Thursday, April 4, 2019

Thursday Movie Picks-Unrecognizable Actor Transformation


Well, the A to Z Challenge is underway and I feel bad that I didn’t participate this year so I might very well rejoin next year. It is always fun to see what themes everyone has from writing stories to animals to music and entertainment and anything else. Over at Wandering Through The Shelves the theme is all about actors who are unrecognizable. I could have gone in so many ways but I decided on 3 films that just popped into my head right away so here we go.

1. THE LOST MOMENT-1947

Take a guess who this is?

did you guess?



Yup, Endora or as her actual name is..Agnes Moorehead


This film I had wanted to see since I was a kid when I saw her photo, as an old woman, in a Life book. I finally got to see this wonderful film about 15 years ago and I want to see it again. Robert Cummings plays a writer who comes to a decaying mansion because he wants to learn more about a poet who had written love letters to the love of his life. He will go to any means to find these letters. Agnes Moorehead was changed into a 105 year old woman who was the object of the poet’s desires. She played this role so well that one forgot that she was only in her late 40s.

2. PLANET OF THE APES-1968

Guess who this is??

Someone might know this one...


Yup it’s Roddy McDowell


Funny that one can still see a bit of Roddy Through this makeup. You know, it was due to this film that the Academy decided to create a Best Make-up category for the Oscars.  I don’t think anyone doesn’t  know the story of this film even if you haven’t seen the film. Astronauts land on a planet and soon the only one left is Charlton Heston in a lion cloth. He is shocked that this planet is ruled by apes and the humans are the mute beings captured by the apes to be in Zoos and experimented on. They did not count on Charlie fighting back and speaking. You realize there is more to this story that results in a shocking ending. That is still gripping even today.

3. LITTLE BIG MAN-1970


Guess who?.
.....

Any Guesses?


Yup, Dustin Hoffman


I almost went with another film since this will work for another theme but it was calling me. An old man is visited by a reporter because this old man is to have survived Custer’s Last Stand. Told in flashback, we learn about the life of this man from being taught anatomy by Faye Dunaway to deciding to live with the Native Americans because he finds them more cultured and true than his own white honkies” (sorry, I went George Jefferson there). Dustin is great as the main character but Chief Dan George steals the shows as the old Chief who becomes his father figure and mentor.

Which  films would you choose?

And some humour...



63 comments:

  1. Considering when those movies were made, the Planet of the Apes films had some impressive makeup. Because yes, you can still see McDowell in the face. Same with the recent Apes films - yes, it's CGI rather than makeup, but you can still see Andy Serkis' face and eyes.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Were you thinking of King King? Andy Serkis did that very well! He asked to have one scene without the ape make up, so he was the boat’s cook.

      Delete
    2. Andy is great for these films to Gollum.

      Delete
    3. i am ERIC BRUNT by name. Greetings to every one that is reading this testimony. I have been rejected by my wife after three(3) years of marriage just because another Man had a spell on her and she left me and the kid to suffer. one day when i was reading through the web, i saw a post on how this spell caster on this address AKHERETEMPLE@gmail.com have help a woman to get back her husband and i gave him a reply to his address and he told me that a man had a spell on my wife and he told me that he will help me and after 3 days that i will have my wife back. i believed him and today i am glad to let you all know that this spell caster have the power to bring lovers back. because i am now happy with my wife. Thanks for helping me Dr Akhere contact him on email: AKHERETEMPLE@gmail.com
      or
      call/whatsapp:+2349057261346










      i am ERIC BRUNT by name. Greetings to every one that is reading this testimony. I have been rejected by my wife after three(3) years of marriage just because another Man had a spell on her and she left me and the kid to suffer. one day when i was reading through the web, i saw a post on how this spell caster on this address AKHERETEMPLE@gmail.com have help a woman to get back her husband and i gave him a reply to his address and he told me that a man had a spell on my wife and he told me that he will help me and after 3 days that i will have my wife back. i believed him and today i am glad to let you all know that this spell caster have the power to bring lovers back. because i am now happy with my wife. Thanks for helping me Dr Akhere contact him on email: AKHERETEMPLE@gmail.com
      or
      call/whatsapp:+2349057261346

      Delete
  2. Hi, Birgit!

    The topic of unrecognizable actor (or actress) transformation fascinates me. I haven't seen The Lost Moment, but I am very excited about it after watching the mini review video you posted. I see that the film is available for viewing on YouTube and I intend to watch it. I greatly admire old black and white film noir that make creative use of camera angles and tracking movement. I also like the principal players - Agnes Moorehead, Bob Cummings and Susan Hayward.

    I well remember Roddy transformed into an ape in that popular film series. Chuck Heston in a loin cloth? I just threw-up in my mouth a little. Believe it or not, I never saw Little Big Man even though I generally enjoy Dustin Hoffman's performances. I appreciated your Geo. Jefferson reference. :)

    I would have to pick actor John Hurt's transformation into Joseph (John) Merrick in the David Lynch film The Elephant Man. It's a wonderful movie. The main characters in The Wizard of Oz also come to mind, along with all those Lon Chaney transformations, and Charles Laughton as Quasimodo in The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1939).

    Have a happy Thursday, dear friend BB!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. ...and James Arness (before he was Matt Dillon) as "the Carrot Man" alien creature in The Thing (1951).

      Delete
    2. I hope you like the Lost Moment as much as I do. I totally forgot about Charles Laughton in one of my favourite films never mind Lon Chaney Snr... the man of a thousand faces from his Quasimodo to his Phantom of the Opera. I love The Elephant Man and Mask would work too. Love good ole James as the big carrot

      Delete
  3. There have been some wonderful make ups over the years. Charlton Heston did a cameo as an ape in the remake of Planet Of The Apes - and said rude things about guns! (Maybe he had a sense of humour after all!)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, I know he was in the movie and he did have a sense of humour even though he loved his guns

      Delete
  4. I like how you laid this post out. The only one of these I've seen is Planet of the Apes, but that's impressive make up on the other two.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. They are aren’t they? Maybe you will one of these in your blind spot challenge

      Delete
  5. Haven't seen the first one but did see the other two. Little Big Man sparked my interest in Indian history. What Americans did to them was an absolute crime.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That is their holocaust in my book never mind the slavery which is also a huge mark.

      Delete
  6. loved the planet of the apes...if only I could transform myself on a morning!....xxxx

    ReplyDelete
  7. Great choices!

    I don't know why Planet of the Apes didn't even occur to me, it seems like such a no-brainer. The makeup is truly impressive, not settling for an immobile mask but allowing the actor's emotion to come through.

    It's been years since I've last watched Little Big Man, it is so long and at times dry, but that makeup job is really something.

    We match!! The Lost Moment isn't the best film any of its stars made but I found it atmospheric and fun. I remember the first time I saw it as a kid and kept looking for Endora to show up not realizing until the end that she was under all that makeup.

    I also went with the makeup transformations as opposed to the performer starving themselves down to the nub and some other violation of their body to get the desired effect.

    The Lost Moment (1947)-Publisher Lewis Venable (Robert Cummings) is desperate to acquire love letters between noted 19th century poet Jeffrey Ashton and Juliana Bordereau (Agnes Moorehead). Learning that Juliana is still alive at 105, Lewis arranges an introduction. Assuming the identity of a rich author, Lewis meets the now-blind Juliana, who allows him to rent rooms in her home. As Lewis' searches for the letters he must contend with the resistance of Juliana's great-niece, Tina (Susan Hayward) a tightly wound schizophrenic duel personality obsessed with Ashton. This slightly reworked version of Henry James The Aspern Papers isn’t for everyone, star Susan Hayward hated it and referred to it as The Lost Hour and a Half, but features a most impressive makeup job on Agnes Moorehead who though in her mid-forties is unrecognizable as the ancient Juliana.

    Mask (1985)-Rocky Dennis (Eric Stoltz) a sweet-natured extremely bright teen suffers from Lionitis which caused his facial features to be deformed taking on the appearance of that beast. Thanks to his wild but tough and loving mother Rusty (Cher) and biker friends who see him for who he is Rocky doesn’t let his affliction get in the way. But the greater world is not so understanding, at least at first, and there are many obstacles to face. Based on a true story Stoltz is buried under mountains of prosthetics but manages to convey Rocky’s essence extremely well, matched every step of the way by Cher.

    Bettlejuice (1988)-Tim Burton’s wild ride of a movie tells the tale of Barbara (Geena Davis) and Adam Maitland (Alec Baldwin) freshly dead in a car accident, finding themselves stuck haunting their country residence and unable to leave the house. When the unbearable Deetzes (Catherine O'Hara, Jeffrey Jones) and teen daughter Lydia (Winona Ryder) buy the home, the Maitlands attempt to scare them away without success. Their efforts attract Beetlejuice (Michael Keaton), a rambunctious spirit whose "help" quickly becomes dangerous for the Maitlands and innocent Lydia. Keaton done up in wild style is brash and inimitable.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yeah! We match and to a movie that I actually love. I didn’t know Susan Hayward hated it so much..hahahaaa. I wish I would have chosen a Lon Chaney film..I don’t know where my mind was. Love your choices especially Mask which is a great film and Eric Stolz was excellent as the teen with this disease. Beetlejuice is so much fun and I love the dinner table scene

      Delete
    2. Oh yes, I agree about the actors shortening their lives by gaining tons or starving themselves...there has to be a better way. I wonder if....when Jane Fonda takes off all her make up and stuff if she ends up looking like Agnes Moorehead in that movie:)

      Delete
  8. How about Rod Taylor as Winston Churchill in Inglourious Basterds?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh yeah...I forgot about him..great choice

      Delete
  9. I knew the last two. They did a spread on Dustin Hoffman in Life magazine about how he prepared for the role, so even though I haven't seen the movie I knew it was him. I knew Roddy MacDowall had been in the Planet of the Apes movies, and besides, the makeup didn't really alter his face to the point that he was unrecognizable. Agnes Moorehead, on the other hand, was a shock. She was quite attractive, wasn't she? I mean, without the makeup...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, anyone who has seen Little Big Man knows this is Dustin but it is a great transformation. Roddy does look like himself but that was the point plus that the actors had the ability to show so much with the makeup. Agnes was a handsome actress if I can say that and, yes, what a transformation

      Delete
  10. The Elephant Man was the one that sprang to my mind, but I see someone beat me to it!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Agnes Moorehead is a treasure. She was fun in Bewitched, but her film career is definitely worth checking out. I haven't seen "The Lost Moment" but will keep my eye open for it. Thx!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. She was a great actress..one of Orion Welles troup

      Delete
  12. Dustin Hoffman is one of my favorite actors...
    have a great day

    ReplyDelete
  13. Oh my gosh, ya almost wonder if we'd be better off not knowing who they really were. hahaha~

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I know but I am too curious and would want to know so I went with that:)

      Delete
  14. Fascinating how you know these details. Good makeup artists and all those other movie tricks really makes such a huge transformation. Happy almost weekend. Erika

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks! I try and it is amazing how well they did not only the face but the hands

      Delete
  15. I have not seen any of those. Really extensive makeup. I don't know if I can think of any movies off the top of my head that fit this category.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. These are really great movies, in my book but if you read comments above you will see some great choices like Mask and the Hunchback of Norte Dame

      Delete
  16. I've not seen any of these (what else is new?), but I enjoyed your reviews. You are a wealth of knowledge about movies. These would have stumped me, that's for sure.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks so much and I love reading about movies and stars.

      Delete
  17. Great choices, BIRGIT!

    Shady's mention of "John Hurt's transformation into Joseph (John) Merrick in the David Lynch film The Elephant Man" was also an excellent contribution.

    I think my own favorite - based not just on the make-up job but also on the actor's incredible physical and mental transformation - is probably Albert Finney and his portrayal of the young & studly, and later the old & miserly, Ebenezer Scrooge. Hokey-Smoke! I've seen that movie dozens of times (easily on my all-time Top Ten Favorites list!!) and his transformation *STILL* amazes me! He even seems at least 6 inches shorter when he's "old & miserly"!! An amazing performance and an utterly fantastic movie!

    [Link> Young & Studly Ebenezer Scrooge

    [Link> Old & Miserly Ebenezer Scrooge

    ~ D-FensDogG
    STMcC Presents BATTLE OF THE BANDS

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I will look up Albert as young and old and I saw this version but icons ago. I shall take a look at the pics

      Delete
    2. Yup, I did see this film and what a great transformation

      Delete
  18. I have not seen any of these. But thanks for introducing me to them!

    ReplyDelete
  19. That Dustin Hoffman transformation really surprised me!

    ReplyDelete
  20. The ones that first came to my mind have been mentioned so I had to think a bit. Mrs Doubtfire with Dustin Hoffman in drag? Or one that really impressed me was Charlize Theron in Monster. This beautiful actress really went all out to change her look.

    It's okay if you sat out A to Z. Some bloggers have to stay in the world of normal blogging so as to appease those who try to avoid A to Z.

    Arlee Bird
    Tossing It Out

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Mrs. Doubtfire is with Robin Williams but excellent choice. The one with Dustin Hoffman is Tootsie which is also a good choice. Monster is an excellent film and boy did she change for the role.

      Delete
  21. One of the ones I'd choose is the Dark Knight.
    Heath Ledger is the JOKER!!?? GTFO!

    ReplyDelete
  22. Oh, BTW, this edition of the "Nerd Zone":
    In the "Planet of the Apes" remakes, the orangutan is called "Maurice."
    In the original, the orangutan (Dr. Zaius) is played by MAURICE Evans.
    And the little girl in the remakes is called "Nova."
    Yeah, those can't be coincidences.
    The nerd IS strong in me.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I’m a nerd at heart so I know of what you speak.

      Delete
  23. So, it's been one of those days where the phone hasn't stopped ringing or the doorbell for that matter, and my husband is home so he hasn't stopped doing the, "Honey, where's this or what about this, that and the other thing or "Honey, would you do... or honey what about..."! Lord, HELP ME!!! Anyway, I thought it was late money/early afternoon and it turns out to be 3:30 p.m. where did the day go, and I really wanted to get in a bunch of comments out today! :( So, what have we got here? Oh my gosh, I have loved what you've chosen and I didn't know some of these as to who these transformations really were! WOW, Roddy McDowell I had no idea he was one of the apes. Very cool. Thanks for sharing all this cool info. Have a great day!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for visiting and glad you enjoyed reading my blog and the films I chose.

      Delete
  24. Have fun with those new stamps:)

    ReplyDelete
  25. I didn't realise Agnes Moorehead was quite so glamorous when she was young! I haven't seen The Lost Moment but the other two are great films. I really loved Little Big Man.
    That's Purrfect

    ReplyDelete
  26. Birgit,

    I knew Roddy McDowell from The Planets of Apes but I had no clue on the other two. Hollywood makeup artist can hide the identy of anyone! Although, Robin Williams' character as Mrs. Doubtfire wasn't constant throughout the film and you knew who he was, the change was still remarkable.

    Here's a movie for ya, it has nothing to do with this theme but I know how much you like vintage films. We watched The Notorious Landlady with Jack Lemmon, Kim Novach, and Fred Astaire on AmazonPrime over the weekend. It was a fun feature to catch and I thought of you. :)

    Thanks for visiting A2Z Little Mermaid art sketch series 'Flounder' post!

    ReplyDelete
  27. Planet of the Apes was outstanding wasn't it? And they did a great job on Rodney. It probably wasn't particularly comfortable in that mask either.

    ReplyDelete
  28. Wow, those are some incredible transformations, especially the first one. I'm not a big fan of movies where a beautiful actress gains some weight and they give her some prosthetic teeth and then talk about how "brave" she was for playing the role (i.e. Charlize Theron in Monster).

    My picks would be Daniel Day-Lewis in My Left Foot; Tilda Swinton in Suspiria; and Jake Gyllenhaal in pretty much anything, but especially Southpaw. You can't even tell it's him!

    ReplyDelete
  29. I haven't seen any of the movies, but that was fun seeing the characters and the actors out of character.

    ReplyDelete
  30. Birgit hi.
    I've only seen Planet of the Apes, the rest I don't know.
    I used to work in the film industry in South Africa, about 25 years. I have, over those years, seen some amazing transformations to buildings, cars, people, landscapes, the list goes on and on.
    Blessings in the name of Jesus, Geoff.

    ReplyDelete
  31. i am ERIC BRUNT by name. Greetings to every one that is reading this testimony. I have been rejected by my wife after three(3) years of marriage just because another Man had a spell on her and she left me and the kid to suffer. one day when i was reading through the web, i saw a post on how this spell caster on this address AKHERETEMPLE@gmail.com have help a woman to get back her husband and i gave him a reply to his address and he told me that a man had a spell on my wife and he told me that he will help me and after 3 days that i will have my wife back. i believed him and today i am glad to let you all know that this spell caster have the power to bring lovers back. because i am now happy with my wife. Thanks for helping me Dr Akhere contact him on email: AKHERETEMPLE@gmail.com
    or
    call/whatsapp:+2349057261346










    i am ERIC BRUNT by name. Greetings to every one that is reading this testimony. I have been rejected by my wife after three(3) years of marriage just because another Man had a spell on her and she left me and the kid to suffer. one day when i was reading through the web, i saw a post on how this spell caster on this address AKHERETEMPLE@gmail.com have help a woman to get back her husband and i gave him a reply to his address and he told me that a man had a spell on my wife and he told me that he will help me and after 3 days that i will have my wife back. i believed him and today i am glad to let you all know that this spell caster have the power to bring lovers back. because i am now happy with my wife. Thanks for helping me Dr Akhere contact him on email: AKHERETEMPLE@gmail.com
    or
    call/whatsapp:+2349057261346

    ReplyDelete