2 For 1: "Desk Set" (1957) and "Julie & Julia" (2009)

From the "What a Waste of Perfectly Wonderful Actors" Department:

Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn were two of the most respected and beloved actors of all time, and individually, gave brilliant performances in a number of great films.  However, of the nine times they co-starred together, only 1949's "Adam's Rib" remains a classic.  Of the other films, the comedies hold up better than the dramas, but 1957's "Desk Set" is definitely one of their minor achievements: a so-so play adapatation, and odd fit  for both stars.  While their conflicting acting styles (Tracy was among the most natural of actors, and Hepburn's affectations followed her from character to character) often worked well in conjunction with antagonism between their roles in a film, here it just falls flat.  They are also both clearly too old for their parts.  Trivia fans will note that this was their first film together made in color.

20th Century Fox, for whatever reason, chose to film the picture in Cinemascope, their widescreen process, and it is wasted on a story that takes place almost completely in a single office space.  Hepburn plays Bunny Watson (was any actress more un-Bunny like than Hepburn?), the head of reference for a major television network, where her amazing intellect and powers of recollection are put to good use.  She is aided by Joan Blondell (wonderful in her typical role, the good-hearted buddy), and two other assistants.  Tracy is Richard Sumner, a computer expert whose arrival at the network sends everyone into a tizzy, assuming they are to be replaced by machines.  This gossip grapevine is very funny, and also very realistic in portraying the way that "unofficial" word gets around like wildfire in an office setting.  Complicating matters further is that Hepburn is the longtime girlfriend of an executive named Mike Cutler (Gig Young, yet again not getting the girl), who takes her for granted.

The plot lurches along with the arrival of a gigantic computer system into the office, and there is the usual misunderstanding, which is followed by the good-natured conclusion.  Sparks don't fly between Tracy and Hepburn, they crawl.  She does get a fine moment late in the film when she (intentionally) overdramatically recites a medieval poem, and Tracy gets to do his patented comic frustration shtick, but the film really isn't more than a pleasant little time waster, which is sad, considering the level of talent involved.




From the "Why Didn't They Just Cut That Whole Plotline Out of the Movie" Department:

"Julie & Julia" was based on two books: the title coming from Julie Powell's story of the year she spent cooking recipes from Julia Child's "Mastering the Art of French Cooking", and secondly, "My Life in France" by Child herself.  It's possible that without Powell's book there would've been no film at all, but the fact is that the picture is only interesting when it focuses on Julia, rather than Julie.  Julia Child was, in fact, still among the living when Powell started her project, but was not impressed with the idea, which she thought was a gimmick rather than a serious attempt at learning about cooking.

Meryl Streep's performance is interesting in that she looks very little like Julia Child, but mimics her vocal style, and, through the use of specially built sets and props, seems as tall as Child herself was.  It is one of Streep's more enjoyable performances, as it does not feel too overstudied or technical.  Amy Adams, on the other hand, (whom I have enjoyed immensely in films such as "Junebug") gives a performance that is either whining or smirking.  There is none of the effervescence of her charming work in "Enchanted" here, and a good bit of the annoying quality that crept into her work in "Doubt".  Whenever Adams is onscreen, having a kitchen meltdown over some recipe, I am anxious for the film to return to the wondrous Streep, inhabiting the beloved 'French Chef' right down to her signature 'Bon Appetit!'  Nora Ephron directed, competently and unobtrusively, but one wishes her direction had more of the spark and wit of her writing.  There is a beautifully recreated 1950's version of France, and a solid supporting performance by Stanley Tucci (one of our most reliable character actors working today)  as Julia's devoted husband Paul.

So, thanks may go to Julie Powell and her project for being the impetus that got this film made, but she is merely a somewhat unpleasant appetizer we must sit through until we get to savor the film's main course: Julia Child, as prepared by Meryl Streep.