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Favorite Gene Tierney Movie


Most people would choose Laura but my favorite is Leave Her to Heaven. Better plot, Oscar nomination for Gene Tierney. I do admit that Vincent Price was better in Dragonwyck.

Actually, I haven't seen a bad Tierney film. Others include The Ghost and Mrs. Muir, and Heaven Can Wait.

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Of those I've seen, Leave Her to Heaven.

Runners up:
The Razor's Edge
The Shanghai Gesture
Dragonwyck
The Ghost and Mrs. Muir

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I like Gene Tierney most of all in 'The Ghost and Mrs Muir.' Of the three films in which she co-appeared with Vincent Price I would pick 'Dragonwyck.' I think Gene Tierney is looking her best in that one. And of course Vincent Price is playing more in character in the film. I wish he had done more films with Gene Tierney.

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I wish he had done more of these gothic (not quite horror) melodramas in general. He was a terrific performer who was limited (not wasted, mind you) in straight horror. He was versatile and considered quite a dashing, romantic lead early in his career. Still, doesn't seem like he minded his type casting. Nicolas is a complicated and highly intelligent character, who gave the intellectual Price a lot to work with.

My main problems with Dragonwyck, which I do in fact love, is it's simplification of a relatively more nuanced novel, and it's '40s studio feel which doesn't quite convince me I'm in the 19th century. Gene Tierney does well with the character, but physically isn't the dreamy, blonde Miranda Anya Seyton described.

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Martin Scorcese has called Gene Tierney the best actress of the film noir genre era.

I was watching/listening to the DVD commentary recently for GHOST & MRS MUIR and they were just ripping Tierney as an actress. I forget the critic's name, but he implied Joe Mankiwiecz made light of her allegedly scant abilities, too.

It kinda made me mad.

She had a wonderful spate in the mid-to-late-'40s, and almost every film worked.

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Non-sequiturs are delicious.

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Well, it seems to me Scorcese, a man who actually makes movies, is more qualified in the matter than someone who makes their living talking about them. That does seem inappropriate and needlessly vicious to disparage her in the DVD commentary. First off, the woman can't defend herself so why dump all over her legacy. Secondly, the DVD special features are a place to pay homage, and inform about the film...not trash it.

Tierney was a beautiful woman, but she was also a talented actress who added value to a lot of top-notch productions. A few of her early performances are a little naive and shrill, but that's mainly because the studio hadn't figured out what to do with her yet. In the mid 40s she found her niche and played it out well. Her Oscar nomination for Leave Her to Heaven was well deserved. The boat scene alone is practically a lesson in acting.

I'd love to see some of her early costume epics like Hudson's Bay, but this one doesn't seem to make it onto television too often, or show up in DVD stores.

Prometheus, are we to understand your vote is for The Ghost and Mrs. Muir?

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Prometheus, are we to understand your vote is for The Ghost and Mrs. Muir?

Errrrm..... I dunno.... I might have to go with LAURA. No, as she herself stated, it's not her very best performance, but the movie is always so relaxing.

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Non-sequiturs are delicious.

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I think Vincent Price belonged in gothic movies be they melodrama or horror. I don't know if the film industry entirely dropped the gothic settings until Hammer revived it. Or the reason why if this was the case. But Vincent Price's career really seemed to renew itself when he started playing in Corman's gothic films in the early 1960s. VP certainly had the looks of a leading man in his early career. As you say Nicolas was more of an involved character for him to play and it is a pity that he didn't really find that type of role again.

I look forward to reading the dreamy blonde version of Miranda in the novel. I liked Gene Tierney in 'Dragonwyck' but prefer her as the more mature character of Mrs Muir.

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[deleted]

Leave Her to Heaven & The Razor's Edge.


☁☀☁

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» nec spe,nec metu •´¯`» The Amazing Gene Tierney: http://i.imgbox.com/W71wzNvU.gif

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[deleted]

Laura, she was just exquisite in that



so many movies, so little time

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