage , film , and television .
to mass critical acclaim and outstanding box office results , wallace and gromit ' s first feature film the curse of the were - rabbit was released by dreamworks in october 2005 . the film topped the box office charts in both the us and uk and garnered many prestigious international awards including the academy award for best animated feature film and a bafta for best british film .
the first episode of the bbc one christmas promos starring rob brydon , sarah alexander , mrs brown , the cast of call the midwife , strictly , outnumbered , lee mack…and pudsey the dog .
copyright © 2016 a christmas story house | all rights reserved . a christmas story and all related characters and elements are trademarks of and © turner entertainment co . ( s16 )
reality is unrealistic : see the aluminum christmas trees entry . the scene was called
movie fakery at its worst
despite there being a real one , since the real one was in beverly hills , calif . swimming pools under the floorboards were rare then . a small town in new york state which is being kept respectable by creative refinancing is not likely to have one back in the late 1920s .
anne heche stars as a recently - divorced mom who wants her two kids’ first christmas “without dad” to be perfect . an entertaining but unfortunate series of christmas eve mishaps ensures that won’t happen – unless “perfect” means the family has its most memorable and heartwarming christmas ever .
the costumer designer responsible for white christmas ' many excellent outfits is the famous edith head .
i stand by “elf” as the christmas movie that should have been nominated for multiple oscars .
with the countdown to christmas well under way and the cold weather making its presence felt , presenters of s4c’s stwnsh have got into the festive spirit to record a special christmas song .
home alone © 1990 twentieth century fox film corporation . all rights reserved . © 2015 fox .
wallace and gromit’s a matter of loaf and death was broadcast on bbc one on christmas day 2008 and enthralled a record audience of 16 . 15 million . it was nominated for an oscar in the best short animated film category and went on to win the bafta for best animated short film . every wallace and gromit adventure has now won a bafta and they have all been nominated for an oscar .
christmas vacation marked the final film of mae questel , who began her career as the voice of betty boop in 1931 . she passed away at the age of 89 in january of 1998 .
at 18 years old , vera - ellen became one of the youngest ever rockettes at radio city music hall .
minor major character : marty hatch makes very few appearances in the last two thirds of the film , despite the fact that he is both mary ' s older brother and one of george ' s best friends .
national lampoon’s christmas vacation collectibles is a website dedicated to all things christmas vacation ( obviously ) . among the many fun items are cousin eddie wardrobe staples , moose mugs , and punch bowls .
, acquired republic in the late ' 90s ) currently holds exclusive home video rights for the film .
then : leslie carlson popped up in ‘a christmas story’ as the guy who sold christmas trees . since trying to sell the parkers a bum tree , he’s been a big movie and tv actor .
so let’s have a discussion – why do you think christmas movies are off oscar’s radar ? also , list some christmas / holiday movies and performances that you believe were worthy of the voters’ attention .
while retaining many of the novel ' s themes and motifs , the filmed version of one flew over the cuckoo ' s nest differs in several significant ways . the film , released in 1975 , won academy awards for best picture , best actor ( jack nicholson ) , best actress ( louise fletcher ) , best screenplay adapted from other material ( lawrence hauben and bo goldman ) , and best director ( milos forman ) . since its release , the film has been certified as one of the top 100 american films by the american film institute .
one magic christmas
is the complete opposite of what it ' s ridiculous title calls it out to be . as a little girl and her family are unsure of whether or not to believe in santa , a man comes , full of magic to bring christmas spirit . events happen throughout the film that are random , tragic , and very cold hearted , but honestly , once that point came in the film , i truly did not care what happened to the characters . this film starts off simple and sweet , but completely falls apart in a random mess of bad acting and stupid plot points . never have i been turned off from a christmas movie this much . the only thing it has going for it is christmas spirit , otherwise , it is one of the worst holiday films i ' ve ever seen . many shots are used over and over again , and the kids seem to have the same emotions and dialogue in ever scene , always asking a question . this film becomes very annoying , and particularly dark . i do not like this movie at all . it is a family film that no family should waste their time watching !
in the coming weeks , i ' ll also be posting additional lists for more action - oriented christmas movies , off - beat comedies for the holidays , pure family films for all ages , and even a list of alternative
un - christmas
christmas movies for the more cynical among you .
christmas vacation is the only movie in the series that doesn’t feature lindsey buckingham’s song , “holiday road . ” instead , a new song—the aptly titled “christmas vacation”—was written for the film by married songwriting duo barry mann and cynthia weil . a cover of the song appears on the 2007 disney channel holiday album .
a shop owner who is being evicted at christmas rescues her scrooge - like landlord from an accident .
ironman 3 was set during christmas . oscar gave that a nod for vx at least . typically .
a magical film like this only happens once in a lifetime . now everyone will believe in santa claus .
at the time of the film ' s release , clooney was 26 and vera - ellen , 33 .
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as far as beloved family christmas movies go , angels with filthy souls is an unlikely one : a gritty , noirish gangster flick in which a crow - voiced curmudgeon abruptly unleashes a blaze of gunfire on his unsuspecting victim .
uncle billy is one and then some . in the georgeless universe , he ' s put in a sanitarium for it .
fanny and alexander was sort of a christmas film , or at least the first hour and a half was ( if you’re watching the full 5 - hour version ) . it won 4 oscars including best foreign film and was also nominated for ingmar bergman’s direction and script , but shamefully received no acting noms for what is arguably the finest ensemble cast ever on film ( esp . ewa fröling , jan malmsjö and gunn wållgren ) .
an interview with writer / director boots riley about his incendiary new film ,
sorry to bother you .
though williams’s career had its commercial ups and downs , his signing on to the film made it immediately viable .
young , welsh and . . .
- boys and girls challenged to become film - makers for s4c
santa ' s stockman has to find a replacement for an injured reindeer . when he locates one , complications and love ensue .
capitalism is bad : the portrayal of mr . potter as an evil banker , both in the year of its release , and later years has lent this film much credibility as an anti - capitalist film , and even a left - wing one . it gets lost that george bailey and his family business are also bankers and capitalists , and the film glorifies george as the main pillar that helps other people achieve their dreams . as noted by capra ' s friends , the film shows that capitalism can work and be humane , and even quasi - messianic through the figure of george bailey .
and finally , the number 1 christmas film of all time . could it be anything else ? of course not , because die hard is everything every christmas movie should always be forever . it ' s a mix of the baddie from the grinch who stole christmas ; the unbeatable hero who shows up to teach everyone a lesson from miracle on 34th street ; the ghosts of past , present , and future who bring insight and change from a christmas carol ; plus every redemptive struggle about family and personal evolution and good versus evil , all wrapped up in a big shiny box with a bow made of explosions and bullets . there ' s christmas , and then there ' s christmas with punching terrorists in the face and winning back your entire family - - which do you prefer ?
macat agrees . “the vignette turned out to be the fun set piece in the film . the actors’ energy was contagious to the crew , who bonded with laughter . after that , we were ready to go shoot our film . ”
ms . bergen said she was not necessarily in a hurry to make an independent film — “i don’t make many films , period , ” she said with a laugh — but the opportunity to work with williams was one she had never been offered .
as the film begins on christmas eve 1946 , angels are listening to myriad prayers from various residents of the small town of bedford falls , new york , requesting help for a certain george bailey . one of the angels , called clarence oddbody , is told he must answer the prayers , but only after he ' s been told who george is . cue flashback .
mr . mchale spent several years involved with the film , which , under the title “a friggin’ christmas miracle , ” had once been planned by universal pictures as a bigger - budget movie to be directed by joe and anthony russo .
a heartbreaking holiday ballad so ubiquitous that many have forgotten it originated with judy garland in this great vincente minnelli movie musical . another christmas classic oscar oversight : silver bells , which debuted in the 1950 film , the lemon drop kid .
the remake : the 1977 made - for - tv movie it happened one christmas , featuring a gender flipped version of the story with mary ( played by marlo thomas ) as the central character . . . and orson welles as mr . potter !
it was macat who persuaded columbus to shoot the sequence using the techniques and black - and - white negative film stock of movies from the 40s . the high - key lighting , high - contrast aesthetic would evoke “a cross between film noir and the really crazy stuff you see in early television , like playhouse 90 or one step beyond , ” said production designer john muto .
how did the academy miss the boat on this one ? oscar winner liza minnelli belting her dramatic best in this showstopping kander & ebb theme to a martin scorsese film . with this pedigree , it really is surprising that oscar stopped
spreading the news .
clark duke , left , with robin williams in “a merry friggin’ christmas , ” which is being released next week .
also trading places . love that movie . think i’ll watch it sometime today . it is , afterall , christmas .
but what was once a humorous and deliberately unsentimental project now comes with a manifest sense of heartbreak and loss . the film features one of the last screen roles by williams , the academy award - winning actor and comedian , who committed suicide in august at 63 .
the tomatometer score — based on the opinions of hundreds of film and television critics — is a trusted measurement of critical recommendation for millions of fans . it represents the percentage of professional critic reviews that are positive for a given film or television show .
source of the it ' s a wonderful plot trope , and an annual staple of christmastime viewing , this much - loved 1946 frank capra film tells of one man ' s life of self - sacrifice and quiet despair , from which he is rescued by a miracle .
then : ralphie goes into fantasy land , dreaming about his red ryder bb gun . dwayne mclean was one of the bandits that he was shooting at . while it was a bit part in ‘a christmas story , ’ by no means is mclean a small actor .
and that ' s how it ' s done . ho ho ho , yippie ki - yay , and merry christmas !
that acknowledged , he is wrong . two best picture winners are set at christmas – going my way and the apartment .
as part of the studio ' s feature film deal with sony pictures animation ( spe ) , arthur christmas – an action - adventure comedy set on christmas eve was released in november 2011 and the pirates ! - in an adventure with scientists — a delicious confection of piracy on the high seas , was released in march 2012 and received an academy award nomination the following year .
select a category actor in a leading role actor in a supporting role actress in a leading role actress in a supporting role art direction cinematography costume design directing documentary ( feature ) documentary ( short subject ) film editing foreign language film irving g . thalberg memorial award makeup music ( original score ) music ( original song ) best picture short film ( animated ) short film ( live action ) sound sound editing visual effects writing ( screenplay based on material previously produced or published ) writing ( screenplay written directly for the screen )
when he finished shooting “a merry friggin’ christmas” in spring 2013 , joel mchale was proud to have played a lead role in this holiday satire about a man who comes to terms with his estranged father , and to have acted alongside robin williams , one of his heroes .
other than that , i don’t care much about christmas movies , and i don’t think very many are oscar deserving . i don’t think studios want to spend a lot of money or effort campaigning for christmas movies when they have other more viable contenders .
alfalfa , of course , is the most memorable character from the short film series our gang , also known as the little rascals .
kind of a dark one ( though ymmv in regards to how dark ) . george at one point asks mary what she ' d be if they weren ' t together . she jokingly replies
an old maid
and it ' s quickly forgotten . come the alternate timeline , though . . .
feeling alone during the holidays , a college student places an ad to find a family to spend time with her on christmas .
in 1993 aardman passed another milestone with the completion of nick park ' s oscar winning the wrong trousers , aardman ' s first 30 minute film . acclaimed world - wide and winner of over thirty awards , the wrong trousers has become one of the most successful animated films ever made .
eight - year - old buddy has been living an idyllic existence in rural alabama with his young - hearted cousin , sook . but all that is about to change when he’s sent to new orleans to spend christmas with the father he barely knows . through realizing his dad has some terrible problems to overcome , buddy and his father take the first steps towards becoming a real family during this one christmas they’ll never forget .
ah , movie lists ! how we love ' em , right ? well , i ' ve got several for you this holiday season ( but it ' s strictly feature films , so some great ones like a charlie brown christmas won ' t be on this list ) . this one is the biggie , a list of the greatest christmas films ever made , including action pics , comedy flicks , and family fare .
set in san ernesto , california with only three days before christmas , nick snowden needs to rescue a young reindeer from a zoo .
you are not alone : the final scenes of the movie is this in spades when every one of george ' s companions comes to his aid for once .
in 1960 , the apartment is for the time a cutting edge dark comedy about sexual politics . over the christmas holidays , employees of an insurance firm in a new york high rise understand they are merely pawns of thoughtless men at the top . in their despair , these two abused coworkers discover one another and find a new beginning to match the new year . the film won five oscars and received additional nominations for three of its actors .
representing one of robin williams ' last films , a merry friggin ' christmas lives up to its bah , humbug title . not only because it ' s terrible , although it is , but rather because one desperately hoped that the beloved actor would go out on a high note . unfortunately , that ' s not the case with this dysfunctional family holiday comedy that squanders the talents of its impressive cast who presumably signed on merely to work with the comedy legend .
a series of mishaps threaten a recently divorced mom ' s attempts to make her two kids ' first christmas
without dad
perfect .
an article on wednesday about the movie “a merry friggin’ christmas , ” which features one of the last screen roles of robin williams , misidentified the studio that will release another of his films , the third entry in the “night at the museum” franchise . it is 20th century fox , not warner bros .
one of my favorite christmas movies is the family stone . say what you will about it , but it is incredible in my opinion . the ensemble really was a family and diane keaton deserved a nomination or even a win because she was so damn good . also michael giacchino’s score was nice too !
there was one more specific element of angels with filthy souls that resonated back in 1990—and has , along with the rest of it , stood the test of time .
award - winning actress mary steenburgen ( tv ' s joan of arcadia , hope springs ) gives a solid performance as ginny grainger , a young mother who rediscovers the joy and beauty of christmas , thanks to the unshakable faith of her six - year - old daughter abbie ( elizabeth harnois ) and gideon ( harry dean stanton ) , ginny ' s very own guardian angel . ginny ' s wondrous experience will touch your heart and warm your soul in the timeless tradition of past disney favorites . one magic christmas fulfills all your most treasured christmas fantasies . share it with those you love .
on december 1 , 1989 , a new chapter of griswold family dysfunction was unleashed upon the world when national lampoon ' s christmas vacation made its debut in movie theaters and an instant holiday classic was born . here are 27 things you might not know about everyone’s favorite christmas comedy .
she has performed on several notable television specials , including the 86 th academy awards , dick clark’s new year’s rockin’ eve , cma country christmas , christmas in rockefeller center , and sang the national anthem at super bowl xlix , the most watched television show in u . s history .
williams’s co - stars and collaborators remember him as a gentle soul brimming with talent , while wondering whether the film can do justice to his career .
flushed away , the studio ' s first cg film was released worldwide by dreamworks in november 2006 , it was nominated for a bafta in 2007 .
christmas miracle : however , 90 % of the movie is a story about george ' s life and takes place at some point other than christmas . it ' s also just a coincidence that the event that would push george over the edge , uncle billy losing the $ 8000 , happens on christmas eve . it could ' ve happened any other day of the year and we ' d have had the exact same story .
one of my personal favorites is “elf” . imo , will ferrell is oscar nomination worthy… . and on a different planet at least , could have been a worthy nominee .
from left , robin williams , clark duke , pierce gagnon , candice bergen , joel mchale and lauren graham in “a merry friggin’ christmas . ”
celebrity paradox : the bells of st marys is prominently featured on a theater marquee . that film starred henry travers , who plays clarence in this movie .
in medias res : the film starts on the night everyone is praying for george , then jumps back to in time via a flashback started by joseph .
the ballad of narayama
is a japanese film of great beauty and elegant artifice , telling a story of startling cruelty . what a space it opens…
a $ 27 million budget , to be exact . which was particularly high considering that the film had no special effects a la ghostbusters ( which was made for $ 30 million ) . but it had no trouble making its budget back ; the film’s final domestic gross was $ 71 , 319 , 526 .
un - person : clarence turns george into one , allowing him to see what the world would be like if he was just erased from existence and nothing filled his void .
with the help of his two precocious kids , a widower reconnects with his high school sweetheart , who just happens to be one of the biggest pop stars on the planet .
: good person ? well , i was a cow hand . . . out , out west . and one christmas , a long , long time ago , i was riding along the snake river , and i heard this little . . . kid , uh , yelling to somebody , and , uh , . . .
a young man is sent to visit his estranged father for christmas in 1930 in new orleans . based on an autobiograhical short story by truman capote .
overwhelmed with joy by the chance to redeem himself and grateful that he has been returned to christmas day , scrooge rushes out onto the street hoping to share his newfound christmas spirit . he sends a giant christmas turkey to the cratchit house and attends fred ' s party , to the stifled surprise of the other guests . as the years go by , he holds true to his promise and honors christmas with all his heart : he treats tiny tim as if he were his own child , provides lavish gifts for the poor , and treats his fellow human beings with kindness , generosity , and warmth .
“i so admired the trench coat that snakes wore that the costume designer gave me one , ” muto said . “i’ve still got it . it still looks and fits great . ”
an angel must show a mother the true meaning of christmas . it ' s not just presents and materialistic things , but the people she cares about .
some trivia about the 1954 christmas classic ( now streaming on netflix ! ) starring bing crosby , danny kaye , rosemary clooney , and vera - ellen .
“i’ve tried to avoid doing this ever since the picture came out . when you just say the ideas they sound foolish , whereas if they’re dramatized one feels it , but i’ll try .
one of the more prominent dancers to accompany the haynes sisters in the movie is george chakiris , who went on to win an academy award for best supporting actor in west side story .
it was the # 1 pop single for the year 1967 , and one of the very best movie songs of all time yet mysteriously forgotten by oscar . lulu , we love you !
though the movie is a popular holiday film in the uk too , it was never actually shown in theaters there . instead , it went straight to home video .
dad does things like pilfer newspapers without paying for them , takes bets on a race between planes and he loves to flirt with wealthy women so he can convince them to invest in his various schemes . father and son argue a lot , mainly because dad refuses to discuss what went wrong with buddy’s mother and him . she now lives in new york and left dad to become an actress . one woman , emily ( swoosie kurtz ) , truly loves buddy’s dad . but does he love her or her money ? can a christmas miracle happen by movie’s end , with dad changing his ways and buddy returning to alabama and sook ? you will have to watch to find out , but rest assured this is a warm and interesting story and is a perfect film for the holidays . we are pleased to award “one christmas” our dove seal for ages 12 + .
for further ambience , artificial mist was pumped into the set . the lighting was intense : the old - style film stock required four times the amount of light to expose than normal film . the resulting heat from the lamps was considerable . even in the chicago winter , macat said , the actors “were sweating up a storm . ”
a depressing christmas tale about a family ' s loss during the season , and an angel who can help them get through it . not fun or magical !
“it was announced that this was a robin williams christmas movie , ” she said . “anything he was attached to , i wanted to be involved in . ”
i find it interesting that so many films are set during christmas , but as a backdrop ( lethal weapon , et al ) and not as a theme .
this trope . seriously , almost every scene and every fifth line of his dialogue features a gross miscalculation of one of the baileys , or human nature in general . to elaborate . . .
all there in the manual : the man whose tree george crashes his car into is never named in the film . the short story gives his name as hank biddle .
deemed ineligible for the oscar due to the samples it used - - shame because this wasn ' t just a number one smash , but a big symphony of sound - - and a wonderful complement to the hit film , which was incidentally scored by wendy & lisa , who worked on the music for purple rain that collected the oscar for best score in 1984 .
distracted by the sexy : at one point , a nameless background male character turns his head to watch violet walk by while crossing the street and nearly gets hit by a car as a result .
a cynical workaholic gets suspicious of her banker father ' s sudden departure from his career and city life to move to a small town with unusually strong ties to christmas .
robb made his acting debut in ‘a christmas story , ’ playing ralphie’s other friend , schwartz . ( he was involved in the “tongue stuck to the flagpole” gambit . )
vera - ellen ( as judy haynes ) did not actually sing any of the songs in white christmas ; her parts were sung by costar rosemary clooney or trudy stevens .
then there’s the satirical gremlins . but a fantasy / horror isnt exactly oscar’s cup of tea ; not on a regular basis anyways and certainly not for a christmas movie .
now there have been some trashy christmas films , but there have also been some brilliant ones . perhaps christmas films don’t always have the baitiness of some oscar - calibre material , but there have been so many instances where oscar - bait is put aside for excellent performances in non - traditional oscar films ( joan cusack , melissa mccarthy etc . ) .
this has been one of my favorite christmas movies since i was seven . ( has it really been almost twenty years ? ) warm without being sappy , it takes a different spin on the
person must be taught the true meaning christmas
theme that has become something of a cliché . the magic feels organic instead of flashy , and events progress with out feeling contrived or strained . like the best stories , ( it ' s a wonderful life , a christmas carol ) things get a little grim before the warm and happy ending , but it ' s never too dark or scary for kids . i would recommend this movie to anyone who is looking for an interesting story that will leave them warm and satisfied at the end .
phil borsos ' take on christmas is a somewhat odd movie , but it does have a slow charm , not unlike it ' s a wonderful life by way of wim wenders .
in both the original vacation and european vacation , rusty is believed to be the older of the two griswold children . in christmas vacation , rusty somehow morphs into audrey’s younger brother .
though many tie the song
white christmas
to the movie , the song was first performed by bing crosby 13 years earlier , on the radio show the kraft music hall .
the release also presents a delicate challenge to the creators of the film , who neither want to exploit williams’s legacy nor misrepresent the tone and scale of this low - cost , independent feature .
the
magic
in one magic christmas is often ( and surprisingly ) of the
black
variety . like jimmy stewart before her , worn - out wife and mother mary steenburgen wishes that she ' d never been born . and like stewart , steenburgen is visited by a guardian angel , in this case the western - garbed harry dean stanton . instead of granting steenburgen ' s wish , stanton shows her what life would be like without christmas - - and that vision is as grim as anything you ' re ever likely to see in any holiday film . throughout the horrendous tragedies heaped upon steenburgen , we are comforted in the knowledge that stanton is working in concert with steenburgen ' s young daughter . steenburgen learns her lesson of course , but what a ride !
reeking of authenticity , angels with filthy souls is not just a uniquely persuasive parody . it’s the perfect movie - within - a - movie : a one - minute - and - 20 - second noir - in - a - nutshell that feels like a fleeting glimpse of a long - lost classic . its dialogue is crisp , the characters and performances credible , the rapid escalation of its drama enthralling . plus it culminates in not just the most memorable utterance in home alone but one of the great movie lines of all time : “keep the change , ya filthy animal”—the sardonic invitation since emblazoned on many a christmas sweater .
a few other movies featuring williams remain , including a third entry in the “night at the museum” franchise , in which he reprises his role as teddy roosevelt and which 20th century fox plans to release on dec . 19 . ( an independent thriller ,
boulevard , ” is seeking american theatrical distribution . ) mr . rice said the “christmas” movie would not be promoted as one of williams’s last films .
mr . gower cabled you need cash , stop . my office instructed to advance you up to twenty - five thousand dollars , stop . hee haw and merry christmas ! sam wainwright .
this is where the film began . clarence ( henry travers ) appears , prevents george from committing suicide , and then grants his unintentional wish , creating an alternate universe in which george never existed .
which may just sound like a random fact . but at the end of the film , when the police raid the griswold home , the version of “here comes santa claus” being used is autry’s .
the trio got together to film a series of old navy commercials for the holiday season . though johnny galecki wasn’t there , two previous rustys—anthony michael hall and jason lively—were . as was dana barron .
williams’s presence also helped bring aboard the film’s co - stars lauren graham , wendi mclendon - covey and tim heidecker , as well as candice bergen , who plays the levelheaded wife of williams’s character .
“no children , a very simple shot plan , the exaggerated style of acting , the crazy action . . . . given the rest of the film , it was kind of a party ! ”
a department - store window decorator learns there is a vacancy for her dream job in the run - up to christmas , only to find a professional rival has his eye on it too .
for the lowly protagonist , david mann , spielberg hand - picked character actor dennis weaver because he loved his performance as the jittery and feeble hotel night manager in orson welles’s 1958 film touch of evil .
mrs hatch appears to be one for mary and sam wainwright , saying to her that sam doesn ' t want to speak to george , and listening in on the extension phone until mary points this out to george and sam .
snow means love : it stops snowing after george wishes he ' d never been born , and only starts up again after he decides he wants to live again . also , one of the earliest depiction of a butterfly effect .
as io9 points out , this kubrick video may be a little “too good to be true , ” especially since there’s no definitive visual evidence that he’s actually talking . still , the explanation does hold weight when taken with clarke’s writing , but after 50 years and countless essays and theories on the subject , it ' s doubtful that this will put an end to the discussions on one of the most complex endings in all of film .
in 1995 aardman produced nick park ' s third oscar winning film a close shave . an immediate success , it confirmed the studio’s reputation as well as establishing wallace and gromit as household names . in 1996 the studio produced peter lord ' s oscar nominated 11 minute short film , wat ' s pig ( for channel four ) as well as a children ' s series based on morph , the morph files .
“it usually becomes , ‘we have to make it for everybody , ' ” mr . mchale said . “‘it has to be for 2 - year - olds and 90 - year - olds . no one can be offended . ’ ”
angels with filthy souls was shot in one day , on the final “test day” before principal photography officially began on home alone . “we had nothing to lose , ” said director of photography julio macat . “we went for it . ”
but don’t be disappointed if you didn’t know that . or haven’t seen it . the 2003 film , national lampoon’s christmas vacation 2 : cousin eddie’s island adventure , was made for television . it finds randy quaid and miriam flynn ( as eddie and catherine ) stranded on an island in the south pacific for the holidays . yes , really . it currently holds a 12 percent approval rating on rotten tomatoes .
though the film did receive an oscar nomination for best score , this touching ballad , sung memorably onscreen by oscar nominated actor gene wilder , should have been a shoo - in for the best song category .
now every year , without a doubt , there will be several christmas movies released . they are usually released in late november up until late december , which we know is prime oscar season . of course , these films can’t be released in july , because that’s just silly . but there have been some holiday classics released around this time , but yet , despite hundred of christmas movies over the last century , only two have ever been nominated for best picture – its a wonderful life and miracle on 34th street . both are excellent christmas films…but they were nominated in 1947 and 1948 respectively . that’s over six decades ago . since then , three other christmas - themed films ( that i know of ) have been nominated for oscars – home alone ( for score ) , the nightmare before christmas ( visual effects ) and die hard ( editing , sound mixing , sound editing and visual effects ) – but none have ever broken into the acting categories since the previously mentioned best picture nominees .
one scene not in the film is mcmurphy ' s final con against the acutes . in the novel , mcmurphy manipulates chief bromden to lift the control panel after mcmurphy takes bets from the acutes that it can ' t be done . mcmurphy , of course , had already hedged his bet by having chief display his ability to lift the panel previously . when chief performs the trick for the acutes , he feels used and betrayed by mcmurphy . the film balances a scene of mcmurphy unsuccessfully trying to lift a basin with the scene of chief lifting it successfully and flinging it through the window while avoiding the scene of chief lifting it to win a bet for mcmurphy .
when a park ranger tells two bear cubs about christmas and santa claus , they want to skip hibernation to celebrate , but their mother doesn ' t believe in saint nick and wants them to sleep .
a young widow ' s daughter was given a tattered old christmas stocking at a holiday craft sale , but her mother is skeptical of its magic when it seems to create small trinkets on its own .
though it has become a bona fide holiday classic , not everyone was a fan of christmas vacation . in his two - star review of the film , roger ebert described the movie as “curious in how close it comes to delivering on its material : sequence after sequence seems to contain all the necessary material , to be well on the way toward a payoff , and then it somehow doesn ' t work . ”
no communities were harmed : bedford falls is apparently modeled after seneca falls , new york , which has a museum dedicated to the film and holds an
it ' s a wonderful life festival
each december .
on july 29 , 2015 , the latest film in the vacation franchise—simply titled vacation —made its debut . and it couldn ' t have happened soon enough for chase and d ' angelo . in 2011 , chase told ain’t it cool news that “i just got off the phone with beverly d’angelo . we are trying to work up a new vacation and apparently warner’s is working on one with grandchildren , but the one that bev and i want … you know , we are just trying to think of ideas , because she is very funny and very brilliant , so when you get her in a writing mood and me in writing mood , it’s good , but it’s very hard to get the time . ”
on the night of the shoot , with guido and foody steadily camping up their performances for the camera , the on - set atmosphere was jocular . “think about what a unique sequence it was within the film , ” said muto . “no children , a very simple shot plan , the exaggerated style of acting , the crazy action . . . . given the rest of the film , it was kind of a party ! ”
a mean - spirited , miserly old man named ebenezer scrooge sits in his counting - house on a frigid christmas eve . his clerk , bob cratchit , shivers in the anteroom because scrooge refuses to spend money on heating coals for a fire . scrooge ' s nephew , fred , pays his uncle a visit and invites him to his annual christmas party . two portly gentlemen also drop by and ask scrooge for a contribution to their charity . scrooge reacts to the holiday visitors with bitterness and venom , spitting out an angry
bah ! humbug !
in response to his nephew ' s
merry christmas !
suicide dare :
you ' re worth more dead than alive !
so sayeth potter , in one of the most reprehensible , heartless , remorselessly cruel comments ever to make it to the big screen and it drives george to the brink .
ironic that oscar would ignore a song that has become an anthem for the entertainment industry much like hooray for hollywood ( which was also snubbed by the academy in 1937 when it premiered in the film hollywood hotel ) .
a christmas story cast reunion around the leg lamp at a christmas story convention . from left to right ian petrella ( randy ) , zack ward ( scut farkus ) , tedde moore ( miss shields ) , yano anaya ( grover dill ) , dwayne mcclean ( black bart ) , scott schwartz ( flick ) , patty lafontaine ( elf ) , drew hocevar ( elf ) and jim moralevitz ( freight man ) .
dana barron , who played audrey in the original vacation , reprised her role for the christmas vacation sequel . eric idle , who appeared in european vacation , also makes an appearance , playing “english victim . ”
unusual , too , among rockettes , was vera - ellen ' s small stature : she stood only 5 ' 4
tall . in this scene from white christmas , her highly skilled dancing is evident .
the film also differs from the novel in its depiction of the events leading to mcmurphy ' s introduction to electroshock therapy . the novel carefully establishes a character not in the film , big george . george ' s obsession with cleanliness is established prior to the fishing excursion , and becomes a pivotal plot element when nurse ratched orders the african - american orderly , washington , to administer an enema to george in the shower . washington ' s threatening behavior toward george prompts mcmurphy to reluctantly challenge the orderly . the resulting melee is the impetus for nurse ratched to send mcmurphy and his accomplice , chief bromden , to the disturbed ward , where they receive electroshock therapy . the film employs the initial altercation between mcmurphy and washington as the impetus for nurse ratched to send mcmurphy , chief , and charlie cheswick ( who doesn ' t commit suicide in the film ) to the disturbed ward .


cocksucker blues is an unreleased documentary film directed by the still photographer robert frank chronicling the rolling stones american tour 1972 in support of their album exile on main st.

cocksucker blues

the rolling stones ' unreleased
cocksucker blues
from exile on main st .
cocksucker blues
as written by and mick / richards jagger . . . .
out now is the brand new digital only snog single - ' the new cocksucker blues ' .
from neil young , we have
revolution blues ,
vampire blues ,
and
ambulance blues .
nodding donkey blues
and
black bart blues
by iron maiden .
down payment blues
and
satellite blues
by ac / dc .
louis armstrong :
gut bucket blues
,
lonesome blues
,
wild man blues
,
potato head blues
,
weary blues
,
keyhole blues
,
s . o . l . blues
,
gully low blues
,
put ' em down blues
,
got no blues
( which is an interesting subversion we must say ) ,
savoy blues
,
west end blues
,
basin street blues
,
dallas blues
and
st . louis blues
( all from the complete hot five and hot seven recordings )
the simpsons '
moanin ' lisa blues
from the simpsons sing the blues .
empty bottle blues
and
apple juice blues
by they might be giants .
we do not have any tags for cocksucker blues lyrics . why not add your own ? log in to add a tag
talkin ' dust bowl blues
,
dust bowl blues
and
dust pneumonia blues
by woody guthrie from dust bowl ballads .
zombie apocalypse blues
and
system error blues
by rock , paper , cynic .
the white stripes have
300 m . p . h torrential outpour blues
,
catch hell blues
and
instinct blues
.
george harrison ' s solo career has produced
p2 vatican blues
,
sue me , sue you blues
and
marwa blues
.
jimmie rodgers : rodgers had quite a few of these including
the brakeman blues
never no mo ' blues
blue yodel no . 4 ( california blues )
tuck away my lonesome blues
and
those gambler ' s blues
bob dylan :
subterranean homesick blues
from bringing it all back home ,
talkin ' world war iii blues ,
bob dylan ' s blues ,
north country blues ,
black crow blues ,
outlaw blues ,
orange juice blues
( the basement tapes ) ,
tombstone blues ,
stuck inside of mobile with the memphis blues again
and dozens of others . most common on his earlier , folkier albums .
dachau blues
and
my human gets me blues
by captain beefheart on trout mask replica .
talkin ' alien abduction blues ,
talkin ' woody , bob , bruce , & dan blues ,
and
airplane blues
by dan bern .
robert frank and danny seymour’s “cocksucker blues” is about the rolling stones onstage , backstage , and in intimate situations that hardly anybody would want to be filmed in .
fumblin ' with the blues
from the heart of saturday night ,
tom traubert ' s blues
and
invitation to the blues
from small change by tom waits .
common method of naming things
the ( something ) blues
. very prevalent in blues music , although there are also many , many non - blues songs with a title like this .
buckingham blues ,
dead car battery blues ,
and
generic blues
by
weird al
yankovic , the latter of which is exactly what it says on the tin .
blues for baby and me
and
i guess that ' s why they call it the blues
by elton john .
in cocksucker blues , jagger’s striking contradiction is how his stage and private personas seem almost unrecognisable . as truman capote remarked in an interview with andy warhol about the 1972 tour :
the dead flag blues
by godspeed you ! black emperor , one of the occasional non - blues songs with such a title .
desperate man blues
from daniel johnston ' s hi how are you and
chord organ blues
from his album yip jump music .
click here to view our stock page for the original film of cocksucker blues , and here to see our complete selection of items related to music , film , and other performing arts .
robert frank . cocksucker blues original format : 35 mm film , screening format : digital betacam , 1972 , b / w and colour , original version , ( english ) 93 min .
derek robinson did two , not related : red rag blues and kentucky blues . both could be puns , with
blues
in the first title contrasting with
reds
( i . e . communists ) , and
blues
in the second one alluding to the american civil war .
blues from down here
by tv on the radio from return to cookie mountain , which puts the
blues
part right up front .
onan rejoices . dionysus despairs . robert frank , the rolling stones , and cocksucker blues - - a polarizing document for upwards of 35 - years , now - - unreleased , and perhaps unreleasable .
cowboy bebop : the episode title
asteroid blues ,
and the credits song ,
the real folk blues ,
named after the famous album series .
both utah phillips and grandpa jones have a song called
cannonball blues
.
the album i got dem ol ' kozmic blues again mama by janis joplin .
“cocksucker blues” poses the orphic question of just how far an artist can go too far . today , with the private lives of heralded artists laid out as open books , and subject to presidential - level scrutiny , it’s worth wondering whether that scrutiny will have an effect on the kinds of energies that get expressed and embodied in art . the existence—and the suppression—of “cocksucker blues” is a primordial moment in this historic shift .
moby ' s
natural blues
from the album play . it ' s actually a remix of
trouble so hard
, a blues song from 1937 .
buddy ' s blues
( also known as
the god - why - don ' t - you - love - me blues
) from follies .
· south bank show , sun 17 , 11 . 05pm , itv1 . robert frank : storylines is at tate modern from oct 28 to jan 23 , with cocksucker blues screenings on dec 3 , 4 and 5
a subversion : a blues from chicago transit authority titled
south california purples
.
glenn frey ' s
smuggler ' s blues
, popularized by miami vice .
a series of hack - and - slash mods for neverwinter nights called underdark blues .
d . b . blues
by w . a . s . p . .
st . james infirmary blues
, a traditional number with varying versions of lyrics .
you ' ve got the blues ( not me )
by david lee roth .
one game in i ' m sorry i haven ' t a clue was to improvise a blues song . the title would always be in this form ( eg ,
the trichologist ' s blues
or
the kerry packer blues
) . in one case the song was called
the west indies blues
, but was sung as a calypso .
commissioned by the stones , then made legendary and all but invisible after the band sued to prevent its distribution , cocksucker blues has circulated for years on bootleg video – how i first saw it – and can be viewed in its entirety on youtube , with the usual deterioration in production values . for most of the last four decades , according to the settlement of that suit , cocksucker blues could be shown publicly only five times a year ( usually at cinephile events ) with frank present .
cocksucker blues is one of those enduring sub - licit channels which not only celebrates the fore , middle and background of this tour , but which also presents itself as one of the very best rock tour movies ever made , and never seen .
in the song “cocksucker blues” , “home is a look in the eye” where the policeman’s truncheon is very plainly more than a mere nightstick , and bad things happen in back - alleys to not necessarily bad people . in cocksucker blues the film , home does not exist . you may think you perceive of it in a bedroom , a concert arena or a look , but these alleyways are never ending , roads unto themselves . any thought of home is lucky to exist as a memory .
johnny cash had several throughout his career , including his hit ,
folsom prison blues .
good ol ' screamin jay hawkins gives us a song about real pain with the constipation blues .
beverly hills blues
by bobby mcferrin , with ad - libbed lyrics by robin williams .
' the half of it , dearie ' blues
from lady , be good ! .
the where - has - my - hubby - gone blues
from no no nanette .
cocksucker blues was one song , and there were others , like dr john ( the night tripper ) ' s
you can never eat too much pussy
. then the idea expanded from an album to a film which this isn ' t .
scandalous rolling stones film ' ( expletive ) blues ' makes rare screening nov . 15 at cleveland cinematheque
israeli film metallic blues ( which is a pun - based title on the color metallic blue ) .
the novel shaman blues . makes sense , seeing how it was named after the doors song below .
john zorn : the track
alhambra blues
on
alhambra love songs
( 2009 ) .
the st louis blues , named for the w . c . handy song of the same name .
the julekalender features a song named
the dæjlig news blues
. the title is in the show ' s usual intentional engrish for funny , and sounds like
the daily news blues
even though it ' s a mistranslation of something that meant
the good news blues
in the original danish .
it must say something about something that cocksucker blues , the rolling stones’ never - released 1972 tour documentary , which has existed mainly as a salacious rumor for 40 years , was screened at new york’s museum of modern art on thursday night , as part of a stones film retrospective .
although mick jagger reportedly liked cocksucker blues , the rolling stones blocked the release of the film . perhaps it was because the rolling stones were shown engaging in a range of illegal activity in the movie , or perhaps it was because the film captured the alienation and isolation of the band so effectively . whatever the reason , the dispute between the rolling stones and robert frank was resolved with a rather odd court ruling : cocksucker blues can only be shown when the director is in attendance . given practical considerations , this ruling served as an effective ban on the film .
you don’t have a lot of fun sitting down to watch cocksucker blues . it’s a road fable , in some ways a tableaux of a journey . as a film , one that was consigned to the storage room , it’s remarkable that cocksucker blues has had its own life , that so many people have been able to see it , even if that number is but a fraction of those who’d pay for a copy at the borders , or queue up in line outside the movie house , if for nothing else than to see what all of this mystique has been about .
scandalous rolling stones film ' ( expletive ) blues ' makes rare screening nov . 15 at cleveland cinematheque | urltoken
yer blues
by the beatles . from the white album ,
for you blue
could count .
in star trek : the next generation , andorian blues gets mentioned . ( andorians are aliens with blue skin . )
running at ninety - three minutes , cocksucker blues was scheduled for an 18 november 1972 release ; however , after watching robert frank’s rough - cut , jagger demanded that it not be shown , on account of its “heavy scenes” . ( 7 ) at the time , jagger was reported to have said ,
i don’t think this is a cover , but it’s a great example of how much jagger and richards understand the blues .
, we’re never exactly in the villa of warm and fuzzy things , so pile it up , put the blues of the stones , the delta , chicago , all of it , on parade , the content of so much of rock and blues history , and then slap a lurid title on it . a title whose defiance - - 32 - 20 blues , pony blues , bellbottom blues , nah . . . this is cocksucking blues , that’s my blues , baby - - has a kind of heroism to it , the boast that , yeah , i’ll make a fiver in this alley , and then i’ll muck about in the next , like nothing ever happened , and it won’t always have to be this way . fuckers . tough to even think this was an intended antidote to altamont . and tough to storm the retail chains with such “product” .
after seeing cocksucker blues , robert frank ' s documentary about the rolling stones ' 1972 tour of america , mick jagger was said to have remarked to the director ,
it ' s a fucking good film , robert , but if it shows in america we ' ll never be allowed in the country again .
the sailor moon di c north american dub had a large number of episodes titled
something - or - other blues
.
still , it’s not scenes like this which make cocksucker blues an artifact worth treasuring . while voyeurs may savor the footage of keith richards apparently nodding out on heroin , mick jagger snorting a line of cocaine , and a groupie shooting up in a hotel room , it’s actually the most ordinary elements of the film that make eyes go wide .
chances are , if you’ve heard of cocksucker blues , you’ve probably heard about the scenes in which the rolling stones and / or their entourage snort cocaine . or the ones that show people having sex on screen . or shooting heroin . or maybe the one where one man aggressively forces women to strip in front of a group of people .
one of the earliest rock songs that surpassed ten minutes . its blues sound is heavily inspired , but the length was an experiment .
robert frank is gloriously notorious . he is the groundbreaking photographer of the americans ; the iconoclastic director of pull my daisy and cocksucker blues ; a difficult ( almost impossible ) interview subject ; a rejecter of wealth and celebrity ; a man whose ‘sympathies were with people who struggled , ’ who has a ‘mistrust of people who made the rules . ’
uk have
caesar ' s palace blues
. an unusual example in that it is also a song with a title only chorus .
bootleg copies of “ ( expletive ) blues” – or as it’s also called , “cs blues” – have been passed around for years . the film is considered a cinema verite document of rock ' n ' roll hedonism - - raw and unstaged , unlike
behind the music .
cross road blues
by robert johnson of course , that ' s not taking into account more than half of the songs he recorded .
summertime blues
, originally performed by eddie cochran , later covered by many acts , including blue cheer , the who , and rush .
not so funny : the eventual soul and body count . by the end of 1974 , taylor had quit the stones , deciding that he needed to leave in order to survive . in the closing credits of cocksucker blues , second cameraman daniel seymour is listed as “junkie soundman . ” it’s supposed to be a joke ; he later paid , fatally , for his addiction .
but if you’re wondering just how good a film is cocksucker blues is , and how it measures up to the music the stones were making at this point in their career , have a listen to any of the numerous bootleg recordings of the band’s philadelphia ‘72 shows . if you’re not familiar with them , it should be stated that even the most passionate stones fan is bound to come away incredulous that even they could be that good , just classic adrenaline shows , like an early pistols one - off , or jerry lee lewis’ live at the star club . flash and dazzle inhabits cocksucker blues , and just as deeply , just as truly . but here the dazzle , such as it were , is more inwardly revealed , and subtle , like some disease creeping through you .
sometimes , it just seems like the muses have the fix in . well before you get started , and more still after you’ve pressed on with your endeavor , regardless . on that score , there may be no film in rock and film history more synonymous with foregone failure than robert frank’s cocksucker blues , a polarizing document for upwards of 35 - years , now - - unreleased , and perhaps unreleasable .
the band’s contract with decca expired in 1970 , and the stones were ready to break free and start their own label . before they could , though , decca reminded them that they owed the company one last single . irritated , no doubt , the group turned in a track called “cocksucker blues , ” which was of course immediately shelved . ( bootlegs , if it need be said , can still be found . )
enter , then the stars - - further mechanization of the rock star’s life - - that come flitting through the film : truman capote , dick cavett and andy warhol . and marshall chess , son of leonard , who serves as producer , a title that seems remarkably nominal as he giggles his way through the backstory of how the song “cocksucker blues” came to be , a wind - up of a titled record company impresario
so long as there’s ever ready material , or just so long as the stones keep touring , it’s probably safe to assume - - safe being the watchword here - - that it’s going to be live from rio or some such fodder , that you’ll find in the future at the local wal - marts as the next stones dvd , and the one after that , ad nauseam . cocksucker blues inhabits its own mythology .
you’ll have your chance at 9 : 15 p . m . nov . 15 – when
( expletive ) blues
hits the cleveland institute of art cinematheque .
another very short track , it was originally recorded by buddy holly , but most agree that the sound was basically stolen from bo diddley , a highly influential blues man .
filled with moments of beauty and insight , meanwhile , cocksucker blues is left to add new depth to what would otherwise simply be a film about an excessive rock ' n ' roll junket .
it ' s such a time capsule of what life was like behind the scenes in 1972 ,
says susan steinberg .
i ' ve always wanted to get it released and seen . what was controversial at the time is now history .
cocksucker blues begins with a black screen that simply reads
except for the musical numbers the events depicted in this film are fictitious . no representation of actual persons and events is intended .
the room bubbled with sarcastic laughter . this was another result of the lawsuit against frank , that he had to put in a disclaimer at the beginning to suggest much of the , shall we say , non - musical sequences were staged . nobody was fooled .
in comes producer marshall chess , who , early in the movie , gives the plotline : mick has already written a song called cocksucker blues , about a gay hooker in london , to fulfill the group ' s contractual obligations to decca records , which was run at the time by an old fart named sir edward lewis . apparently , during a meeting , mick gets up and plays a demo of the song to the uptight geezer the lyrics of which are :
if cocksucker blues has a star - - and you could argue that dystopia is its star - - it’s jagger , the anti - hero as hero , and the film’s central consciousness amidst the drifters , gropers and druggers . we listen as he weighs in , for a press - op , on exile on main street : he likes the country stuff , but some of it doesn’t hold together as he’d have wanted . a full - on quality double album can be tricky .
rehearsing at woodstock in 1978 for their tour behind some girls , the stones would revisit the song , and it’s that version , oddly enough , that plays as the introduction to the recent , best ever version of the film , available on bootleg dvd as big cocksucker blues : special definitive edition , courtesy of 4reel productions . here are the stones touring behind their best album , making the finest music of their career , on the road , as traveling bluesmen , which seems fitting .
cocksucker blues made a rare appearance at the brooklyn academy of music this weekend , selling out several days prior . the arts space known for its off - the - radar sensibilities made a perfect home for the contraband film . people in head - to - toe black and thick - frame glasses peppered its seats . the way the room arcs , the only spots left were at the edges of the theater , on a tilted view of the screen . but it didn ' t matter .
again , this is a cover , but by looking at the songs they choose to cover , it’s amazing that the greatest band ever was so heavily influenced by blues and r & b .
that the scene was apparently staged only accentuates frank’s interest in revealing emptiness behind the stones’ public image , rather than simply exposing what took place behind the scenes on tour . when cocksucker blues captures jagger performing , he is at his sultriest—writhing and crawling on stage . the band’s sound is wild , almost unhinged . watching the rest of the doc’s footage , though , what emerges isn’t an alluring extension of that energy but , rather , the cautionary tale of a party life bereft of any meaning .
here , for example , are a few other things you see or hear in cocksucker blues : keith richards debating just how many blueberries , strawberries , and apples to order from room service ; mick jagger marveling at how good the food is in the american south ; richards so high that can’t sit up straight after a show . the juxtaposition is fundamental : by interweaving the provocative and the mundane , frank sucks any remaining glamour from the images and , in its place , injects a biting criticism .
which was exactly the case at tate modern a couple years ago . cocksucker blues may or may not be too abrasive for audiences who like their rock films heavy on libido and cranking with tunes to ever garner an official release , but frank slashed through enough red tape that he was able to secure the occasional screening , provided it was at an exhibition in which his work , rather than the stones’ , was the central premise , and he was present , or at least someone who worked on the film .
grinder ' s blues ,
poets of the fall ' s rockabilly theme song to sci fi platformer rochard , where the asteroid miner protagonist laments that he and his crew are barely skating by .
there have been three movies called st . louis blues . the first was a jazz short in the 20 ' s that depicted the only film footage of w . c . handy ( see the music entry below ) . the next one was made in the 30 ' s . it was a musical comedy starring dorothy lamour . the third was a musical bio - pic about w . c . handy made in the 50 ' s with nat king cole as the lead . because of this last film , the aforementioned 1930 ' s st . louis blues was retitled to best of the blues for television .
what is clear , from the content of the lyrics at least , is that the stones never expected anyone to hear what may in fact be one of their landmark blues tracks - - which is to say , one of the landmark blues tracks . “play the chords , ” jagger mumbles - - a bit like lennon’s “sugar plum fairy sugar plum fairy , ” preceding “a day in the life” , only with some dirt and blues got into her . and for three minutes and 30 seconds , one takes up residence in a robert johnson - netherworld . except here , we’re cavorting about the streets of london .
essentially , “cocksucker blues” treats its rough - edged , impulsive footage in a primally eisensteinian way , in terms of the art of editing and its theoretical implications . it’s a work of intellectual montage that poses the question : what does this ( what goes on with the band backstage and in private ) have to do with that ( the performances onstage and on records ) ? what do sex and drugs have to do with rock and roll ? what’s the link between art and trouble , between flagrant discharges of emotional energy in public and in private ?
the title of the film itself actually comes from a never - released song the stones wrote to meet a contractual obligation from decca records , who they hated working with , before leaving the label to start their own rolling stones records . the song
cocksucker blues
was written to be purposefully unreleasable . ( lyrics like
where can i get my cock sucked ? / where can i get my ass fucked ?
just didn ' t fly in the 1970s . ) that the theme of unreleasability carried over to the film as well goes without saying .
“cocksucker blues , ” by contrast , is about the stones themselves—onstage , backstage , and in intimate situations that hardly anybody would want to be filmed in . that’s why it’s so rare : soon after its completion , the band , wanting to keep some of their behavior under wraps , went to court to ban the film’s screening , and the court imposed sharp limits on its public showings . the two screenings taking place tonight and tomorrow night at film forum are very unusual occasions . ( they’re sold out , but there will be standby lines for both shows . )
demonstrated in one scene by jagger’s then wife , bianca , who sits sullenly in a corner , playing a musical box over and over , there is little to stimulate an intelligent or intellectual mind , and certainly , frank paints a vivid , unattractive and monotonous portrait of the rock world . shot mostly in black and white , with the concert footage filmed in colour , cocksucker blues is aesthetically ugly and barely watchable . in every sense , it is a dreadful and unpleasant viewing experience , that visually bears no resemblance to frank’s other beautifully composed still and moving pictures .
things are loosening up . cocksucker blues was shown on november 15th at the museum of modern art in new york as part of a two - week festival , the rolling stones : 50 years on film . ( the festival runs through december 2nd . ) frank did not appear at the screening , while the stones had just left the building , having attended the series’ opening the night before and participating in an onstage interview with playwright tom stoppard . the near - collision was the closest thing to an official blessing the stones have given frank’s movie since he made it .
“this is one of the few parts in america where you can eat quite reasonably well , you know ? even in the coffee shops in the south they have better food , ” he says . the camera then pans to mick taylor in the back seat , awake moments before , now asleep . in some ways , cocksucker blues is , when you get down to it , a hymn to nodding out , physically , spiritually , any way it comes - - as if one’s just been pressed too hard from too many sides . wither , then , the gradual breakdown .
it is not fair to blame the stones for banning the film ; they wanted the movie of their first tour of america since the disastrous altamont festival ( the subject of gimme shelter ) to be an upbeat affair and to repair the damage to the band’s image . cocksucker blues was hardly a good candidate for that , and even if they had felt secure enough to allow their audience to see that side of their lives , 1972 was not a good time to do that . however , it is unfortunate that this film had to be a fatality of the stones’ quest to improve their image .
the stones may have faced the possibility of arrest had the movie actually been released , but cocksucker blues served the band better as legend than artifact , anyway . mick jagger’s often repeated and possibly apocryphal line about the movie makes that clear : “it’s a good film , robert , ” he reportedly told frank , “but if it shows in america we’ll never be allowed in the country again . ” the movie’s existence on the black market , and the relative lack of information that existed about it as a result , helped support a troublemaker’s image : you thought we were bad , but you have no idea .
filmmaker jim jarmusch , commenting on cocksucker blues , called it
definitely one of the best movies about rock and roll i ' ve ever seen . . . . it makes you think being a rock and roll star is one of the last things you ' d ever want to do .
amen to that . one has the feeling these guys are soldiers , waiting for the next battle , the next opportunity to feel alive . in the meantime , there ' s the tedium , confusion , boredom , and good old angst & ennui of being locked into a big money , big stadium , big everything rock tour .
the third fallout new vegas dlc is old world blues . the dlc mentions it as an in - universe term for extreme , crippling nostalgia to the point that you can ' t really operate in the here - and - now — though a good karma ending has it evolve into a more positive term , with greater respect for the potential of old world blues to turn to new world hope ( an evil karma ending solidifies the old meaning and pairs it with new world misery ) .
defenders rally with claims of dionysian splendor and excess , bacchanalia , the ubiquitous proclamations of sexdrugsrockandroll , the stones doing what the stones do best . trust neither camp . in some ways , cocksucker blues is “worse” than its detractors insist - - but for reasons that will make your heart come crashing down in your chest , rather than tinted prints and poor sound . as a film , it’s a bleak journey , shocking in ways even its boosters probably weren’t prepared to be shocked . no need to abandon all hope as such as we begin , but if you’re skittish , probably best if you can do with leaving some of that behind . and reservations too . temporarily , like .
cocksucker blues is named after a notorious stones recording – just piano and singer mick jagger , in x - rated lonely - boy agony – that the band submitted as a final fuck - you single to their original , despised british label , decca . ( it was rejected . ) the song , heard early in frank’s movie , is blunt and drab . so are the open sex and flagrant drug use that follow . the main shock is how little pleasure or high anyone gets from the action : the groupies , who are basically paying their fare for a place in the stones’ orbit ; the druggies , who speak the kind of slurred disconnected nonsense that only other users think is hip and wise ; and most of all , the stones themselves .
mick jagger , left , and keith richards at nellcote , richards ' villa on the french riviera where the rolling stones recorded
exile on main st .
- - the classic stones disc that led to the tour documented in robert frank ' s film
( expletive ) blues .
( dominique tarle )
loses his car keys and maybe his mind . “i used to do that—when i was younger , i did a lot of stuff . but i also went to school , worked hard . i thought i’d be stuck forever in jersey , so i waitressed at the local diner and did drugs . i didn’t know there was anything else . then i began listening to wfmu free - form radio , and it told me there was another world . i heard patti smith , queen when they were nobody , the ramones when there were two people in the audience , the new york dolls with andy warhol at the next table , went to see them at cbgb’s and max’s kansas city , and then the edge felt more normal . that’s why i have such a reaction to ‘cocksucker blues . ’ i lost a lot of friends to drugs . it disturbs me to see it . ”
there is hardly such thing as an underground movie anymore — except , perhaps , for the ones that have to go underground because they aren’t allowed to be shown . the rough , grainy , outlaw king of those is “c—sucker blues . ” not because you can never see it , but because on the rare occasions when you can , it [ … ]
alternately titled “schoolboy blues , ” this was recorded when the stones were leaving decca records to start their own label , but decca demanded one more single to fulfill the contract . the stones recorded this as that single knowing that decca could never release it . the funny thing is , it’s actually quite a good song , if you don’t mind the profanity . a story about a young boy looking for sex in london and the acoustic guitar makes it quite haunting .
if you like yaya ' s ( which stones fan doesn ' t recognize it as their best playing ? ) you have to get the stones live stuff from 72 . . . . . cock sucker blues has some of that on the tape . . . . . it ' s part of the holy grail of the stones that mick and keith won ' t release because mick taylor proves to be the best part of the show . . . . . . . sad and true .
there is hardly such thing as an underground movie anymore — except , perhaps , for the ones that have to go underground because they aren’t allowed to be shown . the rough , grainy , outlaw king of those is “c—sucker blues . ” not because you can never see it , but because on the rare occasions when you can , it has acquired the aura of an unholy testament : the ultimate down and dirty peek behind the curtain of 1970s rock & roll excess . it’s the time capsule that keeps on giving because it’s still semi - buried .
groupies , scalpers , hangers - on , pool players , drugs , the press all feature heavily in this world , so you’d think the action would be bouncing off the walls , but stasis dominates . an expressive stagnation , blues conjured from the ordinary , like the activities one dreams up to pass the time , which was really what exile on main street was all about . realizing that there was a vast , fascinating rift between what was taking shape as a tour film and the music played on the tour itself , frank did all he could to contrast extremes in his final cut : there’s sex , there’s drugs , there’s music , and in the instances when there isn’t some sense of boredom , the everyday ordinary , you can be sure the doldrums follow in the next scene .
cleveland , ohio - - the rolling stones have been the subject of countless films . there’s one mick and keith do not want you to see .
robert frank ' s unvarnished documentary chronicles the rolling stones ' 1972
exile on main st .
tour . not just the show – the drugs , the sex , the debauchery and the backstage boredom that leads to such excess .
mick & the boys found it so embarrassing that they stopped it from being released – even though they were the ones that commissioned it in the first place .
it’s one thing to have sympathy for the devil ; coming off like one is another story .
it remains out of print , though occasional archival screenings have been permitted – hence the screening at the cinematheque , 11141 east boulevard , cleveland .
frank’s 93 - minute doc features cameos by andy warhol , truman capote and stevie wonder .
admission is $ 15 ; $ 12 , for cia members ; $ 10 , ages 25 and under . advance tickets available at www . brownpapertickets . com . call 216 - 421 - 7450 .
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according to frank , the agreement states that the film may not be shown until march 7th , 1979 . it may then be shown only four times a year , and during the first year only a version edited by the stones may be shown .
the agreement , with both parties participating in how and when the film may be shown , still does not seem to answer the question of who actually controls it . the stones , who have sought to keep the film out of circulation since its completion in 1973 , have maintained they hired frank to make it for them . but frank’s attitude is less clear . he did show the film in california in 1975 and 1976 and several times in canada without reaching an agreement with the stones . however , a copyrighted article in the montreal star , based on an interview with frank , stated that he showed the film on those occasions to generate enough public interest so that the stones would be persuaded to release the film .
also at issue was the inclusion of a number of scenes that the group found objectionable . in the star article , frank detailed some scenes that he said the public might find “revolting . ” these included keith richards being injected and mick jagger snorting powder . both richards and jagger have a great deal to say about frank , and stones’ attorneys are reportedly contemplating legal action against frank and the star in connection with the article .
another controversial scene involves a couple having intercourse at 30 , 000 feet while the stones cheer them on . one source indicates that the scene was staged ; former rolling stone reporter robert greenfield , who wrote the book s . t . p . about the ’72 tour , reported that frank approached a groupie and said , “we want a chick to fuck someone on the plane for the movie . ”
things might have remained at an impasse had keith richards not been arrested on drug charges in toronto last february . a week later , legal papers were served on frank at his home in mabou mines , nova scotia . an affadavit filed by jagger said the film subjected the stones to “scorn and ridicule” and that frank had distorted events through editing and included in the film events which are private to the rolling stones . ”
frank told the star he felt the stones instituted legal action because the film could hurt richards’ trial ( december 2nd in toronto ) . they finally reached an out - of - court settlement may 17th . according to frank , the stones ( besides allowing eventual release of the film ) agreed to pay $ 100 , 000 to cover all legal fees .
reached at his home , frank was reluctant to talk . “it’s settled , that’s all . i haven’t really thought too much about where i’ll show it . i guess i’ll show it in montreal , maybe the pacific film archive [ in berkeley ] . i think it’s good . ”
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“look to your left , look to your right , ” metropolitan museum of art curator jeff rosenheim said saturday when he introduced one of these rare events in new york as part of the museum’s robert frank film series . “one of you might be robert frank . ” ( frank never did make himself known . )
go inside the rolling stones’ 1969 tour in behind - the - scenes photos .
as fans filed into the museum’s theater , exile on main street ‘s boozy “casino boogie” played on the house stereo , and rosenheim speculated from a podium as to why the stones tried to ban the film . his theory : they weren’t worried about being allowed back into the states as jagger told the director , but disliked the film because it took fans behind the curtain , revealing the depression and loneliness behind the glamour of the road .
after displaying blown - up slides of the exile on main street cover art ( also shot by frank ) , rosenheim warned , “i hope you are all ready for misogyny , boredom and ecstasy — stupor and exhaustion . ” and with that , the film began .
early scenes depict the band in a dingy rehearsal space , jamming on “you can’t always get what you want . ” the black - and - white camera shows a table of leftover cocaine lines and hangs on charlie watts , whose eyes are intense as he pounds away on his kit while a rail - thin mick jagger shouts the last few choruses in his direction .
the documentary portrayed the tour as tumultuous . a shirtless ( and toothless ) richards plays a boogie - woogie piano vamp with track marks covering his left arm . bill wyman looks a zombie in his appearance on the dick cavett show .
in an infamous scene , a roadie has sex with a reluctant - looking groupie on a plane while the band bangs on percussion instruments . the met audience collectively gasped once , at a scene where a young groupie sits on a hotel room bed and injects her arm with heroin .
how ‘won’t you be my neighbor ? ’ has given birth to mr . rogers fever
still the musical performances were electrifying though gritty , the camera sound natural and unmixed . the band duets with stevie wonder on a motown - style medley of “uptight” and “satisfaction . ” between songs , a john belushi - sized horn player takes a swig from a whiskey bottle and spins back to his mic .
mark halperin , a 59 - year - old fan , said he saw the stones on the same tour when he was in college and sees the film as an early predictor of reality tv . “everyone was trying to be outrageous as possible , ” he said , “as long as there’s a camera in your face . ”
mick jagger , ronnie wood , keith richards and charlie watts of the rolling stones .
frank , now 88 , is a swiss - born photographer and filmmaker whose jarring hyper - realist portraiture – a product of unusual cropping , light and focus – made him a beat - culture hero . jack kerouac wrote the introduction to the 1959 american edition of frank’s book , the americans ; that year , frank directed kerouac , allen ginsberg and other beat figures in the improvised curio , pull my daisy .
they are hardly innocents . guitarist mick taylor is seen passing through one hotel room , looking for pick - me - up . guitarist keith richards , then well into his storied romance with heroin , appears in a painfully extended after - show scene in a deep - sleep heap on an arena - locker - room bench . he does not look like he’s just taking a nap , waiting for jagger to finish entertaining atlantic records boss ahmet ertegun next door .
mostly the stones are seen drowning in boredom , dragging their disheveled court behind them with condescending resignation . in one sequence , the band members ditch the tour plane for a car ride through the south to the next gig . a stop at a roadhouse , for drinks and a few rounds of pool with the locals , is a rare good time away from the mayhem . but jagger is relieved , he says at one point in the car , to just be away from “the 39 people” that follow him everywhere . ( how times change : when the stones arrive next month for their shows in brooklyn and newark , that will probably be the size of the catering crew . )
after rejecting frank’s account of the ’72 tour , the stones quickly replaced it with ladies and gentlemen , the rolling stones , shot at shows in texas and released in 1974 . that movie had a lot more music and was a lot more fun . but it lacked frank’s sordid , honest context and wicked humor . the latter , in particular , puts the truth and evolution of touring in perspective , especially at this calendar distance . in ’72 , to the local hotel staffs in the huge then - uncharted space between new york and los angeles , the stones were exotic animals . to the stones , common sense was everyone else’s second language . of special delight : a negotiation on the phone with room service over an order for a bowl of fruit .
they were wrong , a truth best seen as i did at moma : large and loud .
this is the first section of content free from copyright claims from eagle rock . i hope they don ' t come crying again .
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this fly - on - the - wall documentary follows the rolling stones on their 1972 north american tour , their first return to the states since the tragedy at altamont . because of the free - form . . . see full summary »
jermaine fowler and omari hardwick of sorry to bother you take us back in time to the worst jobs of their careers .
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a concert film taken from two rolling stones concerts during their 1972 north american tour .
originally filmed in december 1968 ,
the rock and roll circus
was originally intended to be released as a television special . the special was filmed over two nights and featured not only . . . see full summary »
for the first time ever in their 50 year long career , the rolling stones played in havana , the capital of cuba . the movie shows how music can work as tool of social improvement .
a look at the creation and impact of the 1972 rolling stones album
exile on main st .
rocknroll concert doc following the stones on their 2016 tour , culminating in their historic stop in havana , cuba .
a harrowing documentary of the stones ' 1969 tour , with much of the focus on the tragic concert at altamont .
the rolling stones ' shows in tempe , arizona and east rutherford , new jersey during their 1981 us tour .
the rolling stones historic and triumphant return to hyde park was without doubt the event of the summer . over 100 , 000 delirious fans of all ages packed into the park for two spectacular . . . see full summary »