Stinky Reviews the Reviews!

Firstly of all, Stinky would like to apologize for being a little cranky. He missed nap time. And he broke his favorite thermos, ruining his strawberry milk. And he had to clean his room before being allowed to  watch any Bruce Campbell movies. And it was fried liver for supper. Again. Is it not any wonder Stinky is a little out of sorts? One might even say a little prickly. Prickly.

Secondly of all and next to lastly, allow Stinky to state that everyone is entitled to his own opinion, no matter how silly and wrongheaded it may be. After all, this is America. For now.

Thirdly and lastly, allow Stinky to state that although Love in the Afternoon may not be one of Billy Wilder's towering masterpieces, Stinky considers it delightful and essential.

Apparently, Neil Lumbard of DVDtalk  does not regard Love In the Afternoon as a masterpiece, towering or otherwise, which is okay. Different strokes, Stinky always says, especially when he is too weary to utter a complete sentence.

Mr. Lombard begins by telling us that Love in the Afternoon is "based on the novel by Claude Anet." Which novel is that? And why is this relevant, considering the source material is never again referenced? The movie "stars Audrey Hepburn and Gary Cooper in the two leading roles." As stars, what other roles would they have?

A brief synopsis follows, and Mr. Lumbard says Ariane (star Audrey Hepburn) falls in love with playboy Frank (other star Gary Cooper) "despite his apparent lack of any real interest in her (and his blase attitude towards everything about her)". So why does he desperately try to see her the next day? He has a peculiar way of showing his blase attitude.  "He even forgets her name and simply refers to her as 'Thin Girl.'" No, she refuses to tell him her name, but he sees from her monogrammed purse her name begins with an "A". He spends the rest of the movie trying to guess it. Again, curious behavior for someone lacking any real interest.

Hepburn is "delightfully charming" - is there any other kind?- but Cooper "feels miscast". Too old, one may argue, but Gary Cooper, one of Hollywood's most elegant and charismatic leading men (especially before Capra cornified him) miscast as a playboy? Stinky is not prone to begging, but here he begs to differ.

The criticisms "the material....wasn't as good as it should have been", the screenplay "isn't as effective as it should have been", and "the film isn't as funny as it should  be" are pretty lazy. Without examples given, what does this even mean?

Stinky also finds it curious that Jay A. Morley is applauded for his costumes, but there is no mention of Art Director Alexandre Trauner, his first collaboration with Wilder. And "The music adapted by Franz Waxman (Rebecca, The Philadelphia Story, Sunset Boulevard) offers exuberant music by the composer. " Is it just Stinky, or is this sentence wordy and clunky? Why not say, "an exuberant score by Franz Waxman"? You are welcome.

He criticizes the film for its "silly over-the-top comedic sequences"- again, no examples- but the only scenes he praises are the ones with a performing band of Gypsies following Playboy Frank everywhere. Or, in other words, silly, over-the-top comedic sequences.

Mr. Lombard closes, "Love in the Afternoon is interesting when considered within the context of the filmography of Wilder and Hepburn but it doesn't muster up much enthusiasm on its own." Can someone please translate this into English for Stinky? Is it only recommended for fans of Wilder and Hepburn? Then why does he not say so?

Finally, a brief bio of Mr. Lumbard:

Neil Lumbard is a lifelong fan of cinema, and a student who aspires to make movies. He loves writing, and currently does in Texas.


Does? Does what?
 

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