Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Tipping the Fella'

There are tons and tons of awesome scenes in "Ball of Fire" (one of Howard Hawks' very best). But, if I was forced to pick just one, I think that I'd have to go with the one in which Barbara Stanwyck first tried to kiss Gary Cooper and was thwarted because of his height. She can't reach the guy and so, yes, she puts this book down, steps on it, and she still can't reach him! She puts a second one down and, finally, this one turns the trick. It's an absolutely hilarious scene (Cooper, of course, adding excellent fodder) and one that only Barbara Stanwyck (one of the most versatile actresses in cinematic history - remember, only 2 years later she was turning the femme fatale in "Double Indemnity") could have pulled off. I mean, seriously, can you at all imagine Cameron Diaz......

2 comments:

Oso said...

Agreed. Comparing her with Stanwyck is comparing a snap-taker to a quarterback.

Will "take no prisoners" Hart said...

Maybe I should have picked on somebody else. Ms. Diaz did have that one good performance in "Gangs of New York". Still, though, like you say, there is no comparison.