MovieChat Forums > Some Came Running (1958) Discussion > Raved About By Peter Bogdanovich

Raved About By Peter Bogdanovich

posted 18 years ago by JohnnyWeissmuller
6 replies | jump to latest

Peter Bogdanovich raves about Some Came Running in his book Who The Hell's In It, and has done a great short for TCM amongst other things in relation to this superb film. I'm hoping that, when Some Came Running is eventually released on DVD, Bogdanovich will be asked to record a commentary.

[–] artihcus022 17 years ago

Well Some Came Running is already out on Region 2 and although the colours are nice, you can tell it's not struck from the best print. Still the final fairground scene comes off fine.

When the film does come on DVD, I hope they go all out on this film, Minnelli's finest non-Musical film. Two Disc edition, one a documentary on the making, the others a tribute to this amazing film from all it's famous fans.

Actually Criterion should pick this up.

People dissapear every day...Every time you leave the room - The Passenger

[–] WarpedRecord 16 years ago

Could it be that the title of this film inspired Bogdanovich's "They All Laughed"? Regardless, I can't say I share his affinity for this movie.

[–] toshguy 15 years ago

From what I've seen of Bogdanovich in interviews he's a very impressionable guy. He got mesmerized by the experiences of viewing certain films in his childhood and youth and can't stop raving about them till this day because they originally made such an enormous impressuion on him and that's why he's very subjective about them.

I'm here, Mr. Man, I can not tell no lie and I'll be right here 'till the day I die

[–] WarpedRecord 15 years ago

Yes, Bogdanovich is indeed impressionable -- both about films and actresses. I enjoy watching interviews with him because he seems to exude a childlike glee when discussing the film industry. If nothing else, he's a man of conviction.

[–] schappe1 15 years ago

I don't know about you but there were a lot of movies I saw early on that mean more to me than anything I've seen in recent years.

I also think that the 50's and 60's were an era of greater depth and variety in mvoie making. Many years the 4th or 5th best film would have won an Oscar in later eras. There were adaptaions of major novels like this one, westerns, musicals, serious plays, biographies, war films, spy films, science fiction, film noir, suspense thrillers, romantic melodramas and comedies, etc. etc.

I also like the look of films from that period, especially when they are letterboxed. It looks like you can reach right through the screen and shake hands with the characters. Films of later decades look like home movies by comparison. Viva TCM!

[–] rooprect 15 years ago

I don't know about you but there were a lot of movies I saw early on that mean more to me than anything I've seen in recent years.

I gotta agree with that (although you should check out some recent Japanese films - very impressive). The 50s & 60s Hollywood years seemed to show us the first heavy use of cinema as an artistic/political/social commentary. Some Came Running is a subtle yet scathing exposé of the phony "apple pie" era. This movie and The Spy Who Came in From the Cold rank among my favourite debunking films. Nowadays every film tries to show the dirty underbelly of society, but I haven't seen any new or creative approaches, unlike this movie which did it by presenting characters who seem respectable at first but end up making selfish, hypocritical mistakes (except for Ginny). What a way to illustrate the point that nothing is what it seems at first glance.

I haven't seen the Bogdonovich documentary, but the recent DVD release in the Sinatra Golden Collection has a nice "behind the scenes" featurette which helped explain some of this film's nuances and why it's such a powerful piece of cinema. And although I have no other versions to compare it to, the digital transfer looks great on my screen. No commentary, though. That's a bummer.