Movies Came Out In (1963)
Winner:
Tom Jones – Just watched this film, and disappointed to say that there’s no “What’s New Pussycat”, “Delilah” or “It’s Not Unusual” in it, lol. Ok, I’m jesting, this film has nothing to do with the legendary singer of the same name. It’s a strange comedy in which a bastard child grows up into an adult that gets into some comical predicaments. It’s a strange film that starts out as a silent film, breaks the 4th wall at times, and the main character dies but immediately comes back to life with the narrator providing a silly reason. Weird movie, and I can say that I didn’t really like it that much.
America America – Just watched this film recently, was not a fan. It is super long and honestly, not that interesting. Boy leaves his homeland of Turkey (which is at odds with neighboring countries) to emigrate to America, and finds hardship and struggles along the way. It’s critically acclaimed but I simply did not like.
Cleopatra – I enjoyed this film. Pretty remarkable sets given the time period, however, the acting was a little campy and not believable for the time period, in my opinion. The story is of course about Cleopatra and Egypt’s struggles with Rome involving Julius Caesar and Marc Antony.
How the West Was Won – Wow, super long, super cheesy. Even for 1963, this must have looked corny and cheesy. Star studded for sure (Reynolds, Peck, Peppard, Stewart, Wayne, etc…) but really lame dialogue and so sanitized for being the frontier land. I thought we might colonize Mars by the time I actually finished it, as the movie explores a family’s saga living through such periods as the Gold Rush, Civil War and eventually locomotives.
Lilies of the Field – I enjoyed this movie, starring Sidney Poitier as a handyman who stops in the desert to a house full of nuns and they think he’s there to answer their prayers of helping to build a chapel. The movie has a good message of hope and faith, and has a few pretty cute/funny scenes. I enjoyed it very much. It’s a short film, at about 90 minutes or so, therefore it’s not a huge investment to watch it.
Brian’s Winner:
This is tough because none of the films are that great in my opinion, so I’m going to pick Lilies of the Field as my winner, namely because of Sidney Poitier’s acting in it.
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#1963
Ceremony Year (1964) – Movies Came Out In (1963)