About eight minutes into the movie when they're talking about the musical cigar box, James Stewart seems to stumble over the line, "I still think it's inadvisable." Does anyone agree, or was he supposed to do that? He seems to close his eyes in frustration.
"Are you sure it isn't time for a colorful metaphor?"
I think it was intentional. He says it something like "I still think it's, eh-uh, inadvisable" as if he were choosing the word carefully so as not to offend his boss so much.
shareRight, it's as if he's being tactful on the surface yet not-so-tactful underneath. In the "Yes, Mr. Matuschek" scene we see more of the same. Kralik has a sideways way of speaking to his employer, and Mr. Matuschek knows it.
shareJimmy, (if I may be permitted to address him by that moniker), was such a consumate actor. Appearing to stumble over words and mispronounce them were his classic strategies and made him appear more normal and human, thus endearing him to film fans forever. The man could do no wrong to my mind, I hope you agree. The day I heard of his death, I went home, put on 'It's a Wonderful Life', and had a wee weep at his passing.
shareI was just wondering about that myself--i didn't realize it was one of his trademarks.
Great movie. :-)
Jimmy, (if I may be permitted to address him by that moniker),
Sure you can, all his fans do ever since, well whoever started calling him Jimmy, since whenever, lol!
"I promise you, before I die I'll surely come to your doorstep"
WHAT DO PEOPLE SAY NOW?? "THAT MADE ME VOMIT INTO MY MOUTH".
sharePerhaps it really was a mistake but Lubitsch and his editors liked the way it sounded, as it seems to be motivated by the character's relation with his boss.
shareFrom what I've observed, Mr. Stewart, OK--Jimmy, did that word stumbling for effect in his comedic roles more often than in his dramatic ones. Harvey comes to mind as another good example.
"Go back to your oar, Forty One."
Appearing to stumble over words and mispronounce them were Jimmy's classic strategies and made him appear more normal and human, thus endearing him to film fans forever, so I think it was intentional. He says it something like "I still think it's, eh-uh, inadvisable" as if he were choosing the word carefully so as not to offend his boss too much.
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Jimmy Stewart: A Wonderful Legend
"Sometimes I wonder if I'm doing a Jimmy Stewart imitation myself"
I like it, it's realistic that way. It's so rare for actors to stumble on their lines naturally.
shareIf you want to wonder at the great man once again, I urge you to watch this video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mwGnCIdHQH0
If you can do it without a lump in your throat or a tear in your eye, you are not alive in my opinion. Simply wonderful how he reins in his audience from laughing and giggling affably to total silence and grief, just masterful.
"Which it will be ready when it's READY!" Preserved Killick, Master and Commander
Thank you for posting this. I'm glad to say that I am indeed alive.
share