Chemical Attraction

It's an odd thing, chemistry. Some movie couples have it; some don't. What fascinates me is when real life couples appear together as romantic leads, some simply don't have it. I've previously posted about how marvelous William Powell and Myrna Loy were as Nick and Nora Charles in The Thin Man series and how, in comparison, his real-life wife Carole Lombard and he didn't click nearly as well in My Man Godfrey.

Of course, even if real life couples are able to make the screen sizzle, sometimes their marriages falter. Consider these examples:

I loved the Taylor-Burton pairing in Zeffirelli's Taming of the Shrew (although the storyline is slightly problematic for me in comparison to some of the Bard's other plays, they made it work).


One of my very favorite couples, Emma Thompson and Kenneth Branagh, had fantastic chemistry in the aforementioned Much Ado as well as the superb version of Henry V.


They also starred together in one of my all time favorite little-known mysteries, Dead Again, loaded with twists and turns:


Chemistry is tricky. I'm reminded of Justice Potter Stewart's attempt to explain "hard-core" pornography, or what is obscene, by saying, "I shall not today attempt further to define the kinds of material I understand to be embraced . . . [b]ut I know it when I see it . . . "

These three couples had chemistry. Sometimes it was like adding vinegar to baking soda, bubbling merrily along; sometimes it was more like adding Mentos ® to Diet Coke ® - explosive. But it was always a blast to watch.

Fuggedabout Romeo and Juliet

Screw tragic young love; the sadder but wiser pairing for me. In honour of St. Valentines Day, I offer my top ten favorite romantic couples.

1. Beatrice and Benedick in Much Ado About Nothing. Thompson and Branagh were a gorgeous couple. Here's a fun fan vid with some clips from the film.


2. Will Shakespeare and Viola De Lesseps in Shakespeare in Love. Joseph Fiennes and Gwyneth Paltrow are sublime. Here's the wonderful trailer.



3. Cary Grant and Katherine Hepburn as divorced couple Dexter and Tracy in Philadelphia Story. Check out this lovely clip of the two of them discussing their failed marriage.


4. Barbra Streisand and Ryan O'Neal as Judy and Howard in the madcap comedy What's Up Doc? I love this scene so much! She is incredible. So high energy and funny.



5. Hugh Laurie and Joely Richardson as Sam and Lucy in Maybe Baby. In this clip, he recites Shakespeare's Sonnet 116. Don't worry; he doesn't look like that throughout the whole movie. But his voice certainly is delightful no matter what.


I think I'll wait until tomorrow to share the other five. Now some ruminations:

When I was younger, I adored many different films for their romantic couplings, usually featuring much older men with a young actress. Christopher Plummer's Captain in Sound of Music, Rex Harrison's Professor Henry Higgins in My Fair Lady, Cary Grant as cat burglar John Robie in To Catch a Thief, and so forth. But as I've gotten older, it's less my ideal. Sure, I'm still nuts about 60-somethings Alan Rickman and Richard Thompson, but I think a maximum ten year difference is optimal.

What do you think? Who are your favorite film couples? More importantly, why?

Musical Monday Morning: The Way You Look Tonight

What a special treat I have for you today! A beautiful song performed by six beautiful people.



Aren't their voices absolutely gorgeous? This is a scene from the 1992 film Peter's Friends. I'm betting you've never seen it. Kindly do so. At once.


It is a lovely story with some fantastic actors. Amazing Children watched it with me as part of my ongoing obsession stalking appreciation of Hugh Laurie. He plays Roger Charleston, a talented musician who collaborates writing commercial jingles with his wife Mary, played by Imelda Staunton. The Charlestons are dealing with a very tragic incident that threatens to destroy their marriage. Laurie and Staunton are such great actors that I felt embarrassed intruding on their private, anguished conversations. You really do need to see this film.


Amazing Daughter shrieked "Argh! It's Umbridge!" when Staunton first appeared in the movie. We hate Umbridge. She is evil. In case you've been living on another planet, Umbridge is the awful Ministry of Magic official who takes over Hogwarts for a year in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. Here's a still from the film where Maggie Smith's Professor McGonagall is comforting Emma Thompson's Professor Trelawney as mean Umbridge tries to kick her out.

It takes some adjusting to like an actor after you've seen them play a truly despicable character.

We adjusted.

Laurie and Staunton make a terrific musical duo. And their characters' story is very moving. He is, of course, a GOD at singing, composing, and playing piano and guitar. Not to mention that sexyfunny horn thing he does with his lips at :45. She has a voice that's so lovely it brings tears to my eyes. And she's certainly able to do the glamorous star thing. ------>

Peter's Friends features Laurie's talented BFF Stephen Fry in the eponymous role. Laurie's former real-life girlfriend (Lucky girl!) Emma Thompson, takes a turn as a very funny character who tries to bed Peter, not realizing her old friend is gay. Her real-life husband at the time, Kenneth Branagh, directed and appears in the film as another friend of Peter. He's dancing in this clip with the lovely Alphonsia Emmanuel.

Play the clip again and marvel at the talent you're hearing and seeing.

There is a great write up about the song here. You should read it.

Don't you wish you had friends who could get together around your baby grand piano and harmonize like that? I do! I am leaving bloggyland for the day to go practice my arpeggios. You never know if Hugh Laurie a musical friend might be in the neighorhood.