Jacques Tourneur, B Movie Auteur (Part 2): I Walked With A Zombie (1943)
“How do you ever expect to get to heaven, with one foot in the voodoo houmfort and the other in the church?” “You never talked about voodoo before, Mrs Rand.” “It’s just part of everyday life here.” “You don’t believe in it?” “A missionary’s widow? It isn’t very likely, is it?” If Cat People affects us so potently because of our compassion for its central character, this follow-up from Tourneur... Read More
Jacques Tourneur, B Movie Auteur (Part 1): Cat People (1942)
I’ve tried to make you realize all these stories that worry you are so much nonsense, but now I see it’s not the stories. It’s the fact that you believe them. We need someone who can find the reason for your belief and cure it. You’re drawn to her. She’s sexy, sure, but not like the mankiller in a velvet gown on the posters. She’s petite, shy, unsure, gorgeous eyes. Kittenish. Lonely, there’s a sadness there, some secret wound. You just... Read More
Tourneur/Lewton Day on TCM
I was very pleasantly surprised last night while browsing possible DVR candidates that TCM is showing both Cat People and I Walked With a Zombie again today. It wasn’t too long ago that Michael Guillen over at The Evening Class hosted a Val Lewton blogathon with a plethora of links to good commentary on both of these films. If you missed the hub-bub the first time around, make sure to catch up with it today. And as an added bonus is Tourneur’s stalwart noir masterwork... Read More
Comments