skygiants

On my way up to Boston last week I found myself rewatching one of my oldest favorite movies, Cradle Will Rock. It's basically about art and revolution and class and Communism in the 1930's (I realize that is a pretty long basically) focusing on the Federal Theater Project of the Works Progress Administration, and a pro-Union musical that was shut down by the government on opening night and (spoiler!) managed to have a performance anyway, and about Diego Rivera angrily painting a mural for Rockefeller, and a lot of artistic people of various stripes being very dramatic and artistic and very often hilarious.

Cradle Will Rock is far from a perfect movie, but it might as well have been tailor-made for me - giant ensemble cast! 1930's period costumes with bonus random eighteenth-century costume party for no reason except to add some MORE neat costumes! theater people being ridiculous except when it comes time to talk about the power of the theater and then being awesome! Orson Welles chewing every piece of scenery he can find! lots of hugs and dancing and more hugs! - so I have decided to do a picspam in honor of how happy it makes me.

This is Hank Azaria as Marc Blitzstein, the author of the musical The Cradle Will Rock.

He is haunted by the sarcastic ghosts of his dead wife and Berthold Brecht, who keep popping up over his shoulder to offer artistic criticism. Berthold Brecht is especially hilarious because all the advice he ever has to offer is "But vhat about the PROSTITUTES?"

Berthold Brecht's advice leads to Hank Azaria popping up in the middle of a pro-Union riot and shouting that all policemen are whores. Needless to say this does not go well, but it triggers a creative episode so that's okay.

Orson Welles and John Houseman (played by Angus MacFadyen and Cary Elwes) adopt his play, slightly to his chagrin.

Blitzstein: "I am faithful to the ideals of the party."
Welles: "I am faithful to the party of ideas."
Houseman: "You are faithful to the idea of a party."

[awkward silence]

Orson Welles throwing a hissy fit as Faust. Chew ALL the scenery? CHEW ALL THE SCENERY! \o/

Cary Elwes' job is mostly to mock Orson Welles at every opportunity, but every so often he gets a chance to throw a hissy fit himself.

Welles: Oh, fine, Jack! You win, you've got the biggest creative dick, okay?
Houseman: Thank YOU!

It's okay, though, they really love each other.

And Vanessa Redgrave (in a sequence of amazing hats) loves them! She is a flighty Countess who is enchanted by all these wild and crazy theater folk. Here Cary Elwes has just invited her to join them on a THEATRICAL HEIST and it is the MOST EXCITING THING.

I am not sure why she is accompanied everywhere by Paul Giamatti in a terrible accent and enormous moustache - I think he is her pet opera singer - but the moustache is indeed hilarious, so here, a screencap.

That other gentleman is her husband, by the way, a steel magnate constantly attempting to crush strikers and giving money to Mussolini, but Vanessa Redgrave is bored by all this. TO THE THEATER! \o/

Not bored: Susan Sarandon, playing Margherita Sarfatti, Mussolini's pet art critic and Jewish mistress, in the US fund-raising for Fascism. She is actually kind of heartbreaking as a very charming, very dangerous woman who is having to give away piece by piece the things she cares most about.

"Mussolini is a friend to many Jews!" Oh, honey.

Diego Rivera (that's him looming in front of her, played by Ruben Blades) doesn't believe it either.

Frida Kahlo is judging you, Margherita.

There is not enough Frida Kahlo in this movie but what is amazing is that EVERY TIME you see her she is looking beautifully judgy. Here she is judging John Cusack as "the cute little Rockefeller" she is having a dance with, since he's just hired Diego Rivera to paint a mural in his lobby.

Diego and Rockefeller dance! This amicability, alas, will not last. (But why doesn't he want Lenin's face in the middle of his mural? DIEGO RIVERA CANNOT UNDERSTAND.)

There is also not enough of this dude in this movie, but he is kind of amazing as one of the few black actors in the cast of The Cradle Will Rock.

Other stars of the show include Emily Watson and John Turturro, who are both super adorable.

Look at her smile! Here she has just gotten a job as a stagehand after being homeless and on the streets. Her rags-to-riches (or at least fame) story is complicated and does not actually involve much riches or fame or maybe even a happy ending at all, but I really like it.

John Turturro, Emily Watson, and Vanessa Redgrave dancing their little hearts out!

Even John Turturro's tiny adorable children are dancing! That's the power of theater, ladies and gentlemen. John Turturro's storyline, by the way, is basically about him juggling being a struggling actor with being an awesome husband and dad. Spoiler: he does pretty okay at it.

(Meanwhile the rich people dance in fancy dress while society burns around them, or something. It's all very symbolic but I suspect they just wanted to use some of the old costumes hanging around in storage.)

Also super adorable is Cherry Jones as Hallie Flanagan, the classy and unflappable director of the Federal Theater Project.

Even surprise beavers intruding on her office to sing and dance at her in a terrifying fashion cannot faze her! And neither can Congressman Dies' interrogation to find out whether she is a COMMUNIST.

Historical record pwnage!
Dies: You are quoting from this Marlowe. Is he a communist?
Flanagan: I am very sorry. I was quoting from Christopher Marlowe.
Dies: Tell us who Marlowe is, so we can get the proper reference, because that is all we want to do.

Flanagan: Put in the record that he was the greatest dramatist in the time of Shakespeare.

Hallie Flanagan's equally adorable coworkers in the front row: *cracking UP*

Alas, we know from history that the Federal Theater Project was doomed no matter how awesome Hallie Flanagan was in the hearings . . . but THE POWER OF ART AND THEATER will never be suppressed!