Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Cannery Row and Body Heat (3)


(Let's pretend it's actually September 18th, OK?)

A third viewing of Body Heat went hand-in-hand with a first-time viewing of Cannery Row, and I am assuming it was on VHS.

Cannery Row is a great little movie that was mired in some scandal back in the day because it was originally supposed to star Raquel Welch. She was fired and replaced with Debra Winger. Producers claimed Welch was in breach of contract because of something involving make-up (?), but there were rumors that she was fired because they felt she was too old for the part. She sued and eventually won.

Frankly, I can't imagine Welch in the role because Debra Winger is almost perfect, and it's a shame the movie was a flop. It's loosely based on the books Cannery Row and Sweet Thursday by John Steinbeck, and that connection made me love the movie even more since my parents and I would often vacation in Monterey, traipsing the same streets as Doc and his pals.

What makes the movie so good is its sense of humor, complete with narration by John Houston, and a gang of bums headed up by M. Emmet Walsh. I highly recommend a watch. It's available as a rental on Netflix and Amazon, and shows up sometimes on TCM.

Here's one of my favorite scenes.



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