Access Atlanta > Movies > Blog > Archives > 2007 > June > 22 > Entry
Delta was ready even in the era of Pitt’s ‘Troy’
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Dear Mr. Smithee,
You recently mentioned the intrusive microphone in “The History Boys.” Around 1950, I was a projectionist for “Shane.” During the fourth screening, as Alan Ladd rode manfully through the Big Sky Country, I spotted a faraway 18-wheeler crossing in front of a mesa.
Can you provide examples of more classic gaffes?
PETER THOMPSON, Athens
Dear Come Back, Peter!
You say it’s a truck. Some say it was a bus. Whatever it was, it apparently has been digitally excised from at least some DVD versions.
Watchful eyes on Imdb.com claim the vehicle was still visible in the trailer for the film’s rerelease years ago.
And, Peter, you left out the most important fact: Modern mode of transport or not, the popular Western “Shane” captured the best color cinematography Oscar.
It’s actually kind of startling how many mistakes show up in movies.
Bsnews.org suggests some of the best movie blunders include:
An Adidas tag flapping beneath Capt. Jack Sparrow’s headband.
An airplane flying above “Troy” boy Brad Pitt.
A gas canister in an overturned chariot in “Gladiator.”
I’ve long been a fan of Moviemistakes.com, which chronicles lots of gaffes.
It notes a scene with Sam, Frodo, a scarecrow and a passing car in “The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.”
Apparently there’s also an extra who exposes himself in “Teen Wolf.”
And even though “Titanic” takes place in the middle of the Atlantic, several viewers have noted the equivalent of “Land, ho!” in the film’s background.
ALAN
P.S. You get a “Live Free or Die Hard” cap and an “Ask Alan Smithee” T-shirt.
Dear Mr. Smithee,
Do you think the “powers that be” would consider including a G- or PG-rated version as a bonus when releasing a movie on DVD?
It seems that a profanity-free option would be as easy to add as a foreign language option. Editing out sex, violence and gore might be more difficult (and may turn many a movie into a “short”), but I’d guess that the expense to do this is minimal and would be outweighed by increased sales and profits.
I’m also guessing that parents with young kids (such as myself) are as sick as I am of computer-animated animals lecturing about urban sprawl and global warming, blah, blah, blah and would love some variety in DVD choices.
Not to mention that I personally can’t stomach a lot of what today’s movies dish out.
JUDY N. OTT, Marietta
Dear Blah Blah Blah,
You’re serious, aren’t you?
I thought so.
Personally, I’ve always wondered why moviemakers didn’t just add a sex, violence, gore and profanity version to G-rated movies on DVDs so I’d be more inclined to want to watch them.
You know, there are plenty of PG-13 movies out there, and if you can’t watch those, I suppose you should turn more often to TV movies.
Ultimately, though, you should refrain from wanting to alter the filmmaker’s original intention and look a bit harder through the realm of PG movies that already exist.
Here are some really tremendous ones: “Rudy,” “Groundhog Day,” “Fly Away Home,” “Babe,” “Sense and Sensibility,” “Apollo 13,” “Pride” (it arrives on DVD July 26), “A River Runs Through It,” “Akeelah and the Bee,” “Dead Poets Society,” “Finding Neverland,” “Good Night, and Good Luck,” “Elf” and “Millions.”
ALAN
P.S. You get a “Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer” (rated PG) T-shirt and an “Ask Alan Smithee” T-shirt.
Dear Mr. Smithee,
Please release me from the song that won’t leave my tortured mind. A recent display in the school I work in lit up the part of my brain that had stored an image of Burl Ives singing “The Ugly Bug Ball.”
JOHN L. POULIN, Holly Ridge, N.C.
Dear Devil Come Out!
- “Summer Magic.”
And you’re welcome.
ALAN
P.S. You get an “Ocean’s Thirteen” T-shirt and an “Ask Alan Smithee” T-shirt.
HAVE A QUESTION FOR MR. SMITHEE?
E-mail him at alansmithee@ajc.com or go to accessAtlanta.com and click on Movies. Please include your name, city and daytime phone number. Mr. Smithee can’t reply to every request, but inquiries chosen for publication will receive movie-related prizes.
Permalink | Comments (2) | Categories: Alan Smithee
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By Robert Samuels
June 22, 2007 2:16 PM | Link to this
I have seen Alfred Hitchcock in all his pictures except “The Trouble With Harry”. I have viewed it at least 3 times with no luck.
By Robert Samuels
June 22, 2007 2:16 PM | Link to this
I have seen Alfred Hitchcock in all his pictures except “The Trouble With Harry”. I have viewed it at least 3 times with no luck.