Norman Bates, now there’s someone who probably made a big deal out of every Mother’s Day. Today’s scene that I love comes from 1960’s Psycho and features Hitchcock, Janet Leigh, and Anthony Perkins at their absolute best,
Tag Archives: Scene I Love
Scenes That I Love: Albert Finney Hates People In Scrooge
Today would have been the 89th birthday of the great British actor, Albert Finney!
And today’s scene that I love features Albert Finney in the role of history’s most famous miser. In 1970’s Scrooge, Finney played the title role and, early on, his worldview was perfectly captured by a song called I Hate People. Finny was only 34 when he played Ebenezer Scrooge but he does a wonderful job of bringing the character to life and he’s just as convincing when he’s being good as he is when he’s being bad. Finney is the main reason why Scrooge is my personal favorite of all of the versions of A Christmas Carol.
Scenes That I Love: A Conversation From Roberto Rossellini’s Rome, Open City
Today’s scene that I love comes from Rome, Open City:
Filmed in 1945, Roberto Rossellini’s Rome, Open City was one of the first films to be made about life under the Nazis. What set this film apart from others is that the majority of the cast actually had lived under the occupation. While there were a few professional amongst the cast, Rossellini also used many nonprofessional actors, who brought a weary authenticity to their roles and their portrayal of life in occupied Rome.
Scenes That I Love: The First Two Minutes of Fast Times At Ridgemont High
Today, the Shattered Lens wishes a happy birthday to director Amy Heckerling!
Today’s scene that I love comes from Amy Heckerling’s feature debut, 1982’s Fast Times At Ridgemont High. In just two minutes, Heckerling introduces us to almost all of the major characters, establishes the mall as the center of Ridgemont High culture, and leaves us with little doubt that we’ve entered a time machine and found ourselves in the 80s. Look at all the future stars. Look at Mike Damone, future mobster. My heart always breaks for Stacy and her brother Brad. They have no idea what’s waiting for them this year.
Here is today’s scene that I love:
Scenes That I Love: The Opening Tracking Shot from Orson Welles’s Touch of Evil
Since today is Orson Welles’s birthday, I wanted to share at least one scene that I love from his films. The famous tracking shot from 1958’s Touch of Evil, which begins in America and ends in Mexico, truly shows Orson Welles at his visionary best.
It’s also Welles at his most clever. Knowing that he wouldn’t be given control over the editing of the footage he shot, Welles included as many long shots as possible to make it more difficult for an editor to chop up or alter his vision.
Scenes I Love: Simon and The Devil Go To The Future In Simon Of The Desert
From Luis Bunuel’s 1965 short film, Simon of the Desert, the faithful Simon (Claudio Brook) finds himself transported from 6th Century Syria to the 1960s by the Devil (Silvia Pinal). The song playing at the club is called Radioactive Flesh. Simon wants to go home. The Devil wants to dance.
Scene That I Love: The Meteor Hits Hong Kong
Today’s scene that I love is a chaotic scene in which a fragments of a meteor cause a tidal wave to crash over Hong Kong. It’s chaos on a budget in 1979’s Meteor! This scene was actually filmed in Los Angeles and featured cardboard cut-outs of buildings in a big water tank.
Scene That I Love: The Yearbook Montage from Wes Anderson’s Rushmore
Since today is Wes Anderson’s birthday, I decided to share a scene that I love from Anderson 1998 film, Rushmore. Max may not be a good student but he loves his extracurriculars.
Scenes I Love: Burt Young Takes Out A Pinball Machine in Rocky III
Today would have been the 85th birthday of the great character actor Burt Young.
Burt Young appeared in a lot of classic films. He had a streetwise authenticity about him and he was one of those guys who looked a bit older than his years. (He was only 36 when he appeared in Rocky.) Young played cops and gangsters and New York characters of all stripes. That said, to most people, he’ll always be Paulie, the brother-in-law of Rocky Balboa. Young did such a good job playing Paulie that this character became beloved, despite being a racist misogynist who managed to screw up Rocky’s life in nearly every Rocky film in which he appeared.
(In real life, Burt Young was a painter and a poet, showing that one should never judge a book by its cover. Unless it’s one of those really badass covers that my sisters likes to share.)
Today’s scene that I love is a classic Paulie scene. Rocky may be the world’s most popular boxer but Paulie’s getting a little tired of him. A pinball machine is about to pay the price. From Rocky III, here is a scene that I love.
Scenes That I Love: The Ending of High Noon
In honor of Fred Zinnemann’s birthday, today’s scene of the day comes from his best film, 1952’s High Noon. High Noon tells the story of the honest and forthright Marshal Will Kane (Gary Cooper), who finds himself abandoned by the town that he’s faithfully served when it is rumored that a fearsome gunman will be arriving at noon to seek revenge on the man who previously sent him to prison.
Below, we have the final scene of High Noon, in which the cowardly townspeople finally come to support Marshal Kane. Kane, disgusted by their actions, can only throw away his star and leave town. Even without dialogue, Cooper lets you know exactly what is going through Kane’s mind. It’s a great scene from a great film featuring a great actor and directed by a great filmmaker.
Through the Shattered Lens 