Muirmaiden's Corner

As an 11-year-old, I managed to see this two-part miniseries in its original airing back in 1990, and the scenes featuring Pennywise, the Dancing Clown (portrayed by Tim Curry) stayed with me for years and no doubt contributed to my dislike of clowns. But I also loved the story of childhood friendships, and of teamwork to take down evil. (It helped that at the time I had a major crush on Jonathan Brandis, about whom there will be more as this post progresses). It can't be denied that there are echoes of "Stand By Me" (1986) another film based on a work by Stephen King, who is known primarily as a horror writer but he has proven that he is much more than that. The nostalgic feel of much of the first half of "IT" and about a quarter of the second is what I enjoy the most and I've come across others who have the same opinion. First off, let's get down to the outrage of novel purists who despise the fact that so much was omitted and changed from King...

Dear readers, I've been on a blogging hiatus for quite a while, so I decided to make a return by reviewing a film that has become a personal favorite of late, "The Restless Years" (1958), directed by Helmut Kautner, and produced by Ross Hunter for Universal studios. At first glance, it appears to be something of a low-budget, watered-down version of "Peyton Place" (another book and film that I happen to love), but this effort is more intimate, providing a closer look at the main characters, and their home lives.  Filmed in black and white CinemaScope, it was based on a play entitled "Teach Me To Cry" by Patricia Joudry. Ross Hunter immediately envisioned it as a vehicle for his latest discovery, Sandra Dee. Dee, a former child model, had done a screen test with John Saxon, a young actor who was rising in popularity after his break-through role as a troubled youth in "The Unguarded Moment" (1956). Before appearing in this film, Dee was first...