Movie Trivia Meme

Borrowed with love from Cubby at Patently Queer.

Simple rules:
1) Look up any TEN of your favorite movies on IMDB.
2)  Click the “trivia” link in the sidebar.
3) Post a fun and random bit of trivia from each film.
4) Tag some other bloggers if you want.

Here are mine in no particular order. Enjoy!

Lord of the Rings.
Originally the narration at the prologue was to be spoken by Elijah Wood, but it was felt that the information imparted had little bearing on the character of Frodo. Ian McKellen also recorded a narration but once again it was felt that Gandalf wasn't the right character to speak it. They eventually settled on Cate Blanchett as Galadriel, as it emphasizes the timelessness of the elves.

Singin' in the Rain.
While the film makes a central point of the idea that Kathy's voice is dubbed over Lina Lamont's, what is not told is that, ironically, in some of these songs - notably "Would You" and "You Are My Lucky Star" - Debbie Reynolds, the actress who plays Kathy, is actually dubbed by Betty Noyes. However, Reynolds' own singing voice can be heard on the outtake footage of "Lucky Star" as performed next to the giant billboard of Gene Kelly.

Topkapi.
Six weeks after the release of Topkapi, a similar, real-life heist took place at a New York City museum. Although 22 gems were stolen, they were recovered within 48 hours. (not much for such a great film.)

Auntie Mame
Mame's line in French at Macy's is "Après moi, le déluge" ("After me, the flood"). This quote is attributed to King Louis XV of France and represents a philosophy of living for now when disaster looms in the future. In the movie, it relates to purchasing Christmas gifts on credit so that one doesn't have to worry about paying for them right away, something that a rich socialite would be very comfortable with.

Blazing Saddles
One day in the Warner Bros. studio commissary, Mel Brooks and the other writers were seated at a table opposite John Wayne ("the Duke"). The Duke turned and said he had heard about their Western, the one where people say stuff like "blow it out your ass". Mel handed the Duke a copy of the script and said, "Yes, and we'd like you to be in it." According to Brooks, the Duke turned down the offer the next day by saying, "Naw, I can't do a movie like that, but I'll be first in line to see it!"

Dances with Wolves.
With the exception of the opening Civil War scenes (which were shot last), the film was shot in sequence because of the weather. They needed it to correspond with the time sequence in the film because of so much outdoor shooting. Most films are not shot in sequence.

Judgment at Nuremberg.
Marlene Dietrich had a great deal of trouble performing in the scene between Mrs. Bertholt and Judge Haywood when she claims German civilians did not know of the atrocities the Nazi government committed during the war. Dietrich, who, during the war, had worked for the Allies against the Nazis, found the sentiment so repulsive, she could not keep her concentration. Only after counseling by Spencer Tracy was the actress able to complete the scene. According to an interview with her grandson Peter Riva on the Icons Radio Hour, Marlene would get physically ill (to the point of vomiting) in the evenings over this part. In a conversation with her daughter Maria, Maria told her to "simply play her mother". The fictional Mrs. Bertholt is a representation of the mother of Marlene Dietrich. 

Touch of Pink
The title "Touch of Pink" is a play on the old Cary Grant movie That Touch of Mink (1962).  The character of Karim was added to the script just before filming had started. Ian Iqbal Rashid felt that Nuru should also have a love interest and a happy ending.

Angels in America
When Louis speaks to the Rabbi played by Meryl Streep after his grandmother's funeral, two of the rabbis also sitting on the cemetery bench are played by Tony Kushner (who wrote the play and screenplay) and children's book author and illustrator Maurice Sendak, who collaborated on the book Brundibar with Kushner. When Prior Walter and Harper Pitt share a dream, the set is based on a dream in Jean Cocteau's film Beauty and the Beast (1946). When Prior Walter ascends to heaven, portions of heaven are based on Cocteau's view of the afterlife in Orpheus (1950).

Close Encounters of the Third Kind
The John Williams score was created before the film was edited. Steven Spielberg edited the film to match the music, a reverse of what is usually done in film scoring. Both Spielberg and Williams felt that it ultimately gave the film a lyrical feel.  François Truffaut was continually trying to improve his English during production, and he was self-conscious of his heavy French accent. When he delivered the line "They belong here more than we" (after he learns the Army plans to dust the mountain with nerve gas), several crew members thought that he had said "Zey belong here, Mozambique." Several T-shirts were printed with this quote as a joke. When he heard about this, Truffaut supposedly burst out laughing. Steven Spielberg mentioned on a laserdisc documentary for 'E.T.' that Truffaut later used a variation of the line in a congratulatory telegram after 'E.T.' was screened at the Cannes Film Festival. The telegram to Spielberg read, "You belong here more than me."

Thanks Cubby, that was a lot of fun, actually. Scrolling through the trivia of these productions was interesting and educational; picking what to use was hard work.

Feel free to copy the rules above and create your own list. And let me know if you do by leaving a comment.

More later.
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